Chapter 67: 58: Thrilling
Although he didn\'t know where the test subject got its clothes from, the thing was thoroughly a textbook zombie!
Luckily, Tao Yu was quite the fan of Uncle Nine\'s films, and though he hadn\'t brought any glutinous rice or ink brushes, as soon as he saw the zombie sniffing around, he immediately held his breath and used the speed enhanced by Shadow Evasion to retreat quickly.
As expected, the zombie just stood there and made no further movements.
Reaching the end of the corridor, which turned into a T-junction, Tao Yu backed up against the wall and pulled out the Warlord\'s Sidearm, before squeezing the trigger without hesitation.
Bang!
The bullet, accompanied by a flash of fire, had just left the barrel when the zombie, which had been standing in front of the metal door, noticed Tao Yu. Its stiff legs kicked off the ground and its whole body shot towards Tao Yu like a cannonball!
Its raised arms were like harpoons!
The force, the burst of speed—it was all too visible, even within the slowed perception of Bullet Time.
Though not as fast as a bullet, it was quicker than both Cao Shaolin and the Scaled Kirin!
With erupting force combined with the acceleration used during Bullet Time, Tao Yu anticipated the zombie\'s trajectory and began sidestepping while continuously pulling the trigger.
He let the bullets, which distorted the air as they flew, shoot one after another at the lurching zombie.
And his main target was its eyes!
Thwack~
Even a zombie\'s eyes couldn\'t withstand the impact of Tao Yu\'s Warlord\'s Sidearm.
With the trajectory modified by Basic Shooting - Modified, all of Tao Yu\'s shots hit their mark!
They also carried the inherent mental shock.
In theory, this should have been a perfect start.
But Tao Yu, still in the midst of Bullet Time, felt a sinking feeling in his heart.
The mental attack that came with his Basic Shooting - Modified hadn\'t shown the slightest effect for the first time!
Not just the mental shock—the zombie that got shot in the eye seemed unfazed, its expression as stiff and unchanged as before.
The oncoming figure wasn\'t swayed in the slightest!
It was as if what had entered its eyes were not bullets, but less than mosquitoes!
Fortunately, Tao Yu had been evading in advance. Although the zombie had extraordinary power, its trajectory was quite predictable.
While Tao Yu\'s bullets were ineffective, he had already sidestepped the zombie\'s lunge.
The zombie\'s arms, like steel forks, heavily collided with the metallic-colored wall in front, tearing through the metal and embedding deeply into the reinforced concrete behind.
The violent impact made Tao Yu feel the vibration beneath his feet, and seeing the arms stuck deep past the wrists in the concrete, he discarded any thought of using his force to strike the zombie and once again held his breath to slip into the shadows!
A body of steel?
Do you think you\'re Superman?
Slipping into the shadows again, Tao Yu didn\'t choose to retreat but instead pushed his double-concealment skills to the limit, moving continuously around the area and constantly draining his physical and mental strength.
The Shadow Force around him grew denser as the skills reached their limits.
He even began to consume Yuan Force to recover and replenish himself.
Embush - Modified, a skill inherited from the Alien, didn\'t cost as much as concealment to enhance, but it did harness the Shadow Force emitted while enacting Shadow Evasion.
"This time, I want to see where the limit lies!"
The last time Tao Yu activated Embush - Modified was against Cao Shaolin, but that time he didn\'t push it to the limit. Cao Shaolin sensed him and managed to break the knife, which was a rather embarrassing debut.
But the failure wasn\'t just because the Shadow Force wasn\'t enough. Cao Shaolin\'s anticipation of the danger and his use of an elbow to catch the strike from the side were critical factors.
Otherwise, a hit would have been lethal!
I refuse to believe that a zombie, straightforward as it is, could do the same!
"Die for me!"
Seizing the moment the zombie pulled out its arms and lost its balance, Tao Yu propelled his speed to its limit from within the shadows, charging with an explosive force far beyond his normal capabilities, stacking it with his own strength.
His force was born from Qi-Blood, spiraling from the soles of his feet to his groin, then up his spine, before culminating in a seamless flow from his waist, back, shoulders, and wrist.
The highest form of explosive power from the Myriad Streams Five Forms, the tiger shape, was perfectly executed.
Pop pop pop~
Sounds like snapping bowstrings kept erupting from Tao Yu\'s body.
Since his physical fitness surpassed the human limit, this was another instance where his body neared total collapse.
The knee and wrist guards that were barely used shattered in succession, fulfilling their purpose. Even the clothes from Tao Yu\'s right trouser leg to his sleeve scattered like a Celestial Maiden casting flowers.
A visible bulge traveled up his arm, creating a mist-like trail through the air.
The suddenly fracturing shadows, like ink being spilled in reverse, swiftly collapsed from covering his entire body and converged in Tao Yu\'s hand, focusing on the Colossal Lizard\'s Fang.
Ptui~
Concrete-shattering, bone-breaking force crushed the zombie\'s head on impact!
Thud~
Tao Yu grabbed the soaring head with one hand and kicked the zombie\'s body with his foot, then quickly retreated, using the force to pull back and distance himself.
Indeed, the zombie whose head was taken swung its arms back in retaliation, creating a thunderous blast that grazed Tao Yu\'s cheek, stinging painfully.
But had he not retreated immediately after taking the head, a direct hit would have been far more damaging than just a sting...
As Tao Yu hastily retreated, he slid backwards on the ground for a distance before fixating his gaze on the zombie\'s body.
There wasn\'t a spot on his body that didn\'t hurt, but it didn\'t affect his movements in the slightest.
"Previously, I was mistaken. Zombies have substance but no soul. Normal mental attacks are indeed useless, and the brain isn\'t the central command. But once the head is gone, their ability to track targets is lost."
Watching the zombie spin on the spot in a frenzy, its attacks carving cracks in the concrete with torn metal, Tao Yu also breathed a slight sigh of relief.
Although things started off badly, his gamble was paying off now!
This zombie, who knew who had created it, seemed to have been specially modified, given that it could serve as a source of contamination.
It must be tied to the real mastermind behind the global biochemical crisis.
But no matter what, this should still be a standard zombie, not something out of myths and legends. Therefore, it had its limits.
Bearing the soreness in his entire body, Tao Yu moved towards the doorway and then yelled outside,
"Open the door! I\'ve mostly handled the problem. Bring me all the Molotov cocktails, I\'m going to burn it down."
Tao Yu faintly heard a brief argument outside, followed by the metal door slowly opening.
There, Jack was holding others at gunpoint, making them carry out the task without giving them any chance to argue or explain.
After the door opened, everyone watched in horror at the headless zombie still throwing a tantrum and the head in Tao Yu\'s hand.
Had it really been dealt with?!
"Damn..."
The African American Jam raised his finger in a daze.
Jack also sighed in relief, glancing at the head Tao Yu was holding while pulling out homemade gasoline bombs from his backpack.
Tao Yu himself had brought a couple inside, but judging from the zombie\'s initial strength, two probably wouldn\'t be enough.
Now, using them all, let\'s burn steel to slag!
Crackle and pop~
Boom~
The gasoline bottles shattered precisely on the zombie\'s body, engulfing it in flames.
Then came the second bottle, the third bottle...