At first, they thought it was just a coincidence, but as the convoy drove deeper… they didn’t encounter a single low-tier zombie!
Not until they reached their destination—a large compound left behind by an old base in S City. Covering thousands of square meters, the tallest building was no more than three stories high. The defenses surrounding it were incredibly solid, comparable to a prison, capable of withstanding a zombie horde invasion for several days.
As soon as Guo Yingjun got out of the car, he eagerly moved to Su Su’s side and introduced, “This was the territory built by the most powerful faction of the old base. It’s said that their initial goal was to turn it into a post-apocalyptic version of an imperial palace…”
Su Su was momentarily speechless.
She felt like she hadn’t heard him right. “An imperial palace?”
Guo Yingjun nodded wistfully. “Yeah, a year after the apocalypse, S City’s base had stabilized. Some factions suddenly became filthy rich and wanted to play warlord. So, they hired people to build this compound and stuffed it with their loyal subordinates and women.”
Su Su unconsciously found herself drawn into the story. “And then?”
“And then, when the zombie horde came… aside from a few high-tier ability users, everyone else inside was wiped out completely.”
Looking at the building now, Guo Yingjun was filled with mixed emotions.
Back then, he had dozens of subordinates under him. He wasn’t exactly a kingpin in S City, but at least he never had to worry about food or clothing. Of course, he had once fantasized that the person living in this so-called ‘imperial palace’ would be him.
Who would’ve thought…
Guo Yingjun shook his head, discarding his unrealistic dreams. “Miss Zhou, once we go inside, we’ll either run into zombies or that group of people who formed an alliance. If a fight breaks out…”
He rubbed his hands together.
He was about to coax Su Su into backing him up, but the next second, she crushed that thought.
“If we really do run into this alliance you’re talking about, do you think we can win against them?”
Guo Yingjun chuckled awkwardly. “W-Well, isn’t it better to make them wary of you since you’re so powerful? That way, we can avoid unnecessary conflicts.”
“They have the Research Guild backing them,” Su Su said flatly. “There’s a chance a Tier-7 ability user is inside. We only have two Tier-6 ability users on our side. If we really start fighting, do you think they’ll care about our lives?”
Guo Yingjun was finally listening.
His initial satisfaction and arrogance from entering S City smoothly faded a little. Only now did he start thinking rationally—those old forces in S City were selfish, greedy bastards who only cared about their own interests. Otherwise, they wouldn’t have abandoned the city and fled when the largest zombie horde attacked.
Su Su continued pressing him, “We came here to scavenge, not to start a war. If we run into them, keep a low profile and minimize our presence. That way, we won’t stir up unnecessary trouble.”
Guo Yingjun completely abandoned any premature ambitions or inflated self-confidence. He nodded repeatedly. “I’ll follow your lead!”
Su Su nodded slightly.
Her goal in joining this team was to act discreetly.
As of now, she wasn’t sure who the Research Guild had sent. There was a 50% chance it was Si Zhe and a 50% chance it was another Tier-7 ability user… The fact that a Tier-7 zombie had appeared in S City had already drawn everyone’s attention. Su Su was prepared for a direct confrontation with familiar faces.
“Let’s go in and take a look.”
The compound had too many residential buildings, making it difficult to maneuver vehicles. The team parked their cars in the most visible location and prepared to climb the walls to enter—the protective walls surrounding the compound hadn’t been significantly damaged, so the only way in was to scale a five-meter-high iron fence.
Su Su climbed to the top of the five-meter fence. Looking down from above, she couldn’t shake the feeling that something was off about the courtyard.
But she couldn’t quite put her finger on it.
The other ability users had already jumped into the courtyard one after another, leaving only Su Su on top of the iron fence.
Despite his plump figure, Guo Yingjun was surprisingly agile and had been among the first to land. Seeing that she hadn’t come down yet, he considerately tilted his head up and asked, “Miss Zhou, do you need me to carry you down?”
Su Su: “…No need.”
She temporarily set aside the strange feeling in her heart and followed suit, leaping into the vast courtyard.
However, just as the first person took ten steps forward, a piercing alarm suddenly blared across the entire compound.
“Who’s there?!”
Seven or eight ability users rushed out of the three small buildings, their weapons and abilities already charged and ready to attack.
Before they could react, Su Su discreetly nudged the back of Guo Yingjun’s heel with her foot.
The latter quickly raised his hands. “It’s me! I’m here to help reclaim the old base!”
“Reclaim the old base?”
The leader of the opposing group sneered, just about to mock him, but Guo Yingjun’s reaction speed was even faster. He jogged forward a few steps, and within moments, tears were streaming down his face.
“Brother Ding? Is that you, Brother Ding? It’s me, Yingjun! Guo Yingjun!”
Ding Zhengyang frowned, staring at the chubby man sniffling and wiping his tears. He rummaged through his memories for a long while before finally recalling who he was—back in the old base, this guy had gathered a dozen or so subordinates simply because of his good temper. A Tier-5 ability user.
“What are you doing here?”
