Zombies swarmed from all directions, their staggering forms terrifying to behold, yet in reality, they moved sluggishly. With Zheng Zha fully focused, no zombie could breach the five-meter radius around him. However, as their numbers swelled, the bullets in his pistol dwindled. In the end, he was left with only one magazine, and before him lay dozens of headless corpses.

Meanwhile, the mercenaries triggered the door to the research lab, only to have dozens of zombies burst forth from within. Caught completely off guard, the mercenary opening the door was dragged inside by the horde. The resulting shriek was enough to chill the very marrow of one’s bones—a sentiment acutely shared by Zheng Zha and the other two. As mentioned before, what might seem tolerable in a movie becomes an ineffable horror when it happens right beside you.

Matthew Addison’s voice cut through the chaos: “Back to the Red Queen! Get back there!”

Before they knew it, more than ten shambling zombies stood between Zheng Zha’s trio and the mercenaries, swaying as they approached. The three could practically smell the rot emanating from them. Li Xiaoyi couldn’t hold back his panic any longer, shouting, “Brother Zheng Zha, shoot! For God's sake, shoot!”

Anyone who had seen this film knew that a single bite or scratch from a zombie meant certain infection. The only few antidotes were back in the train carriage, a location now overrun by the undead. They were just ordinary people now; contracting the T-Virus would mean absolute death.

Zheng Zha watched the mercenaries receding, his tension mounting, especially as more zombies poured in from the corner, dwindling the ammunition in his gun further.

“Ten, nine, eight…”

Zheng Zha silently counted the remaining rounds. Suddenly, the zombies before him dropped one by one with precise headshots. Zhang Jie burst through from behind them, roaring, “What are you doing? Didn’t I tell you to stick close to them? Huh! Haven't you watched the movie? A Licker is about to escape here!”

With that, Zhang Jie’s Desert Eagle spat fire continuously, mowing down the approaching zombies in rapid succession. Without pausing for the trio, he bolted in the direction the mercenaries had fled. Zheng Zha’s group snapped back to awareness and hurried after him.

(Their speed is about twenty percent faster than ours—must be enhanced muscle tissue strength, right?)

Even while running, Zheng Zha took the time to observe Zhang Jie's pace. He realized his own physical speed couldn't quite keep up with his thoughts—specifically, his neural reflex speed. This feeling had been particularly pronounced while shooting; it was like an adult trying to swing a child’s hammer—unfamiliar and jarring.

With Zhang Jie’s Desert Eagle, which seemed to possess limitless ammunition, and his own near-perfect marksmanship, the four of them managed to rush into the central computer room just as the mercenaries were closing the door. With a heavy clang, the door sealed, trapping the moaning horde of zombies outside.

After the door shut, Zheng Zha and the others collapsed to the floor, panting violently—everyone except Zhang Jie. They struggled for air; even though their lungs were full, sheer terror kept their breathing ragged until they were almost suffocating, at which point Zheng Zha and the others slowly stabilized their respiration.

“Not bad at all…” Zhang Jie tucked the Desert Eagle into his belt, saying with a hint of derision.

Zheng Zha took a ragged breath. “What do you mean?”

Zhang Jie glanced back at the mercenaries, who were inspecting their fallen comrade near the laser death corridor. He then turned back and murmured, “The first horror movie is actually the most dangerous for newcomers. Mentality is key. First, you need to understand your situation. I’ve seen many rookies assume everything is an illusion or some TV show, and they die the fastest and most horribly. But you three who are still alive have managed to adjust your mindset quickly. Especially you and Zhan Lan; your constitution is the best I’ve ever seen. Not only did you steady yourselves, but you also overcame fear rapidly—that speaks volumes about your innate quality.”

“Second, overcoming fear isn't enough to survive. In the first movie, you were all just ordinary people. Even with the luck of knowing the plot, the chance of death was still extremely high. So, in essence, the first movie acts as a selection process based on luck. Only by surviving it can you earn exchangeable goods and enhance your own qualities, like this Desert Eagle, or physical enhancements like mine. Understand?”

