Rotting Land: Survive-Chapter 465 - 461: Hillside Villa (Part 2)

As they approached, a heavy circle of European-style iron railings tightly enclosed the entire mansion, with several surveillance cameras like invisible eyes watching everything around.

Xu Renjie didn’t rush into the house but cautiously walked around the iron railings once.

Inside the courtyard, it was unusually quiet. The cobblestone path was littered with the dead leaves of ancient sycamores, and the once lush green lawn had grown wild from neglect. Although it looked a bit rundown from afar, it couldn’t hide the mansion’s opulence.

After confirming the courtyard was safe, Xu Renjie deftly climbed to the top of the railings, then flipped and leapt over, with his legs slightly bent, rolling on the spot and landing steadily on the ground.

Since the iron gate was locked with a padlock, Xu Renjie had to use force to break it open.

Through the gap in the railings, Lei Tong handed the specially carried crowbar to Xu Renjie.

Once Xu grasped it, he wasted no time and applied brute force to the padlock’s shackle, but to no avail; the lock’s quality was just too good, making all his efforts in vain.

"Lei Zi, go to the car and bring the extension rod over!" Xu Renjie clearly wasn’t ready to give up. To him, the lock couldn’t be pried open because he lacked leverage, so he immediately instructed Lei Tong, who was outside the house.

Without a word, Lei Tong quickly turned back to the car.

Seeing Lei Tong heading back to the car, the survivors, who had been anxiously waiting inside, couldn’t help but feel a twinge of nervousness. The impatient Wang Qiang simply asked aloud, "Old Lin, what’s the situation? Is there something up ahead?"

Lin Junfu was also unsure of what was happening. At least from what he observed through the binoculars, nothing seemed unusual at the mansion ahead.

The adults’ chatter caught Fangfang’s attention. The little one had stayed close to Wei Yang, affected by the recent sequence of terrifying events.

But now, driven by her childish curiosity, Fangfang lifted her head and, after glancing around, extended her small hand, eagerly asking, "Sister Wei Yang, what are Uncle Xu and Uncle Lei doing at the big house?"

Wei Yang was momentarily taken aback; Fangfang’s words broke her train of thought. She instinctively glanced at Fangfang and then smiled warmly, "Doesn’t Fangfang want to live in a big house? Uncle Xu and Uncle Lei are trying to open the door for you."

"Really!" At the mention of the big house, Fangfang’s fear and anxiety vanished, replaced by immense excitement and anticipation. "But Sister Wei Yang, why isn’t Uncle Xu using a key to open the door?"

This question caught Wei Yang off guard, but she quickly fabricated a harmless lie: "Because this place is enchanted with magic, Uncle Xu is using a magic wand to break the spell, so let’s cheer and pray for him together!"

"Mm!" Fangfang nodded earnestly, filled with childish innocence, utterly unaware of Wei Yang’s fib. She clasped her small fists, tightly closed them on her chest, and solemnly closed her eyes in prayer.

Watching the little one so serious, Wei Yang felt a bit guilty.

Meanwhile, Lei Tong, having retrieved the extension rod, handed the tool to Xu Renjie.

Xu Renjie inserted the extension rod into the previous crowbar and exerted force to break the lock again.

This time, with increased leverage, Xu Renjie’s effort multiplied sharply, and in almost an instant, he pried the tightly sealed door lock, creating a gap.

"Got it!" With the gate open, Xu Renjie continued to delve into the mansion’s interior.

After traversing a narrow cobblestone path, Xu Renjie and Lei Tong finally reached the mansion’s front door.

"Ding-dong, ding-dong!" The electronic doorbell still rang, saving Xu Renjie from having to knock.

Of course, he wasn’t really calling the residents inside but intending to alert those mutated hell creatures lurking within to gather at the door so he could deal with them all at once.

But after ringing for quite some time, it seemed like the sound vanished into a bottomless black hole; the house remained as quiet as ever, without any movement.

Only then did Xu Renjie feel reassured, taking a huge weight off his mind, and he picked up his hand-held radio to give the all-clear for entry.

Upon receiving the command, the middle and rear vehicles immediately started moving, driving toward the gate one after the other.

Indeed, the mansion’s courtyard was quite spacious; upon driving in, Wang Zhongyu didn’t feel it was cramped. After dropping everyone off, he immediately turned the car around, ready for a quick escape in case of unexpected incidents.

"Damn it, is there no justice in this world? This place is way too big, right? Quan Zi, this courtyard is probably bigger than our rental place!" Wang Qiang exclaimed after getting off the car and scanning the courtyard.

Tang Xiaoquan merely smiled and walked toward Xu Renjie, who was fiddling with the door.

"Commander Xu, what’s the matter?"

Xu Renjie, hearing the voice behind him, glanced sideways, observed the approaching figure, and calmly said, "The door has an electronic lock. If we break it, it’ll be destroyed and difficult to replace, so I’m thinking of what to do."

By this time, the other survivors had gradually gathered around, with Wang Qiang swinging his arms leading the way: "Commander Xu, why aren’t we prying the door?"

Tang Xiaoquan reiterated Xu Renjie’s explanation to those behind him, and Wu Chao immediately suggested, "Why not pry it open first, then block it with something heavy later?"

Honestly, Wu Chao’s suggestion was indeed feasible, but Xu Renjie persistently didn’t want to damage the lock.

After all, more defenses meant more safety, especially for the only main entrance, which concerned the safety of all team members.

So...

Xu Renjie walked out of the crowd, pacing as he observed the mansion’s overall layout. His observation revealed that the mansion had three floors, with burglar-proof iron bars on the windows of the first and second floors. The thumb-thick steel bars immediately made Xu Renjie reconsider any thoughts of prying.

In contrast, the windows of the third floor were unguarded, perhaps because the mansion’s owner didn’t believe anyone could climb so high to break in. 𝓯𝓻𝓮𝙚𝙬𝓮𝙗𝒏𝙤𝒗𝙚𝙡.𝒄𝒐𝓶

Besides, the mansion was fortified with fences and surrounded by complete surveillance, but in this apocalypse, the homeowner never anticipated how these meticulous security measures would become useless.

As for the so-called third floor... Ha, Xu Renjie took one look and had a plan. He instantly instructed, "Xiao Hua, take off your anti-cut gloves and give them to me."

Hearing this, Hua Biao was slightly surprised, turning sideways and asking uncertainly, "Uh? Gloves? Commander, what do you plan to do?"

Raising his hand, Xu Renjie pointed to the top floor window, stating firmly, "Climb up!" (To be continued. If you like this work, you are welcome to come to qidian.com to vote for recommendations and monthly tickets. Your support is my greatest motivation. Mobile users, please read on m.qidian.com.)