Chapter 9

Chapter 9

Sheng Yao was utterly disgusted by the stench clinging to him. Even with three masks, the foul smell wouldn’t go away. He scrubbed himself for over half an hour in the shower upstairs before he was barely satisfied. He had initially wanted to throw away the down jacket, but his mom had only packed a few outfits for each season in this house. If he tossed it, he’d have nothing to wear. So, he held his nose and washed it, then hung it to dry for future use.

Tang Man waited impatiently but eventually returned to her room to sort through the bags of seeds. The delivery boy had bought an incredibly comprehensive selection for her—common rice, wheat, fruit, and vegetable seeds were all there, along with plenty of flower seeds. Unfortunately, none were suitable for combat.

The Pothos she had bought before her high fever, intending to use as a weapon, had been disposed of by Sheng Yao, who feared it might mutate. It vanished without a trace.

In the end, she could only stash a pack of loofah seeds into her pocket.

After handing the seeds for planting to Tang Teng and Sheng’s mother, Sheng Yao still hadn’t come downstairs. Frowning, Tang Man headed to the third floor.

Sheng Yao’s door was ajar, so she pushed it open and walked in. The sound of running water came from the bathroom.

Tang Man knocked on the glass bathroom door. "Sheng Yao, how much longer?"

"Almost done," Sheng Yao replied, sliding the door open. His sleeves were pushed up to his elbows, his hands covered in soap suds. He wore a white long-sleeved T-shirt, freshly changed but already soaked through, the fabric plastered to his body, subtly revealing his chest and abs.

Tang Man took a quick glance inside. The bathroom floor was covered in water and foam. The bathtub was filled to the brim, white bubbles overflowing the tub, with a black down jacket floating on the surface.

"Are you... doing laundry or taking a bath?" she asked uncertainly.

"Uh... I’ve already showered. Once I finish washing this down jacket, we can go."

Tang Man eyed his soaked clothes skeptically.

"Leave the laundry for tonight. Change into dry clothes and come with me to gather supplies. We’re running out of time," she said firmly.

After witnessing Tang Man’s combat prowess at noon, Sheng Yao had no objections. He obediently changed without complaint and went downstairs to drive.

The neighborhood was sparsely populated, and most of the roaming zombies outside had already been killed by them, so the drive out was smooth.

However, Tang Man noticed many people peeking out from their villas, sneaking peeks at them.

She directed Sheng Yao to drive to the supermarket at the entrance. The store was in a complete mess—shelves toppled, goods scattered everywhere. At the sound of the car engine, zombies inside came pouring out in a frenzy.

"Can you handle this many zombies, sis?" Sheng Yao tightened his grip on the steering wheel.

"Aren’t you here?" Tang Man gave him a teasing glance.

Sheng Yao: "......" Should've kept quiet!

Tang Man waited in the car for a moment, assessing the number of zombies. Confident she could manage, she grabbed the extended machete Tang Teng had helped her with and stepped out.

Tang Teng had hollowed out the machete’s handle, fitting it snugly onto a meter-long wooden stick. The stick had notched grooves carved into it, securing the handle firmly in place. The new weapon was razor-sharp, and with Tang Man’s combat skills, she sliced through zombies as easy as slicing butter.

She dispatched over thirty zombies in under ten minutes. Sheng Yao, who had mustered the courage to step out with his knife, found himself once again stuck with crystal-core digging duty.

"Be careful inside. Not all the zombies may have come out," Tang Man warned.

"Got it," Sheng Yao nodded nervously, sticking so close to her he was practically pressed up against her back.

Sure enough, a few stray zombies lurked inside the supermarket, but Tang Man made quick work of them. The store was well-stocked with high-quality goods. They loaded up on cooking oil, dried goods, meat, and nearly all the bottled water and drinks before heading to the household supplies section.

The rice and flour she had stockpiled earlier would last the four of them a year or two. With her wood superpower, there was no need to hoard excessive food—better to leave some for others in need.

They cleared out almost all the toilet paper and sanitary pads in the household section. These items would cease production after the apocalypse, and she had no intention of returning to the days of burning plants for makeshift pads or using leaves as toilet paper.

Sheng Yao didn’t understand why she was stockpiling so many non-edible items, but he figured women had their own priorities and obligingly pushed the cart loaded with tissues.

"Should we check the warehouse?" He pointed at the large steel door in the distance.

Tang Man shook her head at the zombie handprints on the door. "This is enough. Leave the rest for them."

After making a trip back to the villa’s garage to unload two cartfuls of toilet paper and pads, Tang Man moved on to laundry detergent, soap, toothpaste, and other daily necessities.

Once they had gathered enough, she headed to the clothing and outdoor supplies sections.

