Trembling At A High Altitude

The team members snapped out of their trance and hurriedly ran after Li Teng.

Others who were still hesitating heard the increasingly loud thumping footsteps and started to run as well.

The last few runners glanced back and were terrified.

Behind them, dozens of gigantic Four-legged Abnormal Corpses led hundreds of regular mutated corpses, interspersed with some oddly shaped ones, in pursuit.

Though these Four-legged Abnormal Corpses were too large and cumbersome to run, their large size allowed them to walk as fast as a normal human could run.

Many of the mutated corpses were injured, constantly oozing Green Fluid from their bodies.

This was likely the handiwork of the armed soldiers.

When the armed soldiers realized they were overpowered and needed to retreat, their superior physical condition could have allowed them to escape successfully.

But they didn't flee. Instead, they used their guns and their bodies to form a defensive line.

Perhaps they wanted to protect the people behind them, or they were following orders, or maybe they refused to leave their comrades behind.

Until every one of them perished, not a single soldier fled.

Unfortunately, the defensive line couldn't stop the tide of corpses.

Moreover, among these fleeing people, probably few would remember their sacrifice.

While running, Li Teng passed by a small cart.

The cart contained weapons confiscated on a train, and the staff responsible for the cart had abandoned it when they heard about the advancing tide of corpses.

Li Teng paused briefly, swiftly grabbed two Hand Axes from it, and then continued running.

As the tide of corpses chased the crowd, both running at similar speeds, the humans' inferior stamina soon became apparent.

Having lost the protection of the armed soldiers, these ordinary humans completely disbanded, each looking out only for themselves in desperate flight.

Now it was a matter of who could run faster—the classic "every man for himself."

In Li Teng's group, there were some who couldn't keep up.

The wife of restaurant owner Jiang Chunsheng.

Jiang Chunsheng and his son were pulling her along as they ran, but she was soon gasping for air and unable to continue.

"Don't bother with me! Just go!" the lady desolately told the two beside her.

"If you don't go, we won't go either!" Jiang Chunsheng said, shaking his head fiercely.

"Exactly, if you don't go, we won't go either!" Jiang Yani, along with her brother and sister, also stopped.

"Don't be foolish! At this rate, none of us will make it!" the lady sobbed.

"Then we'll die together!" the others cried.

A family should stick together.

Li Teng, who had been running ahead, turned around and ran back. He handed the Hand Axes to Jiang Chunsheng and his son to carry. Without further ado, he squatted in front of the lady, urging her to quickly climb onto his back.

"Can you manage? I'm quite heavy," the lady said, frightened.

"Don't waste time!" Li Teng yelled.

The lady hurriedly clambered onto Li Teng's back.

Li Teng took off running, his stride not only as fast as the others but even faster.

"Carrying your mother-in-law on your back? Putting in so much effort?" Yuki Noto, running alongside him, looked on with envy and jealousy... Why hadn't he thought of forcefully finding a way to get ahead? But Yani, that little Fox Spirit, had beaten him to it!

"Get lost! It's for the team's mission!" Li Teng swore at Yuki Noto.

"Oh..." It then dawned on Yuki Noto that their mission to protect the NPCs hadn't ended yet!

...

The NPCs and prisoners who couldn't run fast at the back became prey to the swarm of zombies, also indirectly affecting the speed at which the swarm advanced.

Those who ran faster, like Li Teng's group, had already increased the distance between themselves and the swarm of zombies. Under Li Teng's leadership, they veered off the main road, hoping to circumvent the swarm and, before the time limit was up, get the Jiang family to the rescue safe zone.

However, the threats they faced were not just from the swarm.

There were also occasional, isolated Mutated Corpses.

Li Teng put down the proprietor, grabbed two Hand Axes, and with swift movements, easily took care of them.

Although the Mutated Corpses in this mission were set to be more formidable than the zombies, Li Teng, familiar with their combat habits and armed with weapons, found eliminating them no different from chopping vegetables in the zombie world he was used to.

