After the third shriek sounded, the Yunhua City Armed Command immediately pinpointed the specific location.

"The sound originated from the abandoned industrial zone!"

"Information has been relayed to elite armed personnel and Third Squad."

"Reporting!" an elite operative deployed in the southern part of the city called in. "We’ve observed a large number of Living Dead swarming into the industrial zone! Repeat, we have observed a large number of Living Dead swarming into the industrial zone!"

"What’s going on?" The Commander was confused. Just then, a new report came in.

"Reporting, Third Squad has been the first to enter the zone!"

Hearing this, the Commander ordered, "Set up a defensive line at the zone’s entrance to block more Living Dead from entering! Send another team to support them!"

"Yes, sir!"

At the entrance to the industrial zone, a fully equipped armed squad began setting up a machine gun nest, mowing down the incoming Living Dead.

Meanwhile, inside the zone, several members of Third Squad had already pushed forward under their captain’s lead.

"Listen up! We have to find the Screamer immediately!" the young man in the lead said loudly.

"This is a competition! The other squads have definitely been assigned the same mission. Whichever squad finishes fastest will get the highest rating and more resources later on!"

"Sir!" the team members answered in unison.

"Captain, gunshots!" a team member wearing glasses who looked like a high school student said, listening intently. "They’re coming from the west!"

"Gunshots? Inside?" The captain’s expression changed slightly. ’Could soldiers have gotten in here first?’ "Quick, let’s go now!"

The six of them immediately rushed toward the sound of the gunshots.

「Meanwhile, at the warehouse entrance.」

Guan Tong stomped on the Mother Transformer’s main body, killing it. Although this stopped further transformations in the area, the already-transformed Living Dead didn’t die immediately.

They had been summoned by the scream earlier and were now frantically charging the warehouse doors!

Looking at the dense mass of pupils glowing red in the darkness, a chill ran down Guan Tong’s spine. ’How many are there? At least a few hundred.’

"Guan Tong, hold on for a bit. I need some time to recover my Psychic Power."

After Shi Jingyi spoke, she sat down cross-legged on the spot, placed her hands on her knees, and began to meditate with her eyes closed.

Guan Tong’s own Psychic Power recovered at a rate of about one point every five or six minutes, which was obviously unrealistic to wait for in the middle of a fight. But from what Shi Jingyi said, it seemed her recovery rate was much faster.

"ROOOOAR!!!!!"

The horde of corpses was nearly upon them. Guan Tong couldn’t worry about much else and opened fire wildly outside the warehouse doors.

Type 1 rounds, Type 2 rounds, Type 3 rounds—he used them all.

The Type 3 rounds ran out the fastest, as he had used most of them against the Mother Transformer and didn’t have many left to begin with.

Next, the dozen or so Type 2 rounds were quickly spent. Guan Tong had to conserve the final Type 1 rounds, waiting for the Living Dead to get closer before firing.

He had about 150 points of Psychic Power left, including his reserves. If he truly ran out of ammunition, he could generate more bullets.

However, being in an unsafe environment, he didn’t want to exhaust himself completely. He had to keep some power in reserve for emergencies.

"ROAR!"

One of the Living Dead had half its body blown off by a shot, but its other half still lunged forward from inertia, crashing into Guan Tong.

Fortunately, Guan Tong was wearing a protective suit, so the scratching and biting of the Living Dead couldn’t easily harm him. Even so, he did his best to keep them from getting close.

After another shot took down several more Living Dead, Guan Tong glanced at the small screen on the left side of his gun’s grip. Only 9 Type 1 rounds remained.

There were still quite a few Living Dead packed outside. Guan Tong turned to look at the meditating Shi Jingyi. He had to admire her; her eyes were lightly closed, her expression serene, as if in a deep trance. To be able to calm her mind and meditate under these circumstances was something no ordinary martial artist could do.

’Looks like I’ll have to spend more Psychic Power to generate two more Type 3 rounds... If I time my shots right, I should be able to clear out the rest of the Living Dead.’

Just as Guan Tong was thinking this and about to spend the Psychic Power, he suddenly saw a commotion break out behind the Living Dead.

He saw several people holding torches—clearly the item [Rapid-Burning Stick]. The Living Dead were intimidated by the item and didn’t dare approach. Two others were using this to their advantage to quickly eliminate the Living Dead. The man in the lead wielded a jade-green curved saber, easily slaying multiple Living Dead.

Witnessing this, Guan Tong took a closer look and immediately realized this was a well-coordinated team with a clear division of labor.

