Chapter 8: Under Attack

The sense of security granted by his new abilities allowed Jiang Yi to fall into a deep, restful sleep for the first time since the apocalypse began. He was jolted awake by a sharp, heavy pain in his chest, and instinctively reached out to his right, only to grasp empty air!

In that instant, a cold sweat broke out over Jiang Yi. Where was his blade? He frantically patted the area, only to discover with horror that the skull-cleaving knife he had kept by his side was gone!

"Don't move!" A sharp, feminine voice made Jiang Yi shiver. He looked up toward the darkness ahead. As the dim moonlight filtered into the room, a fully alert Jiang Yi saw with dread that a shadowy figure had appeared four or five meters away. He hurriedly called out, "Don't be rash, I'm a living human!"

The stranger clearly already knew this, her voice icy: "Where are the others with you? Where is he?"

Jiang Yi was stunned. "The other person? There isn't one. I'm by myself."

The woman in the dark clearly did not believe him. "Stop making excuses. I know exactly what you two did today! You heartless, despicable scum..."

Jiang Yi was thoroughly confused. What was this about? Realizing the person was a girl, his heart eased slightly, but with his weapon gone, he decided to play it safe and answered honestly, "Fellow student, you have the wrong person. I really don't know who you are talking about. I am the only one here."

As soon as he finished speaking, a blinding light suddenly flooded the room. Jiang Yi instinctively covered his eyes, taking a long moment to adjust. "Don't move, or don't blame me for being ruthless!" The woman clearly didn't trust him, her voice filled with seething rage.

Jiang Yi felt stifled, wishing he could slap himself. He had been too arrogant; having just gained abilities, he had let his guard down. He hadn't even noticed someone slipping in and taking his weapon! In the era of the apocalypse, this was a fatal oversight.

With the light, however, Jiang Yi could finally see who had broken into his room, and the sight left him shocked. A cold, metallic gleam caught his eye—a sharp arrowhead was pointed directly at his head.

Jiang Yi’s heart truly panicked; he never expected her to be armed with a bow and arrow.

Standing before him was a tall woman in a pink tracksuit, her hair hidden beneath a hood and her face covered by a black mask.

The bow in her hands was drawn to its limit, and the cold glint of the titanium-steel arrow left no doubt about its piercing power. She was clearly a student from the school, but how did she have a bow?

Watching her skillful stance, Jiang Yi did not doubt her ability to use it. He looked with a bitter expression at his backpack and the skull-cleaving knife, both lying at the woman’s feet.

In the light, the woman also got a clear look at Jiang Yi. A faint flicker of killing intent made her knit her brows. "Hands up, on your knees! Don't think about resisting, or you can find out if my arrow can pierce your skull."

"You!" Jiang Yi glared, instinctively wanting to retort, but when he saw the woman pull the bowstring back a fraction further, he backed down. He raised his hands and crouched, though he refused to kneel—if it came to that, he would rather fight to the death.

He looked at her, frustrated. "Fellow student, you really have the wrong person! I am not the one you are looking for."

The woman held her bow, her eyes locking onto Jiang Yi like a hawk's. "I ask you, did you come to this building with others yesterday?"

Jiang Yi hesitated, then nodded honestly. "That's right, I came with two others, but..."

"I knew it! It was you lot who committed those atrocities yesterday! It’s a pity I couldn't save Jiaojiao..." The woman didn't give Jiang Yi a chance to explain, her eyes glistening with tears, her voice heavy with grief.

"But you won't escape today. I don't know how you could be so stupid as to stay here alone. I will take your life to pay for Jiaojiao's!" With that, she drew her bow to the limit once more.

Jiang Yi was alarmed. Although he was still confused, he had no time to analyze the situation. He shouted, "Wait! If you want revenge, wouldn't it be better to wait until the other two return?"

He couldn't explain anything else; she wouldn't listen. He had to find a way to defuse the danger.

The woman paused, shrieking, "They left, how could they possibly come back? Don't try to lie to me!"

