"What... what do we do!" Xiao Zhen was already in a panic, clutching Wang Biao's clothes tightly.
A hint of despair flashed across Wang Biao's face.
The snake-like zombie they had just encountered was unlike anything they had ever heard of. Its speed of attack and strength were far superior to ordinary zombies. If it hadn't been for Luo Xiao Le's intervention, he wouldn't have been confident in his ability to kill that snake-like zombie and escape unscathed.
And now, a whole swarm of these snake-like zombies had appeared! Even if all the elite teams in the city were deployed, it would be a battle for survival, with almost no chance of making it out alive...
Wang Biao raised his Guan Dao, his expression filled with grim determination.
Shui Cheng swallowed hard. The sight of so many snake-like zombies surging forward was enough to make one's scalp tingle, let alone the rest.
In an instant, the "Fear" bar in front of Luo Xiao Le's energy meter shot up again. The fear value had reached 95%!
Luo Xiao Le clicked her tongue. "Good heavens, we've only been out for a bit, and the energy bar is almost full before we even encounter the next wave of zombies..."
"I'll hold them off, Xiao Le, you guys run first." Wang Biao raised his Guan Dao, his eyes filled with resolute bravery.
But to Luo Xiao Le's surprise, Shui Cheng didn't retreat an inch. Instead, he stood beside Guan Dao, his eyes fixed on every possible window of entry. His water ability began to glow, preparing for an attack.
"We can't escape," he said, his eyes already bloodshot. "Let's fight to the death."
At this moment, only Xiao Zhen was desperately wiping away tears, wailing in despair, "I still want to live!"
"Alright, stop wailing." Luo Xiao Le covered her ears. "Who says we're definitely going to die?"
Her eyes gleamed with a touch of determination. "Follow me." Her voice, as clear and soft as ever, seemed to tear through the darkness, casting a beam of light.
Luo Xiao Le's previous judgments had all been remarkably accurate. So, without a moment's hesitation, everyone present started to move, following Luo Xiao Le as they ran. They headed directly for a room upstairs.
"Quick!" The black vortex was rapidly approaching the house within seconds.
"Crash!" Two windows had already been breached by the snake-like zombies, and several snakes, exuding a dark, zombie-like aura, leaped through the openings into the living room.
Seeing Luo Xiao Le and the others heading upstairs, the swarm of snakes quickly changed their target. Like streaks of lightning, they whipped their tails and dashed towards the stairs.
"Ah!" Xiao Zhen screamed again.
"It's okay, don't scream, save your strength and follow me." Luo Xiao Le frankly wanted to lose her temper, but it was clearly pointless at this moment. She needed to seize every minute to lead everyone into the room whose door she had reinforced for Ah Ling and the others! After all, the final mission reward was determined by the mission's completion rate, as well as the survival rate and casualty rate of teammates. Since they had ventured out into such a perilous situation, she intended to claim all the points she deserved!
Wei Hong's situation was beyond saving; they had already lost a teammate. However, she would save the remaining few if she could. Her points were the most important!
"Here, go in!" Luo Xiao Le instantly fumbled for the doorknob and quickly pulled the door open.
"Ah! Ah!" Xiao Zhen, practically crawling, was almost dragged into the room by Wang Biao, who held him by the collar.
The moment they all scrambled into the room, Luo Xiao Le slammed the door shut.
"Bang bang bang!" The swarm of snakes outside had caught up, and several of their hard bodies slammed violently against the door, creating a deafening sound. Naturally, what followed were the sounds of flesh and blood being torn apart by the door...
"Hoo... hoo..." Shui Cheng and the others panted, while Xiao Zhen lay on the floor, gasping for breath as if he had lost half his life. Everyone's attention was intensely focused on the door panel!
"Chomp!" The tearing sounds from outside the door raged for a while before returning to silence.
"We... we... saved?" Xiao Zhen could hardly believe it. How could a mere door panel withstand those snakes? He almost crawled to the door, wanting to open it and see what the scene outside was like.
"Don't move," Luo Xiao Le's voice echoed chillingly from behind him. "There's one more." Her eyes were fixed on the single, unmoving black vortex outside the door. Judging by its position, this snake was likely quite large...
The remaining one was clearly very intelligent, perhaps even possessing sentience. Seeing the corpses of its companions, it chose not to attack further but instead to wait by the door like a hunter. Snakes were vengeful creatures, and if one remained, it would likely pose a greater threat later on... This one had to be dealt with.
About half an hour later, the zombie, perhaps growing impatient, finally launched an attack! However, this time it wasn't attacking the door panel but the unreinforced doorframe next to it!
"Thump!" The snake seemed to possess a massive tail and thrashed it wildly a few times, creating a large hole in the door panel! A flash of dark green scales flickered at the opening.
"It! It's going to break in!" Xiao Zhen scrambled back several steps, his face pale with fear.
"Wait here for me, no one comes out." Luo Xiao Le uttered these words and, without waiting for anyone to react, grabbed the doorknob and immediately charged out. The instant she opened the door, a large bell she held in her hand suddenly expanded, engulfing her.
The large snake, extremely excited at seeing someone emerge, flicked its tongue and its tail wrapped around her. It instantly coiled tightly around the bell! But the next moment, before it could even be surprised, its body was shredded, turning into a bloody pulp that fell to the ground nearby...
Luo Xiao Le could no longer detect any vortex. However, she waited inside the bell for a while. After a long pause, confirming that there was no longer any movement outside, she retracted the bell into her pocket.
"Done," she said, dusting off her hands and entering the room.
"Resolved?" Wang Biao raised an eyebrow in surprise. She had only been outside for less than five minutes!
"Mhm," Luo Xiao Le nodded readily. "But you guys had better not go out for now..."
"We won't, we won't! If you say so, we won't!" In the span of a single night, Xiao Zhen had fully realized Luo Xiao Le's strength. Now, if Luo Xiao Le told him to go east, he would never go west. As long as it meant staying alive, he was willing to do anything!
"Hiss..." Luo Xiao Le sat down, rubbing her wrist. Her movement had been too fast, and she had thrown the bell out suddenly, injuring her already fragile wrist. The pain made her frown. Indeed, her current body was still completely unsuited for combat; it was too fragile...
"Injured?" Wang Biao asked in surprise.
"Big sis, let me heal you!" Xiao Zhen rushed over instantly! After a flash of white light, the visible swelling on Luo Xiao Le's bruised wrist receded. However, her wrist still ached and felt weak, almost devoid of strength.
"Is your ability any good?" Wang Biao looked at Xiao Zhen with a hint of dissatisfaction.
"Absolutely!" Xiao Zhen quickly explained. "But my ability can only restore someone to their state just before they were injured. I can't heal general physical wear and tear. Big sis, it seems your injury is deep-rooted. Your body was likely already overloaded before. No ability user can heal that..."
His words caused complex emotions to flicker in Wang Biao and Shui Cheng's eyes. Since she had saved them in the living room and now led them through a swarm of snakes to safety, their minds were filled with shock... They had initially thought that the Luocheng base was about to produce an extraordinary individual. But alas, this little sprout seemed to be at her limit, with perhaps not much time left. Was a peerless talent about to fade away like this...
While they harbored silent regrets, Luo Xiao Le was quietly observing their reactions. She had clearly seen the shift in their expressions. Shui Cheng's reaction was particularly unusual...