24: You just called me the last bit of clarity you left in this world.

"Don't be afraid, honey. I'm here. We'll definitely make it home safely." The man was responsible; even now, he forced himself to stay calm and comfort his wife.

Having returned, Si Nan took it all in. Seeing that the two didn't steal her electric scooter while she was hunting zombies, nor did they attack her, she handed them the two military shovels in her hands.

"As long as you're fast enough and strike a zombie's head hard with a shovel like I just did, you'll definitely be able to escape home safely."

"Thank you." The man took the military shovels, left the car keys, and ran off with his wife.

Si Nan collected their luxury car and continued riding her electric scooter. Coincidentally, they were heading in the same direction, so Si Nan ended up clearing the path ahead while they desperately ran behind her.

But how could they outrun an electric scooter? They soon couldn't keep up. Speeding along, Si Nan kept her eyes and ears open, racing ahead while collecting cars. She was essentially clearing a bright, broad path for herself. The bridge, which had been deathly congested just a second ago, was empty the next, with the end clearly in sight.

Thus, from far behind, the couple ran while being utterly confused. "How is this possible? Why are there no cars here?"

"Yeah, they were all jammed up at the start of the bridge. Should we run back and find a car to drive?"

"We can't go back. Keep running."

Only after getting off the bridge, when there were no more cars to collect, did Si Nan stop. Cutting through the bustling city area, things were much better. Coupled with the hellish weather of ice pellets that started seven days ago, there were few people out to begin with.

So, as soon as she got off the bridge, Si Nan saw almost no zombies, but there were still bloodstains on the white ground and signs of something being dragged.

She didn't dare linger and continued riding. It was still a ten-minute trip to her house; she had to rush home as quickly as possible. When she passed a convenience store, a scream suddenly came from inside, "Ah! Child, why are you biting Mom?"

Inside, a boy about ten years old was opening his bloody mouth wide and tearing at his mother's abdomen. In an instant, her intestines were ripped out, dripping with blood.

The convenience store owner, who was stocking shelves, was terrified. With a scream, he ran out frantically. Hearing the sound, the Little boy let go of his mother and chased after him.

Si Nan frowned. It seemed almost all of A City had fallen. People were still in a state of ignorant confusion and fear, even trying to save those infected with the zombie virus, completely unaware that they were beyond saving.

Many were even just curious, having no idea what was happening outside because a large number of people hadn't left their homes due to the recent bad weather.

At most, they had seen some information from news or videos, but they hadn't taken it seriously, thinking it was just a virus infection in other cities and still very far from them.

Snapping back to reality, Si Nan saw the bitten mother had already turned into a zombie and walked out of the convenience store, following the Little boy to chase the store owner. She turned a corner and braked sharply, stopping at the convenience store entrance.

Because she had her eye on a brand-new electric scooter under the store's awning—likely the owner's—she quickly stored it in her space.

Then, she ran into the store and indeed found the matching keys. Turning to look at the sizable convenience store, her eyes filled with joy. With a few quick trips, she collected everything, including the shelves, into her space.

Afterward, she kicked open the storage room inside and was overjoyed. It was packed with stock. Without a second word, she took it all.

When she came out, she didn't even spare the near-expired clearance items on the small cart by the door. With a wave of her hand, even the cart vanished. Mounting her electric scooter again, she felt warm all over.

Just as she left, someone went into the store to buy things. The man scratched his head, questioning his life as if he'd seen a ghost. "How is this possible? I was just in here five minutes ago. How can it be empty now? Did I walk into the wrong place?"

This guy was likely a shut-in gamer who had been gaming day and night at home, not watching the news or knowing what was happening outside, yet he still dared to come out and buy things.

"Don't go! Please help! My father suddenly fainted." Ahead, a Middle-aged Man was struggling to support his obese, elderly father, waving repeatedly at Si Nan as she rode toward him.

Si Nan didn't even look at him and whizzed past.

The man behind her cursed loudly, "A girl with such corrupt morals, not even offering a hand!"

But while he was busy cursing Si Nan, he didn't notice that the eyes of the elderly father he was supporting had already turned a hollow, cloudy white, and his twitching limbs had gradually calmed down.

The hand he had around the old man's waist was suddenly bitten hard. The man, in pain, tried to pull his father's head away, shouting, "Dad, I'm your son! Why are you biting me like a Child? Ah, let go!"

"Cursing me just now was your last moment of sanity in this world." Si Nan shook her head as she rode further away, accelerating toward home. Almost there, almost there. Five minutes left; just one more turn.

She was mentally counting down the distance when an ambulance drove toward her from ahead, its siren blaring as it sped into the city. One second it was driving normally, and the next, it swerved straight toward her.

"Crap, I can't escape the city center only to be taken down here." Si Nan quickly changed direction, narrowly missing the ambulance. It was then she saw that the person being rescued was frantically catching and biting people inside the vehicle.

The window glass was smeared with blood. A nurse was pinned against the window by a zombie biting her back, looking at her with a desperate plea for help.

The driver in front was also being attacked. The vehicle swerved into the roadside railing and hit a utility pole with a "bang," exploding and catching fire. The entire vehicle was engulfed in flames.

And the direction this ambulance came from was near her residential complex. "No way? Has the neighborhood fallen too?"

Si Nan composed herself and rushed toward home. However, after just five minutes of travel, she had to accept reality—it really had fallen. Before she even reached the main gate of the complex, she was stunned by the scene before her.

The gate was surrounded by a group of zombies. Every zombie was covered in blood and torn flesh. Several had missing limbs. Fresh and bloody, they were reaching through the iron gate for people, letting out roars like trapped beasts. Inside the iron gate, it was crowded with curious Property Owners.

The people inside were like fools, screaming while gossiping. "I know that woman in the white padded jacket; she's the mother of my Child's classmate. And that woman in the black coat, she's my colleague. How did they become like this?"

"Look at their eyes; you can't see the pupils at all. They're all cloudy and hollow. This is exactly like the zombies in movies. Could they actually be zombies?"

"Waaah, they're so scary."

---

Seeing that the zombie pack hadn't noticed her yet, Si Nan immediately turned the scooter around.