Chapter 71 Industrial Park
23 hours remain until the rules expire…
A piercing scream once again shattered the long night, echoing in various human settlements around the world…
Meanwhile, a meeting to address the new rules was being held somewhere.
"This rule is a rewarding challenge for the strong, but still deadly for the weak,"
Gao Liangwei, the head of the Post-Apocalyptic Rules Countermeasures Research Office, set the tone in the meeting room.
"Our official armed forces in various regions can be selected as needed. If conditions permit, the focus should be on disrupting the movement of the undead and obtaining more kill-based reward coins. If conditions do not permit, the focus should be on quickly eliminating and removing the threat."
"As for the strong individuals in the civilian population, they may choose to eliminate more undead for higher rewards; we don't need to worry about them. Those who need protection are mainly the civilians in settlements."
At this moment, someone raised a question: "Should we arrange armed squads to assist the civilians in completing this challenge?"
Others looked at Gao Liangwei, this was a question many were concerned about.
There were also numerous appeals online, with people hoping the official rules would help them complete the challenge—the specific method was no different from using armed squads to farm coins, also involving disrupting the movement of the undead first. The only difference is that the ones who finish off the enemy have changed from soldiers to civilians.
Gao Liangwei pondered, "If we can ensure safety, we can try."
Armed forces operate collectively and with discipline, so the risks are manageable. However, many civilians haven't received professional training, so doing so could be dangerous.
But if we don't help this time, a large number of civilians will definitely be unable to complete the challenge—if the time limit were longer, it would be fine, but 24 hours is really too short.
"By the way, have the tests on the [Multi-functional Protective Suit] and [Instant-Ignition Rod] against the undead been completed?"
"Completed," another researcher replied. "Tests show that the [Multi-functional Protective Suit] effectively resists the scratches and bites of the undead, but protection is limited to the upper and lower body, excluding the head and feet."
"The [Instant-Ignition Rod] protects the holder from undead attacks during its burning period. However, this effective protection time decreases rapidly as the number of people nearby increases.
Tests show that a single person holding one Instant-Ignition Rod, within 30 meters of themselves, can be guaranteed protection from undead attacks for 15 minutes during the burning period. However, when a second person is within 30 meters, the safe time rapidly decreases to 10 minutes. As the number of people increases further, the safe time decreases even further.
Additionally, the [Instant-Ignition Rod] can also be used to attack the undead; its flames seem to have a certain restraining effect on them, burning them to ashes in a very short time."
Hearing the researchers' report, everyone's expressions became somewhat grave.
They hadn't expected the [Instant-Ignition Rod]'s effectiveness to decrease with the number of people present. Therefore, the more people gather at a particular point, the less effective this item will be.
"Judging from the test results, the Firebringers don't want people to band together to defy the rules, and the previous hidden rule, [June Snow], was the same!"
"Whether they want it or not, our goal is to ensure more people survive," Gao Liangwei said in a deep voice. "Therefore, we still need to build shelters and deploy armed squads at each gathering point."
"Report! Report!"
At this moment, a researcher rushed in from outside.
"Urgent information! The strange shrieking sound that resounded throughout the world when the rules were first released has reappeared three minutes ago! And this time, countries around the world have discovered that human corpses have transformed into the undead after the shrieking sound; a direct connection has been confirmed!"
Because the countermeasures research lab is located in a safe place deep underground, the people here haven't heard any shrieking sound.
But now that countries around the world have confirmed this information, it means it's true.
"Will the shrieks turn human corpses into the undead?"
Gao Liangwei immediately ordered, "Synchronize the information with armed forces across the country immediately, requiring them to track the nearest shriek sound location and dispatch elite armed squads to investigate!"
"Also, Dr. Zhang, send out the several post-apocalyptic squads we selected and distributed in several major cities, and have them carry out this mission together with the local armed squads."
Dr. Zhang was taken aback upon hearing this: "Send squads out on a mission now? Their optimal equipment combination is not yet complete, isn't there a risk?"
"Risk?" Gao Liangwei snorted coldly, "The countermeasures office has already invested thousands of Ascension Coins in each of them! If they can't even afford this risk, if they can't overcome this danger, what can we expect them to do? Besides, this is a good opportunity to see their performance."
Dr. Zhang knew that there was also competition among the squads. Because later on, as the equipment becomes more and more expensive, the cost of training one person becomes more and more high, and it is very likely that all resources will be focused on one squad.
Therefore, it's not surprising that Gao Liangwei wanted to test their performance in actual combat and see which team could perform better.
Dr. Zhang immediately nodded: "Okay, I'll contact them right away and have all the teams go out to carry out the mission."
...
The moment the shriek rang out, Guan Tong, who was walking on South Avenue, tensed up.
"The second shriek."
He glanced at the time: 10:19 AM, 1 hour and 19 minutes into the rules.
The hidden rules stated that the "Mother Transformer" would emit shrieks intermittently. It could happen once every few hours, or several times an hour.
But this second shriek allowed Guan Tong to roughly pinpoint its location.
