Apocalypse: the Most Ruthless Person

Zhang Su wasn’t quite used to the cheers and shouts, but everyone else was full of praise.

The Yama Corps members were beaming, their smiles nearly impossible to suppress. In the apocalypse, having food, drink, and shelter, along with the admiration and respect of those they protected, coupled with the fear of their enemies, meant both material and spiritual fulfillment—it was exhilarating!

Zhang Xin was driving and opened the window, hearing the unanimous shouts from the crowd. He felt inexplicably excited, reminiscent of past events with the Survivor Alliance when they repelled the zombie horde. They enjoyed such praise, but it never happened again.

Apocalypse Corps’ Yang Xinqi observed the Yama Corps’ combat troops and the logistics personnel from Celestial Horse Island and nodded in approval. Although their numbers didn’t match the Apocalypse Corps, their spirit was not vastly inferior.

In reality, in the survivor settlement within the city, only combat personnel and high-ranking members lived relatively comfortably. Ordinary members’ lives were difficult; though food wasn’t scarce, other needs were hard to satisfy.

Yang Xinqi thought about how Zhang Su inexplicably controlled the fire-breathing zombie, then swiftly eliminated Liao Youzhi and Gong Chengming’s teams with a thunderous approach and ended the battle. Reflecting on himself, both were leaders of survivor forces, and the gap was immense, leaving him a bit disheartened.

Liu Yao, feeling the pain in his arm and the burning in his organs, sat in the car listening to the praises outside, sighing at the undefeated warrior...

The power of a single kick during the duel shattered all his arrogance, reason took the high ground, and he planned to seek Zhang Su’s advice on how to become stronger when given the chance.

”Xiaoshuai, Xiaoshuai, it’s over, come back!”

Zhang Su, while turning onto a self-constructed road, picked up a walkie-talkie to reach out to Qi Xiaoshuai, who was still in West Camp Village collecting supplies.

The convoy headed towards Celestial Horse Island, experiencing its most bustling moment ever, surpassing even the busiest tourist seasons.

Vehicles steadily entered the mountain gate. Previously, everyone was used to parking haphazardly, but this time was different. Each vehicle parked in an orderly manner according to the marked lines in the parking lot, reminiscent of the past.

After disembarking, many were drawn to the running zombie generator. Only a few could enjoy the convenience of electricity, leading to a mix of emotions; it felt more like a prosperous land than a rural outpost!

”Haha! Dr. Fu!”

As soon as Zhang Xin got out of the car, he saw Fu Weijun wheeling over to the parking lot, and he ran over joyfully.

Fu Weijun awkwardly faced the enthusiastic Zhang Xin, not remembering who he was, and politely smiled, ”Hello, hello, I’m engaged in research at Celestial Horse Island...”

”I knew you couldn’t have gone far, as expected. By the way, where’s that trait...uh, Brother Duan?”

Zhang Xin noticed that an unfamiliar person was pushing Fu Weijun’s wheelchair.

”I’m here!”

Duan Wuhu emerged from the crowd, removed his mask covering the scars on his face, and looked playfully at his former comrade.

”Whoa, Old Duan, you...”

”Haha, you rascal, so you’ve been here all along!”

”You’ve hidden well, we didn’t notice you before!”

Suddenly, many from the Survivor Alliance came up to cozy up to Duan Wuhu and Fu Weijun.

It was obvious that Duan Wuhu, once branded a traitor by Liao Youzhi, now had significant standing as a member of Celestial Horse Island’s Yama Corps, making befriending him advantageous.

Duan Wuhu maintained a humble demeanor. He bore no grudges against these people from the Survivor Alliance back then. He and Fu Weijun fled because Liao Youzhi used living people for zombie experiments. With Liao Youzhi gone like wisps of smoke, he conversed amiably with his former brothers.

Zhang Su got out of the car, intending to call a few leaders to discuss matters when he heard the sound of a rolling wheelchair nearby.

”The Yama Corps is invincible, and King Yama is unmatched; this battle was a massive victory. Mr. Zhang, is there a mutated zombie in that vehicle?”

After delivering a series of compliments, Fu Weijun ignored the nearly hundred strangers in camp and pointed straight at the truck with the fire-breathing zombie.

”Damn... Dr. Fu, you just sniffed it out, didn’t you? Your nose is almost as good as Good Fortune’s! No, how do you know?”

Zhang Su was a bit unsettled. He was sure no word of the fire-breathing zombie had returned. The truck could hold anything—equipment or supplies—but how did he conclude it was a mutated zombie?

Fu Weijun confidently explained, ”No other places are guarded except that truck. Several brothers surrounded it after disembarking, indicating something highly valuable inside, and there’s evidence of air distortion due to high temperature. It’s unlikely they’d bring a furnace to battle, and the furnace isn’t worth guarding. The only possibility left is a mutated zombie. It seems I guessed right?”

Fu Weijun’s analysis was well-founded, and he became increasingly enthusiastic, almost standing up in excitement!

Zhang Su rubbed his nose, waved his hand, and said, ”To be honest, it’s indeed a mutated zombie with fire attributes. I call it a fire-breathing zombie. You can’t study or even approach it now because it’s too dangerous. That metal cargo box can roast meat. We’ll talk after everyone departs and things settle down!”

Picking up on Zhang Su’s firm tone, Fu Weijun took in the noisy environment and nodded, ”Okay, got it. You guys are busy, I’ll head back to Cui Leng Pavilion first!”

After sending off Fu Weijun, Zhang Su greeted those around him and proceeded to the public restroom in the guesthouse area, feeling an urgency after the battle.

The guesthouses in Celestial Horse Island, except for Qingfeng Courtyard, had private bathrooms. However, unless it was late at night, everyone preferred the public restrooms because they were connected to the cliff, allowing for easy waste disposal...

As Zhang Su stepped into the restroom and got ready, he felt a temporal shift, and a line of text appeared in his mind. The familiar sensation made him tense up.

[How to handle the four North City Tiger factions: A. Divide and drive away, B. Recruit, C. Annihilate]

[00:04:29]

”Hmm?”

Zhang Su hadn’t finished reading the first line before his focus shifted to the timer. He realized the allowed thinking time had increased from a stingy minute and a half to a rather generous five minutes. Quite the improvement!

Directing his attention back to the challenge, he immediately ruled out C. However, Zhang Su couldn’t understand why ’divide and drive away’ was marked as A, as he considered A to be not too difficult; the ’recruitment’ option seemed more challenging according to his plans.

Perhaps it was a difference in perception, or perhaps...

”Sigh, it’s meant to block my rewards, huh...”

Zhang Su rubbed his nose, feeling a bit gloomy. Given the current situation, recruitment was the best option. Despite its challenges, for long-term considerations, it had to be done.

For no other reason than that the survivors in Qin City were dwindling...

Zhang Su hadn’t forgotten his own momentary flash of inspiration—a grand wish, a hundred thousand!

Based on the current situation, even counting all survivors from Qin City District, they might not even number ten thousand; it’s too scarce, too few people.

Without pondering for long, with more than two minutes remaining, Zhang Su responded in his mind, ”B, I choose B!”

[Successfully recruit several factions (success if recruitment exceeds eighty percent; killing dissenters won’t increase the percentage): A. Four factions, B. Three factions, C. Two factions]

”Haha...”

Reading that killing dissenters wouldn’t boost the percentage, Zhang Su couldn’t help but laugh. It was obviously a revision stemming from the last Cyan Dragon Corps challenge. Clearly, exploiting the bug wasn’t going to work anymore.