You were supposed to hoard supplies, why the heck did you hoard zombies!

Xu Lin nodded and didn't say much.

After all, no one knew better than him just how strict Shen Zhou's control over firearms and ammunition was.

Even the imitation gun craze that had been popular among the public a few years earlier was completely quelled by the stern crackdown of the Security Bureau, let alone real firearms.

But weapons were ultimately secondary.

A group of strictly trained combat personnel was what Zhang Ye truly wanted.

Once Xu Lin understood his boss's needs, he promptly agreed and immediately asked for more detailed requirements.

"So, how many people will this team consist of?"

"What missions will they need to undertake?"

"The direction of training——"

"Stop."

Zhang Ye directly interrupted him.

The answers to these relatively professional matters were already decided last night.

"We'll start with a preliminary count of twenty people."

"As for the training direction, naturally, it will be mainly firearms and close combat."

"After all, their main tasks in the future will be to clear out zombies, mutant creatures, as well as other hostile survivor forces."

Xu Lin nodded, listening very attentively.

Seeing he had no intention to continue, Xu Lin spoke up again,

"What about the name of the unit——"

"Let's call it the Combat Team."

"It will be under the company's Combat Department, and you'll be the team leader."

"When you need supplies, go directly to Qing Qing. She will be responsible for all the expenses during the Combat Team's training period."

————

Hotel lobby on the first floor.

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Everyone's face was filled with a look of fear.

Because at that moment, aside from them, there were more than a dozen zombies wearing smiling face masks in the lobby.

These zombies stood motionless like wax figures, with blood-red eyes peering through the holes in their masks at the crowd in the middle.

Even though there were far more survivors than zombies, still no one dared to move recklessly.

There were even some who couldn't stop trembling uncontrollably.

It was a lie to say they weren't afraid.

In such a confined space, any single zombie appearing among the people could be fatal.

Those standing on the edge could only shrink further inside, desperate for their lives.

The hotel's main door was kept open.

A few smiling-face zombies were also guarding the entrance, physically separating the wandering zombies outside from the living inside, still instilling in everyone a sense of walking on thin ice.

Standing atop the front desk was a person.

It was Xu Lin.

On the floor in front of the desk lay a man bound hand and foot.

This man was named Ding Zhixiong, who, along with his daughter, had been brought to the hotel, but the night before, Du Chao caught him red-handed during his patrol.

The place of arrest was the hotel's first-floor kitchen.

He had stolen half a kilo of raw rice.

"Director Xu!"

"Please spare me this time!"

"Miao Miao is too hungry, I really had no other choice!"

Ding Zhixiong struggled while begging for mercy, but the eyes of the surrounding survivors held little sympathy for him.

The hotel had rescued them from their respective hiding spots but only provided two days of food. After that, everyone needed to find new ways to acquire the supplies necessary for survival.

So, there were two choices for everyone.

Either, serve the company, work at the hotel or elsewhere doing odd jobs to earn a wage.

Or, risk going out the back door to look for supplies.

There were plenty of residential areas and supermarkets nearby.

If you were capable, you could take as much as you wanted.

At this time, the role of the hotel had changed, from an initial rescuer to a shelter, its sole purpose being to provide a place of absolute safety for these survivors.

But the outside world was too dangerous after all, and eight or nine out of ten who went out never returned.

Especially those who fought alone or had families to care for.

Ding Zhixiong was one such person.

He didn't dare to go out, but he was also terrified that he and his daughter would starve to death, so he turned his attention to the hotel's own supplies.

Zombie employees, after all, were not living people; they couldn't improvise.

Their patrol routes were fixed.

After observing, he soon discovered a loophole and thus decisively launched his theft last night.

As for the outcome—

"Our boss said."

"Stealing."

"Death."

Du Chao held a cows-ear knife in his hand, his fierce gaze sweeping over the crowd from time to time.

Everyone he locked eyes with instinctively lowered their heads.

The boss?

Since being saved and brought to the hotel, the most common thing they heard was:

"This is distributed by order of Director Zhang."

Besides that, those who wanted to receive relief food had to say "Thank you, Director Zhang" for each person, or else they would not be able to take anything.

As for who Director Zhang actually was and what he looked like, no one had seen him yet.

Even Ma Yun, who worked for the base, had not seen him.

He could only wait outside.

What the survivors only knew was that Director Zhang had vast magical powers, not only establishing a refuge in the hotel but also setting up a base in the famous villa district in the city center.

He not only had an endless supply of resources but also possessed a peculiar ability.

That was to control zombies.

It was for this reason that, even though the majority of people had never seen Zhang Ye, they were still filled with awe for the mysterious Director Zhang.

Now, since Director Zhang had declared that theft would be met with death, who could save him?

Ding Zhixiong completely broke down.

He began to wail bitterly.

"My daughter, I can't protect you anymore!"

"How will you manage in the future!"

"Waah!"

Annoyed by the commotion, Du Chao was ready to go straight up to him and stab him in the heart.

This way, the body would be better preserved.

Convenient for secondary use.

But Xu Lin raised his hand to stop him, his cold eyes looking down at the man on the ground:

"If you die, your daughter won't survive either."

"Is that what you want?"

Upon hearing his words, Ding Zhixiong's already tear-streaked face showed even more pain.

He struggled to crawl up from the ground, then banged his head on the floor with force.

"Please, give me another chance!"

"Miao Miao is still young!"

Following that were several more loud thuds, and the tiles quickly turned blood red.Nôv(el)B\\jnn

The quiet crowd suddenly became restless.

"Minister Xu, Minister Xu."

"Maybe you could let him off this time?"

A middle-aged man with a sympathetic expression finally couldn't help but speak up.

Seeing this, others quickly began to plead as well.

"Yes, Minister Xu, it hasn't been easy for anyone to survive until today, please give him another chance."

"Old Ding isn't a bad person usually."

"If it weren't for being really out of options, he wouldn't dare—"

The speaker trailed off, his gaze already stealthily observing the zombie staff around, the implication clear without words.

If it weren't really out of options, who would dare wander outside their rooms in the middle of the night?

Zombies patrol the corridors every few minutes.

Scaring people half to death!

Seeing the crowd's reaction, Du Chao slammed his palm down on the counter.

"Quiet down!"

"What's all the noise about?"

"The company has its rules!"

The crowd quieted down after this scare, but Ding Zhixiong on the ground continued repeating the head-knocking motions.

Just when everyone thought he was as good as dead, Xu Lin suddenly said:

"Ding Zhixiong."

"I can give you a chance."

"Whether your daughter survives depends on you."