Looking south, a conspicuous tall chimney stood in the distance.
He knew it was a landmark of Yunhua City, an industrial park from the last century.
Decades ago, the industrial park had been closed, but the equipment hadn't been dismantled; the locals had chosen to turn it into a themed park-like tourist attraction.
"Could the 'Mother Transformer' be in that industrial park?"
Guan Tong thought it was highly likely. He glanced at his Silver Hunter's electronic screen:
Bullet #1 * 37,
Bullet #2 * 15,
Bullet #3 * 14.
He had used 13 Bullets #1, no Bullet #2, and one Bullet #3 to help the library gathering point.
"I should have enough bullets left... I need to hurry, the faster the better."
After roughly determining the location of the "Mother Converter" based on the sound, Guan Tong sped up.
He still didn't choose to find a car, because the undead's tendency to attack moving objects might attract a large number of undead, and getting stuck in the middle of the road would be troublesome.
Rather than taking that risk, Guan Tong preferred to run there. After all, as his mental strength limit increased, he felt his physical fitness was also improving.
It was about three kilometers from here to the industrial park, which he could easily run.
After making his decision, Guan Tong immediately ran along one side of the street. He occasionally saw some undead wandering on the road, and he tried to avoid entering their 30-meter range to avoid being attacked.
Running like this, he was only attacked by an undead once, which he dealt with with a few No. 1 bullets, and successfully arrived at the entrance of the industrial park.
Looking at the pitch-black park inside, Guan Tong's heart sank.
After entering the post-apocalyptic era, no one ever strolled around here anymore, and official maintenance ceased. After several months, the water and electricity were probably cut off.
Previously, Guan Tong could run freely on the streets outside without difficulty because the streetlights were on, providing excellent visibility and leaving the undead with nowhere to hide.
But in this pitch-black park… although the undead's faintly glowing red eyes could indicate their location, moving in the dark was undoubtedly dangerous.
After a brief hesitation, Guan Tong turned on the flashlight strapped to his chest and stepped inside, following the light. Now that he was here, he wouldn't give up easily.
The park was eerily quiet. Guan Tong walked along the perimeter of the wall. If any sudden danger arose, he wouldn't be surrounded on all sides.
After walking for a short while, he was surprised to find a lit area.
It was a warehouse, with a small battery-operated pendant light hanging from the entrance. Because the light was dim, Guan Tong hadn't seen it when he entered the park.
The warehouse entrance was closed by a roller shutter and barricaded with sandbags and similar objects, seemingly to block the undead, but there were no undead around.
Guan Tong guessed that the warehouse was a temporary gathering point. He moved closer but couldn't hear any noise coming from inside; there was no talking.
Was no one there?
He went around to the other side of the warehouse, where there was a small iron door, presumably the back door. But to his surprise, the small iron door was ajar, not closed.
A bad feeling suddenly arose in Guan Tong's heart, and he immediately retreated far away. Then he summoned his shadow, made it materialize, hung a flashlight around its neck, and sent it to gently pull open the door. As soon as the
ajar iron door opened, Guan Tong, hiding at a distance, immediately used the flashlight beam from the shadow's neck to see the situation inside the warehouse.
There were hundreds of undead crammed inside!
They were wandering aimlessly in the warehouse, and at their feet, some bedding, clothes, backpacks, and other miscellaneous items were particularly conspicuous.
Some of them seemed to notice the shadow that had opened the door, but did not attack. Perhaps in their eyes, the shadow, being a non-human entity and not moving, was not a target.
Guan Tong gazed at the scene inside the warehouse, a terrifying thought creeping into her mind.
It was possible that this gathering point had been breached by the undead before, and the survivors had all been killed… After the "Mother Converter" emitted its second shriek, these dead were all transformed into new undead…
Chapter 72 Kung Fu Master
Guan Tong looked at the hundreds of undead in the warehouse and immediately decided to eliminate them.
The warehouse was an enclosed space, and the undead were all gathered together, perfect for his Silver Hunter tactics.
He estimated that three No. 3 high-explosive shells would be enough to wipe them out, and the rest would be immobilized, allowing him to finish them off in other ways—like kicking them in the head. Because Guan
Tong was wearing [Multi-Terrain Marching Boots], a product of the Terminal Ascension Shop, using them to eliminate the undead would still be included in the final settlement statistics. Without further
ado, he first commanded his shadow to open the iron door to its maximum, placed a flashlight on the ground to illuminate the inside, and then quickly recalled it.
Each second the shadow existed in physical form consumed 1 point of mental energy, so it was best to conserve it unless absolutely necessary.
He then calculated the distance and cautiously moved forward.
He wouldn't enter the warehouse; that would still be dangerous. He only planned to stand near the iron door, maintaining a safe distance to eliminate them with maximum efficiency, leaving them no room to retaliate.
Guan Tong walked to the iron gate, positioning himself 30 meters away from the undead inside the warehouse. He adjusted the Silver Hunter to No. 3 ammo mode and aimed it at the center of the warehouse.
