After Shen Feng and Chu Chaoyan fell into the cave on the second level, their bodies suffered violent impacts. Fortunately, as ability users, they were not injured despite falling from a height of over ten meters. However, zombies swarmed towards them, and in the ensuing chaos, Chu Chaoyan's flashlight fell to the ground and was quickly crushed under the feet of the zombies.
The cave was plunged into darkness, and neither Shen Feng nor the zombies could see their surroundings.
A thought struck Shen Feng: since the zombies couldn't see him, this was his chance to escape!
After a prolonged struggle, Shen Feng and Chu Chaoyan were both stained with zombie blood. This coincidentally masked their own scents. Shen Feng, carrying Chu Chaoyan, began to sprint. As he passed by the zombies, he forcefully pushed them aside and squeezed through the gaps to escape.
The zombies' movements had been guided by the flashlight beam, and their eyesight was inferior to humans. Now, without light, all the zombies had become blind, unable to see their targets and merely standing in place, baring their fangs and claws.
Chu Chaoyan clung tightly to Shen Feng, too afraid to utter a word, lest she be discovered by the zombies. Now that she and Shen Feng had fallen into an unfamiliar area, she had no idea what to do.
Shen Feng pressed forward with Chu Chaoyan in his arms, his hand brushing against the wall beside him. He forged ahead blindly, pushing past the surrounding zombies and ignoring their flailing. After more than an hour, they finally reached the end of the passage. There were no zombies here; only a thick stone wall ahead.
Shen Feng waited for a while, ensuring he could no longer hear the sounds of zombies, before turning on his flashlight. Illuminated by the beam, Chu Chaoyan and Shen Feng could see their situation clearly. In the distance lay a pitch-black passage. The tunnels on the second level were much wider than those on the first, suggesting that the second level was the main stronghold of the zombies, and the number of zombies on the first level was too small.
Seeing the claw marks on the stone wall, Chu Chaoyan suddenly understood. "This is a stone wall. The zombies stopped digging when they reached here, realizing they couldn't proceed. This passage must be an abandoned one!"
Shen Feng felt weak all over. After a full day of fighting, he was utterly exhausted. He checked his phone; it was already late at night. He and Chu Chaoyan had been trapped underground for an entire day. He had no idea how they would escape. If they were to be cornered by zombies again, he would truly be finished.
Chu Chaoyan took out her water bottle, took a sip of drinking water, and handed it to Shen Feng.
Shen Feng took the bottle and began to drink. He was contemplating how to get out of the underground. This was an unfamiliar territory. They had managed to hide in this abandoned passage by relying on the darkness, and it would be disastrous if they were pursued by zombies again.
Suddenly, Chu Chaoyan spotted water stains on the stone wall. She quickly snatched Shen Feng's flashlight and shone it on the stains to examine them. It turned out there was a thin crack in the stone wall, and water was flowing out from it. Although the water was scarce, it was undeniably a source of water!
"Shen Feng, look quickly! There's water here, we're saved!" Chu Chaoyan exclaimed to Shen Feng.
Hearing this, Shen Feng hurried to the stone wall to examine it. Indeed, a thin stream of water was flowing from the crack. This discovery greatly relieved Shen Feng. As long as there was water, they could hold on for longer. "Thank God! It seems there's always a way out!"
Chu Chaoyan sat down on the ground, feeling relaxed, and looked at the crack in the stone wall. She said, "We can dig a hole in the stone wall along the crack, and we can get water from this hole in the future!"
Shen Feng, however, was thinking about something else. He looked upwards and said, "Since the water is flowing down along the cracks in the stone wall, the ground must be above us. If we dig upwards along the stone wall, we'll eventually break through the soil layer. And since this is an abandoned passage, we'll be able to dig our way out eventually!"
Chu Chaoyan was stunned by Shen Feng's words. She looked at him and asked, "Are you out of your mind? We're at least fifty meters underground. You think we can dig our way out from here? Fifty meters! How long will it take us to dig through?"
Shen Feng said seriously, "There's no other way! The water flowing down the stone wall proves that the soil layer between us and the surface isn't that thick, otherwise, the water wouldn't have seeped here. Waiting for rescue would be putting all our hopes in others. Since this is the only way, why not try it?"
