Bloodshed in the Wilderness

Bloodshed in the Wilderness

December 1st.

Evolution Camp entered its final month.

Members of the 101st Class who had failed the Second Comprehensive Test were eliminated and left.

Unless they encountered another opportunity, they would never become Evolvers in this lifetime. They could only find work in the fiercely competitive Base City and struggle to climb upward.

But in an apocalypse overrun by monsters, lacking the strength to protect oneself was extremely dangerous.

No matter how much money they earned, no one knew what day their Base City might be destroyed by a tide of monsters.

By now, more than half of all Base Cities had vanished into the dust of history.

"Brother Yang, he's left the camp." Shi Hou, whose face bore a scarred wound, sent Sun Yang a message. His gaze fell on the camp entrance as Wang Ye gradually disappeared into the distance.

"Follow him. Don't let him notice you."

"Understood!"

Shi Hou was short and wore a Student Battle Suit, with a short blade hanging at his waist. Like the other students, he appeared to be heading out into the wilderness to train.

After passing facial recognition, he quickly picked up his pace and followed.

Two hours later.

The four men led by Sun Yang gathered beside an abandoned Audi.

"Where is he?" Sun Yang demanded furiously, glaring at Shi Hou.

"I don't know either." Shi Hou looked miserable as he pointed at an abandoned building in the distance. "He went in there last. I was afraid he'd spot me, so I didn't follow him in. But he still hasn't come out after all this time."

"Heh, you weren't afraid of being spotted. You were afraid of being ambushed by the Mutated Monsters inside, weren't you?" Ding Jinchao said coldly.

"Like you're not afraid yourself." Shi Hou simmered with anger.

"Enough nonsense. Let's rush in and kill him!" At 1.88 meters tall, Yan Zhuofeng stood head and shoulders above the other three. His thick arms looked forged from steel, and a battle axe rested on his back. He radiated brutality.

"Brother Yang wants it done cleanly, so we're waiting until he's somewhere less populated before making our move." Ding Jinchao looked at him as though he were an idiot.

"This is five kilometers from the camp. It's far enough." Sun Yang looked around at the ruined buildings.

This was an old residential complex that had been destroyed. The buildings were not especially dense, but there were many places to hide. Mutated Monsters were highly likely to appear here, making it quite dangerous.

Wang Ye had come here to train?

Was he crazy, or just stupid?

"Maybe he took the wrong route." Sun Yang did not dwell on it. He said to the other three, "We'll split into groups of two and search. Keep in contact and stay within range. Whichever group finds him attacks immediately. The other group watches the surroundings and cuts off his escape route. Don't, under any circumstances, let him get away!"

"Zhuofeng, you're with Monkey. Search inside."

"Little Ding and I will check over there."

"Alright!"

"Four of them." Wang Ye watched from the fourth-floor room through a gap in the hole-riddled curtains.

"Perfect. I'll settle everything at once."

He withdrew his gaze, his expression icy.

It was these four who had beaten up the original owner ten days ago and stolen his Evolution Fruit.

Sun Yang in particular had dealt the original owner a fatal blow. His methods had been ruthless, as if he had regarded the original owner as a Mutated Monster.

Ten days later, they had come again.

Pressing forward step by step, cutting the weeds and eliminating the roots, leaving no way out!

This old residential complex was Xingyu New Village. It did not even have elevators, and the buildings were decrepit.

Wang Ye had scouted the route yesterday, familiarizing himself with the terrain and clearing out some of the Mutated Monsters.

Compared to Sun Yang's group of four, not only was he hidden in the shadows, but he also held an absolute advantage in terrain.

"They're coming up." Wang Ye had already heard footsteps.

Of course, he knew Shi Hou had been following him. Although Shi Hou had been very discreet, Wang Ye's senses were now far sharper than before.

Once he had disappeared into this apartment building, this would definitely be the first place they searched.

But unexpectedly, only two came up.

"Second floor." Wang Ye leaned against the door and listened to the footsteps.

"Third floor."

The apartment buildings in Xingyu New Village were small, with six floors in total. Each floor had only two units, one on the left and one on the right.

Wang Ye was hiding in Room 401, the apartment on the left side of the fourth floor. It was perfect for an ambush.

"Strange. Where did he go?" Shi Hou carefully searched every room.

"Could you have missed him?" Yan Zhuofeng gripped his battle axe and violently smashed through the rooms, making a huge racket.

"Impossible! I kept my eyes on this building the whole time. He never left!" Shi Hou insisted, before his expression abruptly changed. "Could he have noticed me?"

Yan Zhuofeng burst into laughter, utterly dismissive. "So what if he did? He's hiding? We'll turn this place upside down. I refuse to believe we can't find him!"

As he spoke, he swung his axe wildly around the room, the blue veins on his biceps bulging.

Yan Zhuofeng had scored over 60 in the strength test, which was quite high.

