This Wave of Zombies is No Good - Chapter 56
The image on the screen was blurry, showing a creature resembling a centipede. It had countless “legs” and was rapidly crawling on the road. There were some armed personnel on the road who were either knocked over by this giant centipede or swallowed whole by it.
Next, the drone moved closer, and the magnified lens showed that the monster’s head was about the size of a small car. Its shape was bizarre, and it was impossible to tell whether it was human or beast. There was a large lump on its lower jaw for storing food, which looked like it could hold several people.
At this point in the video, the centipede’s mouth was wide open, and it was swallowing humans in large gulps. The monster’s body was segmented, and the segments were made up of the torso and upper limbs of zombies. Its “legs” were the “hands” of zombies or humans when they were alive.
Liang Xiao paused the image at one point and pointed at the monster on the screen, saying, “This centipede survives by eating zombies and live humans. After eating a human, it bites off the head and everything below the waist. The monster secretes a kind of mucus that activates the neurons in the spine, gluing that part of the corpse to its body. Once the adhesion is complete, the corpse becomes part of it. The monster has already swallowed hundreds of people, and its body is now several tens of meters long.”
“When did the monster first appear?”
“Two days ago, it burrowed out of the mountain.”
Upon hearing this, Yu Jingtang frowned slightly. The timing was very close to when the mudslide occurred.
Sure enough, Liang Xiao added, “There have been heavy rains in this area recently. There are many natural disasters, and we don’t know the specific cause of this monster.”
“Was it this big when it first appeared?” Zou Lang asked.
“When the monster came out, it had just attacked a nearby small village. At that time, it was about half its current length. According to surveillance footage, it bent its back like a snake, dodged the electric net, and burrowed into the city.” Liang Xiao gestured with his hand, “In just these two days, its length has doubled.”
“What is the current casualty situation?”
“In the past two days, dozens of ordinary citizens in K City have been confirmed dead, and the number of missing people is still increasing. More than twenty rescue team members and military personnel have died.”
“How effective is gunfire?”
“After the mucus solidified, it formed a hard shell-like layer on its body, which was difficult to break. Every part of its body seemed to be a brain, and attacking the head could not kill it.”
“What about other information?” Yu Jingtang asked again.
Liang Xiao explained, “The military originally planned to deploy tanks, but the tanks’ movement speed in the city blocks was far slower than it, and the same was true for drones. So, there were only drone-shot images, but they couldn’t be used in actual combat.”
Zou Lang thought for a moment and asked, “Does this monster have any other characteristics? Can it be bombed?”
“The monster is very fast and strong. As its body grows longer, its strength will increase. At present, most of the people in those three blocks are hiding in underground safety shelters. Considering the safety of the people, it is not recommended to use explosives unless absolutely necessary.”
Yu Jingtang frowned slightly, “If explosives can’t be used, the attack power will be greatly reduced.”
Liang Xiao nodded solemnly, “As the monster swallows more people, its head and body are growing and getting bigger, and its speed and strength are gradually increasing. We don’t know if it has a growth limit, and if it does, what that limit is. Now, near the three blocks that have fallen, we have troops setting up checkpoints and defenses. But once the monster’s speed and strength increase to the point where it can break through the barriers, the hundred thousand people in K City could all potentially die in the monster’s mouth.”
At this point, Liang Xiao paused slightly, “So…the next thing, I’m afraid we’ll have to ask the two of you. I can only give you one day. If it can’t be resolved within that time, we’ll have to apply for other assistance.”
Upon hearing this, Zou Lang wanted to flip the table, writing a sentence “my brother pits me”, followed by thirteen characters of “tragic”.
Liang Xiao was a bit slick, but he was always the local official. He wasn’t exactly a good person who loved the people and worried about the country, but he definitely couldn’t let the people be slaughtered and trampled at will. At this time, he placed his hopes on Zou Lang and Yu Jingtang, hoping that they could live up to the trust placed in them.
“Since every minute we delay adds more danger, let’s go as soon as possible.” Yu Jingtang stood up. After about ten hours, his wounds had not fully healed, but they basically did not affect his actions, “Tell us, what support can you provide us?”
“Within my capabilities, I will give you the greatest cooperation.” Liang Xiao interlaced his fingers, “At present, I can directly dispatch a ten-person elite squad for you. Other auxiliary personnel are about a hundred, four military off-road vehicles, several motorcycles, corresponding firearms, ammunition, knives are all downstairs. Here is also a walkie-talkie, you can directly talk to me. As long as I can provide support here, I will provide it. If you need to add more personnel, you can also tell me.”
