"There were always people who didn't like him, but no one could kill him!"
Old Zheng's confession caused the two men beside him to exchange strange glances.
They hadn't expected Old Zheng to be so bold, betraying the boss so completely. He didn't seem worried at all about the boss's future revenge or retribution.
"Really?"
Yi Bai frowned, looking at Old Zheng. He couldn't believe someone had gained such a terrifying ability.
Coming back to life?
That must be an SSS-level talent!
In the apocalypse, that kind of ability would be nearly invincible—no matter what threat they faced, they would never have to fear it!
"Really!"
Old Zheng gritted his teeth and nodded, his face grim: "I don't want to live anymore. I'm tired of this humiliation. If you can kill him, that's the best. If you can't, then just put me out of my misery!"
It didn't sound like a lie.
Yi Bai fell silent for a moment, then issued an order.
"Take Old Zheng to identify the body. Find the body of the one named Li. If you can't find the body, find someone who knows where it is!"
"Yes, Boss."
The assault team nodded and began to escort Old Zheng out.
The remaining medic and rifleman swapped positions, with the rifleman keeping watch over the remaining prisoners to ensure Yi Bai's safety.
Yi Bai planned to keep these two prisoners alive for now—he still had questions to ask.
"Tell me everything. What did you and Li do?"
Yi Bai glanced at the two prisoners and spoke coldly, "Tell me everything you know. Don't think of lying to me. Old Zheng doesn't want to live anymore, so I'll cross-check everything you say with him."
"If I find out you're lying, you'll go the same way as Old Zheng."
His words clearly offered the prisoners a glimmer of hope for survival.
The two prisoners exchanged a look, and one of them, gritting his teeth, spoke up, "Boss, what exactly do you want to know?"
"Everything—what have you done since the apocalypse began?"
Yi Bai glanced between the two, his tone colder. "Especially that Li—what exactly is his deal?"
"Boss, we... if we tell you, please don't kill us!"
The other man spoke nervously, swallowing his saliva as he began recounting the story:
"That day, after we were sent back, the sky turned red."
"We lived together, on the third floor. There was no food, we were starving."
"At that point, that Li came to us. He said he could take us out to find food and water."
"We followed him, going out every night to scavenge. During the day, we just stayed on the third floor, sleeping and... well, with the women."
"Later... later, Li gathered a lot of people and started taking over the first floor."
The man's voice trailed off, his head hanging lower and lower as if ashamed of the atrocities they had committed.
"Li started by threatening everyone, then one day, he actually killed someone with a knife."
"He said anyone who resisted would die, and the elderly were the first to suffer."
"He made the men go hunting in batches, and after the hunt, they'd come back and sleep with the women. Many thought, since it's the apocalypse, they might as well go along with him..."
The man rambled on, and Yi Bai, with a furrowed brow, interrupted him.
"How did Li survive being killed? What's going on with his immortality?"
"I don't know."
Fear flickered on the man's face as he shook his head, speaking quietly.
"I saw it with my own eyes. His head was chopped off."
"There was a girl on the roof. When the apocalypse began, her boyfriend was there too. I heard he was good at kickboxing or something."
"That guy chopped off Li's head, and then—then Li's head grew back in no time and killed that guy!"
"That guy's woman... Li played with her until she died. After that, no one dared oppose him."
Yi Bai raised an eyebrow, his voice cold.
"You didn't dare, and you didn't want to, did you?"
The man trembled, going silent, unable to respond.
Li truly was a force to be reckoned with, using both fear and rewards to control his men.
In such a chaotic world, most men had willingly followed him.
Without any accidents, Li's shelter was likely to become stronger.
"Since Li's talent is immortality, then what about yours?"
Yi Bai asked indifferently, and the man blinked, confused.
"Talent? What talent?"
"Mm?"
Yi Bai raised an eyebrow, looking him over carefully. The man didn't seem to be lying.
Could his talent be something that needed to remain hidden?
Yi Bai couldn't read him, but the man began to feel uneasy under Yi Bai's intense gaze, quickly blurting out an explanation.
"Boss, you don't think we're immortal like Li, do you?"
"We're just ordinary people! One knife, and we're dead. Don't even joke about it."
"We just want to survive. We were forced into all of this."
"If you're going to kill us, let the police handle it. They're the ones who should judge and execute us!"
The man explained frantically, but Yi Bai cut him off suddenly.
"Have you never gone back to your own place? Have you always been with Li?"
"Ah? Yeah, Boss."
The man froze for a moment, then nodded, looking puzzled.
"Li doesn't let us scatter. He's afraid we'll betray him. He wants everyone under his watch, even when we sleep, he insists we stay where he can see us."
"That makes sense..."
Yi Bai muttered to himself, realizing that Li must have been aware of the existence of these talents. He didn't want anyone who could become a potential threat to get away from him, so he made sure everyone stayed within his grasp.
Many people, when the apocalypse first began, hadn't unlocked their talents yet and were brought in by Li.
Those without talents were just ordinary humans.
Yi Bai silently called up the shelter's data panel in his mind, but there was no response.
"So, it seems that only Li has a talent, and the other three survivors haven't activated theirs."
Yi Bai thought, but the real problem was Li's immortality.
Just then, the worst news arrived.
The assault team and Old Zheng had returned. They had searched the building thoroughly, but there was no sign of Li's body.
This meant one thing: Li had come back to life.
A living, resurrected enemy—this was an enormous threat.
Yi Bai's team only had five fighters left, and their stamina was running low, less than an hour before they would be unable to continue.
Once they were exhausted, and with Lin Yue's fate unknown, the fighting strength of Yi Bai's shelter would plummet to zero.
This realization sent a new wave of anxiety through Yi Bai.
"Keep the prisoners under guard, and send the communications soldier back. The sniper continues searching for Li's whereabouts."
Yi Bai frowned, giving orders quickly.
"Move all supplies downstairs! Everything that's edible, usable, take it all—leave nothing behind!"
"Then notify Li Ya to reinforce the shelter. She'll have to use everything we have, but we only have one hour!"
With these commands, everyone except the sniper sprang into action.
The three prisoners, now under guard, were forced to carry supplies, hauling everything that Li and his men had scavenged to the downstairs.
Seven strong men worked tirelessly, but Yi Bai still felt it wasn't fast enough.
He kept mentally counting the minutes as he paced back and forth in front of the women in the inner room.
Yi Bai wasn't thinking anything untoward; he was just calculating how to use the women to increase his shelter's security.
"They've probably suffered enough under Li's torture. They must hate him by now."
Yi Bai muttered to himself, his chin resting in his hand. "If I can awaken their hatred, they could become my allies. After all, the enemy of my enemy is my friend."
As for how to approach the women, Yi Bai wasn't yet sure.
He only wanted to maximize the available strength and unite everyone to resist the resurrected Li.
Just as Yi Bai was pondering how to begin talking to these numb women, a new message popped up in front of him, leaving him stunned.