Guo Yingjun took a few more eager steps forward, speaking with sincerity, “I heard that Brother Ding, you and the others were planning to reclaim S City. This place is where I lived for so long—I couldn’t just stand by and do nothing! So I immediately gathered some people and rushed over to help!”
“Help?” Ding Zhengyang finally let out the sneer he had held back. “What can a Tier-5 ability user like you do?”
Guo Yingjun shamelessly grinned. “Strength comes in numbers! Any inconvenient tasks can be left to me, no problem at all!”
In the blink of an eye, he had demoted himself to a lackey, which actually improved Ding Zhengyang’s mood a little.
“Since you’re so tactful…” Ding Zhengyang eyed him with a sideways glance. “You and your people can tag along with me for now. I’ll take you to meet the others.”
“Got it! Thank you for the opportunity, Brother Ding!”
With Guo Yingjun leading the way, his entire group immediately followed suit, loudly echoing, “Thank you for the opportunity, Brother Ding!”
Ding Zhengyang narrowed his eyes, scrutinizing the dozen or so new arrivals. Regardless of their actual strength, this kind of momentum… Truly, numbers brought power.
They might even help him suppress some of those arrogant so-called allies.
“Follow me.”
Guo Yingjun happily trotted after Ding Zhengyang, and as he did, he sneakily turned his head and shot a look of triumph at Su Su, as if expecting praise.
The slender, toned woman was dressed in a black tactical jacket with a hood pulled over her head, blending in seamlessly with the rest of the group. Her identity remained perfectly hidden.
She glanced around unnoticed.
The ground was so clean.
Would a group of ability users, after moving into this so-called “imperial palace,” really take the time to do a thorough cleanup first?
Hiss!
A tiny, ferocious snakehead silently emerged from Su Su’s chest, but with quick reflexes, she swiftly pushed it back into her collar.
Shhh—
She pulled the zipper higher, and the small snake in her embrace had no choice but to coil around its female host’s waist, looping around again and again.
Seven or eight people had gone out, but over twenty had returned.
Inside the hall of the building, the other allies turned their heads, their gazes shifting toward Luo Hong, who sat in the center.
Clearly, he was the hidden leader of the new S City alliance.
Everyone was waiting for him to be the first to make a move.
As expected, when Luo Hong saw the extra team of ability users behind Ding Zhengyang, his brows scrunched together like an ugly caterpillar.
He knocked on the table and said in a deep voice, “What’s going on? Where did these people come from?”
Others might fear him, but Ding Zhengyang wasn’t one of them.
He immediately threw an arm around Guo Yingjun’s shoulder, putting on a buddy-buddy act. “This is Guo Yingjun. Back at the old base, he was a well-known figure. When he heard we were coming to reclaim S City, he specially came to lend a hand!”
With these words, he blatantly told everyone present—these were his reinforcements.
Luo Hong’s face instantly darkened.
The new S City alliance that had stormed into the city center was composed of four teams. The two most dominant ones were led by Luo Hong and Ding Zhengyang.
Both were peak Tier-6 ability users, but Luo Hong’s abilities were slightly stronger than Ding Zhengyang’s… This had resulted in their two teams constantly butting heads throughout the journey.
Originally, both sides were evenly matched. Luo Hong, who had held a slight advantage, had even started planning how to divide the spoils. But at this critical moment, Ding Zhengyang suddenly gained more than ten extra men!
Just like that, the balance of power had shifted!
Still basking in his triumph, Ding Zhengyang proudly introduced the members Guo Yingjun had brought—among them was a Tier-6 speed-type ability user.
No matter how useless a speed-type ability might seem, it was still Tier-6!
“Come on, Xiao Gao, step forward and let everyone have a look. Our old base really had plenty of talent!”
Gao Yan stepped out with a blank expression.
Ding Zhengyang let go of Guo Yingjun and laughed heartily, giving him a firm pat on the shoulder. “Showing up at the right time really makes all the difference. Not bad, not bad at all!”
Guo Yingjun wiped his sweat, cautiously agreeing, “Y-Yes… yes…”
He even shot several looks at Gao Yan, signaling him—not to reveal “Miss Zhou’s” strength yet. Keep it as a hidden card.
Of course, Gao Yan wouldn’t say anything.
He had no intention of letting “Miss Zhou” steal his thunder.
After this little “intimidation” performance, Luo Hong’s face darkened before turning ashen.
Grinding his teeth, he said coldly, “Brother Ding, you really know how to plan ahead.”
Clearly, Luo Hong was convinced that Ding Zhengyang had kept this trump card hidden all along, waiting until they successfully took over the city center to let his reinforcements in and gain the upper hand.
“Hahahahahahahahahaha!”
Ding Zhengyang let out another hearty laugh.
He didn’t bother explaining and simply led them up to the third floor. “Yingjun, come on, I’ll arrange a place for you guys to stay!”
Luo Hong’s dark, brooding gaze remained fixed on Ding Zhengyang’s group until they disappeared around the stairwell.
“Heh.”