Chu Chaoyan was persuaded by Shen Feng's reasoning and quickly said, "I think we should first dig a hiding place to the side. Otherwise, if the zombies accidentally enter this passage, we'll be discovered. Once we have a hiding place, we can then proceed with digging."
Shen Feng nodded and said seriously, "I've calculated that as long as the water source is sufficient, we can survive underground for at least half a month. Within this half month, if we can dig through the soil layer, we'll be able to leave!"
Chu Chaoyan looked at the crack in the stone wall and agreed with Shen Feng's decision. She considered herself an ability user as well, and with a sufficient water source, she was confident she could last a long time. If she could dig through five meters of soil each day, she could escape. This was already an excellent plan.
Shen Feng and Chu Chaoyan then began their work. They first dug a hiding cave along the stone wall on the side, and then began to dig upwards. Unfortunately, their long swords and daggers, which were once lethal weapons, now had to serve as pickaxes. The soil at fifty meters underground was extremely hard. The two of them dug diligently, transporting the excavated soil to a distant part of the passage.
When they were hungry, Shen Feng and Chu Chaoyan would break a compressed biscuit in half and share it. When they were thirsty, they would gather by the crack and suck water from it. It usually took ten minutes of sucking to barely get enough water. Under such harsh conditions, the two of them became increasingly silent.
Days passed. Yang Chang was constantly concerned about the exploration team outside the city. Three thousand people had gathered in one day and set off with exploration equipment. No one had expected the situation to reverse so drastically within a single day. The explorers were all trapped underground. Except for Zhang Jue, who could fly and managed to escape, the others were all essentially lost. Even Lu Xian only returned to Yanjing late in the evening.
For a time, Yanjing was at a loss for what to do. The exploration vehicles could not enter the underground; they would be destroyed as soon as they went down. Humans who ventured underground were wiped out within a day. It seemed impossible to ascertain the situation underground. Without understanding the distribution of zombies underground, effective attacks could not be planned.
Finally, five days after the zombie outbreak, someone escaped from underground. It was Wang Aoye, who had recently become a fourth-tier ability user. Only three ability users remained behind him; his three subordinates had perished underground. Even ability users were doomed when surrounded by an endless horde of zombies.
What angered Wang Aoye the most was not the death of his subordinates, but the detector he carried. When he returned to the gathering point with his men, he found a researcher who had developed the detector and punched him. Then, he violently threw the detector at the researcher.
"Are you guys intentionally trying to get us killed?" Wang Aoye questioned angrily. "With the equipment you developed, no matter where we fled underground, we were found by the zombies. Later, the detector was accidentally damaged, and only then did we escape the zombies' pursuit!"
The researcher was also surprised by this turn of events and could only speculate, "Perhaps the ultrasonic waves emitted by the detector were detected by the Corpse King. But we've never encountered this situation before, so you can't blame us!"
The research institute also felt wronged. They had manufactured the detector according to the requirements. Who would have thought it would become a target for the Corpse King's detection? It could only be said that it was too coincidental, and the Corpse King was too cunning.
Wang Aoye gave the researcher a cold look and then turned to leave with his remaining subordinates. At that moment, he wished he could kill the man, but he was in Yanjing and couldn't kill people casually. He could only lead his few remaining subordinates back to their base.
"Please wait, I'm a liaison from headquarters. I'd like to understand the situation underground. Are people still able to fight?" At this moment, Shu Dapin stopped Wang Aoye and asked.
Shu Dapin had been asked by Yang Chang to gather information, so he spent his days wandering around the gathering points outside the city. As soon as any rescue personnel or survivors returned, he would be the first to get the news. This was unavoidable; if he didn't come to gather information himself, Yang Chang would come personally.
Wang Aoye said coldly, "Hundreds of thousands of zombies are attacking humans underground. Who knows what the situation is for others? All of us ability users here have lost three people. I'm afraid everyone else has already died underground!"
After speaking, Wang Aoye turned and left. He had initially thought that scouting the terrain would be a simple task, mainly to obtain ability potions. However, he didn't expect that not only would three of his subordinates die, but he himself would almost perish underground. And he had fallen into such a state because of that damned detector. Carrying the detector underground meant that the Corpse King could track his movements at any time.
Shu Dapin was helpless and continued to wait for news at the gathering point. It seemed the underground was extremely perilous, and escaping from it alive was not an easy feat.
