"Rich kid! Spill those gold coins!" Baozi muttered as he stripped the man's clothes.
A level-30 orange-quality shield was undoubtedly the most valuable piece of equipment. That purple-quality armor could only be considered a bonus.
Baozi's technique was highly professional. He easily removed the man's clothes and pants, then took a piece of black cloth from his tool bag and wrapped them up.
Then he happily slung the bundle over his back and ran outside, intending to move the stolen goods ahead of time.
Seeing Baozi leave, Sha Tu also signaled Xu Jiang to cast a healing spell and wake the man up.
Xu Jiang watched from the side, shaking his head speechlessly. What had the world come to?
The people who came to rescue him had actually knocked the victim unconscious first, then stripped off his equipment. What kind of rescue was that? It was downright shameless!!!
But I liked it...
Xiao Lei, give him one.
"Sure thing, watch me bounce and blo—"
No! Wait! I meant give him some First Aid.
"Oh, oh, General, you should've said so sooner. I almost sent him on his way."
The grenade glowed with white light, reviving Duan Quan, whose head had been split open.
The moment Duan Quan regained consciousness, he felt cold all over. Other than a pair of underwear, he had nothing left on him.
"W-What happened to me? Right, the monsters! Save me!"
"Don't panic. We're Team 17 of the Hunter Department, and we came specifically to rescue you."
Ying Xiaoxiao, the culprit, stood heroically at the front. Alone with a single gun, she faced countless zombies head-on. Her dashing pose nearly brought tears to Duan Quan's eyes.
"Great, someone finally came to rescue me! But my equipment..."
"Oh, you were already like this when we found you. We suspect gold thieves did it."
"Right, very likely! I did feel someone sneak up and attack the back of my head just now. Hiss! It hurts so much!"
"It's fine. Just rush out along this road. We've cleared all the monsters along the way, so it's very safe."
"But I don't have any equipment! Even my shield is gone. It's dangerous to rush out like this."
"It's fine. You can use this shield for now. Hurry and go—we'll cover your retreat!"
Ying Xiaoxiao spoke with righteous determination, volunteering to stay behind and cover him.
But after knocking him out, stripping away all his equipment, and not even being willing to escort him out, wasn't that a little excessive?
And could that thing you gave him even be called a shield?
You had snatched it directly from a zombie's hands. It was the same model as the wooden pot lids used by the Ya Ya People. Were you sure he could make it out alive?
Duan Quan did not sense the malice at all. Instead, he gratefully thanked Ying Xiaoxiao. "Thank you so much. After today, you'll be my benefactor. I'll definitely repay you."
"Enough nonsense. Take this communicator. Once you get out, contact your father and have him arrange for someone to pick you up."
"Alright, thank you, everyone. Then I'll be leaving first."
The night was cold. Wearing only a pair of underwear and carrying a wooden pot lid, Duan Quan ran through the freezing wind, swaying...
"Tut, tut, tut. Boss really is ruthless!" Baozi said with a grin as he returned, just in time to see Duan Quan running naked.
"Boss, that Duan Quan was seriously rich. He was actually carrying 300 Exotic Crystals on him. Did that kid get water in his brain or something?"
Three hundred Exotic Crystals were worth six million Credit Points. What normal person carried six million in cash to a graveyard in the middle of the night?
"Forget about him. Let's withdraw first. This place feels more and more wrong." Ying Xiaoxiao made her decision.
They had only come here because they had accepted a commission. They were simply being paid to do a job. But this graveyard seemed to be undergoing a massive transformation.
But just as everyone was about to turn and leave, Sha Tu, who had been quiet the entire way, suddenly spoke. "You all leave first. I need to take care of something."
His words brought everyone to a stop.
"Take care of something? Here?" Baozi looked utterly confused.
He glanced around. Aside from the zombies with peeled skin and rotting flesh, constantly letting out hungry growls, there was barely anyone alive and breathing. What personal business could possibly need handling here?
Seeing that Sha Tu remained silent, Ying Xiaoxiao did not press him.
"Alright. Since you still have something to do, we'll keep moving forward."
"But, Captain? This is my own matter. There's no need to drag everyone into it."
"Come on, isn't your business Team 17's business? Stop talking and just point us in the right direction."
Although Ying Xiaoxiao was extremely violent when she hefted her long gun, she was unquestionably loyal and righteous. If Sha Tu had trouble, they would face it together.
Of course, arrangements still had to be made for the team members.
Xiao Zhen could not continue with them. Her abilities leaned toward support, and the environment was becoming increasingly dangerous. They might not be able to spare attention to protect her.
Baozi also had to fall back and move the meat zombies they had buried into the vehicle ahead of time, then find a safe location and wait to provide support.
As for Xu Jiang...
"I'll go deeper with you." Xu Jiang raised his revolver. "I need to practice my skills. There weren't any good opportunities just now."
During his days in Team 17, Sha Tu had also taken good care of him. Now that Sha Tu was in trouble, of course he had to help.
Besides, there had been too few zombies earlier. Even though Xu Jiang wanted to practice his skills, he had never found an opportunity. Now that two experts were escorting him, he naturally could not waste it.
The deeper the three went into the forest, the more zombies they encountered.
By Xu Jiang's estimate, at least several thousand zombies had revived in Corpse Mountain Park. If they were not dealt with properly, it could turn into an undead disaster.
And this revival did not only target humans. It included animals as well.
Before Xu Jiang stood a massive lion. It looked even stronger than it had in life, its entire body pitch-black, its eyes glowing red as it roared at the three of them.
Naturally, Ying Xiaoxiao would not indulge it. She raised her gun and prepared to cleave the lion apart, but Xu Jiang stopped her.
"Captain, can you leave this lion to me? I want to test myself."
"You want to fight this lion one-on-one? Fine, just don't get slapped to death. We're still going out for a late-night meal afterward." Ying Xiaoxiao still had not forgotten tonight's plans.
But were you really sure you would still have an appetite after seeing so many zombies?
Xu Jiang calmed his mind and stood before the lion with a gun in each hand. In his previous battles, he had always relied on ranged firepower to suppress and kill his enemies.
The skill he needed to learn next was close-combat technique.
Qing Wu, I'm starting my Revenge Counter training. Are you ready?
"Standing by at all times!"
It was an exceptionally concise reply. A faint glimmer flashed across the revolver.
Congratulations. Death Dance has activated its advancement quest. You have temporarily obtained the skill: Revenge Counter Complete 10 Revenge Counters within 1 hour to permanently obtain this skill. Dance of Death will advance to blue quality.
Xu Jiang was overjoyed when he saw the notification. After Qianji, a second weapon under his command had finally activated an advancement.
Was this the benefit of ambition?
The weapons at home all had vastly different personalities, but most of them were not in a hurry to grow stronger.
On the contrary, Qing Wu, who had only recently joined him, had immediately given him such a generous gift thanks to her cold and ambitious personality.
Just as Xu Jiang beamed with delight, another loud shout rang out beside him. "General! I understand now!"
...Little Deagle? The battle hasn't even started yet. What do you understand now?
"I understand why Miss Qing Wu doesn't like me."
"Really? What reason?"
"It must be because I'm not strong enough! I can't meet Miss Qing Wu's standards for choosing a mate. I want to become stronger!"
Congratulations. Desert Eagle has activated its advancement quest. If Dance of Death advances within 1 hour, Desert Eagle will advance at the same time. After advancing, it will be green quality.
Xu Jiang:...
Was that really your motivation for advancing?
Before you continue