Early the next morning, in a luxurious villa at Jinghe Garden-
Wang Ruikai bounded out of bed and rushed to the courtyard to check if any Tier-4 Zombies had emerged.
Instead, he found two more Tier-3 Zombies gnawed down to stumps and scattered limbs.
"How were you watching them? How the hell did two more get eaten!" Wang Ruikai shouted.
Silence. Not a single response.
"Where is everyone!"
Wang Yueming hurried off to check the perimeter, then came back with a face like iron.
"Brother Kai, they're all gone."
"Gone? Killed?"
"Doesn't look like it. More like... they ran."
"Ran?!"
"Yeah. No signs of a fight, no blood anywhere. They must've bolted on their own. Probably scared you'd blame them, so they took off."
Wang Ruikai's jaw clenched.
"Hmph. Betray the Wang family? You're finished." His voice was ice.
"So what do we do now, Brother Kai? With them gone, nobody's guarding this place."
"I'll have my father send more people."
"Go test the zombies. See if any hit Tier 4."
"On it."
Wang Yueming ran strength tests on every remaining zombie, then shook his head.
"That doesn't make sense. How are there still no Tier-4 Zombies?" Wang Ruikai's brow furrowed.
"What if... the ones that died were the Tier-4 Zombies? Those bastards stole the crystals and ran?"
Wang Ruikai's eyes went wide.
"Those- you're dead! I don't care where you run, I will find you!" His roar shook the walls of the villa.
In another villa, Yang Bin and his crew were eating breakfast at a leisurely pace.
"Brother Bin, did you hear something just now?"
"Nope. Eat up. We've got something big to do today."
"Big? Like what?"
"Kill that Tier-5 Zombie." Yang Bin's teeth were clenched.
The table went quiet.
"Brother Bin, isn't that... a bit risky?" Zhao Kun's voice carried genuine worry. Last time, they'd nearly died there. The memory still haunted him.
"Sooner is better than later. That thing hit Tier 5 way too early-it's got freakish talent. If we wait any longer, it might advance again, and then we're truly screwed."
"More importantly, after eating those two crystals we grabbed yesterday, I've hit Tier 4 peak. I need a Tier-5 crystal to push further."
"So if you face it again, what are your odds?" Chen Hao asked.
"Coin flip. Tier 4 peak strength should sit around 1,600 kilograms. With my cultivation gains, I'm at two thousand now-roughly on par with it."
"But it's been a few days. That thing's definitely gotten stronger too. I can't say I'm fully confident. If it goes sideways, Haozi, you jump in."
"Got it. No problem." Chen Hao nodded.
"It's probably rebuilt its entourage by now. The rest of you are all Tier 4-its minions are your problem."
"No problem."
"Good. Finish eating, then we move."
On the other side of the city-
More than thirty Troop Transport Vehicles rolled out from the Survival Base, heading for yesterday's incident site.
This time, the operation wasn't led by Song Tielin. The mayor had personally appointed someone named Liu Xiang to take charge.
Song Tielin bore responsibility for the lost supplies. This time, he was just along for the ride.
Thirty-plus vehicles carrying over a thousand soldiers steamrolled everything in their path. Before long, they reached the spot where the supply convoy had been ambushed.
Zombies still lingered in the area, but with this kind of manpower it didn't matter. A thousand soldiers surged forward in close-quarters combat and swept the zone clean in minutes.
Afterward, teams fanned out to inspect the supply vehicles.
A soldier jogged up to the two leaders shortly after.
"Report! Most supplies are intact, only minor damage to a small portion. Of the eight supply vehicles, two won't start. The rest are banged up but drivable."
"Good. Tow-rope those two dead vehicles to the transports. We're heading back immediately," Liu Xiang ordered.
"Yes sir!"
"Hold on." Song Tielin's brow creased. "We're just leaving?"
"Is there a problem, Battalion Commander Song?"
"There are several hundred people still waiting for us to rescue them!"
"Battalion Commander Song, I'd encourage you to read the situation clearly. You said it yourself-tens of thousands of zombies over there. Even if we could fight through, the ammunition expenditure would be staggering. The base is already running low. There's no justification for burning that much ammo on people who aren't strategically relevant."
"Not relevant?!" Song Tielin's voice rose. "Without those 'irrelevant' people, we never would've made it out alive! I gave them my word-I told them I'd come back with reinforcements. They're still waiting for me!"
"Battalion Commander Song. Calm down. Think about the bigger picture. You know what the priority is right now. Our mission is these supplies."
"Those people must be rescued. I, Song Tielin, do not break my promises." His voice was steel.
"Oh? Are you defying a direct order, Battalion Commander? Have you forgotten a soldier's first duty?"
"I-" Song Tielin opened his mouth, but the words died in his throat.
"Return to base!" Liu Xiang gave the command without hesitation.
The convoy began turning around.
Song Tielin stared at the distant building on the horizon. He could almost see the faces inside. The eyes watching. Waiting.
"I'm sorry," he murmured. "When I get back, I'll push the higher-ups again. I will come for you."
Meanwhile, Yang Bin and his team watched the Troop Transport Vehicles pull away, then eased their car onto the road.
"Why aren't they going to rescue those people?" Zhao Kun frowned.
"Probably wrote them off," Yang Bin said. "Tens of thousands of zombies between here and there. Not exactly a quick extraction."
"No way. Battalion Commander Song didn't seem like that kind of guy."
"He's not. But he's not the one calling the shots. Don't assume the government's all about protecting the people. In the apocalypse, a lot of ugly truths come crawling out."
"Damn. So those people are done for?"
"Not necessarily. That woman probably has connections. Could be their way out."
"Holy shit, Brother Bin-did you predict this? Is that why you made her stay behind?"
"I'm not a god. I just didn't like her and didn't want her tagging along."
"Really?" Skeptical looks all around.
"Enough guessing. Let's move-they just cleared the road for us. We follow at a distance."
"Got it."
They drove on, completely unobstructed, trailing the military convoy's path.
With thirty-plus Troop Transport Vehicles having swept the route ahead, they hit zero resistance all the way past the Survival Base.
Beyond the base, a few scattered zombies wandered the streets. Nothing worth slowing down for.
Before long, they arrived back at the area where they'd been surrounded last time.
They pulled the car to the curb and stepped out.
"Brother Bin, how do we find it?"
"We don't. We kill zombies right here. It'll show up soon enough." A cold smile. "That sneaky bastard holds grudges even harder than we do."
"Alright."
They moved forward on foot, picking off scattered zombies as they went.
After a short while, the zombies around them began thinning out. Fewer and fewer, as if they were retreating. Hiding.
"It's coming." Yang Bin's eyes sharpened. "Move-over to that building. We are not getting boxed in on open road again."
Looking for more free chapters? Visit www.skynovelvault.com to read over 5,000 free chapters and continue exploring more stories from SkyNovelVault.