At the studio main entrance, Li Xinwen stared at the wandering zombies scattered across the room. He let his spiritual sense spread and counted the numbers of zombies. "There's about 13 zombies. Not bad," Li Xinwen muttered. Along the way, they have killed few zombies too, and he have a good grasp of everyone's ability.
An Yunxu, despite his soft appearance that he portrayed for the public, he doesn't hesitate to directly smash the cold pipe over the zombie's head. And as if to make sure he made the kill, he would hit the head several more times until the brain matter splattered out. If this was a normal time, he would be called cruel but as fellow living survivor, Li Xinwen felt that this is actually good. A secured kill is much better.
Chen Xiu is the name of the young woman who first came out to join them. It seems that she was one of the stunt actor who was unfortunate to have a recording today. On her hand is a police baton. Though it was just a prop, it is hard enough to be used as a weapon. And what's more, to Li Xinwen's surprise, whenever she attacks, he could see that the police baton is imbued with spiritual energy, making it even harder upon contact. When he inquired about it, Chen Xiu told him that he used to practice Karate for few years for filming's sake. Though when asked about spiritual energy, she appears to be confused and asked if Li Xinwen actually meant inner force.
Lastly, the janitor Wang Ning. Though Li Xinwen asked her to stay close with Manager Su, he would still let her help kill a wandering zombie or two. He found out that the stick on her hand was originally a mop. It should be said that such stick will not last long. So what Li Xinwen suggested to her is that she should just use the stick to stop a zombie from getting to close and the rest of the team will deal with the final blow.
Li Xinwen pulled back his spiritual sense and returned to where the others are waiting for him not too far away. "There are thirteen zombies, which isn't too bad," Li Xinwen told them. Then he pulled out his phone and showed the others the photo of a map which he took earlier. "This area is where we will start. There's only one zombie in the corner. Then from there, we will move…"
He explained his plan in a calm, relaxed manner. He also told them that since they are a very small team, they should stick closer to the walls. That way, their back will be protected and they can only focus on their front. Once everyone understood the plan, he told everyone to get on formation and started to walk to their destination.
Li Xinwen led the way, his senses heightened as they approached the first zombie. The air was thick with tension, the faint shuffling of the undead echoes in the dim light of the entrance. The flickering overhead lights casts eerie shadows that danced across the walls making it a little difficult to discern what lurked just beyond their vision.
As they drew closer, he turned back to his team. "Remember, we'll move as a unit. Senior An, you're in the front with me. Chen Xiu, you take the right flank and Wang Ning, you will cover our left side. Da Bai, keep our rear safe while also help Wang Ning finish off zombies and Manager Su, keep close to the center—Your safety and the safety of your unborn child is our priority."
They continued forward and as soon as they are within reach, Li Xinwen struck first. He darted to the front, delivering a swift kick to the zombie's knee, sending it crashing to the ground. An Yunxu followed immediately, swinging the cold pipe down onto the creature's head with a sickening crunch and he also did not hesitate to deliver two more blows to the zombie's head, crushing it's skull completely for a good measure.
"Good job. Keep it up," Li Xinwen encouraged his team.
Chen Xiu moved next, her baton slicing through the air as she struck at another zombie approaching from the right. The impact of her weapon was enhanced by the spiritual energy that she unknowingly wielded, and the zombie staggered back. She followed through with a quick series of strikes, each one landing on the head with precision.
'Nice!' Li Xinwen thought as he watched Chen Xiu handle herself. 'I will have to tell Xue Jun to train her. She have potential.'
Wang Ning, despite her initial hesitation, stepped forward and used her mop stick to hold back another zombie that approached their group. It lunged at her, but she sidestepped, using the stick to jab at its face. Seeing this, Mu Bai did not waste any time and used the axe in his hand to finish it off.
"That is three down, there are ten more to go," Li Xinwen reminded everyone. "Stay focused, here they come!"
The remaining zombies shifted, drawn by the sound they had made as they killed the zombies. Their grotesque face could give children nightmares for years to come. They struggled forward, mouths agape, eyes vacant and yet, one could sense the insatiable hunger from these beasts.
An Yunxu saw this scene and adjusted his grip on his weapon. He was worried that the sweat on his hand would make him lose the weapon. "Just tell me when to start," An Yunxu said in a whisper.
As the zombies staggered closer, Li Xinwen took the lead again, lunging forward to engage. He sidestepped one of the zombies outstretched hands, bringing his foot up and sharply kicked the zombie's back. He made sure to control his strength so that the zombie merely stumbled a few steps which is enough to give An Yunxu the opening he needed.
