The overcast sky stopped the intense heat on the ground. A temperature of 30 degrees offered a slight comfort to those accustomed to 34 degrees.
The number of people on the training ground had more than doubled compared to usual, making the once deserted area lively again.
As the numbers increased, friction between different teams became inevitable. Although everyone was a seasoned survivor of the apocalypse, some still resorted to fighting just to save face, keeping the Guard Team busy.
Previously, when Wang Zhi and his team were inside the Dawn Tower, they mostly stayed on the third or fourth floors, rarely interacting with Level One or Level Two Teams. It now seemed that the friction between these teams was often caused by women-someone flirting or causing trouble, and the other party, unwilling to lose face, fighting back in annoyance.
Women in the Apocalypse seemed to be an invisible source of trouble. Of course, Wang Zhi had encountered this trouble himself, and more than once.
Yet, everyone seemed unable to do without women. Everyone had desires and physical needs. Even knowing they were trouble, people kept them by their side because they were needed.
However, this didn't mean just anyone in this Apocalypse could possess women. First, one needed the ability to protect those around them. The quality of the women one could have corresponded directly to their own strength; if one's strength did not match the value of what they possessed, that thing would be lost in some form or another.
Given the strength of Wang Zhi's team, he dared to guarantee that, apart from the women in Tang Qilin's team, anyone in the other teams could be obtained if they desired it.
Wang Zhi himself knew very well that he did not covet the beauty of the women around him; nor did he have the standing to do so. Although he occasionally experienced impulsive desires, he did not act on them because he knew he was not yet qualified, and Su Muying would not allow him to act impulsively toward others.
He could not figure out Su Muying's thoughts; what she was thinking, what she was planning, he could not see through it, yet it was subtle. He had been with Su Muying for nearly a year, and he could feel that the way she treated him was different from how she treated others. He had once fantasized that she felt this way because she liked him, but now he understood that this fantasy stemmed from his own unilateral attraction to her. From her perspective, it might just be simple goodwill.
When Wang Zhi saw Jia Liuli in the distance, a strange man standing beside her, his expression froze as he recognized the man: this person was Zhang Xiaowei, Jia Liuli's junior.
The cruelty of the Apocalypse had stripped Zhang Xiaowei of his former immaturity, making him no longer look like a young student. The last time Wang Zhi had seen him was at some point inside the Dawn Tower; he hadn't expected him to survive until now.
"Senior Jia Liuli, our team is already a Level Three Team, and we're currently short a person. If you're interested, you can join anytime! I'm telling you, our Captain is amazing; I've survived until now by following him..." Zhang Xiaowei said with a touch of pride.
"No need, Xiaowei. Just survive well over there," Jia Liuli replied.
"Senior Jia Liuli, I'm not the same person I was before. I've gotten stronger now; I can protect you," Zhang Xiaowei said, unwilling to give up.
Hearing Zhang Xiaowei's words, Jia Liuli suddenly flicked the scabbard in her hand against his leg. Zhang Xiaowei cried out in pain, nearly falling to his knees.
"Senior Student, you..."
"Do I need your protection? You should focus on protecting yourself first," Jia Liuli said, her voice ice-cold, devoid of its previous softness.
"What's wrong, Jia Liuli?" At that moment, wang Zhi also approached from a distance.
"It's nothing, Xiaowei was just passing by," Jia Liuli replied softly, the icy demeanor vanishing instantly.
"Not bad. It's not easy to survive until now. Keep it up," Wang Zhi said with a slight smile.
"Okay! Thank you, Brother Wang. I'll be going now," Zhang Xiaowei said, departing with a limp.
"What happened to his leg?" Wang Zhi asked knowingly, as he had witnessed Jia Liuli striking Zhang Xiaowei when he approached.
"I hit him..." Jia Liuli replied quietly.
"Oh~ He didn't come here trying to recruit you, did he?" Wang Zhi asked thoughtfully.
"Yes..."
"Hmm... When one achieves a little success in the Apocalypse, it's inevitable they become a bit inflated. That's quite normal," Wang Zhi said as he walked ahead.
Jia Liuli lowered her head and remained silent. She knew that if she didn't firmly dispel Zhang Xiaowei's idea and allowed him to continue pestering her, given Wang Zhi's methods, Zhang Xiaowei and his team would ultimately meet a bad end.
"Jia Liuli, let's spar again."
"This time you can use a knife..." Seeing Jia Liuli shake her head, Wang Zhi added.
...
When the evening training ended, no rain had fallen outside, but dark clouds still shrouded the sky. Within these dark clouds, flashes of lightning occasionally flickered, giving everyone a strong sense of oppression.
In one area of the sky, a reconnaissance plane suddenly shook violently. The pilot was startled and immediately tried to regain balance, but he found the aircraft was completely out of control and began descending while spinning 360 degrees.
"N30 Recon calling Headquarters! N30 Recon calling Headquarters! N30 Recon encountering unknown interference, requesting support! N30 Recon encountering unknown interference, requesting support!" The pilot frantically called out over the walkie-talkie.
However, there was no response at all. Before long, the plane crashed onto a building in a certain city, and the explosion caused the Zombies within several miles to become frenzied.
On the other side was a fighter jet. Just as the pilot realized something was wrong and wanted to return to base, he found that his rear was completely enveloped. Although he wasn't afraid of being struck by lightning, this boundless expanse of dark clouds was too strange.
"N11, do you read? Return immediately! N11, do you read? Return immediately!"
Inside a certain Base, several people wearing monitoring headsets were calling out anxiously. In just a few short minutes, three of the four planes they had sent out had crashed.
Inside the N11 fighter jet, the pilot listened despairingly to the crackling of the walkie-talkie. He knew it was headquarters calling him, but it was too late now; his aircraft was out of control. He frantically pressed the emergency button, trying to open the canopy and eject the seat for self-rescue.
The fighter jet burst out of the dark clouds in the sky, rapidly approaching the ground. Just as it was about to land, the canopy suddenly opened, and the pilot was instantly ejected.
The pilot looked down at the unfamiliar city and despaired. The hand that had been reaching for the parachute gradually loosened, and he finally crashed onto the ground.
"Reporting to Commander, N11, N30, N15, N17-all crashed, cause unknown," a woman's voice said, trembling slightly over the radio.
"Pass the word down: halt all operations," the Commander said, looking at the information feedback from the meteorological observation station.
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