Chapter 127.2 – Life-and-Death Marathon (18)
◎ Song Keke, he grabbed my hand hard ◎
The gasoline poured down from the sky like a torrential rain, drenching the zombies hidden in the substation thoroughly.
The door of the hover car opened, and amidst the fierce air currents, a woman with deep red curls extended her hands. Adorning her fingers were rings resembling green and blue gems, upon closer inspection revealed to be high-grade crystals. With her majestic awakened energy released, flames soared into the sky. With a “hiss,” a chemical reaction occurred between the gasoline and flames, igniting rapidly.
The roaring fire illuminated the entire sky. Those supernatural flames possessed miraculous properties; they wouldn’t extinguish unless burnt completely.
Eight people, including Song Ke, huddled under the protection of a spiritual umbrella. The scorching temperature nearly seared their skin, but Song Ke’s stable mental strength prevented any disturbance despite the wails of the zombies, leaving the umbrella unaffected.
After a good fifteen minutes, most of the Level 2 zombies were burnt to death, and the remaining ones scattered and fled.
Song Ke retracted the umbrella, and the group emerged, their faces covered in soot from the thick smoke.
The woman in the floating car whistled ambiguously towards Yin Xiao, “Hey, Captain, looks like even you have days like this. Need me to come to your rescue?”
Yin Xiao retorted angrily, “Shut up, Jennifer! Even if I’m in a slump, I’m still your father!”
Jennifer scoffed, “I don’t have such an incompetent father like you!”
“Stop arguing! Did you catch the mutated zombies? I want to go back to sleep!”
“Stop wasting time, hurry up and search!”
Members of the “Tustan” team jumped down, joining Yin Xiao in pursuing the fallen.
The smoke-filled substation now had only the seven members of V587 remaining.
Zhuang Qingyan bent down, picking up a fragment of a damaged metallic object from the ashes, examining it closely.
“What’s this?” Song Ke picked up a similar piece.
“I’ve got one too,” Fang Zhixu said.
They searched around and found that this kind of thing was scattered all over the substation.
Zhuang Qingyan asked in a low voice, “Have any of you noticed any changes in your bodies?”
Lin Youyou pondered for a moment. “It seems like my awakened energy has become more abundant.”
Xu Xing spread his palm, instantly conjuring ice blades, showing adeptness in employing his awakened ability.
Zhuang Qingyan’s face grew serious. “The radiation intensity here is several times higher than in other areas.”
“Currently, Haimen has become a huge chaotic magnetic field, capable of triggering the explosion of awakened energy.”
“It relies on these things—super magnets.”
The object in Zhuang Qingyan’s hand was rough, filled with assembled charges, some unidentifiable magnetic substances, and a mix of scattered awakened energy.
“Magnets?” Lin Youyou immediately thought of a possibility. “Could the Zombie King be planning to disrupt the power grid and render the high-voltage network ineffective?”
“Not feasible. Do you all know how many substations are in Haimen?” Zhuang Qingyan asked.
Everyone shook their heads. How would they have such information!
Zhuang Qingyan slightly parted his lips and revealed a staggering number, “1,130.”
“To attempt to destroy all substations in a short time is a completely futile endeavor. Haimen always keeps reserve power. The Zombie King’s goal should be to create an artificial magnetic pole.”
“They don’t need to destroy; they just need to make some alterations.”
“By filling the substations with super magnets, Haimen will become an artificial magnetic pole in the Eastern Alliance.”
“Strictly speaking, it’s not an artificial magnetic pole; it should be called ‘Made by Undead’.”
Lu Xiaoyu unexpectedly cracked a dark joke, but unfortunately, no one found it amusing at this moment. All wore grave expressions.
Song Ke’s gaze wandered, struggling to keep up with the discussion. She couldn’t quite comprehend it, but mimicking Lin Youyou and the others, she earnestly nodded along.
Zhuang Qingyan smiled faintly, choosing not to expose her confusion and explained in a more straightforward and understandable manner:
“After the apocalypse, the Alliance’s terrestrial magnetic field was already unstable. If the super magnets in Haimen exceed a certain quantity, forming an artificial magnetic pole, it will conflict with the existing poles, causing a magnetic pole reversal. During this period, the magnetic field above Haimen will completely disappear, exposing it to solar particle storms that will recklessly bombard human bodies, attracting more and more zombies to gather.”
“Once all electromagnetic signals fail, Haimen will become an isolated city. Even with reinforcements, they won’t be able to locate it.”
Song Ke suddenly comprehended, but her heart sank. If Haimen became isolated, it meant that reinforcements wouldn’t arrive, rendering the current defense of Haimen meaningless.
“The Zombie King is too terrifying,” Lin Youyou murmured. Its intelligence, strategy, and vision had surpassed that of ordinary humans long ago. Faced with such a formidable opponent, did they really have a way to kill it?
“I have a question: How can evolved zombies appear in the inner city?” Fang Zhixu asked.
“Because they have—spatial-type mutant zombies,” Zhuang Qingyan said solemnly.
“These fallen ones aren’t just spies; they’re also anchors.”
“The Zombie King uses their positions as coordinates to covertly teleport elite forces.”
V587 had encountered the power of spatial-type awakeners in Mu City. Scarface and the Thin Man had been a great help in assassinating Nai Kang.