He has to admit, even though he wasn't that close to An Yunxu, the man's performance is extremely acceptable. An Yunxu swung the cold pipe with all his might, aiming for the creature's temple. With a loud crunching sound, the zombie fell to the ground, lifeless. And as if it was a forced habit, An Yunxu once again dealt two more hit on the head to make sure it was truly dead.
On the right side, Chen Xiu struck with her baton again. Her movements fluid and precise. She dodged the incoming zombie's grasping hands and retaliated with a fierce upward swing. The police baton connected hard, splattering blood red liquid against the wall nearby. The, as if influenced by Li Xinwen, she followed up her attack with a swift jab, causing the creature who had just lost its arm fall back a few steps.
"Nice form!" Li Xinwen praised. He could see the confidence growing in her as she continued to fight.
Meanwhile, Wang Ning may be on the weaker side of their group but she did not fall behind in terms of teamwork. With a newfound sense of purpose, she boldly jabbed the mop stick into another approaching zombie's chest, creating just enough distance for Mu Bai to step in with his axe. The weapon sliced cleanly through the air before meeting the zombie's head with a sickening sound. The zombie head almost split in half from the sheer strength of Mu Bai.
"Stay alert! More incoming. We need to finish these off quickly and gather our strength," Li Xinwen said and everyone gave out an affirmative sound. With a great teamwork and Li Xinwen leading them on, they were able to kill all thirteen zombies with no casualties.
Just as Li Xinwen was about to tell them to rest, a loud guttural roar could be heard from a distance. A frown appeared on his face as he used his spiritual sense to investigate the direction where he heard the roar from. Once he saw what it was, he couldn't help but frown.
"Xiao Wen, what was that…?" An Yunxu asked worriedly.
"Might be another zombie. Wait here, I will go investigate," Li Xinwen replied.
"No! That's too dangerous," Manager Su tried to stop Li Xinwen.
"Don't worry. I won't do anything dangerous. I will just scout out ahead to see the situation, then come back to make more plan. Just stay here and gather your strength. We may have to be in a more harsher environment."
Li Xinwen left the group to investigate the creature that let out such a guttural roar. He remembered what Li Jinghua said about zombie level and based on what he had seen with his spiritual sense earlier, it should be a level 1 zombie. He wasn't sure if his current team member can handle a level 1 zombie so he decided that he should deal with it alone and assess its strength so that he can incorporate the new information to future planning.
As he approached closer to the source of the roar, Li Xinwen moved with caution, his senses heightened and alert. He opened the door that leads to the basement staircase and entered it. Now that he is not within sights of mortal, he could finally let some strength loose. He lightly skipped through the stairs and entered the basement.
"38, 39… 40 and 41," Li Xinwen counted the amount of zombies that he could sense. "If I kill all of them and they decided to investigate, it would be suspicious… But it should be fine if I just leave a few alive, right?"
With that thought, Li Xinwen formulated a quick plan. He would engage the zombies selectively as he makes his way to the level 1 zombie, ensuring that only a few remained to avoid drawing attention to his team.
For a cultivator, it wasn't that hard to kill the zombies at all and once he was face to face with the level 1 zombie, he couldn't help but feel a bit disappointed. Other than being slightly faster than other newly turned zombies, its strength wasn't that much of a difference. After swiftly neutralizing the level 1 zombie, Li Xinwen went back up to the entrance to regroup with his team.
"Well, how was it?" Manager Su asked worriedly as soon as he returned.
"Nothing much. Just more zombies," Li Xinwen replied. "How are you feeling? Is your stomach still hurting?"
"Not as much, but can't say for how long," she replied as she gently rubbed her stomach.
Li Xinwen spread out his spiritual sense once more and and that familiar spiritual signature was really close. In fact, it didn't even take five minutes before they could hear gun shots from outside.
"Wait, what happened?!" Wang Ning asked out loud in a panic.
"Is it the military??" Mu Bai also asked with hope in his tone.
"It looks like it," Li Xinwen said as he feigned ignorance. "Since we already cleared the entrance here, it will be easier for them to get to us," as the word just left his lips, he could hear the military men arriving in the distance. The loud sound of footsteps and orders being shouted reached his ear, making it clear that a squad was moving in.
Soon, a group of soldiers appeared, led by someone whom Li Xinwen was familiar with. "Well, aren't you a dependable one," Li Xinwen greeted the person with a smile on his face. "That was a quick response. I assume the others are moving according to the plan?"