128: Chapter 128 Stop Talking Nonsense, or You'll Die

This cold thought flashed through Li Taiping's mind.

He was no saint, and certainly no champion of justice.

In this eerie dungeon, he wouldn't pass up any opportunity to restore his power.

Killing monsters was killing, and killing... was also killing.

They were all just clusters of fake data anyway; he wouldn't have any psychological burden killing them.

Seeing the steel pipe in the Bald Man's hand gesturing and about to strike, Li Taiping moved.

He didn't choose to charge head-on, but instead silently circled to the other side of the bus, using various abandoned vehicles on the street as cover, closing in on the three men rapidly like a stalking leopard.

His movements were light, making no sound at all.

The three men were immersed in the joy of having snatched food, completely unaware of the approaching danger.

"Big brother, what do we do with this kid?"

A Yellow-Haired Minion asked, pointing at the dying youth on the ground.

"What else? Kill him," the Bald Man said nonchalantly. "Keeping him is just trouble. What if he finds a chance to retaliate? In this hellhole, the soft-hearted don't live long."

"Big brother is right!"

Another Man with a fleshy face chimed in.

Just as the Bald Man raised the steel pipe, ready to end the youth's life...

A dark shadow, like a ghost, suddenly lunged out from the shadows behind him.

The Bald Man only felt a chill on the back of his neck before a sharp pain instantly surged through his entire body.

Before he could even let out a scream, the world before his eyes rapidly plunged into darkness.

Li Taiping's strike hit home, and without pausing, his 'baseball bat' swept out in an eerie arc, slamming hard into the Yellow-Haired Minion's temple.

"Bang!"

The Yellow-Haired Minion's head, along with his entire body, flew sideways, crashing into the convenience store's glass door with a loud thud, killing him on the spot.

Only the last man with the fleshy face remained.

Seeing his two companions taken out in an instant, he was scared out of his wits, letting out a terrified scream as he turned to run.

But how could Li Taiping give him the chance?

He lunged forward and kicked the man in the back of the knee.

The man screamed and fell to his knees with a thud.

Before he could struggle, Li Taiping had already circled in front of him, his 'baseball bat' carrying immense force as it swung down, smashing hard onto the man's crown.

"Squelch!"

A muffled thud.

The man's head was forcibly smashed into his chest cavity.

Triple kill!

The entire process was smooth and fluid, without a single moment of hesitation.

Li Taiping stood expressionless among the three corpses, slowly exhaling a breath of murky air.

As expected!

Just as he had predicted!

The moment he killed these three people, the energy fluctuations within his body were more intense than after killing any Infected before!

The itching sensation on his wrist also became clearer than ever before!

He even felt that his connection to the Survival System had changed from the previous "no signal" state to "extremely poor signal"!

This was a major breakthrough.

It seemed that killing the "data" in this dungeon really could restore his power, just like farming mobs to level up.

Li Taiping's gaze became increasingly cold and determined.

To restore his power and leave this hellhole, he didn't mind becoming an Asura.

At that moment, the youth who had been robbed struggled to get up from the ground.

He looked at the man before him, who was like a god of slaughter, his eyes filled with awe and gratitude.

"Th... thank you, big brother! You saved my life!"

He spoke excitedly while coughing up blood.

"My name is Wang Hao. Big brother, what's your name? From now on, my life belongs to you!"

Li Taiping glanced at him coldly without saying a word.

He bent down and picked up the few packs of crackers and the bottle of mineral water from beside the Bald Man's corpse.

Then, he picked up the enemy's steel pipe and weighed it in his hand.

The steel pipe was heavier and sturdier than the 'baseball bat'; it should be easier to use.

He unceremoniously claimed the steel pipe for himself and tossed the 'baseball bat' onto the ground.

[Steel Brand 'Baseball Bat' +1]

Having done all this, he turned to leave.

"Big brother! Wait!"

The youth named Wang Hao quickly called out to him.

"Big brother, you're so strong, let's team up!"

"It's too hard to survive alone in this world. If we're together, we can look out for each other!"

Li Taiping stopped and looked back at him, his eyes showing no emotion.

"I don't need dead weight."

His voice was frigid, like ice that hadn't melted for ten thousand years.

After saying that, he ignored Wang Hao's stunned face and walked straight toward the bus.

