19: Sharp Blade Squad, Elegy of the Ruins

Chapter Nineteen: Sharp Blade Squad, Elegy of the Ruins

The setting sun was like blood, staining the broken walls and ruins of the base a deep crimson. The cracks on the inner wall hadn't been repaired yet, and the charred remains of zombies emitted a pungent odor in the evening breeze. The lights in the medical room hadn't gone out all night, and Su Mei's pale face was faintly visible behind the glass window.

Lin Zhou stood at the top of the command tower, his fingertips sliding across the dense red dots on the Radar screen. It was the third day since the Tier 4 Aberrant had been killed, and five more Mutants with energy fluctuations close to Tier 4 had appeared to the northwest. They were like lurking beasts, staring hungrily at the base. System notifications flashed continuously; the evolution speed of the zombies was climbing geometrically. If they delayed any longer, the base's defense system would become completely useless.

"We must take the initiative to attack." Lin Zhou's voice was cold, echoing in the silent tower top. "Passive defense will only get us worn down to death."

He turned and walked into the command room, slapping a prepared list onto the table. Ye Lang, Scarface, and ten elites selected from the mercenary group and Machine Gunners; each person's name was followed by their enhanced attributes and areas of expertise.

"Form the Sharp Blade Squad. I will lead the team, and the goal is to hunt down the five high-tier Mutants to the northwest." Lin Zhou's gaze swept across everyone. "Leave the base's repair and expansion to Old Zhou, the development of the countermeasure tower amplifier to the Mechanic, and guard Su Mei in the medical room. The time we are out will be the base's final buffer period."

Scarface's arm was still wrapped in bandages, but upon hearing this, he slammed the table. "Boss, count me in! My machete has been craving the bone armor of high-tier zombies for a long time!"

Ye Lang also replied in a deep voice, "The brothers of the mercenary group are on standby at any time!"

Lin Zhou nodded and took out five sets of Armor-piercing combat suits just forged from the scales of the Tier 4 Aberrant from the system warehouse, as well as ten melee weapons fused with bone blade fragments. "Put these on; they can withstand a full-strength blow from a Tier 3 zombie. Additionally, bring enough ammunition and three days of supplies. We will take an elite raid route and never linger in battle."

[Consumed 5,000 metal and 200 power. Sharp Blade Squad equipment enhancement complete.]

[Remaining metal points: 12,185.5, power: 30]

Before dawn the next day, just as the sky was beginning to brighten, the twelve-man Sharp Blade Squad drove two modified armored personnel carriers silently out of the base's side gate. Thick steel plates were welded to the shells of the carriers, the heavy machine guns on the roofs were covered with canvas, and the engines were silenced. Like two ghosts, they slid into the depths of the city ruins.

The ruins to the northwest were even more dilapidated than the area around the base. Skyscrapers leaned precariously, asphalt roads were cracked like spiderwebs, and human skeletons and rusted weapons could be seen everywhere. The range of the Acoustic Countermeasure Device was limited, so the zombies here still maintained a certain order, wandering in groups of three to five, their cloudy eyes flashing with bloodthirsty light.

"Target Number One, three o'clock direction, Tier 3 Corrosive Type." Ye Lang's voice came through the walkie-talkie. He held binoculars, his eyes as sharp as an eagle's. "There are twenty Mutated Zombie guards around it. Watch out for its corrosive fluid."

Lin Zhou made a gesture, and the squad members immediately dispersed. Scarface took two people to flank around, using silenced rifles to take out the Mutated Zombie sentries; Ye Lang controlled the heavy machine gun on the roof, aiming at the Corrosive Type's weak points; Lin Zhou gripped his Fire Axe and prowled like a cheetah, his target set directly on the Tier 3 Corrosive Type covered in pustules.

"Move!"

With the command, the muffled sound of silenced rifles rang out, and the sentry zombies fell to the ground. The heavy machine gun's fire instantly erupted, dense bullets striking the Corrosive Type's pustules, splashing dark green corrosive fluid everywhere. Lin Zhou seized the opportunity, lunged forward, and his Fire Axe, carrying an armor-piercing effect, slammed hard into the Corrosive Type's skull.

The battle ended with almost no resistance. The Sharp Blade Squad's coordination was terrifyingly efficient; from the ambush to the kill, it took barely three minutes.

[Killed Tier 3 Corrosive Type ×1, metal points +3,000, experience points +30,000]

"Keep pushing forward." Lin Zhou wiped the pus off his axe blade, his eyes cold. "Target Number Two is in the supermarket ruins one kilometer ahead. Move fast."

The squad had only gone a few hundred meters when a faint sound of crying drifted over with the wind. The sound was intermittent, carrying a desperate tremble, and was exceptionally piercing in the deathly silence of the ruins.

"Someone's there?" Scarface frowned slightly. "In this hellish place, how can there be living people?"

