Apocalypse: the Most Ruthless Person

”Yes, maintain it well. Tanks are the backbone in the battle against zombies. Just look around, you’ll see!”

Zhang Su was quite satisfied with the combat strength reserves of the Civilization Guardian!

During the conversation, the tank battle was nearing its end. The actual situation was exactly as Zhang Su had imagined. The tank’s crushing force was basically invincible, but couldn’t annihilate completely, unless there was infinite diesel to run wild.

Considering the fuel issue, Zhang Su instructed Pan Guoliang to step down and take a rest. The scattered zombies needed to be eliminated manually, but that posed no difficulty anymore.

When almost everyone was engaged in clearing the zombies, Zhang Su was discussing something very important with Ma Changshou—whether they could slaughter a pig!

He had heard a few days ago that a sow gave birth to a litter of piglets. Zhong Xiaoshan had mentioned it to him, supposedly there were nine piglets, but one died shortly after birth...

The old sow had completed her mission by giving birth and now had a new purpose.

”There is indeed a sow that produced a litter, but... it’s only been a week. If possible, the piglets should be weaned in two more weeks.”

Ma Changshou was a bit hesitant. As an amateur postnatal care for sows expert, he knew that piglets should ideally be weaned three to four weeks after birth, as their digestive systems develop to better handle solid food.

He wasn’t sympathetic toward the old sow, because they currently lacked breeding pigs, so the sow was no longer valuable. Continuing to feed her would be a waste of food—a harsh reality, but people are already miserable enough; there’s no time to empathize with an old sow.

Zhang Su also appeared troubled considering the day’s significance. He, as the host, knew everyone confirmed their desire to join Celestial Horse Island. These were all new members now, and given the grand victory, offering decent food was a matter of pride. Whether or not others cared, Zhang Su felt his dignity was at stake.

If someone were to mention Celestial Horse Island’s King Yama with impressions of stinginess and tightfistedness, it would be terrible—even though he generally was thrifty, it depended on the occasion!

”However...”

Seeing Zhang Su’s conflicted face, Ma Changshou knew the old sow was certainly doomed today. He took off his hat and scratched his head, saying: ”Another one is about to give birth soon. If we treat her better, her milk will suffice.”

Pa.

Zhang Su snapped his fingers, patted Ma Changshou’s arm, and said: ”Go, quickly get Zhuzi, and immediately go slaughter the pig. Ask the women cleaning up the corpses to start cooking pork and vermicelli stews!”

”Ay, ay, got it!”

Ma Changshou brightened like a blossoming chrysanthemum, already having figured out how to feed the piglets. Just as he was about to call Zhao Dezhu, Zhang Su stopped him.

”There are too many people. A single pig won’t be enough; we’ll need to add more potatoes—there are many of those. Yes, add more vermicelli too; don’t sting on them!”

”Understood, understood, haha, Boss Zhang, rest assured, everyone will eat their fill!”

Ma Changshou leapt and bounded to call Zhao Dezhu. In his mind, he estimated the old sow weighed about three hundred pounds, yielding roughly one hundred eighty pounds of meat, allowing each person to get about a pound of meat, plus potatoes, vermicelli, and whatnot—a grand feast!

On hearing about the pig slaughter, Zhao Dezhu shouted a few words to Zhang Su, got into a car, and left with Ma Changshou.

Many present saw King Yama conversing with an old man endlessly, unsure about what they were discussing. Having no time to ponder, they continued their battlefield cleanup.

Very soon, the scene was cleared, with not even one zombie left standing; even the crawling, disabled zombies were completely annihilated. Corpses couldn’t be stacked and were messily scattered across the wilderness.

”Brothers and sisters!”

Zhang Su stood atop the tank commander’s hatch, with a speaker affixed to his waist by Yuwen and holding a microphone.

”Conspiracy brought us together, misunderstanding united us. Today, facing tens of thousands of zombie attacks, we fought to the end—no one got bitten. This is a great victory for humanity! With the grape bombs deployed, countless zombies were obliterated, the total zombie count remains unverified…

But surely exceeds twenty-five thousand. Just to be generous, let’s count it as thirty thousand! Even globally, such a record is awe-inspiring. Everyone present, along with those cleaning up the corpses in the rear, is a hero—a living hero!”

Those standing amidst the wild fields appeared a bit disheveled, yet their spirits were high. Slightly tilting their heads, they gazed at Zhang Su above the tank, moved by his fervent speech.

This excitement wasn’t hollow, as everyone personally participated, as direct witnesses. One shouldn’t boast about events they didn’t partake in, but having participated, they had every right to feel proud.

Whether twenty-five or thirty thousand, such minor discrepancies were irrelevant—maybe in future anecdotes it’s exaggerated to ten or eighty thousand. Such embellishments are necessary promotional tactics!

”Heroes, heroes.”

Everyone raised their arms and chanted together, their elevated voices resonating across the wilderness. It seemed like there hadn’t been such liberated vocal vibrations since the disaster broke out, always wary of zombie detection. But now they shouted freely, even if tearing their vocal cords, because their hearts were stirred, because nearby, almost no zombies could hear them.

Why dare to shout? Because there’s no fear!

Zhang Su’s mood was also jubilant. Celestial Horse Island had victories large and small before, but none felt as exhilarating as today. However, he couldn’t indulge in excitement like everyone else, so he lowered his palm, signaling for silence.

”Victory is great, but mankind’s current survival environment remains harsh. Qin City houses over a million zombies; today we’ve only addressed a small part, yet it’s an undeniable small part. We need to replicate such victories until our survival is secure.”

”What is security?”

Zhang Su posed and answered the question himself.

”When, at night, you’re snuggling with your beloved, and won’t worry about an emergency muster ruining the mood. When savoring delectable dishes at ease, without stressing about zombies attacking the camp and spoiling your appetite. When lying in bed, enjoying tranquil sleep unafraid an alarm will abruptly disrupt peaceful dreams—hopefully you’re not accustomed to sleeping naked then…”

The stirring address ended with a small joke, sparking smiles among the dusty-faced crowd. Three topics, the most basic human desires: appetite, libido, and sleep. Plain and simple, yet most relatable.

Countless times, weapons were clutched and slept with, awakening at the slightest rustle, with the heart and mind bearing immense pressure alike.

Countless times, cold bread was chewed on, worrying a zombie might ambush from some unforeseen angle.

Countless times, having a chance for physiological release was already rare, swiftly wrapped up; unlike the cinematic slow-paced foreplay, followed by thrilling escalation, a furious climax, and subsequent ebbing…

The present audience consisted of relatively privileged combat personnel within the faction. Even they lived like this. Imagine the genuine underclass, living day by day in such conditions—this is why they envied life at Celestial Horse Island.

Feeling the time was right, Zhang Su clipped the microphone onto his collar and extended his arms welcomingly toward the crowd: ”For our tomorrow, for a brighter future, for guaranteed living, I welcome you all to join Celestial Horse Island. I, King Yama, extend an invite to every sincere brother and sister!”

”King Yama!”

Cheerleader King Zhang Xin was first to shout out: ”King Yama, King Yama!”

”King Yama...”

The process was quick; everyone followed suit and shouted Zhang Su’s title.

From this moment, King Yama’s name will ride the cutting cold wind to farther places, spreading wider awareness of this name.