Xu An saw that the time was about right and put away the mats and other items laid out in the living room into her spatial storage.
They pretended to pack, each carrying a backpack containing several bags of compressed biscuits and mineral water.
She also put on heat-insulating suits for Gou Dan, especially for his limbs, and fitted the custom-made foot covers onto him.
Ensuring no items were left behind, Xu An opened the door a crack, looked at the empty corridor, quickly closed the door, and headed towards the stairwell.
The entire building was eerily silent. Residual footprints of various directions and sizes were left on the escalator.
Some of the footprints were even fresh, indicating their owner had left no more than three hours ago.
Seeing this, Xu An quickened her pace, pulling her mother and Gou Dan along.
"This must be the group who came to our door that day. They seem to have left not long ago, let's hurry."
"Okay, okay."
Xu Yan didn't waste any more words. The recent intensive training was showing its effects, and her physical fitness had improved significantly.
When they reached the fourth floor, Xu An noticed her mother's steps slowing down.
She looked back, "Mom? What are you looking at?"
"Nannan, did you hear something?"
"What sound?"
"It sounds like someone is calling for help."
Xu An sensed her mother's hesitation.
She could have simply pulled Xu Yan along, and her mother wouldn't have said anything, but afterwards, she would have definitely dwelled on it.
Weighing her options, she quickly made a decision.
"Mom, you take Gou Dan and go first, straight to the back gate of the community. My car is parked there. I'll go check the situation and then catch up with you."
"Alright!"
Having said that, Xu An handed her the car keys and told them to go ahead.
Xu Yan knew that she would only be a burden and didn't argue. She took Gou Dan and went downstairs directly.
Watching Xu Yan and Gou Dan leave, she took out a dagger from her spatial storage.
She followed the faint cries for help.
Their community had a structure of two units per floor, so it wasn't complicated. Xu An emerged from the stairwell and quickly spotted the open door.
She tried her best to be cautious, making no sound, and crept inside.
The sound was coming from here.
As soon as she entered, the freshly dried bloodstains on the floor caught Xu An's attention.
This made her even more alert. She scanned the surroundings and finally saw a crowbar propping open the bedroom door.
Carefully, she pulled out the crowbar and opened the door to find a man covered in blood, lying on the floor.
Seeing Xu An, the man thought she was there to rescue him and, dragging his broken legs, crawled towards her.
"Save me... please... save me..."
Xu An didn't look at the man for long, sidestepped his outstretched hand, and scanned the surroundings.
A woman was lying on the bed, her chest no longer rising and falling, likely dead.
He propped himself up with effort, "Little girl, save me, send me to the hospital. I have money, I'll give you as much as you want."
He didn't ask Xu An's origin or why she was there; perhaps none of it mattered to him.
He just wanted to live.
"Who is on the bed? How did she die?"
The corpse wasn't stiff yet, indicating a recent death.
Seeing Xu An's suspicious gaze, the man explained in a panic, "No, don't look at me like that. The one on the bed is my wife."
"Before you, another group came. They pretended to be rescue personnel, so I opened the door. I didn't expect them to be two robbers."
"I know the man inside. He's the security guard from our community. He even broke my legs..."
Xu An thought that the people who robbed this family were likely the same group who impersonated property management; their methods were laughably clumsy.
However, judging by the situation, it probably wasn't their first crime.
Without her having to pry, the man revealed everything.
It saved her some trouble.
"I asked you how this woman died."
The man's face was filled with hatred, "Killed by that group! Before I opened the door, my wife was fine. Shortly after they came in, my wife died."
The man struggled for a long time but could only wail a few times, not a single tear falling.
It looked like a crocodile's tears.
Xu An went closer to look. The woman clearly looked severely dehydrated, not like someone who was "fine" a moment ago.
Even if she wasn't killed by someone, she would have likely died of dehydration.
Living under the same roof, this man was full of vigor, while his wife was on her last breath.
The truth was self-evident.
Of course, none of this concerned Xu An.
Having obtained the answers she wanted, she turned to leave.
The man panicked and, forgetting his fear, tried to grab Xu An's leg.
"You can't go, you can't leave me here alone. Save me, little girl, you are beautiful and kind, save me. I have money, I have a lot of money!"
She didn't even glance at the man, let out a cold哼, and kicked away his lunging body.
Caught off guard by her kick, he fell backward.
Xu An's lips curved into a smile, but it held a touch of cruelty.
"Why should I save you? As for money? Are you still dreaming?"
Let alone during the apocalypse, even before the apocalypse, Xu An wouldn't have cared about his meager offerings.
Moreover, with his legs crippled, he wouldn't survive even if he escaped from here.
Was she supposed to take care of him for the rest of his life?
"You can't leave. If you leave me, I'll shout with all my might. Those robbers are definitely nearby, and then no one will get away."
Hearing his threat, Xu An sneered dismissively and tilted her head to smile at the man.
"Feel free to try."
The man gritted his teeth, thinking that if they were going to die, they might as well die together. Maybe that security guard would be happy to see such a beautiful woman and spare him.
He opened his mouth to shout.
"Ah..." Before the word could escape, Xu An stepped forward and, with a swift movement, dislocated his jaw.
The man's eyes were filled with terror, worried that Xu An would kill him.
His concerns were clearly unfounded.
A cripple wouldn't survive in the apocalypse, so why should she stain her blade?
She turned and left.
Behind her, the man dragged his broken body, continuously making "ah ah ah" sounds, but unable to utter any coherent words.
His only companion was the cold corpse.