Lin Zhou raised his hand to signal the squad to stop and followed the crying sound, creeping over quietly. At the basement entrance of a leaning residential building, he finally saw the source of the sound—over a dozen survivors in rags, huddled in a corner and shivering. Most of them were elderly people and children, all thin and sallow, their bodies covered in shocking scars.

At the basement door, two men were holding rusted steel pipes, staring outside warily. There were deep scratches on their arms that showed bone, clearly infected with the zombie virus, though they hadn't completely mutated yet.

"Save us..." A woman holding a child saw Lin Zhou, and a glimmer of desperate hope flashed in her eyes. The child in her arms was so thin he was just skin and bones, his lips were cracked, and even his crying was pitifully weak.

Lin Zhou's heart sank. He had seen the tragedies of the apocalypse, but he had never seen such a scene of utter despair. These survivors had no food, no water, no medicine, and couldn't even manage the most basic defense. They could only huddle in the basement, waiting for the virus to take hold or to be eaten by zombies.

"How did you end up here?" Lin Zhou asked in a deep voice.

The man holding the steel pipe gave a bitter smile, his voice so raspy it was almost inaudible. "We are residents of the nearby neighborhood. After the Raven Society collapsed, we've been hiding here. Three days ago, a Tier 3 zombie targeted us. It comes every day to snatch two people... Now, only us old, weak, and sick are left."

As he spoke, he pointed to a pile of remains nearby—human bones that had been gnawed clean, still stained with dark green pus.

Lin Zhou's fist slowly tightened. In the apocalypse, the most terrifying thing was never the zombies, but this boundless despair. He turned to look at Ye Lang. "Give them some food and water, and bring two doses of antibiotics."

Ye Lang was stunned for a moment. "Boss, our supplies aren't much..."

"Distribute them!" Lin Zhou's voice left no room for doubt.

Food and water were handed to the survivors. The elderly and children wolfed them down, tears falling along with the food crumbs. The man infected with the virus took the antibiotics and said thank you with a tremble, but there was no hope in his eyes—he knew that this little bit of medicine couldn't save him at all.

Just then, a deafening roar suddenly came from the basement entrance. A massive Tier 3 Tearer Type zombie was rapidly approaching, its claws as sharp as scythes, followed by over a dozen Mutated Zombies.

"Oh no! It's that Tier 3 zombie!" The survivors instantly fell into a panic, the woman clutching her child tightly, her whole body shaking.

The two virus-infected men looked at each other, suddenly raised their steel pipes, and rushed toward the zombies. "Go quickly! We'll hold it back!"

Their speed was slow and their movements stiff, clearly showing that the virus had begun to take effect. But in their eyes, there was a look of resolve, as if they were facing death head-on.

"Seeking death!" The Tearer Type zombie let out a roar, and with a swipe of its claw, it tore one of the men in half.

The other man's eyes turned red. He hugged the steel pipe and smashed it hard against the zombie's leg, only to be kicked flying by the zombie, hitting the wall heavily and spitting blood.

"Open fire!" Lin Zhou roared.

The members of the Sharp Blade Squad opened fire instantly. The heavy machine gun's fire erupted, and rockets screamed away, trailing exhaust. The Tearer Type zombie was beaten back repeatedly, dark green pus splashing everywhere. Lin Zhou gripped his Fire Axe and rushed up, lunging into the air and slamming it hard into its skull.

[Killed Tier 3 Tearer Type ×1, metal points +3,000, experience points +30,000]

The battle ended very quickly. Lin Zhou walked over to the dying man whose chest was collapsed; he was clearly beyond saving. The man looked at Lin Zhou, his lips moving, and used his last bit of strength to say, "Please... take them away..."

Lin Zhou gritted his teeth and nodded. "I promise you."

A look of relief appeared on the man's face, and he slowly closed his eyes.

Lin Zhou stood up, looking at the shivering survivors with mixed emotions. He said into the walkie-talkie in a deep voice, "Ye Lang, arrange for two people to use one armored personnel carrier to take them back to the base. Tell Old Zhou to arrange housing and food for them."

"But Boss, with one less vehicle, our mobility will decrease..."

"Execute the order!" Lin Zhou's voice carried an unquestionable authority.

Ye Lang was silent for a moment before finally replying, "Yes."

Of the two armored personnel carriers, one carrying the survivors drove off toward the base. The remaining ten people stood in the ruins, watching the receding vehicle in silence for a long time.

The sun was setting, stretching their shadows very, very long. Lin Zhou gripped the Fire Axe in his hand and looked toward the northwest, where three more high-tier Mutants were waiting for them.

"Let's go." Lin Zhou's voice was raspy. "We don't have much time left."

The figures of the ten people gradually disappeared into the afterglow of the setting sun. In the ruins, only the whimpering sound of the breeze and the never-ending roars of zombies remained.

This was the elegy of the apocalypse, but also the battle of the living. To protect and to survive, they had to grip their weapons tightly; even if the path ahead was a mountain of blades or a sea of fire, they would never look back.