Chapter 306, "Let's Cooperate"

Chapter 306, "Let's Cooperate"

They found Xiaoxiao's mother.

Hearing this news, Wu Heng felt a surge of joy.

After all, he had promised Xiaoxiao to help rescue her mother.

However, as time passed, the likelihood of her mother surviving had decreased.

If her mother had truly died, Wu Heng wouldn't know how to break the news.

Now, hearing that she was still alive brought him some relief.

But the second part, about the shelter being unfriendly, gave him a bad feeling.

"What do you mean by unfriendly?" Wu Heng asked.

Li Yanhong replied, "They want us to give them 500 bags of food in exchange, and it must be delivered before they evacuate."

Wu Heng frowned.

This shelter was essentially ransoming a person for food.

And they gave a deadline of three days.

The shelter had protected Xiaoxiao's mother, so Wu Heng wasn't unwilling to compensate them.

But the demand made it feel like a hostage negotiation.

"What's the name of this shelter? And how are we supposed to transport 500 bags of food there?" Wu Heng asked.

Li Yanhong said, "It's called Laoshan Shelter. I told them we couldn't transport 500 bags, but they said they're leaving soon, so they only gave us three days."

"And what did you say?"

"I agreed for now and asked them to ensure Xiaoxiao's mother's safety. Then I came to discuss it with you."

Wu Heng thought about the situation and asked, "Where is this shelter located?"

"Around here." Li Yanhong opened a tablet map, zooming in on an area. "It's near the old factory district. They said to look for the red flag on the building's roof."

There was still quite a distance between their locations.

Even if they cleared zombies all night, it wouldn't be possible to reach the shelter in three days.

And pushing forward in such a rush would be dangerous.

Looking at the map, Wu Heng thought for a moment and said, "I'll ride a dragon over and rescue Xiaoxiao's mother first."

Li Yanhong's expression turned serious, "That's too dangerous."

Wu Heng smiled, "Don't worry, if things get bad, I can escape."

"It would be safer to move the main force forward," Li Yanhong suggested.

Wu Heng shook his head, "I'm confident. Trust me."

Seeing she couldn't persuade him, Li Yanhong nodded, "Just be careful."

"Don't worry, I'm not risking my life for nothing."

Li Yanhong nodded again and asked, "Should we prepare the food?"

"No need. If they're serious about a trade, we'll deal with it later," Wu Heng replied, then added, "Have the bomb bays removed from the skeleton dragons and check the saddle stability."

"Got it!"

...…

Li Yanhong went to make preparations, while Wu Heng called Xiaoxiao out.

"What's going on, Uncle?" Xiaoxiao, floating in midair, asked curiously.

Cough cough.

Wu Heng cleared his throat and said, "I've found news about your mother. I'm going to rescue her."

Xiaoxiao's eyes widened, and joy appeared on her ghostly face, "Really? That's amazing, Uncle!"

"I promised you, so of course I'll do it."

"Hehe, Uncle is the best."

Wu Heng added, "But the way you look now is a bit different from a human. Think about how you'll explain that to your mom."

"How should I explain it?" Xiaoxiao asked.

"Uh, I'm not sure either. Just try to tell her gently."

"Alright, I'll think about it."

...…

Soon, the four skeleton dragons had their bomb bays removed and were standing on the clearing in front of them.

Wu Heng put Xiaoxiao away and mounted one of the dragons with a saddle.

The remaining three dragons were mounted by Skull-crusher, Bloodhand, and Big-Head Skeleton.

Wu Heng's skeleton attendants were slightly rearranged, with Bloodhand taking over for Blood-Axe.

Blood-Axe was level 14, but Bloodhand had reached level 15, a difference of one tier.

Once everything was ready.

"Be careful on the way. If you can't find her, just come back," Li Yanhong called out from below, continuously reminding him.

Wu Heng reassured her, "Don't worry, there won't be any problems."

"Alright, come back soon."

Wu Heng nodded again, gently tapping the skeleton dragon's neck.

Whoosh~!

The skeleton dragon shot into the sky.

The three other skeleton dragons followed closely behind, flying off into the distance.

The wind roared in his ears, and the air felt like knives cutting across his face.

From below, it didn't seem too intense.

But riding on the dragon's back, the speed was astonishing.

After adjusting to the environment, Wu Heng looked down.

The streets and buildings below looked like models, and the massive zombie hordes resembled rows of ants.

They didn't seem so terrifying from up here.

The flight continued quickly, and although some zombie pigeons and birds appeared along the way, they were no match for the dragons in size.

