Chapter 33: Roast Duck with Huang Qian and Insights into the World Situation

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It did not take long for them to reach the bustling street at the very center of District C. The moment they entered the roast-duck restaurant, a rich aroma flooded their senses.

The food here was excellent, but there were very few customers. The main reason was simple: it was expensive.

Most people in District C were only first- or second-rank, which meant they could accept only low-level missions and earn very few points. Their earnings barely covered their daily necessities.

The six of them settled at a window-side table on the second floor. Liu Yi opened a pack of cigarettes and handed them around. To their surprise, even Huang Qian smoked, and soon all six were enveloped in a cloud of smoke.

[There are no cigarettes at home, and I just couldn’t hold back while writing this. I’m going out to buy some! I’ll continue when I get back.]

Li Xingyue felt a little thirsty, so he asked a waiter for a case of beer.

They never drank while out on missions. Drinking was something they did only after returning at night.

Glug, glug—the first half bottle was quickly drained. The icy beer instantly revived their spirits.

“Ahh—now that hits the spot!”

“I wish every day could be like this!”

“Get real. Do more missions!”

They chatted idly, and before long, the roast duck and the other dishes were brought to the table.

Li Xingyue picked up a slice of roast duck, dipped it in sauce, and placed it in his mouth.

Damn—this was genuinely delicious!

Perhaps it had simply been too long since they had tasted anything so good. Or perhaps it was because there was a woman present. Whatever the reason, everyone was in exceptionally high spirits that day.

Yellow Tooth had downed two bottles and began bragging without pause, claiming that he had once taken on several streets by himself and had once been the top boss of some major city.

Liu Er said that he had once experienced 1080p. Li Xingyue had no idea what that meant, but it certainly sounded impressive.

Liu San kept glancing at Huang Qian and grinning foolishly.

Liu Yi was usually mature and composed, but even he said quite a lot that day. Only then did Li Xingyue discover that he was still a virgin...

Yellow Tooth burst out laughing. “Hahahaha! Old Liu, are you telling us you’re incapable?”

The remark made Liu Yi’s face flush.

Huang Qian looked at Li Xingyue curiously. “They’re all bragging. Why aren’t you joining in?”

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Li Xingyue shot her a glance. “Captain Qian, it’s not that I don’t want to say anything. It’s just that none of you would believe me!”

The moment he said this, everyone grew curious. The three Liu brothers in particular had spent several days with Li Xingyue, yet they had hardly ever talked about his past.

Yellow Tooth froze for a moment, then looked at Li Xingyue. “Old Li, don’t tell me you’re going to say you drank with a Zombie King again?”

“What the hell?” Huang Qian and the other three exclaimed in unison.

Liu Er leaned closer. “No way, Captain. You’ve actually had a past this unbelievable?”

Huang Qian forcibly covered her laughing mouth and gave him a thumbs-up. “Captain Li, whether you mean to or not, no one can beat you when it comes to making up outrageous stories!”

“See? I told you no one would believe me!”

Liu Er wiped away tears of laughter. “Pfft—hahahaha! Captain, I believe you!”

You call that believing me? I wouldn’t believe you if you swore it on a ghost!

Li Xingyue drained the beer in his glass, then picked up a mouthful of food and put it into his mouth. “Let me tell you, it wasn’t just one drink. I became sworn brothers with them. In fact, I even dyed their hair not long ago!”

“Hahahaha! Old Li, you’re hilarious!”

“I admit, that got me good. Hahahaha!”

Clearly, they all took it as a joke. That was only natural. No one would believe that humans could peacefully coexist with zombies—especially not with the terrifying eighth-rank Zombie Kings.

“All right, back to business. Captain Qian, you’ve been in Freedom City for a long time, so I wanted to ask you about the situation.”

Huang Qian sobered up and sat upright. “Go ahead. What do you want to know?”

Li Xingyue considered his words. “Let’s start with the current situation. I only escaped here a few days ago, so there’s a lot I don’t understand.”

Huang Qian thought for a moment. “There are only five major cities left for humanity. Besides Freedom City, there are Steel City, Aurora City, Ark City, and Radiant City.”

“Freedom City is the weakest overall. Whether you’re talking about the city’s size, its population, the number of high-rank Evolvers, or anything else...”

Li Xingyue nodded. “What about the rankings of the other major cities?”

Huang Qian shook her head. “I don’t know the exact order, but one thing is certain: Ark City is the strongest. It’s the capital, and the General Bureau of Zombie Hunting is located there. Humanity’s highest authority is based there as well.”

Liu Yi nodded slightly in agreement. “The strongest humans have gathered there. I’ve heard that it’s also the major city with the greatest number of ninth- and eighth-rank Evolvers.”

“Compared with Ark City, Freedom City really amounts to nothing.”

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Liu San took out a map and spread it across the table.

“Captain, you’ll understand once you look at the map. Ark City is east of us, while the other four cities lie to its east, west, south, and north, surrounding and protecting it completely.”

Li Xingyue glanced at the map and saw that it really was arranged that way.

Yellow Tooth kept picking at his teeth with a toothpick. “Put it this way, Old Li: if Ark City is a first-tier city, then Freedom City is, at best, a third-tier one. This place was already chaotic before the apocalypse, and the government barely bothered to govern it.”

So that was how things were. Yet Li Xingyue was puzzled. He looked at them. “If the other cities are stronger and safer, why didn’t you go there?”

The question brought bitter smiles to everyone’s faces.

“Captain, it isn’t that we didn’t want to go. We simply couldn’t get in. During the early days of the apocalypse, people could enter if they managed to reach the cities. But from the later stages onward, and especially now, ordinary people can hardly gain entry at all. Even low-rank Evolvers face extremely strict screening.”

Li Xingyue nodded. “I understand. Then let’s not talk about the other cities. Tell me about Freedom City. What’s the situation here now?”

Huang Qian stuffed a piece of roast duck into her mouth. “The position of city lord is currently vacant, but the authorities have appointed an acting lord from another major city. Unfortunately, he doesn’t get along with the head of the local Zombie-Hunting Division or the supreme commander of the Enforcers.”

“You definitely know who the Enforcers are—the people outside carrying guns and wearing uniforms. Their job is to maintain order in the major city.”

“As for the head of the Zombie-Hunting Division, there’s no need to explain. He’s our boss.”

“At present, those three are the strongest people in Freedom City. You could say they are the kings of this city.”

Li Xingyue understood. Good grief, they were practically regional warlords—provincial governors in all but name!

After all, each major city was about the size of a province in the old world. The comparison was hardly an exaggeration.

Thinking of the streets and shops outside, Li Xingyue looked at Huang Qian. “Have humans already restored the order of the old days?”

Huang Qian laughed at that.

“Are you running a fever? Can’t you see how many people die every day? Can’t you see that people no longer need to hide their visits to prostitutes? Can’t you see how twisted human nature has become?”

“Don’t be fooled just because we can sit here eating roast duck and drinking beer. None of that changes the fact that this is still the apocalypse! After ten years, society’s order has long since ceased to resemble what it once was!”

Yellow Tooth smacked his lips as he looked at Li Xingyue. “Old Li, sometimes I really feel as if you’re not from this world. I’m honestly curious—how did you survive these ten years?”

Li Xingyue flushed slightly at the remark. He couldn’t really blame them for being puzzled. The truth was, he truly had not experienced those ten years of darkness.