"Could this also be the Card affecting its holder?" Feng Ling wondered.
What kind of Card had she even gotten?
Thankfully, her Corruption Value was only 7% right now. If it had been any higher and she encountered that overwhelming urge to eat again, she really did not know what kind of madness she might succumb to.
Then Feng Ling thought that perhaps it was not because of the Card. Maybe her injuries had been too severe, and all the energy she had stored from eating earlier had been used to repair them, so she was hungry again?
She really could not make sense of it at all.
The space ahead suddenly brightened. The light was so intense that Feng Ling could not see anything for a moment, as if she were standing beneath a spotlight on a stage.
She heard a jumble of voices coming from above:
"Someone's coming out!"
"Is it Brother Zhou?"
"...It's not the deputy captain."
"Why hasn't Brother Zhou come out?"
Farther away, she could also hear an announcement from a loudspeaker. "...Please follow the guidance of the Abomination Safety Supervision Bureau and take shelter. Do not panic. Board the vehicles in an orderly manner. The Xenomorph Surveillance Team will do everything in its power to ensure the safety of the public... Repeating the announcement now..."
"Feng Ling!"
Someone suddenly called her name. It was Su Yuqing.
Feng Ling narrowed her eyes to adjust to the light, then looked up and saw Su Yuqing's face at the opening above.
Remembering Zhou Diao's instructions, she pulled out the chip and tossed it high into the air.
"A few hundred meters from here, there's another Parking Lot. The underground nest connects both Parking Lots. The chip contains a terrain map. Zhou Diao asked you to find a way to seal the entrances so the bugs can't crawl out." She explained the situation succinctly.
"I'll handle it." Su Yuqing quickly asked, "How is Zhou Diao?"
"Not good. He might already be done for." Feng Ling rubbed her eyes. "Can you give me that floodlight? And your loudspeaker too."
Exhausted panting sounded especially clear in the vast pit.
With difficulty, Zhou Diao pulled his blood-soaked Beast Claw from a corpse. His vision had already begun to blur.
Broken insect carcasses lay piled around him, while the smell of gunpowder lingered heavily in the air.
The only remaining flashlight illuminated an area no more than ten meters around him. Beyond those ten meters, in the darkness, he had no idea how many Contaminants were waiting for him.
Which one was this already?
He had been fighting for too long to remember...
He had killed Contaminants before. Back then, Qingjiang City's best Inspector, Ye Zheng, had not yet been transferred away. He had gone on missions with her, and every Contaminant they encountered had been alone, without a single exception.
Even the study materials supplied by the Supervisor General Bureau contained lengthy arguments proving that Contaminants, lacking reason, could not cooperate in groups.
Why was this time different?
Why was it different...
Zhou Diao staggered, his breathing slowing as exhaustion washed over him.
It was like being trapped in an endless battle of attrition. He could never kill them all, never finish them off. Just how many enemies were hiding in the darkness?
Fatigue had accumulated throughout his body. His hands were so heavy he could barely lift them. Those Contaminants had to be circling nearby. He needed to stay alert, but why was he so tired...
Looks like that little Xenomorph Jelly wasn't all that impressive. It had only kept him energized for a little while.
A self-mocking smile tugged at Zhou Diao's lips.
Suddenly, a foul wind rushed straight at him!
He jerked backward and swung his claws at the lunging shadow on pure instinct—
It was a human neck stretched several meters long, hard mandibles growing from its severed end, while nearly all of the remaining body had turned insectoid.
Zhou Diao's claws should have shredded the elongated neck, but the prolonged battle had coated his Beast Claw in congealed blood and viscous bodily fluids, dulling their sharpness. The heavy muscle in his shoulders and arms also robbed him of strength. When he swung, he left only a scratch.
Zhou Diao let out a breath and thought weakly, Am I at my limit already?
No.
He was Qingjiang's only Inspector capable of fighting. He could not fall. If he did, Su Yuqing would definitely be put in a difficult position, wouldn't he?
Another shadow lunged at him.
Zhou Diao turned to evade again, but he was too slow. A pair of mandibles instantly pierced through his waist!
The monster hoisted his entire body into the air, and then his right arm tore open as another Contaminant clamped down on it with its mandibles!
He could barely feel any pain.
Had his brain activated some defense mechanism and numbed all the agony?
Dazed, Zhou Diao thought, Are they planning to tear me apart?
Who would have thought his final appearance would be this ugly... Really, not cool at all.
Red light flooded his vision.
His throat filled with the sickly sweetness of blood.
He spat out a mouthful of blood, feeling as if his body were about to be torn into pieces, and thought again, If I'd known, I wouldn't have worked so hard. At least I could've died more cleanly.
...Still, before he died, he had gotten the team members to retreat. The Detector's map data should have reached Su Yuqing's hands too. It was not all that bad.
As for his unwillingness, his resentment, his regrets.
Next life, then.
He would make up for them in the next life...
Hurried footsteps suddenly rang out, and a forceful impact sent him crashing to the ground!
Zhou Diao opened his eyes. Several familiar figures vaguely appeared through his blood-hazed vision, and fury instantly flared in his chest. He shouted, "Who told you to come back?! Get out!"
He thought his tone was intimidating enough, but blood choked out with his words, leaving them completely devoid of force.
Xiao Li drove her short blade into the Contaminant's neck and viciously twisted the tip, forcing it to release its mandibles. She shouted, "Old Cao! Get Deputy Captain Zhou out of here!"
Cao Hongyi charged out from some corner and forcefully hoisted Zhou Diao, still in Half-Human Form, onto his shoulder!
From farther away, Qin Liang used his few remaining bullets to cover their retreat.
Zhou Diao cursed furiously, "You idiots! You're no match for them at all! Did you come back just to die?!"
Xiao Li gripped her knife hilt tightly and said through clenched teeth, "Better us dying than you! Don't you always say you're Qingjiang City's god? Three people in exchange for one god is worth it!"
The neck beneath her blade twisted and contracted, then flung her away like a long-necked turtle thrashing in a river!
"Xiao Li!" Qin Liang cried out from afar. He watched helplessly as Xiao Li fell beyond the illuminated area. He could see nothing in that darkness, much less support her.
"Idiot! Idiot! Idiot, idiot, idiot, idiot, idiot!!!"
Zhou Diao was furious beyond measure. Cursing as he struggled, he fell from Cao Hongyi's shoulder.
He wanted to save Xiao Li, but his limbs would not obey him at all. No matter how hard he tried, he could not even crawl to his feet!
Cao Hongyi hoisted him up again and ran for the exit without a word.
Zhou Diao lost his mind with rage. "Cao Hongyi! Fuck your ancestors!!!"
Cao Hongyi remained unmoved. His voice was as flat as a taut line as he repeated what Xiao Li had just said. "Deputy Captain, three of us for one god. It's worth it."
Zhou Diao wanted to curse again, but blood choked out of him, and he could not force out even half a word. Only hatred and unwillingness surged endlessly through his heart!
He hated this so much!
He hated it—hated these endless Contaminants! Hated that he was not strong enough!
If he had held on a little longer, just a little longer, perhaps his team members would not have had to die!
He could not wait until the next life! He wanted to become stronger now! He wanted to protect this place and these people!
Swoosh—
The dim pit suddenly became as bright as day.
The white light stabbed into Zhou Diao's eyes, making him daze for an instant.
The next second, he heard Feng Ling's voice:
"Deputy Captain Zhou, you're not done for yet. Pretty impressive."
Before you continue