Ch 103: Opening a Survival School Before the Zombie Outbreak

Fu Qing had not actually expected to return to Fangzhou so quickly.

She had assumed the other side would at least keep her there, under strict watch for a period of time, until her words were fully proven true before allowing her to move about and act.

But higher leadership chose instead to have Tian Xuejun bring people to station themselves near Fangzhou, rather than directly taking control of Fu Qing. Clearly, it was meant to signal a more moderate, cooperative posture.

Fu Qing accepted their goodwill.

Inside her mind, the system said: 【Host, the cameras at the south gate, the east gate, and along the perimeter wall have captured quite a few people passing not far from campus.】

It watched a few seconds longer: 【…They have taken over some of the nearby civilian houses. The original residents in those houses are now packing and evacuating in an orderly fashion with their assistance.】

The system’s cameras were not the same as ordinary surveillance cameras. They were more like countless eyes belonging to the system itself.

Traditional cameras might miss details due to limited resolution or the observer’s lack of attention, but here at Fangzhou, as long as something fell within a camera’s range, the system could observe exactly what was happening.

This also ensured that any zombies approaching the school could be discovered immediately.

As for the organization’s patrols and sentries, their role was more about identifying zombie types at once after discovery and dealing with them in time.

The system had intelligence, but it relied entirely on its host. All intelligence had to be passed to Fu Qing for her to judge and handle. Fu Qing had established campus patrols, sentry posts, and other positions largely to share the workload.

Fu Qing listened to the system’s report and gave a brief “Mm.” “Don’t worry about it.”

They had chosen the least intrusive approach, and she did not intend to harm that trust.

It was just that…

She had arranged work for the next few days before leaving, never expecting to be back just a few hours later.

Standing on campus again, Fu Qing felt, for once, a moment of faint disorientation.

She opened the system and sent a message, preparing for the time being to gather the teachers together and relay the outside situation and the decisions made at the top.

*

Just after 5:30 p.m., television stations at every level across the country and major online platforms suddenly began simulcasting the central news livestream. Several representatives and spokespersons from different sectors appeared on screen in formal attire, their expressions grave. They first reported intelligence about the suddenly emerging virus and announced that the highest level emergency response had been activated. Immediately after, leaders from various departments took turns, laying out in detail the actions about to be taken.

The authorities’ public appearance temporarily halted the chaos that had continued all afternoon, but information about the virus’s extreme lethality and infectiousness soon ignited a new wave of fear among the public.

Only when a medical academician explained that teams were already accelerating serum and vaccine development, and a military representative emphasized that emergency reserves would be mobilized and supplies safeguarded as much as possible, did that panic subside somewhat.

…

Before the broadcast began, Fu Qing had already turned on the projection equipment installed in classrooms across the campus and issued a general notice instructing students and parents staying at Fangzhou to go to the nearest classroom to watch.

Some classrooms had already become living spaces. The occupants did not mind. They simply moved their bedding to the side and generously let everyone in.

Every classroom was packed wall to wall. Translated on Hololo novels. People looked up at the screen, their emotions rising and falling like a roller coaster as the broadcast progressed.

When they finally saw armored vehicles rolling into the streets and soldiers working together to move supplies, some of the more emotional viewers could not help their eyes turning wet.

Fu Qing and the teachers watched all of this from the administrative building’s conference room.

Xu Mingyue could not help letting out a long breath. “This time the response is so much faster than last time.”

In truth, the teachers all understood. Given the special nature of the zombie virus and the existence of the believers, even with swift official action, the chaos caused by the virus was unavoidable.

Whether humanity could be prevented from going extinct was still an unknown.

But what people needed was that sliver of hope provided by the authorities.

In the face of vast, irresistible disaster, human beings were both fragile and resilient.

People might collapse into despair over small things, yet they might also cling to that sliver of hope and stubbornly live on.

This broadcast was, in effect, a shot of reassurance injected into the frightened, unsettled public at the very beginning of the outbreak.

After the official statements, a press conference followed. Experts came forward to explain the subsequent measures in detail, such as sealing doors and windows, preparing supplies, and so on.

This broadcast not only dominated television and online platforms, it was also pushed nationwide through emergency radio and SMS alerts, doing everything possible to reach even the most isolated, out-of-the-way corners.

Even after the broadcast ended, screens that still functioned on the streets continued looping the footage. At the same time, experts, scholars, authoritative institutions, and even prominent media influencers began calming the public through their own channels.

A similar scene had unfolded in the previous life, but because early measures had not been taken quickly enough, the number of infected had been too great. Many basic facilities were destroyed, people lost internet and power, communications stopped, television stations fell and could no longer operate normally, and those hard-won voices never reached many people at all.