"He's not here."

"Let's go to the fourth floor."

Shi Hou called out to Yan Zhuofeng, who was still hacking wildly away inside the room.

The instant one foot crossed the doorway, every hair on Shi Hou's body stood on end.

As if sensing the approaching danger, Shi Hou tried to retreat, but it was already too late.

Shhk!

A cold flash descended.

Wang Ye turned a chop into a slash, changing moves the instant he stepped forward.

Although Shi Hou's reaction had been extremely fast, he was still not faster than Wang Ye's blade.

The merciless edge sliced across his neck. Blood sprayed out, and his entire body lost balance before crashing to the ground.

"Wang Ye!"

Yan Zhuofeng, who had just stepped out of the room, saw the scene before him and his pupils instantly widened. Gripping his battle axe with both hands, he roared and swung at Wang Ye, who had appeared in the doorway.

Pfft! Pfft! Pfft!

Wang Ye pulled out a pepper spray canister. The safety cap had already been flipped open, and he unleashed a rapid barrage straight at Yan Zhuofeng.

Yan Zhuofeng screamed. Tears streamed continuously from his eyes, his airway felt like it was on fire, and he coughed violently without pause.

He stumbled backward in panic, wildly swinging the battle axe in his hand.

Naturally, Wang Ye would not give him any opportunity. He casually tossed away the pepper spray, and his battle blade revealed its ferocity.

Dodging Yan Zhuofeng's wildly swinging axe, Wang Ye lowered himself and slashed. His fast, ruthless, precise blade tore through Yan Zhuofeng's battle suit trousers, severing his knee and cracking bone with a sharp crack.

Yan Zhuofeng howled miserably and immediately lost his balance. The agony nearly made him lose his grip on the battle axe as Heaven and Earth Spin, and he toppled toward the ground.

Wang Ye shifted behind him, and his battle blade came down viciously.

Shhk!

One slash took off his head.

His body covered in bloodstains, Wang Ye's gaze was cold as he forcefully calmed himself and picked up the pepper spray from the ground.

It had gone more smoothly than expected. His heart still rippled slightly, but his previous battle with the mutated human had fully acclimated him, giving him experience and mental preparation.

The reason he had temporarily changed his plan and chosen to act here was because they had lingered on every floor for a long time.

That meant they were searching carefully. The odds of a successful sneak attack were low, and if the two joined forces, he would inevitably be injured.

But just after they finished searching a room, their vigilance would be at its lowest.

Another benefit of attacking at the doorway was that the enemy could not escape down the stairs. At worst, they could only jump out the window.

They would at least break a leg. There was no way they could run.

"Two left." Wang Ye quickly headed downstairs.

Yu Haitao's four lackeys.

Sun Yang was the strongest fighter, while Ding Jinchao was the most cunning.

Downstairs.

Sun Yang and Ding Jinchao were searching the surrounding area.

Suddenly, a scream rang out from the apartment building Shi Hou had been watching, followed by sounds of fierce fighting.

Sun Yang and Ding Jinchao quickly doubled back and looked up sharply.

"Third floor!"

"That was Zhuofeng's voice!"

Sun Yang's expression changed slightly. He said to Ding Jinchao, "Stay here. I'll go up and take a look."

"Alright, Brother Yang!" Ding Jinchao promptly agreed. As Sun Yang went upstairs, hesitation flashed in his eyes. He quickly backed away, looked around, and then had an idea. He ran toward another building.

Whoosh!

Sun Yang charged straight toward the third floor.

He could tell from Yan Zhuofeng's scream just now.

Something had happened!

If he was right, Shi Hou had been discovered while tailing Wang Ye. Wang Ye had then simply laid an ambush here and caught the two off guard.

But it was two against one. Even if they had been ambushed, they should still have held a major advantage.

Yan Zhuofeng in particular was only slightly inferior to him in actual combat.

Wait!

Just as Sun Yang crossed the stairs to the second floor, he suddenly sensed that something was wrong. He twisted his body almost instinctively.

A blade flashed from the previously empty Room 202, chopping toward his neck without any martial morality.

Clang!

Sun Yang raised the steel staff in his hand to block it. The collision was deafening, and his arm went numb.

"Despicable!" Sun Yang was slammed heavily into the wall by the immense force.

He had no time to care about the burning pain in his back as he raised the steel staff in defense again.

Because Wang Ye was already before him, his blade swift and decisive.

Too fast!

Wang Ye's reaction speed and decisiveness in battle shocked Sun Yang.

He was like a completely different person!

The Wang Ye Sun Yang remembered had never possessed such strength.

But he knew very well what it meant for Wang Ye to be here now.

Yan Zhuofeng and Shi Hou were dead!

He was no longer the useless Wang Ye from before!

"What powerful blade technique!" Sun Yang had no way to parry.

