Luring the Zombies
Now, with the rifle and bullets in hand, Xiao Yi's zombie-clearing plan had become far safer and more reliable.
Earlier, when Xiao Yi had left the villa through the front door, he hadn't closed it. The grand entrance had been left deliberately wide open.
He'd done this precisely to let the zombies inside escape more easily.
Now, it was time to lure them out!
Through the iron gate connecting the backyard to the front yard, Xiao Yi could clearly see six or seven zombies already shambling around in the front courtyard.
The front door was now closed, so these zombies must have come from inside the villa.
They were all ordinary zombies—no sign of the bizarre, hulking ones or the goblin-like mutants he'd encountered inside before.
With agile movements, Xiao Yi climbed onto the wall. He found a spot atop the guard booth next to the front courtyard's massive iron gate, lay prone with practiced ease, set aside the torch he'd made from cloth and grease, and shouldered his M16 rifle. He sighted down the barrel at the head of a wandering zombie in the front yard.
It had been a while since he'd fired a shot, and Xiao Yi felt his aim had grown rusty.
Back in his military days, he'd been a sharpshooter who'd won provincial competitions.
Though years had passed since his discharge without touching a gun, his deep knowledge of firearms and instinctive feel for them remained.
This was the perfect chance to shake off the rust with these zombies—to reclaim that old sensation.
He drew a deep breath, calming his mind to its peak state, then opened his eyes and gripped General Chen's M16 steady as a rock.
The familiar thrill of the training range surged back—the world around him blurring into a dizzying whirl, transporting him to the old practice field.
The nearest zombie morphed in his mind's eye into a slow-moving humanoid target.
The instructor's voice echoed once more: "Xiao Yi! Keep the rifle steady, support the stock with your left hand, butt against your shoulder, breathe easy! Eyes on the bullseye..."
It was as if ten years had melted away.
Acquire the target.
Fire!
Bang! A muffled crack from the suppressor, and the distant zombie's head exploded. It crumpled heavily to the ground.
The shot was quiet under the silencer, but it still drew attention.
The other zombies in the front yard, drifting aimlessly, slowly turned their heads toward Xiao Yi's position and shuffled mechanically toward him.
Bang! Bang! Bang!
Three more shots rang out in quick succession.
Two zombies lost half their heads and dropped; the third took a round to the neck, head lolling as it roared and charged faster toward him.
Bang! Bang! Bang!
Xiao Yi fired without hesitation.
Thirteen rounds expended in total.
Every zombie in the front yard lay slain.
"My aim's still a bit off..."
Xiao Yi sighed softly, calmly ejecting the magazine and topping it off with fresh rounds.
This M16's curved magazine held thirty rounds, plus one pre-chambered in the barrel—for thirty-one shots total.
More than enough for fifteen zombies, at his current skill.
Next up: drawing out the ones still inside the villa.
There were surely more than a dozen holed up in there.
Magazine refreshed, Xiao Yi trained his sight on the Lincoln outside the gate. After a brief pause, he squeezed the trigger.
Bang! The suppressed shot struck true, piercing the fuel tank.
Instantly, the car erupted in a blaring, chaotic alarm.
Beep! Beep! Beep! Beep! Beep! Beep...
"Hiss!!! Roooar!!!"
"Rooar~~"
"Grrgh grrgh grrgh~~~ grrgh grrgh~~~"
The shrill alarm shattered the morning quiet. Beyond the iron gate, countless zombies surged madly toward the Lincoln. Their vision seemed wretched—they simply followed the noise, lunging at the car, gnashing teeth, and clawing heedlessly at its body.
Alarm wails, zombie roars, and the thuds of undead fists against metal blended into a cacophony.
The racket carried a kilometer or more.
Zombies from every direction heard it and came charging in a frenzy.
From Xiao Yi's vantage, the street swarmed with them— a dense, shambling tide racing toward the car.
He held his breath, eyes locked on the Lincoln's leaking tank. Gasoline poured out, soaking the ground and drenching many zombies.
The relentless, piercing alarm kept drawing more.
As the horde thickened, even Xiao Yi broke into a cold sweat from the din.
The estate's massive iron gate was imposing and sturdy, but with zombies piling up—stacking like acrobats in their madness—they might just climb over.
He had to silence that alarm before the full swarm arrived!
Deep breath. Xiao Yi flicked his gaze to the villa's front door.
"ROOOAR!!"
Right then, a thunderous bellow erupted from inside. A hulking zombie over two meters tall burst through the entrance first, roaring as it barreled toward the front gate.
A dozen lithe, clawed, goblin-like mutants—short but insanely agile—overtook it, shrieking toward the Lincoln.
More and more zombies poured from the villa!