Chapter 573 – Kill Two Birds with One Stone

Ye Kai’s method of throwing knives seems quite simple when explained; the key lies in his wrist rotation and a sense of skillful effort. The knife, once thrown, spins in the air and accurately hits the ground, only to bounce back into his hand. This seemingly trivial use of his superpower is, in fact, highly effective for luring zombies.

Another use, as once suggested by Ling Mo, is to employ the throwing knife to interfere with an enemy’s vision and attention. Combined with his swift blade, it can produce unexpected results.

Ye Kai has also come up with a fitting name for this superpower: Blade Dance. According to him, it signifies the blades dancing through a rain of blood. Ling Mo, however, thinks it could also mean dancing on the edge of blades. Although Ye Kai’s hand speed is impressive, his own footwork is equally agile and fluid, embodying the essence of speed.

A well-thrown knife distracted most of the zombies. After signaling, the prepared Zhang Xincheng sprang into action.

However, his way of rushing out was quite unusual. With a serious expression on his face, he raised his arms and pressed his hands against a wall beside him, quickly leaping upwards.

In the blink of an eye, he was clinging to the high wall like a gecko. If it weren’t seen with the naked eye, one might have thought there was no movement at all.

Ling Mo knew that the special aspect of the gecko superpower wasn’t just in wall-climbing. However, like Skinny Monkey, Zhang Xincheng’s close combat skills were quite weak.

Even so, with this superpower, his ability to stay alive was undoubtedly impressive.

Skinny Monkey closed his eyes again, to help him focus more.

Clairaudience might sound like a simple superpower, but it’s actually quite challenging.

Under normal circumstances, Skinny Monkey’s hearing is no different from that of an ordinary person. Only when he activates this superpower does his hearing greatly enhance in an instant.

Certain sounds that ordinary humans can’t hear at all can theoretically be picked up by Skinny Monkey. However, at this stage, what he can hear is still quite limited. Despite that, the moment his superpower activates, he experiences a strong sense of discomfort.

Some subtle sounds that are usually imperceptible would flood into his ears all at once. To accurately capture the specific sound he wants from this cacophony, while also determining its direction and distance, is clearly not simple.

And this difficulty is compounded by the tense situation. The initial success just now, along with the trust from Ling Mo and Ye Kai, has given Skinny Monkey significant encouragement.

This time, he got into the zone much faster than before, and the cold sweat on his forehead was visibly less, although he was still trembling, it wasn’t as severe.

“Twelve o’clock direction,” Skinny Monkey provided the answer.

Zhang Xincheng immediately sprang into action, swiftly crawling along the wall in the twelve o’clock direction. Sure enough, he saw a zombie wandering to the corner of the wall.

This result delighted Zhang Xincheng because as he arrived, the zombie was about to turn.

Although zombies have strong olfactory abilities, Zhang Xincheng does his best to eliminate his scent before acting. Being airborne in windy conditions makes it difficult for the zombie to smell him.

Now that the zombie couldn’t see him at all, it made Zhang Xincheng’s task even easier.

Zhang Xincheng suddenly changed direction, heading downwards with his head and upwards with his feet, quickly climbing down the wall.

As he approached the zombie, a razor appeared in his hand.

With a swift movement, Zhang Xincheng slit the zombie’s trachea just as it noticed him, then quickly climbed back up.

The blood flow from the zombie’s neck was minimal. Initially, it ferociously attempted to jump and pursue Zhang Xincheng, even trying to start climbing the wall.

But soon, it began to realize that breathing was becoming difficult.

The zombie opened its mouth, futilely clawing at the wall. Its sharp nails left cracks on the surface, but a few minutes later, it collapsed.

After severing its trachea, Zhang Xincheng had already moved on to the next target.

“Two o’clock direction,” Skinny Monkey’s voice called out again.

Using this method, Ye Kai and Zhang Xincheng collaborated seamlessly, clearing all remaining zombies in the area within ten minutes.

The bloodstains on the ground were minimal, hardly causing any commotion, a result that left Ling Mo quite satisfied.

His aim wasn’t to form a squad that would relentlessly fight zombies. With so many zombies out there and still reproducing, could they possibly be fought off to the end?

