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Chapter 3 - Chapter 3: The Wooden Door Defense

"Qiang, Qiangzi, quick, take action, or it will be too late!"

Dust drifted down the cracks in the stones, and the bolts embedded within were on the verge of popping out after repeated zombie impacts.

No need to ask further, if this continues, breaking the door and letting zombies in is only a matter of time.

Tang Xiaoquan stood numbly in place; he heard Wang Qiang's urgent cries clearly, but no matter how hard he tried, his right hand couldn't lift from the knife handle.

After all, to him, a kind-hearted person who had never killed even a fish, let alone face the current living "people"! Though he knew the so-called "human" outside, constantly roaring and crashing, had long lost its soul, leaving only a shell driven by bloodthirsty instincts. But...

"Clash!"

Just when Tang Xiaoquan was undecided, the old cheap wooden door finally, under the zombies' relentless efforts, turned into strips, and the only remaining left arm of the corpse reached inside for the "delicacy" upon the nape.

Luckily, Wang Qiang, having had previous combat experience, reflexively leaned forward at the moment of the door break, narrowly avoiding the danger of being clawed by the zombie.

People say that one can unleash their potential in times of crisis, and this is true, with one premise: breaking through inner fear and bondage.

And obviously, Tang Xiaoquan hadn't crossed that moral boundary yet, while Wang Qiang...

Adrenaline quickly flooded his system; in this kill-or-be-killed scenario, Wang Qiang's eyes suddenly focused. He turned around and controlled the zombie's arm single-handedly, snatching the knife from Tang Xiaoquan. Gritting his teeth, he furiously struck down at the zombie head in the doorway.

"Crack!"

In Wang Qiang's aggressive swing, the knife hit the target precisely, piercing into the zombie's skull, but...

The expected killing scene didn't unfold. Instead, the prey's retaliation fueled the zombie's explosive anger, making its door-breaking efforts even more frenzied.

"Damn! What's going on here! Didn't they say attacking the head would kill these beasts?"

Wang Qiang stared in disbelief at the walking dead, still pounding with the knife lodged in its head, trying to pull out the knife, but the blade seemed embedded in the skull, refusing to move.

What now! Wang Qiang was a bit panicked. Although the wooden door was quite outdated, it was at least a barrier against zombies.

After all, for humans, when danger arrives, an enclosed space provides security. Moreover, it boosts the residents' confidence in surviving substantially.

But now, if this wooden door is breached, the fate of Wang and Tang's survival...

"Qiangzi! Move aside!"

A deep voice reached Wang Qiang's ears. He instinctively looked towards the source and saw Tang Xiaoquan with a determined gaze, shedding the earlier weakness. In his hand, which now held a baseball bat, raised high.

In a critical moment, Wang Qiang couldn't hesitate. He sidestepped the door, making way for Tang Xiaoquan. But he couldn't help but remind, "Xiaoquan! Attacking the beast's head doesn't..."

"work" hadn't left his lips when Tang Xiaoquan's fierce blow swung out already.

"Bang, Crack!"

Accompanied by the shrill sound, splinters scattered. Wang Qiang's eyes twitched, about to finish speaking when Tang Xiaoquan spoke ahead, "Attacking zombies' heads isn't wrong, but you must destroy the entire central nervous system in the brain. Only then can the virus stop controlling the host's body."

Almost to verify his statement, the zombie hit by the bat let out a ghastly howl, then collapsed against the door crack, unmoving. And embedded in the central skull was the knife, fully buried.

Staring dumbfounded, Wang Qiang was speechless. Tang Xiaoquan's explanation made him curious, "How do you know these things?"

Almost instinctively voicing his thoughts, Wang Qiang wondered since neither he nor his university friend majored in medicine.

Tang Xiaoquan lowered the bat weakly, excessive adrenaline, and sustained fear left him exhausted. Taking deep breaths, he slowly replied after calming, "I, I deduced it from movies, novels, and games."

"Roar~"

"Nima!"

A deep howl came from below, accompanied by the dragging footsteps.

Wang Qiang cursed instinctively, turning to Tang Xiaoquan, whose eyes also held a heavy look.

"Quick! Qiangzi, move the shoe cabinet against the door; I'll get the coffee table from the living room! Listen, no matter what, we must hold this door! Otherwise, if those beasts get in, we're absolutely screwed!"

With the words spoken, Tang Xiaoquan sprinted to the living room without hesitation; the earlier weakness vanished instantly.

The intense survival instinct drove the two young men, busy inside and out. Without this abrupt apocalypse, they might never understand the true meaning of life-and-death urgency.

Listening to the footsteps in the hallway, echoing like hell's death knell, Tang Xiaoquan called Wang Qiang, handed over the bat, and instructed in a low voice, "Later, we shouldn't speak; stay inside. If I'm right, these beasts will leave if they don't see us."

"But the door..." Wang Qiang gestured worriedly at the door barricaded temporarily with a shoe cabinet, coffee table, and a few chairs. Worry clouded his eyes.

He had truly experienced zombies' near-suicidal demolition abilities, questioning this makeshift defense line's endurance.

Tang Xiaoquan ignored Wang Qiang's doubts. With footsteps approaching, he only said, "Pray to any deity you know," and flipped the switch, pulling down the lever hard.

"Clack!"

With a soft sound, the room plunged into dead silence! Two shadows sneaked into the inner bedroom like thieves in the night while the food-seeking zombies arrived right on time.

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