He pulled the trigger, and the high-explosive round fired instantly.
"Boom!"
A deafening explosion rocked the center of the warehouse, instantly killing a large number of the undead in that location and nearby!
"Roar!!!!"
The remaining undead roared. Guan Tong fired another No. 3 round.
"Boom!"
Another large number of undead were blasted away, but one survivor flew towards the iron gate. This brought it within 30 meters of Guan Tong, allowing it to immediately detect his presence.
The undead within a certain range seemed to share senses; if one detected a human, the others nearby would immediately notice. Therefore, all the undead still able to move rushed towards the iron gate.
Guan Tong wasn't surprised. He stepped back a few paces, took a deep breath, and prepared to fire another No. 3 round when the remaining undead approached the gate, thus clearing the area.
Even if only a few small fry remained, a few No. 1 bullets would suffice. No. 3 bullets, however, couldn't be used carelessly; they needed to be saved for potential encounters with the "Mother Converters."
Although he still had plenty of mental energy to generate bullets temporarily, he wanted to complete this challenge using only the pre-stored bullets if possible.
Just as Guan Tong was about to pull the trigger, a sharp, cracking sound came from the front of the warehouse's roller shutter door.
"Crack!"
Guan Tong looked up and saw that the roller shutter door at the warehouse's main entrance had been destroyed, and a tall white figure entered the warehouse.
Could it be a "Mother Converter"?!
Guan Tong immediately realized it wasn't, because the figure was closer to the undead than he was to the undead. A large number of undead immediately abandoned Guan Tong outside the back door and turned towards the white figure!
This immediately confirmed to Guan Tong that it was a human, not a "Mother Converter."
Trouble...
Guan Tong had originally planned to wait for the undead to gather before using a No. 3 bullet to eliminate them all at once. Unexpectedly, a human suddenly appeared! And this human, whether you call him reckless or a tiger, actually broke through the warehouse's roller shutter door and came in!
"Am I too late?"
The white figure sighed softly, her clear voice standing out amidst the roars of the undead.
Guan Tong was somewhat surprised, as it was clearly a woman's voice. However, he had initially assumed it was a man because the figure was tall and the lighting was dim, making it difficult to see the face clearly. Seeing
dozens of undead still charging towards the figure, Guan Tong hesitated to fire. If he used a No. 3 round, while killing the undead, he might also accidentally hit the woman.
But the next moment, he was astonished to find that his worries were completely unnecessary.
Facing the surging undead, the white figure didn't draw any weapon, but simply turned slightly, arms hanging down, assuming a stance resembling some kind of martial arts move.
When the fastest undead reached her, the white figure delivered a powerful high kick, sending him flying and knocking over a dozen other undead to the ground!
Guan Tong was immediately astonished, wondering if this was martial arts or some other ability.
"Friend over there."
The white figure had clearly noticed Guan Tong as well, speaking while retreating from the enemy, "If you feel threatened, take a backseat. I'll handle these undead."
"…"
Since the person said so, Guan Tong was happy to save some bullets. He stood aside and noticed the woman's movements were incredibly agile, her punches and kicks powerful, her long braided hair flying with each movement.
Those undead, who would be like mad dogs to ordinary people, were utterly helpless against her fists and feet, like clay.
Guan Tong witnessed her easily kick the heads off four or five undead with a single roundhouse kick! The combined attack of dozens of undead couldn't even touch her, let alone cause her any harm.
Does such incredible skill truly exist?
Guan Tong was deeply amazed. Not to mention reality, even the protagonists in the many kung fu movies he'd seen didn't possess this level of skill.
Looking at the white-clad woman with the long braid, Guan Tong wondered if she had purchased some kind of kung fu ability. Just like the [Perception Domain] Chen Na had purchased before
, she quickly eliminated dozens of undead in less than two minutes. She used no weapons, relying entirely on her fists and feet. After
dealing with the undead, the woman in white approached. As she drew closer, Guan Tong could see her clearly.
His first impression was that she was very tall, probably over 1.8 meters. She wore white training clothes, loose-fitting but still unable to conceal her shapely and voluptuous figure.
Guan Tong especially noticed the dark blue belt around her waist with the words "Guiyun" on it. This reminded him of something, and he blurted out, "Are you a master at Guiyun Martial Arts School?"
Guiyun Martial Arts School was a unique martial arts school in Yunhua City. Unlike other schools that widely recruited students, Guiyun Martial Arts School adhered to the traditional master-apprentice teaching model, with each master typically only taking on two or three apprentices.
Guan Tong knew about it because the school had been in the news before. It's said that someone went to challenge the Guiyun Martial Arts Academy and was killed on the spot… This caused quite a stir, but Guan Tong didn't pay attention to what happened afterward.
"Not bad." The woman nodded in agreement, her phoenix eyes, slightly upturned at the corners, looking at Guan Tong. "My name is Shi Jingyi, and yours?" "
My name is Guan Tong."
