The Operation Continued

"Stop! You idiots."

Zhang Xiaoyuan hurriedly stopped his men. Other than wasting bullets, it would have had no effect at all.

Besides.

He had already noticed that Lin Dong had vanished, as if he had evaporated into thin air.

A powerful sense of unease gripped his heart.

An eerie feeling rose within him.

"Where did he go?"

Yet the very next second, that tall figure appeared again. But unlike before, Lin Dong had somehow entered the room directly!

"Fuck!"

Everyone's eyes widened in disbelief. Some even rubbed their eyes, suspecting they had seen wrong.

"How... how did he get in here?"

"What the hell is going on? Damn it! Is this a ghost?"

"He's not a zombie. He... he's a ghost!"

"..."

Everyone's hair stood on end like frightened cats.

Overwhelmed by terror.

Someone instinctively raised his gun, about to pull the trigger.

But Lin Dong had already unleashed his Zombie King Domain. An immense pressure descended, and everyone felt as if they were carrying a mountain on their backs, their bodies instantly frozen in place.

As an Awakened, Zhang Xiaoyuan's senses were sharper. Behind Lin Dong, he seemed to see an endless sea of blood surge forth, enclosing them all within it.

Whoosh—

Under the immense pressure, flames automatically ignited in both his hands.

As an Awakened who had condensed a Crystal Core.

His physique far surpassed that of ordinary people. Within the Zombie King Domain, he could barely still move.

"Die!"

Gritting his teeth, he used all his strength and swung his flame-wreathed fist straight at Lin Dong.

Lin Dong watched intently.

It was also his first time fighting an Awakened, so he had little experience...

Besides.

He did not have a very clear understanding of his own strength.

He did not even know how strong he truly was...

I should test it out.

Lin Dong pondered.

But even if it was only a test, his opponent was still an Awakened who had condensed a Crystal Core. He absolutely could not underestimate him. So Lin Dong went all out as well, throwing a punch.

Bang!

A dull impact rang out.

The moment their fists collided, the flames on Zhang Xiaoyuan's hand went out. His entire arm, fragile as foam board, instantly exploded into pieces.

His body was struck by an overwhelming force, as though he had been hit by a train. He flew backward and slammed heavily into the alloy wall.

Splat!

It was worse than falling from the thirtieth floor. He was smashed directly into pieces.

"Hmm?"

Lin Dong raised a brow.

"He died just like that?"

It seemed an Awakened who had condensed a Crystal Core was not all that impressive...

At that moment, Zhang Xiaoyuan's subordinates were all dumbfounded.

Just moments ago, they had been praying that Zhang Xiaoyuan would save them.

But they had never expected.

That in a single exchange.

He would actually die!

"The enemy is too powerful..."

"He's not a ghost. He's a devil!"

"The apocalypse has truly arrived."

"..."

The guards fell into despair.

Suppressed by the Zombie King Domain, they could not move at all. Some with weaker wills had already fainted.

Lin Dong stepped forward and dug a Crystal Core out of Zhang Xiaoyuan's shattered skull.

A Crystal Core was different from a Brain Core. It was translucent overall, about the size of a pigeon egg, and gave off an even richer fragrance.

The energy contained within it also far surpassed that of a Brain Core.

"I'll treat it like hand-grabbed rice..."

Lin Dong swallowed the Crystal Core. It melted the instant it entered his mouth, exceptionally sweet, and a warm current flowed through all four limbs and every bone in his body.

The pure energy was rapidly absorbed, nourishing his physique.

Lin Dong was quite satisfied.

The energy in this one Crystal Core was at least equal to ten Brain Cores.

He took out a tissue and kept wiping his hands.

Then he turned and walked outside.

Opening the security door as he went.

"Kids, time to eat."

Roar—

The zombies immediately roared in excitement and rushed into the safe room, tearing apart the guards. Hysterical screams erupted without end.

But soon... silence returned.

A hunt had ended just like that. The prison, which Tech Company had only just occupied, fell once more.

Zombies wandered within it, leaving the place desolate.

From time to time, black crows descended with caws, feeding on the zombies' rotten flesh.

By then, Lin Dong had already led the zombie horde back to their lair.

As usual.

Lin Dong first took a bath and changed into clean clothes.

Perhaps because he had devoured the Crystal Core, he did not feel hungry. So he took out a wineglass, poured himself some blood, and drank leisurely.

It was as if he had transformed from a terrifying Zombie King into the boy next door.

"Boss, what did you go do just now?"

Su Xiaorou, who was mopping the floor nearby, casually asked. After all, Lin Dong was the only one she could talk to, and she was usually bored out of her mind.

Without turning his head, Lin Dong replied.

"Nothing much. I went out for some hand-grabbed rice."

"Uh..."

Su Xiaorou froze.

It was already the apocalypse. Where outside could there possibly be hand-grabbed rice? With her intelligence, of course she could figure out what he meant.

Forget it...

They should not talk anymore.

They had no common language...

After every hunt, Lin Dong would lie low in his lair for a few days.

No matter how demons danced outside or how dangerous it became.

None of it had anything to do with him.

Lin Dong continued absorbing energy every day, constantly evolving.

Ever since the apocalypse began, he had never lacked flesh and blood.

As a result, Lin Dong's understanding of his own strength had become somewhat vague. He had originally wanted to test himself against Zhang Xiaoyuan, but Zhang Xiaoyuan had been too weak and died with one punch.

Was there a stronger opponent?

However.

Lin Dong killing Zhang Xiaoyuan and causing the prison to fall again created a huge stir online.

Because both the official shelters and Tech Company.

Were paying extremely close attention to this matter.

On Tech Company's official website, once the "Prison Fall Incident" was posted, many comments appeared below it.

"Tech Company isn't that impressive either. Didn't they have some King Hunt Operation before? Looks like it failed!"

"Zhang Xiaoyuan was an Awakened who condensed a Crystal Core. In our official shelters, he would have been a top-ten figure, right?"

"Yeah! He was killed before reinforcements even arrived. That's terrifying!"

"omg... Has such a powerful Zombie King already evolved?"

"So scary! This Zombie King isn't going to attack our shelters, is it?"

"..."

People discussed it heatedly.

Although it was already the apocalypse, there were still three thousand comments. With the internet now crippled, the only signals survivors could receive came from the official shelter websites and Tech Company's official website.

Regarding this matter.

Tech Company was very unwilling to accept it.

It quickly released another statement.

"Regarding the Prison Fall Incident, our company will not let this go. We have already found clues concerning the Zombie King that killed Zhang Xiaoyuan, and we will soon locate its zombie lair."

"We will dispatch an Awakened squad, along with the ultimate killing machine—the Pursuer—to eliminate every zombie in its lair. The King Hunt Operation will continue..."