The yellow-haired youth was using a screwdriver to pry open the door lock, his attention so focused that he didn't hear the approaching footsteps.

"Bro, come help! I can't pry this open alone."

"Shut up!" the buzz-cut youth whispered sharply.

The yellow-haired youth looked up curiously just as Li Xuan stepped out of the elevator holding a blood-stained machete. He froze for a moment, then took two steps back. "Li Xuan! Let's talk this out!"

Li Xuan held the pigeon in one hand while gripping the machete tightly with the other. His eyes scanned the scene, first noticing the footprint on the door, then the screwdriver jammed into the lock.

"What's this? Trying to get in? You could've just asked me directly. Would I really refuse you?"

The yellow-haired youth relaxed, thinking Li Xuan was still the same person he'd known before. He stepped forward confidently. "I knew Brother Li Xuan was the most reliable! You'd never abandon us! We don't want much—just an equal share!"

The buzz-cut youth frowned deeply, stopping his brother from advancing further. He spoke to Li Xuan in a low voice, "We just need some water and food."

"How much did you want?" Li Xuan asked casually.

"A month's worth of supplies. We can pay you—we're neighbors. Helping each other is the only way to survive longer in this apocalypse," the buzz-cut youth explained.

"So you want to trade useless money for my food and water? Oh wait, I remember you two owe quite a bit of debt out there. Are you looking to buy on credit?" Li Xuan spoke to them calmly.

His expression remained neutral, not like he was mocking them, but more like he was stating simple facts.

They were his neighbors, and he'd heard about their background before. To put it simply: a gambling father, dead mother, delinquent sons, and a stunningly attractive sister.

The sister had married four times and divorced three, all to secure her brothers' futures and help them find wives. She finally married a local man in his fifties just to get two apartments for them. But the brothers gambled away their money and had to sell one apartment cheap—to Li Xuan himself.

The apartment Li Xuan lived in now originally belonged to the yellow-haired youth.

As the saying goes, you can't teach an old dog new tricks. The brothers remained convinced they could win everything back and continued gambling, accumulating more debt. Before the apocalypse, Li Xuan had heard they were considering selling their remaining apartment too.

"We're all neighbors here. You bought my brother's place at a discount—consider this making up the difference. You didn't lose out, and we'll remember your kindness. We'll definitely repay you someday," the buzz-cut youth said while keeping his eyes fixed on Li Xuan.

Unlike his foolish younger brother, the buzz-cut youth could tell Li Xuan had changed. He couldn't pinpoint exactly how, but the feeling was different.

If pre-apocalypse Li Xuan was like a harmless capybara, the current Li Xuan was a gray wolf restraining itself. No one could predict when that wolf would bare its fangs.

Dangerous!

Li Xuan had returned from outside! Anyone who could fight their way back definitely wasn't simple!

Their attempt to steal Li Xuan's water and supplies had clearly crossed his bottom line!

Rather than risk negotiating with Li Xuan, it was better to strike first!

"Brother! Now!" the buzz-cut youth shouted as he pulled a folding knife from his waist.

Crack!

A white flash sliced through the air.

The folding knife had barely extended its blade when the machete already buried itself deep into the buzz-cut youth's neck, lodging in the bone. Blood sprayed out in torrents.

The buzz-cut youth immediately lost all strength, his body going limp as his fingers slowly released their grip. In his final moments, his eyes widened with shock.

Hearing his brother's command, the yellow-haired youth instantly reversed his grip on the screwdriver and thrust with all his strength.

Unfortunately, the screwdriver remained stuck in the lock. He couldn't pull it out, his body freezing for a crucial moment.

Then blood splattered across his face.

The metallic scent triggered primal fear. He shoved his brother's body away and scrambled toward his own apartment door.

Pulling out keys, unlocking the door—he moved in one fluid motion.

But before he could enter, a hand clamped down on his shoulder from behind. An icy dagger swept across his neck, violently slicing through his windpipe.

Crimson liquid flowed out like water.

"Take deep breaths. Dizziness is normal," Li Xuan whispered close to his ear, as if comforting the panicking youth.

