Chapter 96: Chapter 86: Unconventional Reserve Food

His eyes quickly scanned the area. Just as he was counting the number of zombies, he heard the sound of scattered footsteps coming from the diagonal rear!

“Someone’s here!”

Zhang Su quickly hid behind the wall and looked towards the seventh building in the diagonal direction, just in time to see the unit door being slowly pushed open!

A group of people filed out, and they were all stunned to see five people squatting in the corner.

“Master Xin! It’s them, those five guys from yesterday! That fat woman works at the gas station!”

Immediately, someone recognized Zhang Su and his group, and pointed out Tan Huajun quite accurately, indicating her well-known presence in the neighborhood. Anyone who regularly refuels at the gas station would know her.

“Master Xin?”

Separated by a distance of fifty or sixty meters, Zhang Su could vaguely hear their conversation. His gaze fell on the man leading them, not particularly strong but with a vicious look on his face.

Instinct told him this guy was cruel and ruthless, even before the disaster struck!

Zheng Xinyu and the others naturally also saw Master Xin’s group. They sensed a hostile gaze from them and quickly guessed their identity.

Only one person remained confused, Lu Yubo, who frowned and said, “Brother Su, isn’t this Sister Tan’s unit? Where did these guys come from…”

Zhang Su turned to look at the situation in the garden again and found the zombies were stable. He whispered to Lu Yubo, “The one in the black leather jacket is Zhang Xin.”

“Is this bastard trying to steal our stuff? I’ll stab, no, kill him!”

Lu Yubo tightened his grip on the food sampler, realizing that saying ’stab’ sounded somewhat effeminate and quickly changed his phrasing.

“Don’t act impulsively!”

Zhang Su advised in a low voice, narrowing his eyes at the eight people dozens of meters away, whispering to his companions, “They have more people, don’t be reckless.”

At this point, their situation was extremely awkward, almost a deadlock. Retreating might lead them into an unsafe unit, potentially facing a horde of zombies, while advancing toward the garden where over ten zombies roamed could result in being surrounded by Master Xin’s team, attacked from both front and rear!

“Master Xin, they definitely killed Wu Daqiang’s group, what do you think? Should we take them out?”

A tall man wearing a knit cap walked next to Zhang Xin, holding a piece of rebar.

Zhang Xin slightly shook his head cautiously, saying, “Let’s see what happens!”

See what happens?

Among the seven people beside him, some of the slower ones couldn’t understand what needed to be watched.

With eight armed strong men on their side and only two men and three women on the other, if a conflict broke out, the outcome seemed clear, so why wait?

This was a gut instinct. Zhang Su could feel the threat posed by the eight men here, and Zhang Xin, as the leader of the Salvation Society, also possessed exceptional talents, able to discern that Zhang Su’s group wasn’t easy to deal with even without engagement!

“Master Xin, look at their bag; it’s about to burst open, must be full of food!”

Another person spoke, shaking the weapon in his hand, clearly itching for action.

“We don’t know Wu Daqiang’s fate. And with Ah Long dead, we have four fewer mouths to feed, reducing food consumption pressures significantly. Don’t be so reckless!”

The person speaking wasn’t Master Xin, but a scholarly-looking man wearing glasses.

“Fussing around…”

Knit Cap muttered under his breath, but he had to stand quietly to the side, although unsure of what to wait for.

Zhang Xin had the talent to rally a group to follow him, considering matters more comprehensively than his impulsive subordinates.

As he saw Zhang Su and his group, he confirmed that Wu Daqiang’s unexpected demise was related to these five!

However, seeing them dressed cleanly without a scratch and seemingly unperturbed, it was hard to imagine what happened last night; the speculation was vast.

Zhang Xin had to weigh the pros and cons of starting a conflict over seizing the goods.

With a quiet standoff, both sides maintained restraint, and the atmosphere seemed very strange.

If someone passed by, they would notice Zhang Su’s five were clearly at a disadvantage.

Zhang Su understood this too, and so did Zhang Xin’s team standing outside the unit door. Yet, they just calmly stared at each other as if separated by a galaxy…

“Have a talk with them!”

After a full three minutes passed, Zhang Su’s feet began to feel cold, prompting a decision. He tightened his grip on his axe and gestured toward the unit door.

The situation wasn’t in their favor; the longer it dragged on, the less advantageous it became. A quick decision was necessary, so he decided to initiate the conversation!

Zheng Xinyu and the others couldn’t think of a better plan, so they followed without objection.

“Master Xin, they’re coming, should we act?”

Knit Cap showed a hint of nervousness on his face, inadvertently twisting his neck.

“I can see, told you to wait and watch, hold your ground!”

Zhang Xin replied impatiently, secretly gripping a meat-slicing knife about a foot long. He shared the same idea as Zhang Su, preferring to face zombies than interact with unfamiliar humans.

“Been staring at us forever, what’s your plan?”

Zhang Su stopped about five or six meters from Zhang Xin and asked with a faint smile.

Only now did Zhang Xin’s team truly see Zhang Su and his group’s attire. Clean and tidy on the surface, yet their arms and calves bulged like swelling, making it unclear what was hidden inside, appearing quite comical.

The uninformed thought they were cold, but those understanding the significance would surely regard them highly!

Without professional gear, this is a very prudent defensive measure against zombies, a realization born from experiencing life-and-death struggles.

“Ha, brother, what’s your name?”

Zhang Xin asked, forced but smiling.

“Same family name!” Zhang Su said somewhat unwillingly.

“Ha, appears you folks already know who I am? Brother Zhang, you’re quite amusing. You’ve come to my territory; isn’t it normal to keep an eye on you?”

Zhang Xin asked, still smiling falsely.

“I live upstairs, that’s my home; surely my home isn’t your territory, is it?”

Tan Huajun defiantly lifted the calipers, looking at Zhang Xin’s group with unyielding eyes.

Initially, she was somewhat fearful of the thugs, but after last night’s events, she wised up considerably — it takes a rogue to handle a rogue!

“Your home? You have no home anymore, fatty. Our Salvation Society at Phoenix International exterminated over a hundred zombies to create the current safe environment. Otherwise, you’d be zombie chow by now!”

Zhang Xin remarked bluntly.

Zhang Su avoided arguing with them; he understood their perspective. In his place, he’d think similarly: what you conquered is yours, now with no law or order to speak of.

“Regardless of zombies or undead, your clearing is inadequate. We killed over ten heads after entering the complex. Additionally, we don’t plan to remain at Phoenix International; we’re leaving now. Do you have anything else to say?”

Zhang Su pointed toward the gate direction.

“Ha, this guy exaggerates without draft, killing over ten heads; he should claim he cleared the entire complex. Shark arm.”

Upon hearing Zhang Su’s words, someone immediately sneered dismissively.

The Salvation Society paid dearly clearing zombies, often deploying over ten people, yet a day’s harvest might only be ten heads or less, sometimes losing comrades, explaining the exaggerated claim beyond belief.

In that context, they certainly didn’t believe Zhang Su’s group eliminated over ten within half a day.

“These things don’t matter!”

Zhang Xin raised his hand to halt his subordinates’ jokes and said to Zhang Su, “Don’t rush off. Anyone entering Phoenix International needs to pay protection fees in the form of goods. Additionally, you owe us funeral fees for killing our four Salvation Society brothers yesterday. Calculating t

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