Four of them held [Rapid-Burning Stick]s at four corners, leaving the Living Dead nowhere to run, while the other two were responsible for cleanup. The man with the curved saber was the main combatant, and another used a crossbow to pick off any Living Dead the Curved Saber Man missed.

The six of them worked in tight coordination, quickly wiping out the dozens of remaining Living Dead.

They then came to the front of the warehouse. Seeing the hundreds of Living Dead corpses piled up at the entrance and inside, their faces showed astonishment. Their gazes toward Guan Tong were wary and curious.

The man with the curved saber looked at Guan Tong, then glanced at Shi Jingyi, who was sitting cross-legged and meditating not far away. He asked, "Who are you people? Have you seen the Screamer?"

’Screamer... Is that the official name for the Mother Transformer?’

Guan Tong wasn’t sure. Because the time limit for this "rule" was short—only 24 hours—he had sprung into action immediately after it was announced and hadn’t had time to go online and check official information.

Seeing Guan Tong’s silence, the Curved Saber Man realized something, and his expression changed drastically. "Don’t tell me you already took care of the Screamer?"

Guan Tong finally spoke. "What’s it to you?"

He didn’t like the Curved Saber Man’s aggressive attitude, so his tone was naturally curt.

"So it’s true!" The Curved Saber Man instantly gritted his teeth, and the expressions of the other five turned ugly as well.

Because this result meant their mission was a failure. If a squad in another area eliminated a Screamer and completed the mission, their evaluation would undoubtedly be much higher than theirs.

"You actually dared to compete with us... Do you have any idea who we are? Do you know how much you’ve messed things up for us!" the Curved Saber Man said, his face ashen. He raised his curved saber, looking as if he was about to attack.

Seeing this, Guan Tong placed his finger on the trigger of his Silver Hunter. He quickly generated a Type 3 round with his Psychic Power while vigilantly scanning the group.

If any of them made a suspicious move or showed signs of using a Psychic Power item, he wouldn’t hesitate to raise his gun and shoot to protect himself.

"Captain, don’t be rash." At this moment, a female team member holding a [Rapid-Burning Stick] said, "We’ll be punished if we attack ordinary people!"

"Are they ordinary people?!" the Curved Saber Man bellowed. "I have serious doubts about their identities!"

Just then, the sound of hurried footsteps rang out as a squad of armed soldiers arrived on the scene. Seeing them, the Curved Saber Man immediately spoke to the soldiers in a commanding tone, "Arrest these two immediately and run a thorough background check!"

"But..."

The soldiers looked at each other, uncertain. It was true they had orders to assist Third Squad. But those orders were to help fight the Living Dead. Weren’t those two obviously human?

"We need to ask the Commander for instructions," the soldiers said after a moment’s consideration, refusing to follow blindly.

"What? So bureaucratic!"

The Curved Saber Man looked impatient but was very confident, seemingly certain the Commander would order the soldiers to carry out his command. He stared at Guan Tong with a dark gaze as he waited.

Guan Tong’s brow was also furrowed.

’Just who are these people? They don’t look very old, yet they can order armed soldiers around like that.’

’If that Commander really authorizes the soldiers to arrest them, what should I do? Getting captured is unacceptable! But if I open fire on soldiers, the nature of the situation will change completely, and the consequences could be severe.’

"Guan Tong, let’s go."

Just then, Shi Jingyi’s voice suddenly rang out. Guan Tong turned to see that she had finished meditating and stood up.

"Neither of you are going anywhere until you explain yourselves," the Curved Saber Man threatened.

"Is that so," Shi Jingyi said calmly to one of the soldiers. "Tell your Commander that I am Shi Jingyi of the Guiyun Martial Arts Hall."

Although the soldier didn’t understand, he relayed the message.

Soon, the soldier received a reply and immediately said, "You two may leave. The Commander will arrange for a personal escort to see you home."

"What?!" The Curved Saber Man looked at the soldier in disbelief. "You’re just letting them go? Are you kidding me!"

"It’s the Commander’s order," the soldier said.

"I need to speak with your Commander immediately!" The Curved Saber Man immediately put on his headset and adjusted the channel.

Then, he heard the Commander say something to him.

The man was stunned for a moment. When he looked up for Shi Jingyi, he saw that she and Guan Tong were already walking away in the distance.

"Captain, who on earth was she?"

The team members couldn’t help but ask. For the Commander to ignore the request of an officially selected special squad like theirs, let the people go, and even arrange a personal escort back for them—her status must be extraordinary.

The Curved Saber Man, their captain, was silent for a moment before saying in a tone full of resentment, "Shi Jingyi... She’s one of the three guest lecturers specially invited by the Psychic Power Development Academy!"