For people like Xu Mingyue, Lu Yan, and Bai Tang who had made it through from the previous life, the difference at this moment was vivid and overwhelming.

The butterfly’s wings had already begun to beat, and the wind was sweeping across broader ground.

…It made one want to pray in silence that it would blow harder, until it swept across all of Huaguo, across the entire Blue Star.

*

At the same time, in other countries.

Whether it was day or deep night locally, in the heavily guarded buildings in every nation’s capital, the lights were bright.

People of different skin colors, genders, and identities sat in conference rooms of varying styles, watching the video China had sent.

Hearing the translated words, someone’s face twisted. He slammed the table and stood up. “Rebirth? Humanity is going extinct? This is ridiculous!”

“What is the Chinese government doing? Do they think sending us a video like this will make us believe them? What is their purpose?!”

His country was vast and sparsely populated. The virus did not yet seem severe there. Even the underreported deaths were only a handful, so he refused to believe such claims, feeling it sounded more like a vicious curse.

A scheme to drag all nations down together.

He never even considered that this vicious virus was spreading rapidly in the shadows, and that in countless buildings that should have been responsible for reporting, everyone had already vanished, leaving only zombies wandering.

Under such conditions, how could real data possibly be obtained?

But after receiving the video, he was far from the only one harboring doubts. Especially in countries with opposing political stances, minds were already galloping headlong toward conspiracy theories.

In one mansion’s conference room, several people were arguing fiercely.

One shouted, “I strongly suspect this strange virus that appeared out of nowhere was released by China! Otherwise, how could they respond so quickly?”

“According to the latest reports, they’ve already closed their land border crossings and issued warnings to their citizens. With that speed, they must know something we don’t, and they didn’t tell us.”

“We can’t trust them. I propose we immediately dispatch intelligence personnel and uncover their information source at any cost.”

A small number objected. “But as I understand it, the same virus is also appearing within China at the same time. If they released it themselves, they could have targeted only key nations’ capitals. Why would they affect the entire world, including all their friendly countries and themselves? That makes no sense.”

“Put yourselves in their position. If it were you, would you do that?”

“Then what?” someone cut in sharply. “Then what are they doing?”

“You don’t seriously think they’re acting out of goodwill, do you?” he sneered. The next moment, his voice sharpened with accusation. “According to their recommendations, we would immediately halt all social and economic activity and suspend foreign trade. Have you calculated how enormous the losses would be?”

The one who had spoken in opposition earlier was a medical expert. Hearing this, he fell silent for a moment.

His chest rose and fell repeatedly, both angry and helpless.

What he did not say was that, due to China’s large and densely concentrated population, the casualties there were already more severe than in their own country.

Recalling the shocking numbers of deaths and infections reported by his subordinates on the way here, then looking at the politicians in the room who were still blinded by their positions, his heart had already turned cold.

Could they see only disputes and interests, yet fail to hear the desperate cries of suffering people?

Struggling to restrain his anger and urgency, the expert said with a trembling voice, “Open your eyes and look. This virus has already spread across the world. Calling it a disaster for all humanity would not be an exaggeration. If ‘people’ are gone, how will society exist? How will the economy develop?”

“I strongly recommend immediately referencing Huaguo’s measures: close public venues, restrict movement, deploy the military to protect hospitals, clear infected individuals from the streets, and gather homeless people who are still uninfected into centralized shelters. They are the most vulnerable during a disaster. Then establish emergency shelters and distribute emergency supplies to the public.”

His proposal was immediately met with overwhelming opposition.

“Our citizens have guns. If danger comes, they can protect themselves.”

“Are you suggesting we restrict our citizens’ personal freedom?”

Amid the uproar of objections, the expert cast a desperate look toward the elderly man in a suit seated at the head of the table.

After a long silence, the man finally made a decision.

In summary, they would maintain normal social operations while issuing public safety warnings, urging citizens to protect themselves when going out. Translated on Hololo novels. Armed forces would be dispatched to gather homeless individuals from the streets into shelters for centralized isolation.

The expert’s throat had grown hoarse as he shouted repeatedly, “We have already discovered a small number of highly mobile infected individuals. At their speed, ordinary people cannot eliminate them even with firearms! Expecting civilians to protect themselves is unrealistic!”

But his voice stopped abruptly when the elder raised a hand.

“Professor, as you said, those are only very rare cases.”

“The situation is still controllable for now. There is no need to prematurely halt economic activity.”

“We will continue observing. If conditions worsen, we can take further steps then. With our nation’s military strength, suppressing unarmed infected individuals will not be difficult.”

