Chapter 19: An Ice-Cold Bath for You All

Chen Zhenghao finally felt fear. He pulled out his phone and dialed the emergency services, but the line remained busy. He tried for over two minutes, but the result was the same. His heart turned cold; outside, the world was frozen solid, and even the hospitals had ground to a halt. Even if any were still operating, the city was buried under deep snow, making it impossible for ambulances to be dispatched.

Chen was a ruthless man, and after much hesitation, he decided to perform surgery on himself. At the very least, he had to remove the crossbow bolt. After struggling back home, he took a knife, an alcohol lamp, gauze, and some styptic medication from a drawer. Having been involved in many fights, he kept these supplies on hand.

When he cut open his pant leg and saw the wound, his face turned deathly pale. In the extreme sub-zero temperatures, the wound on his leg had frozen. While this had temporarily stopped the bleeding, the surrounding area had turned purplish-blue, and his lower leg was completely numb. Chen felt a sense of total despair, knowing that in such times, he could only rely on himself. Being a seasoned street thug, he steeled himself and began the procedure. Because his lower leg was already frostbitten, the cold had numbed much of the pain, allowing him to finish the surgery without anesthesia, though the agony nearly caused him to pass out. It was clear that the leg was ruined.

Lying on the sofa and panting heavily, Chen felt a bone-deep hatred for Zhang Yi, the man who had shot him. "Zhang Yi, you little bastard, I will kill you! I swear it!" His eyes were filled with murderous intent. He wasn't joking; he truly intended to end Zhang Yi. Otherwise, how could he ever show his face in Tianhai City again?

Chen picked up his phone. Since Zhang Yi had blocked him, he tagged him in the neighborhood group chat. "Zhang Yi, you son of a bitch, just wait. If I don't kill you, I'll write my name backward!"

The other residents didn't know what had happened, but upon learning that Zhang Yi had offended Chen Zhenghao, they couldn't help but break into a cold sweat for him. Chen was a genuine thug, known for his brutality. Had they known that Zhang Yi had actually shot him and crippled his leg, they would have been too terrified to speak. Some, however, were thrilled. Auntie Lin, who had previously been humiliated by Zhang Yi, said happily, "Dogs biting dogs is for the best. Hmph, neither of them is any good! I hope that thug Chen beats Zhang Yi to death for insulting me!" Meanwhile, the "white lotus" Fang Yuqing also saw the messages. She curled her lips, secretly hoping Zhang Yi would get a beating. After all, he had been so cold to her—she was a goddess, yet he hadn't even offered to bring her food! No one else in the group dared to chime in, fearing they would be implicated.

Zhang Yi saw the messages and burst into laughter. As long as he stayed in his safe house, he didn't care if there were a hundred Chen Zhenghaos. He sent a voice message to the group: "What are you? Just a barking dog! If you dare provoke me again, I’ll cripple your other leg too!"

The residents were in an uproar. They hadn't expected Zhang Yi to dare defy Chen, let alone have apparently already crippled one of his legs. Chen gripped his phone so hard he nearly crushed it. "F*ck you, Zhang Yi! You just wait, I'm going to kill you!" Zhang Yi replied without hesitation, "You piece of trash, come over if you've got the guts! Let's see who dies first!"

It had to be said that after the apocalypse arrived, Zhang Yi had truly let go. Without the constraints of social norms and morality, he didn't need to give anyone face, and it felt great. On the other side, Chen was fuming. After returning to his room and regaining some sensation thanks to the minimal heat from his air conditioner, the searing pain in his leg made him wince. He would have to rely on crutches to move.

After thinking it over, Chen decided that killing Zhang Yi wouldn't be difficult. He convinced himself that he had been shot only because he was careless. Now that he was prepared, he could call his lackeys to storm Zhang Yi's home and finish him off. With the city paralyzed by the freeze, the police and hospitals were out of commission—it was the perfect time to commit murder.

Chen called his subordinates, ordering them to bring weapons and help him deal with Zhang Yi. Many of his men lived nearby; upon receiving the order, they arrived with machetes, baseball bats, and steel pipes. Seeing the injury on Chen's leg, they clamored to kill the person responsible. Chen said coldly, "I'm fine. I'll just go to the hospital when the snow melts. But this bastard dared to shoot me—that's crossing a line. If I don't kill him, how can I continue to run things?"

His men immediately replied, "Boss Chen, just tell us his room number. We'll go hack him to pieces right now!" Chen nodded, "They live in 2401. But the little bastard is cunning; he has a crossbow. That's how he ambushed me." One lackey waved his steel pipe, shouting, "How dishonorable to use a sneak attack!" Chen added, "Be careful. I know it's just him in there. As long as you don't get hit, just break down the door and kill him!"

Chen's men were desperate thugs. Even knowing Zhang Yi had a weapon, they weren't afraid; instead, they were excited. With the city under siege by the snow, there was no law, and they could attack people in broad daylight. The malice in their hearts was unleashed without restraint. They headed toward Zhang Yi's home, intent on breaking in.

Zhang Yi knew Chen wouldn't let it go, but he wasn't the least bit nervous. He sat at home playing a game while monitoring the entire building through his split-screen security feed. He watched as Chen's lackeys approached, and he had his equipment laid out on the table, ready to give them a warm welcome. Since they were human scum, he felt no remorse.

Soon, a dozen of Chen’s men arrived at his door. Knowing about the crossbow, they were cautious, using wooden boards as makeshift shields. Once they reached the door and realized nothing happened, they started their assault.

"Open up!"
"F*ck you! You dared to shoot our boss, now see how we kill you today!"
"Today is your funeral, open the door!"

They cursed and began slamming the door with hammers and iron bars. Zhang Yi, still playing his game, was annoyed. He was stuck on the first boss and had died several times, putting him in a foul mood. Hearing the shouting and the rhythmic pounding, he yelled back, "Can't you hit harder? Did you not eat today?"

The lackeys, incensed by his arrogance, attacked even more fiercely. However, the security door, forged from twenty centimeters of alloy, was nearly impossible to open even with small explosives, let alone crude manual labor. After much effort, they had only managed to scratch the paint. They were stunned.

"What the hell? This door is solid metal! And so thick—how are we supposed to smash this?"
"Damn it, how many enemies does this guy have?"

They were dumbfounded, but they had promised Chen they would bring Zhang Yi back half-dead. Unable to break the door, they kept hammering and cursing. Zhang Yi's game character died again. Irritated by the noise, he went to the kitchen, attached a hose to the faucet, and climbed up to the shooting port. The thugs outside didn't notice him above them, still busy barking. Zhang Yi sneered, turned on the tap, and blasted them with a torrent of water, which cascaded through the narrow hallway like a torrential downpour, drenching them instantly.