Chapter 172 – The Shadow Lurking in the Dark

Traversing the narrow path leading to the Ammunition Depot, everyone’s expressions were filled with tension as they eyed the wild underbrush on either side.

Even Ye Lian and the three girls had a grim look about them. Ling Mo, with his Tang Sword at the ready, moved cautiously forward, his Psychic Tentacles fully extended.

The Mutation Wolfdog appeared to be smarter than the Mutation Snake, and animals are generally better at concealing their presence than humans.

However, they did not spot any trace of the Mutation Wolfdog even after entering the building.

This puzzled Ling Mo a bit. Normally, a group of living humans would be very enticing… Could it be that the creature was deterred by the presence of the three advanced female Zombies? It’s possible…

What Ling Mo and the others didn’t notice was that soon after they entered the building, a shadow emerged from behind a distant corner.

Following close behind her were two Mutation Wolfdogs.

“Hmm, you two can be useful for tracking. Have you got the scent down?”

She reached out to pet one of the Mutation Wolfdogs on the head. Its jaws were bloodstained—clearly the same dog that had previously attacked Ling Mo’s Tang Sword.

Feeling a hand resting on its head, the Mutation Wolfdog let out a low, threatening growl. However, before it could even finish, it quickly lowered its head with a whimper.

The seemingly gentle hand on its head suddenly exerted immense pressure, forcing the Mutation Wolfdog to lie submissively on the ground.

Its entire body trembled as if confronted by a leader of its own kind.

“I have to thank that human. Without him, I wouldn’t have been pushed to finally reach my full potential. But that human is quite formidable; I must proceed slowly. Yes… how do humans say it? Step by step?”

After these words, the shadow slowly made her way towards the building, followed closely by the two Mutation Wolfdogs.

Meanwhile, Ling Mo and his group were cautiously advancing down a long corridor. The Ammunition Depot appeared to have once relied on electronic security, but after the outbreak, the main doors were left wide open.

The cadavers here were noticeably more abundant than in other places, suggesting that many members of the Armed Police Unit had come here seeking weapons after the disaster struck.

Unfortunately, the ongoing human mutations meant that your friend, who may have stood by your side during the initial chaos, could suddenly mutate and kill the comrades he was escaping with in the very next moment.

This continuous mutation phenomenon was the principal reason the world ended up in its current state.

Even if people managed to react during the initial wave and implemented corresponding countermeasures, the continuous emergence of mutations made it impossible to plan effectively.

Some shelters that were quickly established might have eventually turned into slaughterhouses simply because they couldn’t determine whether their members would mutate.

Of course, this wasn’t always the case. In situations where there was enough combat strength, even if someone mutated, they could be eliminated quickly, minimizing the threat.

But for many ordinary people, this was a deadly catastrophe…

The first wave of Zombies wasn’t particularly numerous. It was in the hours and days that followed that the real proliferation of Zombies occurred, swelling their numbers significantly.

There were quite a few Zombies inside the building, even including two Mutation Zombies.

Fortunately, these Zombies did not deliberately plan ambushes. Although the corridors were narrow and the situation was dangerous, with Ling Mo and his group present, the Zombies were no match.

After leaving a trail of fallen Zombies behind, the group finally reached the weapons cache.

At this point, Old Wang took the lead, utilizing his expertise to start selecting weapons.

However, it seemed that most of the weapons had either been taken by other Survivors or that the Armed Police Unit here was not well-equipped to begin with. In the end, they only found a few pistols, some Rifles, and, of course, a stash of ammunition.

These supplies were sufficient for their needs. Additionally, they noticed an Armored Jeep parked not far away in the parking lot, making this trip quite a success.

As compensation, Guo Chao gave Ling Mo one of the pistols and a portion of the ammunition.

With enough bullets, Ling Mo didn’t mind experimenting with it. Besides, Old Wang was around, and he would likely teach everyone how to shoot and aim.

However, no one was rashly using the guns at the moment. Only Old Wang loaded a Rifle and held it ready in his hands.

This location was remote and inside a building, so even if shots were fired, they wouldn’t attract distant Zombies. Most others weren’t familiar with firearms, and using them hastily might injure their own group.

While everyone was busy selecting weapons in the armory, Yang Jia, who was standing at the entrance, suddenly felt a hand cover his mouth from behind.

All his companions were inside the armory, just a few meters away. Who could this hand belong to?

Yang Jia’s eyes widened as he began to tremble uncontrollably.

In the next instant, he was dragged away, and even the Rifle that fell from his hand was caught by the mysterious figure without making a sound.

“Although we lost two comrades, it still went smoothly,” Guo Chao said excitedly, slinging an assault Rifle over his shoulder.

With weapons in hand, they now had the means to relocate to the Food Production Base.

Of course, this successful mission was thanks to Ling Mo. Without him, dealing with that Mutation Wolfdog alone could have led to significant losses.

Although no one said it aloud, the way everyone looked at Ling Mo was full of gratitude, making him feel somewhat uncomfortable.

Suddenly, Meng Jiayu let out an exclamation: “Where’s Yang Jia?”

“Yeah, where did Yang Jia go?”

Looking down the corridor, there were only the bodies of the recently killed Zombies—no sign of Yang Jia anywhere.

“Could he have gone to relieve himself?”

“Why wouldn’t he say something? Let’s look for him.”

With a Rifle in his hands, Old Wang seemed braver. He was the first to enter a nearby room and then quickly re-emerged, shaking his head: “Not here.”

Ling Mo sensed something was wrong and looked toward the nearby staircase. “Could he have gone upstairs?”

Another Survivor froze for a moment, then began to walk up the stairs: “I’ll go check upstairs. You guys keep searching here.”

He didn’t seem too worried, which was understandable since all the Zombies that had been lured down earlier were already dead.

As for the Mutation Wolfdog, if it did manage to sneak in, it would likely still be on the first floor. It wouldn’t have bypassed the group to head upstairs.

So, while his actions seemed brave, they were actually quite shrewd.

“Alright, let’s search down here,” Ling Mo suggested.

The first floor had many small storage rooms. Although most were empty, it would be easy enough to hide a person in one of them.

While Ling Mo and the others searched the rooms, he couldn’t help but glance upstairs.

The person who had volunteered to go upstairs was already on the second floor.

His expression was relaxed, thinking the area was completely safe.

“Yang Jia?” he called down the empty corridor, only to hear his own echo in return.

“Where the heck did he go…? Even if he did need to relieve himself, he wouldn’t have gone this far.”

As he crossed the corridor and passed by a room, he suddenly heard a faint, unsettling noise.

“Squelch, squelch…”

“Yang Jia?”

Curious and cautious, he extended his Spear in front of him.

He slowly pushed the door open with the Spear while keeping his body shielded behind the door, ready to avoid any sudden Zombie attacks.

But as he peeked through the crack, his eyes widened in horror.

Yang Jia’s eyes stared lifelessly at him, but his head was detached from his body.

Two Mutation Wolfdogs were ravaging his organs, producing the grotesque “squelching” sounds as they devoured him.

Fortunately, the Wolfdogs didn’t seem to notice him.

Suppressing his fear, he slowly backed away. However, after only a few steps, he suddenly felt a chilling grip on the back of his neck, as if a hand had seized him.

“Grkk…”

The grip tightened, making him feel weak. His eyes bulged, and a guttural sound escaped his throat.

“Crack.”

His head twisted sharply to the side, and his body went limp, collapsing to the floor. The unseen hand then dragged him into the room…