The minibus soared through the air, aiming directly for the large cargo ship moored about ten meters off the shore. The people on the ship appeared normal, staring in dumbfounded amazement as the minibus flew towards them, then crashed forcefully into the stack of cardboard boxes at the rear of the ship. In this era before the invention of shipping containers, cardboard was often transported with just a tarpaulin cover. So, when the minibus smashed into the cardboard, it looked dramatic but merely pushed through the boxes, sliding to a stop without any explosive disasters.
Inside the vehicle, everyone, including Zheng and Zhao Yingkong, was thrown about disastrously, with several sustaining bloody injuries. Among them, the veterans like Zheng recovered consciousness faster, their superior physical condition quickly coming to the fore, especially Zero and Zhang Jie, who were the quickest to grab their weapons and dash out.
Zhang Jie lifted Zhao Yingkong and Zheng, who had taken the brunt of the impact at the rear of the bus, a far more severe hit than the rest had suffered. Fortunately, both were of exceptional physical strength. Particularly Zheng, who instinctively shielded Zhao Yingkong with his back during the crash, bearing the brunt of the impact due to his superior physical condition, leaving them in better shape than most inside the vehicle.
Silently helping them to sit, Zhang Jie then, gun in hand, charged toward the freighter's control room, while Zero, setting aside his pistol, set up his Gauss sniper rifle on the ship's railing. He loaded a slender Gauss sniper bullet, aiming towards the port where countless zombies pressed towards the water, in contrast to the mummy guards who seemed wary of the river and hesitated to touch it. This left the mummies, previously a significant threat, seemingly powerless compared to the "enthusiastic" diving zombies.
Zheng struggled to open his eyes, attempting to stand, but a sharp pain in his spine terrified him, considering they were about to engage in a final battle in the City of the Dead. A broken spine could render him useless before the horror film's end, especially as the team's leader and strongest close combatant. Losing his capabilities meant likely death for them in this horror scenario.
Sweating profusely at the thought, Zheng tried desperately to stand.
"Don't move! Your spine is dislocated! Do you want to end up paralyzed?" Zhao Yingkong's voice was weak yet piercing. She reached out, pressing on Zheng's spine, causing a light pop. The intense pain quickly subsided, replaced by a comfortable freedom of movement.
Looking at Zhao Yingkong, Gratefully, Zheng noticed her shoulder was completely torn. She had used her injured shoulder to support him, freeing her other arm to throw a grappling hook, saving them from being stranded at the port and facing certain death.
Then, Zhang Lan and the rest emerged from the minibus, with Jonathan and the American looking particularly battered, their heads sporting large gashes. At the same time, the others also had their share of injuries. They had barely stepped out when a long, sighing sound from somewhere on the freighter signaled increased speed – Zhang Jie's efforts had paid off.
Everyone breathed a sigh of relief, but Zero suddenly yelled, "Be careful! Zheng, if sniping doesn't work, it's all on you guys now!"
The group hurriedly looked towards the port, where, apart from countless living dead and thousands of mummified guards, a sandstorm was rolling towards them from afar. As it approached within a hundred meters of the ship, it transformed into a huge human face that opened its mouth to engulf the ship.
"Boom!"
A loud noise erupted as the massive recoil of the Gauss sniper rifle almost bent the railing of the ship. It was no wonder Zero Point had set up the rifle on the railing before firing. As the gunshot sounded, a part of the giant face collapsed, growing larger slowly. The face twisted in pain and eventually vanished, leaving a figure engulfed in flames falling into the river.
Only when the cargo ship had sailed downstream, out of sight of Cairo, did everyone finally relax completely. Everyone collapsed on the deck, exhausted, whether they were veterans, newcomers, members of the Reincarnation Squad, or ordinary characters. It was as if they had all been through a cycle of life and death, and no one wanted to utter another word.
Zheng Zha had exerted himself immensely along the way. His vampire energy had been drained twice, and his inner strength was depleted while fighting the mummified guards. Later, when the giant werewolf knocked him off the vehicle, he was completely drained. If it weren't for Zhao Yingkong's desperate rescue, he might have died at the port of Cairo. Now relaxing, he finally couldn't hold on any longer and fainted.
