Chapter 50: Hell on Earth

Five small iron cages slowly descended. Under Ma Tianxiong’s keen gaze, he caught a barely perceptible smile flicker across the face of the fat man on the stage who was smoking. Could it be? Ma Tianxiong’s heart tightened. Did this kid have something else up his sleeve?

“Wait!” Brother Ma saw the smile on Zhao Qiang’s face growing more obvious, and the unease in his heart intensified. Having spent so many years fighting his way through the underworld, Brother Ma’s sense for danger was razor-sharp. He quickly tried to stop the henchman who was about to operate the electrical switch to open the small iron cages containing the zombie dogs.

But his shout of “Wait” was a little too soft. In the chaotic, noisy environment, the henchman, some distance away, didn’t hear Brother Ma’s command at all. His hand pressed down, the button was activated, and the partition on the iron cages began to rise—ignoring Brother Ma’s orders. The zombie dogs inside were nearly ecstatic, relentlessly ramming against the rising partition.

For a moment, the basement fell silent. Everyone held their breath, waiting for the zombie dogs to burst out and tear the fat man on the stage to shreds. But just then, a deafening explosion sounded from outside. The brightly lit basement lights flickered twice, then plunged into darkness. The partitions, halfway up, stopped moving.

Screams erupted from every corner of the basement. Everyone was terrified by the sudden turn of events, and the crowd surged about in panic as if the place had exploded.

Brother Ma managed to keep calm. He’d weathered all kinds of storms over the years; he wouldn’t let a small trick like this scare him. The henchmen-cum-bodyguards around him were loyal followers. Seeing the chaos, they quickly switched on their flashlights. With light, Brother Ma stood up, drew his pistol, and fired at a hapless soul charging blindly toward him—a single shot, and the unlucky man fell.

“Everyone get down! Nobody move!” Brother Ma shouted, firing two more shots at the ceiling. Dust rained down on a nearby henchman’s head. Brother Ma truly deserved his reputation as an underworld kingpin—his presence claimed a life instantly. With three gunshots, the chaotic, noisy basement quieted. People crouched on the ground, silent and still.

“What’s the panic? I’m here—what are you afraid of?” Brother Ma planted one foot on a chair, holding a gun in one hand and a cigar in the other, taking a swaggering drag. He was the very picture of a mountain bandit. Pointing to a henchman, he ordered, “You—take two men and check the power room. Find out which idiot dared to mess with my turf!”

The hall was silent, even the zombie dogs had gone quiet. The bodyguards swept their flashlights around, intimidating the crowd.

As the beams moved, Brother Ma’s gaze swept the room. When the light passed over the stage, he suddenly sensed something amiss. Snatching a flashlight, he shone it toward the stage.

On the stage, the fat man was nowhere to be seen. The iron cage doors stood wide open, clearly the fat man had used the chaos to escape from the cage. More terrifying, the five small cages were empty too—the zombie dogs had vanished.

Cold sweat broke out instantly on Brother Ma’s shiny scalp. Before he could react, screams erupted from nearby. Startled, Brother Ma swung his flashlight toward the source—and what he saw nearly scared him out of his wits.

One of the missing zombie dogs had been found. It was standing atop a man, licking the blood that flowed in rivulets. The man’s body still twitched, his lifeless eyes wide open in bitter resignation. Disturbed from its meal by the flashlight, the zombie dog growled in displeasure, abandoned its dead prey, and charged furiously at Brother Ma.

Panicked, Brother Ma grabbed a nearby henchman as a shield and bolted. He knew he was no match for a zombie dog with just his fists.

Five zombie dogs, attacking anyone they saw, biting at every encounter. In moments, screams echoed, blood and flesh flew everywhere, severed limbs littered the floor. The survivors writhed in pools of blood—a scene straight out of hell.

Brother Ma panted heavily. Since becoming boss, he’d lived a life of excess, his body long past its prime. When he dealt with those rebellious gang leaders, luck played a big part. Afterwards, he indulged in pleasure and women, his health nearly ruined. He barely managed to escape the basement this time and was short of breath.

...

The explosion was orchestrated by Zhao Qiang. Even before he volunteered to become Brother Ma’s prisoner, Zhao Qiang had scouted the bar with Zou Lin. Under Zhao Qiang’s guidance, the two slipped in unnoticed. Zhao Qiang had already discovered the depraved activities here. If not for Zou Lin, he would have acted on the spot, eliminating the culprit then and there.

Heeding Zou Lin’s advice, Zhao Qiang forced himself to suppress his anger, settled Zou Lin in a small room beside the power room, left her with a detonator, and after giving instructions, disguised himself as an ordinary four-eyed nobody and slipped into the bar from outside. He suffered all kinds of hardships that day, finally uncovering the true, evil nature of Ma Tianxiong. On the stage, after sending three zombies to their rest, Zhao Qiang followed the agreed signal and lit up a cigarette.

At the moment of the explosion, the cages containing the zombie dogs were already half open—those dogs only needed a bit of effort to break out. Zhao Qiang seized the cover of darkness, pulled a thin wire from his sleeve, unlocked the padlock outside the cage, hefted the unconscious girl from the stage, and ran out in the right direction.

In Zhao Qiang’s mind, no one else here was worth saving. Anyone who would lock humans and zombies together and watch for entertainment—how could they deserve rescue? Even those forced here by circumstance, Zhao Qiang had no time to sort them out.

Ignoring the screams behind him, Zhao Qiang carried the girl back to the large VIP room where he’d been held. In the darkness, the two guards had already drawn their pistols and were watching warily, but they were no match for Zhao Qiang. As soon as they heard the rush of air, two dull thuds sounded. The guards fell without a word, their foreheads each deeply embedded with a fire axe.

“You’re finally back!” As Zhao Qiang entered, Huang Jianjun rushed forward and asked anxiously, “Zhao, are you alright? Are you hurt?”

Zhao Qiang shook his head, set the girl down on the sofa, and smiled, “A few zombies can’t hurt me. Take care of this girl. I’ll be right back. Remember—unless someone gives the code, don’t open the door for anyone!”

...

Zhao Qiang searched the upper level of the bar thoroughly but found no trace of Ma Tianxiong. The slaughter in the basement had ended. Dozens of people, not one spared. When Zhao Qiang returned, the place was crawling with zombies, and the five zombie dogs roamed the basement as well.

In ten minutes, Zhao Qiang swept the basement clean. The five zombie dogs and dozens of newly turned zombies were sent straight to hell. But Ma Tianxiong was nowhere to be found! Zhao Qiang frowned. He had accounted for every zombie in the basement, yet Ma Tianxiong was missing.

A scream rang out, startling Zhao Qiang—it was Zou Lin’s voice! Following the sound, Zhao Qiang dashed through the sticky blood covering the floor.

...

“Fatso, drop the gun!” Zhao Qiang heard a sharp voice behind him.

The power room was a mess, debris everywhere from the explosion. Zhao Qiang glanced around quickly, preparing to leave, but as he turned, Ma Tianxiong’s voice rang out from behind him.