Chapter 165 New Players, Liao Long and His Gang

Inside Villa No. 1 of the Taoyuan Residential Area.

Eight men were tied up with thick ropes, their bodies covered in bruises, clearly having been beaten for a long time.

They were piled together against the wall, looking utterly wretched.

Five younger men were in the same state, with traces of blood at the corners of their mouths.

Yet every one of them seemed to keep their backs straight, their eyes filled with endless fury.

Tall, burly men stood guard, their arm muscles bulging and their eyes reflecting ferocity.

Six men sat on the sofa.

The leader wore a suit and gold-rimmed glasses. Beneath his refined appearance, his temples bulged high and his knuckles were thick with calluses, silently demonstrating his combat prowess.

This man was named Liao Long.

He looked at Zhuang Yi, his tone mocking: "Zhuang Yi, what was the point of resisting? Aren't you still caught by us now? You didn't really think some fancy show martial arts could stop us, did you?"

Zhuang Yi gave a cold snort and turned his face away, ignoring him.

A man beside him stepped forward and reported.

"Brother Long, we can't find those broads. As for that item, we turned their Dormitory upside down but couldn't find it... So, it's highly likely it's still with those women."

Hearing this, Liao Long's face darkened.

He, Liao Long, and the five men here were originally specially hired bodyguards for the villa district.

Before the apocalypse, they each seemed loyal, but as soon as the game started, they bared their fangs and directly murdered their employers.

By being ruthless and using professional fighting skills to make an example of some to intimidate the rest,

they then controlled the elderly and children to coerce their families into collecting supplies.

Consequently, on the foundation of their already far-above-average strength, they quickly accumulated a massive amount of resources.

It could be said that their strength and resources far surpassed most players.

"Useless!" Liao Long cursed, stepping on Zhuang Yi's head and grinding his face with the sole of his shoe.

"Speak! Where exactly are the others hiding?"

Zhuang Yi gritted his teeth, veins popping on his neck, his voice hoarse: "How could I possibly tell you?"

Liao Long grew annoyed and waved his hand: "Beat him! Beat them to death!"

A group of men immediately lunged forward, their fists and feet falling like raindrops.

Wooden sticks, belts, and all sorts of usable items rained down on the eight men.

Zhuang Yi and the others groaned, their bodies curling up, but no one uttered a plea for mercy.

After a while, the men stopped, panting for breath.

A middle-aged man who looked very similar to Zhuang Yi, though covered in wounds, let out a hoarse and mocking laugh: "Keep going? Don't tell me you're tired already?"

"Hahaha, didn't you eat?" several other young men also deliberately laughed mockingly.

Zhuang Yi let out a sneer of his own.

Liao Long's face turned livid with anger. He crouched down, grabbed Zhuang Yi's hair, and forced him to look up.

"Zhuang Yi, come clean now, or else—the residential area is only so big, we'll find them sooner or later..."

"When they're caught, there won't be a happy ending! Especially that cute little daughter of yours who just turned eighteen; she looks like she'd be quite supple..."

"Pui!" Zhuang Yi spat a mouthful of bloody water directly onto Liao Long's face and roared: "If you dare harm my daughter, I won't let you go even as a ghost!"

With blood and filth on his face, Liao Long's anger completely Burst: "Beat them! Beat them to death!"

The men charged again, their strikes even more vicious. They didn't stop until the eight men were completely unconscious.

Just then, a cold voice rang out in their minds:

[Ding! Jinghai University District, initiating regional fusion!]

[Selection in progress, will fuse with surrounding areas.]

[Fusion Regions: ...]

[1. Jinghai University (including Teaching Building, playground, Gymnasium, etc.).]

[2. Shanhai City Global Financial Center (ultra-high-rise office building, 100 floors in total).]

[During the fusion period, all players please prioritize safety and avoid unnecessary conflict.]

[Fusion complete!]

Liao Long wiped the blood from his face. Hearing this voice, he was first stunned, then his face broke into wild joy.

"Jinghai University? Global Financial Center?"

His voice was filled with excitement as he looked at several of his subordinates on the sofa.

"This is great, Brother Long!" a man stood up excitedly. "These two places pose absolutely no threat! A bunch of office workers and some naive college students—what kind of combat power could they have?"

Another man also laughed: "In our group, who isn't a skilled bodyguard? Pull any one of us out and we could flatten those students!"

Liao Long couldn't help but laugh out loud as well.

The few of them were already elite bodyguards, their strength far exceeding that of ordinary people.

Not to mention their ruthless methods and the fact that they had gathered over a thousand players!

Could they really fail to subdue a bunch of office workers and students?

"Brother Long, how about we go to Jinghai University first and plunder a bit?"

A subordinate suggested, a lewd smile on his face, "Maybe we can even bring back a few campus belles!"

Liao Long pondered for a moment and nodded: "Hmm, but we can't be stupid. Going over aggressively would make our intentions too obvious."

"After all, it's just the beginning of the rest period. The other regions definitely have a large number of dormant zombies left. If we get outmaneuvered or they decide to take us down with them and wake up the zombies to attack us, it would be more loss than gain."

He paused, a sharp light flashing in his eyes.

"Do this: find some elderly, weak, sick, or disabled people, and mix in a few clever young ones—preferably those whose family or friends are held as hostages by us."

"Have them go to Jinghai University and pretend to seek help."

"The office workers might be hard to say, but those pure and stupid college students are the easiest to deceive."

The subordinates' eyes lit up, and they nodded one after another.

"And then, Brother Long?"

"Then, we work from the inside out. Once we've scouted the situation and ensured everything is foolproof, find an opportunity to take down all their leaders and directly take over the entire region!"

"Finally, we'll turn both Jinghai University and the Global Financial Center into our territory!"

As Liao Long spoke, he stuck out his tongue and licked his lips, as if he could already see the easy prey within his grasp.

The subordinates rubbed their hands in excitement: "Brother Long's plan is brilliant! It's absolutely seamless!"

"Good, go and arrange it now!"

Liao Long waved his hand and stood up impatiently, "Go make the arrangements. I want everything from those two regions—supplies, women... I want it all!"

Another Burst of wild laughter echoed through the villa.

Meanwhile, in a room of a high-rise building in the Taoyuan Residential Area.

Zhuang Xiaoxin hugged her knees tightly, sitting in a corner.

She had a cute face with baby fat, and her large, watery eyes were filled with terror.

Besides her, there were five or six women of various ages in the room.

They surrounded Zhuang Xiaoxin, comforting her softly: "Xiaoxin, don't be afraid, we'll protect you."

"Will Papa, the uncles, and my cousins... will they be okay?"

Zhuang Xiaoxin's voice carried a hint of sobbing, her small hands tightly clutching the corner of her clothes.

"They won't be, your father and the others are very strong," a middle-aged woman said softly, though worry was also hidden in her own eyes.

Just then, that cold voice rang out in everyone's minds.

[Ding! Jinghai University District, initiating regional fusion!]

[Fusion Regions: ...]

[1. Jinghai University...]

[2. Shanhai City Global Financial Center...]

[Fusion complete!]

Zhuang Xiaoxin snapped her head up, her large eyes sparkling with light.

"Jinghai University..."

"Isn't that the school where Big Brother is?!"

This news caused a glimmer of hope to instantly ignite in her originally despairing heart.