"Guan Tong?" Shi Jingyi's lips curled slightly upon hearing this. "Reading it backwards, it's 'passing the test.' I like this name; it has a very good meaning in this post-apocalyptic world."
Chapter 73 The Mother Transformer
Yunhua City Armed Command Center.
Several computers and other instruments were set up in the hall. The commander stood on the platform, pacing anxiously back and forth.
"Has the location of that shrieking sound not been completed yet?" "
Currently, we can only confirm it's somewhere in the NK district in the south of the city, but we can't pinpoint the exact location."
"If that shriek is emitted again, we can pinpoint the exact location within a minute!"
"Is that so?" The commander ordered, "Have the armed squad go to the NK district to stand by. Once the exact location is determined, immediately notify them."
As soon as the commander finished speaking, someone reported via radio: "Commander, six people claiming to be from the Third Squad have appeared. Should we allow them into the command room?"
Hearing "Third Squad," the commander immediately replied, "Allow them."
He had previously received instructions from higher-ups that the "Third Squad" was a special unit stationed in Yunhua City with high-level authority, and the local armed squad needed to cooperate and support their operations.
The door opened, and a group of six people walked in. These six people all looked very young; none were over thirty, and two or three even looked under twenty.
The leader of the group stepped forward and asked the commander, "Hey, have you found the location of 'The Screamer' yet?"
This condescending tone displeased the commander, but considering orders from higher command, he suppressed his anger and replied, "Not yet, we've only confirmed it's in the NK district."
"Only confirmed the district's location? That's incredibly inefficient," the man said discontentedly. "Fine, let's go there first. Notify us immediately of any new information via the communication channel!"
With that, the man left with the other five. As soon as the six left, a short-haired adjutant couldn't help but curse, "What the hell! Why should we listen to these kids?!"
The commander said in a deep voice, "Assisting and cooperating with their operation is an order from higher-ups; we can only obey. Notify them once you pinpoint the exact location of the shrieking sound." "
Are they special? Did some of the Ascension Coins that were supposed to be centrally allocated end up on them?" The adjutant's tone carried a hint of doubt. "Some soldiers are already complaining about this."
"I know," the commander said. "Now is not the time to complain; let's complete the mission first. If there are any complaints, write them down in a report after the rules are finalized, and I will submit them all."
...
"...Thank you?"
Guan Tong didn't know how to respond to Shi Jingyi's praise of his name, other than thanking her.
Shi Jingyi glanced at the Silver Hunter in his hand; this shotgun, with its unique design and material, looked like a product of the terminal.
"Is that your mental power item? It's very powerful. Even without me, you could easily handle these undead, right?"
Guan Tong's heart stirred. If others believe this gun is a mental power artifact, it would help him conceal his true mental power artifact, the "Wordless Book."
Speaking of which, he was also curious about Shi Jingyi's exaggerated fighting performance earlier.
"Was your skill just now some kind of mental power technique?"
Shi Jingyi raised an eyebrow slightly. "Over twenty years of hard-earned martial arts training isn't something easily acquired."
"..."
"However," Shi Jingyi added, "without the enhancement of mental power, my skills wouldn't have been so powerful."
"Mental power can enhance martial arts?"
Shi Jingyi nodded, raising her right hand and opening her palm.
"There are many ways to use mental power. Besides consuming related artifacts, it can also be used to strengthen oneself."
As she spoke, Guan Tong saw a faint stream of light appear in her palm, then spread to her fingers and wrist.
His pupils contracted: "Mental power can be used like that?"
He had always believed that mental power could only be used to consume related items or abilities. He had never considered that mental power itself could be used on the body as a pure energy source without any medium… No, that's not right.
It wasn't that Guan Tong hadn't thought of it, but that he had never heard of anyone being able to do it. No one on the internet had ever mentioned it, and even in the official white paper, there was no record of it in the entry for mental power!
Could it be that only Shi Jingyi could use mental power simply as energy to strengthen the body?
As if seeing what Guan Tong was thinking, Shi Jingyi said calmly, "The way to use it lies in one's mind. However, to use this power like I do, one must learn how to circulate it and lay a foundation."
"Circulate it…"
"You'll understand soon enough." Shi Jingyi didn't explain further. She looked at the many undead corpses in the warehouse and sighed.
Guan Tong remembered that after Shi Jingyi broke through the roller shutter door to enter the warehouse, she said, "I'm late."
It sounded like she had come here specifically to rescue someone.
As he expected, Shi Jingyi quickly found a young woman's body among the many undead corpses. The latter's body was reduced to half; the other half had been destroyed by Guan Tong's earlier No. 3 bullet.
Shi Jingyi silently stared at the corpse for a moment, a look of grief appearing on her fair and spirited face.
Guan Tong asked, "Who is she...?"
"She was an apprentice at the martial arts school. I rushed here immediately after receiving her distress call, but I was too late."
Guan Tong was about to say something like "please accept my condolences" when suddenly a "creaking" sound came from above!
He and Shi Jingyi looked up at the same time and saw a metal plate on the warehouse roof being pried open by a giant claw. Then, a scarlet eyeball the size of a basketball peered in, its blood-red gaze scanning the two people inside the warehouse.
