A Night of Desperation

Yu Hong remained expressionless as he continued driving past without any intention of stopping.

The car sped past the girl, kicking up a gust of cold wind.

The girl’s expression changed. She stood up, no longer caring about her exposed body. The pitiful look from before instantly darkened.

From the corridor behind her, two more figures emerged—both female, each wielding a weapon, either a firearm or a blade.

The three of them cursed angrily at the car before turning back into the building, disappearing from sight.

Hearing human voices—especially those with a local accent—Yu Hong instead slowed down, brought the car to a stop, secured the protective rune on his body, and stepped out. He turned and walked toward the corridor entrance.

Bang.

Just as he made it halfway there, a hard stone was suddenly flung out from somewhere and struck his helmet hard.

A white smudge was left on the dark green helmet.

At the second-floor window, a woman with a ponytail stood, holding a slingshot. She looked stunned, seemingly unable to believe that her powerful shot had failed to have any effect.

After all, when she ambushed people before, this thing had always been a one-shot kill.

“Hello there.” Yu Hong grinned at her.

In a flash, he lunged forward like an arrow, closing the distance to the corridor entrance within seconds. In just two steps, he had climbed the stairs to the second floor.

At the entrance of the security door, the three girls had just turned to enter when they heard the sudden commotion behind them.

As they turned around, they saw Yu Hong, clad in his reinforced gray lizard suit, charging up the narrow stairwell.

Standing at over 1.9 meters tall with a broad, muscular build, Yu Hong was like a rampaging black rhino, storming up the stairs straight toward them.

Boom!

One of the women raised a shotgun and fired.

The blast of pellets slammed into Yu Hong’s chest, but only caused him to pause slightly.

Without even glancing at them, he rammed directly into the security door with his full weight.

In the process, the edges of his armor slammed into two of the women, pinning their arms against the door.

Crack.

“Ahhh!”

Two agonizing screams rang out as the sheer force of the impact slammed the two women into the door.

The door caved inward, and the women were thrown inside. Their arms, now a bloody mess of mangled flesh, were clearly crippled.

Yu Hong grabbed the remaining naked girl by the hair and dragged her into the house.

“Let go of me! You—” The naked woman struggled violently, cursing at him. But before she could finish, Yu Hong smashed her head into the wall.

Bang!

Her eyes instantly turned blank, her head spinning, and she fell silent.

The house was a two-bedroom, one-living-room layout.

As Yu Hong entered the living room, the first thing he saw were several corpses hanging in midair, dried up by the wind.

All the bodies were completely naked, their flesh carved away in places, leaving only wounds.

Two of the corpses had already been eaten down to just their upper bodies—their lower halves reduced to bare bones.

“Put my daughter down!”

From the balcony, the ponytailed woman, now wielding a black, pipe-like firearm, aimed at Yu Hong and roared in fury.

“Put her down!”

“I’m just here to ask for directions.” Yu Hong looked at her calmly. “Do you know where Anxi Bridge is?”

The map had a detailed route to Lulong County, but Old Li hadn’t marked the specifics of the county itself. The reinforcement had only provided additional details based on existing knowledge.

“I told you to f***ing let her go!!” The woman screamed, gripping her gun tightly. “Let my daughter go!!”

“Alright.” Yu Hong nodded.

He turned, pressed the unconscious girl against the wall, and drew his long dagger.

With a vicious thrust, the blade pierced through the girl’s shoulder, stabbing through to the other side and pinning her to the wall.

Shhhhk!

The excruciating pain jolted the girl awake. She let out a bloodcurdling scream, wailing in agony. She reached out to grasp the dagger but hesitated, too afraid to touch it.

“Meeting such friendly survivors in a place like this… looks like today’s my lucky day.” Yu Hong smiled.

“F*** you!!” The woman was enraged, but she didn’t dare pull the trigger—Yu Hong was too close to her daughter. If she fired, the ricocheting bullets would kill her as well.

“You answer my questions,” Yu Hong said again.

“Fine! I Will Speak!” The woman gritted her teeth.

Yu Hong repeated his question and soon got his answer.

“Anxi Bridge is close. Just follow this road ahead, take a right at the fork, and go through a farmer’s market. You’ll see it.”

“Good. Thanks.”

Yu Hong yanked the dagger out of the wall and, without hesitation, flung it forward.

Whoosh!

The dagger spun through the air with a piercing whistling sound and struck the woman squarely in the face.

Blood splattered, and a gunshot rang out.

Yu Hong paid no mind to the gunfire. He strode forward, grabbed the woman’s head, and slammed it against the wall.

Bang.

The wall trembled violently, and a grotesque smear of red and white was left on its surface.

Yu Hong retrieved his dagger, checked the gun the woman had been holding, and sneered.

“Tch, broke-ass scavengers.”

Annoyed, he turned toward the remaining two injured women, who were still groaning in pain.

With one swift kick each, he struck their heads. A sickening crack echoed, and both fell silent.

Only the unconscious, naked girl remained.

She looked no older than sixteen or seventeen.

Yu Hong stepped up to her.

“Be a good person in your next life,” he murmured.

Shunk.

He drove the dagger straight into her forehead, then pulled it out and flicked the blood off the blade. Without another glance, he turned and left.

Downstairs, he exited the corridor, got back into his car, and continued down the street.

*

*

*

As Hong rushed toward Anxi Bridge,

In the underground security facilities of Lulong County, another team of heavily armed individuals was cautiously making their way toward the energy supply room.

