Chapter 109 The Living Lure the Dead
The strong began to dominate.
Because they could fend off zombies, because they could find food, and more importantly, because they could suppress resistance.
And the weak and powerless gradually were reduced to the lowest class.
In the precision instrument factory, previously, apart from a few leaders assigned from above, those with superior intellect, education, and skills were at the top of the pyramid, earning high salaries, enjoying high benefits, being admired, and being in the spotlight.
These people, skilled in technology and intellect, were extremely physically weak After the apocalypse began, some turned into zombies, while others survived by luck. However, they couldn't even think about killing zombies; they became out of breath and their legs turned to jelly just running a short distance to find food.
While those who used to do manual labor, performing tasks with little technical content, could find food with their strong bodies. They could even occasionally kill isolated zombies to obtain crystals that were said to be used to spin a mysterious wheel.
As long as they spun and it resulted in acquiring a certain potion, they could become Evolving persons!
As a result, those who were once high and mighty fell to the bottom, replaced by those ordinary people who were once trampled underfoot, now holding far more power than before.
Food, water, cigarettes, alcohol, all kinds of supplies!
David, like many other technical personnel, was unaccustomed to the sudden changes.
But it didn't matter, because in peacetime, the higher-ups would at least listen to the opinions of the lower class, making some gestures of kindness, whether genuine or fake.
But now, there were no such gestures, no listening. If you didn't obey, you had to leave. If you angered someone, the consequences could range from a mere beating to severe outcomes like disability or death!
Sometimes David felt like he had returned to a period—the era of slavery.
But no matter how he felt, it was irrelevant. What mattered was that others were more adapted to this world, and he was not.
From the other end of the corridor came bursts of loud laughter. Amid the stench of feces and urine, David could catch a whiff of the aroma of vacuum-packed smoked chicken, which made his already hungry stomach churn with acid and even some pain.
But he didn't dare to look up, for he was afraid of seeing his wife through the open door.
On the fifth day after the apocalypse began, the woman who had been David's wife for over a decade, who often nagged him but always did his laundry and cooked for him, finally succumbed to the torment of hunger and thirst and threw herself into the arms of a former factory loader.
That was the first time in David's life that he fought someone, and the first time he felt something called courage.
However, he was not able to stop anything, instead he was beaten to a pulp, lying on the ground, watching helplessly...
At that moment, David felt like he had died.
But physical death was far more difficult than David had imagined. He stood by the window, looking at the zombies wandering below, and his resolve shattered like bubbles in the air.
'Perhaps waiting to die in the dirtiest corner is the best ending for me. At least the process wouldn't be so intense, and thus not so painful,' David thought of this as he looked at the tips of his shoes through the gap between his knees.
Footsteps approached, and a few people walked to the end of the corridor where the group of people who could only sleep on the cold floor was.
A voice asked, "Hello, all you technical personnel and senior engineers."
The speaker smiled smugly; only a fool would think he was genuinely greeting them.
The man was Gregory Wells, the former head of security at the precision instrument factory, in his early forties. It was said he had been in a gang and served a few years for assault. After his release, he joined a city program to help ex-convicts and was assigned to the factory as a security guard, a job he had held for seven or eight years.
During those years, Gregory had kept out of trouble, obediently doing his job, and became the head of security earlier this year.
He was strong and knew some martial arts. These skills might not mean much in society, but they were enough to intimidate everyone here, naturally making him the leader of the security guards, now followed by a dozen people.
Gregory sneered, "Why is everyone so quiet?"
Gregory's face bore a mocking smile, devoid of any pity for the hungry and pitiful crowd huddled together. The apocalypse had completely unleashed the evil and cruelty hidden in his heart.
"I'm here to tell you some good news, and you guys treat me like this?" Gregory said then sighed deliberately, wrapping his right arm around a young woman.
"We're running out of food and need to go out and find some. After all, we used to be colleagues. This time, I'm picking a few of you to come with me. Who's in?" Gregory's gaze swept over the crowd as he continued, "Whoever comes along, whether we find food or not, will get a good meal. I'll also give out a bottle of water. If someone finds food, they'll get three days' worth of rations!"
The crowd became a bit agitated. They had starved for a long time, and they were willing to do something if they could get some food.
If they had to find food on their own, they wouldn't dare. A few days ago, some people had gone out because they couldn't bear the hunger, but none of them returned. Two were even eaten by zombies just outside the gate, and their horrific screams still sent shivers down everyone's spines.
But if they went with Gregory and his group, there would be no problem. This bunch of people not only were fierce when fighting humans, but also extremely fierce when fighting zombies. When they worked in groups, dealing with three to five zombies would be a piece of cake.
Someone volunteered, "I'll go!"
Somebody insisted, "Take me!"
Another chimed in, "I'll go too!"
One added, "And me."
Immediately, many people stood up, hoping to take advantage of the opportunity.
"So eager, huh?" he mocked. A hint of satisfaction flashed in Gregory's eyes as he casually pointed to two people, who immediately lit up with joy, as if the food was already in their hands.
At this moment, one of Gregory's men whispered something in his ear. If David had looked up, he would have seen that the speaker was none other than Joseph Wilson, the loader who had taken his wife.
Gregory said, "We need one more. David, how about you?"
David looked up in shock, not understanding why this stroke of luck would fall to him. But when he saw Joseph's sly smile, he had a bad feeling.
"Boss, are you sure this is the place?" Jack searched the building from top to bottom, finding nothing but a dozen zombies, and no living people.
William stood in the lobby on the first floor of the instrument factory, frowning, realizing he might have come to the wrong place.
He was here to find someone, a formidable individual known as the 'Intellect Master' in his previous life. When others talked about this person, he remembered that the person should have come from here.
But now, there was no one here.
Could it be that the rumor about the 'Intellect Master's' origin was wrong? Had he missed the first person he wanted to find after being reborn?
"Mr. Wright, come quickly! Someone is using a living person to attract the zombies over there!" Natalie’s clear and sweet voice came from the window.
