Room sealed.
The wall clock ticked quietly.
Vuong Khai stood by the door, a dim light flickering in his sunken eyes as he stared fixedly at the time.
He had synchronized the time on his alarm and phone perfectly. Perhaps not down to the exact second, but the difference couldn't be too much.
Time's up.
He knew the alarm on Doggi's phone had gone off. Every second now mattered. There were too many things to do, and he couldn't afford any delay—any hesitation, and it would be impossible to finish in time.
He pushed the door open and quickened his pace. The route was familiar—no need to stop. He knew exactly what to do first, then what came next. The sequence never changed. Before, he would move slowly. But now, he just wanted to shout—
Faster! Faster! Faster!He couldn't afford to fall behind.
There might not be many zombies in the water plant, but they definitely existed. And over time, more could have broken in—he wasn't sure.
Water supply operations involved many steps. Usually, it required a team. But now, without help, he had to rely solely on himself and finish everything in the shortest possible time.
Running too fast, his foot caught on a pipe on the ground. He slipped, his balance off. His head slammed into the floor with a sickening thud. The intense pain contorted his face, but he gritted his teeth and continued sprinting.
Pain wouldn't kill him—but missing his window of time might.
Outside.
"I love Thien Nhai, the green mountains and the flowers at the foot of the mountain are blooming...."
A dog.
A stylish stray dog—Doggi.
Tied to Doggi was a phone. The music playing from it seemed to have a strange magic, causing the surrounding zombies to suddenly perk up and become animated.
Doggi loved to run, tongue out and body pumping. Only while running could he feel the beauty of the natural world.
He turned.
Woof...
He saw the terrifying zombies chasing him. Their horrifying appearance filled Doggi with dread, and he bolted even faster.
Zigzagging left and right.
Sometimes left, sometimes right.
Serpentine movements made him hard to catch. With his small frame and agile limbs, he deftly dodged the zombies. Doggi fought to survive, sprinting with all his might. The blaring alarm from the phone only made things worse. The distant, staggering zombies were momentarily confused, then roared and charged toward the source of the sound.
At that moment, in the distance—
A very strange zombie appeared.
Unlike the others who still walked on two legs, this one crawled on all fours like a spider.
Thin body, sturdy limbs, packed with terrifying explosive power. Its head was unusually large, black goo dripping from its mouth, and its pale eyes rolled erratically.
Its ears twitched—it had heard something.
"Oiii... oiii..."
The spider-like zombie let out a low growl and locked onto its target. With a strange, ghostly motion, it charged forward at high speed—so fast it left a blur in the air.
Compared to it, the other zombies were mere amateurs.
This was a speed-type zombie—faster and more terrifying than the one Lam Pham had encountered before. It looked malnourished, as if all its nutrients had gone to its limbs, allowing it to reach terrifying speeds.
Doggi expertly dodged the zombies behind him. His zigzag motion often caused them to trip and fall, unable to touch him.
But suddenly—
Doggi felt danger.
It was an animal's instinct. The moment a predator locked onto him, a deep, primal fear gripped his heart.
"Woof..."
He turned his head.
He saw the spider-like zombie racing after him.
The sight made Doggi's fur stand on end. If he could speak, he'd be screaming:
"You monster! Don't scare me like that! I'm just trying to run happily—I mean no harm!"
In a flash, the spider-zombie was right behind Doggi, a black claw reaching for him. Doggi's instincts kicked in—he curled into a ball and rolled across the ground, narrowly dodging the strike.
A single strand of fur drifted through the air.
Doggi tumbled in the dust, whimpering in fear.
Then he shot back up and resumed his desperate sprint.
"Oii oii... Roar!"
The spider-zombie snarled in frustration. It had just missed its prey—by mere inches. That delicious morsel right in front of it, and still, it had failed to catch it.
Now it twisted its neck with a jerk, its gray-white eyes locking on once more. Growling, it moved with frightening speed, crashing forward with its powerful limbs.
Doggi was terrified. He ran—fast, faster than ever.
Inside the water plant.
"Just one last task to finish—then I'm done."
Vuong Khai panted. What used to be simple routine work now left him drenched in sweat. The physical toll was unbearable—especially in his weakened state, malnourished and sleep-deprived. It was sheer willpower keeping him going.
He needed to check the status of the equipment. If anything went wrong, the water supply would stop. That's why, even in peacetime, people would check the systems every two hours.
But now? In the apocalypse?
A daily check was the best he could manage.
Suddenly—
His hairs stood on end. He listened closely—was that a growl?
He turned anxiously.
Somehow, without him noticing, a zombie had wandered in and now blocked his exit. This was the first time he'd been this close to one.
Rotting flesh, grotesque features, black fluid oozing, eyes dull and blood coagulating.
Every horrific detail was like a hammer to his heart.
"Raargh..."
The zombie growled and charged.
"F*—!"**
Vuong Khai turned and ran, not even thinking of fighting back. He knew facing a zombie head-on was suicide.
He was petrified.
Drenched in cold sweat.
The noise behind him only made it worse—he didn't dare look back.
"The gate!"
Hope flashed in his eyes. He charged inside and slammed the door shut behind him, bracing his back against it.
Outside, pounding.
Each bang from the zombie rattled the door.
Any moment now, it might burst open.
"Don't come in—don't come in, please!"
Vuong Khai pressed against the door with all his strength, screaming in desperation. Though he'd already locked it, he still pushed against it—maybe that would help.
The zombie was strong. Its fists kept slamming the door, its body crashing into it again and again.
Outside.
Whimper...
Doggi was cornered. His eyes full of fear, ears pulled back, tail tucked tight, body trembling as he stared at the horrifying creature.
"Oii oii..."
The spider-zombie twitched its head and crept closer. Its prey was right there—the feast about to begin.
Tick tick...
Suddenly.
A crisp sound echoed in the air.
An elegant Emma electric scooter entered the scene—between Doggi and the spider-zombie.