Chapter Thirteen: Leading the Exploration

Chapter Thirteen: Leading the Exploration

Lu Yuanming ignored the pained expressions on everyone's faces.

In the end, the group was split into two Exploration Teams. Lu Yuanming would lead one himself, while John would lead the other. Lu Yuanming also spent two more Colorless Light Particles to create bullets, leaving him with just one final Colorless Light Particle as his trump card.

When condensing the bullets, Lu Yuanming had intended for them to match the power of the original bullets for the two guns. One Colorless Light Particle produced twenty-one Rifle Bullets, while another produced fifty-six Pistol Bullets. Lu Yuanming was so upset he could have cried. Just how stupid had he been back then to waste several Colorless Light Particles?

Regardless, the teams were ready. Lu Yuanming's team had four members: Father Edward, the psychologist Cthulhu, and the slightly chubby man, Peter Gale, a former school janitor, in addition to Lu Yuanming himself. The other team consisted of John, Tom, Martha Julian, a tutor from an aristocratic family, and Ang, a university student.

When the teams were being assigned, everyone unanimously refused to let Tom join Lu Yuanming's team. Their rejection was so obvious that Tom couldn't even get a word out.

Lu Yuanming didn't mind. Once they opened the vault, he and John rushed out through the door and immediately saw the devastation around them. The walls and corridors, which had only been slightly aged and damaged before, had now been almost completely reduced to ruins. There were also numerous scratches on the vault's metal walls. One in particular dug at least five millimeters into the metal, and was far longer and wider than the others. It had clearly been left by the ten-meter-long Man-faced Dog.

Its strength was terrifying. Leaving claw marks five millimeters deep in a Pure Alloy wall put it well beyond the realm of ordinary or even ferocious beasts.

Everyone felt their hearts sink, but at least they had only found one monster that powerful so far. Unless they were extremely unlucky, its enormous size meant they would spot it in advance and be able to avoid it.

Lu Yuanming didn't say much more. They had already discussed as many possible situations as they could while in the vault. His team set out first, with John's team following close behind. Both men had guns, which gave them the confidence to explore outside.

Once the eight members of the two teams had left, the others immediately closed the vault. Only the children and women remained inside, and they had no way to fight back against the monsters.

When they reached the area outside the bank, Lu Yuanming looked at the psychologist, Cthulhu. Cthulhu promptly said, "Sir, please follow me. I know this area fairly well. There's a large supermarket and a Boutique Supermarket nearby, as well as some Small Shops along the way. We should be able to find food and Fresh Water in them, but this area is mostly broad avenues and tall buildings. If we run into monsters, it'll be hard to hide."

Lu Yuanming had already made up his mind. Searching for supplies was real, and so was killing monsters. "We'll stick to the plan and keep moving forward. We need to kill these monsters, and search for supplies and other people. If we kill one, we can try cutting meat from its Dog Hindquarters. I'll taste it first. If it's edible, the rest of you can eat it too. That'll give us another source of food."

Everyone was startled, while Father Edward was already weeping and murmuring about the Lord's Mercy.

Lu Yuanming couldn't be bothered to respond. He dared to say he'd taste it first because he could return to his Original Body every seventy-two hours. Even if he were poisoned or cursed, he didn't need to worry. Just think of how he'd returned last time with almost his entire lower body missing. He had lost so much blood, bone, and flesh, yet his body had healed perfectly. Clearly, the flesh had an extraordinary connection to the soul.

Lu Yuanming said nothing. He followed behind Cthulhu, with Father Edward and Peter the janitor trailing them.

As they walked, Peter suddenly said, "Lord, I have a suggestion that's difficult to bring up."

"Call me by my name. And you can speak freely. We're comrades standing side by side now, so there's no need to be so formal," Lu Yuanming replied.

Peter looked troubled, while Father Edward regarded him as if every rebel in the world were out to harm the Lord. Peter had no choice but to say, "Lord, have you ever used a firearm before?"

"No, never. This Pistol belonged to the White Police Officer who framed me. He's dead now, so I took it."