This team consisted of four members, all carrying firearms—each equipped with a submachine gun. Their gear was standard “Wild Dog” bulletproof suits, the most basic model available on the market. Though the name was crude, the suit offered a great balance of cost and performance. Its defense was comparable to the “Gray Lizard” model, but it lacked flexibility and did not come with a built-in breathing valve. Even so, the Wild Dog suit was highly sought after by civilian players due to its affordability and effectiveness.

These four relied on their gear—and a bit of luck—to earn a place in a small outpost nearby.

After surviving numerous dangerous encounters, their teamwork became increasingly seamless, turning them into a fairly elite squad.

“The energy supply room that Wei Hongye mentioned is just ahead. Stay alert. We’ve made it this far, so don’t get careless and end up injured. None of us want to spend weeks recovering,” the team leader, Zhao Huaijun, reminded them in a low voice.

“Relax, there’s no way anyone else is here. Wei Hongye owes us a big favor for this—no one else even knows why we’re here,” one of the squad members chuckled.

“Once we get our hands on the nuclear generator, we’ll finally have a stable power source back at the base! No more worrying about water shortages, we can keep the lights on as long as we want, and dealing with blood tides won’t be such a struggle anymore,” another teammate added, his tone lighthearted.

“Yeah, we got lucky this time. No trouble at all on the way he—”

BANG!!

A sudden gunshot.

The man who had been speaking was walking at the side. His head snapped back as a bullet struck his forehead, his helmet caving in with a sickening crack. Blood seeped through the cracks, pooling inside his helmet. He collapsed instantly, motionless.

The remaining three froze for a second before reacting.

“Old Ma!! F***!! Who the hell is shooting?!” Zhao Huaijun roared in fury, whipping out his gun and firing wildly down the right-hand corridor.

But before he could process what was happening, a dark shadow burst from the tunnel, charging at him head-on despite the barrage of bullets.

A massive hand came crashing down.

Whoosh!

The wind howled with the force of the strike.

Zhao Huaijun let out a furious yell, dropped his gun, and drew his blade, stabbing with all his might at the approaching palm.

He wasn’t just some ordinary scavenger. He dared to lead this mission because he had undergone Luminous Stone radiation mutations. His arms were far stronger than a normal person’s—when it came to raw strength, he feared no one!

He had led hunts against Blood Tide Tier 2 Behemoths before. He might hesitate against monsters, but against another human? And a knife-to-hand fight at that?

THUD!

A muffled explosion of impact.

Zhao Huaijun’s knife plunged into the enemy’s palm—but barely drew blood. The blade was stuck. His opponent clenched his fist, trapping the weapon in his grip.

“Another squad? This bait works wonders, hahaha!” The attacker laughed as he wrenched the knife from Zhao Huaijun’s grasp with brute strength. With his other hand, he struck forward.

BAM.

Fist met fist.

A shockwave of force rocked through Zhao Huaijun’s body, making his limbs go numb. His knees almost buckled under the sheer impact.

‘A fully-enhanced mutant!’

A cold chill ran down Zhao Huaijun’s spine as he realized the identity of his opponent.

Suddenly, he recalled rumors from refugees at the outpost—talk of numerous Luminous Stone(Radiation)-enhanced mercenaries banding together due to the worsening environment. These people had once thrived on hired jobs but now needed to form gangs to secure resources and weapons.

Their leader was a bald brute known as “Black Crow,” who had gathered seven or eight equally formidable enhanced individuals and mercenaries.

In this wasteland, only the strong survived. The weak had long since perished.

Before Zhao Huaijun could react further, his remaining teammates were taken down by two more dark figures.

“The fourth squad today! Not bad, not bad, hahaha! This is what I call waiting for prey to walk into a trap. Boss sure is smart!” A hulking figure chuckled, lifting a fallen squad member like a butcher inspecting livestock.

“It’s not that I’m smart, it’s that they’re just dumb,” the bald leader sneered. He grabbed Zhao Huaijun by the throat, lifting him off the ground with terrifying ease.

Zhao Huaijun thrashed wildly, but his struggles were meaningless against such monstrous strength.

“You won’t get away with this! The Coalition Army will hunt you down!” he spat, voice strained.

“The Coalition Army? Buddy, the front lines have already collapsed,” Black Crow smirked, pulling Zhao Huaijun closer before slamming his forehead into his captive’s skull. The impact left Zhao Huaijun dazed and weak-limbed.

“I’ve lured three squads here already, killed at least twenty people, and not a single Coalition soldier has come knocking,” Black Crow sneered.

“If you keep this up, sooner or later, someone stronger than you will come for you!” One of Zhao Huaijun’s remaining teammates growled. “And when they do, I hope you die a miserable death!”

“Stronger? Who? Bloodbird? Killshot Cannon? The Butcher? Ice Blade? Which one of them is stronger than me?” Black Crow’s grin widened, full of mockery. “Threatening me? All the real powerhouses have already gone to Hope City. The only ones left in the wild are trash—outcasts and weaklings. You call yourselves strong?”

“Oh, right—your outpost does have that guy Lang Feng. He’s decent. If he actually comes after me, that might be a bit of a hassle,” Black Crow mused, stroking his chin.

“Good reminder, actually. After this haul, it’s about time to move on anyway.” He waved a hand. “Grab the nuclear generator. We’re relocating!”

(End of Chapter)