After explaining this, Zhang Jie pulled out a pack of cigarettes, offered one to Zheng Zha, and said, “Congratulations, rookies. How does it feel to survive? Doesn't it feel incredible? Like the moment of… release? That thrill, hahaha…”

Li Xiaoyi immediately reached out, “Brother Zhang, can I have one too?”

Zhang Jie glanced at him sideways. “A little brat trying to smoke? Don’t think I can’t smell it. Aside from the scent of milk, is there even a hint of smoke on you? Stay put, and if you don’t want to die, stick close to us.”

Li Xiaoyi scratched his head, looking down. “Brother Zhang, I’m already at negative ten points. What should I do?”

Zhang Jie froze for a moment, then burst out laughing. “You didn't get any reward, but instead dropped to negative ten? Hahaha, your luck is extraordinarily bad. Don’t worry, you’ll get a thousand reward points for surviving this horror movie. But remember, every time you receive a thousand points at the end, if you’re still in the negative… you will be instantly erased.”

Li Xiaoyi’s face crumpled. Zheng Zha laughed and clapped him on the shoulder. Just then, the four heard urgent knocking at the door, accompanied by the heroine Alice’s voice crying out, “Open the door! Hurry up and open it!”

The mercenaries from the corridor rushed over. Zhang Jie didn't wait for them to speak; he yanked the door open himself. Alice and Matt scrambled through the gap, pursued by countless zombie hands clawing at them. Zhang Jie grinned hideously, drew the Desert Eagle, and fired several shots, instantly severing the zombies’ arms before slamming the door shut with a resounding boom.

Matthew Addison quickly questioned Alice and Matt, “What’s it like out there? Can we still use the path we took to get here?”

Alice shook her head. “It’s crawling with those things out there. They’re waiting for us on that path. There’s no way through.”

The mercenaries fell silent. Kaplan, the one skilled with computers, clutched his head and lamented, “We can’t escape! There’s no other passage out of the Red Queen’s main server room! We’re finished!”

The protagonist of this film, Ryan, who originally caused all this trouble, suddenly spoke up, “Can’t we just stay here? When they realize we haven’t returned above ground, they’ll surely send reinforcements. I think it should be safe here! I don’t want to face those undead things again.”

Hearing this, the mercenaries looked awkward. Ryan asked, confused, “Is something wrong? Did I say something I shouldn’t have?”

Kaplan coughed dryly. “Perhaps there won't be any reinforcements…”

Ryan angrily grabbed his collar. “What do you mean? What do you mean there might be no reinforcements?”

Matthew Addison sighed, “Our orders were to retrieve the Red Queen motherboard and seal off all passages connecting the Hive to the outside world. Remember the tunnel between the main building and the Hive? If we don’t return there within three hours, the link between the building and the Hive will be completely sealed off… Damn upper management! Now I understand why we got these orders—this whole place is filled with these freaks!”

Zheng Zha exchanged a look with Zhang Jie. They now understood the three-hour countdown on their watches: they had to survive until the lockdown. Before that, they couldn't be scratched or bitten, and they couldn't face overwhelming numbers of zombies. Furthermore, the Licker would be their nemesis; one Desert Eagle wasn't enough to combat such a terrifying monster.

Ryan released Kaplan but looked even more frantic. He shouted, “No, they can’t do that! Are they planning to bury us alive down here?”

Rain, the long-haired female mercenary whose hand had been bitten, spoke up, “This is the safest method to ensure research secrets aren't leaked... If we all die, there’s no risk of anyone leaking anything.” As she finished, she frowned, squeezing her palm where the wound was still bleeding profusely.

Silence descended. Ryan calmed down slightly but grew angrier. “They’re telling us this now, half a mile underground? Why not tell us sooner?”

The mercenaries all lowered their heads in shame. Alice suddenly interjected, “Stop arguing. We need to figure out how to get out! We must find an exit from this room!” Saying this, she grabbed the bag containing the Red Queen motherboard from the table and turned towards the main server room.

Matthew Addison quickly asked, “What are you doing with the motherboard?”

“Rebooting it, of course!”

Watching the mercenaries and the main characters walk away, Zheng Zha looked at Zhang Jie, who was closing his eyes and smoking. “Aren’t you going to take a look?”

