Apart from his cold weapons, Lin Yuan did not forget to ensure firepower support in emergencies. Each person carried two smoke bombs, almost emptying the inventory, to cover their retreat.
Mu Qingtian and Wu Tian, the two long-range support personnel, also carried six grenades, three high-explosive and three incendiary.
In addition, Lin Yuan brought two secret weapons, carried in pockets, one of which was even moving around, meant for special attacks on zombies.
...
Deep within the Yue County Industrial Park, the scorching sun baked the ground, creating a shimmering heat haze.
"Whoosh~"
An arrow, shot from an unknown source, pierced the air, tracing a perfect parabolic arc before striking a zombie squarely in the head.
The arrowhead, with its immense kinetic energy, penetrated the zombie's skull, killing it beyond any doubt.
"Team, advance."
From the corner of a shop, Lin Yuan emerged, shield in hand, leading the combat team members.
Wu Tian and Mu Qingtian also descended from the rooftops, having cleared some of the zombies ahead.
"Remember to retrieve the arrowheads."
"Understood."
Crossing the open space ahead led to the target shopping mall.
Lin Yuan estimated the mall to be at least half the size of a football field and five stories tall.
However, they weren't surprised. Yue County was a large county with highly developed industry and commerce; this industrial park was their pride.
The zombies in the open space had been dealt with, and Lin Yuan and his team smoothly reached the mall's outer wall, but did not enter.
Now, Jiang Ziqi needed to use her hearing to determine the number of zombies inside the mall.
"How many, Ziqi, how many are there?"
Jiang Ziqi did not reply, pressing her ear against the wall and listening again.
Shaking her head with a look of terror, she said, "Brother Lin Yuan, perhaps we should reconsider. There are at least 500 zombies in here, and I heard several heavy footsteps. I don't know what they are."
Five hundred?!
Was this mall so crowded? This number made Lin Yuan's heart sink.
Moreover, Jiang Ziqi had heard peculiar footsteps, likely indicating some strange type of zombie.
What should they do?
The old tactic of feigning an attack elsewhere?
Probably not. If the zombies here were to riot, the zombies in the county town would definitely be alerted.
This girl's hearing has improved again.
"Quick, hide!"
However, Lin Yuan wasn't in the mood to offer praise at the moment. After giving the instruction, he rushed towards the mall entrance.
Some of the zombies inside the mall were already agitated. Now, a fire was needed.
Lin Yuan took out the utility knife he hadn't used to stab zombie skulls with in a long time. He took off his gloves and cut his palm.
Blood gushed out instantly. The scent of blood within a radius of less than 200 meters caused the zombies in the mall to riot within a second.
All signals in the air conveyed one message.
There was food in that direction, the most delicious kind!
"Brother Lin Yuan, you..." Jiang Ziqi, who had just hidden in a house, saw this and was about to speak when Mu Qingtian covered her mouth.
Because the mall's revolving doors were directly burst open, the zombies weren't running out; they were spewing out of the broken entrance like squeezing toothpaste for the first time.
Even zombies not on the first floor managed to find their way downstairs and charge out. The scent of blood was like a red guiding rope in their dim vision, leading the zombies.
The commotion of the mall zombies directly attracted the attention of all the zombies in the industrial park, and they began moving towards this direction.
Wu Tian and Zhu Mingjun, who had completed their mission and were taking a detour back, naturally heard the commotion.
"What's going on?" Wu Tian's beautiful brow furrowed. She couldn't understand why all the zombies in the industrial park were moving.
The impact of these few zombies shouldn't be this great. This bridge was still some distance from the mall, and she had planned to act only after the zombies had slowly passed.
"Don't worry about me, just keep to your detour."
Lin Yuan's words suddenly flashed in her mind.
"Oh no, Lin Yuan is going to use his own blood to attract the zombies. I need to go find him!" Wu Tian suddenly realized what Lin Yuan intended to do and turned to rescue him.
This completely frightened Zhu Mingjun. He quickly grabbed Wu Tian, intending to say something, but the agitated Wu Tian paid no heed and shook off Zhu Mingjun's hand with a wave.
Seeing his efforts were futile, Zhu Mingjun had no choice but to stubbornly grab Wu Tian's leg and say, "Sister Wu Tian, don't get excited! I believe Captain wouldn't do anything foolish. He must have a way to escape!"
"No, I said, I will die with him!"
"Sister Wu Tian, Captain hasn't had children with you yet! He definitely wouldn't do anything he wasn't sure of!!"
This sentence suddenly enlightened Wu Tian. That's right, no children yet. Lin Yuan wouldn't be stupid enough to seek death.
Her footsteps stopped abruptly. Zhu Mingjun, who had been dragged a few steps, finally breathed a sigh of relief.
"If that's the case, Qingtian and the others must be taking this opportunity to get the gas masks. We need to hurry back and help them."
No wonder he emphasized taking a detour before leaving. If they hadn't taken the detour, they would have run into the frantic horde.
Then what was his purpose in doing this? To buy time?
It must be those special footsteps Ziqi mentioned. Lin Yuan was afraid his team members would get bogged down in combat and be unable to disengage for a while, getting surrounded by the zombie horde.
Having sorted out her thoughts, Wu Tian finally calmed down. Just as she was about to step forward, she found that their little Brother Zhu was still stubbornly holding onto her leg.
"Sister Wu Tian, didn't I say..."
"Let's go back quickly. An Jing and the others are still waiting for our help."
Upon hearing that Zhao An Jing needed help, Zhu Mingjun jumped up immediately, patted his butt, and prepared to set off.
"Then what are we waiting for? Sister Wu Tian, let's hurry back."
Wu Tian: ...
As expected, deep師徒情深 (master-disciple affection)!