Thus, under the leadership of Li Teng, the team members made a wide detour, gradually nearing the mission target, that is, the rescue safe zone.

However...

Just as they were about to enter the rescue safe zone, a group of people suddenly turned onto the road ahead from a side road.

It's true they say, enemies are bound to meet.

The people who turned from the side road were none other than the group that included the Black woman who had clashed with Jiang Yani on the train.

This group, besides the Black woman, included three other stout inmates—Black and White men.

But that wasn't all.

They were protecting some foreign students from a local university.

All together, there were five students, all robust young Black and White men.

A total of nine people, each armed with steel pipes, axes, machetes, and other weapons.

The Black woman, seeing Li Teng and his group, immediately started shouting at her companions.

Although Film and Television City didn't translate her conversation with her companions, her expressions made it easy to guess that she was undoubtedly asking her companions to take revenge for her.

Just as expected, that very muscular Black man among her companions led them forward and blocked Li Teng and his group's way.

Compared to these nine Black and White individuals, Li Teng's team was significantly smaller and weaker; calling them weak and frail was an understatement.

Yang Shunli and Dong Jie couldn't help but complain inwardly... On one hand, they were annoyed with Jiang Yani for always attracting trouble; on the other hand, they criticized the prison's arrangement of the teams for being so uneven in strength.

How could their group compare to this group of Black and White individuals?

In their group, only Li Teng could fight; on the other side, everyone could fight!

With tensions high, they could only be crushed!

"I'll give you a chance, hand over that girl to us, and we'll let you go, otherwise..."

After approaching, the Black muscular man laid out his conditions to Li Teng.

"I'm sorry, it's all my fault, she's still a child. Please, show mercy and spare her! I am her father, and I apologize to you on her behalf. I'll kowtow to you, please spare her," said Jiang Chunsheng, stepping forward and suddenly kneeling on the ground, apologizing while slapping himself.

The Black and White people pointed at Jiang Chunsheng, who was kneeling on the ground, and burst into loud laughter.

The fight hadn't even started yet, and their opponents had already caved, and so quickly too.

But it was no surprise.

The power gap between the two sides was enormous!

"Bosses! You know, they are not really part of the team. They're just that, right? We can't control their actions. It could be that thing causing trouble between us on purpose. Could you please not take them too seriously? If you're really upset, I can apologize to you on their behalf," Yang Shunli said as he stepped forward and spoke sincerely to the other side.

Dong Qi tried to pull Yang Shunli back, but was too late.

Yang Shunli felt he had no choice but to step up.

Li Teng was indeed very strong, but when Yang Shunli saw Li Teng defending Jiang Yani on the train, he thought Li Teng was not very bright and knew only how to act tough.

And in this situation, being tough had only one outcome.

Being beaten up badly, or even beaten to death.

The rules did not state this was a group mission, hence, it did not state that two squads couldn't kill or attack each other.

For his own safety and the completion of the mission, Yang Shunli felt it was his duty to step up, coordinate, and resolve the issue by appealing to emotion and reasoning, hoping to achieve a peaceful solution.

"First, lie down on the ground and bark like a dog a few times, then we can consider it."

A black NPC walked up and said to Yang Shunli in fluent Chinese.

It seemed this young black NPC had spent years here and not properly learned much, but he knew very well how to humiliate others using their own methods.

"Ah..."

Yang Shunli sighed.

In his mind, he kept repeating... small tolerances lead to great plans, endure the momentary anger to avoid long-term troubles, take one step back for a boundless future...

Didn't King Yue Goujian endure the humiliation under the Wu King to ultimately conquer the state of Wu?

At that moment, Yang Shunli finally convinced himself and lay down on the ground in humiliation.

"Woof! Woof!"

Yang Shunli mimicked barking like a dog.

Dong Qi turned her head away.

It was simply too embarrassing.

But there was no choice—the situation was stronger than them. Not doing this would lead to them being beaten to death.

Doing this provided them a chance, should the others soften their hearts, to survive.