"Take whatever fits you and your mom," she said before disappearing into the clothing racks.

Sheng Yao hesitated over the clothes that offended his fashion sense but ultimately gave in to practicality.

They made several trips back and forth, looting everything useful from the supermarket.

Tang Man glanced at the sky. It was just beginning to darken—still enough time.

"I’ll navigate. We need to reinforce the villa’s fence and floor-to-ceiling windows. Let’s hit a hardware store for metal supplies," she told Sheng Yao.

"Okay," he agreed, starting the SUV.

The area was eerily deserted, with almost no zombies in sight. No wonder the authorities had chosen it for a survivor base.

Sheng Yao drove at breakneck speed, reaching the hardware store in under five minutes.

The store’s rolling shutter was tightly closed, not a soul in sight.

"Anyone inside?" Tang Man knocked tentatively, pressing her ear to the shutter.

Silence. No people, no zombies.

She pulled a watermelon seed from her pocket and activated her power. A tender green vine sprouted from her palm, snaking into the lock. Within seconds, the shutter clicked open.

"You can use your superpower like that?!" Sheng Yao reached out to touch the vine. Though it looked soft and delicate, it felt cold and hard as steel.

Tang Man handed him the vine to examine and lifted the shutter one-handed, machete at the ready.

The hardware store was indeed empty. They loaded the SUV with metal parts until it was full.

"That should do it. Let’s head back," Sheng Yao urged, eyeing the darkening sky nervously.

Zombies became more agile and aggressive at night. He had seen them tear a woman apart just the previous evening.

"Mm." Tang Man gave a nonchalant nod.

On the way back, Sheng Yao drove like a race car driver. Tang Man, meanwhile, fiddled with her phone in the passenger seat. With no network or signal, she studied the offline maps she’d downloaded at the airport.

Electricity and gas would soon be cut off. Though the villa had a box of portable stove canisters, twenty-something wouldn’t last long at the rate of two hotpot meals per canister.

The alcohol stoves they’d found at the supermarket were too small, only good for boiling noodles—practically useless.

The area had plenty of greenery, but most were ornamental plants. Few trees could be used as firewood. They needed to secure fuel soon, or she’d be stuck bossing Zhongqiu around in the kitchen again, just like in her past life.

Sheng Yao finally let out the breath he'd been holding as they entered the neighborhood.

As they passed the supermarket at the entrance, Tang Man glanced up. It had been nearly picked clean, with people still hauling out food in a steady stream.

The combined area of the front and back gardens of the villa was no more than 150 square meters. By the time Tang Man got home, Tang Teng and Sheng’s mother had already planted the seeds and were busy marinating the fresh meat they had brought back.

Cured ribs, cured pork, cured chicken, cured duck, and cured fish were packed indoors, with long rows hanging in the yard, standing out prominently. Residents passing by the villa area could see the sight from afar, filled with envy, yet no one dared to mess with their food.

After all, many had witnessed the racket they made slaughtering zombies at noon, hiding in their rooms. The pile of zombie corpses and severed heads outside the garden fence made it clear these folks weren’t to be messed with. Neighbors passing by their villa gave the place a wide berth.

Once the zombies in the neighborhood were mostly cleared, others began venturing out of their homes, copying their midday routine and starting to clear the flowers in their own villa gardens.

Zhongqiu crouched on the ground, eyes fixed on a large fish drying by the entrance, its head tracking the fish’s swaying motion.

"You can't eat this—you’ll get hairballs," Tang Man said, scooping it up and giving it a firm rub.

"Mrow," Zhongqiu grumbled, its front paws clinging to her shoulders as it nuzzled her face affectionately.

Its soft fur felt heavenly against her cheek.

"Alright, alright, I'll make you some fish right now," Tang Man sighed, supporting its hind legs and bottom while stroking its back.

She took a box of salmon collected from the supermarket that afternoon from the fridge, boiled it in plain water, let it cool, and then chopped it up for Zhongqiu.

All the while, Zhongqiu circled her feet, rubbing against her pant legs and meowing incessantly, urging her to hurry.

"Hey, furball, patience is a virtue!" Sheng Yao crouched beside Tang Man, reaching out to tease Zhongqiu.

At first, he tentatively extended a finger to stroke its head. The texture of Zhongqiu’s fur was so pleasant that Sheng Yao couldn’t resist using both hands to pet it over and over. Zhongqiu grew increasingly annoyed but couldn’t escape his "clutches." It squatted in front of his slippers, ears perked up—then Sheng Yao suddenly felt warmth on his foot.

"Holy—! Tang Man, your cat just pissed on me!" Sheng Yao leapt up from the ground instantly.