Bai Zemin felt a great amount of pain coming from inside his wrist. The pain was such that he was forced to grit his teeth to prevent a grunt from escaping his mouth. However, that excruciating pain soon began to turn into itching, extremely uncomfortable itching! Fortunately, that feeling was also short-lived, probably thanks to Kang Lan's skill.
Kang Lan's face turned completely pale and her previously red lips began to lose their color as if she was suddenly suffering from some kind of illness. She staggered slightly at the sudden dizziness that hit her mercilessly, fortunately, Bai Zemin had already expected something like this to happen due to the fact that he himself had experienced the same feeling during his battle against the First Order Blazing Beetle after spending all of his Mana abruptly.
"Good job, Kang Lan." Bai Zemin smiled slightly at her and nodded as he gently supported her while keeping her from falling.
"No... It's nothing." She forced a smile. Although she was exhausted and felt somewhat nauseated as a consequence of using all her Mana in such a short time, she actually felt extremely satisfied since receiving such praise from Bai Zemin, who was usually indifferent and casual with others, meant that he really appreciated her previous act no matter how small it was.
He looked at Cai Jingyi and said in a deep voice, "Cai Jingyi, support Kang Lan and help her rest."
Cai Jingyi nodded and quickly stepped forward to support her and they both retreated inside the building.
After freeing himself, Bai Zemin looked at Fu Xuefeng and Zhong De in front of him and began to give a series of simple orders and instructions about what they were to do next.
* * *
Meanwhile, Liang Peng, Chen He, and Shangguan Bing Xue were preparing to start and implement the third part of the plan to defeat the zombie. Although they weren't 100% sure if it was a First Order evolved creature or not, in this new world where death was only half a step away it was best to prepare as best as possible to even fight the weakest enemy.
"This should be enough." Shangguan Bing Xue retracted both hands as she panted softly. Her chest was rising and falling steadily as a small bead of sweat slowly slipped down from her beautiful face that now looked sickly white instead of perfect white as before.
In front of her was an ice stake about half a meter long. Along the length of the ice stake were ice spikes about five centimeters long that pointed outward. It was a weapon with great piercing power, capable of entering the target's body with ease and, because of the spikes along the body in the opposite direction, it would be extremely difficult for anyone who was pierced by it to break free easily.
"Are you okay?" Chen He asked as he patted her back.
"You don't need to worry. I'm fine." Shangguan Bing Xue shook her head gently and took a step forward to pick up the ice stake to take a better look at it.
Although the stake was extremely thin as a stick and looked extremely fragile, Shangguan Bing Xue was confident in her creation. After all, she had consumed 90% of her Mana, which was why she was so mentally exhausted.
Not only had Shangguan Bing Xue concentrated practically all her Mana into this small half-meter ice stake, but she had also packed every bit of her magical power into it and had focused every cell of her brain into her creation. To say that this ice stake was the strongest and most enduring weapon she had created so far with her ice skill was by no means an exaggeration.
To test her theory and to check the strength of the object, she asked Liang Peng to hit the ice stake with his hammer while using all his strength.
"If this thing breaks don't blame me later." Liang Peng couldn't help but scratch his head as he looked at the small stake.
"If it can't resist at least that much, then the plan we came up with earlier will never work in the first place." Shangguan Bing Xue replied coldly.
Liang Peng shrugged his shoulders a raised the hammer high. With loud roar, he struck downward with all his might as he made use of the weapon's weight to the perfection.
Bang!
With a mighty bang, the ground shuddered as if it would collapse at any moment and several cracks appeared extending over a meter long. However, to Chen He's surprise and Liang Peng's disbelief, the ice stake under the hammer that had taken the brunt of the impact actually didn't even splinter since it still released that bone-chilling coldness that seemed to be able to freeze everything.
"Impressive!" Chen He praised honestly.
That earlier strike should have been able to knock down an entire wall but the ice stake that Shangguan Bing Xue crafted withstood it like it was nothing!
Shangguan Bing Xue also nodded and a hint of satisfaction flashed in her eyes.
