Chapter 3: The Path to Survival 2
1333 Words
“Students, teachers, there is a large-scale riot in the city. All outdoor personnel, please take refuge in the nearest indoor location immediately. Those already indoors, lock your doors and windows, and await rescue! I repeat, all outdoor personnel, seek the nearest indoor shelter, and all indoor personnel, close your windows and doors, and await res— Close the door, quickly, close the door!”
The broadcast was suddenly interrupted by the sound of hurried footsteps, followed by a piercing scream that sent a chill through the already tense atmosphere of the school.
“Aah—”
A terrified scream erupted, triggering panic among everyone present.
Chu Yian grabbed the only remaining roommate and started sprinting. But as they reached the second teaching building, her roommate suddenly halted. “Yian, the broadcast said to find the nearest shelter.”
She pointed to a nearby classroom where people inside were waving them in as they closed the windows.
“There are too many people,” Chu Yian glanced at the crowd, then continued racing towards the dormitory.
But her roommate hesitated, unwilling to go further. “Yian, I can’t run anymore, and there are so many people in that classroom. It’s safer to stay with a group than just the two of us.”
She pulled her hand away from Chu Yian and ran to the window, reaching out for someone inside to pull her in. She looked back at Chu Yian, “Come on!”
Chu Yian shook her head, resolute. No, this won’t work.
Those maniacs out there were relentless, smashing car windshields with their heads, and they could easily break through these classroom windows as well. The teaching building wasn’t much safer than outside.
Their dormitory, on the sixth floor, had no windows in the hallway and could be barricaded at the entrance. They could monitor the situation below from a safe distance, with enough drinking water to last a while— it was the most suitable place for refuge.
But everyone has their own choices to make.
Let go of the need to help others, and respect their fate.
The sound of screams and footsteps drew closer. Chu Yian had no time to waste; she turned and bolted away.
Out of the corner of her eye, she spotted a bicycle parked under the teaching building—unlocked.
Just borrowing it!
She hopped on and pedaled furiously toward the dormitory.
“Yian!”
From the classroom window, her roommate watched Chu Yian’s retreating figure, a mix of blame and worry in her eyes, but mostly the lingering fear of having narrowly escaped death.
“It’s alright now, it’s alright,”
Other students tried to comfort her, “We’re safe now that we’re inside the classroom.”
But as soon as those words were spoken, more people began running towards the teaching building.
“Aah—!”
“Help!”
“Open the door!”
The students inside barely had time to react before a blood-soaked figure crashed into the window, smearing blood from his forehead and mouth against the glass as he continued to smash his body against it. More people followed suit, slamming into the windows with increasing ferocity.
The classroom didn’t last even half a minute before they broke through…
On the other side,
Chu Yian pedaled with all her strength until she finally reached the dormitory.
By then, many others were also running towards the dormitory building. She mingled with the crowd, racing inside as fast as she could. She slammed the door shut and locked it.
Dragging out every chair and suitcase from the dorm room, she piled them against the door and collapsed to the floor, gasping for breath. The frantic escape from the streets had drained her of all her energy.
But she couldn’t afford to rest for long. Chu Yian stood up and began assessing her surroundings.
The dormitory had six floors, no elevator, and she was on the top floor. The building was old, but the walls were freshly whitewashed, and the door was a new, modern security door, likely a recent renovation.
She glanced at the water dispenser, which still had about a third of its water left, and then grabbed a basin and turned on the tap.
While filling the basin, she stepped onto the balcony and looked out.
The view was expansive, offering a clear sight of the playground and the avenues leading to the cafeteria and the third phase of the teaching buildings.
Below, a swarm of people were frantically searching for shelter, some even glancing back as they ran, oblivious to the growing danger behind them.
The crisis was spreading.
A terrifying number of crazed people had gathered outside the teaching building, forming a horde that now surged towards the dormitory.
Chu Yian spotted an i***t lagging behind, casually filming them with his phone as he ran.
He was tackled in an instant.
At least three people descended on him, biting and tearing at his flesh. Others tried to save him, only to meet the same fate.
From her vantage point, Chu Yian watched as the mob devoured the man, his bloodied arm severed and tossed onto the grass below.
But within seconds, the half-devoured man started moving again, crawling forward with the one arm he had left.
These weren’t maniacs—they were zombies!
The scent of blood hung faintly in the air, making her stomach churn. She couldn’t hold it back any longer and rushed to the bathroom to vomit.
Afterward, she returned to the balcony.
The zombies below had split into two groups, one heading towards the cafeteria and the playground, the other circling around to the dormitory.
The sound of footsteps echoed up the stairwell; the entire building was filled with cries for help.
Chu Yian didn’t dare open her door.
She quickly turned off the lights and retreated to the farthest corner of the room, clutching a clothes drying rod tightly in her hand.
Footsteps grew louder outside her door—people were fleeing for their lives, pounding on doors, begging to be let in.
Though it was still daylight, the dorm’s corridors were poorly lit, a common issue in most school dormitories. Thankfully, Chu Yian had turned off her room’s lights in advance, causing everyone rushing upstairs to overlook her door.
She didn’t dare approach, listening from a distance.
Several rooms chose to let people in, but those who came for refuge were soon followed by the infected.
Growls and roars filled the corridors, mingled with the agonizing screams of those being attacked in the dorm rooms.
In an instant,
The dormitory had become a hell on earth.
Sweat trickled from Chu Yian’s palms as she gripped the drying rod, her mind blank with fear, until she heard voices from the next room—
“Block it, put more strength into it!”
“Don’t come in, we’ve already called the police!”
The next room over was being attacked by the infected, their threats only fueling the frenzy of the assault.
Chu Yian ran to the balcony to see what was happening in the adjacent room, but from her vantage point, she could see students on every floor being cornered by the crazed attackers. Some, with no other escape, were even jumping off the balconies.
“Help, help!”
The cries for help came from next door.
The door to the adjacent room had been breached, and the occupants were now trapped on the balcony.
Only a thin glass sliding door separated them from the zombies inside, a barrier that wouldn’t hold for long. Desperation etched on their faces, they spotted Chu Yian on her own balcony, seeing her as their last hope.
But the dormitory balconies were recessed, separated by a thick wall and a distance of two to three meters, making it impossible to climb across.
At that moment, the infected broke through.
From Chu Yian’s viewpoint, she saw bloody hands dragging the two students from the railing…
- Writer