The Mother Transformer!
Guan Tong immediately confirmed that this must be the "Mother Transformer"! It was indeed in this industrial park, and it was very likely that the commotion at the warehouse had attracted it!
"What kind of monster is that?"
Shi Jingyi frowned, while Guan Tong immediately raised his gun and aimed it at the scarlet eyeball.
"Boom!"
Without hesitation, he fired the most powerful No. 3 round!
The explosion instantly blasted a large hole in the warehouse roof, but the monster's figure vanished without a trace. Guan Tong's heart skipped a beat, knowing that the latter must have reacted extremely quickly and dodged!
But the next moment, the enormous monster suddenly leaped down from the hole, its long, sharp forepaws reaching for Shi Jingyi's head!
Thump!
In the critical moment, Shi Jingyi clenched her fists, and a pale white energy shield rapidly formed around her body. When the monster's forepaws touched it, they were immediately repelled by an astonishing force! Was
this also a use of mental power? Creating a 360-degree protective shield? How much mental power would such a perfect, flawless defense consume in one use?
Guan Tong was surprised, but he also clearly saw the monster's appearance—the "Mother Converter."
If he had a choice, he would rather not have seen it. Because the moment he saw it, he felt incredibly nauseous and almost vomited.
This "Mother Transformer" was a monster pieced together from countless corpses!
Its single eye, the size of a basketball, was actually dozens of pale red eyes of the undead strung together with coils of hair. Its bloated body was also composed of multiple undead bodies, and its several-meter-long giant claw consisted of multiple coiled colons in the middle, with the tip made of human fingernails and teeth.
This "Mother Transformer," made from countless undead corpses, made Guan Tong extremely uncomfortable. He immediately pulled the trigger, firing five No. 2 slugs in quick succession!
The "Mother Transformer," whose claws had been knocked away by Shi Jingyi's "air shield," hadn't adjusted its movements yet, but it seemed to realize the threat of Guan Tong's bullets and quickly rolled backward.
"Thud! Thud!"
Three of the five No. 2 bullets missed, and two hit its body. This slug, capable of blasting through a tree trunk, also tore two large holes in its body!
Before Guan Tong could even feel joy, the "Mother Converter" immediately grabbed several undead corpses from the ground, stuffing them into the large hole blasted open by the slug in its own body. After a wriggling motion, they quickly merged.
This scene shocked both Guan Tong and Shi Jingyi.
If this monster could heal itself like this, wouldn't all the hundreds of undead remains scattered throughout the warehouse become its "blood packs"?!
Chapter 74 Destroying the Main Body
Guan Tong and Shi Jingyi exchanged a glance, both understanding each other's thoughts—the battlefield had to be moved outside the warehouse!
Otherwise, in the warehouse filled with the corpses of the living dead, no matter how much damage they inflicted on the "Mother Converter," it could replenish itself through the "blood packs" on the ground.
However, the mental energy Guan Tong and Shi Jingyi had expended in the battle wouldn't be so easily replenished.
The two retreated simultaneously, one after the other. Guan Tong ran towards the back door, while Shi Jingyi deliberately slowed down, drawing the "Mother Converter's" attention to herself, before exiting through the front door she had broken open herself.
The Mother Converter immediately pursued Shi Jingyi. After exiting through the back door, Guan Tong immediately circled around to the front of the warehouse, where she saw Shi Jingyi using her martial arts to defend against and counterattack the Mother Converter.
A faint light swirled around her body as she used her martial arts; Guan Tong knew that was her mental energy. This was her unique use of mental energy, which she used to strengthen her body and unleash greater power in her martial arts.
At this moment, she was engaged in close combat with the Mother Transformer, and Guan Tong, holding the Silver Hunter, was unable to intervene.
"Shi Jingyi!" he shouted, "You're too close to it, I can't fire!"
Guan Tong had 13 rounds of No. 3 ammunition left, the most powerful high-explosive rounds. If even one of them hit the Mother Transformer, it would cause considerable damage. It
wasn't even impossible to shatter its body pieced together from the undead.
But before doing that, he had to get Shi Jingyi back to a safe distance.
Hearing Guan Tong's shout, Shi Jingyi understood. She first punched away the Mother Transformer's claws, then lightly tapped the ground with her toes, gracefully retreating a considerable distance.
Guan Tong immediately seized the opportunity, pulling the trigger repeatedly, firing a full seven No. 3 rounds in one go, completely blocking all of the Mother Transformer's escape routes!
He no longer engaged in single-shot probing; against such an agile enemy, a saturation firepower approach was necessary.
"Boom boom boom boom boom boom boom boom!"
A single No. 3 round was enough to destroy a small target point, but now, seven rounds in quick succession blasted the area near the warehouse's front door, sending debris flying everywhere. The dazzling flames instantly engulfed the Mother Transformer!
Shi Jingyi, who had retreated to a safe distance, was slightly taken aback by the barrage of explosions.