“You are making recommendations from a medical perspective, but we must also consider social, economic, and political factors. Please understand.”

Sentence after sentence, firmly stated, pressed the expert back into his seat in defeat.

In another conference room, however, the debate had already ended.

That country had maintained diplomatic ties with China for many years. Although its highest leader also harbored doubts about China’s information source, after hearing about the measures China had taken, he inexplicably sensed an approaching storm.

After swift discussion, they quickly adopted similar policies.

…

Reactions across countries varied. Some dismissed China’s warnings outright. Others sensed something in China’s cautious urgency and took precautionary measures just in case. Major powers, relying on their strength, responded differently. Some chose to suppress and eliminate zombies through force, others remained calm and continued observing. Many smaller nations, lacking capability, aligned themselves with stronger powers, taking the opportunity to declare their stance. Some even joined together in attempts to shift blame for the outbreak onto Huaguo.

Not to mention that, beyond public view, countless intelligence agents already operating within China had received orders and quietly begun moving into action.

These various reactions were soon reposted onto domestic internet platforms, naturally sparking another wave of fierce online debate.

Yet seeing the calm and unmoving response from above, as though everything had been anticipated from the moment the video was released, netizens gradually shifted from outrage back to concern over their own situation.

After all, their own problems remained unresolved. Who had the energy to worry about foreign disputes and political maneuvering? Only people like Grandma Zhang and Zhao Ya, who had relatives or friends overseas, could not help feeling anxious as they watched the news.

That evening at nine o’clock, Zhao Ya finally received a message from Zhao Liang.

Zhao Liang happily reported that the local embassy had issued an announcement advising overseas nationals to stay home as much as possible. Those facing genuine difficulties could request assistance from the embassy.

After strict checks confirming no wounds anywhere on their bodies, the embassy would provide temporary protection and accommodation.

“I heard there might be evacuation flights in the future,” Zhao Liang said. “But before boarding, people will need at least three weeks of quarantine to confirm they aren’t infected… There are too many overseas Chinese in Country A. If everyone gathers together, infected individuals might appear. Everyone still has food at home, so people in our group chat are saying they’ll wait a bit longer and only seek embassy help if they really can’t hold out.”

Zhao Liang was still hiding in a storage room, too afraid to go outside, but hope had returned to his face.

Hearing this, Zhao Ya and Grandma Zhang were naturally relieved as well. The anxiety they had been carrying finally eased.

…

All these developments also reached the ears of China’s leadership.

Not everyone among them had supported fully believing Fu Qing’s words. The final decision that overruled opposition had been something of a desperate gamble.

But as time passed minute by minute, more and more death reports came in, more injured people suddenly mutated, and Fu Qing’s statements about incubation periods and other details were increasingly confirmed. Even those who had initially opposed the decision wiped cold sweat from their brows.

There were simply too many infected on the streets. Even with rapid action, the situation was still sliding toward the abyss of losing control.

At last, everyone realized that if the decision had been delayed even a few more hours, it might truly have been too late.

In the end, countless thoughts condensed into a single sentiment.

Fortunately.

Fortunately, they had chosen to believe her.

——————————

In a women’s dormitory at a university in D City, China.

Zhao Yun and her roommate had wrapped every inch of exposed skin in layers of clothing. Like two frightened little animals, they huddled together on a bed pressed against the wall. Tear tracks had long dried on their faces, and though they were sweating heavily from the heat, neither dared to move.

The dormitory door was a thin wooden panel. To prevent zombies from breaking in, they had already shoved every chair in the room against it. Suitcases filled with belongings were stacked on top as weights, firmly barricading the entrance.

Outside the door came constant rustling footsteps, dragging slowly along, as if someone were shuffling about unhurriedly.

Zhao Yun knew that was probably a girl from the neighboring dorm.

She usually wore round black-rimmed glasses and pajamas matching those from Crayon Shin-chan, and she and Zhao Yun had even chosen the same class.

But when Zhao Yun closed her eyes now, the only image that appeared in her mind was that girl covered in blood, pinned beneath a zombie, crying and reaching out toward her for help.

Zhao Yun shuddered again, covering her mouth as a sob escaped.

Her roommate, clinging tightly beside her, pulled her closer and then typed on her phone: Don’t cry. It wasn’t your fault.

Neither of them dared make a sound. They could only communicate through their phones.

Earlier that afternoon, Zhao Yun and her roommate had gone to the supermarket to buy snacks so they could participate in @DormitoryEscape’s livestream interaction event. After returning, they sat waiting eagerly for the broadcast to begin.

