Chapter 164: The Great Cleanup

Descending the fifth floor and returning to the fourth-floor corridor once more, Princess Anyi had successfully subdued all the opponents on this level.

More than a dozen fierce women lay scattered about with bare chests and backs, presenting a scene of utter chaos.

Wujue smiled and remarked, "You guys really ought to go on a variety show and perform women's wrestling. It would be a massive hit."

Anyi gave him a side-long glance and retorted, "Are you done yet? There's just no end to so many people."

Seeing a woman stagger back to her feet, clutching a knife and trying to lunge at Anyi, Wujue shook his head at her and said, "Forget it. Your Big Sister is already finished. You'd better start thinking about your own way out."

"Big Sister? What happened to Big Sister?" The woman asked in panic before collapsing to the floor once again.

Wujue glanced out the window, where a figure seemed to have descended from the sky. Without making a fuss about it, he simply said, "Who knows? Perhaps your era has come to an end."

Without wasting any more breath, he and Huron continued downstairs.

When they reached the third-floor elevator lobby, Xiao Han was furiously engaged in combat with a swarm of women. Seeing Wujue and the others descend, she hurriedly shouted, "You're finally here! I'm sick to death of this. What should we do with these women?"

Anyi clenched her fists and said, "What else is there to do? Let me break them in properly."

Wujue patted her shoulder and replied, "No need! Watch this."

He suddenly opened his mouth and unleashed a mighty Lion's Roar, directly shocking the women into covering their ears and retreating to the sides.

Huron quickly pressed the elevator button, and the group filed in one by one. Before the doors closed, Wujue cast a glance around the area and suddenly announced, "All of you, wake up! The era of the South China Gang and Big Sister Gui is over. Get yourselves ready to start anew."

Before those women could fully comprehend what was happening, an unusual alarm echoed through the building, followed by a soft voice making an announcement: "Big Sister has passed away. From now on, the four of us Protectors will officially take over. Everyone, cease all hostilities against outsiders; we are going to start fresh."

Facing the chaotic reactions of the women, Wujue said no more and stepped into the elevator, preparing to descend.

Next, it was time to clear out the zombies in this area. Considering the infected villagers from earlier, he estimated that the zombies in the city could mostly be dealt with now.

Upon exiting the building, they saw swarms of zombies trapped in a state of commotion outside, and the damned roadblocks were barely holding them back anymore.

"How can anyone hope to muddle through with junk like this?" Wujue drew his shotgun, telling Anyi and the others, "Let's unleash a massacre and help them regain their senses."

It seemed it was time to use the particle cannon once again.

Princess Anyi did not stand on ceremony; she whipped out the particle cannon, cleanly snapped a green crystal into four pieces, and distributed them to the others.

Because Wujue's shotgun had already been modified, it was now capable of firing the energy of the green crystal just like a particle cannon.

Standing back-to-back, the four of them adjusted their ammunition and shouted in unison, "Let's do or die!"

They struck simultaneously, aiming at the surrounding zombies and launching a frantic, bloody battle.

At the same time, Rourou up in the building seemed to have given orders, as several helicopters flew in from the sky, apparently serving as reinforcements from the organization to provide aerial support.

Wujue took the lead, charging straight into the horde of zombies. Based on his estimation, the walking corpses he had manufactured should arrive soon, rendering the zombies throughout the entire city no longer a threat.

He fired continuously, bombarding the zombies and using the power of the green crystals to purge the virus from their bodies. Soon, one human after another began to collapse to the ground, slowly undergoing a transformation.

Their mutated bodies gradually reverted to normal, and some even began to wail in agonizing struggle.

"It will be over soon. You won't have to suffer for long before you are completely safe," Wujue murmured softly as he watched a zombie morph back into a human shape right before his eyes.

The entire process was heart-stopping. Wujue knew this was merely the beginning, and in future struggles, they would encounter many more similar situations.

In the future, once their ranks grew even larger, they might perhaps establish a specialized clearance squad to handle such crises.

Just then, the reinforcements who had descended from the helicopters also began their own cleanup operations. These people were all wearing special radiation suits and were actually using flamethrowers and similar equipment to incinerate the zombies.

Xiao Han couldn't help frowning as she asked, "Is this any different from a massacre?"

