Level 5

Three days had passed since that battle.

Born and his group had been resting for three full days.

Every morning, a maid would come to wake them, and someone would assist them with washing up upon waking.

Born felt like he was in paradise, not a post-apocalyptic world.

However, when he stood on the rooftop and observed below through binoculars, the countless zombies reminded him that this was indeed the apocalypse.

Moreover, these zombies seemed to have a purpose recently.

They were no longer wandering aimlessly but were gathering in one direction.

Born didn't quite understand and could only take out his walkie-talkie, adjusting the channels.

The walkie-talkie had not been used for days, and its battery was still very durable.

"Born?"

Suddenly, a voice came through.

Born recognized it as Mallory's voice.

"It's me."

"Finally got in touch with you. Our Falcon Squad has regrouped with eight other teams, preparing to attack the Starry Night Laboratory. This time, it's a real attack," Mallory said solemnly.

She then briefly explained the plan.

Due to Mallory's lower rank, her information was limited.

She only knew that the higher-ups seemed to have been provoked by the Starry Night Laboratory.

Moreover, after recent rescue operations, the identified special talents had been evacuated from Dover City.

Satellite thermal imaging confirmed that the remaining people in Dover City were also gathering in groups.

The rescue operations were temporarily halted, and the current target was the Starry Night Laboratory.

"The higher-ups have also learned the method to awaken abilities. Our squad has 18 members with awakened abilities, but the zombie horde is gathering towards the Starry Night Laboratory. This is not normal."

"The zombie horde gathering near the Starry Night Laboratory poses a huge obstacle for us."

Mallory shared everything she knew with Born in one breath.

Born couldn't help but frown.

Could it be that the Starry Night Laboratory could control zombies?

He quickly dismissed his own speculation, realizing it was incorrect.

Zombies have keen hearing, and releasing sounds can attract them, but it's not accurate to say they can be controlled.

Unfortunately, Angelica didn't play her trump card well.

Born squinted and asked, "When is your operation scheduled?"

"Not yet determined. The higher-ups are still gathering weapons and equipment. There are several Starry Night Laboratory branches across the country that need to be taken down, and Dover City is just one of them. We still have a lot of preparations to do."

"But you should see our Falcon Squad around soon. If you don't initiate an attack, the Falcon Squad won't either."

As Mallory spoke, her voice faded.

Born noticed that the walkie-talkie had run out of battery.

He almost smashed the walkie-talkie to the ground. Just a few minutes earlier, he had been praising its durability.

However, Mallory mentioned satellite thermal imaging, indicating that satellites were still functional.

Maybe cell phones could still have signal.

Additionally, the operation to take down the Starry Night Laboratory wasn't something that could be achieved in the short term.

The preparations probably involved clearing out the zombies.

At that moment, Pearl entered with a group of people.

"Master, these people were found in the exhibition hall. They were slaves of that group," Pearl said slowly.

Born turned to look at the 13 people. Their eyes were lifeless.

Attributes flashed before Born's eyes.

Among them, there were no combat talents, but there were teachers, doctors, and even an engineer who specialized in architecture.

### [Architectural Engineer: 3 people increase building strength by 10%, 5 people increase building strength by 15%, 10 people can perform comprehensive upgrades to buildings]

Increasing building strength?

This seemed to be a synergy attribute for base construction. Higher building strength should mean the structures are harder for zombies to breach.

Born looked at the group of lifeless-eyed people and shook his head.

"Initiate recruitment!"

[Congratulations Host, Points -400, Recruitment Successful]

Born had guessed it would be successful. With their lifeless eyes, this group clearly had little will to resist.

"Increase recruitment level."

The reason for not recruiting everyone was because the recruitment quantity was at its limit.

[Current points: 2887, requires 2000 points to reach the next level, proceed?]

"Confirm."

[Congratulations Host, current recruitment level: 5, recruitment points: 50, can specify 3 basic attribute points, recruitment quantity: 35/50]

Fifty people made a small group.

Born immediately decided that this group of fifty would be the current limit. In the short term, he only planned to enhance these fifty people, forming an elite squad.

[Congratulations Host, detection skill effect enhanced, can obtain more information about potential recruits]

[Congratulations Host, reached recruitment level 5, synergy effect enhanced, current maximum synergy count: 25, specific attributes for Host to review]

[Congratulations Host, skill unlocked: Binding]

[Binding: Bind with 2 individuals. When improving these squad members, gain a 20% attribute feedback. If bound members die, Host will suffer severe attribute penalties.]

Born raised an eyebrow. This skill seemed quite beneficial.

The system could enhance Born's abilities, but unlike the other maid squad members, it couldn't improve his basic attributes or teach skills like driving by consuming points.

In the previous fight with Hughie, his weakness was his physical condition, nearly getting him severely injured.

However, the severe penalty was a significant issue, requiring careful consideration.

After some thought, Born decided on two individuals.

Mia and Lane.

One would improve his physical strength and a bit of defense during enhancement, and the other would boost his mental attributes with ability upgrades.

This setup would comprehensively enhance Born's overall attributes.

Moreover, he would ensure that these two wouldn't die.

"Bind Mia and Lane!"

[Confirm binding targets: squad members Mia and Lane. Note: binding is permanent and cannot be undone. Confirm binding?]

"Confirm!"

[Please proceed with the binding ceremony]

Suddenly, information flooded into Born's mind.

Born was stunned. This binding ceremony seemed quite inappropriate.

"System, what are you doing?"

[Host, why are you shy? This is a strong connection from body to mind. The binding ceremony is necessary.]

Born's mouth twitched.

Indeed, it wasn't entirely new. When comforting Mia, things had unintentionally gone a bit further.