Chapter 123: Victory in the Great Battle

Back at the Tech Corporation, Ye Jian stared blankly at the scene before him.

Is that it?

He had expected the Skeleton Corpse King to rise, but in the blink of an eye, it had been suppressed and met a miserable end, crushed to death by Lin Dong’s raw power.

"I thought his awakened ability was a Domain. Why is his physique so formidable?"

This discovery shattered his understanding. He had hoped that, at the very least, he could identify Lin Dong’s weaknesses through this battle. But now, it seemed as though the man had no weaknesses at all.

"This Corpse King was far stronger than I imagined. Even if Liu Baiyue’s people arrive, they’re just walking into a slaughter," Ye Jian mused. However, that woman, Liu Baiyue, was too arrogant to believe him; if he told her, she might even use it as an excuse to humiliate him.

He needed a countermeasure.

A senior executive beside him was equally terrified. "President Ye, what are we going to do now?"

"Emmm... start packing."

***

By the riverbank.

The dim, amber sunlight cast flickering reflections on the water, but unlike before, the surface was stained a deep, murky crimson with blood. Floating corpses and severed limbs drifted in the current, drawing schools of mutated fish that chased each other in a feeding frenzy. The banks were piled high with remains, dark blood flowing freely; everywhere one looked, there was nothing but carnage.

"Roar—!"

Tank and the other zombies let out continuous, excited roars. Having eliminated a major rival, they were celebrating their victory. Big Ears was among them, looking incredibly smug.

"We really are too strong!"

"Hm? Does that have anything to do with you?" Xiao Ba glanced over, clearly still unfriendly toward him.

Lin Dong had already collected the Skeleton Corpse King’s crystal core. He felt indifferent about the victory, thinking it was nothing special. His initial motivation for the battle had been a lack of a sense of security; he simply didn't want to be disturbed, so he had wiped out the skeleton and its kin.

After this massive battle, there were no other zombie nests in Jiangbei City capable of challenging him. While some small factions might still exist around the borders of his territory, none dared to step out of line.

"It’s over. Let’s go."

Cheng Luoyi approached with a few "tools" in tow. The wounds she sustained in the battle had already healed, leaving only scabs, particularly the shocking bite marks on her neck. Although she had been bitten by the Infant Corpse King, her powerful physique allowed her to purge the zombie virus on her own; she would only turn if the viral intensity exceeded her body's limits.

"Good work," Lin Dong said, offering a word of comfort. Cheng Luoyi had made a significant contribution to this battle by helping him slay the Infant Corpse King.

Wait.

Mentioning the Infant Corpse King reminded Lin Dong of something. "Where did the little infant that the Corpse King gave birth to go?"

"I don't know..." Cheng Luoyi recalled, but couldn't remember. She only remembered flicking it away casually; she wasn't sure if it was dead or alive, and it had disappeared from sight afterward.

"Fine." Lin Dong nodded, not dwelling on it. He didn't think it was important.

They dispersed. With the Skeleton Corpse King and others eradicated, Lin Dong’s territory expanded once more. His zombie horde reached forty thousand, with nearly ten thousand elites—seven or eight thousand at least—and the numbers were still growing.

Because the cross-river bridge had been severed, the break was bridged by pot-grown vines, leaving half the structure covered in vegetation—a true post-apocalyptic aesthetic. From then on, the Potted Plant was responsible for guarding the bridge, as the river below and the mountains on the sides meant mutated beasts or other chaotic monsters could appear at any time.

As for the new territory, Lin Dong was too lazy to inspect it himself, leaving it entirely to his subordinates. Big Ears was the most proactive, pressing his ears against the streets to scout for potential threats and "cleansing" the new turf.

***

But what no one knew was that, deep in the river, an infant was drifting with the current.

"Waa... Waa..."

Black mist swirled around the baby. His cries remained loud and hysterical, filled with extreme grief, for the "mother" who had fed him had been butchered by a human.

That human’s face was deeply etched into his mind. A seed of hatred was taking root and sprouting.

The infant’s scent and cries soon attracted mutated fish, but as soon as they drew near, they were imprisoned by the black mist and sank straight to the riverbed. The fish could not harm him.

The infant drifted downstream until the current grew calm. Somehow, he had traveled all the way from Jiangbei City to the submerged Binhai City.

Along the way, he passed many toppled skyscrapers and ruins, eventually drifting into a pile of floating corpses. Around him, the sounds of flesh being torn and consumed echoed, and the water beneath him had turned into a "blood pool."

Finally, a pale, clawed hand ignored the infant’s black mist and dragged him from the water.

The infant stopped crying immediately and opened his eyes. In his pitch-black pupils, a hideous monster’s head was reflected.

"What a cute little thing..."

A voice, raspy like the grinding of rusted iron, whispered into his ear.

***

Meanwhile, Lin Dong had returned to his clean, tidy home. After a shower and a change of clothes, he took out the Skeleton Corpse King’s crystal core and popped it into his mouth.

The core was of a high grade, its energy incredibly dense. It melted instantly, tasting delicious and sweet, much like a mandarin orange. Lin Dong could clearly feel the pure energy nourishing his body. He was still constantly evolving.

After taking out the Skeleton Corpse King and its cohorts, the roars outside his window had diminished; the area around the building was remarkably quiet. If he closed his eyes, he could almost imagine he had returned to the days before the apocalypse.

"Days without rivals are truly comfortable..." Lin Dong leaned back on the sofa, enjoying the momentary peace.

His subordinates were busy taking over the new territory, starting with a patrol to check for other dangers. Big Ears was working the hardest, his ears pressed to the ground, diligently searching.

The area across the river was relatively enclosed—surrounded by mountains on three sides and the river on the fourth. On the other side of those mountains lay the neighboring "Linshan City."

Those mountains were not peaceful; mutated beasts and plants thrived there, along with hiding humans. One mountain in particular was unique: it was a burial ground where the city's dead had been interred before the apocalypse.

Long ago, many hair-raising, bizarre legends had circulated about it... and it was unclear if the prevalence of strange corpses in this region was related to that cemetery.

Just then, Big Ears’ large ears twitched, and he suddenly looked up at the sky.

He spotted a tiny black dot in the extreme distance, flying over from the other side of the mountains.

"Brother Ke! I've found something..."