"I see you guys are done here," Bai Zemin returned, directly jumping to the upper floor and entering through the window. Although such a thing was impossible in the past, with his current stats such a thing was no longer a big deal.
"All done here." Chen He replied as he looked at him curiously and asked, "The things on your side, finished?"
"Finished." Bai Zemin responded and sat in a corner while checking his left hand.
Before, Bai Zemin estimated that he would need at least one more week for his fractured wrist to fully recover. However, he was pleasantly surprised to discover that he now only needed approximately five days to fully recover.
The reason for this was, naturally, the Lesser Healing skill used by Kang Lan on him.
Of course; Kang Lan's Lesser Healing skill alone was not the reason for Bai Zemin's quick recovery. The other important reason was his overwhelmingly high Health stat which, compared to a normal person, was speeding up his healing process almost tenfold!
With 90 Health points and Kang Lan's skill along with his high magic power compared to a normal person, the speed at which Bai Zemin was recovering was simply astonishing. Bai Zemin estimated that, with treatment twice a day for three days, his broken bones would be reattached and repaired.
A small smile appeared on his face as he thought about how incredibly great the difference in power was between the past him and the present him. Bai Zemin couldn't wait to see what the future held for him.
Of course, first he needed to survive the next battle in which a scratch meant death. Only then was it possible to think about a possible future. However, if he couldn't survive even that much, then it meant that somewhere along the way, sooner or later, he would end up falling.
While Bai Zemin checked his physical condition, Shangguan Bing Xue had sat down in another corner to recover the consumed Mana. After all, she was an essential fighter in the upcoming battle.
Moreover, occasionally, she looked in his direction with complicated eyes; there was hate, but there was also gratitude; there was approval, but there was also rejection. Complex and opposing emotions were constantly mixed together.
Shangguan Bing Xue was a wary person by nature. Moreover, such wariness was especially high against men as throughout her life she had received different looks and treatment from men based on her appearance.
However, the fact that Bai Zemin kept his word even when he clearly had little to gain and might even end up dying on this mission had caught her off guard. At the same time, it made her realize that maybe, just maybe, not all people or even all men would look or act the same way towards her.
Of course, such a thought was still in its infantile stages and was just that, a fleeting thought. As to whether that thought would turn into something more, such as confidence, it was too early to say.
* * *
After staying inside the building for three whole hours, Shangguan Bing Xue's Mana had recovered enough to influence the battle to come.
During these three hours none of the four especially did anything, with only Chen He and Shangguan Bing Xue chatting occasionally and Liang Peng's sudden interruption by saying something not too meaningful and inconsequential.
As for Bai Zemin, he just sat quietly in a corner while looking at a small picture with a longing look that no one could see except Lilith, who was silently sitting beside him.
There were four people standing in the picture, with an adult couple behind a little boy and girl of barely eight or nine years old. In the background was the beautiful green view where the trees spread out in the distance like an endless sea.
This picture was a family photograph of Bai Zemin's parents, his little sister, and himself. At that time he had just had his birthday and his mother decided to go with the whole family to visit the Great Wall of China and other beautiful places with history.. This was a treasured memory that Bai Zemin always took everywhere with him since due to the distance between the university and his home he could not see his family often.
Now, in this crazy world where trust and betrayal went hand in hand even more than in the past, Bai Zemin could only gather warmth from past memories that previously had not been so important to him as he considered it something normal.
"Family?" Lilith asked even though she already knew the answer. After all, this was the first time in six days that she had seen such an expression on his usually stone-hard face.
Bai Zemin nodded in response. Although he and Lilith did not talk a lot, Bai Zemin knew that she was there for him and, strange as it was, deep in his soul he trusted that she would not betray him.
Although he and she were usually silent, Bai Zemin felt very comfortable since he had never been a person of many words even before the arrival of the Soul Record to this world.
The silence that usually surrounded them was in no way uncomfortable, on the contrary, it was extremely relaxing.
"My Mana recovered almost completely."