Zhang Jie sneered, “What’s there to see? I’ve seen the movie before. Instead of wasting time watching the plot, we should conserve our energy here to kill more zombies later—that’s better value.”

Zhan Lan suddenly touched her forehead. “Right, Zhang Jie, I have a question for you.”

Zhang Jie nodded for her to continue. Zhan Lan smiled. “How do we get back to the ‘Main God’? Does a beam of light drop from the sky? Do we slowly fade away, or does a spatial portal suddenly appear for us to pass through?”

Zhang Jie replied, “I don't know how we get back either. Every time, whether the mission is completed or the time runs out, the next second I’m directly in the ‘Main God’ hall. So don’t worry about being unable to return due to circumstances. Just survive, that’s all that matters. Also, even if you contract the T-Virus or something else, as long as you maintain consciousness when you return to the ‘Main God,’ all the viruses and everything else inside you will vanish. Likewise, if you lose limbs in a horror movie, you can have them repaired for ten reward points.”

Zhan Lan frowned slightly and asked carefully, “You mentioned a mission just now, didn’t you?”

Zhang Jie grinned menacingly. “Of course. I told you, we are merely bugs struggling to survive. Who knows what kind of special requirements might pop up. For example, when you first arrived, you couldn’t leave the plot characters by more than one hundred meters—that’s a special mission. My last horror movie was even nastier... Never mind that. The point is, we might also have to complete special tasks within the horror movie that increase the difficulty of survival.”

Zhan Lan sighed. “This is bad news. I was planning to… forget it, just pretend I never said anything.”

Zhang Jie paused, then asked, “What were you planning? Tell us.”

Zheng Zha’s heart stirred, and he suddenly said, “You mean, we should just stay here and not leave, right?”

Zhan Lan blinked, then looked at Zheng Zha with a cheerful grin. “Exactly. That was my plan. Since you said we leave instantly, that means we can depart from wherever we are, as long as we survive until time runs out. So why shouldn’t we just stay here? I remember in the plot, they go into the sewers beneath the server room, cross a dangerous aerial passage, and nearly die under the Licker’s claws due to infighting. Even getting to the train carriage isn’t completely safe. So, what about here?”

Zheng Zha and Zhang Jie exchanged a look, recognizing the surprise in each other’s eyes at this woman’s sharp intellect. Zhang Jie asked seriously, “Are you worried the ‘Main God’ might issue another mission? Like displaying another name, requiring us to stay within one hundred meters of that person? If that happens, we’re done for. Is that why you said this is bad news?”

Zhan Lan nodded. “Yes. If those conditions didn’t exist, staying here would be the safest option.”

Zhang Jie took a deep drag of his cigarette and pondered. “Fine, we’ll stay here. The ‘Main God’ probably won’t issue a mission that guarantees our death. In other words, it definitely won’t display a name for us to follow long after these mercenaries have left, because that situation would mean certain death for us. Since we decided, let’s stick to it! We’re staying here!”

The other three were astonished. Zheng Zha smiled. “Brother, you don’t actually have to stay here with us. This is our first horror movie; our stamina and physical condition are those of ordinary people. But you have unlimited bullets in that Desert Eagle and fight much better than us. Why not follow them, kill more zombies, and earn reward points? If you’re lucky, killing the Licker in the train carriage battle earns a hundred reward points! We have no choice but to stay.”

Zhang Jie gave a bitter smile—the first time he showed any weakness. He admitted, “To be honest, who the hell wants to stay here? Experiencing horror movies constantly will break anyone’s nerves. This is my fourth one. Many times I’ve just wanted to end it all. This kind of terror is no place for humans…”

“Besides, I hope you guys survive too. Some horror movies can’t be survived alone. If there were a couple of veterans like me who have been through several movies, our collective chance of survival would be much higher. Alright, let’s just stay here, and we’ll figure out what to tell them later!”

The four huddled together, speaking in low tones. When the mercenaries emerged, the group of four greeted them with smiles.

Zheng Zha knew that it wasn't just him who wanted to live; they all did. Faced with death, everyone desired survival!

Faced with death, everyone desired survival! Only survival!