I am the Zombie King of the Apocalyptic World
Chapter 438 - 435: Zombie King Video_1

Chapter 438: Chapter 435: Zombie King Video_1

A fleeting discomfort dissolved much of the oppression harboured in Chen Chaoyang’s heart. He stoically endured the acrid sensation in his throat, allowing himself to refrain from coughing, and with each draw on his cigarette, exhaled a plume of smoke.

The smoky tendrils twisted amidst themselves. Nearby, a cluster of grotesque bodies was being hauled out from a luxurious building. They saw so many that they had grown desensitized to the sight, but Chen Chaoyang felt an inner grief with each load of bodies wheeled out. He made an effort to observe each one.

This time, as soon as he paid attention, his mind went blank!

Thud.

The unfinished cigarette dropped to the ground. Chen Chaoyang got up mechanically to confront the scene. Li Xiaoyan and Yan Jie knew something was dreadfully wrong. After glancing at each other, they rose too and followed him.

The cart being pushed before them contained five or six female bodies. One of them was facing Chen Chaoyang, revealing her striking features – stunningly beautiful, her skin was delicate, albeit a waxy yellow due to harsh living conditions. Her naked and voluptuous body was laid bare for all to see.

In this apocalyptic world, only a woman who had been cast aside by a high-ranking figure would maintain such a figure.

Chen Chaoyang strode forward with a vacant gaze. His mouth hung open but no sound came forth. The paltry hope in his eyes, discernible to others, was ebbing away, inch by inch. It was shattering!

His mouth opened wide. His throat quavered, one could tell he was trying to scream, but it was as though something stuck in his throat, rendering his voice mute.

Finally, a guttural cry tore from his throat, but before his second syllable could escape, Li Xiaoyan clamped a hand over his mouth and dragged him aside.

"

"Mr.Chen, Mr. Chen, calm down!"

Chen Chaoyang writhed and convulsed, fresh blood spilling from the stump of his severed arm. Every so often, he would spew out bloody foam. Passing survivors glanced at him momentarily before shaking their heads pityingly.

Chen Chaoyang’s body convulsed violently, almost breaking free from Li Xiaoyan’s grip a few times, if not for the firm hold of Yan Jie from behind.

From afar, it appeared as if the duo intended to kill Chen Chaoyang. With so many public murders, would one more matter? It had even come to a point where public orgies were taking place unabashedly. People had simply grown indifferent to the madness. Who even had any attention to spare for others’ affairs in this world of despair?

Such chaos persisted for a while thereafter, until Chen Chaoyang ceased to resist. He stared blankly as the bodies were tossed onto the pile of decaying corpses.

The spark in his eyes that had been extinguished was now steadily rekindling. However, unlike before, there wasn’t even a glimmer of light left. His eyes had been reduced to a devastating silence, rendering an eerie chill to all who beheld it.

"Mr. Chen..." Li Xiaoyan wanted to say something but found himself at a loss for words.

After a while, Chen Chaoyang’s face regained its stoic composure. His eyes, once again devoid of all emotion. When a person suffers a great trauma, retaliation is a natural response. The absence of this reaction either betrays indifference or signals the descent into madness.

It was clear that Chen Chaoyang belonged to the latter.

With his mouth ravaged by shrapnel, even speaking was an agony that rendered breathing difficult. Chen Chaoyang struggled to sit up, forcing out hoarse words with great effort: "Go...help me find out."

"Alright, Mr. Chen. We can’t act recklessly...this isn’t like the past...you may want to die, but we...we don’t." LI Xiaoyan spoke, his gaze resting on the pile of bodies. His words were blunt, and his intentions crystal clear. The respect he once held for Chen Chaoyang was no more, and their bond was held together only by years of camaraderie. It was perhaps less of a bond, but more of a consuming tug-of-war.

Chen Chaoyang had fallen from grace, a mere dog that has lost its home. Without the protection of his elders, he was nothing more than a disabled man. Even as a Level 2 New Human, he couldn’t make a stand in Qinshan Base.

Who would give the same respect and deference to another man in his shoes?

"Hey man."

"What do you want?"

Li Xiaoyan, having his shoulder tapped, glanced back at the man pushing the cart, asking brusquely.

Suddenly, he felt something being stuffed into his hands, and to his delight, it was a crystal shard the size of his fingernail. His earlier impatience had instantly vanished.

"What’s the matter?"

Li Xiaoyan gestured towards the bodies on the cart and asked, "What happened to these people?"

"Ah, these women were used as playthings by some bigshot inside. Look at the state they’re in...and that one... multiple bone fractures. Discarded after being used to death. What a waste...Can you see the one on top? A young woman...beautiful, isn’t she? And that figure...ahh...I know what you’re wondering: how did she die?"

"How did she die?" Li Xiaoyan asked.

The cart-pusher pointed at Zhao Yi’e’s corpse, a sinister grin spreading across his face. At this, Li Xiaoyan’s complexion turned grave. It was only then that he noticed the garish bruising and scarring that marred the bodies of these women, making a horrific sight.

"A bigshot inside pierced her with an electric rod here, and she suffocated to death. Before that, she was even used as a chamber pot..." He pointed towards his crotch, explaining to Li Xiaoyan. Recalling his strange demeanor, he furrowed his brows: "Brother, don’t say I didn’t warn you, don’t try to play the good guy here. The world isn’t kind to do-gooders nowadays...Ah, I used to think Chen Huaijiang was a real piece of work, but now, he seems like the better devil."

He spoke with a hint of self-mockery. His facial expression couldn’t conceal the despair and desolation in his eyes. If not for the ruthless push of the times, who would want to live in such a cruel world?

But unfortunately, they couldn’t give up. Perhaps they had relatives, but more than that, they clung onto the hope of becoming the ones who held power.

Before Li Xiaoyan could speak, Chen Chaoyang had approached from behind and pulled him aside. He faced the cart-pusher and asked: "Who exactly is this bigshot you speak of?"

Though severely impeded by the gashes on his lips, his words were understood.

"Wang Baihai, do you know him?"

"Just asking." Chen Chaoyang replied with disinterest, pulling Li Xiaoyan away and returning to their original spot. He didn’t take another look at his mother’s corpse, treating her as though she were a stranger.

Noticing the transformation in Chen Chaoyang, Li Xiaoyan trembled inwardly, uncertain of how to proceed.

"Get in the car first." Chen Chaoyang commanded Yan Jie, promptly climbing into the vehicle. The other two hesitated for a moment before joining him without uttering a word.

"Mr. Chen, do you have a plan?" Yan Jie asked.

"No, but we can’t stay here any longer." replied Chen Chaoyang.

Having lost all motivation to live, Chen Chaoyang wasn’t concerned about what lay ahead. Taking revenge? But how? Where to go next?

Would it be to engage Qinshan Base in a fight to the death? Li Xiaoyan’s words just now held weight – while Chen Chaoyang might have grown indifferent to his life, others were unwilling to follow suit. So, Chen Chaoyang abandoned that idea as well.

The vehicle pulled away, gradually leaving the place behind.

As they passed by a square, a large screen on a nearby building looped footage from Lin City.

"The Zombie King has arrived, mankind is doomed!"

"Death to all! No one can escape it! The Zombie King!"

"Damn it all! Even the Zombie King has appeared, how can we survive?"

"The end of mankind is at hand!"

In the centre of the square, countless survivors were screaming insanely, hitting other survivors with signs bearing the Zombie King’s image.