Shangguan Bing Xue's icy voice brought Bai Zemin out of his thoughts. When he lifted his face, his longing gaze could no longer be seen anywhere and that face that practically let nothing be seen on him ruled once again.
"If you are ready, we can start now." Shangguan Bing Xue stared at him with an expression just like his and pointed.
"... Then let's start now. There's no point in wasting more time and further delays might make things more difficult than they already are." Bai Zemin stood up and let out a small sigh inaudibly.
Shangguan Bing Xue and the other two nodded to express that they thought the same way he did and also stood up.
Bai Zemin seemed to want something but after a moment's hesitation he decided to simply shook his head and walked towards the window without another word.
Before he could leave, Chen He's voice rang at his back, "Hey, Bai Zemin!"
Bai Zemin turned around and looked at him with questioning eyes.
"Be careful. If you think the zombie is too hard just run. We can try another day." Chen He nodded and looked at him with a serious expression.
After a slight
surprise, Bai Zemin nodded and said in a clear voice, "I'm relying on you for the next part."
Chen He gave him a thumbs up as if telling him to leave it to him. Seeing this, Bai Zemin no longer dawdled and jumped out the window before turning into a gale of wind charging towards the building a few streets away; the female dormitory.
When Bai Zemin left, Liang Peng looked at Chen He with raised eyebrows and laughed: "I thought you didn't like that guy very much? Aren't you two rivals in love or something? Hahahaha!"
Chen He frowned and looked at him with some anger as he slowly said, "The reason why I don't like him too much is because of his previous cruel act, he is not my rival in love. Besides, just because I don't like Bai Zemin too much because of his cruelty doesn't mean I hate him. Isn't it natural to wish him good luck? At the end of the day he's still our ally."
"Tsk, what a boring guy." Liang Peng, who expected Chen He to blush in embarrassment after having his feelings exposed, in the end ended up shrugging his shoulders and clicking his tongue when he saw that the handsome archer's reaction was normal and calm.
Shangguan Bing Xue looked at him coldly and said in an icy voice, "If you have time to talk nonsense why don't you prepare yourself as well?"
Liang Peng snorted and walked towards the exit with his big hammer on his shoulder. With such a weight he didn't dare jump out of the window or he might end up breaking both his legs trying to show off.
After Liang Peng disappeared, Shangguan Bing Xue picked up what appeared to be a string and tied it to the tip of the ice stake before freezing it and joining the string and the stake together.
This string was actually carbon fiber and was taken from gym exercise machines. It was especially resistant to weight and extremely durable under pressure as well as being a very good flexible material capable of withstanding sudden pulls. It was usually used in the creation of boats, cars, airplane parts, bicycle hoops, etc. Although the quality depended, the carbon fiber cable Shangguan Bing Xue was using was very strong and flexible.
Seeing that the two of them were alone, Chen He decided to break the silence: "Bing Xue, about what Liang Peng said earlier... About rivals in-"
"Focus." Shangguan Bing Xue interrupted him before he could continue and while looking out the window reminded him, "Your help is crucial here. You can't afford to lose focus no matter what."
Seeing Shangguan Bing Xue interrupting him without letting him continue, Chen He smiled bitterly and shook his head before sighing and getting to work.
Obviously, she knew what he was going to say. However, Shangguan Bing Xue not only had no interest in anything romantic, but even though she trusted Chen He enough to call him a friend, he was just that; a friend.
At the end of the day, his friendship was what Shangguan Bing Xue cherished, but if he was looking for more than that, at this moment he would only get hurt if he listened to her answer.
As for the future? That no one knew. It was just that considering how many years Shangguan Bing Xue and Chen He had spent together but even then he failed to get into her heart, it would be difficult for such a friendship to turn into something more than friendship.
* * *
In the female dormitory.
"Great, this time we are saved!" Li Na exclaimed as she used both hands to muffle the sound of her voice overflowing with excitement and joy.
"We will be saved!" Gao Min and Fan Wu hugged each other as they sobbed emotionally moved to the point of tears.
