Chapter 7: Prerequisites for the Next Step

Magic legends? Cultivation techniques? Elixirs and bloodlines? It must be said that the things Zhang Jie mentioned held significant appeal for Zheng Zha and the others.

"That's true," Zheng Zha said happily. "There are so many horror movies; if we don't have enhancements and only rely on adding a few attribute points, I'm afraid it would be very hard to survive."

"Enough chitchat," Qian Gu said with a snap of his fingers, drawing everyone's attention to himself. "It is time to move on to the next step."

"The next step?"

Qian Gu nodded but remained silent, instead looking toward the mercenaries and the plot characters. "Just listen to me from here on out."

The sound of metal scraping against the floor echoed from around a corner. A white man wearing a researcher's lab coat appeared, his face smeared with bloody grime, dragging a large sledgehammer in his right hand. Following behind him were several ragged, limping "people."

J.D. called out, "Stand right there, or I'll open fire!"

*Rat-tat-tat!*

Someone acted faster than him.

Rain had already seen these monsters; her initial hesitation had completely vanished. She raised her gun and pulled the trigger. Bullets erupted from the barrel, tearing through the zombies and snapping them in half at the waist.

"Captain, look!"

Rain pointed at the zombies that were now only upper torsos, still dragging themselves forward and leaving long trails of blood, broken intestines, and kidneys behind. They made no sound other than guttural, growling roars.

As they drew closer, the appearance of these zombies became clear to everyone. Infected by the T-virus, they had lost their intelligence, and some of their bodies had already begun to rot, with semi-congealed blood clinging to them. It was the look that only the dead could have.

But do the dead move? Of course not, unless they aren't human.

*Bang!*

Zhang Jie raised his Desert Eagle and pulled the trigger. The firepower of this large-caliber semi-automatic pistol was immense—whether it was due to some power of the "God" or not, it shattered the head of a zombie on the ground, splattering grayish-white brains everywhere.

"You guys go find the exit, leave this to me!"

Matthew Addison hesitated for a moment, then nodded. "Alright, team, maintain formation! J.D., find the exit! Rain, guard the prisoners! The rest of you, stay with me!"

The whole group began to move again. Before they did, however, the mercenary captain took two pistols and several magazines from the spare equipment and handed them to Zheng Zha and Mou Gang.

"I might not be able to look after you later. Each magazine holds fifteen rounds. Do as Zhang Jie did: aim for their heads!"

Pistols! Although they weren't the large-caliber handguns Zhang Jie carried, the cold steel and the sleek design sent a thrill through Zheng Zha and Mou Gang, two men living in a "peaceful" society. What man doesn't dream of a gunfight?

Qian Gu also had one, given to him by Rain, though he only had one spare magazine.

*It’s enough.* Qian Gu weighed the pistol in his hand, feeling a sense of security. Swapping a metal rod he’d picked up off the floor for a product of modern industrial assembly was a great deal. Moreover, with this, his next plan would be much easier to execute.

Zombies were swarming out! More and more appeared, and they weren't just ordinary individuals; some were even carrying weapons. If they didn't look like empty-headed shells, Qian Gu would have suspected they were about to rush forward and unleash a combo.

*The difficulty has been adjusted,* Qian Gu thought to himself, noting the change.

Gunshots rang out. After his mental breakthrough, Zheng Zha’s accuracy, bolstered by his heightened reflexes, was absurd—one headshot after another. In contrast, Mou Gang lacked the aim and, after missing several times, gave up.

"Here." Mou Gang handed his magazine to Zheng Zha. He knew his own limits; it was better to give the ammunition to a teammate who could actually use it.

Zhan Lan patted her chest, feeling a strange sense of relief. "Will Zhang Jie be alright? We can't even see him anymore."

"It shouldn't be a problem." Qian Gu knew Zhang Jie’s true capabilities; the difficulty of Resident Evil 1 was hardly enough to stop him. Unless it was the "God's" modded version of the Umbrella Corporation, which would truly be insane.

"He's a veteran; he has more experience than us, so he naturally has his ways of handling such things," Qian Gu said, shifting his focus to Zheng Zha, who was completely absorbed in shooting zombies. "I suggest we stop worrying about fighting these guys; we're about to get separated from the main group."

The zombies grew more numerous. Although Zheng Zha’s marksmanship was now pinpoint, the sheer volume was beginning to split the group. The reincarnators were one small unit, and the plot characters were another; they were already starting to lose sight of each other.

At that moment, the mercenaries opened the door to the research room, but dozens of zombies surged out from within. Caught off guard, the mercenary opening the door was dragged inside. The sounds of tearing and the blood-curdling screams were enough to chill anyone to the bone. Especially for Zheng Zha and the others.

Perhaps in a movie, it wouldn't feel like much, but when you are immersed in it, and this life-or-death situation is truly happening right beside you, the horror is beyond words.

"Back to the Red Queen! Go back there!" Matthew Addison roared, turning the team around to head back to the central computer room.

"Now, move!" Qian Gu’s eyes lit up as he shouted, "Follow them!"

Zheng Zha pulled the trigger instinctively, firing brass bullets that burst those ghastly, rotting, bloody heads, letting the gray-white brains splatter as he cleared the path ahead. He had plenty of ammo. With Mou Gang’s magazine in his hand and his current aiming precision, he had become like the protagonist of a shooter game, a ruthless head-harvesting machine.

Qian Gu hid behind Zheng Zha as the group advanced.

*Rat-tat-tat-tat!*

Meanwhile, rapid gunfire erupted from behind. One head after another exploded like watermelons, leaving not a single large piece behind.

"What are you all doing? Why are you so slow?" Zhang Jie leaped from the back to the front in a few easy steps. "There’s going to be danger here soon! The things in those big coffins aren't to be trifled with!"

With Zhang Jie’s infinite-ammo Desert Eagle leading the way, he and Zheng Zha swept the path clean of zombies. Qian Gu, Zhan Lan, and the others, sheltered by the two "experts," quickly rushed into the central computer room. Only seconds after they entered, the heavy door was slammed shut by the mercenaries, cutting off the zombies still howling outside.