The yellow-haired youth's mouth opened, perhaps to curse Li Xuan, or maybe to beg for mercy—with extremely low probability of being repentance.

Unfortunately, he would never get the chance to speak again.

Li Xuan calmly searched both bodies, retrieving two fruit-brand phones. He used their fingerprints to unlock the devices, then entered their apartment to search for anything valuable.

Their home was chaotic—beer bottles littered the living room floor, while mahjong tiles and playing cards covered the table alongside unfinished containers of braised beef instant noodles.

After thorough searching, he found three power banks, a case and a half of beer, half a case of instant noodles, several bags of chicken feet, and a few water bottles.

Yun Xiuzhi had been held in his palm throughout, witnessing everything. She began suspecting Li Xuan might have been an assassin before all this, wondering if he had guessed she wasn't truly a pigeon but a human transformed into one.

When Li Xuan opened his own apartment door, Yun Xiuzhi's already round eyes widened even further.

So much food!

The living room was piled high with various foods and water supplies!

Li Xuan noticed Yun Xiuzhi's astonished reaction, a slight smile touching his lips.

His home contained enough water and food to last for months. Unless something unexpected happened, he wouldn't be going out easily in the coming period.

He then placed Yun Xiuzhi inside a birdcage. He had once kept a highly intelligent parrot that would fly to his hand when called by name. But during an outing, the parrot flew away and never returned despite his repeated calls.

After losing the parrot, he had stored the cage in the attic, intending to get another parrot someday. Now, instead of another parrot, he was keeping a future empress.

Yun Xiuzhi entered the cage and obediently settled in a corner.

Li Xuan tapped the cage. "Behave yourself. Don't fly around randomly. If I have food to eat, I'll share some with you. If you dare fly around recklessly, I'll eat you."

Coo coo~

The pigeon called twice, as if responding to Li Xuan—though whether it was agreement or refusal remained unclear.

Li Xuan didn't ponder it further. He took out the buzz-cut youth's phone and opened the messaging app. Most messages were demands for debt repayment, with a few invitations to hang out.

The most recent message came from someone labeled "Big Sister," asking if the buzz-cut youth had turned into a zombie and if he could rescue her. She was trapped at home with limited food supplies. The buzz-cut youth had clearly seen the message but never replied.

Li Xuan shook his head. The buzz-cut youth was even colder than he'd imagined. Their sister had made tremendous sacrifices for her brothers, ruining her own life in the process, yet the buzz-cut youth had never considered repaying her kindness.

Thinking back to the buzz-cut youth's promise of repayment, Li Xuan couldn't help but laugh bitterly.

Some people were simply scum—worthless mud that couldn't be helped up the wall.

Someone who wouldn't even help their own sister who frequently assisted them—how could such a person ever repay anyone else?

He checked the yellow-haired youth's phone and, unsurprisingly, found that the woman had messaged him too, also without reply.

Just as Li Xuan was about to set aside the yellow-haired youth's phone, he noticed an additional chat window. Clicking into it, he discovered a small group chat created by property manager Auntie Yun.

[Manager Yun: Zombies are everywhere outside. We can't go out, and the water supply might cut off at any moment. After discussing with company leadership, I've decided to collect food and water from every household for fair distribution, ensuring all complex residents survive until official rescue arrives. Everyone in this group is a responsible adult man. With my authority and your support, this plan can be implemented smoothly! I hope you'll all support me!]

[306: I disagree! This isn't fair at all! And who exactly did you discuss this with? Property management leadership? We pay high fees every year—not for you to lead us, but to solve our problems! If food is insufficient, you should go out and find some for us!]

[512: I agree! 306, watch your tone! Manager Yun makes excellent points!]

...

Most residents disagreed, while a minority agreed. Without much guessing, those who agreed likely had limited food supplies at home, while those who disagreed probably had substantial stocks they didn't want to share.

Li Xuan checked the group members—all male homeowners from the complex. Both the yellow-haired youth and buzz-cut youth's accounts had been added to the group. He alone was excluded.

"Some brains, but not enough."