Chapter 47: A Stinging Rebuff

After breakfast, Zeng Hongsen walked to the iron gate and opened it. Outside, a horde of zombies wandered restlessly. The moment they spotted living people, they howled and bared their savage teeth, lunging toward Zeng Hongsen and his companions.

“Die!” Zeng Hongsen’s gaze turned icy as he strode forward, blade in hand. His knife moved like the wind, and with three or four swift strikes, several zombie corpses hit the ground.

Ma Bi charged forward as well, joining Zeng Hongsen to dispatch the rest of the undead.

“Big sister... Someone’s fighting zombies!” On the seventh floor of a luxurious hotel across from the restaurant, a young girl exclaimed in excitement. Behind her stood a graceful beauty with long, jet-black hair, dressed in a lace gown, exuding an extraordinary air. She stepped forward and looked down at the scene below.

“Wow... Are they filming a movie about the apocalypse? How are they so amazing?” The girl, who appeared sixteen or seventeen, wore a pink dress and had long hair with bangs. Her large eyes brimmed with curiosity as she watched below.

The elegant woman was Zhao Liying, a national goddess and an A-list celebrity, known for starring in many hit television series. She immediately took out a one-hundred-yuan note and scribbled on it: Save us, seventh floor. Then she tossed the bill downward.

They had been trapped in the hotel for over a month. If not for her being a foodie who regularly stayed at the hotel and stocked her room with food, they would have starved long ago. Moreover, the hotel was now occupied by a gang of thugs. If her room hadn’t been specially modified with a steel-plated door, they would have been captured already.

The red hundred-yuan bill fluttered down from the seventh floor. Zhao Liying dared not shout for fear of attracting zombies or angering the people below. This was the only way.

Downstairs, there were over thirty fully armed people, much to Zhao Liying’s surprise. Perhaps they still had hope.

The banknote landed squarely on Ma Bi’s head. “Uh...” Ma Bi took the note, saw the message, and immediately ran to Luffy. “Boss, look—money just floated down from across the street.”

“Hmm?” Luffy glanced up at the seventh floor of the luxury hotel and saw a young girl and a beautiful woman looking their way.

“Hey, isn’t that Zhao Liying? She’s my idol!” Zeng Hongsen’s eyes widened as he saw the beautiful actress. “She’s not just stunning, she’s got fantastic acting skills.”

“Boss, should we save them?” Ma Bi was just as eager, since Zhao Liying was his idol too.

“Sure, let’s see what other supplies might be in that hotel.” Luffy hadn’t found any food in the fancy restaurant, so perhaps the hotel had some.

“Yes!” Ma Bi cheered and, with Zeng Hongsen, led the way toward the hotel entrance. The outer glass doors were battered and broken, and behind them was a corrugated iron gate, clearly battered by zombie attacks.

“We can’t stay out here too long. Ma Bi, open that door—let’s get inside first,” Luffy instructed.

Ma Bi smashed away a large chunk of glass, crouched down with a piece of wire, and jimmied the lock. “Click...” The iron door swung open.

Zeng Hongsen strode in first, only to have a man swing an iron pipe at him. “Looking for death,” Zeng Hongsen muttered, swiftly dodging the blow, grabbing the man by the throat and pinning him against the wall as the man struggled, growing weaker by the second.

Luffy and the others entered, closing the iron gate behind them. They approached the youth pinned to the wall. “Who are you? What’s the situation here?”

“Cough, cough...” Zeng Hongsen loosened his grip so the young man could speak. “You’d better let me go. Our boss, Shi Zhenxiang, is the toughest guy in the area. He could wipe you all out with a flick of his finger.”

“Shi Zhenxiang?” Luffy almost laughed at the name. What a fragrant name their boss had—Shi Zhenxiang (which sounded like ‘shit smells good’). What grudge did his parents have with him to give him that name?

“You’re looking for death. Our boss has killed before and has grenades. No matter how many of you there are, you’ll all be blown to pieces.”

The young man’s blind worship of his boss was almost comical.

“Oh? Take me to your boss,” Luffy said, pulling out a talisman and tossing it in the air while chanting an incantation. Instantly, the young man’s eyes glazed over, and he became Luffy’s puppet, ready to obey any command.

“Take me to your boss,” Luffy ordered coolly, then turned to Zeng Hongsen and the others, “Search the place, see if there’s food or any other survivors.”

“Yes!” Zeng Hongsen and the others sprang into action.

The youth led Luffy up the stairs—to the second, third, fourth, and fifth floors. There, several men in black held guns.

“Ergou, who’ve you brought?” one of the men asked warily, eyeing Luffy, whose battle armor made him look otherworldly.

“I’m taking him to see the boss, so he can witness the boss’s might,” Ergou replied blankly.

“Fine, we’ll go with you,” the man in black said, still on guard, ready to act if anything happened.

They opened a door and entered to find a middle-aged man with dusky skin passionately kissing a voluptuous woman—a sight unfit for children. The man’s hands roamed greedily over the woman before he turned to face them.

“What is it?” the man demanded impatiently.

“He says he’s here to kill you!” Ergou pointed at Luffy.

“You? Where did you come from? Think you’re hot stuff just because you wear armor?” The middle-aged man sneered. “Back when I ruled the underworld, you were still drinking milk. Let me show you something!”

He pulled a grenade from a nearby compartment and brandished it arrogantly. “This thing can kill anything. Kid, do you still want to take me on? Get down on your knees and beg, and maybe I’ll spare your life. Otherwise, you’ll die in pieces.”

“Boy, kneel and beg our boss for mercy. He’s only sparing you because you’re young. But you’re just food for us—soon, you’ll be butchered and end up in our bellies,” another man in black said cruelly.

“Heh, just a brat daring to challenge our boss? Our boss could crush you with a single finger,” chimed in another, flattering shamelessly.

The middle-aged man’s arrogance swelled with every word.

“You think that grenade can kill me? Fine, I’ll stand right here. Go ahead and try!” Luffy stood with hands behind his back, regarding the man as if looking at a dead man. Daring to act tough in front of him was courting death—soon, he’d see just how swollen his face would be.

“Then you’re dead. All of you, out!” the man shouted at the men in black behind Luffy, then retreated a few steps and hurled the grenade at Luffy.

Happy Sunday! Throw some recommendation votes my way—the more, the better. Don’t keep them, or they’ll go to waste. And don’t forget to send tips... tips...

(End of chapter)