Yu Jingtang said, “Ten people should be enough. Sometimes more people can cause chaos. Let’s try it first.”
Liang Xiao made another gesture of invitation, “In addition, we have opened a room for you upstairs. You can change your clothes and equipment. When you are ready, you can leave at any time.”
Yu Jingtang and Zou Lang stepped forward and took the walkie-talkie.
A waiter led the two of them upstairs. When they entered the room, they found two sets of simple combat uniforms already laid out on the table. Having just experienced a bloody battle, the two of them freshened up a bit and changed into the clothes.
The combat uniform was black and very lightweight. It came with fingerless gloves, and there were protective layers at the elbows and wrists to prevent zombie bites. Although it wasn’t as professional as the K Division’s combat uniform, it was many times better than the rudimentary equipment they had the night before.
Zou Lang dressed first, then turned around to help Yu Jingtang, “Instructor, does your wound still hurt?”
Yu Jingtang lifted his clothes to look. The blood from the bandaged wound had completely stopped. He gently shook his head. As time passed, he felt the pain from the wound less and less. Sometimes he even forgot that he had been seriously injured the night before.
“Do you have any ideas for the battle plan?” Zou Lang asked again.
Based solely on a few video clips, Yu Jingtang didn’t know how strong the monster’s killing power was or how difficult it was to conquer. He said to Zou Lang, “Let’s go and see first. We need to know what it is.”
He did want to see just how powerful and terrifying this ghostly thing was.
After dressing and attaching the walkie-talkie to his waist, Yu Jingtang looked at the hat on one side. The hat was made of pure cloth and didn’t offer any protection. Just as he put the hat aside, Zou Lang picked it up and put it on his head.
“What’s the use of this thing?” Yu Jingtang was puzzled.
“Just wear it, it looks pretty good…” Zou Lang replied.
“Do you judge combat uniforms based on whether they look good or not?” Yu Jingtang was both amused and exasperated.
“That’s also one of the important factors!” Looking at beautiful people always made one feel happy. As Zou Lang spoke, he helped Yu Jingtang tighten his belt, careful not to press on his wound. He sighed, “I was hoping to have some alone time during these nice few days off, but I didn’t expect it to be so full of twists and turns.”
Yu Jingtang was slightly startled, and he lowered his eyes, “Let’s deal with this first.”
The two of them left the room, still carrying their luggage.
Liang Xiao was waiting outside the door. He looked at the things in their hands and said, “You two can go into battle with light packs. Leave your luggage here, and we’ll keep the room for you.”
Yu Jingtang politely declined, “No need, it’s more convenient for us to carry our own things.” The battle hadn’t even started yet, and they were being treated so luxuriously, which made him feel uncomfortable.
Zou Lang echoed, “If we finish successfully, we’ll just leave directly.”
Liang Xiao didn’t insist, and said, “Then I’ll wait for your good news. There’s a car downstairs, someone will take you there and introduce you to the other team members.”
Yu Jingtang and Zou Lang took the elevator downstairs. There was an off-road armored vehicle parked downstairs. A young man was leaning against the door with a cigarette in his mouth, looking at them in their military uniforms with admiration on his face.
The young man saw them coming over and opened a car door, revealing a compartment full of light and heavy equipment. “Brothers, pick some equipment. Take what you like, it’s free.”
Although these things were not as complete as the K Division’s, they were already good for a regular unit.
Yu Jingtang crouched down to look inside the car. He picked up a light machine gun for himself, and also picked one for Zou Lang. Then he took some handy daggers, knives, ropes, and finally packed some ammunition in his bag.
Zou Lang, who had been swinging an axe for two days, was now holding a gun barrel. It was as if a farmer suddenly enjoyed the benefits of modernization. He was so grateful that he felt like crying. He suddenly felt that it was really good to have a gun…
When Yu Jingtang had taken almost everything, he asked the young man, “What’s the current battle situation?”
The young man obviously hadn’t slept well. He yawned with dark circles under his eyes and showed a pair of small tiger teeth. “The centipede digests people every once in a while. Last night, it ate eight people and burrowed into the subway. Now is its digestion and hibernation period.” After saying that, he patted the communicator and said, “Most of the subway’s surveillance has been destroyed by this monster. We have people searching each subway station. When we find it, we’ll send a message. There’s no message yet, so we probably haven’t found it.”
Only then did Yu Jingtang understand. No wonder Deputy Mayor Liang didn’t seem anxious and even gave them time to eat and change clothes. It turned out that there was no use in being anxious.
Both of them had picked their equipment. Yu Jingtang said to the young man, “We’ve taken our stuff.”
“Alright,” the young man made an OK gesture, “Now we’re off!”
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