A cold sneer dissipated into the air.
Once out of Luo Hong’s sight, Ding Zhengyang’s enthusiastic grin faded to its usual nonchalant expression. He lazily said, “This building only has four rooms left. You guys figure out how to split them.”
“No problem, no problem, that’s enough for us.”
“Mm.”
Just as Ding Zhengyang was about to leave, Su Su silently drifted behind Guo Yingjun and, without hesitation, kicked him right in the back of his knee.
Guo Yingjun nearly dropped to his knees.
His plump body lurched forward, bumping into Ding Zhengyang. Before the latter could get angry, Guo Yingjun quickly asked, “Brother Ding, when we drove into the city center just now, we didn’t see a single zombie. What’s going on?”
Hearing the question, the dissatisfaction that had just begun to rise in Ding Zhengyang instantly dissipated. Instead, he smirked with pride. “The zombies in the city center have already been completely wiped out.”
“Wiped out?”
Guo Yingjun was stunned and quickly followed up, “Then… what about the Tier-7 zombie?”
Ding Zhengyang waved a hand dismissively. “Dead.”
Guo Yingjun was dumbfounded.
He instinctively turned to look at Su Su, and she, too, wore a serious expression.
The Tier-7 zombie had been dealt with that quickly?
Ding Zhengyang didn’t notice the exchange of glances between them. Since he had already brought it up, he didn’t mind explaining further.
“A few days ago, when we first arrived, we ran into that Tier-7 zombie. The Research Guild sent four Tier-6 ability users, and we had four as well. We all charged in together and took it down.”
Su Su frowned and shot a look at Guo Yingjun.
He immediately picked up on the cue and asked, “Then who got the Grade-7 crystal?”
At the mention of this, Ding Zhengyang’s expression darkened slightly. “Everyone contributed to the kill. No matter who got it, there would’ve been disputes. So for now, it’s in the hands of the Research Guild’s people. We’ll divide it up once we’ve settled on the terms.”
Guo Yingjun blurted out, “B-But what if the Research Guild just keeps it for themselves?”
“Heh.” Ding Zhengyang’s face grew colder, clearly harboring the same concern. “Don’t be fooled by my rivalry with Luo Hong—if the Research Guild dares to pull something, we’ll join forces and take the crystal back.”
Guo Yingjun wiped his sweat. “…That’s good, that’s good. Oh, right, Brother Ding, since the city center’s zombies have been completely cleared out, when are we going to lure S City’s zombie horde to the neighboring city?”
It was a perfectly normal question, yet Ding Zhengyang’s expression suddenly became a little strange.
“Lure them to the neighboring city?”
“Yeah!”
“Why would we do that?”
Guo Yingjun was stunned by the question and cautiously replied, “Of course, it’s to completely reclaim S City, redevelop a new base, and bring back the scattered survivors from the surrounding areas…”
Ding Zhengyang burst into laughter, cutting him off. “Yingjun, are you stupid?”
“We’ve already wiped out all the zombies in the city center. This place is safer than anywhere else—why waste effort on pointless things?”
Guo Yingjun’s eyes widened. “But… but outside the city center, there are still tens of millions of zombies! If they rush in—”
“Then we’ll just kill them too!”
“But… but…”
Ding Zhengyang’s smile slowly faded. He stared at Guo Yingjun until the latter felt chills down his spine. Only then did he sigh faintly, “Yingjun, you’re still too timid.”
“There are indeed tens of millions of zombies outside, but if you think about it differently, they’re also a natural barrier, keeping all malicious people out. By staying here, we’re safer than anywhere else!”
“As for bringing in other survivors… our resources are already limited. We barely have enough for ourselves—if we share with others, what’s left for us?”
Guo Yingjun became more confused the more he listened.
Wait a minute, keeping the crystal for themselves made sense—that was indeed the more profitable choice.
But other resources… Without enough survivors to exploit, how were they supposed to maintain their privileged lifestyle? Forget everything else—just the food they brought in would soon be consumed, right?
His first instinct was to glance at Su Su, who was hidden among the group. But before he could, Ding Zhengyang had already wrapped an arm around his shoulders.
“I know what you’re worried about. It’s food, isn’t it? Don’t worry—there’s plenty here!”
Plenty?
S City had established its base early on. Before the apocalypse, all supplies in the urban area had already been looted clean. How could there still be plenty of food?
Seeing Guo Yingjun’s skepticism, Ding Zhengyang, eager to secure his people, decided to show him directly. He led everyone to the “granary” where the supplies were stored.
Clang—
The rolling shutter door was pulled open, and the dim interior of the warehouse slowly came into view.
Ding Zhengyang stepped in first, flashing a proud grin. “Look at this! Doesn’t it seem like there’s so much food, it’s almost overflowing?”
All eyes turned toward the warehouse—
And then they saw it.
A purplish-green arm. A grotesque, blackened head.
As the rolling shutter door was lifted, the body parts were dragged forward and tumbled out, rolling into the sunlight with dull thuds.
Sure enough.
It was almost overflowing.