Chapter 53 The Sacrifice

Chapter 53 The Sacrifice

Time quickly passed to the third day. During this period, Wang Zhiqing had advanced to Level Two. Shenchi had never seen Wang Zhiqing use his abilities, and the reason he had only just leveled up, according to Liao Bang, was that their doctor was too busy. He was either saving lives in the wards or researching the C1S9 virus. Whenever he had a moment of free time, he was figuring out how to kill zombies.

Shenchi didn't respond. His abilities had recovered to eighty percent, and the child in his belly had stabilized. This gave him confidence for the upcoming operation.

On this day, after organizing everything he needed, Shenchi went to the ward. The Qinghong Gang’s base had several solar generators, but to minimize losses, only one operated each day, alternating power supply among different areas. This ward was the sole exception.

Wang Zhiqing had set up an irrigation tube in Cao Kun's wound, continuously flushing it with a solution containing antibiotics. The bacteriological tests were still negative that day. One more negative result would mean the tube could be removed, leaving only the bones to heal slowly.

But both knew they couldn’t wait. Shenchi suspected that what Wang Zhiqing wanted wasn't the hospital's medicine or Level Two crystals, but Level Three crystals!

This suspicion arose because Miao Hong mentioned that the five Level Two zombies left and returned to the hospital several times, without straying far.

To most people, this seemed odd, as zombies typically didn’t have a "home" concept; they wandered until they found prey. But Shenchi knew that Level Two zombies about to advance to Level Three possessed a "magnetic" ability, similar to how queen ants attract worker ants for protection.

However, this ability was weak compared to true Level Three zombies. It lacked the power to summon others for protection and covered only a few meters around them.

A Level Two zombie on the brink of advancement might need just one more Level Two ability user to reach Level Three. Sacrificing a Level Two ability user to obtain a Level Three crystal was a very profitable trade.

As for why the advancing Level Two zombie didn’t leave, it was likely because it couldn’t.

Of course, these were just speculations. Shenchi didn’t speak definitively, but Cao Kun was determined to follow Shenchi. If Shenchi’s suspicions were correct, this mission would be extremely dangerous for him.

Even if they didn’t use Shenchi as bait, once someone reached Level Three, they wouldn’t let him go easily, given his natural abilities.

Cao Kun couldn’t allow Shenchi to take such risks and decided to prepare for the worst.

In the end, they agreed that Shenchi would join the Qinghong Gang first, while Cao Kun would shake off his guards and follow discreetly. If they discovered a Level Two zombie about to advance, they would immediately team up to kill it and seize the crystal, then leave.

For this operation, Wang Zhiqing brought nearly nine hundred people, almost ninety percent of his force, showing a do-or-die attitude.

Nine hundred people formed a massive team. The Qinghong Gang divided them into twelve squads, surrounding the First People's Hospital from both sides. One squad hid two hundred meters away, providing cover, while eight squads entered the hospital in batches to kill zombies. The remaining three squads followed Wang Zhiqing and the others to Miao Hong.

Seeing Wang Zhiqing, Miao Hong respectfully called out, “Big Brother.”

“Mm.” Wang Zhiqing nodded. “Have Jiang Bin and his men made any moves?”

Miao Hong shook her head. She was young, perhaps not yet an adult. Last time, she had been carefree and cheerful, but now her face was serious, with a hint of confusion.

Wang Zhiqing looked at the hospital eight hundred meters away. If Jiang Bin hadn’t come to the hospital but instead went to his old hideout, the few people left at the concrete company wouldn’t stand a chance. But he wasn’t worried; once he reached Level Three, Jiang Bin would have no choice but to return what he took.

If he couldn’t get the Level Three crystal...

Wang Zhiqing shifted his gaze from the window to Shenchi, who stood silently with his arms crossed against the wall.

“Big Brother,” Miao Hong lay on the ground, her ear pressed to it, “the three Level Two zombies have gone out.”

“Miao Miao, keep an eye on the surroundings. Inform me immediately if you spot Jiang Bin! Everyone else, follow me!” Wang Zhiqing led the way, putting on a gas mask and jumping out the window first!

Shenchi followed closely behind, and those with grappling hooks launched them one by one.

“Whoosh!”

The grappling hook dragged a long rope across the street, attaching to a billboard. A block of ice grew from the wall, allowing Shenchi to step onto it.

Next to the billboard was a broken window. As a zombie lunged at him, Shenchi threw another grappling hook and swung out.

The rest boarded the trucks prepared nearby, driving over obstacles, smashing through shop windows, and entering the hospital. Two hundred people wielding knives, axes, and chainsaws rushed inside, closing the doors tightly behind them.

Shenchi hung outside the hospital’s fourth-floor wall, observing through the glass. In the office, the door was closed, and a female zombie in a lab coat struggled, bound by restraints.

Shenchi placed a hand on the window, and the next second, the tempered glass turned to ice, shattering into countless shards.

He jumped in, ignoring the struggling female zombie, and leaned against the door, opening a small gap to look outside.

Zombies swarmed downstairs. The first two batches of the Qinghong Gang had reached the fourth floor, trapped between a large group of zombies. The arrival of the last batch helped resolve their rear problem, and the group charged upward like mad.

But as soon as they reached the stairs, two fast-moving Level One zombies collided with them. The first two people were thrown into the zombie crowd, and the people on the stairs were knocked down. The waiting zombies pounced, like hungry wolves, taking down one victim after another.