Wujue couldn't help walking over and shouting, "Hey, if you can't solve the problem properly, can you just stand aside and rest? You're completely blocking our way!"

The leader, a massive brute, spoke from behind a gas mask, "Trust us, it will be over soon. Please accept our gift and board the airship to watch the show."

Immediately after, within the zone cleared by the helicopters, another airship descended—it was actually a piece of equipment belonging to the Heavenly Punishment Clan.

Upon seeing this novelty, Wujue realized that the opposing faction must have looted the Heavenly Punishment Clan's gear and upgraded their own arsenal.

He glanced around. By this time, the villagers infected by the purple crystals had already produced a different kind of zombie, which was now beginning to swarm toward them. In other words, a large majority of the zombies in the entire city might have already been wiped out.

He immediately snapped his fingers at Anyi and the other two, and followed them aboard the airship. Someone guided the four of them to the main control cabin, where a middle-aged man whom none of them had ever met stood gazing out at the city through the window, revealing only a towering, imposing back.

Wujue recognized this figure; it was the mysterious man he had crossed paths with in City C, rumored to be Alice's master. It seemed there was a good show in store for them today.

The middle-aged man turned around and smiled politely at the four of them, saying, "First time meeting, allow me to introduce myself. I am Angel, an executive within the organization, responsible for all external affairs on the surface."

Wujue smiled. "I remember you. We must have met before."

Angel nodded, motioning for them to take a seat, and continued, "Today's events can be described as either a coincidence or destiny. I know that you all have been fighting against the Heavenly Punishment Clan, and I also know that the current situation has changed. Although the greatest threat to the Earth may no longer exist, we still share a common goal."

"You mean the First Emperor's Mausoleum. It's not far from here, buried for a very long time," Wujue said with a smile.

Angel smiled. "Indeed. It has simply been buried for too long, and past technology was utterly incapable of opening it. Today, however, the time may finally be ripe. Moreover, the Heavenly Punishment Clan is also making restless moves; they have the capability to do so."

"Are you afraid the Heavenly Punishment Clan will use this opportunity to make a comeback?" Wujue stood up and said, "Then we truly need to speed things up. Tell me, what kind of cooperation do you propose?"

Angel stared at him intently for a full half-minute before speaking. "I know you harbor suspicions about the organization, and some within our ranks do not trust you either—especially regarding the twins and Alice. However, time is pressing, and we must take action as soon as possible."

He then unfolded an electronic map, displaying the situation within Anwan Province to everyone, and pointed to the specially marked location of the First Emperor's Mausoleum. "From here to there is not a very long journey. The remaining half-legion of the Heavenly Punishment Clan nearby is also massing toward that spot. The organization has already dispatched an elite squad, and I hope you can coordinate with each other to intercept them while unearthing the treasures of the First Emperor's Mausoleum."

Wujue smiled. "Even if you didn't ask, I wouldn't stand on ceremony. Now, is there anything else?"

Angel shook his head slightly. "Nothing more. Once you finish cleaning up the city here, you can leave. We have already prepared transportation for you."

By this point, Anyi, Xiao Han, and Huron all understood the current situation. After walking this long road, they were finally about to plunge into an even greater ordeal.

Their target: the First Emperor's Mausoleum, and an even greater challenge.

The four of them disembarked from the airship one after another. Looking out at the still-ravaged city, the people who had been clearing out the zombies had dispersed to search the entire metropolis.

Portions of the zombies affected by the green crystals were slowly reverting to human form. A small fraction had barely managed to survive, though their bodies were struggling through a difficult period of adaptation.

In the process of evolution, their bodies had generated new structures; even if the green crystals caused the virus within them to vanish, it was hard to say what these people might turn into in the future.

An anxious Xiao Han went to ask Angel, "What do you plan to do with these survivors?"

Angel stepped down from the airship and replied, "I intend to leave that choice to the living."

By now, the survivors within the city were arriving one after another. Some had hidden in underground bunkers to barely eke out an existence, others had been taken in by the organization to narrowly escape disaster, and there were also the disciples of Big Sister Gui and the South China Gang. These people discovered that their compatriots, who had once transformed into demons, actually still had a chance of being restored.

Their expressions and attitudes were truly thought-provoking.

Wujue could already hear someone calling out the name of their own kin from the mouths of those zombies who should have been dead.