She had seen the numerous dismembered undead in the warehouse and knew that Guan Tong's gun was powerful. But she hadn't expected it to be this powerful—was it even a gun? It was practically a cannon!
Guan Tong stared intently at the center of the flames, wanting to know what had happened to the Mother Transformer, whether she had been killed.
"Ah!!!!!"
Suddenly, a shrill scream erupted from the flames—the same scream that had sounded twice before, the scream that had transformed corpses into undead!
Hearing the sound at such close range, Guan Tong immediately felt dizzy. Even though he was wearing a motorcycle helmet, he couldn't stop the scream from reaching his ears.
But the next moment, he felt a slight weight on his shoulder.
Turning his head, Guan Tong saw Shi Jingyi standing beside him, placing her left hand on his shoulder. With the flow of her strange energy, Guan Tong felt much better.
"Thanks."
"The situation isn't good." Shi Jingyi looked into the darkness, seemingly sensing something. "That shriek just now attracted a lot of undead who are approaching this place."
Guan Tong exclaimed in surprise, "It can summon undead?"
Whoosh—
At that moment, a mangled figure leaped out from the explosion caused by the No. 3 bomb—it was the Mother Converter.
Although the two only caught a glimpse, the creature was clearly severely injured; most of its body was destroyed, and its single crimson eye was also damaged in the explosion.
"It ran into the warehouse; it's probably going to use the undead corpses to repair itself. We can't give it a chance to recover!"
Guan Tong raised his gun to give chase, but Shi Jingyi stopped him.
"There are too many undead converging here," Shi Jingyi said gravely. "If we stay any longer, they'll be surrounded."
Despite her words, how could Guan Tong abandon his target? Moreover, he still had plenty of mental energy left. Even if Silver Hunter ran out of bullets, he could still use his mental energy to create new ones to get out of trouble.
"I don't have much mental energy left. Guan Tong, your gun is so powerful, it must consume a lot of mental energy too," Shi Jingyi said. "For safety's sake, we should retreat immediately."
"Shi Jingyi, you retreat first. I have to kill that monster." Guan Tong had made up his mind and rushed into the warehouse without waiting for Shi Jingyi to say anything more.
Shi Jingyi watched Guan Tong run in and hesitated for a moment. She remembered the martial arts school apprentice she had missed because she was too late, and her eyes narrowed as she followed him in.
Guan Tong, who had run into the warehouse first, immediately saw the injured Mother Transformer squatting in the middle, using the corpses of other undead to repair herself.
Because its eyes and claws were destroyed in the recent bombing, its repair efficiency was far slower than before, and most of its body was still in a mutilated state.
Guan Tong immediately raised his gun, but before he could fire, the Mother Transformer leaped onto the warehouse wall.
It seemed to possess some intelligence, knowing that Guan Tong's gun was powerful enough to kill it, so it used high-speed movement to dodge and quickly approached Guan Tong.
Bang bang bang bang bang!
Seeing the rapidly approaching Mother Transformer, Guan Tong had to switch to bullet type 1, trying to cover its area. However, bullet type 1 was not powerful enough; the bullets that hit it only slightly slowed its movement and could not cause fatal damage.
While dodging the attacks, the Mother Transformer also kept throwing the remains of the undead on the ground as projectiles. It was extremely strong, and Guan Tong dared not take the hits head-on, so he could only run and dodge.
Just as Guan Tong was preparing to use his Shadow Armor for defense, Shi Jingyi also entered the warehouse and took the initiative to fight the Mother Transformer, allowing Guan Tong to make some adjustments.
Guan Tong was somewhat surprised to see her. He had thought Shi Jingyi would retreat, especially since she had said she didn't have much mental energy left.
"Roar!!!"
The roars of numerous undead were already echoing not far from the warehouse. Shi Jingyi was right; the earlier shrieks had attracted a large number of undead to gather here! Judging from the distance, it would probably be less than a minute before they all reached the warehouse. They
had to act quickly!
At this moment, Shi Jingyi spoke, "Guan Tong, I might have to use up all my mental energy to kill this monster. Go and lock the back door of the warehouse, and use your gun to defend the front door. If you can hold it, we can survive."
"..."
Guan Tong looked at the Mother Transformer, but he had a better idea.
With a thought, the wordless book appeared in his palm, and a blurred shadow immediately materialized from its pages.
He now understood that the key to killing the Mother Transformer was to prevent it from recovering; its body had to be completely destroyed in one go.
This could be done with the Silver Hunter's multiple No. 3 bullets, but the current conditions didn't allow it. Therefore, he could only let the shadow try.
Guan Tong manipulated the ethereal shadow into a long rope, which swiftly snaked its way from the ground towards the Mother Transformer fighting Shi Jingyi!
Due to the dim lighting, not only the limited-intelligence Mother Transformer, but even Shi Jingyi herself didn't notice the shadow silently moving near her.
Then, seizing the opportunity, Guan Tong manipulated the shadow to dart into the Mother Transformer's body as it was knocked back by Shi Jingyi's whip kick!