Jiang Yi yelled back, "They will! At daybreak, they'll be back. If they weren't, I wouldn't have stayed here! We agreed to meet here at dawn to clear out the entire dormitory! Really..."

Jiang Yi calmed her down by describing the situation at the cafeteria, weaving in lies to frame himself as a mere errand boy left behind to guard the supplies.

If she were to think carefully, she would see the holes in his story. But the woman was emotionally unstable, and the trauma of the previous day made her inclined to believe his mix of seven truths and three lies. Still, she sneered, "In that case, I'll kill you now, and when they come tomorrow, I'll deal with them too."

Jiang Yi hesitated. "That... we had an agreement. I’m supposed to watch for them from the window tomorrow. If I don't appear, they probably won't come in."

Gu Hansue’s face turned frosty. "You're lying. If you really were their companion and didn't appear, why wouldn't they come in to look for you?"

Jiang Yi faked a bitter laugh. "Senior, why do you still believe in that? If we were really friends, would they have left me here in a building full of zombies? To them, I'm just cannon fodder. In the cafeteria, ordinary people like us aren't worthy of being friends with those who have abilities!"

As he said this, Jiang Yi himself paused, a flicker of his own past doubts resurfacing.

Gu Hansue was silent for a moment before saying, "You really had nothing to do with what happened yesterday?"

Jiang Yi clutched his head in mock misery. "Big sister, I don't even know what you're talking about! You saw it yourself—I wasn't with those two. Once we entered the dorm building, we split up!"

Gu Hansue frowned. His expression didn't look like he was lying. She exhaled, her tense body relaxing slightly—killing was clearly a significant hurdle for her. "Fine. We'll wait until dawn and see when they arrive! And don't think about running. I trust my arrows are faster than you."

Jiang Yi nodded eagerly. "Of course, senior. I'm not going anywhere." Despite his words, he was frantically thinking of how to escape this dangerous woman.

His story had obvious flaws. Even if she waited until dawn, those two bastards definitely wouldn't come back, and his lie would fall apart.

Therefore, the seemingly submissive Jiang Yi’s mind was racing. His speed was now a nine—the peak of a normal human! If he caught her off guard, he had a high chance of success.

But his blade was in her hands. Without a weapon, he wasn't sure he could subdue her instantly.

He had to get his weapon back first.

With a plan in mind, Jiang Yi quickly simulated a tactic. He observed the woman who still held the bow on him. She lived here alone, yet her complexion and spirit were no worse—and perhaps even better—than the protected girls in the cafeteria. He wondered if she had been here from the start or arrived recently like him.

As he observed her, an embarrassing sound echoed in the room. Jiang Yi was stunned, and Gu Hansue’s face flushed beneath her mask. She cursed herself for her stomach growling so loudly.

Jiang Yi reacted quickly, wearing an intimate smile. "Senior, are you hungry? I have plenty of food in my bag. Please, don't stand on ceremony!"

Gu Hansue glared at him. "Less talk. You are my prisoner; these supplies are already my spoils of war!"

Jiang Yi wanted to curse; how shameless! This was food he had painstakingly scavenged. He gritted his teeth, but kept smiling. "Yes, yes, they are yours, senior. Help yourself!"

Gu Hansue was clearly embarrassed, but having gone two days without a drop of water, she couldn't resist the food.

She thought, looking at the scrawny Jiang Yi, *He can't pull anything.* She slowly lowered her bow, though her eyes never left him, and crouched to reach for the backpack.

*Now!* Jiang Yi’s eyes flashed. The moment she lowered her bow and reached for the zipper, he lunged like a small leopard! His speed was immense; he covered the four-meter distance in an instant, reaching for the black blade beside the bag...

"Hum!" A rush of wind accompanied Gu Hansue’s cry: "I knew you wouldn't be that kind!"

"Damn it!" Sensing the incoming blow, Jiang Yi abandoned the weapon and pulled his hand back like lightning. But to his horror, Gu Hansue’s attack speed exceeded his expectations. Even with his full speed, he couldn't dodge her vengeful strike.