168: Lingchuan University Attack

The afterglow of the sunset spilled like molten gold over the slightly dilapidated yet vibrant walls of Lingchuan University Base, bringing a moment of tranquility and warmth to the air that had been tense all day.

In the conference room, which had been converted from the library, Tang Qi, Yan Shi, Li Mu, Logistics Officer, and dozens of Evolver core members from Lingchuan University gathered together, but the atmosphere was not as peaceful as it was outside the window.

Tang Qi stood in front of a table covered with a rudimentary map, tapping his fingers on the surface to draw everyone's attention. His face was much more mature than it had been a few months ago, and there was a trace of imperceptible fatigue between his brows, but his eyes remained sharp: "Everyone, we have just received official notice from Lujiang Base. Tomorrow, their troops will arrive to assist us in building a more stable base, and using our existing manpower and resources as a foundation, they will further expand the search and rescue scope to save more survivors."

As the news was announced, a buzz of discussion immediately arose among the crowd, with worry and doubt outweighing joy.

A tall, thin young Evolver, still bearing a student-like air on his face, spoke up first with a somewhat aggressive tone: "Boss Tang, if they come, who do we listen to? Do we continue to listen to you, or do we all have to listen to their Red Alert Legion?"

He was one of the first people to follow Tang Qi and had witnessed the base being built from scratch.

"Yeah, Brother Tang!" another boy wearing glasses chimed in, his voice urgent, "This base was built by you, Senior Yan Shi, Senior Li Mu, and Senior Logistics Officer with your own hands! There are over twelve thousand people now! They want to take over as soon as they arrive? At least... at least they should give you a decent official position, right? We can't let them call the shots!"

"Right! Why should they! Boss Tang, you are a peak Second-Tier Evolver; you'd be a top combat force anywhere! Second-Tier Evolvers aren't common on the official side either, right? We can't just hand over command so easily!"

More and more people joined the discussion, their emotions somewhat agitated. The experience of struggling to survive in the apocalypse over the past few months had filled them with a sense of belonging and protectiveness toward this base they had helped build.

"Enough! Everyone be quiet!" Tang Qi slammed the table, making a dull thud, his voice laced with a hint of anger, causing the noisy scene to instantly quiet down.

He looked around at these companions who had experienced life and death together, his gaze stern: "Chattering away, what does this look like! If the official forces don't come, how much longer can we hold out with our meager food supplies and drafty defenses? Do you really think the Red Alert Legion has their eyes on our little broken base and wants to seize power?"

His voice was cold, carrying a kind of realistic cruelty: "What they have their eyes on is the entire Lingchuan City, and the many more survivors that might exist! Without their support, we will sooner or later be swallowed by a Zombie Tide. By then, will it even matter who is the boss?"

The tall, thin Evolver still seemed unconvinced and muttered: "Then... then at least they should let you and the others be officials, have some real power, otherwise we'll feel stifled and afraid of being used as cannon fodder by them..."

Tang Qi took a deep breath, suppressing the irritation in his heart and that trace of confusion he himself felt, and said in an unquestionable, decisive tone: "That's enough, say no more! When the people arrive tomorrow, everything will be under the command of the Red Alert Legion! This is an order! If I can continue to lead you, then follow me! If not, then honestly join their Evolver legion and continue fighting! Is that understood?!"

His words carried a finality, and although the crowd had various expressions, they eventually nodded in agreement one after another.

"Alright, go back to sleep, get some rest, and don't embarrass our Lingchuan University Base tomorrow!" Yan Shi, standing to the side with his thick arms crossed, began shooing people away with a voice like a booming bell. He was like a male lion; although he also had his doubts, he trusted Tang Qi's judgment more.

The crowd gradually dispersed, leaving only the original four-person core group in the room. Tang Qi walked to the window, looking at the twinkling lights gradually lighting up outside and the figures of the patrol members, a trace of fatigue and confusion appearing on his face.

"Senior," Logistics Officer walked gently to his side and tugged at his sleeve. Her clear eyes, carrying a faint water-blue halo, were filled with worry and a trace of imperceptible reliance, "You won't... abandon us, right?" Her voice was soft, carrying the melancholy peculiar to a young girl.

Tang Qi turned his head to look at the girl beside him who had always silently supported him, and the turmoil in his heart seemed to calm down a bit. His eyes became firm, and he gently patted the back of her hand: "Logistics Officer, don't be afraid. I don't know exactly how the Red Alert Legion will arrange things for us either. But no matter what, I will always be by your side to protect you."

Logistics Officer heard this, her eyes reddened slightly, and as if gathering all her courage, she suddenly threw herself into his arms in excitement, burying her face in his solid chest, her voice choked with sobs yet exceptionally clear: "Senior... I like you... I don't want to be separated from you..."

