23: A woman, very cool!

Tian Ming pulled his car into a large shopping mall's parking lot, jumped out of the pickup, and locked the doors.

With a whoosh, a row of carbon fiber pillars emerged from the ground, forming a protective barrier that shielded the pickup truck.

Tian Ming still felt a bit nervous; after all, controlling matter required constantly honing his will and courage.

Without sufficient courage and composure, manipulating matter could lead to errors.

At the mall's entrance, several zombies were lurking, and Tian Ming gently raised his hand.

A massive water sphere appeared in mid-air. The moment it materialized, it decomposed into hydrogen and oxygen, and an invisible pressure bound the hydrogen and oxygen within the space.

From six meters away, Tian Ming directly pulled out his pistol.

Bang! The bullet pierced through the hydrogen-oxygen mixture.

With a thunderous roar, the shockwave formed a spectacular ripple, and Tian Ming instantly froze the air in front of him.

The zombies were instantly blown to smithereens. All of this happened in one smooth motion. However, the powerful shockwave still created a violent tremor.

Tian Ming felt a tightness in his chest, and his ears rang loudly.

The water sphere was too large. It seemed he needed to make it smaller, or his air wall wouldn't hold.

After dealing with the zombies, Tian Ming walked directly into the mall.

The mall was in disarray, with shelves toppled and merchandise scattered everywhere. Tian Ming carefully avoided the scattered goods and headed straight for the food section.

There were large quantities of canned goods, biscuits, and drinks there. He casually packed some supplies and then focused on using his replication ability to accumulate samples from the supermarket.

He used his mind to control the surrounding air, forming an air shield that enveloped him.

This way, even if a zombie ambushed him, he wouldn't be injured.

The second floor of the mall was the clothing section. After collecting some clothes and accumulating some fabric samples, Tian Ming was about to leave when he heard a gunshot.

He immediately became alert. There must be many survivors in the city. Those who survived, besides having viral antibodies, were also exceptional in their personal survival skills.

A woman, dressed in black combat gear, quickly moved through the clothing section.

The woman was agile and decisive in her movements. Her eyes were sharp, and she held a pistol tightly in her hand.

"Who's there? Come out, or I'll shoot!" The woman's voice was somewhat neutral, with a hint of hoarseness.

Her name was Director Han, and she was a policewoman. She originally had a few companions, but just two days ago, while collecting supplies, they encountered a zombie covered in metallic skin.

Unable to defeat it, two male teammates were torn in half by the zombie while covering her retreat.

"Don't shoot, I'm not infected!" Tian Ming quickly walked out, raising his hands.

Director Han looked at the man in front of her, a hint of doubt in her eyes, but she still put away her gun.

She took a small knife from her pocket, and with a ripping sound, cut off a piece of pure cotton fabric, quickly wrapping it around her wrist.

Her movements were skilled and swift, clearly a result of long-term survival training.

Director Han finished wrapping the fabric and then walked towards Tian Ming. Her eyes held a hint of caution but no hostility. "Are you a survivor too?"

"Yes, my name is Tian Ming."

Tian Ming observed the woman. To survive in a city full of dangers without superpowers proved she was extraordinary.

"Director Han, I used to be a police officer, but not anymore!"

Director Han paused, letting out a long breath. She looked at the gun in Tian Ming's hand and noticed he used the same pistol as her.

"Are you a police officer too?"

Tian Ming slightly shook his head and said, "No!"

Director Han didn't pay much attention. After the zombie outbreak, over eighty percent of the people in the city became zombies. It wasn't uncommon to get a gun; perhaps he found it, or perhaps he directly went to the police station to get one.

"Do you have bullets?" Director Han asked.

Tian Ming nodded, reached into his backpack, and pulled out a large box of bullets. With his replication ability, he could have as many bullets as he wanted.

"Three hundred rounds, is that enough?"

Director Han was surprised. The reason she asked wasn't to beg for bullets; her intention was that if Tian Ming had ample ammunition, then they could act together.

Seeing that Director Han didn't take the ammunition he offered, Tian Ming asked, somewhat puzzled, "What's wrong? Don't you want bullets?"

"Keep them for yourself. I still have two hundred rounds. Ammunition is more valuable than firearms; don't be so generous, or you might be sold out without knowing it."

As a policewoman, Director Han had a sense of justice. If she had encountered other people, she would have certainly exploded and killed them for their bullets.

Tian Ming smiled slightly, "You're a good person. Come out of the city with me; I have a Shelter outside the city."

When Director Han heard about a Shelter, her expression changed, but she still shook her head and said, "No, I came out to find medicine. There are two other survivors on the top floor of this mall, a father and son. The father got injured protecting his child, and now the wound is festering. I can't leave yet."

Tian Ming secretly admired her, but he said, "The order of this world has already collapsed. Who still cares about others' lives? Come back to the Shelter with me; at least you can survive."

"I am a police officer! Even if order has collapsed, I once was."

There was a stubbornness in Director Han's tone; she had her own sense of justice. Even if the world's order collapsed, her inner order remained.

"There's a doctor and medicine at the Shelter. Let's go together. My car is downstairs." Tian Ming wouldn't abandon a woman with such a strong sense of justice.

Director Han didn't hesitate, softly saying, "Thank you!"

"Take the bullets!" Tian Ming pushed the box of bullets into Director Han's hand.

The two arrived on the mall's rooftop. Inside a makeshift tent, a middle-aged man lay, an open wound on his lower leg, with raw red flesh exposed, already festering and rotting.

Even if medicine was found, this leg would probably be useless.

"Dad, Dad, Sister Director Han is here!" A teenage boy called out to his father, but he received no response.

Tian Ming frowned and quickly stepped forward to check. The man was burning hot; it was high fever caused by inflammation, and he wondered how long he had endured it.

"He's dead!"

Tian Ming stood up. The man's heart had stopped beating, which had clearly just happened.

"Dad... Dad!..." The little boy threw himself onto his father's body, crying uncontrollably.

Director Han stood by, her eyes red. She had seen too much death in the past few days.

The little boy's cries were hoarse. He and his father had been on the rooftop for three days, only drinking water, without a single bite of food. If Director Han hadn't found them, this little boy would probably have died on this rooftop too.

Director Han knelt down, wiping away the little boy's tears with her hand: "Xiao Yi, be good. Sister will take you away from here."

"What about my dad? Won't he be lonely and scared here by himself?"

"Your dad is dead. Dead people aren't scared," Tian Ming said, looking at the boy, enunciating each word.

Director Han sighed, hugged Xiao Yi close, and whispered, "Xiao Yi, your dad went to another world, where there's no pain, no hunger. We have to live strong, for your dad, and for yourself."

From the edge of the rooftop, a zombie's growl echoed, and a skeletal hand climbed onto the rooftop's edge.