After barking for a while, Yang Shunli raised his head and looked eagerly at the black student in front of him.

"Haha, what I said doesn't matter. Let's see what they say next," the young black NPC said, laughing heartily in a mocking tone after hearing the barking.

He was clearly toying with Yang Shunli.

"Okay, have you had enough fun? Hand that girl over to us, or don't blame us for being rough," the lead black man said as he tapped the steel pipe in his hand and then pointed at Jiang Yani.

In their view, they could take Jiang Yani whenever they wanted to.

However, they enjoyed mocking the other side and using their power to force them to kneel and beg, so they wanted to enjoy it a bit longer.

"Please, let her go! She's just a naive kid! If you feel unsatisfied, you can hit me, but please don't hold her accountable," Jiang Chunsheng's wife also knelt down before the burly black man, begging earnestly.

Jiang Yani's tears kept swirling in her eyes. She had always thought her parents didn't love her, but she hadn't expected them to step forward and take the blame for her in such a situation.

"You think when you hand her over, we'll leave you alone? Hand her over first, we'll settle the rest later," the black woman said, emboldened by her companions, as she strutted out and spoke.

"One person's deeds, one person's consequences! It's not their fault! You want me, right? I'll go with you!" Jiang Yani rushed forward and shouted at the black woman.

"You better come here fast! See how I'll skin you!" the black woman glared at Jiang Yani with a vicious expression.

"Mom, Dad, I'm sorry, I have failed you, I've been foolish and troublesome! I only bring trouble to you and have brought shame upon us all!" Jiang Yani knelt down crying in front of her parents.

During the short journey, she felt she had suddenly grown up and understood so much more.

"Don't say that; you've always been good and helpful to the family," Jiang Chunsheng and his wife cried along with Jiang Yani.

"Please, everyone! Please take care of my parents and family, ensure their safe arrival at the relocation site! I will find a way to repay your kindness in my next life! I have to go first!" Jiang Yani stood up and addressed the others.

"Wait." The previously silent Li Teng finally spoke up.

His silence was because those people had not initiated any provocation against him.

As NPCs Jiang Chunsheng and his wife knelt down, Li Teng preferred not to interfere too much; this was an opportunity to give Jiang Yani a jolt about the harsh reality of the world, to make her less impulsive and to help her grow quicker.

After all, he wasn't going to stay in this mission world forever.

Yang Shunli lay down and mimicked barking like a dog... doing so voluntarily, Li Teng preferred not to intervene.

But entrusting Jiang Yani to them touched upon Li Teng's personal interests.

Firstly, she was one of the task NPCs he was supposed to protect; handing her over to those people could result in her death, and his mission would be a failure.

Secondly, he had promised to look after her.

Uncle Li always kept his word and followed through with his promises.

Jiang Yani stopped, turned, and looked at Li Teng with a complex expression.

At that moment on the train, when Li Teng grabbed the black woman's wrist and flipped her over, Jiang Yani thought he was incredibly handsome, and for the first time, her young heart opened up to a man.

But now, having caused a great trouble, she had to accept the responsibility.

She could not burden her family, nor could she burden the man she had fallen for, regardless of the cost or the humiliation she would have to face.

She was about to leave, likely to face humiliation and torture in front of everyone, and she genuinely wanted to speak more with Li Teng.

Although she didn't know what to say at this time, even though they had known each other less than a day.

But this man had already taken a place in her heart.

"You're leaving? Did I agree?"

Li Teng asked Jiang Yani.

"It's my fault; I must see it through. I can't burden you all."

Jiang Yani replied with her lips trembling.

"So what if it's your fault?

"Even if you punched a hole in the sky, I've said I would cover you, and nobody on this earth can touch you!

"Unless, he wants to die."

Li Teng picked up two hand axes and cracked his joints with a terrifying sound.

Then, he stepped in front of Jiang Yani.

"Hahaha, are you provoking us?" the black muscular man burst out laughing.

"No, this isn't a provocation."

Li Teng spoke calmly.

"I'm here to kill you.

"All of you."