The Team

Wu Ji could hardly believe what the man before him had just said.

His gaze flicked discreetly toward Qiu Ti's position behind them, then he held the blade horizontally in front of Zhou Zhi.

Zhou Zhi thought the man in front of him at least knew how to hold a scalpel properly.

"You little bug, you haven't pathogenized yet?"

Wu Ji's voice was icy. "Then you can die."

The blade swept across.

Zhou Zhi didn't hesitate in the slightest. He simply watched the man before him, calm and still.

Wu Ji's Plague-Slaying Blade stopped just before Zhou Zhi's eyes.

"That fellow Qiu Ti has already gone mad. That much is obvious."

Zhou Zhi pursed his lips and gestured toward the scars on Wu Ji's face.

"Following him won't get you anywhere."

"I'm sure you still have family in Xuanyuan. Embracing the Pestilence alongside this madman... What kind of joke is that?"

Zhou Zhi's voice gradually turned cold.

"Even if you succeed, your life will be over afterward, Mr. Wu Ji."

"I don't believe this is the life you planned for yourself."

A shadow flickered through Wu Ji's eyes.

"Enough nonsense."

"You should just die."

Zhou Zhi didn't care.

Wu Ji's Plague-Slaying Blade hadn't advanced a hair.

"Killing me won't do you any good. Qiu Ti certainly won't reward you for it."

Zhou Zhi spoke softly. "I'm just an ordinary person. In an environment like this, even if you don't kill me, sooner or later I'll pathogenize and become a [Mucus Man]."

"But if you don't kill me, you'll benefit."

Wu Ji fell silent, waiting for the man in front of him to continue.

Zhou Zhi coughed, making Wu Ji take a step back.

"I've already notified Chen Yao's family on the outside. Most importantly, I contacted her [older brother]."

At that, Wu Ji's pupils widened!

The fingers gripping his blade began to tremble.

"You mean..."

Zhou Zhi lowered his head. "[That person]."

Zhou Zhi didn't actually know what kind of person this "person" was, but that didn't stop him from borrowing the tiger's skin to scare people.

"You know who I mean."

Wu Ji's hand trembled.

"Now, Mr. Wu Ji, you have two choices. Both are good ones."

Zhou Zhi had already seen into Wu Ji's heart.

That fragile heart, born and raised in an ivory tower.

"First, help me take Qiu Ti down. Then I can testify that he coerced you, and that you endured the humiliation while biding your time."

"Second."

Zhou Zhi paused to make sure Wu Ji heard every word.

"If that person—or some other rescue team—doesn't come, you can still play the loyal follower of Qiu Ti and deal with me later."

"If I accuse you in front of Qiu Ti, he won't believe me."

By then, Wu Ji had lowered his Plague-Slaying Blade.

"This [blade] isn't bad."

Zhou Zhi spoke flatly.

"Who are you?"

After a moment's silence, Wu Ji looked at the man before him.

The man in front of him had been following Yu Jinhai earlier. He should've been nothing more than an ordinary person.

Yet now, even in such a terrifying situation, he was still able to remain this calm.

"Just call me Zhou Zhi."

Zhou Zhi smiled. "Do you have any Epidemic Prevention Suits like yours?"

Wu Ji's expression didn't change. He pointed behind the operating room. "Behind that curtain is Qiu Ti's storage room for Epidemic Prevention Suits. Most of them are ordinary suits, though, and they can only slow pathogenization to a limited extent."

Zhou Zhi nodded. "That'll do."

Clearly, in some respects, Zhou Zhi and this young Medical Student had reached an understanding.

But to Zhou Zhi, that was only natural.

A man like Wu Ji was obviously a star student at the Medical Academy.

Since Xuanyuan had made its name with the Plague Extermination Art, how could it possibly tolerate its Plague Exterminators embracing the power of the Pestilence?

Unless Wu Ji was truly backed into a corner, there was no way he would follow Qiu Ti with unquestioning loyalty.

Zhou Zhi watched Wu Ji's retreating figure.

And he'd gotten some news from Wu Ji.

Some good news.

"Actually, I sent a message to the outside world a day ago."

"The Pestilence can even pathogenize signals, so communications are extremely unreliable."

"But I did receive a reply from the outside this morning."

"They should be able to break through the Pestilence Zone's miasma."

"I can let you know that much."

Zhou Zhi mulled over the information.

Just as he thought.

To Wu Ji, he was only a backup plan, too.

How could Wu Ji have developed anything like loyalty toward Qiu Ti in just one short week?

Excellent.

That was very good news.

Zhou Zhi narrowed his eyes.

But Wu Ji was still a major problem.

Qiu Ti's goal was to pathogenize those Medical Students and turn them into controllable Mucus Man Vanguards. So how had Zhu Xie, the Medical Student from the first floor, ended up dead?

Zhou Zhi was more inclined to think that Wu Ji had killed him.

If Qiu Ti really was suppressed by the Plague Extermination Corps, he'd probably kill Yu Jinhai and Zhou Zhi as well, to preserve his reputation.

"But that's not a big problem."

Zhou Zhi took out an Epidemic Prevention Suit and put it on.

[Inferior Protective Suit].

[Pathogenization Index: 8.67 percent].

[The upper right side bears the insignia of Blue Stone Town Central Hospital].

[Can slow the onset of pathogenization to a very small degree].

[This piece of trash might be useful as a rag].

[The Epidemic Prevention Suit is currently in good condition].

Not bad.

Zhou Zhi repeated the thought to himself.

He picked up the Plague-Slaying Blade and hid off to one side.

The situation was much clearer than before.

At least two teams were coming to the rescue.

Zhou Zhi didn't know what kind of world this was, but at the very least, he thought someone on the outside should have realized that the pathogenization in Blue Stone Town had happened a week ago.

"Plague Exterminators..."

Zhou Zhi pondered in a low voice.

Next, perhaps he'd finally get to see the world's true battle against the Pestilence—and its real system of combat power.

Outside Blue Stone Town.

A team of more than a dozen people dressed in white finally appeared.

They were all dressed alike.

The two men at the front each carried a rectangular [Blade Case] in their right hand.

"The signal came from here."

"As expected, an unknown pathogenization event has occurred."

"The headquarters of the [Disease Prevention and Control Center]—what a bunch of useless drunkards."

The man in front looked thin, with hollow cheeks.

"He Qi, be careful."

The other man was a little taller, with a wider space between his eyes.

"Relax. It's probably just some third-rate incident."

The man called He Qi chuckled.

"A waste to send two official Plague Exterminators like us."

He reached out and opened the Blade Case.

Spiritual power surged.

The team members behind them looked on with reverence.

"Let's take care of it quickly and head back."

He Qi said with a wide grin.

The Pestilence miasma thickened, then split open to form a passage.