Chapter 202

Chapter 202

Finally arriving before the gates, Chu Yi and Cheng Jing exchanged a brief discussion before deciding to bring out the troops immediately.

With the situation unclear, whether it was provocation or a threat behind those doors, they needed to flex their strength. No point walking into an ambush and suffering a loss in silence.

Before long, a dense formation of fully armed soldiers stood behind them—shields, AKs, light machine guns, rocket launchers… Someone even suggested breaking out the Gatling guns and mortars.

Jiang Nian and the others stood gaping.

Chu Yi, Cheng Jing, and Yang Kai all declined. With our manpower, heavy firepower would cause too much collateral damage and was impractical. Besides, with assault-type Superpowered individuals present, there was no need to waste resources.

The soldiers raised their shields and advanced, while Cheng Jing’s group stood behind them, guns at the ready and powers primed.

Once everything was prepared, Zhao Lei channeled his power to push open the half-closed iron gate.

Amidst a grating screech, the gate swung open—only to reveal a crowd of filthy, half-starved people standing behind it.

Men, women, the elderly, and children were all present. Among them, three gaunt women with tangled hair clutched infants wrapped in tattered towels—where the crying was coming from.

There was no sign of the "base officials" dressed like the two from earlier.

Under the scorching sun, this pitiful group stared at them with blank, lifeless stares, showing neither surprise nor fear, as if they had been waiting for a long time.

In contrast, the armed group seemed like aggressors…

The on-edge squad was taken aback but remained vigilant. The actions of these wretched people appeared normal, yet an unsettling wrongness hung thick in the sweltering air.

Seriously? Bringing babies out here is a death sentence!

"Are these the survivors we're here to evacuate? Did they know we were coming and just shoved them outside to wait? This is some messed up shelter policy..." Lu Ningzhou muttered under his breath beside Huang Qian, his teammates also wearing sympathetic expressions as they looked ahead.

But just as everyone prepared to step forward, Jiang Nian stopped them:

"Wait—something's wrong. Hold your positions."

With that, he slammed his rifle butt down, and his Purification Superpower rapidly rippled outward in a directed wave.

A blue-white light surged through the gate, and to the team’s astonishment, the hollow-eyed figures flickered before vanishing entirely—the infants’ cries cutting off abruptly.

When the true scene was revealed, everyone gasped:

There were no ragged survivors in sight. Instead, the whole courtyard was packed with grotesque, rotting walkers—men, women, the elderly, and children—outnumbering them at least two to one.

A full double the headcount Second Brother Qi had reported!

Judging by their clothing, there were ordinary civilians, high school students in uniforms, prisoners in jumpsuits, and officials in various uniforms…

"Holy shit!"

Liao Yu took a step back, all pity draining from his face.

After the initial shock, the squad counted their blessings. Tang Ji patted his chest and said,

"Nian's instincts saved our asses..."

"……"

Jiang Nian, who was using his Superpower to observe the area ahead, shook his head:

"I didn't sense any Superpower fluctuations—it was just an instinctive unease that something was off, so I tried it out..."

Though the illusion was confined within the gate, the fact that he hadn’t detected anything at such close range was deeply concerning.

Moreover, judging by the clothing, decay levels, and other details of the zombies, they weren’t infected and mutated during the same period.

Most likely, their numbers had accumulated over time to reach this scale. Anyone who entered without seeing through the illusion would become one of them.

In short, Guanshan Prison was a trap.

"It seems the one who created the illusion is a high-level psychic Superpowered..."

Zhou Rongbin, also a psychic Superpowered, spoke up, a sheen of cold sweat already forming on his forehead.

Among Superpowered of the same level, psychic-types were the most treacherous—they could silently trap and kill without a sound.

This time, even Jiang Nian hadn’t noticed anything, likely because the illusion was enhanced and concealed by a special attribute. Now that was terrifying.

The group broke out in cold sweat at the realization. Had they entered directly earlier, they would’ve been surrounded by zombies, unable to break the illusion, dying without even knowing how.

"Being able to control this many zombies at once—I don’t think it’s just a matter of being high-level..."

Jiang Nian felt a growing sense of dread.

The zombies had been under control earlier, which was why they hadn’t attacked. The manipulator clearly intended to lure them into the illusion before dealing with them.

Now, after being covered by Purification Superpower, the zombies gradually broke free from control and rushed toward them in a mindless rush.

They were just ordinary zombies, so before the others could react, Cheng Jing’s Thunder Fire combined forces with Jiang Nian’s Purification Superpower ability and counterattacked.

Amidst a series of snarls and screams, the charging zombies quickly turned to ash under the mutated Thunder Fire, which was on the verge of advancing to high-level, leaving behind scattered crystal cores.