Chapter 545 – The Unreliable “Qigong”

These two variation zombies, aside from startling everyone with their initial ambush, never found another opportunity to turn the tables.

Although the Barrel Zombie had a belly full of mysterious liquid, it was completely ineffective against Ye Lian and Xia Na, except for a spit aimed at Huang Duo.

The two female zombies, one on the left and one on the right, had the Barrel Zombie pinned against the Tanker Truck.

The women cooperated seamlessly, moving like the wind, quickly adding more than a dozen wounds to the zombie.

Spotting an opening, Xia Na suddenly leaped up, landing on a materialized psychic tentacle that Ling Mo had prepared for her. With a swift thrust of her Scythe, she drove it into the Barrel Zombie’s armpit.

As blood splattered everywhere, Xia Na lifted the Barrel Zombie and fiercely hurled it away.

“Boom!”

The Barrel Zombie hit the ground heavily but quickly got back up.

“Ahhh!!”

Xiao Ming screamed immediately. Earlier, this bizarre female zombie was far enough away to be harmless, but now they were suddenly on the same level.

Moreover, as soon as it landed, the Barrel Zombie’s gaze fixed on the people on the ground. It leaped high, its belly inflating like a balloon.

Huang Duo was all too familiar with this move. He retreated while shouting, “It’s going to spray! It’s going to spray!”

Guan He and Xiao Ming quickly ducked for cover, but unexpectedly, a gunshot rang out.

As the shot echoed, the Barrel Zombie, still in mid-air, burst like a punctured balloon.

Countless red droplets mixed with chunks of flesh splattered everywhere, creating a spectacular view from the front.

Turning around, they saw Ye Lian silently landing from mid-air, holding the Sniper Rifle.

“Amazing!!!”

Cold sweat immediately broke out on Guan He’s forehead.

He had noticed the Thor rifle, but never expected Ye Lian to have such incredible shooting skills.

After all, he had never seen Ye Lian fire a gun and assumed that an ordinary person couldn’t possibly compare to a real Sniper.

But what had just happened left Guan He utterly astounded!

During her descent, Ye Lian had managed to aim and shoot a zombie that was falling through the air. This level of skill far surpassed that of Thor’s original owner!

Moreover, shooting an airborne target posed no risk to the Oil Depot. After all, this was an outdoor area and Ye Lian wasn’t aiming at the Tanker Truck.

Reflecting on it, this scene was yet another instance of perfect coordination between Ling Mo and the girls.

“Boom!”

Amidst the blood rain, the mutilated Barrel Zombie hit the ground heavily, its belly practically blown to bits.

Yet its vitality was astonishing. Despite its condition, it still tried to crawl forward, only to be effortlessly finished off by Xia Na with a single slash.

Taking advantage of the obstruction to Huang Duo and the others’ view, Xia Na used the tip of her Scythe to pry open the Barrel Zombie’s hindbrain and extract the viral hive.

On the other side, Li Yalin and Ling Mo had been suppressing the Muscle Zombie for quite some time. With Ye Lian and Xia Na joining in succession, the outcome of the battle was already decided.

The three female zombies surrounded the fallen Muscle Zombie one last time. When they stepped back a few seconds later, only a mangled corpse remained on the ground.

Guan He and the others turned pale, finding it difficult to even look directly at the three girls…

Faced with such powerful young women, they felt ashamed of their own inadequacy!

“Hmph…” Huang Duo let out a weak groan.

“What were you jumping around for?” Guan He glanced at him and said.

Huang Duo’s face turned red with anger. It would have been better if Guan He hadn’t said anything. His comment only made Huang Duo feel even more like a useless flea, utterly humiliated.

This sense of powerlessness left him frustrated and exasperated!

“These two zombies were quite tough to deal with,” Ling Mo concluded.

“Huh? But it looked like you guys handled it without any pressure!” Xiao Ming exclaimed, his eyes sparkling.

Guan He coughed awkwardly. “Captain, you don’t need to comfort us. It’s clear that we’re too weak to help.”

“Huang Duo did a good job distracting the zombies,” Ling Mo said with a smile.

Huang Duo was taken aback; he hadn’t expected Ling Mo to actually praise him.

In fact, his attitude had always been quite obvious, and Ling Mo should have noticed by now.