Those caught by zombies were beyond saving, a harsh reality everyone understood. No one tried to rescue them; instead, they slashed at their former comrades to spare them pain and avoid creating new enemies.

Shenchi appeared in the corridor, his knife slicing the nearest zombie. He infused some of his abilities into the blade, increasing its reach and strength enough to split open a zombie’s head.

“Help!”

A Level One speed ability user was being dragged by a Level Two zombie, screaming in despair.

Just as the zombie was about to bite him, the temperature dropped sharply, freezing him solid.

The speed ability user watched helplessly as the Level Two zombie’s mouth bit into the ice covering his face. The ice shattered, releasing a foul odor. A pale man in long sleeves appeared behind the zombie, slicing its neck with a knife.

The zombie reached back, dropping the speed ability user, whose ice shattered, leaving him shivering and soaked.

Shenchi kicked the zombie, dodging its arm as it swung. The Level Two zombie moved swiftly, appearing before him in an instant. An ice spike grew from the wall, crashing into the zombie!

Shenchi leaped onto the ice spike, forming two ice arrows that shot at the zombie’s neck. As the zombie reached out, Shenchi pushed off the wall, his grappling hook catching the drainage pipe. He soared above the zombie, releasing the hook as it broke, drawing another knife.

One slash!

Two slashes!

Three slashes!

The fourth slash severed the zombie’s head!

“Shenchi, did a Level Two zombie just pass by your side?”

The voice of Wang Zhiqing came through the walkie-talkie. Shenchi pulled out his walkie-talkie, pressed the talk button, and split open a zombie's head to extract the crystal core. He said, "I've taken care of it."

"Good. We're on the tenth floor now. Those Level Two zombies are back. Come up through the elevator shaft, and we'll meet you on the roof."

Shenchi put the crystal core in his pocket and replied, "Understood."

The speed ability user, who had narrowly escaped danger, fell to the ground, staring blankly at Shenchi as he walked away after extracting the crystal core.

The hospital had twelve floors. Shenchi found the elevator and pried open its doors. A Level One zombie lunged at him, but Shenchi kicked it down the elevator shaft.

Looking into the elevator, he saw that the car had fallen to the first floor, with zombies piled up to the second floor. The Level One zombie that had just fallen was already climbing back up quickly.

Shenchi shot a grappling hook upward into the elevator shaft. Once it caught something, he climbed up rapidly. At the same time, two ice arrows pierced the wrist bones of the Level One zombie following him. The zombie lost control of its wrists, and its nails, which were embedded in the wall, fell off, causing its entire body to plummet!

As Shenchi approached the tenth floor, he heard intense fighting sounds. The elevator door on the tenth floor had been violently destroyed, and a corpse lay near the entrance—it was someone from the Qinghong Gang.

Following the trail of blood, Shenchi soon found another corpse. It had two fatal wounds: one in the forehead, a gunshot wound, and another in the chest, where a fist-sized hole dripped thick blood onto the floor. The heart was missing.

It seemed this person had their heart ripped out by a zombie, and others had fired a shot to prevent zombification.

Each floor of the hospital had fireproof doors, heavy enough to block fire and smoke. This door should have been closed earlier but was now also forcibly broken open.

This floor mainly consisted of ICU wards and related offices, along with central processing stations. As Shenchi circled around the central processing station, something flew past him—upon closer inspection, it was a hand!

He looked in the direction the hand came from and saw Liao Bang.

Liao Bang, Wang Zhiqing, and two speed ability users were dealing with three Level Two zombies, while the rest were handling the incoming Level One zombies and ordinary zombies.

Shenchi hid and observed for a moment. He noticed that the other two Level Two zombies were constantly surrounding a female zombie wearing a strapless dress. This female zombie was not only faster and more agile but also showed greater intelligence than the other two, knowing how to dodge attacks.

A high-pressure water blade continuously chased the female zombie, slicing everything in its path in half. Even the concrete walls bore deep marks from the blade.

Shenchi's gaze shifted to Wang Zhiqing, who wielded the water ability. His almond-shaped eyes narrowed slightly. Wang Zhiqing had just upgraded, yet he could create a high-pressure water blade and use it for continuous attacks, demonstrating his mastery over the water ability.

Compared to Shen Tian, who also had a water ability in his previous life, Wang Zhiqing was far superior.

But the question remained: Could a high-pressure water blade, composed solely of water, really cut through ten centimeters of solid material?

Or could water abilities, like earth abilities, turn water into sand and sand into stone?

Even with Wang Zhiqing's powerful water blade, it couldn't match the speed of the nearly Level Three Level Two zombie. Soon, the female zombie found an opening and lunged directly at Wang Zhiqing!

Wang Zhiqing erected rapidly spinning water shields in front of him, constantly retreating. Just as the female zombie was about to break through his last shield, Wang Zhiqing suddenly shouted, "Shenchi, now!"

Shenchi swung his knife at the female zombie's back, blue light flowing along the blade, aiming straight for her!

However, the female zombie seemed to have eyes in the back of her head. In a blink, she vanished from in front of Wang Zhiqing and appeared right before Shenchi, reaching out with both hands!

Level Two zombies were incredibly fast. Although Shenchi was prepared, he was also accelerating, making it too late to dodge. He erected an ice wall in front of the female zombie. As the ice wall shattered, an ice pillar appeared mid-air.

Shenchi pushed the ice pillar, causing it to collide with the female zombie while using the recoil to move himself out of her attack range.

Suddenly, a speed ability user flashed behind Shenchi and charged straight into his back!