Hunting Time!

At the entrance of Fujin Hall.

As the gap in the side door closed and the sound of tables and chairs being moved echoed from within, Lin Yi took the lead, walking at the very front of the group.

Chen Yu gripped his phone tightly, his face a mixture of nervousness and excitement, as he followed behind Lin Yi.

Zhou Jianjun, meanwhile, held a table leg as a short club in one hand and a makeshift shield fashioned from a chair seat and cloth strips in the other, standing guard at the rear of the group.

"You two stay by the spiral staircase on the second floor."

Lin Yi's voice was extremely low. "A Yu, find a spot with a clear view to set up the phone. Record the whole thing, keep the frame steady, and focus on the combat movements and the monsters' reactions. Uncle, protect A Yu. If any stragglers get up here, just hold them off until I can provide support."

Chen Yu nodded vigorously, gave a signal that he understood, and then crouched down to hide behind a large vase against the wall on the other side of the spiral staircase.

The view from there was excellent; with just a single step to the side, one could overlook the entire First Floor Hall and most of the small plaza in front of the entrance.

Zhou Jianjun raised the shield in his hand to show he understood. He gave Lin Yi a deep look before following Chen Yu.

Lin Yi remained alone at the entrance of the spiral staircase. He didn't rush downstairs, but instead quietly poked half his head out to take a quick scan.

"One... is gnawing on a corpse, further inside... the other is on guard at the door. It must be the one that slipped away earlier; it looks like it's acting as a sentry."

"Even Abyss Beasts have to play errand boy when they lack a proper formation..."

He muttered a silent complaint to himself.

"I have two uses of Source Energy Projection left... one reserved for the one that tries to run at the end, and one for error correction. That's enough."

Lin Yi reviewed his tactics in his mind, then held his breath.

As his Source Energy quietly circulated through his body, he precisely controlled his strength, suppressing every sound that might give him away. Then, like a weightless shadow, he hugged the wall and quietly snuck down to the first floor.

Stepping silently over the last few stairs, Lin Yi quickly flashed into the shadows on the side of the First Floor Hall, sweeping his gaze across the chaotic room.

Overturned tables and chairs, shattered glass, large patches of dried, blackened blood, and... a Corrosive Abyss Wolf with its back to him, gorging itself on a mangled corpse.

The beast was eating with intense focus, its thick tail twitching unconsciously, the tip of its bony tail, coated in viscous fluid, occasionally brushing against the floor.

But Lin Yi ignored it, instead fixing his gaze on the position closer to the shattered entrance.

There, another Abyss Wolf was half-crouched, its murky, dark red eyes scanning the street outside vigilantly, its ears twitching from time to time to catch the distant sounds of gunfire and explosions.

Outside the door, diagonally opposite, the Purple-black Vortex pulsed slowly like a giant heart. Not only was its color deeper than when it first appeared, but dark red veins were also pulsing rhythmically along its edges.

Near the vortex, about forty Corrosive Abyss Wolves drifted about like scattered dark green reefs, moving in groups of three to five.

Some were gnawing on corpses by the roadside, some were anxiously clawing at the ground, and others were letting out low growls at the faint sounds of gunfire and artillery in the distance.

They appeared disorganized, but based on his experience from his past life, Lin Yi could tell at a glance that these wolves were roughly divided into six or seven small groups. Each group guarded the entrance to a building or a vehicle wreck that might contain survivors, like experienced hunters patiently waiting for their prey to break down or reveal a flaw.

There seemed to be many of them, but Lin Yi wasn't worried that it would affect his upcoming actions.

This was because these small groups each had their own tasks and wouldn't easily support one another. On the contrary, if this small squad at the door were wiped out, the nearby Abyss Wolves wouldn't even come close for a while.

Of course, the next time the Abyss Beasts came, it would be a full-scale assault with concentrated troops after they had finished clearing out other areas.

Therefore, compared to the other groups of Abyss Wolves nearby, Lin Yi was more concerned about the state of the Abyss Beast Nest.

"It has already started gestating a Giant Rock Abyss Bear. It looks like the nest is already preparing for the upcoming siege..."

The Giant Rock Abyss Bear was an Elite Unit, second only to the nest leader that a Miniature Nest could produce. With thick skin, sturdy flesh, and astonishing strength, it was almost immune to attacks from light firearms and was one of the toughest nuts to crack in the early stages.

Lin Yi's expression was grave. Although he was here at Hongfu Tower and safety wasn't an issue, the same couldn't be said for where other survivors were hiding.

At the very least, that bus not far away, which clearly contained people, definitely wouldn't be able to withstand a charge from a Giant Rock Abyss Bear.

"I need to speed things up... clear this small squad at the door first to create a temporary safe zone, then find a way to take down this nest."

Thinking this, Lin Yi crouched slightly, lowered his footsteps, and kept close to the wall and the wreckage of an overturned sofa, quietly closing in on the Abyss Wolf that was gnawing on the corpse with its back to him.

Five meters... three meters...

The Abyss Wolf seemed to sense something; it suddenly stopped eating, its nostrils flared, and it looked as if it were about to turn its head.

In that very instant, Lin Yi erupted into motion!

He didn't waste a single movement. His left foot stomped hard, and as he lunged, he gripped his Black Iron Long Staff tightly. As his Source Energy flowed, the staff tore through the air with a dull whistle, precisely stabbing toward the side of the wolf's neck.

Squelch!

The staff pierced nearly halfway through, almost exiting the other side.

The massive body of the Abyss Wolf stiffened violently, and before it could even let out a whimper, it collapsed dead onto the corpse it had been eating.

Almost simultaneously, the Abyss Wolf on guard inside the door was alerted.

It whipped its head around, its blood-red eyes instantly locking onto Lin Yi's figure and its fallen companion, and it immediately lunged at Lin Yi with a short, angry howl.

"Awoo!!"

However, the howl was cut short.

Because Lin Yi was faster.

After killing the first one, he didn't stop his momentum. Using the force of his forward lunge, he stomped and changed direction. While continuing to rush forward, he pulled out his staff, twisted his body, and imitated the "Mountain Crushing Spin"—a move from the Dark Great Sage that required extremely high coordination—swinging the staff in a heavy arc and smashing it fiercely into the head of the incoming Abyss Wolf.

Crack!

The howling came to an abrupt halt.

This Sentry Abyssal Wolf, which had slipped away last time, ultimately could not escape its fate at the hands of Lin Yi.

Its skull deformed instantly as if struck by a heavy hammer. Its massive body was sent flying sideways, slamming heavily against the wall before sliding to the floor. Red and white fluids slowly oozed from its shattered cranium, and its neck was twisted at a grotesque angle; it was clearly dead.

"Awoo?!"

The very moment this Sentry Abyssal Wolf perished, the five Abyssal Wolves on the street outside, already alerted by that half-stifled howl, erupted into furious roars like ignited powder kegs!

They transformed into five dark green hurricanes of death, lunging through the shattered main entrance and the adjacent windows, instantly splitting into a formation of three in front and two behind.

The leading three formed a triangle, baring their fangs and flashing their cold, sharp claws as they pounced on Lin Yi from the front and both sides.

The two in the rear attempted to skirt the edge of the battlefield, cutting off any potential retreat for Lin Yi.

Beside a vase on the second-floor spiral staircase, Chen Yu held his breath, his phone camera locked firmly on the scene below, his palms slick with cold sweat.

Meanwhile, Zhou Jianjun's eyes were filled with worry. He gripped his shield and short baton, his body coiled like a taut bow, gritting his teeth as he prepared to rush down to provide support at any moment.