The ethereal shadow has no physical form and can enter anything. Guan Tong utilized this characteristic, transforming the shadow again upon entering the Mother Transformer, making it resemble the Mother Transformer's size.
Then, Guan Tong immediately materialized the shadow!
The amount of mental energy required for materialization is directly proportional to the size of the shadow. At this moment, the shadow transformed into the Mother Transformer was approximately three times the size of a normal shadow. The transformation from ethereal to materialized inherently consumes a fixed 20 points of mental energy, and considering the size difference, Guan Tong immediately reduced her mental energy by over 80 points the instant of materialization!
Yet, the effect was excellent!
"Pfft!!!!"
A substance of the same volume suddenly formed from within the body, resulting in the Mother Transformer being instantly crushed and disintegrated!
This sudden turn of events startled Shi Jingyi, who quickly stepped back to observe intently.
In the dim light, she could only vaguely make out a pure black "Mother Hunter" covered in flesh and blood, but it existed for less than two seconds before vanishing without a trace. The
true Mother Hunter, now revealed after all its assembled limbs had been crushed,
was a monster the size of a palm, its skin turned inside out, resembling a newborn chick, but incredibly ugly.
It had no eyes, ears, or nose; its face consisted only of a sharp, bamboo-tube-like mouth. Undoubtedly, the piercing shriek came from this mouth.
It was now blindly spinning around, seemingly trying to piece together the flesh of the undead to recreate its powerful self.
But what awaited it was a size 42 shoe sole.
"Pfft!"
Guan Tong stomped down, crushing the Mother Transformer's true form.
Chapter 75 Tense Standoff
After the third shriek rang out, the Yunhua City Armed Command immediately pinpointed the exact location.
"The source of the sound has been confirmed in the Industrial Heritage Park!"
"Information has been communicated to the elite armed personnel and the Third Squad."
"Report!" The elite armed personnel, pre-positioned in the southern part of the city, reported, "A large number of undead have been observed pouring into the Industrial Park! Repeat, a large number of undead have been observed pouring into the Industrial Park!"
"What's going on?" The commander was puzzled. Then, another report came in.
"Report, the Third Squad has entered the park first!"
Upon hearing this, the commander ordered, "Set up a defensive line at the park entrance to block more undead from entering! Send another squad to support them!"
"Yes, sir!"
At the entrance of the Industrial Park, the fully equipped armed squad began setting up machine gun positions, mowing down the incoming undead.
Inside the park, the Third Squad, led by their captain, entered immediately.
"Listen, we must find the 'Screamer' immediately!" the young man in the lead shouted.
"This is competition! The other teams must have been assigned the same task. The team that finishes fastest will get the highest score and more resources!"
"Yes!" the team members responded in unison.
"Captain, there's gunfire!" A team member wearing glasses, who looked like a high school student, listened intently. "It's coming from the west!"
"Gunfire? Inside?" The captain's expression changed slightly. "Could it be that soldiers have already entered? Quick, let's go there immediately!"
The six of them immediately rushed towards the direction of the gunfire.
Meanwhile, at the warehouse entrance.
Guan Tong stomped on the original body of the Mother Transformer, stopping the continued transformation in this area, but the transformed undead would not die immediately.
They had been summoned by the shriek and were now frantically charging towards the warehouse door!
Looking at the densely packed pupils emitting red light in the darkness, Guan Tong felt a chill. How many had come? At least several hundred.
"Guan Tong, hold on a little longer. I need some time to recover my mental energy."
After saying this, Shi Jingyi actually sat down cross-legged on the spot, placed her hands on her knees, and closed her eyes to meditate.
Guan Tong's own mental energy regenerates at a rate of about 1 point every 5 or 6 minutes, making it unrealistic to wait for it to regenerate during combat. However, judging from Shi Jingyi's words, her regeneration speed seems to be much faster.
"Roar!!!!"
With the horde of zombies close at hand, Guan Tong couldn't care less and opened fire wildly at the warehouse door.
Rounds 1, 2, and 3 were all used up.
Round 3 was used up the fastest because it had been used extensively against the Mother Transformer, leaving only a few rounds.
Then, a dozen or so rounds of round 2 were quickly emptied. Guan Tong had to conserve his round 1, waiting for the undead to get closer before firing.
He still had about 150 points of mental energy left, including his reserve, which could be used to generate bullets when he ran out of ammunition.
However, being in an unsafe environment outside, he didn't want to be completely exhausted, so he needed to keep some for emergencies.
"Roar!"
A undead was shot, half of its body blown off, but the other half still lurched forward due to inertia, crashing into Guan Tong.
Fortunately, Guan Tong was wearing protective clothing, so the claws and bites of the undead couldn't easily harm him. Even so, he tried his best to keep the undead away.
He shot down several more undead, and Guan Tong glanced at the small screen on the left side of the gun handle; only nine rounds of No. 1 ammunition remained.
