The Zombie Crowd

Zhang Tie was caught off guard and knocked to the ground by the surging Zombies.

"Bear Transformation!"

With a furious roar, black fur covered his entire body.

In the blink of an eye, he transformed into a gigantic Black Bear.

"Ugh!"

He struck out with one paw, sending a powerful gust of wind howling through the air.

Several Zombies that had just risen from the ground had their skulls smashed instantly, their brains mixed with blood and spilling across the floor.

Lin An's gaze was cold as the Nepal Curved Blade in his hand flashed rapidly.

"Arc Slash!"

The blade's radiance traced a beautiful arc, slicing through a swath of skulls under the support of immense Strength.

"Charge in!"

Lin An shouted angrily over the Team Voice Chat.

The Zombies pouring out of the elevator shaft seemed endless.

It looked like the elevator doors at the emergency center had been destroyed when the apocalypse broke out.

As a result, the Zombies near the elevator had fallen into the shaft, completely blocking it.

If the two of them stayed here, they would never be able to kill them all.

If they delayed any longer, the Zombies from other areas might come running over, and then they could forget about going upstairs.

Besides, one mistake would be enough for them to be scratched and infected by the Zombies.

Lin An would be fine. His toxin resistance could make him immune to part of the infection.

But Zhang Tie absolutely could not withstand it.

"You lead the way!"

Lin An took a step back and bent down, gathering strength.

"Understood!"

A savage expression appeared on Zhang Tie's enormous head.

He clasped his hands tightly and began charging sideways.

"Bear Charge!!"

The ground trembled slightly as Zhang Tie, transformed into a Black Bear, charged into the Zombie Crowd like a heavy truck.

It was utterly devastating.

The bone-cracking sounds that made one's teeth ache rang out without pause. The Zombies deepest in the elevator shaft were crushed directly into meat paste.

Now!

Lin An took a deep breath and stomped his right foot against the ground, launching himself into the air.

He swung his blade.

The Zombies falling inside the elevator shaft had not even touched the ground before the slash cut them in half at the waist.

"Step!"

Gathering strength again, he planted one foot on Zhang Tie's sturdy shoulder and used it to rebound into the elevator shaft.

Zhang Tie grimaced, his face turning slightly pale.

The force behind Lin An's kick had been considerable. If his Physique had not been high enough, that kick could have crushed his shoulder blade outright.

Inside the elevator shaft, Lin An repeatedly stepped off the walls and leaped upward.

Holding the blade in both hands, he attacked at high speed.

The blade flashed into an impenetrable net. Every swing claimed the life of a Zombie.

Like a factory meat grinder, it mercilessly harvested flesh.

Standing at the bottom of the shaft, Zhang Tie felt as if it were raining meat overhead.

Every so often, a few Zombies would fall with only their heads intact, opening their mouths to bite.

He simply crushed them with his hand.

"Jump upward!"

"There are too many Zombies at the lobby elevator entrance. Charge in with me!"

"Your Bear Transformation is about to end. You'll be easily infected!"

"Got it!"

Zhang Tie's expression was solemn as he bent his legs.

Both of their Talent Skills had time limits. He had only a few dozen seconds of Bear Transformation.

If not for the thick fur and reinforced skin after his transformation blocking many of the Zombies' scratches and bites,

then no matter how careful he was, he would have been infected long ago in a Zombie Crowd this dense.

Zhang Tie adjusted his stance slightly, aiming at the elevator exit on the First Floor above.

The interior of the elevator shaft was too cramped. He alone occupied more than half of the space.

He took a deep breath and suddenly exerted his strength.

The Black Bear Zhang Tie had transformed into shot upward from the bottom of the shaft like a mortar shell.

Lin An, meanwhile, planted both feet diagonally against the wall, killing Zombies as he waited for Zhang Tie to reach the optimal position.

Amid the continuous slaughter, the first activation of Strength Burst was also nearing its end.

Now!

"Strength Burst!"

Mental Strength was consumed.

Golden psychic energy appeared once more, and Lin An felt the power in his body return to its peak.

"Rebound Kick!"

He turned sideways and kicked off the inside of the elevator shaft, causing a violent tremor.

Then he spun around and kicked out!

His target was Zhang Tie, who had leaped up to the height of the First Floor exit.

"Huh!?!?"

"Fuck!"

Zhang Tie had no time to react before Lin An's kick slammed directly into his butt.

"Bang!"

Under the full force of Lin An's kick, the enormous Black Bear was sent flying from the elevator like a cannonball, crashing into the emergency lobby.

All the Zombies blocking the entrance were cleared out in one breath.

Zhang Tie flew four or five meters, his body pressing down a swath of Zombies and dragging a bloody streak across the lobby's smooth floor.

"Thud!"

After kicking, Lin An fell from the air. He performed another Rebound Kick against the elevator shaft wall and burst out with the force of the rebound.

The Zombies at the elevator entrance had already been cleared by the "cannonball," so Lin An emerged without the slightest obstruction.

"Move!"

After exiting the elevator, Lin An quickly poked his head out and scanned the surroundings.

The entire lobby was packed with Zombies. A rough count put their number at least three or four thousand!

The densely packed Zombies, crammed together like sardines in a can, had completely blocked the lobby.

They could not let themselves be surrounded!

After hearing Lin An's command, Zhang Tie hurriedly got to his feet.

Zombies crushed beneath his broad bear back were stuck to it.

"Team Leader Lin, my butt hurts!"

Zhang Tie covered his butt, but his short, thick paw could reach no farther than his lower back.

"At least tell me before you kick me!"

"I'm not a fucking ball!"

He felt a little aggrieved.

He had thought Lin An wanted him to jump to the First Floor and get stuck there, after which the two of them would work together to fight their way out.