Su Jie came out from behind the vehicle, her small face somewhat pale, clearly frightened by the scene just now.

But there was no fear in her eyes as she looked at Li Taiping; instead, they were filled with a strange brilliance.

Decisive in killing, cold and ruthless.

Such a man, though frightening, also made one feel... incredibly safe.

"Let's... let's go," Su Jie said softly.

Li Taiping nodded and handed her the crackers and mineral water.

"Take these and eat something first."

Su Jie took the food, and looking at Li Taiping's expressionless face, a sudden warmth welled up in her heart.

He killed bad people, and although he seemed terrifyingly cold, he still cared about her.

That was enough.

She didn't ask any questions, just silently unscrewed the cap, took a small sip of water, then tore open a pack of crackers and held one to Li Taiping's lips.

"Hubby, you eat too."

Li Taiping was momentarily stunned.

Looking into Su Jie's clear, concerned eyes, an indescribable emotion flowed through his heart.

He opened his mouth and silently ate the cracker.

The two of them briefly replenished their energy and continued on their way.

After the earlier incident, Li Taiping became even more vigilant.

In this dungeon, there were not only monsters but also human hearts, which were even more terrifying.

He had to restore his strength as soon as possible to have the ability to protect himself absolutely.

For the next hour or so, Li Taiping was like an untiring killing machine.

He took the initiative to attack, completely clearing out all the wandering Infected near this street.

His combat skills became increasingly refined through repeated battles.

The steel pipe in his hand seemed to come alive; every swing accurately hit the enemy's vital points.

As the slaughter continued, the power within him was recovering at a visible rate.

The connection signal on his wrist had changed from "extremely poor signal" to "weak signal."

He could even vaguely feel his storage space—that familiar dimensional space seemingly bound to his soul—beckoning him from not far away.

With just a bit more effort, he would be able to reopen his storage space!

This realization gave Li Taiping even more motivation.

His gaze also became increasingly frenzied.

Following behind him and watching him smash one terrifying Infected after another into pulp like he was chopping vegetables, Su Jie's heart pounded uncontrollably.

She felt like she was recognizing the man before her less and less.

He That's amazing!.

So strong... he didn't seem human.

Just as Li Taiping finished headshotting the last Infected and was preparing to go to the next block to continue "farming mobs"...

Su Jie suddenly pulled on the corner of his clothes.

"Hubby... we... we should find a place to hide."

Li Taiping turned back and looked at her in confusion.

"Hide from what?"

Su Jie pointed to the sky, her beautiful face filled with fear.

"The... the sky is getting dark. The Tide is coming."

Hearing this, Li Taiping instinctively looked up.

He saw that the "sun" in the sky, which had been emitting a gentle light, had now become extremely dim, as if it could go out at any moment.

And the light of the entire world was rapidly darkening at a visible rate.

The grayish-white sky was being replaced by a deep, ink-like darkness.

The Peaceful Period... was half over.

Li Taiping's heart tightened.

This was a pattern discovered by the surviving Survivor in this dungeon world.

The duration of the daytime Peaceful Period was random, and the entire daytime would be split into two symmetrical halves by something called the "dark tide."

Survivor used this as a basis for judging time.

It was also a buffer the world gave the Survivor as a way to live.

Life, after all, always finds a way.

The arrival of night meant that the suppressed monsters would become more active and powerful.

The current Li Taiping, though he had recovered some of his senses, was still essentially an ordinary person.

Using an ordinary human body to fight monsters in the night was like throwing an egg against a rock.

"Go!"

Li Taiping made a prompt decision, grabbed Su Jie's hand, and sprinted back in the direction they had come from.

They had to get back to that small but safe shelter before it got completely dark!

However, the darkness descended much faster than they had imagined.

In just a few short minutes, the entire world was dragged completely into boundless darkness.

It was so dark you couldn't see your hand in front of your face.

The surrounding temperature also seemed to drop to the freezing point in an instant.

A cold, eerie, and hair-raising aura spread from all directions.

"Roar—!!!"

"Jie jie jie jie—"

All sorts of terrifying screeches and strange laughs, which didn't sound like they could be made by living creatures, rang out from every corner of the city, merging into a scalp-tingling symphony of death.

Su Jie was trembling all over, gripping Li Taiping's hand tightly, her teeth chattering.

...