There were still quite a few undead crowding outside. Guan Tong turned to look at Shi Jingyi, who was meditating. Seeing her eyes slightly closed and her face calm as if in deep meditation, he truly admired her. To be able to calm down and meditate under such circumstances was something that ordinary martial artists couldn't do.
"It seems I need to expend more mental energy to generate two more No. 3 rounds... If I time my shots well, I should be able to clear out the remaining undead."
Guan Tong thought, and just as he was about to expend mental energy to generate more, he suddenly saw a great commotion behind the undead.
He saw several people holding torches, obviously the [Instant Burning Rod] prop. The undead were intimidated by this prop and dared not approach. Two people took advantage of this to quickly eliminate the undead. The leader, a man, wielding a jade green curved knife, easily killed several undead.
Witnessing this, Guan Tong immediately recognized it as a well-coordinated and clearly defined team.
Four members stood at the four corners wielding [Instant Flame Rods], leaving the undead nowhere to escape, while the other two were responsible for clearing out the remaining undead. The man with the scimitar was the main combat force, and another used a crossbow to shoot down any undead the scimitar-wielding man missed.
The six worked closely together and quickly wiped out the remaining dozens of undead.
They then arrived at the warehouse and saw hundreds of undead corpses at the entrance and inside. Their faces showed shock, and their eyes held a mixture of wariness and curiosity as they looked at Guan Tong.
The man with the scimitar looked at Guan Tong, then at Shi Jingyi, who was sitting cross-legged meditating not far away, and asked, "Who are you? Did you see the Screamer?"
"The Screamer"... Is this the official name for the "Mother Converter"?
Guan Tong wasn't sure. Because the rule period was short, only 24 hours, he acted quickly after its release and didn't have time to check the official information online.
Seeing Guan Tong remain silent, the man with the scimitar realized something and his expression changed drastically: "You haven't already killed the 'Screamer,' have you?"
Guan Tong finally spoke: "What's it to you?"
He disliked the man's aggressive attitude and was naturally annoyed.
"So it's true!" The man with the scimitar gritted his teeth instantly, and the other five also looked grim.
This result meant their mission had failed; if teams from other regions eliminated the "Screamer" and completed their missions, their evaluation would undoubtedly be much higher than theirs.
"You dared to steal from us... Do you know who we are? Do you know how much trouble you've ruined for us!" The man with the scimitar said, his face ashen, raising his scimitar as if he were about to attack.
Seeing this, Guan Tong's finger was on the trigger of the Silver Hunter, quickly generating a No. 3 bullet with his mental power while warily scanning the group.
If anyone made any unusual movements or showed signs of using psychic abilities, he would not hesitate to raise his gun and fire to protect himself.
"Captain, don't be impulsive," a female team member holding a [Quick-Burning Rod] said. "We'll be punished if we attack ordinary people!"
"Are they ordinary people?!" the man with the scimitar shouted. "I seriously doubt their identities!"
At that moment, hurried footsteps sounded, and a squad of armed soldiers arrived at the scene. Seeing this, the man with the scimitar immediately ordered the soldiers, "Arrest those two immediately and thoroughly investigate their identities!"
"This…"
the soldiers looked at each other, hesitant. They had indeed received orders to assist the Third Squad. But those orders were to assist in fighting the undead, and those two were clearly human, weren't they?
"We need to consult the commander," the soldiers said after considering the situation, not blindly obeying.
"What? How pedantic!"
the man with the scimitar said impatiently, but confidently, seemingly believing the commander would order the soldiers to carry out the command. He waited while staring at Guan Tong with a gloomy gaze.
Guan Tong also frowned deeply.
Just who were these people? They didn't look very old, yet they dared to boss around armed soldiers.
What if that commander really authorized the soldiers to arrest people? Being arrested was unacceptable! But if they opened fire on the soldiers, the nature of the situation would change, and the consequences could be severe.
"Guan Tong, let's go."
At this moment, Shi Jingyi's voice suddenly rang out. Guan Tong turned her head and saw that she had finished meditating and stood up.
"No one is leaving until you explain things clearly." The man with the scimitar threatened.
"Is that so?" Shi Jingyi calmly said to a soldier, "Tell your commander that I am Shi Jingyi from Guiyun Martial Arts School."
Although the soldier didn't understand, he still reported it.
Soon, the soldier received a reply and immediately said, "You two can leave. The commander will arrange for someone to escort you back."
"What?!" The man with the scimitar looked at the soldier in disbelief, "Just let them go like that? Are you kidding me!"
"This is the commander's order." The soldier said.
"I need to speak with your commander immediately!" The man with the scimitar immediately put on his headset and changed the channel.
Then he heard the commander say something to him.
The man paused for a moment, then looked up at Shi Jingyi, who had already walked away with Guan Tong.
"Captain, who exactly is that person?"
the team members couldn't help but ask. For the commander to disregard their officially selected special team's requirements to release someone and even arrange for a special escort back, their identity must be extraordinary.
The captain, the man with the scimitar, remained silent for a while, his tone full of resentment: "Shi Jingyi… she's one of the three specially invited lecturers at the Mind Power Development Academy!"