They circled for a moment but didn't dare approach, flying away.

The dragons continued toward the area Li Yanhong had mentioned.

From a distance, Wu Heng could already see the flag planted below.

And several people sitting on the second-floor platform.

...…

Second-floor platform.

Four men, cigarettes in their mouths and rifles on their backs, were sitting around playing cards.

One of them said, "Yesterday, I heard some of the guys say that the auto repair shop shelter is going to exchange a hostage, and the boss asked for 500 bags of food."

"Yeah, I heard about that. The other side agreed right away. I think the boss didn't ask for enough."

"We can always ask for more. Let them bring some first, then keep demanding more. As long as we have the hostage, they'll keep giving."

"True enough." One of them tossed his cards down, "I checked on the woman this morning. She's actually pretty decent looking. Didn't notice before when we buried Eight."

"The boss said not to touch her."

"He just said not to go all the way. What's wrong with a little groping?"

The others paused, "You've got a point. Let's go tonight."

"Haha, sounds good!"

...…

The dragons circled above.

The four men playing cards below didn't notice anything.

With his heightened senses, Wu Heng could faintly hear their conversation from high above.

It seemed Xiaoxiao's mother hadn't ended up in a great shelter.

He patted the skeleton dragon's neck again, and they began descending.

Once they were within range.

Wu Heng and his skeletons dropped from the sky.

Casting [Feather Fall] midair, they landed lightly on the roof.

The men playing cards only reacted when they heard the sound of landing, turning to see several figures suddenly appear, their pupils shrinking in shock.

Panicked, they jumped up and raised their guns, aiming at Wu Heng's group.

Wu Heng waved his hand lightly, and their gun barrels jerked upward, pointing at the sky.

Holding the 'Spinal Staff,' he said, "Look at me."

The men hesitated but looked over.

Wu Heng continued, "Sleep."

Whoosh~!

The four men instantly collapsed to the ground, unconscious.

Wu Heng released Xiaoxiao, letting her float around the area.

"Uncle, there's no one else in this building," Xiaoxiao reported.

"Seems like this isn't their main base," Wu Heng replied.

His gaze fell on the bodies before him, "Go, kill one."

Bloodhand stepped forward, grabbed one by the hair, and slashed a knife across his throat.

Blood sprayed as the man woke up from his sleep, clutching his neck and struggling.

He made a gurgling sound, then fell silent.

Xiaoxiao hid behind Wu Heng's shoulder, watching cautiously.

Once the man was dead, Wu Heng cast [Speak with Dead].

The corpse sat up immediately.

Its cloudy eyes looked in Wu Heng's direction.

Wu Heng asked directly, "Where is your base?"

The corpse replied, "The base is in a scrapyard behind here."

It seemed this was just an outpost, and they communicated via radio.

Wu Heng continued, "How many of you can fight?"

The corpse answered, "More than 60 people."

"How many guns?"

"More than 20."

"What's your plan for the hostage exchange with the auto repair shop?"

"The boss says the auto repair shop is filthy rich. He doesn't intend to give the woman back. He plans to keep trading and squeezing them for as much as possible."

So these people weren't as cooperative as they seemed.

Their initial demand had just been a test of the auto repair shop's limits.

Realizing the woman was important to them, they planned to keep extorting them.

After all, the auto repair shop had built a trading market, so their resources were plentiful. They wanted to drain every last bit of value from the woman.

One last question remained.

Wu Heng was about to ask.

But the radio on the man's chest crackled, and a voice came through, "Erhu, how's it going over there?"

Wu Heng narrowed his eyes, looked at the corpse, and asked, "What were you four just doing?"

He pressed the radio button and held it near the corpse's mouth.

The corpse replied, "Playing cards."

The fifth question finished, and the corpse slumped back to the ground.

The radio crackled again, and an angry voice shouted, "Why the hell are you talking like a news anchor? Don't just mess around, keep an eye on the zombies and the others."

Wu Heng pressed the button and said, "Mm."

The radio conversation ended.

Wu Heng turned his attention to the other three still in their sleep.

He said, "Kill them all."

Bloodhand stepped forward, slashing the throats of the other three men.

Wu Heng collected their guns and ammo.

Then he cast [Raise Skeleton], turning them into skeleton warriors.

He climbed back onto his skeleton dragon, and the three newly raised skeletons joined Skull-crusher and Bloodhand, two skeletons riding on each dragon.

Since they were just bones, weight wasn't an issue.

The dragons took off again, heading toward the scrapyard the corpse had mentioned.

...…

Approaching the scrapyard, rooftop.