He had never expected Lin An to use him as a cannonball to clear the way.

After taking two kicks from Lin An, he felt as if all the bones in his body were about to fall apart.

If those kicks had hit an ordinary Awakened with a lower Physique, they could have kicked him to death.

Lin An coughed dryly, signaling him not to dwell on the subject.

He had only come up with the idea of using Zhang Tie as a cannonball on the spur of the moment.

He had not expected it to work so well.

"Forget it. I won't kick you next time!"

"Let's charge into the Second Floor first!"

The Zombies in the lobby had already surrounded them.

The frenziedly howling Zombie Crowd moved extremely fast.

Thousands of Zombies charged over at once, creating an intensely shocking sight.

"My Bear Transformation is ending!"

Zhang Tie only had time to shout before his body rapidly shrank back to its normal human form.

The helmet on his head was stretched out of shape, and his clothes had been torn into rags.

"Use the Corpse Snake Spine!"

"Don't engage in close combat!"

Lin An charged straight ahead. After tossing out those words, he rushed toward the Zombie Crowd.

He was clearly only one man, yet he possessed the momentum of an entire army.

"Step Forward Slanting Slash!"

With a full-powered slash, he directly cleaved several Zombies at the front through the head.

"Arc Slash!"

The distance between the Zombie Crowd and the two of them had already been short. Once they clashed at close range, Lin An unleashed his full firepower.

The blade flashed. Empowered by immense strength, the Nepal Curved Blade swept across a wide area like a laser cutter.

"Turn Around Reverse Chop!"

His blade rose and fell. Lin An's reaction speed was astonishingly fast.

He turned around and chopped to death the Zombies closing in from behind.

Although surrounded by Zombies, Lin An stood among the Zombie Crowd like a god of slaughter. Under his frigid blade techniques, the Zombies could not advance even a step.

"Crack."

The blade rang out sharply, several chips breaking off its edge.

After repeated battles, Lin An had been pursuing one-hit kills.

Every time he swung, he aimed for the Zombies' heads.

The bones strengthened by the Zombie Virus were considerably harder than ordinary human bones.

Under the frequent collisions, a blade made of ordinary alloy could not possibly withstand such high-intensity slaughter.

"Team Leader Lin!"

"This won't do! There are too many Zombies!"

Not far away, Zhang Tie was surrounded by several hundred Zombies.

He frantically swung the Corpse Snake Spine in his hand.

Every time he attacked, the spine in his hand snapped like a whip, producing repeated sharp cracks.

The tip of the whip was extraordinarily sharp. A single lash could easily blow apart a Zombie's head.

Although he had never used a whip before, his brute force made each swing fierce and powerful.

This thing really was useful.

The more Zhang Tie used it, the more adept he became.

Compared with ordinary axes and broadswords, the Corpse Snake Spine was not only incredibly sharp, but also kept him from having to fight at close range.

If he had not had this "whip" in hand, his insufficient Agility would have left him no time to dodge after being surrounded by Zombies.

"Activate Bear Transformation again!"

Lin An's expression turned severe, and he decisively ordered Zhang Tie to activate Bear Transformation again.

There was no time to conserve it.

He had originally planned to save one transformation for the Second Floor, in case something unexpected happened.

But there were simply too many Zombies in the lobby. Even if he killed one with every slash, he could not keep up with the rate at which more Zombies flooded in.

Without Bear Transformation, Zhang Tie could not break out.

"Team Leader Lin! I can only transform into a bear one more time!"

Zhang Tie roared angrily, and his body instantly swelled.

In barely a second, a gigantic Black Bear reappeared in the lobby.

"Roar!"

The Black Bear let out an angry roar.

The beast's roar mingled with the Zombies' howls.

The slender Bone Whip looked like a toy in his hands.

Zhang Tie gripped the "Bone Whip" and lashed out violently. Every swing could smash apart a group of Zombies.

With no need to worry about Zombies getting close, his momentum was overwhelming.

In the blink of an eye, they briefly cleared out a patch of open ground.

The situation instantly improved.

However, Lin An noticed that Zhang Tie's eyes looked somewhat dim. It was a sign that his Mental Strength was running dry.

Compared with Lin An's Strength Burst, Zhang Tie's Bear Transformation consumed considerably more Mental Strength.

On top of that, his Willpower Attribute was not very high to begin with.

As a result, being able to use Bear Transformation twice in one day was his limit.

If only Wen Ya could join the battle now.

Lin An let out a sigh.

With her uniqueness as a Mutant,

she alone could fully replenish the Mental Strength of both Lin An and Zhang Tie.

Without having to worry about Mental Strength consumption, the two of them could even slowly grind this Zombie Crowd to death.

Unfortunately, she was not an Awakened One yet. She was far too weak to participate in a battle like this.

Lin An thought of the Stitcher at Wanda Shopping Center. The number of Zombies there would only be greater than here, never fewer.

When facing a massive number of Zombies, replenishing Mental Strength was crucial to the battle.

It seemed that after retrieving the equipment, he would have to resolve Wen Ya's awakening as soon as possible.

It was far too wasteful to have a Mutant and not make use of her.

"Get ready to charge together!"

After activating Bear Transformation, Zhang Tie smoothly reunited with Lin An, and the two fought side by side.

After a continuous slaughter, they were now only a dozen or so meters from the second floor.

"3!"

"2!"

"1!"

Lin An took a deep breath and shot forward like an arrow released from a bow.

"Staggered Step Slash!"

The blade light interwove into a dense net of death, instantly shredding a large swath of Zombies in front of him.

The Black Bear beside him also let out an enraged roar before charging into the Zombie Crowd at any cost, crushing out a bloody path.