July 8th, 2026.
Before dawn broke, Wang Zhi woke everyone up.
This time, their plan was to head to a city in the Northern Sector.
Of the available cities, the western one was the closest-the one they had bypassed previously. Because of its proximity, Wang Zhi decided against it, opting instead for a location in the Northern Sector that was moderately distant.
The city in the Northern Sector was called Dragon City, a county-level city. This was the largest scale Wang Zhi was willing to accept.
If it were a prefecture-level city, even if Wang Zhi starved to death, he would never wander around such a place. A prefecture-level city's population was basically ten times that of a county-level city, which meant ten times the danger.
However, high risk meant high reward. Cities with large populations also held more resources, and if they were lucky, they might even encounter survivors who had managed to live on by sheer chance.
"Fatty, go check the vehicle in the garage. Oh, right, bring an extra battery too," Wang Zhi said to Fatty.
"Got it, Captain."
"We have only one target on this trip!" Wang Zhi placed the map of Dragon City on the table and circled a location with a pen.
"Dragon City Comprehensive Wholesale Mall..." Duan Qingtian read, looking at the content within the red circle.
"Exactly! It has everything!" Wang Zhi smiled.
"Not bad, Wang Zhi! That's a good spot," Old He said, slapping Wang Zhi on the back.
"But the population there might be a bit higher," Wang Zhi remarked.
"No matter, what kind of scene haven't the few of us seen?" Duan Qingtian thumped his chest.
"Captain Wang, checked and done. Everything is fine," Fatty said as he walked in.
"Good, change clothes, let's go!"
----Roar! Wang Zhi slammed the accelerator, driving the vehicle out of the garage.
Arriving at the Ready Room, they collected their firearms and ammunition. Including the ammunition You Luo had secretly taken, they set off with a total of over 2,200 rounds, nine grenades, and four Inhibitors.
Outside the city gate, members of the Guard Team were already busy dredging bodies from the Moat, gathering them in a pit to be burned.
This scene reminded Wang Zhi of the scene he witnessed back on Norman Island, where all the children who died during the experiments were thrown into one place for incineration.
Wang Zhi glanced at the roof of the vehicle. The hole ripped open by the giant eagle last time had now been patched with a sheet of iron. Although it didn't look pretty, at least it was repaired.
In the back seat, Fatty and Qin Sheng were loading bullets into magazines one by one. Excluding Jia Liuli, they only had enough bullets for eight magazines per person-fill them up once, and they wouldn't need to reload mid-fight; they could just fight until they ran out.
Wang Zhi noticed that the surrounding trees and vegetation had withered. After such a long drought, coupled with that toxic rain, all the grass and plants had been completely destroyed.
However, the rain had washed the ground much cleaner. The city and the wilderness, which were almost turning into jungles, were instantly reverted to their original state, looking even more desolate than before.
After leaving the vicinity of Dawn City, the number of Zombies on the road gradually increased. These Zombies had mostly mutated into a reddish-white color, and any clothing they might have worn was long gone. If Wang Zhi hadn't witnessed their metamorphosis firsthand, he would have believed these creatures were never human.
Crash! A Zombie slammed against the side of the SUV, causing the vehicle to shudder slightly.
The evolved, mutated Zombies had become significantly more volatile, and their speed increased considerably. Before they had traveled far, the SUV's door and front bumper were already warped and damaged.
"It seems our vehicles need reinforcement and modification. At this rate, they'll break down sooner or later," Wang Zhi remarked while checking the rearview mirror.
"Mmm, we could add a ring of spikes. Fatty, I'll leave that to you when we return," Su Muying suggested.
"No problem, Sister Ying, it's on me," Fatty agreed readily.
Crash! Crash! The vehicle Wang Zhi was driving was continuously battered by lunging Zombies, while the cars following behind were largely untouched.
"Old He, have you two take the lead and drive for a while," Wang Zhi said over the radio.
"Understood."
Old He acknowledged, then accelerated to overtake Wang Zhi and move ahead of him.
Meanwhile, Gray Wolf, riding in the lead vehicle, climbed from the rear window into the open truck bed.
Wang Zhi understood their intention: they wanted the sharpshooting Gray Wolf positioned to clear out a section of Zombies ahead of time.
-Hiss~ Wang Zhi brought the vehicle to a stop near a large suburban gas station.
Wang Zhi got out of the vehicle, leaning against the back to observe the situation inside the gas station. Besides the wrecked cars scattered everywhere, there were also Zombie Corpses, and the glass on the storefront appeared to have sustained various attacks; not a single pane remained intact.
"This place has already been searched," Old He said, looking into the distance.
"Are we still going in?" You Luo asked.
"We are searching. There should still be leftover gasoline; those people were probably after things inside the store." Wang Zhi stepped out from behind the car and began walking toward the gas station, step by step.
Thump-Wang Zhi, who was approaching, felt a jolt in his heart; he sensed the presence of a Mutant Species again.
Wang Zhi immediately raised his hand, signaling everyone to halt their advance.
"Old He, Gray Wolf, prepare the Inhibitors. Gray Wolf, fire first; Old He, be ready to cover."
Upon hearing Wang Zhi's command, the others understood that a Mutant Species was present inside, and holding the Inhibitors, they no longer feared it.
After preparing the Inhibitors, the group advanced once more.
They had initially assumed other survivors had gotten there first, but it turned out to be the handiwork of a Mutant Species.
Looking at the few ordinary Zombies torn apart on the ground, he could imagine that this Mutant Species was extremely brutal.
Wang Zhi held his rifle, leading the way. He acted as a decoy tank, needing to attract the attention of the Mutated Zombie so the others would have a better environment for dealing damage.
After all, his body could heal quickly; a minor injury meant nothing to him.
Tap... tap... tap... The few of them moved quietly. Even though their footsteps were lightened, they sounded abnormally clear in the surrounding silence.
Wang Zhi held his breath. They had entered the gas station, but apart from the sounds they themselves were making, there was no other movement around them.
This made Wang Zhi feel strange. Even a Phantom Zombie, skilled at stealth, should have its heartbeat audible at this distance.
Could his intuition be wrong? No, his intuition had never been wrong. The absence of sound didn't mean it wasn't nearby.
Thinking this, Wang Zhi concentrated even harder, trying to assess the danger based on the surrounding environment.
But around them were only some corpses and some wrecked cars; there was simply no place to hide, except for the innermost room.
After setting his target on the room, Wang Zhi exchanged glances with the others and then moved toward the room's location.
Before he had walked ten meters, Wang Zhi suddenly sensed a slight sound of wind rushing above him!
Wang Zhi's pupils constricted, and instinctively, he raised the rifle in his hands to block above his head.
THUD! Accompanied by a dull collision sound, the web of his thumb and index finger on his hand stung, his legs buckled, and he almost fell to his knees!
Bang! Bang! Bang! Before Wang Zhi could react, the few people behind him fired several shots near him.
Wang Zhi heard the sound of bullets whistling past him and instinctively crouched down. Looking at the dark shadow that had just dropped from above and then swiftly fled, Wang Zhi felt a lingering fear in his heart.
Only Wang Zhi himself knew the force behind the strike that had just been blocked by the rifle; it felt like someone swinging a sledgehammer at him. If he hadn't reacted in time, he would have been either killed or severely wounded!
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