Humanity’s goal is to develop and survive, not to focus on how many zombies they can kill every day.

Before the Cataclysm, the global population had reached nearly eight billion. According to the estimates made by most of the people Ling Mo had come across, the remaining human population might be only in the tens of millions. But how many zombies and mutation beasts are there? It’s hard to estimate.

In sheer numbers, humanity no longer has a foothold on this planet. But as long as they’re alive, humans will strive to survive.

And survival is an entirely different concept from fighting to the death.

The biggest advantage humanity currently holds is the ability to utilize the remnants of pre-Cataclysm civilization.

Although many things, like food and some perishable daily necessities, are beginning to run short, there are still plenty of resources available. However, what those places are like and whether they are worth searching still needs to be assessed in person.

Training this squad, Ling Mo was essentially forming an Intelligence Squad for himself. Since it’s an Intelligence Squad, survival skills and the ability to clear paths need to be top-notch.

“If only zombies could be trained, they’d be much more convenient than humans…” Ling Mo couldn’t help but think.

“Alright, you are now familiar with the coordination. Next time, I want to see an increase in speed. Seven minutes is too slow, and you’ve only advanced less than a hundred meters,” Mu Chen said from the side.

But as soon as he finished speaking, he immediately regretted it.

“Damn it! Occupational habit! Why do I always end up volunteering to work for him?” Mu Chen was very frustrated.

Ling Mo, however, praised his attitude, “You’re very professional.”

“…Don’t praise me…” Mu Chen listened, feeling conflicted. It made him feel even more foolish; after all, he really disliked this guy.

“I’m encouraging you, keep up the good work,” Ling Mo said earnestly.

“…Damn!!” Mu Chen was furious. This guy still wasn’t satisfied?!

For this ragtag team to cooperate so well on their first try was entirely due to his coordination. And now this guy was telling him to keep up the good work?

Unbearable!

Mu Chen gritted his teeth, then turned his anger toward someone else.

“Ye Kai, your initial movements could have been quicker, and you could have thrown the knife further to attract more zombies. Why were you hesitating?” Mu Chen demanded.

“I…”

Ye Kai barely got a word in before Mu Chen cut him off angrily: “What did I tell you guys? Pay attention to your teammates! Look at Skinny Monkey; he’s giving it his all. During a mission, your teammates use all their strength so you can perform at your best and complete the task. But you’re half-hearted. Given the circumstances, shouldn’t you apologize to Skinny Monkey?”

“Uh?” Ye Kai’s previously cocky expression returned. The only person he respected here was Ling Mo. This newcomer to the F Team, Mu Chen, would have been ignored by Ye Kai if Ling Mo hadn’t designated him.

The atmosphere grew tense as Ye Kai stared provocatively at Mu Chen, who glared back fiercely.

“Ahem…” Ling Mo cleared his throat meaningfully.

Ye Kai glanced at Ling Mo, reluctantly biting his lip before backing down.

“Skinny Monkey, I won’t doubt you next time…” Ye Kai begrudgingly turned his head and said.

“Aren’t you forgetting an apology?” Mu Chen pressed.

“…I’m sorry.” Ye Kai muttered, sulking for a moment. After quickly saying it, Ye Kai glared viciously at Mu Chen as he walked past him.

Skinny Monkey was utterly stunned; Ye Kai apologizing to him? Did he hear that right?

“N-no…it’s not necessary…” Several seconds later, Skinny Monkey snapped out of his daze, vehemently shaking his head and waving his hands.

Ye Kai shot him a displeased look, causing Skinny Monkey to reflexively retreat a step, visibly startled. Ye Kai then looked equally frustrated.

“I…” Ye Kai mumbled reluctantly, then added in a low voice, “It’s the right thing to do.”

“He actually listened…” Ling Mo looked at Ye Kai in surprise, then glanced over at Mu Chen.

Sure enough, appointing him as the commander was the right decision. This guy really had a knack for the job! And the best part was, Mu Chen took on the role of the ‘bad guy,’ leaving Ling Mo free to be the team’s supportive captain.

A win-win situation!