Chapter 74: Threats from Within and Without

"What the hell is wrong with you! I just ate a woman, so what? Nowadays women are just..." Zhao Bin exploded in anger the moment he saw Hao Yifei kick open the door. He cursed loudly, thinking it was just Hao Yifei bringing up his fondness for eating meat again. What was so wrong with that? Zhao Bin had heard that in ancient times, even emperors were partial to eating their concubines—one emperor was said to have roasted a concubine’s thigh and handed it out as a reward to his ministers. If emperors did it, why couldn’t he? Yet Zhao Bin was completely oblivious to the real reason behind Hao Yifei’s fury—it had nothing to do with him.

Expressionless, Hao Yifei raised her hand toward Zhao Bin. Ordinarily, with his special abilities, Zhao Bin had nothing to fear. Even firearms were nothing to him. But the moment he saw Hao Yifei’s hand rise, his face changed.

"You crazy woman, you’re really going for it!" Zhao Bin rolled several meters away, cursing as he went. Blood streamed down his arm from a fresh wound. The two women on the sofa hadn’t realized what was happening, but suddenly the sofa split in two, sending them tumbling to the floor. The springs and steel frame inside the sofa were sliced through as if they were tofu, and the floor beneath exploded. This was Hao Yifei’s power—the Wind Blade—formidable and destructive.

"Die, you scum!" Hao Yifei had no interest in wasting words with Zhao Bin. Trash like him had no reason to continue existing in this world. She raised her hand toward him once again. If one looked closely, a ripple could be seen in the air.

"Ah!" the two women shrieked and huddled in a corner, terrified.

"Let’s see you try to kill me!" Zhao Bin was enraged. A grown man, being bullied by a woman—what a joke! With a roar, both his arms gleamed with an inky black light, transforming into iron limbs. Even so, Zhao Bin dared not clash with Hao Yifei head-on.

Just then, a burst of gunfire erupted outside.

"Zombies! Zombies, hundreds of them!"

"They’ve broken through, grab your guns!"

"So many mutants! So many mutants!"

The patrolling guards fired their weapons, their voices trembling with terror.

The gunfire and shouting instantly roused many of the guards who were either relaxing or asleep. Some grabbed their guns and rushed outside; others were so panicked they hadn’t even had time to pull up their pants. No one could understand why a horde of zombies would attack here. This place wasn’t even near the city center—it was on the outskirts. They’d grown complacent because they hadn’t seen large groups of zombies here before.

As people rushed out, they were met with a terrifying sight—hordes of zombies battering the iron fences, unfazed even as electricity crackled through their bodies. They surged forward as if directed by an unseen hand. Gaps were already appearing in several places. Gunshots echoed in the chaos.

"You crazy woman, the zombies are breaking in and you still want to fight me? We’ll all be dead in a minute! I’ll settle this with you later!" Zhao Bin spat out his words, then smashed a window with his iron fist and leaped from the third floor—a drop of more than ten meters.

With a heavy thud, his legs transformed into steel as he landed solidly on the ground, then charged straight toward the zombies.

Hao Yifei chased to the window and looked down, hesitating for just a moment, but did not attack. Zhao Bin was one of the base's vital fighters; if he died, the people in the base would be finished. Yet she knew exactly what kind of people these were—keeping them alive would only bring disaster.

"Hide yourselves," she told the two trembling women.

No matter what, Hao Yifei decided to deal with the zombies first. She then turned and headed downstairs, unaware that a strange man had appeared behind her—Xue Feng!

Before the zombie attack, Xue Feng had been careful not to reveal himself. Any unfamiliar face would have aroused suspicion. But now, with zombies pouring in, no one cared if he was a stranger—so long as he didn’t bite.

Blending into the crowd, Xue Feng fought the zombies alongside the others, wielding a rifle he’d taken from the side of an unfortunate soul who’d just been bitten. The base’s firepower was impressive—nearly everyone was armed. But against a tidal wave of zombies now inside the base, it wasn’t enough. In the darkness, it was impossible to eliminate all the zombies. The military base hadn’t turned on the floodlights—too much of a drain on power, and unnecessary.

This meant that, under attack, they could only defend passively.

Still, Xue Feng kept close to Hao Yifei—he had to ensure her safety. This superstar was powerful and could become a valuable ally. The thought of having a celebrity in his villa was exhilarating.

As he watched the zombie onslaught, the scene felt all too familiar. During the incident at the rubber factory, it was a third-tier mutant that controlled the zombie horde. Clearly, that was a basic ability of third-tier mutants—absolute command over lesser zombies.

This time, in addition to ordinary zombies, several mutants had joined the ranks—making them even harder to guard against.

Xue Feng spotted a mutant crawling on all fours like a hound, its jaws already snapping the necks of over a dozen guards. It was as stealthy and deadly as a hunting dog, until Hao Yifei spotted it and took it down with her powers.

But soon, the third-tier mutant emerged—a grotesque zombie that looked like a spider. Its upper body remained human, but its lower half sprouted six legs, covered in strange patterns, with a grotesquely swollen abdomen concealing unknown horrors. Just a glimpse was enough to make one feel physically ill.

Two ability users, apparently unaware of the mutant’s true power, mistook it for an ordinary variant and charged together. One’s ability allowed him to transform into a humanoid zebra, while the other could summon a combat doppelgänger, controlling it from afar. Clearly, these two were used to working as a team—the doppelgänger would draw the zombies’ attention and attacks, giving the zebra-man a chance to strike with his incredible speed. Usually, no mutant could withstand their combined assault.

But this time they met their match.

As they attacked, the third-tier mutant suddenly opened its mouth and spat out two silken threads. In an instant, the zebra-man and his companion were wrapped in white silk, which was not only adhesive but also laced with poison. They struggled briefly, then fell limp, unable to move.

The third-tier mutant’s eyes gleamed with hunger as it quickly reeled in the silken strands and, without hesitation, crushed their skulls in its jaws.