His staff technique was suppressed so completely that he could not use it at all. He had fallen into a disadvantage from the very beginning.

Even though his physical attributes were stronger than Wang Ye's, he was still trapped in a desperate situation.

Wang Ye's blade technique seemed forged by nature itself. Every strike targeted positions Sun Yang found difficult to defend.

Moreover, the battle blade was like an extension of his body. Its attacks came in an endless stream, without the slightest gap or opening.

Too strong!

Sun Yang had only felt such suffocating pressure when sparring with Yu Haitao.

Cold sweat poured down his body.

If his staff technique had not been suited for defense, he would likely already be at death's door.

Defending for too long inevitably led to failure. Wang Ye's momentum completely overwhelmed Sun Yang. He suddenly erupted, sweeping horizontally before chopping from the side, making Sun Yang stumble and fall crookedly onto the stairs.

Sun Yang instinctively grabbed the stair railing to keep his balance, but Wang Ye's heavy blade came crashing down.

Clang!

One strike knocked the steel staff from Sun Yang's hand.

Clatter!

The sound of the steel staff falling turned Sun Yang's face deathly pale.

The scene from ten days ago suddenly surfaced in his mind: the four of them beating Wang Ye, laughing uproariously, and his final strike landing on the back of Wang Ye's head. Blood seeped out as Wang Ye fell and did not rise again...

Shhk!

Excruciating pain pierced his heart as Heaven and Earth Spin.

Sun Yang felt himself flying. Wang Ye's blurry figure appeared before him, holding a blade. Then everything went black, and his consciousness was instantly extinguished.

Thud!

His head hit the ground, while Sun Yang's body collapsed onto the stairs.

"One last one." Wang Ye did not pause. He quickly chased out of the apartment building.

The surrounding area was wide open. He looked left and right, but there was no sign of anyone. Wang Ye frowned slightly.

Troublesome!

If Ding Jinchao had a phone and reported this to the instructors now, then even if Wang Ye had acted in self-defense, it would still be a headache.

Leaving everything else aside, it would definitely affect his graduation and prevent him from successfully receiving the Evolutionary Serum.

There were two possibilities.

Either he had fled, or he was hiding.

Wang Ye quickly returned to the apartment building, took Sun Yang's phone from his pocket, unlocked it with his fingerprint, and dialed a number as he raced downstairs and dashed outside.

He moved extremely fast. The entire process took less than half a minute.

"Impossible!"

"How could this happen?!"

The instant Ding Jinchao saw Wang Ye emerge downstairs with a saber in hand, his mind went blank.

He had considered many possibilities.

Hiding was merely a precaution.

But he had never imagined Wang Ye could truly survive the combined assault of Brother Yang and the other two!

Not to mention, judging by Wang Ye's stance, it seemed he had done more than merely survive.

Because the first thing he did after coming down from the residential building was look around, not run!

What was he looking for?

Whoosh!

Cold sweat streamed down Ding Jinchao's back, and he immediately had the answer.

Fear. Terror!

Negative emotions flooded his heart, and Ding Jinchao's face turned deathly pale.

C-Call!

Get help immediately!

Ding Jinchao shakily pulled out his phone. Before he could unlock the screen, a ringtone suddenly sounded along with a vibration. The caller ID displayed Brother Yang's number.

Ding Jinchao froze.

Brother Yang was calling him?

Had he made a mistake?

Had Wang Ye really just broken free and escaped, looking around for a route to flee?

Ding Jinchao hurriedly answered the call.

"Hello, Brother Yang!" Ding Jinchao said softly.

There was no response.

"Hello?"

"Is the signal bad?"

Ding Jinchao looked puzzled. He picked up the phone to check it, then put it back to his ear. "Can you hear me, Brother Yang?"

Can you hear me, Brother Yang?

An echo came from behind him.

It shook him to the core.

Ding Jinchao shuddered violently, then stiffly turned his neck around as if it were made of wood.

The thick stench of blood instantly choked him. Wang Ye's slender figure stood before him, his combat uniform soaked in blood.

A saber hung from his right hand, blood dripping from its blade.

Like the Slaughter God returned from hell.

Seeing the phone in Wang Ye's left hand, Ding Jinchao understood everything at once. He collapsed to the ground, clamping his legs together as his lower body became soaked.

"L-Listen to me, Ye Ge!" Ding Jinchao frantically raised both hands, as though he had seen a ghost.

"It has nothing to do with me!"

"It really has nothing to do with me!"

Ding Jinchao repeatedly waved his hands, breathing so rapidly he could barely catch his breath. His eyes were filled with terror.

"I didn't see anything just now."

"Really! P-Please, spare me!"

"I—"

Slash!

Wang Ye raised his saber and brought it down.

Ding Jinchao's eyes widened as his head rolled across the ground, dying with his eyes still open.

Die!