They were the first back in the dorm. Some roommates were locals who were in no hurry to return, while others were still on their way. With the room to themselves, they turned on the livestream speakers and ordered a pile of takeout, planning to eat while watching.

Unfortunately, too many people joined the event, and they were never selected during the livestream. They could only photograph the supplies they had prepared and post them online with the event hashtag, hoping to be chosen in a later giveaway.

Around two in the afternoon, Zhao Yun could not hold it any longer and went out to the hallway restroom. Before she even finished, someone suddenly began pounding violently on the stall door.

When she stumbled out in panic, her roommate grabbed her hand and dragged her into a sprint down the corridor, shouting something about zombies appearing.

Zhao Yun still did not understand what was happening. She thought her roommate had become too immersed in the livestream and was about to laugh and tease her when they suddenly saw, at the stairwell entrance, the girl from the neighboring dorm scream as another person lunged at her.

That person crouched over her, doing something unseen. The girl cried out, kicking and struggling desperately, but soon fell silent.

They were frozen in shock.

When they finally reacted, they bolted back to their dorm, locked the door behind them, and never dared move again.

The content from @DormitoryEscape’s videos suddenly seemed to have crossed dimensions and become reality.

Fortunately, because they had been watching the livestream, they had not fully separated themselves from its fictional setting. Translated on Hololo novels. Zhao Yun almost immediately recalled the descriptions of zombies mentioned in the videos.

For example, their eyesight deteriorated, and they relied mainly on hearing and heightened perception to locate prey.

Though she could not believe zombies truly existed, Zhao Yun remembered the attacker’s frenzied behavior and hurriedly called her roommate to help move everything in the dorm to block the door.

During the process, the noise they made caused heavy pounding against the wooden door. Terrified, they rushed to finish barricading it completely before retreating to the bed farthest from the entrance.

Afraid of making noise, they did not even dare turn on the fan.

The livestream continued playing. They had already lost the will to watch, but just as they were about to close it, the mysterious sixth person appeared.

They watched her drag a corpse onto the roof of a truck.

They watched her lift a “person” identical to the attacker they had just encountered, firmly identify it as a zombie, and teach viewers how to kill it.

In the end, she even asked, “Did you learn it?”

Each of them curled up on the bed wearing headphones, staring in stunned disbelief.

Normally, the two never missed an episode of TaoTao’s videos. Sometimes they even envied how interesting life at that campus seemed. But now that everything was happening to them for real, they realized they did not even have the courage to face a zombie.

Whether they wanted to believe it or not, whether they dared face it or not, it was real.

The zombie outside lingered near their door for a while, then finally left when no further sounds came from inside. The two hurriedly sent warnings in their dorm group chat and repeatedly reminded their roommates, but not long after, another scream echoed through the corridor.

They trembled, wanting to cover their ears, yet unable to block out the terrified cries of their classmates. They could only bury their own sobs deep into the blankets.

Fear mixed with hatred toward their own helplessness.

So the videos had been false after all. People like TaoTao’s group, who could stand up and save others, were one in ten thousand.

And they were not those brave protagonists.

Not until after five in the afternoon did they finish watching the national news broadcast with red, swollen eyes and headphones still on.

The experts on screen used many technical terms they could not understand to describe the sudden virus, as if scientific language could lessen people’s fear.

But Zhao Yun and her roommate knew.

This was the zombie virus.

They even strongly suspected TaoTao knew something. The mysterious sixth person’s actions were the clearest proof.

The more they listened, comparing the experts’ explanations with details mentioned in TaoTao’s earlier videos, the more certain they became.

However, the experts only described transmission routes and infected symptoms. Many things TaoTao had mentioned, such as zombies’ sense of smell and hearing, were not discussed.

Zhao Yun and her roommate believed that was because this was an official nationwide broadcast. Unverified information could not be casually announced to the public.

But they could.

@DormitoryEscape was already quite popular as a self-media content creator, but far from universally known. Some people might have come across one or two of their trending videos, yet few followed them as faithfully as Zhao Yun and her roommate, who never missed a single episode.

An idea began to form in their minds.

After hesitating for a moment, Zhao Yun opened the small pink video site where @DormitoryEscape had first uploaded their videos.

What she saw was almost unbelievable.

At nearly the exact moment the official news broadcast ended, multiple @DormitoryEscape videos simultaneously surged onto the platform’s trending page, even occupying half of the homepage.

Most other platforms were flooded with real-time footage of zombie attacks, but this site, due to its nature, mainly featured carefully produced long videos by creators. Few people uploaded real-time short clips there, so after the outbreak began, traffic had sharply declined, and the homepage still displayed older dance videos, edits, and prank content.

