I had to prepare before heading out.

Since this new rule would only last for 24 hours, I didn’t need to bring a lot of food. On the other hand, I did need to bring plenty of light sources.

’The [Rapid-Burning Stick] that was listed in the Sublimation Store for 80 Sublimation Coins must be for situations like this. But... maybe it has other uses besides illumination?’

If it was just for light, a flashlight would suffice. Why spend precious Sublimation Coins?

So, Guan Tong figured the [Rapid-Burning Stick] probably had other special effects, like dealing extra damage to the Living Dead... It’s just that before the rule was announced, the Living Dead hadn’t appeared, so the officials couldn’t have tested for such a function.

Guan Tong hadn’t bought the [Rapid-Burning Stick] in his previous one-of-two choice; he’d bought the [Multi-functional Protective Suit] instead. It was useless to think about the former now. He picked up a flashlight, turned it on, and strapped it to his chest.

A headlamp would have been much more convenient. Still, when Guan Tong walked to the door and glanced outside, he saw that the distant sky was brightly illuminated by lights.

Although the entire world had been plunged into a state of endless night after the rule’s announcement, the Fire Thief hadn’t stripped away man-made light sources.

Right now, all over the city of Yunhua, anything that could be lit up, was. While the entire city wasn’t exactly ablaze with light, most of the Gathering Points at least had good illumination and visibility.

Guan Tong looked away, finished strapping on the flashlight, and shouldered his backpack. A short blade and a crowbar were clipped to its sides.

Even though they weren’t Psychic Power items, they might still come in handy. After all, survival was the top priority. If he couldn’t even stay alive, then talking about killing Living Dead to farm coins would be putting the cart before the horse.

Finally, Guan Tong put a light motorcycle helmet on his head. He’d scavenged it from a home in the residential complex earlier. It would provide at least some protection for his head.

Once his preparations were complete, Guan Tong walked out of the storage room, gripping the Silver Hunter tightly with both hands. This shotgun, loaded with a total of 80 shells, was his greatest source of security right now.

The residential complex where he lived had been abandoned long ago. Aside from him, there wasn’t another soul, so it was both dim and silent.

Guan Tong listened to the occasional roars echoing in the distance, knowing they must be from the Living Dead.

He could also hear bursts of gunfire.

Although you couldn’t get Sublimation Coins for killing Living Dead with ordinary firearms, it would at least eliminate the threat and keep people safe.

Guan Tong walked toward the complex’s main gate, his focus absolute as he scanned his surroundings. The complex was deathly quiet, the silence broken only by the sound of his own footsteps. 𝐟𝕣𝗲𝕖𝕨𝗲𝐛𝗻𝗼𝐯𝗲𝚕.𝗰𝚘𝐦

Just as he was thinking there were no Living Dead in the complex, two crimson points of light suddenly flared in the darkness near the collapsed gatehouse.

Red was especially conspicuous at night. Guan Tong spun around, and the beam from the flashlight strapped to his chest shot forward, instantly revealing a pale, savage-looking Living Dead. Those two red gleams were its eyes!

"ROAR!!!"

The moment Guan Tong spotted it, it spotted him too, roaring like a rabid dog as it charged.

"BANG!"

Guan Tong fired a number 1 shell without hesitation. A wide spread of pellets struck the Living Dead, riddling its upper body from abdomen to head and killing it instantly as it crashed to the ground.

’So this is a Living Dead?’

Guan Tong surveyed the corpse on the ground. It was still dressed in a robe with a "Date of Death and Name" tag, as if it had escaped from a morgue or a crematorium.

’After this rule is over, I bet all corpses will be cremated immediately...’

Guan Tong’s expression turned grim. Judging by the speed at which that Living Dead had run, it was no different from a living person. In fact, because it was more frenzied and fearless, it posed an even greater threat.

For an average Ascender to complete the challenge of eliminating ten of these Living Dead wouldn’t be easy at all. Without a useful ability or item, they’d have to rely on cleverly set traps; facing them head-on was still risky.

This also meant Guan Tong’s own journey would be fraught with danger. If he was careless enough to get surrounded by these Living Dead, even if he could use the Silver Hunter’s number 3 High-Explosive Bombs for a small-scale emergency clearing, he’d have to be careful not to get caught in the blast himself.

But since he had already made his decision, Guan Tong intended to see it through to the end.

He left the residential complex and looked south down the street. The shriek of the "Mother Transformer" had indeed come from that direction, but its precise location was hard to pinpoint.

The [Guiding Flashlight] in his storage box was useless for finding the "Mother Transformer," as he didn’t have a specific target location for it to work.

’Head south first. Can’t go wrong with that.’

Guan Tong didn’t overthink it and kept moving.

As he headed south, he hugged the buildings on his left to avoid being flanked. After walking like this for about ten minutes, he saw a dozen or so Living Dead about a few dozen meters ahead, frantically smashing a supply vehicle.

Guan Tong was a bit confused by the sight. That was an unmanned transport vehicle from the logistics department. There was no one inside, so what was the point of the Living Dead smashing it?

’Are they attracted to moving objects? Or sound?’

Guan Tong took a few more steps forward. At that moment, one of the Living Dead furiously smashing the vehicle suddenly twisted its head, its crimson gaze locking onto his position.

In the next moment, the other Living Dead also turned their heads, abandoning the vehicle in unison and charging toward Guan Tong like a pack of madmen, roaring!

The somewhat terrifying scene made Guan Tong take a deep breath. He watched the fifteen or sixteen Living Dead stampeding toward him and tightened his grip on the Silver Hunter. As soon as they entered firing range, he opened fire decisively.

"BANG! BANG! BANG! BANG!"

With only a dozen or so Living Dead, Guan Tong wasn’t about to waste his precious number 3 shells. Just four number 1 shells were enough; the wide spread of pellets knocked all of them to the ground, dead as doornails.

"’How did they spot me?’" Guan Tong thought with a frown, looking at the dozen or so corpses on the ground. "’We were nearly 30 meters apart. They couldn’t have heard my footsteps from that far... Could it be scent?’"

Guan Tong wasn’t sure how the Living Dead detected humans. He suspected it could be sight, sound, or smell—or all three... After some consideration, he put on his gloves, took some of the Living Dead’s blood, and smeared it on his clothes and helmet. This way, he could test his theory the next time he encountered them.

He then walked over to the supply vehicle that the horde of Living Dead had been smashing. He saw that it was empty of both people and supplies. It must have been on its way back to the logistics department after a delivery when the Living Dead intercepted and attacked it.

’Could it be that because it was moving, the Living Dead mistook it for a human?’

Guan Tong thought it was possible. He looked at the unmanned transport vehicle and, after a moment’s thought, realized he might be able to use it to scout the path ahead.

He tapped the electronic screen on the side of the vehicle. It displayed the words: "Program error. Operation halted."

Guan Tong selected the "Manual Override" function, then chose to restart the program. He set its speed to the lowest setting and changed its destination to a storage center south of the logistics department.

The unmanned transport vehicle then resumed its journey at a slow speed, heading down South Avenue.

Guan Tong followed it, keeping a safe distance. This way, if there were any Living Dead nearby, they would be drawn to the vehicle first, giving him more time to react.