Fed and bolstered by Zhang Yi's promise of a return to normal, the neighbors rallied like people finally given a reason to live."Let's do this!""I can't take this life anymore. I'd die for a normal day!"
Zhang Yi stood and cast a cold, practical glance around the room. "Alright. Let's assign tasks." Facing twenty-nine other buildings, his priority was simple: secure his escape route. The other residents were expendable in his calculus—but they still had to buy him time to reach his safe room.
He split the twenty-eight available volunteers into two teams:
4th Floor Defense: 18 people, led by Li Chengbin and Jiang Zhe — stationed in a narrow corridor rigged with traps to funnel attackers into a killing zone.
13th Floor Order: 10 people, led by Uncle You — to maintain the appearance of order for the forthcoming negotiation.
Zhang Yi knew that even if all twenty-nine building leaders showed up, his firepower would make the open 13th-floor room a slaughterhouse.
At 2:00 PM, hundreds of people from the neighboring buildings swarmed the complex, surrounding Building 25 like an anthill. Zhang Yi watched from the seventh floor and methodically slung his sniper rifle into position. He typed a message into the leaders' group: "Tell everyone to back off, or none of you will make it to the negotiation."
The crowd halted five meters from the building. The 4th-floor defenders, peeking down the stairwell, paled at the sight of the massed bodies. "They're here to kill us!" someone hissed.
Uncle You descended the stairs with calm authority. "Calm down. If they wanted to attack, they wouldn't hang back. Their target is Zhang Yi, not you. You've got nothing worth taking."
Relief rippled through the neighbors—they were, for once, happy to be irrelevant.
The crowd parted and five leaders strode forward: Huang Tianfang of the Tianhe Gang, Wang Qiang of the Mad Wolf Gang, Li Jian of Harmony Home, Chen Lingyu from Building 9, and Zhang Yunian from Building 5.
Backed by a thousand people, they carried themselves with the arrogance of numbers. Wang Qiang sneered, "Look at them—terrified." Huang Tianfang added, "Zhang Yi's probably crapping himself. He'll accept our terms." Li Jian adjusted his glasses, composed beneath a polite smile. Chen Lingyu crossed her arms. "Let's go tell him the deal. He'll take it—or else."
Zhang Yi watched them come, sniper steady, patience frayed into an easy, dangerous smile. Numbers mean confidence. He had something else in mind.