Until the moment the livestream ended.

Then, at astonishing speed, @DormitoryEscape’s videos replaced those unrelated clips one after another, claiming half the front page.

The other half, naturally, was filled with the news broadcast.

The homepage now looked sharply divided.

Zhao Yun quickly clicked into one video and checked the scrolling comments. It showed over one million people watching simultaneously. Many were discussing how @DormitoryEscape must know something, saying that after watching the news they had rushed back to rewatch the videos. One particular comment caught Zhao Yun’s attention.

[There’s no way so many videos hit the homepage at once just because viewers happened to watch them. This was probably an official platform push.]

[But I don’t think the platform staff would be promoting apocalypse-themed videos during a real disaster just to run the site. That’s too absurd. So I suspect this move came from higher instructions.]

[If higher authorities deliberately boosted a comedy creator onto the homepage, that says enough. @DormitoryEscape definitely knows something. Has anyone compiled their “worldbuilding settings”? I’m starting to think those might not just be fictional settings anymore…]

The disaster had not yet reached everyone directly. Many viewers of @DormitoryEscape had stayed home specifically to watch the livestream and, by coincidence, ended up in the safest possible place.

A few people in the comments quickly coordinated and volunteered to compile a full summary of the series’ “setting,” promising to share it as soon as they finished.

Their comment was rapidly pushed to the top by upvotes, gaining hundreds of thousands of likes, followed by rows of replies saying “waiting here.”

Zhao Yun and her roommate finally made up their minds.

Waiting for someone else’s compilation would take too long. They would spread whatever important information they themselves could remember first.

Of course, they could not guarantee the information was entirely accurate. But in desperate situations, even one more possible method might save a life.

Just then, someone in the university’s large group chat sent a plea for help, saying she was trapped in the cafeteria. She had found a hiding place, but it was unsafe and could be breached by zombies at any moment.

She typed shakily:

[Can someone call campus security for me? Please, I’m really scared.]

Soon another person replied sadly and carefully, saying they had seen the security guards dragged into a swarm of zombies.

The girl said nothing more. The thousand-member group chat fell silent.

A chat normally filled with nonstop messages suddenly had no one speaking. Zhao Yun first felt a pang of melancholy, then realized the truth: everyone was staying quiet so they would not bury the girl’s plea for help beneath chatter.

The realization made her nose sting. Exchanging a glance with her roommate, Zhao Yun checked the cafeteria location the girl had shared and quickly typed a reply, tagging her at the end.

SkyCloud: [@IfICantPassLevel4IWon’tChangeMyName If you’re in the second cafeteria, I remember there’s a garbage station behind it? It’s usually dirty because of kitchen waste. You can try hiding there tonight.]

SkyCloud: [As far as I know, zombies mainly rely on smell and hearing. The garbage odor might mask your scent. Staying where you are is too risky. But to be safe, before moving, see if there’s strong-smelling trash nearby. Throw some out the window first and observe whether it attracts the zombies.]

The method was unverified, so she did not dare tell the girl to try it immediately.

About ten minutes later, the girl reappeared in the group chat, her tone noticeably more excited.

IfICantPassLevel4IWon’tChangeMyName: [It really works! We threw a plate far away just now. The sound of it shattering drew the nearby zombies away. We’ve moved into another room now. If we move slowly, we should reach the garbage station before dark.]

IfICantPassLevel4IWon’tChangeMyName: [There are two other classmates trapped with me. One guy kept getting noticed by zombies wherever he went. After you said that, we realized it might be because he was sweating a lot and smelled. We poured a bowl of leftover luosifen broth on him, and afterward the zombies didn’t pay special attention to him anymore.]

IfICantPassLevel4IWon’tChangeMyName: [We can’t charge our phones and the battery’s almost dead, so we have to save power. I won’t say more, but thank you, truly, thank you so much!!]

Zhao Yun stared at the message in a daze.

Luosifen broth…

Rationally she knew survival mattered more than cleanliness at a time like this, but the mental image was overwhelmingly pungent.

SkyCloud: [That’s good. Stay safe.]

The classmates who had been quietly holding back from speaking finally burst into activity once the conversation ended, tagging Zhao Yun repeatedly to ask how she knew the zombies’ weaknesses.

[Do you have more information you can share?]

[Please tell us more!]

Zhao Yun and her roommate exchanged another look, both seeing a faint spark of excitement in the other’s eyes.

Even if they did not have the strength to stand up and fight zombies, there were still things within their power that could help others.

And that felt… incredibly good.

₊˚.🎧📓✩