Tang Qi's body stiffened slightly, then relaxed. In the apocalypse, true feelings were especially precious. He did not hesitate or refuse again, stretching out his arms to gently wrap around the girl's slightly trembling shoulders, stroking her smooth hair, and whispered: "I know, I feel the same."

At this moment, a thought arose in his heart: If the Red Alert Legion really wanted to take over completely and deprive him of his command, then he would be fine with retreating to the background with the girl in his arms, along with old brothers like Yan Shi and Li Mu. As long as he could stay together with her and find a place of stability in this apocalypse, living a simple life, perhaps that wouldn't be a bad kind of happiness.

Late at night.

The nights of the apocalypse never gave people much fantasy of peace.

In the dead of night, thick dark clouds completely swallowed the waning moon and the stars, and the world was a sea of ink. Lingchuan University Base seemed to have sunk to the bottom of an ink bottle; only a few searchlights on the walls and the scattered, flickering torches, like lonely eyes, struggled to carve out a limited area of light in the boundless darkness.

The clamor of the day had long since subsided, and except for the rhythmic and heavy footsteps of the patrol and the hair-raising roars of zombies drifting on the wind from the distant wilderness, everything was silent. Most survivors curled up in their insecure shelters, drifting into a deep sleep amidst the exhaustion interwoven with hunger and fear.

Tang Qi was in his room, sitting cross-legged, holding a Second-Tier crystal core in his palm, struggling to absorb the surging energy within it. The power of thunder surged endlessly within him; he had already touched the threshold of the Third-Tier, just one step away.

On the other side, Logistics Officer had just finished treating the last member injured during the day and was rubbing her sore wrists and brow, preparing to rest.

Suddenly— "Hum—!!!"

An extremely sharp, high-pitched screech, like countless glass shards scraping against metal, mixed with the shrill, sorrowful cry of a night owl, slammed down from the high night sky without warning! This sound did not come from the ground, but from the bottomless dark firmament above everyone's heads, piercing directly through the eardrums and reaching deep into the soul!

"Enemy attack! In the air! There's something in the air!!" On the highest guard tower, the observer used all his strength, issuing a shrill, completely distorted alarm that transmitted through the old loudspeaker, spreading across the entire base, filled with unspeakable horror!

Almost at the same moment the alarm sounded! "Swish! Swish! Swish! Swish!"

Countless twisted, hideous shadows, like vengeful spirits breaking free from the shackles of hell, swooped down from the thick clouds! They moved so fast that only blurred afterimages remained; their wings flapped violently, tearing through the air and emitting a screech like a ghost's wail!

Leading them was a terrifying existence whose size was suffocating! Its wingspan was nearly ten meters, blocking out the sky and the moon, and its body presented a dark purple, eerie metallic luster as if it had been repeatedly tempered by the thunder of hell. Its head was hideous and twisted, its fangs protruding from its mouth, and in its pair of giant eyes, there were no pupils, but two balls of wildly jumping, sizzling, violent electric arcs! All over its body, countless crackling, writhing blue-purple electric snakes were entwined, emitting a terrifying pressure like the might of heaven!!!

This was a Flying Zombie that had reached the Third-Tier and possessed a rare lightning-type Supernatural Ability! (Let's just call it the Thunder-Winged Corpse King.)

Behind it followed several Second-Tier Flying Zombies with wingspans of five or six meters, each with different forms—some with jagged bone spurs, others with tattered membranes—but all emitting a powerful, ferocious aura, along with over a hundred First-Tier Flying Zombies that swarmed like locusts, screaming incessantly! They swooped down with the baleful aura of destruction!

The Thunder-Winged Corpse King let out a deafening thunderous roar, and its huge wings flapped violently downward!

In an instant, with it as the center, a huge, visible blue-purple terrifying electric net instantly opened up, like a net cast by the Grim Reaper, covering the sky over nearly half of the base! Countless twisted, violent bolts of lightning no longer just "fell," but "exploded" toward the ground like dancing thunder snakes!

"Boom! Boom! Boom! Crack—!!!" The searchlights on the wall bore the brunt, instantly shattering into countless glass shards! The carefully arranged high-voltage electric grid flickered with desperate sparks, then completely went out and was rendered useless! Several guard towers were accurately struck by bucket-thick lightning, collapsing and burning amidst deafening explosions, and the young college student soldiers on them instantly turned into charred remains! Inside the base, wooden structures and piled-up supplies were easily ignited by the lightning, and flames soared into the sky, illuminating countless terrified, twisted faces like a scene from hell!

Chaos, screams, desperate wails, and shrieks of extreme terror... instantly tore through the silence of the night!

(Xiao Feng doesn't have many drafts left, I've been busy with work lately, releasing one chapter today, after all, writing books is just a hobby. However, for the fifty-plus book friends who insist on following the updates, Xiao Feng will definitely keep updating this book until the whole country is recovered and order is established before finishing it.)