Yang Bin and the squad were still hunting Tier-5 Zombies.
He'd already hit Tier-5 peak, but the others had only just broken through. The crystal deficit was enormous.
Nine Tier-5 crystals to go from base to peak. Six people meant they still needed over fifty.
More mouths, more resources. Simple math.
This was exactly why Yang Bin had always stuck to a quality-over-quantity philosophy.
If he wanted numbers, he could recruit hundreds in a day. But what would be the point?
Massive resource drain, management nightmares, and the more people you had, the more opinions festered. Internal fractures were inevitable-just look at Tang Weiwei's crew.
So Yang Bin's vision for Star Fall Squad capped at ten members.
If he ever needed to build a real faction, each squad member could lead their own team. He'd sit back as overall commander.
For now, their small crew worked just fine.
Today's grind had taken them through residential compounds, hunting Tier-5 Zombies building by building.
Turns out, compounds were the sweet spot.
Zombie density wasn't as insane as the packed residential blocks, but higher than commercial districts.
They'd hit several compounds in a row, and nearly every one had Tier-5 Zombies lurking inside.
Killing them was a pain, but the efficiency blew open-field hunting out of the water.
After clearing two more Tier-5 Zombies from a compound, Yang Bin led the group onward to find the next one.
Ten-plus minutes of walking and still no compound in sight-but they stumbled onto something else entirely.
A building with its base swarmed by zombies.
Yang Bin's eyes lit up. This usually meant a Tier-5 camper was skulking inside.
But when he activated True Vision Eye and scanned the horde below, he froze.
Three Tier-5 Zombies. Among the guards.
"Tier-5 Zombies are just the doormen? Then what the hell is inside-!?"
His breathing quickened. He immediately turned his gaze toward the building's interior.
True Vision Eye laid the room bare. On the third floor, a woman in a black dress lay on a bed.
"A woman???"
Yang Bin's brain short-circuited. Thousands of zombies guarding a woman?
Then he noticed the anomaly. A thumb-thick hole punched clean through her skull, still oozing blood.
And inside that ruined head-a cherry-sized red crystal.
Joy exploded across Yang Bin's face.
"A Tier-6 Zombie. No-a Yaoguang Realm Zombie!"
He'd assumed Tier-6 Zombies didn't exist yet. Figured his advancement was stalled for the foreseeable future.
And now one had just appeared in front of him. Severely wounded. Practically gift-wrapped.
This kind of fortune felt illegal. Yang Bin stared, barely trusting his own eyes.
He checked again. And again. It was real.
But then his gaze dropped to the horde below-four to five thousand zombies, three Tier-5 among them, hundreds of Tier-4-and his expression hardened.
Difficult or not, this thing had to die.
You don't refuse meat when it's already in your mouth. The heavens would strike you down for that kind of stupidity.
"Brother Bin, is there a Tier-5 Zombie in that building?" Chen Hao whispered.
"Tier 5?" Yang Bin's eyes burned. "Think bigger. That's a Tier-6 Zombie in there."
"Tier 6!!?"
Every head snapped toward the distant building.
"That's Yaoguang Realm?"
Nobody was calm anymore.
"Boss, can we take it?"
"Can we? We have to. Doesn't matter how hard it is-we're doing this."
"Alright, Boss. How do we play it?"
"You guys draw the horde below. Haozi and I circle around back, climb up, and put that Yaoguang zombie down."
"But be careful. This group hits different-three Tier-5, hundreds of Tier-4. This fight's going to be brutal."
"That many?"
"Yeah. Keep your backs to a wall so nothing flanks you. All you need to do is hold. Once Haozi and I finish upstairs, we'll come reinforce."
"Got it."
"Move."
The moment Yang Bin gave the word, Zhao Kun and the others charged straight at the horde.
Yang Bin and Chen Hao stayed hidden behind a nearby building.
The horde spotted Zhao Kun's group and surged forward in a frenzy, pouring toward them without hesitation.
The five fighters reached a building wall, set their backs against it, and started carving through everything that came at them.
Down two members, but five Tier-5 combatants were still a devastating force. They could hold for a while.
Yang Bin kept his eyes locked on the Yaoguang zombie upstairs.
It heard the commotion below. Glanced down once. Dismissed it.
Its injuries were too severe. Recovery took priority.
Yang Bin exhaled. His biggest fear had been it bolting the second trouble started.
He led Chen Hao around to the building's rear, moving carefully.
Every zombie on this side had been pulled toward Zhao Kun's group. The path was clear.
They jumped to a second-floor window, ripped the security bars apart, and slipped inside. Then crept up to the third floor.
Yang Bin pointed at a door. Gave Chen Hao a look.
Chen Hao nodded. He set down his Barbell Rod, drew the Fire Axe from his belt, and vanished.
Gone. Just like that.
Yang Bin tightened his grip on the Barbell Rod. Then he kicked the door clean off its hinges and charged in.
The zombie exploded off the bed, fury twisting its face as it locked onto Yang Bin.
No pleasantries. Yang Bin swung the Barbell Rod at its skull with everything he had.
The zombie threw up a hand and caught the blow.
But it had overestimated its current state and underestimated Yang Bin's raw power. The impact drove it back several steps, slamming it into the far wall.
Yang Bin closed the distance instantly, winding up for another strike-but the zombie was faster. A kick lashed out.
Yang Bin jammed the Barbell Rod in front of his body.
BOOM.
One kick sent him flying across the room.
He hit the floor, rolled, and was back on his feet in a heartbeat. His eyes were wide.
This thing was half-dead and still hit like a freight train. At full strength, it would've been absolutely terrifying.
Yang Bin clicked his tongue, then charged again, Barbell Rod arcing toward the zombie's head.
This time, the zombie was ready. It caught the rod mid-swing with one hand.
Its other hand shot toward Yang Bin's throat.
Then-instinct. The zombie's eyes flicked sideways. It released the Barbell Rod and threw itself to the left.
Not fast enough.
Blood sprayed.
Chen Hao's Fire Axe carved a deep gash across its neck, missing the kill by inches.
The zombie whipped around-but Chen Hao was already gone. Invisible again.
Its brow furrowed. Another one. Hiding in the room this whole time.
The head wound. The neck wound. Both fatal. Blood loss was accelerating, strength draining by the second.
Even a zombie's monstrous vitality had limits.
It knew. If this continued, it would die here.
The zombie made its decision and bolted for the window.
But Yang Bin was already there, Barbell Rod across his shoulders, blocking the only exit.
"Figured you'd try to run."