Chapter 24: You Are Lying

Under Qin Zhong’s gaze, Xiao Yingyong lowered her head and murmured, “I... I won’t go. I want to wait here for my mother to come back.”

“Your mother won’t be coming back. It’s been half a year. If she were going to return, she would have done so by now. There’s almost no hope she’s still alive.”

Seeing the girl like this, Qin Zhong furrowed his brows deeply, unwilling to lie any longer. No matter what, if she stayed here, it was almost a certain death sentence.

Though the reality was harsh, since she was still alive and wanted to keep living, she had to face this cold, unfeeling truth.

Qin Zhong’s blunt words made Xiao Yingyong suddenly lift her head, her teeth clenched tightly as she spat, “You’re lying! You just said my mother would come back for me.”

Sighing, Qin Zhong said helplessly, “I admit, I lied before. So, are you coming or not?”

At that moment, Xiao Yingyong’s face flushed deep red. “You’re lying... I don’t want to see you anymore.”

Qin Zhong shook his head, disappointment etched across his face, his tone bleak, “This is your choice. Well then, suit yourself.”

The next moment, Qin Zhong stopped hesitating, quickly stepped out of the snack shop, turned on his flashlight, covering most of the beam with his fingers as usual, and held his knife in the other hand, feeling his way forward through the dim corridor.

After walking about ten meters, Qin Zhong suddenly heard footsteps behind him. Instinctively, he turned his head and saw two zombies turning into the snack shop.

Though the ventilation fan on the kitchen wall was small, the sunlight filtering through was strikingly bright in the dark back area of the mall.

The zombies seemed sensitive to the light; upon seeing it, they instinctively, almost naturally, entered the snack shop.

Witnessing this, a conflicted expression crossed Qin Zhong’s face, but after a brief hesitation, he exhaled deeply and turned back into the snack shop.

As soon as he entered, a startled cry came from the kitchen. Qin Zhong didn’t hesitate and rushed in to find Xiao Yingyong gripping the cabinet door tightly with both hands, kicking wildly in an effort to close it.

The two zombies who had just entered blocked the cabinet door, their claws flailing dangerously in front of Xiao Yingyong’s face. The situation was extremely perilous!

If nothing changed, it would only be a matter of time before she exhausted herself, was overwhelmed by the two zombies, and instantly devoured, becoming one of them.

Seeing this, Qin Zhong wasted no time. Two swift, clean strokes—one zombie per slash—fell dead.

He wiped the blood from his blade with a rag and looked at Xiao Yingyong. “I just saved your life. Now we’re even. Whether you come with me or not, the choice is yours.”

He paused briefly and added, “If you don’t come, then I’m really leaving this time! Don’t expect me to come back and save you again!”

Having escaped death, Xiao Yingyong’s face was full of fear and unease. Hearing Qin Zhong’s words, she quickly crawled out from the iron cabinet. The cabinet was about one and a half meters wide; given her height, she couldn’t straighten her legs while lying down.

The two of them hurried out of the snack shop. Sinister groans echoed continuously through the enclosed corridors, reverberating in the darkness where it seemed like man-eating demons lurked everywhere.

Qin Zhong led the way, with Xiao Yingyong close behind. They passed through several corridors until ahead, shadows flickered as seven or eight zombies lingered at the passage entrance, pacing restlessly.

Patting Xiao Yingyong’s shoulder, Qin Zhong gestured for her to crouch down. He crouched as well, unstrapped the crossbow from his back, aimed, and with a sharp twang, shot a bolt straight into a zombie’s head. The creature collapsed with a thud.

Seeing this, Xiao Yingyong’s dark eyes sparkled in the darkness, filled with admiration. “Qin Ge, you’re amazing! Where did you get this bow?”

“This isn’t a bow; it’s a crossbow.”

Qin Zhong smiled faintly and added, “Want one? Upstairs there are three more. You can pick whichever you like.”

Upon hearing she could have a powerful crossbow too, excitement lit up Xiao Yingyong’s face. She imagined herself shooting down zombies with it.

Soon, Qin Zhong cleared the seven or eight zombies, and they continued forward, gradually emerging from the corridor.

Outside the passage, the circular corridor and terrace were swarming with zombie silhouettes swaying about. Qin Zhong carefully observed the surroundings, pondering how to avoid the zombies’ notice and return upstairs.

Although the circular corridor was equipped with staircases and escalators, running up would inevitably make noise and attract attention.

If zombies swarmed after them, while Qin Zhong wasn’t afraid, it would still be troublesome.

Carefully examining the environment, Qin Zhong searched for a solution. Suddenly, he noticed countless colorful bulbs strung across the atrium above, likely leftover decorations from when the mall was operational at night.

Seeing these bulbs, Qin Zhong’s eyes brightened. He turned to Xiao Yingyong, whispered a few words, then aimed the crossbow at one bulb and fired. The bulb exploded with a loud “bang.”

Seizing the moment as the zombies turned their heads toward the light, Qin Zhong and Xiao Yingyong immediately bent low and dashed into the fire escape. They climbed the stairs swiftly and soon returned to the ninth floor.

Qin Zhong gently pushed open the fire door on the ninth floor and saw three zombies pacing back and forth on the terrace across from them.

Although he had cleared the rooftop earlier, the mall’s passages were many, so it wasn’t surprising that some zombies had wandered up.

He had noticed this issue before while clearing the rooftop. Because only a few zombies came up, Qin Zhong usually dealt with them as they appeared.

Though stopping them from coming up in the first place would be ideal, it was easier said than done.

Peering through a crack, Xiao Yingyong’s curiosity got the better of her. “Qin Ge, why don’t you just block off the stairs? Then these guys couldn’t come up.”

“Look,” Qin Zhong said with a helpless expression, pointing to a staircase about seven or eight meters wide. “How do you block something this wide? And that’s not the only staircase leading to the ninth floor.”

Soon, Qin Zhong swiftly dispatched the three zombies and then led Xiao Yingyong to a roast duck restaurant where they pulled out a snake-skin bag from a hidden spot. Inside were three more crossbows for Xiao Yingyong to choose from.

Although girls generally dislike weapons by nature, Xiao Yingyong was pragmatic. She knew that to find her mother, she had to survive first.

To survive, she needed the ability to defend herself. Being naturally weaker physically, a ranged weapon like a crossbow was undoubtedly the best choice for a girl.

Quickly, Xiao Yingyong picked one crossbow. Sun Xiaoyan had prepared well—not only steel balls for Qin Zhong’s current crossbow but also plenty of bolts.

After choosing, Xiao Yingyong picked up a bolt and looked at Qin Zhong with some embarrassment. “Qin Ge, how do you load this?”

Qin Zhong took the crossbow and bolt, his expression serious as he spoke to Xiao Yingyong. “Xiaoying, this thing packs a punch. We’ll be fighting zombies together, but you have to promise me one thing—no matter what, never point the crossbow at me.”

Thinking to himself that kids were careless and might accidentally shoot him during battle, he emphasized the warning.

After hearing Qin Zhong’s words, Xiao Yingyong nodded firmly without hesitation. “Qin Ge, I promise!”