Disarming

Two plumes of black smoke, one near and one far, rose from the rooftops, crudely smearing the dimly lit sky and making the entire scene resemble the apocalypse.

After confirming the smoke wasn't caused by an incoming zombie attack, most citizens still chose to stay away from the Research Center, but some brave souls cautiously lingered nearby to observe.

No Deathmatch Participants attacked these daring onlookers; they were all restraining themselves.

All Deathmatch Participants felt that the truly brutal slaughter would only begin the moment the "node" left the building.

However, not long after Lu Bai had departed, the situation took a slight turn.

"Why is someone coming out?"

"Who is that guy?"

"A Deathmatch Participant?"

A multitude of confused voices arose from the shadows.

Agu, dressed in a white lab coat, emerged from the Research Center's main entrance, his expression appearing quite disheveled.

He frantically looked around before shouting with all his might, "Where are the guards? Where are they?!"

Research Center personnel?

With this thought, several figures rushed toward Agu, clearly intending to extract information about the situation inside the building from him.

"Damn it, who the hell are these guys?"

Zhou Zongming's face was as black as charcoal.

At first, he thought some citizens were overly tense and a minor conflict had occurred.

Unexpectedly, as soon as he and his soldiers arrived at the scene, they were immediately attacked by over a dozen armed rioters.

A single volley of fire brought down six or seven of his brothers on the spot.

After all, the surroundings only had tents, which could at best obstruct vision and couldn't serve as cover.

Thanks to this, after the Survey Corps' Deathmatch Participants gained control of the situation, they were wary of the guns Zhou Zongming's men still possessed. Thus, they only fired while ensuring their own safety, which is why the gunfight had continued until now without ending.

Even so, Zhou Zongming now only had two soldiers left by his side, fighting and retreating.

Heading back towards the administrative building was blocked by the Survey Corps' Deathmatch Participants; a direct charge would be suicide.

Moreover, they hadn't not heard the continuous explosions, so the situation there was likely not optimistic either.

The only way forward was to rendezvous with the main force resisting the zombies. At least on the "front lines," there were two companies and the rapid response unit.

The thinner soldier reloaded his magazine, turned, and crouched, aiming his rifle. "Commander, you go first."

"Don't you die on me, kid."

Zhou Zongming wasn't oblivious to the situation. He uttered a sentence and continued to sprint through the gaps between the tents.

The soldier who volunteered to cover the retreat watched the front vigilantly, his index finger never leaving the trigger.

Regrettably, he never saw the enemy's figure from start to finish. Only a bullet shot from his front left.

Bang!

His head split open instantly, like an overripe watermelon struck by a stone.

Less than half a minute after this soldier's body fell, four men arrived from different directions.

If one excluded the automatic rifles they held, their attire and demeanor actually made them look more like ordinary programmers.

"Alright everyone, let's align our granularity."

"Osas, rapidly respond to the critical path, reuse the playstyle."

"How many are left?"

"Two."

"Then let's continue to deepen our efforts. Brother Hui specifically left us here to empower and clean up the business, right?"

Clang! Clang! Clang!

Lu Bai tapped the ground with his Eight-Sided Han Sword as he approached the programmers. Once the attention of the four Deathmatch Participants shifted to him, He chuckled and said, "What's the underlying logic behind what you're saying? Where's the top-level design? What's the ultimate delivered value? Where are the process touchpoints? How do we ensure the closed-loop of the results?"

"Who are you?" asked the Deathmatch Participant who seemed to be the leader, judging by his hairline.

As he spoke, he subtly signaled his companions.

No need to hesitate; in this situation, someone carrying a sword was most likely a Deathmatch Participant.

These programmers had a tacit understanding among themselves. The one in the red plaid shirt reacted swiftly, raising his rifle to unleash a burst at Lu Bai first.

In their view, it would be best to kill him on the spot, but if not, at least incapacitate this uninvited guest who had appeared out of nowhere.

But unfortunately, it was far too late.

While Lu Bai was asking questions, he had already closed the distance to the point where a single dash would allow him to strike with his sword.

He moved his feet, his figure appearing like a phantom as he arrived before them, then slashed his sword horizontally.

Ch-

Thump!

Two complete hands, still gripping the gun handles, fell to the ground.

The Deathmatch Participant in the red plaid shirt stared at his profusely bleeding wrists. Before he could even feel pain, his entire body went into a brief state of shock.

This was exactly as Lu Bai had expected. He didn't stop his movements. The Eight-Sided Han Sword in his hands was like a butterfly dancing through flowers, and with a flick of his wrist, four Deathmatch Participants were physically "disarmed" in succession.

The Deathmatch Participants from the Survey Corps weren't without their attempts to counterattack or escape. However, in the face of such a massive gap in combat power, all their ideas were stillborn before they could even be implemented.

It wasn't an exaggeration to say that Lu Bai's physical condition, after being enhanced by the zombie virus, made him as effortless against normal humans as an adult playing with a child.

Not to mention, he now had the boost from the [Horde].

He didn't even need to activate [Blood Rage]. Relying solely on his speed and the sharpness of the Eight-Sided Han Sword was enough to end the fight.

After eliminating any possibility of counterattack from the few individuals, Lu Bai stood with his sword, and the scene suddenly fell silent.

About ten seconds later, two Deathmatch Participants finally let out pained groans, hunched over.

The leader of the Deathmatch Participants didn't appear as pathetic. Although he was also slightly bent over, he stubbornly held back from crying out.

He glared fiercely at Lu Bai, as if trying to engrave his face into his memory.

Seeing this, Lu Bai was not polite either. With a backhand swing, he sent him to elimination.

Throughout this process, a gentle smile remained on his face.

It was like the pure, genuine joy that arises when a child excitedly uses a found stick to lop off rapeseed flowers by the roadside – it had no substantial meaning, yet it was born of pure, sincere delight.

The Deathmatch Participant in the red plaid shirt's face showed surprise, and then he began to curse, "You're fucking done for, do you know who we are..."

Slash~

Another sword, precisely piercing through the heart.

[Ding!]

[Points +2, Current Points: 19, Current Rank: 1/104]

Lu Bai had indeed intended to get some information from them.

However, he also knew that no matter how finely he chopped up the corpses, it would only mean elimination for the Deathmatch Participants.

Under these circumstances, interrogation methods like threats, intimidation, or torture were meaningless.

So, when he encountered a stubborn Deathmatch Participant, whether they were genuinely tough or just pretending, it was better to just cut them down first.