Even the generally positive Gao Min was beginning to lose all hope after so many days without a proper meal and locked up in a place that was like a prison to them.
"Girls, look!" Wu Yijun quickly noticed a young man charging toward the female dormitory. However, when she wanted to point him out for her friends to see, he had already disappeared with lightning speed.
"Fast!" Wu Yijun was surprised and secretly glad.
The more powerful this person proved to be, the better news for the girls as the hopes of being rescued would increase exponentially as well!
Trapped in the girls' dormitory, seeing no chance of survival where if they didn't die of starvation or thirst, they would die of being eaten by a zombie. With such a cruel and devastating reality, if it hadn't been for the girls cheering each other on, they all would have gone crazy right now.
A couple of days ago, when they saw Qiao Long show seemingly invincible power, they believed that help had finally arrived. However, even he who was as strong as a super human was forced to retreat miserably by some unknown entity.
The girls really couldn't take it anymore!
At the same time as they were celebrating to lift their moods, the zombies outside the door headed towards the girls' dormitory and began to violently attack the door.
The four girls shut their mouths without daring to make another sound, not even daring to move, standing together in silence. Staring at the door in fear; in their eyes, the door represented a prison that contained them trapped here, but at the same time it also represented their escape and survival.
If the door fell, they all knew there would be no chance of survival.
Bang!
Suddenly there was a loud bang coming from somewhere in the building and the zombies pounding on the dormitory door stopped.
The girls sighed in relief as they felt the beasts growl and move away with shaky steps in the opposite direction. The four girls looked at each other with fear and a touch of hope as they sat on a bed all together facing the door.
Now, all they could do was wait.
* * *
Bang!
Bai Zemin appeared before the firmly closed front door of the female dormitory and kicked it open. The bang of the metal door opening wide resounded everywhere and the echo traveled among the nearby buildings.
Because the zombies in the vicinity had already been eliminated earlier by Fu Xuefeng and the rest, no creature appeared. However, Bai Zemin was not satisfied and frowned tightly.
Why doesn't this zombie come out? Bai Zemin thought silently.
Until now, as long as there was a certain amount of noise, the zombies would definitely advance in that direction. However, even after making such a commotion, the strange zombie that this Ming Shui Shui girl had seen before leaving here did not show itself.
Bai Zemin's wariness increased another notch as he walked towards the insi towards the inside of the building with slow and cautious steps.
Although Ming Shui Shui had said that Qiao Long had cleared the first two floors before having to retreat on the third floor, Bai Zemin did not trust anything but what he saw with his own eyes at the moment.
The smell of rancid blood and rotting flesh embraced Bai Zemin's nostrils as soon as he had taken a step inside. Zombie corpses and people lay everywhere, creating a catastrophic scene scary enough to scare the most macho man in the world.
However, after experiencing and seeing with his own eyes so many people dying, Bai Zemin felt that he could bear at least that much. Therefore, after stopping for a moment he continued to move forward slowly.
The lower floor was devoid of any sign of life; only corpses and death was what could be seen in that area.
Upon reaching the second floor after carefully climbing the stairs, what greeted Bai Zemin was exactly the same sight he had seen on the fist floor and if it wasn't for the different clothing on each body or the position they were in after dropping dead he might have thought that he was still on the previous floor.
It was upon reaching the third floor that Bai Zemin finally saw signs of movement.
More than fifty zombies were slowly advancing down the corridor in the direction of the stairs. All of these zombies were women who had been infected after being scratched or bitten or who simply became mindless creatures after the arrival of the Soul Record and the Mana movement.
While fifty zombies were no challenge at all for someone like Bai Zemin, when you put those fifty zombies in an enclosed space where there was hardly any room left to move properly things were different and the difficulty was multiplied by countless times.
Fortunately for him, thanks to his Rare Grade Treasure Full Coat things were not as complicated as they seemed to be. Moreover, unlike zombies and unintelligent animals, humans could think of countermeasures to adapt to whatever situation they had to face.