After an unknown period, Zheng Zha slowly opened his eyes to the taste of sweet liquid. He saw Zhan Lan gently feeding him water from a pouch. Her face lit up with joy when she saw him open his eyes. She moved as if she wanted to throw herself into his arms, but after a few seconds, she restrained herself and sat back, smiling and asking, "Finally awake? How do you feel? Do your wounds still hurt?"
Zheng Zha smiled and nodded. He felt a slight sense of loss, but it was quickly replaced by a sense of relief. He looked around the room, which was not very spacious. From the layout and steel walls, it seemed to be a cabin on the cargo ship. The sun was shining brightly outside the window, indicating he had slept through the night.
"What time is it?" Zheng Zha asked, touching his chest. His wounds on the chest and stomach had been tightly bandaged, and they itched slightly.
Zhan Lan smiled brightly and replied, "It's morning now. O'Connell said we should be able to dock by noon. How about we go have breakfast first?"
Zheng Zha nodded and sat up, noticing a wooden basin and several wet towels on a table next to Zhan Lan. Curious, he asked, "What happened last night? Were you taking care of me the whole time?"
Zhan Lan's eyes were indeed ringed with dark circles. She smiled faintly and said, "You had a high fever all night. We didn't have any fever-reducing medicine, so a few of us took turns wetting your body with water until about three in the morning when your temperature finally returned to normal and you fell into a deep sleep. How do you feel now? Better?"
Looking at the dark circles under Zhan Lan's eyes, Zheng Zha sighed and muttered, "Thank you... I do feel much better now. Just a bit itchy around the chest and stomach, haha. Did you apply some kind of medicine? I don't feel any pain at all, which seems quite effective."
As Zheng Zha stretched and yawned, Zhan Lan chuckled and said, "It's your recovery ability that's so strong. You probably don't even realize it. When we were wetting your body last night, the cuts on your stomach and chest began to heal on their own. Some of the sliced intestines even healed surprisingly quickly. Yingkong had to stitch you up simply, but with the speed of healing we witnessed, your wounds might have fully healed already."
Zheng Zha, just about to push open the door, turned around in astonishment at her words. Zhan Lan nodded earnestly. He then remembered the battle in the museum, where his back had been completely pierced by the giant werewolf's scalpel. But in the heat of the moment, he hadn't realized whether the wound had healed. Now, thinking back, it seemed that the wound on his back had also healed on its own.
Touching his back, Zheng Zha found only some scabbed scars, which fell off as he touched them, revealing new, pink flesh underneath. In just one day, a bone-deep wound had completely healed, a recovery speed far beyond human capabilities.
Zheng Zha thought for a long time and concluded that the only possibilities were the enhanced qualities of the vampire blood and the unlocking of the second stage of the genetic lock. The vampire's enhancement already granted him strong regenerative abilities, which he hadn't fully realized until now. In the previous horror stories, he hadn't had the opportunity to suffer such extensive injuries. But in this horror story, he finally experienced this terrifying regenerative ability.
Of course, another possibility was the unlocking of the second stage of the genetic lock, allowing him to freely control his bodily functions. If this included regenerative abilities, then such healing wasn't too exaggerated.
In any case, gaining such regenerative abilities out of nowhere wasn't a bad thing at all. However, he felt as if he was becoming less and less human... In fact, after spending so much time in these horror story reincarnations, he had gradually become numb to killing and bloodshed, perhaps even his thoughts were no longer entirely human...
"Damn it, who cares, stronger regeneration is always a good thing," Zheng Zha cursed softly, then smiled at Zhan Lan, "I'm starving. You haven't had breakfast yet, have you? Let's go eat together."
Zhan Lan also smiled faintly, following Zheng Zha out of the cabin. On the deck of the cargo ship, they walked one after the other towards the front cabin, bathed in the golden sunlight reflecting off the water. As they walked forward in the golden light, a sense of peace filled their hearts. Ahead, Zero Point, Zhang Jie, and others also stood in the golden light, and at that moment, there was only tranquility in everyone's hearts...