Peter spoke earnestly. "Lord, my father trained me to use firearms from the time I was little. He often took me hunting. I've hunted deer, wolves, and bears, and I'm quite skilled with guns. If you trust me, could you let me use the Pistol? I'll protect you and uphold Your Kingdom."

Lu Yuanming hesitated for a moment. Father Edward immediately snarled, "Peter, what are you trying to do? Do you want to take the Lord's weapon? Are you trying to betray Him?"

Peter waved his hands in alarm, trembling all over. Lu Yuanming, who had only hesitated briefly, turned the Pistol around and offered Peter the grip. "Then our safety is in your hands."

Peter was initially stunned. Then his eyes widened, and tears appeared in them. He bowed deeply and said, "Lord, I will uphold Your Kingdom and bring it down to earth, just as it is in heaven!"

Father Edward opened his mouth as if to say something, but seeing Lu Yuanming's calm expression, he felt both moved and helpless. He could only keep walking with the group.

The psychologist, Cthulhu, had watched the whole exchange. He had been trying to analyze Lu Yuanming using his knowledge, because he both hoped Lu Yuanming really was the Messiah and wanted to expose him as a fraud. But as time passed, he realized that Lu Yuanming had actually been honest about everything. Perhaps he had kept a few personal details to himself, but judging by his words, actions, and expression, Lu Yuanming seemed to hold nothing back. Cthulhu couldn't have imagined it.

And Lu Yuanming's hesitation just now hadn't been because he was worried about what Peter might do with the gun. Based on the information Cthulhu had analyzed, it seemed more likely that Lu Yuanming had something else on his mind.

Lu Yuanming's reasoning was simple. He was worried that if he didn't kill a monster himself, he wouldn't absorb the White Light Particles it left behind. But given the situation, ammunition was limited, and he had to use everything wisely while ensuring they could keep going. So even if he couldn't obtain the White Light Particles from a monster's death, he had decided to give Peter the Pistol. The slightly chubby man hadn't abandoned two children even in the midst of such desperation. He wouldn't abandon Lu Yuanming, who trusted him, without reason.

The group traveled in silence. The surrounding buildings, shops, and roads were all ruined and dilapidated. When they passed two buildings that looked like convenience stores, they found nothing inside but broken furniture. Everyone grew even more dejected, but fortunately, Lu Yuanming was the group's mainstay. They continued on toward the large supermarket.

Just as they were about to reach it, everyone suddenly heard the clamor of a crowd up ahead, along with screams and all kinds of chaotic noises. They exchanged looks, then hurried toward the sounds.

Lu Yuanming saw an open area ahead. In front of a battered large supermarket, in what seemed to be a parking lot, more than a hundred people were in utter disarray.

A swarm of human-sized spiders, grotesque and terrifying in appearance, was attacking them. After paralyzing their victims with venomous stingers, the spiders immediately wrapped their bodies in white Spider Silk, then turned to attack the others. There were at least thirty of them.

Among the hundred or so people, a small number were carrying Metal Rods or Rebar Concrete Sticks and attacking the spiders with bloodshot eyes. Most, however, were running around in every direction or fleeing outright. The brave ones couldn't form a line or organize themselves at all, allowing the spiders to thrive in the chaos. They kept attacking people and wrapping them into white bundles.

That was the scene Lu Yuanming and his group encountered. The others all looked to him, and Lu Yuanming didn't hesitate. "Attack the spiders. Father Edward, please calm down the people who are fleeing. Doctor Cthulhu, help him."

The scene at the supermarket was utter chaos, and no one noticed Lu Yuanming's group arrive. Then a gunshot rang out. A faint white streak cut through the air, and a bullet pierced the mouthparts of a spider that was about to pounce on the crowd. It fell to the ground, thrashing violently, then gradually went still.

Lu Yuanming saw a cluster of White Light Particles, about half as much as the Man-faced Dog had left behind. As before, one-tenth of the particles drifted toward him and merged into his body.

Everyone caught in the chaos instinctively looked over. Peter fired again, and a second spider's mouthparts were pierced.

After that shot, the chaotic crowd broke into cheers and sobs, and footsteps rushed toward Lu Yuanming's team.