The Zombie Tide

Is this a deliberate lure? Lu Yin's eyes narrowed, hoping he was overthinking it.

After the incident with Kang Dafeng, everyone's nerves were even more taut.

A day later, the convoy stopped beside an abandoned toll station. Their mission had begun; this section of the road was damaged and needed repair.

"Report, combat detected five miles out. Five Evolvers are being surrounded by Mutant Beasts," a soldier reported.

Lu Yin ordered a rescue.

Half an hour later, the five Evolvers were brought back. They were five men, all in disarray, their clothes tattered, and they looked hungry.

Lu Yin didn't order food to be given to them. Those who dared to venture into the wilderness to hunt Mutant Beasts had to be prepared for death. Lu Yin wasn't a saint, and the army's food wasn't free. If worse came to worst, there were Mutant Rats everywhere they could eat.

The five Evolvers were quarantined outside the toll station, watching the army open fire with envious eyes. After a while, one of the Evolvers requested to see Lu Yin.

Lu Yin stood on the roof of the toll station, surveying the surroundings.

Below, the Evolver, his face pale, said, "Sir, could you please give us some food? We can exchange it for information."

Lu Yin looked at the Evolver. "Speak."

"Will you give us food if we tell you?" the Evolver asked hopefully.

Lu Yin said coldly, "Are you bargaining with me?"

The Evolver's expression changed. "No, no, we wouldn't dare," he stammered. He continued, "Actually, we brought enough food with us, but it was stolen yesterday by a Heaven Rank expert wearing silver-white armor."

Lu Yin's gaze flickered. "Continue."

The Evolver swallowed, his throat dry, but he continued, "Around Jinling, there's only Lord Saint of Punishment Zhou Shan as a Heaven Rank expert, but that person can fly. I suspect it was because of the armor. After stealing our food, that person was about to kill us to silence us, but like a madman, he started talking to himself and flew excitedly towards the east."

Lu Yin knew these people had encountered Aoton. Talking to himself? He must have been using his personal terminal to communicate. Could he have contacted other students who had landed? This was not good. It was already difficult for Zhou Shan to repel Aoton. If other students intervened, Zhou Shan might not be able to hold on.

"Give them some food," Lu Yin commanded, then sat down and looked up at the starry sky.

What was he worried about? Jinling? Or those survivors? He was still an outsider, not a native of Earth. In essence, he was like Asta and the others, but his time living on Earth had made him gradually accept this new identity.

He only had two and a half years of memories; his past was a blank slate. Of those two and a half years, the majority were spent on Earth. Earth could be considered his home.

Lu Yin took a deep breath. It was a pity he wasn't an ultimate expert and couldn't save Earth, but he could save some people within his capabilities.

With that thought, Lu Yin connected to Zhou Shan's communicator and told him his suspicions about Aoton.

Zhou Shan said gravely, "I understand. Repair the communication lines as soon as possible. I need to know how the others are doing. Those students are not simple."

Lu Yin hung up the communicator. Others? The other six Saints?

"I hope Liu Shaoge doesn't die. Otherwise, who will I get revenge on?" Lu Yin muttered coldly to himself.

That night, the sky was covered by dark clouds, and there was no starlight.

Lu Yin was quite disappointed and slept in the armored vehicle.

In the middle of the night, a startled cry woke everyone.

"Boss, a zombie horde! We've found a zombie horde!" Xu San shouted anxiously.

Lu Yin got out of the armored vehicle and jumped onto the roof of the toll station to look. On the dark ground, countless wandering zombies were approaching from all directions.

"Everyone activate your defenses immediately and throw out lit torches!" Luo Yun shouted.

Soon, the zombie horde began to assault the toll station. The ground was set ablaze as countless flaming objects were hurled onto the ground. Flames burned, and waves of heat washed over them.

"Be careful not to let the flames get close to the toll station, or you'll all be burned!" Luo Yun yelled.

Machine guns strafed in all directions. The normally silent night was filled with earth-shattering sounds.

Nearly ten thousand soldiers fought on the outermost perimeter, slaughtering zombies. When the machine gun bullets ran out, they resorted to steel knives. From time to time, soldiers were scratched or even dragged into the zombie horde, disappearing in an instant. The five rescued Evolvers watched the scene in horror. This was how the army fought, and the brutality far exceeded their imagination.

Luo Yun wielded her steel knife. An Earth-level expert was not comparable to an ordinary Evolver. With one slash, her sharp energy could tear apart a dozen zombies. Although she was a bit timid, she fought bravely.