They hadn’t expected zombies to possess such abilities and be used by the Zombie King for covert actions.
“The Zombie King probably has already entered Haimen,” Zhuang Qingyan revealed the harsh reality.
As if a prophecy, almost the instant his words fell, the second iron gate emitted a sharp noise of destruction.
Accompanying this sound were the panicked screams of Haimen residents.
The chaos spread to the inner city.
“We need to find the Zombie King as soon as possible,” Song Ke said, “Kill him and stop everything.”
…
“Prey caught”
A message suddenly popped up in the internal chat channel. Looking at the avatar, it was from Yin Xiao.
The next second, his clear voice sounded: “Oh, looks like you still have to rely on me, the captain.”
The members of the “Tustan” team fell silent for a moment, cursing intermittently:
“Yin Xiao! Are you deliberately messing with us?”
“I’ve caught one here. Do you still need more?”
“As a captain, you should have the spirit of selfless dedication. Can you go on missions by yourself in the future and share the commission money equally with us?”
“Ah~~I’m so sleepy, heading back.”
Jennifer elegantly toyed with a cluster of flames at her fingertips. After reading the chat messages, she smiled brightly. Alright, it’s time to wrap up and go back for a vacation.
Suddenly, she caught an extremely subtle awakened energy wave, almost like a gentle breeze brushing past her ears.
Jennifer swiftly turned around, finding nothing behind her.
An illusion?
But Jennifer wasn’t someone to take things lightly. She had undergone countless life-and-death experiences, honing her intuition for danger, trusting her sharp senses implicitly.
Jennifer pretended to turn her head back and continued walking forward, quietly touching her crystal ring with her fingertips.
A faint sound of saliva dripping onto the ground made Jennifer swiftly turn around. Flames spiraled out, illuminating the attacker.
Enormous claws intercepted the burst of flames, the rotting flesh sizzling and burning, emitting an unquenchable stench. A normal zombie or a Level 2 zombie would have already been howling in agony, but this monster seemed impervious to pain. Its massive body shook off the scorching, emerging from the shadows.
Jennifer’s pupils contracted sharply. This was… a Level 3 zombie!
Everyone has strengths and weaknesses, and Jennifer excelled in wide-range attack with her abilities. However, in close combat, she ranked at the bottom within the team, never surpassing the second-to-last.
With an accurate assessment of her own abilities, Jennifer turned and ran, screaming at the top of her lungs, “Yin Xiao, you darned jerk! Dad! Come save your daughter!!”
The Level 3 zombie roared furiously, its claws pounding the ground, hot on her heels.
“Lower your hostility, lower your stance, tonight, her figure has already gone far away…”
At this critical moment, an ethereal singing voice resounded. Suddenly, the movements of the Level 3 zombie slowed down, its head involuntarily drooping, losing track of Jennifer. Subsequently, a ghostly figure leaped into the air, stepping on its head, thrusting a dagger into its shoulder blades. Poisonous mist erupted, the zombie wailing continuously as its decaying flesh fell off.
Coincidentally passing by, Lin Youyou took advantage of the situation and rapped swiftly, “I don’t care if you believe it or not, can’t block the rainwater invading your brain, even if you try hard enough, when you meet me, you’re left with nothing but a doomed life!!”
As she recited her lyrics, Su Cha’s speed surged several times over. His forearm muscles tensed to the extreme, and his dagger whirled out, hitting the Level 3 zombie’s eye dead-on. Seizing the moment of its howling, Su Cha jumped forward, delivering a powerful kick, akin to crushed stones, denting the weakest part of the Level 3 zombie’s skull. Then, with a reverse grip on the knife, he relentlessly stabbed its neck.
After a dozen consecutive strikes, Su Cha pulled the dagger from the eye socket, a toxic mist enveloping the blade’s edge. He made a heavy slash at the crack.
Snap!
The entire head of the Level 3 zombie was severed and flung away, blood and putrid flesh spraying like a fountain.
Su Cha somersaulted backward, landing on the ground, and slowly stood up.
With the help of explosion of awakened energy, his strength had reached a level where he could single-handedly kill a Level 3 zombie.
“Wow, so cool!” Jennifer sighed melodically, her eyes almost twinkling.
She rushed over, her deep red curls carrying a fragrant breeze, and lunged at Su Cha.
Su Cha’s pupils quivered. He took a step back, then watched in disbelief as Jennifer leaped past him.
Thud!
Jennifer pressed Lin Youyou against the wall, her hand placed firmly, assuming a standard romantic ‘kabedon’ pose.
Then, she slowly lowered her head, her red lips almost touching Lin Youyou’s, their hair intertwining, so close they could feel each other’s breath.
In a captivating, enchanting voice, she said, “Hi, savior, how about exchanging contact information? I’m Jennifer, 177cm tall, measurements 81.58.90, and in good health with no bad habits. If you don’t have a boyfriend or girlfriend, could you consider me?”
Even Lin Youyou, who was used to storms and tempests, was left stunned.
Su Cha, splattered with blood, held the dagger pulled from the Level 3 zombie’s head, silent, and speechless.
**TN
I am your father – it’s more like establishing the hierarchy
Kill with a borrowed knife – the idea is to cause damage to the enemy via a third party
