The Absolute Favorite in the Apocalyptic Rebirth

The zombie goat didn't give them a moment to breathe, charging again. Its two horns slammed into the mud wall, easily piercing a hole through it.

Lou Yan was still inside; they couldn't let the goat in and hurt her.

Standing on higher ground, Lou Ling directed her Evergreen Ivy to protect the house. Assessing the situation, she saw Lou Dian was dealing with the strangely ghost-like zombie cat and couldn't be distracted. The rest were engaged with the zombie goat.

Lou Ling jumped down, summoning her Iron Wire Vine. She used it to obstruct the goat, creating obstacles and hindering its movements. However, the zombie goat's level was extremely high; even the mutated vines struggled to restrain it, unable to match its speed.

"Protect yourselves! Don't let it hurt you!" Qiu Rong shouted sharply, her hands moving constantly. Blasts of flame shot out, but the goat's speed meant only a few connected.

For the first time, Lou Ling felt a sense of helplessness. Her ability level was too low for close combat. She could only control the mutated vines to hinder the goat as much as possible, but that was all. Thanks to the vines, the others were spared from direct confrontation with the goat, which would have been fatal.

"Ling Jie!"

Hearing a voice, Lou Ling turned to see Lou Yan running out of the house. She held a strangely shaped gun. "Ling Jie," she said, "this zombie goat is too fast. I can't get a clear shot, and I'm afraid of hitting someone. Can you use your vines to hold it still?"

Remembering the machinery Lou Yan tinkered with in her private base, Lou Ling quickly agreed, despite her confusion. She watched Lou Yan quickly assemble the gun, which looked different from the ones she was used to. But there was no time to ponder; Lou Yan had already found a suitable spot, crouching down to track the goat.

Ignoring her energy consumption, Lou Ling channeled more power into the vines, making them thicker and stronger, directing them to entangle the goat's limbs. The high-level goat possessed immense strength, snapping the vines. But the few seconds of restraint were enough for Lou Yan.

Bang!

A bullet exploded one of the zombie goat's eyes. With another shot, the other eye burst, spraying black blood. The goat became even more frenzied, ignoring the others and charging directly at Lou Ling and Lou Yan.

Lou Ling had already grabbed Lou Yan and jumped away, pulling her to safety and directing the Iron Wire Vine to restrain the goat.

With a snap, the Iron Wire Vine was broken. Lou Ling used a nearby mound of dirt to jump onto the roof. The zombie goat charged, its horns smashing through the entire mud house, forcing them to jump again.

A wall of earth rose before them, trapping the goat, but it was useless. The wall crumbled in seconds. Various abilities bombarded the goat, further enraging it.

"Xiao Yan, shoot its head!" Qiu Rong yelled.

Lou Ling quickly provided cover. Lou Yan aimed again, firing several shots. Unfortunately, they only left dents in the goat's head, not harming it at all. It was now clear that the goat's level was too high; even Lou Yan's specially crafted bullets couldn't penetrate it. A sense of helplessness descended. They could only continue depleting their abilities. Once their energy was gone, they would be at the goat's mercy.

Just as their energy reserves were nearly exhausted, cuts appeared on the goat's skin, oozing more black blood.

Lou Ling's sharp eyes spotted Lou Dian, who had lured the zombie cat away, returning. Relief washed over her.

Lou Dian's fingers flickered. Under the cover of night, even the most keen-eyed ability users couldn't see his moves. More wounds appeared on the goat, concentrated around its neck.

The wall erected by the ability users collapsed. With incredible speed, Lou Dian approached, his Tang Dao slicing along the wounds on the goat's neck. Quickly, he severed the head. The body twitched twice before crashing to the ground. Only the head, containing the crystal core, continued to snap its jaws, as if trying to bite something.

Lou Dian shot a spatial blade into the head, creating an opening to extract a lychee-sized crystal core with his Tang Dao.

Without the core, the zombie goat finally died.

The scene was a mess, the house in ruins. Everyone's energy was depleted. Qiu Rong, Zhao Wen, and a few male ability users remained standing, vigilantly scanning their surroundings for other hidden zombie animals.