Lu Yin also wielded his iron staff, charging into the zombie horde. Often, one sweep of his staff would clear a large area.

The best way to deal with such a zombie horde was actually with firearms, but unfortunately, Jinling had too few remaining firearms. If those armories hadn't been destroyed, and missiles had swept through the area, no amount of zombies would have been enough to kill.

As Lu Yin slaughtered zombies, his waist communicator crackled with panicked voices, "Boss, the southwest direction is about to collapse."

Lu Yin was startled. He leaped up, stepping on zombie heads, and charged towards the southwest. Indeed, countless soldiers were being slaughtered there. What was going on?

"Boss, there's a strange zombie that's very powerful. Even a Human Level captain can't stop it," Xu San reported. He had been observing from a high vantage point.

Lu Yin landed on the ground and aimed at the intersection of soldiers and zombies. He swung his iron staff down fiercely. The visible slash cut through the air, tearing through the atmosphere and ripping open the ground, killing dozens of zombies at once and creating a clear dividing line on the ground.

Within the dividing line, countless soldiers retreated, looking ahead in fear. Just moments ago, no less than fifty of them had died.

With a clang, the iron staff in Lu Yin's hand snapped in two.

As Lu Yin's strength increased, the iron staff could no longer withstand his attacks.

"Commander of Ten Thousand, be careful!" someone exclaimed.

All around, tides of zombies surged, their numbers uncountable, at least a hundred thousand, covering the mountains and plains.

Lu Yin circulated the Heavenly Star Art on his body. Star Energy formed waves of energy that rippled outwards, leaving a ten-meter radius empty. All zombies were repelled, except for one long-haired zombie, which withstood Lu Yin's energy impact and stood firmly on the ground, staring intently at Lu Yin.

"Boss, it's him. He killed many soldiers," Xu San's voice came from the communicator.

Lu Yin looked at the zombie in front of him in surprise. This was definitely not an ordinary zombie. This zombie had intelligence.

Zombies gaining intelligence, a fantasy, but it actually happened.

Lu Yin stared in surprise at the zombie less than two meters away. Its pair of scarlet eyes didn't feel dull, but thoughtful; this zombie was thinking.

Before Lu Yin could think more, the long-haired zombie lunged forward, claws extended, aiming to grab him.

Lu Yin dodged. The claw wind grazed past, tearing apart a zombie ten meters away.

Earth Rank strength, far exceeding Kang Dafeng and Luo Yun, comparable to Zhao Yu.

Lu Yin closely watched the long-haired zombie's attack trajectory. It had a pattern; though chaotic, it was airtight. If he hadn't seen it with his own eyes, Lu Yin would never have believed that his attacker was a zombie.

After several failed attacks, the long-haired zombie let out a low growl, turned, and fled.

Lu Yin stared at the white threads on the long-haired zombie's back. What was this? Spider silk? Suddenly, Lu Yin remembered his guess from earlier that day: this zombie had lured Kang Dafeng to that building. This zombie definitely had intelligence.

Lu Yin had no time to think further. He forcefully threw the half-broken iron rod, piercing the air and embedding it into the long-haired zombie's abdomen. The long-haired zombie roared, turned its head to glare at Lu Yin, and then fled south.

The surrounding zombie horde suddenly roared, as if provoked, and all blocked in front of Lu Yin.

Lu Yin shouted, "Xu San, tell me that zombie's location."

Xu San's voice came through the walkie-talkie, "Boss, he turned a hundred meters away, heading west, the same road we came from."

Lu Yin's leg muscles tensed, and his body vanished. In his place, a wisp of afterimage was swallowed by countless zombies.

Xu San watched this scene in shock. Was this a Battle Skill? It was too incredible.

Lu Yin broke through the zombie horde's encirclement at full speed, chasing along the path they came, but the long-haired zombie's trace was gone.

"Boss, I can't see him anymore," Xu San said.

Lu Yin stopped in his tracks, his back to the toll station. He took out his personal terminal to test his combat power. The terminal flickered non-stop. There were many combat power readings nearby, all from surrounding Mutant Beasts. However, one combat power was very strong, nine hundred and ninety, already reaching the peak of Earth Rank. It must be that long-haired zombie.

Lu Yin followed the direction indicated by his personal terminal. As long as that long-haired zombie was dealt with, the zombie horde should end. If he wasn't mistaken, that zombie was likely the Zombie King. It was he who commanded the zombie horde's encirclement, and it was he who wanted to eliminate their army. Kang Dafeng was just the first.