A slip of the foot, nobody would have thought that the zombie whose skull had been cracked open earlier would become a stumbling block on Tang Xiaoquan's path forward.
Although Tang Xiaoquan sensed something amiss the moment he pushed the door, due to excessive tension and an overly aggressive push forward, he stumbled and fell.
"Bang!" Fortunately, there was a corpse to cushion his fall, so the noise he made hitting the ground wasn't too loud.
However, even so, in this otherwise silent corridor where a pin drop could be heard, the sound was magnified and spread without restraint.
Wang Qiang was startled to hear the thud. Was he afraid? Yes, afraid! Was he nervous? Yes, nervous!
Yet he did not hesitate for a moment as he resolutely pulled aside Huang Yaru, taking a swift step to rush out.
What is meant by showing true feelings in adversity? What is meant by brotherhood being above all? Wang Qiang was illustrating the meaning of these words with his actions.
He quickly reached out his right hand, his face filled with concern as he asked, "How is it? Quanzi, did you get hurt anywhere?"
"No, I'm fine!" Tang Xiaoquan looked rather embarrassed as he slowly got up with the help of Wang Qiang's extended right hand, his whole body smeared with unknown viscous fluids from the corpse.
"Damn it! I don't even know if these things are infectious!" Tang Xiaoquan vigorously wiped his hand against his sleeve.
Upon hearing these words, Wang Qiang immediately glared with his dark eyes: "Do you think you'll die if you speak less? Haven't you heard that the good doesn't work and the bad does?"
"Shhh!" Raising his finger to signal for silence, Tang Xiaoquan gestured for Wang Qiang to listen carefully.
"Swish, swish, swish~"
"Swish, swish, swish~"
A barely noticeable sound.
Wang and Tang exchanged a glance, and both revealed a trace of inexpressible horror.
"Zombies!" Almost in unison, they uttered the two words that came straight from hell.
"Where's Huang Yaru?" Tang Xiaoquan was the first to recover from his shock.
"Oh, still inside!" Wang Qiang pointed at the door.
"Get her out quickly, we need to get to the sixth floor before the zombies downstairs arrive!" Taking up a weapon, Tang Xiaoquan assumed a defensive stance.
Without saying a word, Wang Qiang knew that every second counted, so he swung open the door without a care for how Huang Yaru would react, grabbed her slender hand, and pulled her out.
Undoubtedly, in moments of extreme panic, no one could afford to consider the gentleness and fragility.
In fact, this crude and forceful tug brought Huang Yaru, who had been hoping to lean on Wang Qiang, back to her senses.
Especially when she heard the footsteps that symbolized "the arrival of death" after stepping outside, she instinctively positioned herself between Wang and Tang without needing a reminder.
Once the formation was complete, Tang Xiaoquan took the lead up the stairs.
He held a stainless steel pan in his left hand, a kitchen knife in his right hand, and a thick baseball bat tucked in his backpack.
Such a setup was not lacking in offensive and defensive capabilities.
Alongside Tang Xiaoquan's stride, Huang Yaru and Wang Qiang moved as well.
Wang Qiang tightly gripped his "Eight-footed Snake Spear," the sharp tip of the spear emanating a chilling gleam.
And as for Huang Yaru, positioned centrally for protection, her weapon was far less impressive compared to the two men, being nothing more than an inconspicuous wooden-handled plum blossom hook clutched in her hand.
Yet the utility of a weapon lies in its effectiveness, not in its size or appearance; as long as it can kill, it suffices.
The plum blossom hook in Huang Yali's hand was undoubtedly tested by Wang and Tang in real combat; otherwise, Tang Xiaoquan wouldn't have given it to her.
The team advanced slowly, and as the spearhead, Tang Xiaoquan looked around cautiously with each step, thrice observing his surroundings.
Though he desperately wished to rush to the sixth floor immediately, as leader, he keenly understood the weight on his shoulders: the life and safety of the entire team.
The shushing noise within the corridor tightened even more, undoubtedly attracted by Tang Xiaoquan's earlier fall.
And it wasn't just the corridor; even outside, there seemed to be faint signs of agitation...
"Damn it, these beasts really love gathering in groups for the fun!" Wang Qiang muttered to himself, gripping the "Eight-footed Snake Spear" even tighter.
Tang Xiaoquan's expression was stern. He too heard the commotion around, but even so, he suppressed his anxiety and continued advancing step by step toward the sixth floor.
With another step up, they were one level shy of smoothly reaching the corridor's corner to distance themselves from the zombies below.
But as fate would have it, just when Tang Xiaoquan's lips seemed to curl into a hint of victorious joy, a grayish-black figure, stumbling, came into his view...
"Roar~" No words were exchanged between them; the solitary howl sounded the horn for battle.
The zombie moved swiftly, driven by an instinctual desire for blood, it lunged at Tang Xiaoquan, arms outstretched.
Tang Xiaoquan was not to be outdone; he immediately maneuvered the stainless steel pot to his chest.
"Clang~" The pot and claws collided, producing a crisp sound.
Perhaps frustrated by missing its first attack, the zombie howled skyward before ferociously scratching at the metal pot's bottom.
"Scriiitch~ scriiitch~" Sharp claws left marks on the metal bottom, the grating sound enough to send chills down one's spine.
Tang Xiaoquan struggled to resist while his right hand sought an opportunity to strike back; however, the zombie's claw attacks came too frequently, leaving no opening for him to counter.
While Tang Xiaoquan was caught in this fierce struggle, Wang Qiang too clashed with zombies from the floor below.
Yet unlike Tang Xiaoquan's plight, Wang Qiang managed the situation with relative ease.
Thanks to the Eight-footed Long Spear's reach, he could pierce the zombies' skulls the moment they appeared.
In just a few short minutes, Wang Qiang had already taken down more than three zombies.
However, as the noise continued to grow, more and more zombies swarmed in.
Faced with this dense horde of zombies, even Wang Qiang, who had maintained composure, began to show signs of impatience.
"Hey! Qiangzi, how's it going over there? If we don't act soon, I can't hold them off any longer!"
The shouted inquiry from Wang Qiang reached Tang Xiaoquan's ears, rattling his nervously.
Currently cornered by the zombie in front, with no room for movement, if not for the pot acting as a shield, he would have already met his end.
Even with the protection of the pot, Tang Xiaoquan knew it couldn't last long.
He could feel it; the strain of fear and tension was taking a toll, as his left arm began to numb slightly, soon unable to support the pot's weight.
So...
Life and death were in the balance: either slay the zombie and move forward, or remain deadlocked and await demise.
Thus, Tang Xiaoquan made a decision!!