Five more days passed. Xiao Sheng and Zhang Zi, carrying Yue Hengyi and Qin Ke, returned to Yanjing after passing through the gathering point. These two had experienced a near-death ordeal underground and finally managed to escape. Their detectors had been damaged, and they could have created a passage to escape from underground if they had found an opportunity. However, they were greedy for achievements and lingered on the second level for a long time, only to encounter a group of mutated zombies, nearly dying at their hands.
In the final moments, it was Qin Ke who used her remaining abilities to open a passage to the surface. Yue Hengyi desperately carried Qin Ke, and they finally reached the ground.
After the two appeared on the surface, the zombies still tried to pursue them. Fortunately, Xiao Sheng arrived in time and burned all the pursuing mutated zombies with fire, thus saving them.
Shu Dapin wanted to step forward to inquire about the situation, but he ultimately only received this answer: "There's no possibility of anyone else being alive. Mutated zombies also participated in the battle. Being surrounded and attacked by hundreds of mutated zombies, it's impossible to survive. Moreover, every exit is guarded by mutated zombies, and no one can escape."
Upon hearing this, Shu Dapin's worry intensified. In his opinion, Shen Feng and Chu Chaoyan had most likely died underground. If they could escape, they would have done so by now. However, there had been no news of them. Although Lu Xian had been searching tirelessly, the results were minimal. Every day, entering the underground cave meant facing the siege of tens of thousands of zombies, making it impossible to even advance, let alone search for people.
"Did Shen Feng really die underground?" Shu Dapin had a bad premonition. Shen Feng was also a powerful ability user; how could he be so easily killed by zombies?
Shu Dapin had cooperated smoothly with Shen Feng before and did not wish for anything to happen to him. Otherwise, whether they could cooperate smoothly in the future would be uncertain.
Lu Xian had also fallen into despair. He, Jin Zijue, and Guo Pinming were constantly searching for Shen Feng in different locations, but they could not find any clues related to Shen Feng. Logically, if Shen Feng were still alive, he would have killed zombies to protect himself. However, every day they descended underground, no matter how much they searched, they only saw the zombies they had killed in previous days.
Jin Zijue was also somewhat weary. After searching for ten days without finding anything, what else was there to say? Give up!
"Lu Xian, it's not that I don't want to help you, nor that I'm not trying my best. You've seen it yourself. For the past ten days, we've been exploring underground every day but haven't found any trace of Shen Feng. This indicates that Shen Feng might be dead. Please accept my condolences!" Jin Zijue said helplessly.
Lu Xian suddenly thought of something and quickly said, "We can't give up! I heard that there's a second level underground. Since we can't find the City Lord on the first level, the City Lord must be on the second level!"
"That's even more hopeless!" Jin Zijue immediately shook his head. "We can't even defeat the zombies on the first level, let alone those on the second. The mutated zombies on the second level are even more numerous! It's not that I'm looking down on Shen Feng, but I, a fifth-tier ability user, have been driven out of the cave several times by the zombies. Shen Feng is also carrying a burden, so it's even more unlikely!"
"Can you hold on for a few more days? I believe that if we hold on for a few more days, we'll definitely find the City Lord!" Lu Xian pleaded again.
Guo Pinming also spoke, "Mr. Jin, please consider Mr. Xiao Sheng's feelings and continue the search. I believe we shared hardships together in Rongcheng, so giving up so easily would be too hasty!"
Jin Zijue looked at the gray sky, shrugged helplessly, and said, "It's not that I'm unwilling to do my best, but it's going to snow again soon. The weather will be particularly harsh, and we might freeze to death in the wilderness. It's December, and the weather is not to be trifled with!"
Guo Pinming gritted his teeth and said, "Then let's search for another ten days. If we still can't find the City Lord within ten days, we'll return to Yanjing!"
Guo Pinming knew that Shen Feng was lacking supplies underground, and his food might have already run out, especially water. Without water, even ability users could only survive for seven days. Shen Feng might have chosen to eat zombie meat to survive underground, but even so, twenty days would be the limit.
"Alright, you've convinced me." Jin Zijue finally agreed to search for Shen Feng for another ten days. If Shen Feng was not found within ten days, they would have to give up.