The method of cutting a house into pieces and hauling it away was crude, but undeniably effective. Watching sections of building, each weighing more than ten tons, being moved aside, Lin Xinghai estimated it would take no more than two minutes to clear a path for the convoy.
Under normal conditions, that would have been fast. But this was Tianshan City—close to the center, where the zombies swarmed thickest. Worse, their furious advance had drawn hundreds of the dead behind them.
Though most zombies gave up after losing sight of prey, not all did. At least three hundred still trailed the convoy. And as the rearguard, the first team bore the brunt of the assault.
"Prepare the hand cannons for range bombardment!" Roger barked.
Boom! Boom! Boom!
A wall of fire and smoke erupted behind the vehicles. Dozens of zombies fell, yet far too many pushed through the explosions.
The survivors met a storm of bullets from Ripper rifles. But with only twelve members in the first team, including Lin Xinghai, gaps soon opened in their line. Zombies reached the armored vehicle, claws raking the alloy plating hard enough to throw sparks. Ordinary steel would already have given way.
Snarls filled the air. One corpse clawed at a shooting port, forcing its head inside.
Lin frowned, ready to kick it away—only for Roger's blade to slice clean through its skull.
"Don't freeze up!" Roger snapped. "Keep them back. The armored cars will hold, but those off-roaders up ahead won't."
Lin nodded. He shoved the corpse outward—then paused, eyes lighting up. A thought struck him. This is… an opportunity.
"Ding! Blood energy detected. Absorb?"
"Yes." He chose without hesitation, shoving the corpse free just as another zombie lunged forward.
This time, Lin struck first. The shock dagger in his hand hummed alive.
Buzz!
The vibrating blade slid through bone and brain as if it were paper. The zombie slumped, dead before it knew it. Lin brushed the wound with his fingers.
"Ding! Blood energy detected. Absorb?"
Another point gained. His excitement surged.
From then on, he claimed two firing ports, cutting down every zombie that shoved its way close and harvesting blood energy from each.
Roger, watching, frowned in mild confusion. Wasn't it easier to simply shoot them? But Lin's speed and accuracy left little room for complaint. At worst, the boy was just getting more practice with the dagger.
Still, the harvest couldn't last. The two mechas—Litian and Tianshuang—worked with ruthless efficiency. In barely a minute they had torn open a passage. The convoy accelerated away, leaving the battlefield behind.
The others breathed easier. Lin, however, sighed in disappointment.
He opened his system panel—and his mood brightened at once.
Blood energy: 76 points.
With two bottles of genetic medicine still unused, his effective total was 86. Just 14 more points, and he would awaken his superpower.
A shrill alarm jolted him back. On the screen ahead, two advanced zombies appeared simultaneously.
The deeper they pressed into the city, the more frequent these threats became. Still, two at once was troubling.
Roger and Xu Hao quickly split the team, pairing their best marksmen against the creatures. The fight was rough but clean, the high-level zombies falling without serious losses.
But diverting four shooters had left the rearguard thin. It was then the others noticed something startling—Lin Xinghai was covering the gap almost single-handedly.
Every shot within ten meters landed true. His accuracy grew sharper with each pull of the trigger, easing the team's defensive burden.
"Didn't he just learn to shoot?" someone muttered in disbelief."His aim improves every time he fires.""Is this because of his B-level genetics? I've never heard of learning this fast.""Learning? This is cheating!"
Murmurs filled the cabin.
Lin felt a pang of guilt—had he shown too much? But curiosity went no further than words. The others were simply more eager to have him at their side.
Roger gave him a long look, then laughed helplessly. "At this rate, kid, the next time we run into high-level zombies, the sniper role is yours."
Jealousy had no place here. When talent reached this level, there was nothing to do but accept it, and wonder if Lin Xinghai was even human.