Chapter 39: The Second Gold! The Art of Playing Dead?

"Move!" Gu Lang wasted no words, abruptly stepping back as a sniper rifle appeared in his hands.

But there was no time to fire at this distance.

Thankfully, Li Muwan stood in front of him. Her palm opened, and seven or eight ice spikes shot out in a frenzy.

The red-clad zombie crashed headlong into the oncoming ice.

Crack! The ice spikes shattered as if they’d struck steel, exploding into fragments on impact.

The red-clad zombie was completely unharmed, and instead, it darted forward even faster.

But by now, Gu Lang had already set up his sniper, aiming at the monster’s head and pulling the trigger!

The thunderous roar of the sniper echoed through the narrow corridor, the very shockwave shaking the entire floor.

The bullet struck squarely at the top of the zombie’s head.

A high-performance armor-piercing round bored a tiny hole into its skull, blood gushing out.

Did it work?

Gu Lang looked closer, his face darkening.

The wound atop the zombie’s head healed in the blink of an eye, as if nothing had ever happened.

"Damn it, that recovery is unbelievable!" Gu Lang felt his teeth ache, but he still raised his rifle and fired again.

This time, Yu Qiuchi drew close to the red-clad zombie and smashed a fist down on its head!

Caught off guard, the zombie toppled to the ground.

After being repeatedly thwarted, it grew enraged and shifted its target to Yu Qiuchi.

"Today, none of you will leave alive!"

But before the words left its mouth, claws, sharp as steel blades, slashed down from behind!

The zombie’s back was instantly cut into a diamond-patterned mess, its skin and flesh splitting apart.

"Well done, Zombie Queen!" Gu Lang exclaimed in delight, quickly maneuvering a puppet zombie to take a punch for the queen.

Boom!

The old zombie was utterly destroyed.

Two silver puppet zombies had already been lost in this battle!

But this only inflamed Gu Lang’s ferocity.

"Almost there! Even if you’re gold-ranked, after this much attrition, you’re doomed today!"

Just then, behind Gu Lang, Julie stomped hard.

A ripple of green energy spread outward, boosting the attributes of everyone on Gu Lang’s side.

It was a group-wide enhancement!

"Now’s the chance—give her a strike!"

Gu Lang simultaneously directed his wife and the puppet zombies.

On his wife’s side, Yu Qiuchi leapt down with Gu Lang’s steel blade in hand.

Among the puppets, the two named Blaze and Gale unleashed fire and wind.

The flames, fanned by the wind, twisted into a whirlwind of fire—an inferno dragon.

Combined with Yu Qiuchi’s steel blade, they struck before and behind.

The red-clad female zombie was caught between them, crushed into a meat patty.

Sizzle! The sound of flames roasting flesh filled the air, followed by the scent of cooked meat.

Finally, the red-clad female zombie was wounded, blood streaming down her body, her face blackened with soot.

Gu Lang wasted not a moment, raising his sniper and pulling the trigger.

This time, he fired three times in rapid succession.

Each bullet struck the same spot—her brow.

Three consecutive shots finally blew the hole wide open.

The female zombie’s body wavered, and at last she collapsed, unable to rise.

Dead!

"Brother Gu Lang, you’re amazing!" The little girl cheered, jumping up and hugging his leg.

Li Muwan remained cold and indifferent, gazing down into the darkness below.

"Something’s wrong! Lord Gu Lang, there’s someone else down there, isn’t there?"

Gu Lang took a deep breath, his gaze fixed on the darkness.

After a moment, a small, thin figure emerged.

It was also a zombie.

Judging by its aura, it was every bit as powerful as the golden-rank zombie!

Damn!

There were two golden-rank zombies?!

Gu Lang was dumbfounded. He’d nearly risked his life for one—now there were two?

But this zombie didn’t attack him.

Instead, gratitude shone in its eyes.

"Thank you! You saved me!"

Gu Lang was taken aback.

Then, the system’s voice sounded in his mind.

[Congratulations, host! You’ve successfully rescued someone from the military district! As expected of you, host—even this was within your power! Truly, you brave fire and blade—remarkable!]

[Mission reward: Evolution Crystal]

So that’s who it was!

Gu Lang finally understood.

The zombie girl before him was the one who’d sent the call for help!

But wait—she was a golden-rank zombie, so why did she need rescuing?

Before he could puzzle it out, the little girl collapsed, unconscious, as if she’d been abused for days.

Gu Lang was at a loss.

Just then, a new mission appeared.

[Congratulations, host, for triggering a new mission! You have slain one golden-rank zombie, but it was incomplete. True golden-rank zombies are far more powerful. The only reason you won is that this one’s power was split between two bodies! For some reason, the strength was shared! Now, host, go and strike up a conversation with the zombie before you!]

[Mission reward: 30 free attribute points]

"Lord Gu Lang, no matter what, this little girl shouldn’t attack us. Golden-rank zombies are intelligent. Let’s take her with us and get out first," Li Muwan suggested.

Gu Lang nodded.

"There’s nothing else for it."

Soon, they brought the girl up to the top floor.

Here, it was no longer dank and cold.

The little girl drifted into a deep sleep, uninjured.

Now was not the time to approach her.

Gu Lang could only speak.

"What’s going on? Two zombies appeared, then it turns out this little girl is also golden-ranked and the one who called for help?"

Li Muwan, acting as the strategist, thought for a moment before answering.

"Lord Gu Lang, perhaps the girl is somehow connected to the red-clad zombie. We’ll have to wait until she wakes to find out more."

"But she’s a golden-rank zombie—if we can win her over, we’ll have a powerful ally!"

Gu Lang did not deny it.

Golden-rank zombies truly were formidable.

Even the system had said so—the red-clad zombie wasn’t at its strongest.

What if they faced a complete, unfractured golden-rank zombie?

The thought made Gu Lang excited, but suddenly he frowned.

A silver zombie, its body wreathed in flames, staggered over and spoke in a broken voice.

"Lord... Gu Lang! There are people outside the city!"

People?

Gu Lang frowned. This was the military district—who else could be here besides them?

Wait!

Could it be people from the Zhang and Wang families?

Gu Lang instantly went on alert, directing a flesh-winged zombie to carry him upward.

At the top floor, he peered out warily.

...

At the military district’s main gate, a crowd of two hundred had gathered.

At the front stood an old woman, facing an old man.

The old man, dressed in a black suit, hefted a hammer, his face twisted with rage.

"Damn it! My boy Fugui just told me that someone named Gu Lang tricked them. He’s probably dead by now!"

The old woman gripped her cane.

"Thanks to you, Zhang family’s gift isn’t combat, but communication. Still, don’t worry—Zhang Fugui is cunning. He might be playing dead; after all, isn’t that one of his abilities?"

The old man glared coldly at the military district.

"That’s right! My precious boy isn’t dead yet! Let’s get inside and kill Gu Lang—then we’ll talk!"

...

"Damn! Zhang Fugui, you’re faking your death? And you can communicate with outsiders?"

Gu Lang was shocked, whipping his head around—there was the back door of the building!