Wu Heng and his skeletons dropped from the sky again, landing directly on the roof.

"Who the hell is that?!"

A guard on the rooftop immediately aimed his rifle.

Wu Heng waved, and the gun pointed toward the sky, while Bloodhand rushed forward like a blur, reaching the guards in an instant.

With swift slashes, their heads flew into the air, spraying blood everywhere.

Wu Heng collected their weapons from the ground.

He cast [Raise Skeleton] on the bodies.

[Skeleton Warrior (Level 1)]

All three skeletons were just level 1 warriors.

They were ordinary humans, after all.

"Follow me," Wu Heng said, heading toward the metal door leading to the stairs.

He opened the door and said, "Go ahead."

The skeletons walked ahead of him, entering the cold, dim hallway.

After just a few steps.

A man with a rifle and a cigarette in his mouth stepped out of a room.

Hearing the footsteps, he looked up and frowned, "What the hell are these things?"

Panicked, he dropped his lighter and reached for his gun.

Wu Heng ordered, "Charge, kill anyone with a weapon."

Whoosh~!

The skeletons charged, knives raised, rushing toward the man.

Bang, bang, bang~!

The man fired instinctively, bullets whizzing through the air, striking the charging skeletons.

But the bullets passed through the gaps in their bones, hitting the stairs behind them.

Wu Heng instinctively stepped back a few paces.

To avoid getting hit by the bullets that passed through the skeletons.

The charging skeletons tackled the man to the ground, repeatedly slashing him with their weapons.

Screams echoed as blood sprayed.

Soon, the man stopped resisting, his body torn apart.

Wu Heng stepped forward and collected the rifle.

He cast [Raise Skeleton], raising another skeleton.

Meanwhile, the sound of footsteps and voices came from below.

"What's going on?"

"Who the hell fired those shots? Didn't I say no killing without orders?"

Wu Heng glanced downstairs and said, "Skull-crusher, come with me. Bloodhand, take the skeletons and kill anyone with a gun or who attacks."

Whoosh~!

The skeletons immediately moved.

They rushed down the stairs, charging toward the armed men who had come out to check.

In an instant, gunfire and the sound of slashing echoed through the dark hallway.

Chaos erupted.

Wu Heng glanced into the first room, seeing a malnourished young woman curled up in a corner, silent and unmoving, just hugging her head.

Her eyes were empty, devoid of emotion, like the prisoners Chen Jinlong had kept in his jail.

Wu Heng closed the door, continuing down the hallway.

Two bloodied bodies lay on the stairs, and Wu Heng bent down to collect their guns, then cast [Raise Skeleton] again.

"Go downstairs and kill anyone with a gun."

The two skeletons drew knives from their waists and rushed down the stairs.

Wu Heng continued walking, turning corpses into skeletons as he went.

The skeleton numbers grew, while the number of surviving enemies dwindled.

...…

First-floor factory.

Unarmed survivors were pushed to the front, while a few armed men hid behind them, guns aimed forward.

A burly man with a fat face and a thick beard shouted, "I know this is your ability. Come out, let's talk."

Wu Heng stood at the second-floor corner and said calmly, "What's there to talk about?"

"What do you want? Food? Women? You can have whatever you want here, just call off your ghosts," the fat-faced man said.

"You have a lot of food?"

"We'll have plenty soon. We can work together. People will keep bringing us food. Survival won't be a problem. How about it? You have the power, I have the food. Let's cooperate!"

Wu Heng narrowed his eyes and said, "Why don't I just kill you and take over? Then all the food would be mine anyway."

"You don't know my plan. And if you keep attacking, I'll kill all the survivors here. Without them, what's the point of taking over this building…?"

Before he could finish.

A sudden whoosh broke the air.

He turned to see a warhammer appear out of nowhere.

Before anyone could react.

Wham~!

The fat-faced man's head exploded like a watermelon.

Warm blood and brain matter splattered all over the people around him.

Immediately after, a tall figure appeared as if pulling back a curtain and swung the warhammer again, killing the remaining armed men.

"Ah~!"

"Don't kill me! I'm not with them!"

"Spare me!"

The remaining survivors screamed in panic.

Wu Heng shouted, "Surround them."

The skeletons moved quickly, encircling everyone.

"Shut up. If anyone screams, I'll kill them."

The crowd instantly fell silent, squatting down, trembling.

...…

Wu Heng scanned the group.

He said, "Zhao Yanqiu, come with me."

A scruffy woman squatting with her head down raised it slightly.

She looked at him with a mix of confusion and fear.