In this situation, not mocking him was already generous enough, but to even speak up for him?

For a moment, Huang Duo didn’t know how to respond, unsure if Ling Mo was genuinely praising him or subtly mocking him…

“But it was still pretty dangerous. There are other ways to create distractions,” Ling Mo added, then turned to Xiao Ming before Huang Duo could say anything. “Your leg doesn’t hurt anymore, does it?”

The excitement on Xiao Ming’s face vanished instantly, his smile freezing. “Ouch! My leg!”

“One question and you start wailing…”

After a quick bandage on Xiao Ming’s injured leg, the group entered the Oil Depot.

Huang Duo followed with a complicated expression, remaining silent the entire way.

However, during the process of entering and extracting oil, apart from two or three ordinary zombies wandering inside the depot, they encountered no other obstacles.

“It seems those two were the bosses of this Oil Depot,” Guan He said, carrying a barrel of oil. “Both of them specialized in ambushes. If we had run into them inside the depot, it would have been quite troublesome. Xiao Ming’s leg injury came at just the right time. Worthy of praise, worthy of praise!”

“Guan-Ge…” Xiao Ming called out with a pained expression.

“Hahaha! Don’t mind it, don’t mind it. I’m praising you!” Guan He laughed.

“That’s true,” Ling Mo nodded in agreement.

He had a pretty good impression of these two. Although they hadn’t been much help, at least they hadn’t caused too much trouble.

Xiao Ming’s accidental injury seemed like a hassle at first, but in hindsight, it turned out to be a blessing in disguise.

“Oh, you guys…”

Unexpectedly hearing such words from someone he admired, Xiao Ming’s tears flowed uncontrollably. He thought his image was completely ruined…

“Captain, how did those two zombies mutate like that? And what was that stuff inside the female zombie’s belly?” Guan He asked curiously.

Ling Mo’s mouth twitched as he glanced at the oil barrels on their backs. “What do you think?”

“Uh…” Guan He shuddered, “Drinking oil? Damn! These zombies really… anything can trigger their mutation! Is there no justice left?”

While Guan He was still complaining, Ling Mo turned to Xiao Ming. “What’s your superpower?”

Previously, all he heard were Xiao Ming’s screams, but he hadn’t seen any sign of his superpower. Ling Mo couldn’t help but ask now.

Xiao Ming smiled shyly, then extended his hand toward an Iron Door nearby.

Thirty seconds passed…

A minute passed…

The smile on Xiao Ming’s face had disappeared. He was gritting his teeth, his face flushed, and both hands were stretched forward, looking like he was trying to perform some sort of Qigong1 but instead appeared constipated.

“What’s he doing?” Ling Mo asked, turning his head.

“Uh… he has some issues controlling his superpower,” Guan He said, feeling embarrassed too. “Captain, could you give him some pointers?”

“What kind of issues?” Ling Mo asked again.

“He can’t use it when he’s nervous. It’s hit or miss!” Guan He explained. “And he’s slow to react in battle.”

“Let me take a look,” Ling Mo said.

Just as he finished speaking, there was a “thud” sound, and the Iron Door suddenly bulged out as if hit by an invisible force.

“It startled me,” Ling Mo said, quickly moving closer to inspect it, then turned and asked, “What kind of superpower is this?”

“Dragon Style Qigong…” Xiao Ming said, then added, “Suction Power…”

“Oh, oh… this is just a kind of physical instinct. Practice more and don’t try to use it deliberately; treat it like a reflex,” Ling Mo said, finally understanding. It seemed that Yuwen Xuan, unwilling to pay such a high price for just one mission, had also taken the opportunity to send a rookie over, hoping to pick up some tips on using superpowers from Ling Mo.

A solo survivor, in terms of combat experience and proficiency with superpowers, would naturally be stronger than those who stayed at the Base.

Xiao Ming could learn from Ling Mo and then teach the others when he got back.

“No… it’s probably Zhang Yu’s doing! Always taking advantage of every opportunity!” Ling Mo cursed inwardly.

Footnote:

1. Qigong(气功): Qigong (pronounced “chee-gong”) is a traditional Chinese practice that involves coordinated movement, breathing, and meditation to cultivate and balance the body’s vital energy, known as “qi.”     It is often used for health maintenance, healing, and increasing physical and mental well-being.