Chapter 34:

"Everyone!" At the edge of the city ruins, Biaozi slung the "Soaring Dragon Assault Rifle" on his back, holding a car blade fragment wrapped in cloth in his hand. As he quickly darted through the city ruins, he spoke with a sincere and hoarse tone. "We’ve gotten along quite well in these past few days. Honestly, I know some of you might still not fully accept me, but I hope you understand one thing: once we leave the train, the danger index skyrockets." "Regardless of your opinions of me, I hope we’re a cohesive team out here. That’s the only way we can return to the train safely." "Do you all understand?" His words fell. "Understood." Biaozi’s old subordinates, Heiwa and another strong man, responded promptly, while the others followed suit, seriously responding in low voices. It wasn’t their first day in the Doomsday scenario; they naturally knew how dangerous it would be if they couldn’t cooperate in such an environment. Only the man who got badly beaten by Biaozi and Heiwa some days ago sneered a bit, still somewhat unyielding. One couldn’t deny. This man’s backbone was truly tough; he was defiant from the start, got beaten up, and still refused to submit, just stubbornly dissenting. "..." Biaozi turned to glance at the sneering man, his eyes slightly narrowed but said nothing. He noticed that a Zombie Wolf had quietly appeared behind this man from the shipping container buried under the ruins. The Zombie Wolf’s eyes glowed red, its body hunched, muscles taut, ready to launch an attack at any moment. Biaozi noticed this scene but showed no reaction, as if he hadn’t seen anything, pointing to a patch of open ground not far ahead and whispered, "Head that way; that’s the best shooting position under the Spider Web." All the thugs looked in the direction Biaozi pointed. And at this moment— A piercing whistling sound suddenly erupted; the Zombie Wolf, which had been lurking, couldn’t hold back any longer. It lunged powerfully, like an arrow shot from a bow, towards the man who was sneering behind him! "Watch out!" Biaozi, who reacted immediately, changed his expression dramatically and rushed over, knocking the man aside. The other thugs also instantly reacted, their gun muzzles pointed at the missed Zombie Wolf. After half a magazine’s worth of bullets, The Zombie Wolf, full of bullet holes, collapsed in a pool of blood. The man pressed down by Biaozi only reacted afterward, looking at the Zombie Wolf with a face full of terror, feeling chills down his spine. Biaozi, meanwhile, stood up with a slightly grim expression, his right hand tightly clutching his left arm, blood trickling down between his fingers. He tore a piece of cloth from his own clothes and did a quick bandage on the wound. "Biao... Biao." The man who had been sneering just moments ago suddenly felt a wave of shame, his voice weak as he stepped forward to support Biaozi: "Biao, I... I didn’t expect you’d save me. I... I didn’t accept you at first, yet you saved me, I..." "It’s alright." Biaozi shook his head expressionlessly, not even furrowing his brows. He perfectly embodied the tough guy style; only after a hurried bandage did he pat the man’s shoulder lightly. "Whether it’s you or anyone else, I would save them." "As your team leader, I have to bring you back to the train alive." "That’s the responsibility of being a team leader." "Even if someone has to die, it’ll be me at the front; otherwise, how can I face Master Mang, or face all of you?" "Alright, let’s move on, finish the mission quickly and report back." "I..." The man, who hadn’t submitted even after a severe beating, suddenly felt convinced at this moment; only someone like this was qualified to be their leader. Since Doomsday began, he had faced lots of malice, and this was the first time someone was willing to risk their life to save him, making him keenly feel a strong sense of team spirit. He immediately clenched his fists tightly and stood on the spot, watching Biaozi’s leaving back, biting his teeth raspingly, saying, "Biao, I’m called Mountain Cat." "I’ll repay this life!" ... Biaozi, walking ahead, heard the voice from behind, and a slight smile unknowingly curled up at the corner of his mouth. He coughed softly and waved his hand without turning his head: "Keep up, don’t fall behind." Fighting him. You really think just because you can take a beating and hit hard, you can be a leader? These days you need brains to survive, you understand? His left arm wasn’t actually injured by the Zombie Wolf. His control slipped, the Zombie Wolf only brushed past him, not injuring him at all; left with no choice, he hit his own left arm with the car blade fragment. Of course, he didn’t go overboard, just a slight scratch to draw blood. It’ll be fine after a couple of days, won’t even need stitches. This car blade fragment was new, hadn’t been used on Cannibal Spider. Things like this need to draw blood to be effective; without blood, its effectiveness would be reduced significantly. There’s a big difference in the rescue, between saving someone without paying any price and saving them at a certain cost. The rescued one’s mood will be completely different. He actually considered letting Mountain Cat die here at one point. But... If there was a casualty on the first outing, although understandable, Master Mang’s impression of him would certainly drop a notch, which wouldn’t be good. Moreover, Master Mang knew that Mountain Cat wasn’t very accepting of him; if Mountain Cat died on an outing, it’d be hard for Master Mang not to think too much. He originally thought that if Mountain Cat didn’t remember the kindness, he’d find a chance to let him die later. Unexpectedly, though this kid is a bit stubborn and lacks insight, he still remembers kindness. ... The distance wasn’t too far, but the collapsed buildings and congested streets slowed their progress significantly. And along the way. They encountered three Zombie Wolves. Clearly, with the departure of that level-3 Cannibal Spider, some creatures had already started to feel its absence and came to probe. "We’re here." Twenty minutes later. Biaozi raised his right hand slightly, and the team immediately stopped at an abandoned low floor rooftop. After the previous scene, the other thugs were much more respectful and obedient toward him. In Doomsday, who wouldn’t want a leader who’s willing to save them in a crisis? Before them was a huge Spider Web woven between several tall buildings, with roughly a dozen small spiderlings suspended in mid-air by Spider Silk, floating gently about ten meters off the ground. Below the Spider Web were about twenty-plus level-1 Zombie Wolves, heads lifted, salivating at the floating spiderlings. "Biao." Heiwa moved close to Biaozi and whispered: "The plan didn’t include these twenty-plus Zombie Wolves, feels like things are a bit off; even Zombie Wolves are here, other wasteland creatures might come soon too." "Normal." Biaozi’s eyes slightly squinted: "I’ve never seen a plan without surprises, just like when we used to work in construction, not a single contractor paid on time, you’ll get used to it." "Swift and decisive, only 20-plus wolf pups." "Everyone, load your bullets, get closer before opening fire." "Keep it quiet and move forward." They were about thirty meters away from the Zombie Wolves; at this distance, it’s hard to ensure bullet accuracy. If they get a bit closer, the hit rate will improve significantly.