Chapter 572 – Watch My Throwing Knife

In the corner of a street, several figures were hidden.

The wreckage of a car in front of them conveniently provided cover in the shadows, while less than twenty meters away, numerous zombies roamed around.

“Twenty-seven,” Xia Na glanced outside briefly and then turned back to speak.

“How did you count them?” Mu Chen was squinting to observe closely, and upon hearing her, he was taken aback and couldn’t help but ask.

It had only been a second, and though she might have had strong nerves to count zombies like counting cabbages, these zombies all looked similar at a glance and were moving back and forth. Without spending some time, it was impossible to get an accurate count.

Xia Na just gave him a sideways glance and remained silent.

The vision and memory capabilities of zombies are something you wouldn’t understand, right …?

Ling Mo clearly understood this from Xia Na’s eyes.

“She’s… good at it,” Ling Mo scratched his head and said.

“Oh, really…” Mu Chen nodded skeptically.

“What… what should we do now… why did we come here?” Skinny Monkey crouched behind the group, looking as though he wished to turn into air, his face fraught with anxiety.

Ye Kai rolled his eyes at him and said, “You come out with a constipated face; can’t you be a bit braver? It won’t kill you.”

“It’s bravery that gets you killed…” Skinny Monkey muttered under his breath, only to be silenced with a shiver when Ye Kai glared at him.

“Monkey, just listen for any unusual sounds around us. If you notice anything odd, let us know. Stick close to us and you’ll be fine,” Ling Mo said. He sighed inwardly, thinking that this person was too timid to accomplish much. Despite having a useful superpower, Skinny Monkey couldn’t unleash its full potential.

However, thinking about it, his superpower was only useful when others valued it. Normally, he was just like any ordinary person, yet he mingled with these superhumans and faced more dangers than most. The discrimination and inner self-doubt he experienced were likely beyond what others could understand.

Given how things were, his problematic demeanor wasn’t that surprising.

Honestly, the fact that he had held on without breaking down or running away impressed Ling Mo to some extent…

Ling Mo didn’t know, but Skinny Monkey had already considered that countless times. However, they were still quite a distance from the TV Station, with zombies everywhere. Leaving Ling Mo meant he would die even faster.

Seeing Skinny Monkey nod timidly, Mu Chen walked over and slapped him on the shoulder, then said with a big smile, “Just follow my lead and don’t let your emotions cloud your judgment, or you’ll be the quickest to die. But if you follow the team’s instructions, I guarantee you’ll survive. Of course, as long as we’re not doing something suicidal…”

Skinny Monkey’s face turned pale instantly. Was this supposed to be comforting? It felt more like a threat!

“Haha, no need to look so scared. Even if it were suicidal, given your role in the team, you wouldn’t be the first to go.”

Mu Chen’s tone suddenly became serious towards the end, “Teamwork means everyone standing in their own position, doing their jobs. As long as everyone shoulders their responsibilities, there’s no such thing as a suicide mission, understand? For higher survival rates, you can’t just focus on your own safety; you need to pay more attention to your teammates around you.”

“To put it bluntly, you’re all in the same boat. If one part fails, the whole thing is affected. Cooperation and chemistry take time to develop, but you need to start fostering that awareness now. For example, Skinny Monkey, your close combat skills are weak, but you are the ears of the team. You should focus entirely on scouting and not worry about your survival. If you do your part well, your teammates will naturally protect you.”

“…Mm…” Skinny Monkey stared in a daze for a moment, then nodded.

Ling Mo glanced at Mu Chen in surprise, then broke into a knowing smile.

As expected, Mu Chen was quite capable. With just a few words, he managed to stabilize the most unstable element in the team. A mix of coaxing and scaring worked wonders on someone like Skinny Monkey. Additionally, his indirect remarks subtly reminded Ye Kai and Zhang Xincheng of their responsibilities.

During the recent drill, both of them neglected certain aspects. Skinny Monkey’s panic was partly due to their lack of attention to him.

Trailing behind alone, of course, felt like walking on thin ice, as if he were dancing on the edge of a blade.

In this drill, the three of them teamed up, and just as Ling Mo had anticipated, they displayed a strength greater than the sum of their parts.

If any one of them were removed, the other two wouldn’t have been able to clear a path, especially without any injuries.

However, the drill also exposed their flaws.

Zhang Xincheng’s abilities were somewhat limited. Without support, issues would easily arise.

Ye Kai faced a similar problem. Though he was powerful and had some special abilities, he had to rely entirely on Zhang Xincheng and Skinny Monkey for scouting.

And Skinny Monkey, who should have been the most valuable due to his Clairaudience, was so timid that his two teammates simply ignored him…

When they reported back, although Zhang Xincheng mentioned Skinny Monkey, it was clear they hadn’t really sought his input.

“This time it’s the real deal. I hope you all learn from this.”

Ling Mo glanced outside once more and then motioned with his hand.

Given the situation, the trio could have easily made their way through if either the three female zombies or Ling Mo himself intervened. But that wasn’t Ling Mo’s purpose in coming here.

He wanted to see how far the three men could go and whether they could become the first truly formidable force at his disposal.

“Move.”

Ye Kai’s eyes grew serious as he drew a knife and crouched down, moving silently towards the wrecked car.

“Whoosh!”

Skinny Monkey took a sharp breath and pressed himself against the wall, closing his eyes.

If you looked closely, you’d notice that Skinny Monkey’s ears were twitching ever so slightly. At the same time, beads of sweat quickly appeared on his forehead, whether from nervousness or from using his ability, it was hard to tell.

“…At nine o’clock, a zombie is approaching you,” Skinny Monkey whispered.

The distance between them wasn’t far, so his words reached Ye Kai’s focused ears clearly.

From Ye Kai’s current position, if he turned to confirm the direction visually, he would certainly be discovered by the zombie.

At a moment like this, he had to rely on Skinny Monkey’s guidance to complete his task without exposing himself.

Ye Kai didn’t particularly trust Skinny Monkey, and he hesitated for a moment, tempted to look back at Ling Mo.

But then he reminded himself that Ling Mo and the others were not intervening precisely because they wanted to see how they would perform.

With that thought, Ye Kai gritted his teeth, and the knife in his hand suddenly flew out, accurately heading towards the nine o’clock direction.

His throwing knife was silent and extremely fast. Ling Mo noticed that when Ye Kai launched it, his wrist twisted significantly, and his psychic power seemed to focus instantly.

Normally, with training alone, one might achieve the initial throw, but the subsequent events completely exceeded a normal person’s control.

If the knife flew directly, it would certainly hit the utility pole in front. However, after leaving his hand, it curved in a half-moon shape over the car roof, spinning rapidly towards the zombie.

The zombie, facing the car wreck, didn’t notice the knife. It only saw a flash of light passing by, heading towards the opposite alley.

“Clang!”

A clear sound echoed deep in the alley.

The flash of light didn’t draw much attention from the zombie, but the moderate noise it made sounded like a thunderclap, immediately attracting the attention of most zombies.

“Swish!”

The throwing knife circled and then descended from the sky, landing perfectly back in Ye Kai’s hand.

He exhaled deeply and turned back, giving Ling Mo and the others an “OK” gesture.

Skinny Monkey, leaning against the wall, also breathed an instant sigh of relief, his tension melting away…