Ryan furrowed his brow, his expression icy. "What do you mean by that? Didn't we agree to cooperate?"
As he questioned her, he was also surprised internally. Candy could have easily chosen to pretend to team up, gaining trust before making a sudden move.
Just like she had done before with those two unfortunate, lecherous fools.
So why did she choose to attack directly this time?
"Ryan, the panel has been updated!" At that moment, Leo exclaimed from the side.
The next moment, both of their system panels popped up simultaneously.
[Hunt Task Updated]
[Task Content: Players outside the safe zone have been infected with the rabid virus. Eliminate the pathogen to receive rewards!]
[Reward Content: One immunity serum, one choice of high-level materials x1]
...
The update of the new hunt task was visible to all players, not just Ryan and Leo.
The next moment, the chat channel became lively.
[What? There's actually such a punishment? Thank goodness I didn't end up outside the safe zone!]
[The rabid virus sounds way too dangerous. Doesn't that mean it can blend in and kill us?]
[Speaking of which, who was the guy that ended up outside the safe zone?]
[Wait, wasn't that Candy? Damn it, that bitch was already infected! So the ones who went to team up with her are already…]
After closing the panel, Ryan felt a sinking sensation in his heart.
He squinted his eyes, looking at Candy, and put on a pained expression. "So that's how it is. You brought me here to harm me?"
Leo was also taken aback, coming to a realization. "That bitch knew in advance that the hunt task was about to be announced, so she couldn't trick us anymore and had to strike first?"
Candy licked her lips and smiled coldly. "You're not dumb, but realizing it now is too late. There are zombies everywhere around you, you have nowhere to run, and you can only be slaughtered by me!"
She knew very well that once the hunt task was announced, players nearby would come to hunt her down.
So, to quickly satisfy the kill count, she had to take down Ryan swiftly before she could focus on the players' siege.
Although she couldn't deceive anyone anymore, she didn't feel discouraged. After all, with her current power, killing these players was as easy as crushing ants!
And the ants she needed to crush right now were the Ryan in front of her!
"You really are a scheming woman. I can't believe I trusted you so much!" Ryan's face darkened as he pounded his chest in frustration.
Leo looked on, bewildered. Hadn't Ryan already known her true nature? Why was he acting like this? Suddenly, his eyes widened as he realized, "I get it now, he's turning the tables on her!"
Leo admired the young man even more. In such a critical situation, he didn't show a hint of panic. Even when their original plan fell apart, he could come up with a new one on the spot.
So, he chose to play along.
"Ryan, that damned bitch is actually a virus carrier! The ones who teamed up with her before must have been killed by her. What are we going to do?" Leo turned his head and looked at Ryan anxiously.
Ryan chuckled inwardly, 'This guy is catching on.' He also sighed dramatically on the surface. "There's no choice, we can only go all out against her!"
Leo clenched his fists. "Alright, are two big men afraid of just one woman?"
With that, he pulled out a compound bow and aimed it at Candy, ready to shoot!
"Whoosh!" The sharp arrow sliced through the air, targeting Candy's forehead.
However, Candy didn't even bother to dodge. As the arrow got closer, she raised her hand and easily pinched the arrow between two fingers.
"Hahaha, does the prey think it can resist the hunter? How ridiculous!" Candy sneered and tossed the arrow aside before jumping down from the wall.
Leo's eyes widened. "Is she even human?"
Earlier, after hearing Ryan's words, he didn't have much of a grasp on Candy's strength. Now, he realized just how dangerous she truly was.
Candy thoroughly enjoyed the expressions of regret and fear on the faces of the two, especially Ryan, it gave her a thrill of revenge.
"It's too late to regret now. Don't worry, I'll make sure to take good care of you." Candy giggled as she lunged toward Leo.
Her seemingly frail body unleashed an astonishing power, both her speed and strength were several times greater than Leo's.
Before he knew it, Leo didn't even have a chance to fire a second arrow before a slap struck his chest, sending him flying, and his compound bow fell to the ground beside him.
"Hahaha, since you're Ryan's helper, I'll eat you first." Candy said, placing her finger on her lips and licking them, revealing a desire for flesh and blood.
Leo felt an overwhelming sense of dread. He clutched his chest, trying to endure the pain as he watched Candy close in on him. He desperately wanted to run, but the intense pain kept him rooted in place.
Before he knew it, Candy was right in front of him.
"Bang!"
At that moment, a gunshot rang out!
Candy quickly jumped away from Leo, having been shot in the chest, blood pouring out. She turned to glare at Ryan, who was holding a makeshift shotgun.
"You tricked me!" Candy's gaze was icy, she recognized the gun from the scavengers she had killed.
The appearance of that gun in Ryan's hands meant he had known her identity all along.
"Heh, same to you." Ryan said coldly as he loaded another bullet.
"I'm going to kill you first!" Candy abandoned Leo and charged at Ryan, unfazed by the bullet wound in her chest.
Ryan pulled back the shotgun's action, looking completely unafraid. "Come on!" As he spoke, Candy was already upon him, her hand swinging toward him. Ryan quickly tossed aside his gun and leaped to the side.
In the end, Ryan landed beside a large tree, sitting up with a look of panic on his face.
Candy looked at the shotgun scattered five meters away and laughed coldly. "Looks like you have no way out now."
As her words fell, she began to walk toward Ryan, preparing to gut him and devour him like the others!
"Oh no!" From the ground, Leo pulled out the shotgun and anxiously aimed it at Candy, pulling the trigger repeatedly.
"Bang bang bang!" The bullets struck Candy's chest, shoulders, and legs, but they did nothing to stop her from advancing toward Ryan.
Leo's eyes widened in shock. "Damn, she's insanely strong! Is this bitch immortal?"
Ryan leaned against the big tree, his head down, looking as if he had given up the struggle.
Candy soon stood right in front of him. "Are you scared? I'll cut off your dick and gut you like a fish!"
At that moment, Ryan slowly lifted his head. "The one who's going to die is you."
"Crack!"
The next moment, there was a sound of something falling from above. Candy continued to sneer, "Still talking tough when death is imminent?" It wasn't until the falling object was nearly upon her that she felt a sudden jolt of fear. She quickly looked up, just in time to see a large truck crashing down sideways, pinning her beneath it!
The truck fell right in front of Ryan. He let out a breath and stood up from the ground. "Got it!"
Candy's entire body was crushed under the weight of the truck, which was over ten tons, leaving only her head exposed. Her body was completely flattened!
Leo limped over. "It can't be that easy, right? This bitch seems like she has an immortal body."
Having fired several shots at Candy to no effect, Leo felt a lingering sense of dread.
Ryan smiled. "Don't worry, I have a way to kill her."
The way to kill Candy was to hit her in the head directly, otherwise, shots to any other part of her body would be useless.
Luckily, they had set this trap in advance to restrain Candy, otherwise, with her dodging ability, hitting her would have been very difficult.
"Woof woof." Buddy approached, and upon seeing it, Ryan patted its head.
"Buddy, you did great." Ryan praised. He had used tactics against Candy instead of brute force, to avoid unnecessary losses, he had Buddy wait to the side.
If it came down to it, Buddy would be the most important fighting force. Additionally, its initial alert had been crucial in preventing a surprise attack from Candy.
Ryan focused his mind. After all this time, he had finally captured this pathogen he had been after, completing the hunt task. This meant he would receive a generous reward!