Dark Moon Era

The night the zombie attacked changed Tang Ling’s life forever.

The incident planted a disgusting resentment in his heart. He hated every kind of living dead, but he also paid heavy attention to them.

The living dead were a special existence and went beyond the comprehension of the old civilization. Even in this era, Safety Sector No. 17 had a special department to study them, but no one was able to provide Tang Ling with the most accurate answer.

All they could produce was a widely acknowledged theory: the zombie and its previous life as a human no longer had any relationship, and they were a kind of composite symbiotic organism.

In simple words, they were similar to the zombie mantis and zombie ants of the old civilization.

The zombie mantis was actually a parasite called nematomorpha, a type of worm that invaded the carapace of a mantis. On the other hand, the zombie ants were actually controlled by a type of parasitic fungus called ophiocordyceps unilateralis that grew into an ant and turned into a walk carapace.

The reanimated dead insects were all made possible because of the parasite and fungus. From a certain perspective, they were also considered to have a type of symbiotic relationship, but they were a lot simpler than a zombie in the current era.

The zombie mantis and zombie ants would not evolve. However, as a new type of organism, an actual zombie could evolve and snatch control of the body from the fungus that caused the mutation, namely the Devil Fungus, and evolve further together.

The evolution or mutation was unlike the common transformation that plants, insects or beasts went through. It was similar to the evolution of humans since the zombies were practically humans before they died and the brain of a human being was the most complex organ surrounded by mystery.

Even after the field of molecular biochemistry in the old civilization had reached its peak of sorts, they were still unable to fully decipher the brain.

Of course, Tang Ling’s knowledge about the many theories revolving biochemistry was also limited. All he knew came from the information library of the First Reserved Camp.

He knew that because of special the zombies were, they were categorized in their own species and were divided into a total of nine levels.

With every level they progressed to, their power would multiply by a few times.

The Fierce Dragon Squad was able to kill around 70 to 80 Level 1 mutated zombies, but if they somehow ran into a single Level 2 mutated zombie, they would be wiped out without a second thought.

So, how powerful exactly was the Level 6 Zombie King?

Tang Ling had no answer in his heart. He resented the searchlight for shedding its bright light over the battlefield, making everything clear. Because of the light, he was able to get a better look at the Level 6 Zombie King chewing off all the warriors that it grabbed. Every single bloody detail was explicitly displayed.

Blood was dripping from its mouth that was filled with saw-like teeth due to the mutation. The warriors struggled as hard as they could when they were shoved inside, but...

Tang Ling’s breath hurried as he buried his head in between his arms.

Finally, he saw the Purple Moon Warriors. Under Larf’s lead, the ten Purple Moon Warriors were fighting the level 6 Zombie King, but the odds were dismal.

The Purple Moon Warriors were like ludicrous rats harassing an elephant. The attacks that they launched on the Zombie King did nothing but tickle it. As its patience wore out, the Zombie King would swat them away like flies.

Tang Ling could not hear the dying wails from the warriors because the concentrated growls from the zombies overpowered everything else.

All he saw was the 12 sections of the garage being flooded with zombies of various types! With a single glance at the endless sea of zombies, Tang Ling spotted several Level 3 zombies with special forms.

At the furthest point his sight could reach, the Hope Barrier lit up like the sun, shedding light over its surroundings. Countless warriors were sliding off the iron belt like a colony of ants and charging towards the battlefield.

He also knew that the Level 6 Zombie King, nicknamed the Sawtooth Tank, stayed hidden in the garage for a reason. Because of that mysterious reason, it kept itself away from the Hope Barrier and that evil crevice.

Other than that, many details from the previous briefings flashed in his mind. He remembered that there should have been several mutated zombies around the Sawtooth Tank, but every single one of them had mysteriously vanished earlier.

All kinds of messy information flooded Tang Ling’s brain, and perhaps because he escaped the gory scene for a little while, he was able to calm down. The bloody scene of warriors being devoured proved too much for him.

Tang Ling picked up the scent of conspiracy. How could the Hope Barrier make this kind of mistake? How could they allow the Sawtooth Tank, a prioritized target, slip away under its heavy surveillance and then intrusively appear in the group mission?

It seemed like the mastermind behind this entire scheme was no longer the same figure that targeted Tang Ling or the Summit Squad’s handiwork.

Was the entire Hope Barrier the target? Tang Ling was not sure and it was difficult for him to wrap his head around the matter. Given his current strength, he really could not care much.

Judging from the current situation, expecting help to arrive in a short period of time would be a fool’s hope. Neither Orston or Yu’s identities were important enough for the Hope Barrier to send help. As long as the higher-ups of the Hope Barrier were still sane, they would want to focus all their resources and manpower to stop the Sawtooth Tank and the sea of zombies that were in a frenzied state for no obvious reason.

With frequent attacks rattling at the door, the garage that the Fierce Dragon Squad was in would not last any longer either.

Right after the bleak possibility appeared in his mind, Tang Ling’s face turned pale. He put his hand into his mouth and bit himself vehemently. He did not hold back his chomp, so the back of his hand started bleeding. The pain made his face paler, but at the same time, he felt calmer.

The Hope Barrier might start a full-fledged war tonight, and they might even make the great sacrifice of activating the Sector Protection Machine.

Tang Ling was drenched in his own sweat when he thought of the possible scenario. He climbed up nervously and ran towards the south-east corner of garage No. 19 as quickly as he could.

The smaller door that he closed earlier was at the south-east corner. As for who sabotaged the door, it remained a mystery. Why would someone target the Fierce Dragon Squad when there was another larger scheme going on outside?

Tang Ling lay down on the south-east corner of the roof. Then, he realized that he had no time to figure out the mastermind because an unusual number of zombies gathered in front of the small iron door and tried to ram it down with their brute strength.

So what if the iron door was an anti-theft door? Could it sustain the power of a thousand zombies pushing it together? Moreover, zombies could not feel pain and the door had already been sabotaged before! On top of all that, how strong was the garage wall?

Tang Ling’s forehead was smeared with his sweat. Although he conjured a plan, he did not expect time not to be on his side.

His Precise Instinct was calculating as fast as it could. In less than nine minutes, the door would collapse together with the frame due to the pressure from the zombies.

Nine minutes!

Tang Ling stood up, not caring less about being inconspicuous anymore. He sprinted along the roof and tried to size up the surroundings of garage No. 19.

To the south, garages No. 20 and No. 21, which were the Summit Squad’s responsibility, were a lot quieter, but they were also surrounded by zombies.

To the east, deeper in the garage, the zombies were even more concentrated than anywhere else.

To the north, the nearest exit of the garage should have been the best option for them to escape, but it was no longer possible. The commotion caused by the battle was too alarming. Other than the additional troops sent over by the Hope Barrier, the other monsters on the battlefield were also hoarding to the garage.

The battle in the north had already begun with the beasts, the warriors, and the zombies from the other garages.

Was the only hope...the west?

Tang Ling wiped his sweat away from his forehead.

In the west, the crevice lay dormant and reeked of danger!

Tang Ling had planned an escape route to the west before, but they would have to be desperate to go that way.