Women

Philip did not even look at it. He raised his sturdy boot and crushed the living corpse's head, which had rolled to his feet. One of its eyeballs shot out and rolled feebly across the ground.

Seeing their leader charge into battle, the members of Tiger Squad were fired up as well. With a roar, they stormed into the hall to fight alongside their captain.

The stinking blood and bits of flesh from the living corpses quickly stained their bodies dark green, but not one of them flinched. They focused on cutting down every living corpse that lunged at them!

If they let their guard down for even a moment and one of the living corpses climbed on top of them, its immense strength and sharp claws would tear them to pieces just as easily.

Meanwhile, Falcon Squad wasn't idle outside the entrance. They raised the firearms they were best at using and, with precise marksmanship, blew the heads off the living corpses that tried to sneak up behind Tiger Squad as they fought inside!

The mercenaries carrying Gatling guns were especially effective. They unleashed a metal storm of bullets, shredding every living corpse in their path!

As for Xia Leng, he watched the bloody battle with cold eyes from start to finish.

He still hadn't joined the fight because he was afraid the Blacklight Virus inside him wouldn't be able to resist the "delicious temptation" of the living corpses and would devour them right in front of everyone...

He could already imagine the looks on their faces...

Besides, Xia Leng's target wasn't these common living corpses. It was the Living Corpse King, which might be upstairs, directing the horde to ambush them!

He had to save every last bit of his strength for the unknown, powerful enemy he might soon encounter!

Before long, after a fierce battle, the hundreds of mutated living corpses lurking on the hall ceiling had been wiped out.

But the mercenary force had paid a terrible price as well. Six mercenaries had been torn apart until not a trace of them remained, and dozens more had suffered injuries ranging from minor to severe.

The worst off had lost his entire shoulder and a third of his body. His organs had spilled out, yet he was still alive, letting out pained howls...

Captain Gilbert silently walked up to his wounded squad member, drew a large-caliber pistol from his jacket, and aimed it at the man's contorted face.

The squad member looked at his captain with pleading eyes, hoping he would put him out of his misery.

Bang!!

A wisp of smoke rose from the muzzle, and the grievously wounded man finally stopped struggling...

"All right. We're moving upstairs. Everyone, stay on high alert."

After holstering his pistol, the two captains, Gilbert and Philip, continued to lead the way up the stairs.

The hall was now covered not only with the corpses of the mutated living corpses, but also with the gray crystals that had spilled from their skulls. Each one would fetch a hefty price if sold to the refugees who needed them to buy entry into the Fortress.

Yet none of the mercenaries stopped to pick up these valuable crystals. They silently followed their two captains up the stairs.

Their strict training meant they never did anything unrelated to the battlefield.

Xia Leng had no intention of claiming the crystals for himself either. He was beginning to sense that familiar, dangerous presence gradually emerging once again!

The group climbed the stairs with cautious steps. Two mercenaries carrying spotlights led the way, making sure every corner of each landing was thoroughly lit so no living corpse could hide there and ambush them.

Captain Philip walked beside the spotlights, personally protecting these "sources of life."

No one knew which floor of the building the boss was on. Every floor was spacious and crawling with living corpses. Their howls echoed through the building, tormenting everyone's nerves.

If they had to search every floor carefully for the so-called Living Corpse King, half an hour would pass before they had climbed even a few stories.

"Don't you know exactly where that Living Corpse King is? If we keep searching aimlessly, when are we ever going to find it?"

Gilbert saw the problem too and turned to ask Xia Leng.

Xia Leng half-closed his eyes, focusing all his energy on his senses as he tried to detect that elusive, dangerous presence.

In truth, danger surrounded them on all sides here. The roars of thousands upon thousands of living corpses filled their ears.

But Xia Leng could filter out such irrelevant sounds and search for that faint clue.

He had already discovered that he could freely direct the power of the Blacklight Virus within him, strengthening any part of his body at will—including his Blacklight senses.

"Keep going up. It's not on this floor."

Xia Leng replied quietly. His face betrayed no emotion, not even fear. He was like a cold machine.

The two captains couldn't read his mind, much less figure out how he knew the Living Corpse King wasn't on this floor. They even began to suspect he might be a spy sent by an enemy faction, trying to drag them all to their deaths...

But they had come this far, and there was nothing else they could do. If they had known the journey would be so difficult, they would have prepared much more thoroughly beforehand.

They could only blame themselves for underestimating their enemy, assuming they were up against nothing more than mindless walking corpses with no organization, capable only of attacking with their bodies.

So they had no choice but to follow Xia Leng's advice and continue upstairs.

The walls of every corridor were covered in horrifying bloody handprints. It was easy to imagine the desperation of people fleeing upstairs as living corpses chased them, until they were trapped with nowhere left to run.

The group had already climbed about ten floors without stopping. Nearly ten minutes had passed, and everyone was under immense mental and physical strain, while the Living Corpse King's whereabouts remained a mystery.

"Wuuuu..."

Suddenly, as they reached the eleventh floor, all the deafening roars vanished. In their place came the sound of several women crying!

Their sobs were so mournful that everyone felt a wave of sorrow and desolation—and a shiver ran down their spines!

"Damn it! Which idiot's crying? What a coward!"

Captain Philip cursed angrily.

"It's not anyone from our squad. Do you think we have women in our squad?" Gilbert said helplessly...

Just then, the two mercenaries carrying the spotlights at the front saw something incredibly strange!

Beneath the light ahead, they saw several women sitting on the stairs leading up from the eleventh floor, their backs turned to the group!

They sat slumped on the floor, their bodies twitching slightly. The eerie sobbing was coming from them!!!