Lou Dian tossed the crystal core into a plastic bag and then into his spatial storage. He then went to help Lou Ling, who nearly collapsed, her face covered in sweat and dirt.

"There are no more zombie animals. Let's find a house to rest," Lou Dian said.

Hearing this, Qiu Rong and the others relaxed, collapsing to the ground. They sat for several minutes to recover.

After drinking water and resting briefly, they cleaned up a nearby mud house for shelter.

Lou Dian retrieved a solar lamp from his spatial storage and placed it in the window for illumination. He then pulled Lou Ling aside to examine her injuries. A bruise on her shoulder darkened his expression.

"It's nothing. It'll be gone in a couple of days," Lou Ling said dismissively. But when Lou Dian applied medicinal alcohol to the bruise, she winced.

Lou Ling's continuous cries of pain made the others laugh.

"What are you yelling about? Rubbing it now will save you pain tomorrow!" Lou Dian scolded with a smile, knowing her cries were meant to distract him. Thinking this, he lightened his touch.

"It hurts! Yelling is a way to vent!" Lou Ling argued.

After gently tending to her bruise, Lou Dian brought water for her to clean herself. Covered in sweat and dirt, she was filthy. He wanted her clean and refreshed.

The other room was quickly tidied. Everyone was exhausted and injured. Lou Yan, who had the lightest injuries, volunteered to guard the door while the others treated their wounds. Fortunately, most were bruises and scrapes. Even the scratches from the zombie goat weren't a concern for infection as long as they weren't too deep.

Qiu Rong, whose arm had been grazed by the goat's horn, let Zhao Wen bandage it while glancing towards Lou Dian. In fact, not just her, but others also stole glances at him. If it weren't for him, they might all have perished.

Although Lou Zhan had told her about Lou Dian's exceptional abilities, Qiu Rong hadn't grasped the extent of his power until tonight. His ability level was definitely above everyone else's, though the exact level was hard to gauge. They couldn't even see his attacks, nor understand how he managed to wound the zombie goat, making its eventual kill possible. He was simply too powerful.

After tending to their own injuries, Qiu Rong checked on the others. Relieved to find nothing serious that would hinder tomorrow's mission, she said, "You all sleep first. A-Wen, Xiao Yan, and I will keep watch. We'll switch at 3 AM."

Everyone agreed.

Having recovered, Lou Ling, once her ability replenished, cultivated a mutated vine and placed it in the corner to help keep watch.

Seeing this, everyone remembered the usefulness of the mutated vines. Without them delaying the zombie goat, they wouldn't have been able to react to its movements. Close contact would have resulted in severe injuries. Having the vines on guard provided extra security; they could alert Lou Ling to anything approaching. Though her ability level was low, the vines made her a formidable force.

Inside the house, Lou Dian took out a double sleeping bag from his spatial storage and unashamedly pulled Lou Ling inside with him. Seeing their intimacy, the others understood their relationship and remained silent.

The night had been too harrowing. Soon, everyone fell asleep.

Taking turns keeping watch, everyone managed to sleep for six hours before dawn broke.

While it was still cool, they all got up, ate some dry rations and drank water, and set off.

The ability users, with their enhanced physiques, had recovered considerably overnight. Even Qiu Rong's arm had stopped bleeding and would heal in a few days.

In the car, Lou Ling remembered the crystal cores from the zombie animals and asked Lou Dian to see them. He retrieved the cleaned cores from his spatial storage. The larger one, from the goat, was diamond-like and beautiful. The smaller one, from the cat, was equally stunning, shimmering with rainbow hues in the sunlight.

Lou Yan, curious, also examined them. Not being an ability user, she couldn't sense the energy within. However, when Qiu Rong and Zhao Wen held them, they felt the potent energy, almost too much to handle, and quickly returned them to Lou Dian.

No one objected to Lou Dian keeping the cores. After all, he had killed both zombie animals. The cores were two levels higher than their own. Though tempting, absorbing them might cause them to explode. Even if they kept them, they lacked the ability to protect them. It was better for Lou Dian to keep them.

After driving for the morning, they finally reached their destination at noon.

Author's Notes:

Today's goals:

Lou Ling's goal: Strive to become stronger!

Lou Dian's goal: Protect (my) younger sister!

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