Chapter 301: The Hole-Digging Pro Is Here

"That's right!" Zhang Su, hearing Zheng Xinyu mention Dr. Fu, swiftly scanned the surroundings for a path into the pit. He called out loudly: "Bozi, Xiao Shuai, Wang Xin—let's haul that corpse up together. I think it's worth studying."

Pan Guoliang's eyes widened like copper bells. So it wasn't just the fringe team—Tianma Yu had a similar group of scientific freaks too?

"Got it! I'll get the plastic wrap!" Wang Xin said, sprinting toward the vehicle.

Whether the half-human, half-zombie thing was contagious was still uncertain, but its bloody body was definitely hard to move—wrapping it in plastic would make handling easier.

"Hey!" "Watch your step! Put your hat on!" Zheng Xinyu called out as Zhang Su and the others began descending into the pit.

Zhang Su gripped a broken wall with one hand, pulled a hat from his pocket, and put it on. The situation below was unknown—he needed to be extra careful.

"Uh... Miss, I noticed everyone's wearing these stylish hats—is this your team's symbol? What spirit does it represent?"

Pan Guoliang had already noticed this odd phenomenon: everyone on Tianma Yu wore a fisherman's hat. It was freezing cold—why not wear a fur-lined cap or a military cotton hat? Those would be far better than these ragged caps.

Zheng Xinyu pinched the brim of her hat, lips curling slightly as she smiled: "Exactly. It's our symbol—representing 'Unkillable!'"

"Then how does it compare to Zero-Zero-Three, Brother Su?" Qi Xiaoshuai asked.

Pan Guoliang's face stiffened; he forced a nervous laugh: "Cool. Unkillable. Good."

"This lab's completely fucked. Fuck."

"Brother Su, if it fought Zero-Zero-Four, who'd win?" Lu Yubo, bold as ever, stepped close to the blood-red corpse and lightly nudged its foot with his toe.

Zhang Su had no firm answer and shook his head, unwilling to dwell on it.

Countless finger marks gouged into the concrete walls around them—left by Li Zhaohua as he dodged rifle fire. With that strength and bone hardness, killing Zero-Zero-Three wouldn't be hard.

In contrast, Zero-Zero-Three, though immensely strong, was far too slow—he probably couldn't even touch Li Zhaohua in a fight.

Zhang Su shrugged, expression resigned: "The easiest to control is also the weakest. Zero-Zero-Three wouldn't stand a chance against it."

Lu Yubo turned to look at the collapsed corridor opposite the lab. Though dark, the wreckage was still clearly visible.

"In combat power, I think it's got a shot. Look—earlier, that stone slab weighed at least four or five hundred jin, and it hurled it five or six meters high. That strength is beyond human. But it has one fatal weakness."

"It doesn't look human at all—does it even have a mind?"

According to the game's logic, its stats were all misallocated.

"I think it's just got a heartbeat. Can it even be called human?"

Five meters was nothing to Zhang Su and the others—they landed in the pit quickly.

Zheng Xinyu knew he didn't understand, but didn't bother explaining. Her gaze returned to Zhang Su and the others.

Zhang Su's eyes scanned the blood-red corpse intently. Its entire muscular structure glowed faintly, like jade. If you looked at just a small patch, you might mistake it for a precious gem!

Opinions varied on whether Li Zhaohua still retained human will.

Compared to true killing machines, human emotion was a useless obstacle.

Before anyone could ask, he added: "It's still human—it has human emotions. In fights against zombies, cowardice and fear put it at a disadvantage."

"Maybe some fragments of thought remain?"

"Yeah, pity. Probably not worth exploring anymore."

Zhang Su sighed and shook his head. The fringe team's research findings had vanished.

"S... save... me..."

Just as Zhang Su pulled out his cigarette pack, he heard a faint cry for help—his hand froze, the cigarette slipping from his fingers and falling onto the rubble.

"Brother Su?"

Lu Yubo noticed Zhang Su's odd reaction, his heart tightening. Whenever Zhang Su wore that expression, something was about to happen—that was his hard-won experience from following him this far.

"Shh!"

Zhang Su swiftly signaled silence, then crouched low and peered through the partially collapsed corridor toward the lab.

Lu Yubo and Qi Xiaoshuai both quieted their movements, their unease deepening. What hidden secrets still lurked in this bizarre lab?

"S... save me..."

Another voice, weaker than before—this time unmistakable: it came from the lab!

"Someone's alive! Someone's calling for help!"

Zhang Su's face lit up with hope—perhaps some researchers were still alive.

Qi Xiaoshuai and Lu Yubo shrugged. They hadn't heard a thing. Standing aside, they felt awkward—was Brother Su so desperate to find researchers that he'd started hallucinating?

"Here! Plastic wrap's here!"

Just then, Wang Xin returned with the plastic wrap, ready to climb down—when Lu Yubo signaled him to be quiet.

"Hey! You in there—how are you? Can you move?"

Zhang Su shouted through the narrow corridor.

"C... can't... move," came the faint voice from within, like two people whispering. He probably didn't even care if they heard—it was beyond his capacity to care.

"Who are you? What's your job?"

Zhang Su didn't care that the voice was barely audible—he pressed on. If it was a researcher, he'd try to save them. If it was just some nobody, he'd let it go.

"Xie... Yan... Shan..."

Four words. The voice took two breaths to say them—clearly, he was barely holding on.

Zhang Su turned upward: "Does the research department have anyone named Xie Nianshan?"

Even with Zhang Su's hearing, he hadn't caught the middle character clearly...

"Yes!" Pan Guoliang hurried to answer: "Not Xie Nianshan—Xie Yanshan. He's the deputy leader of the fringe team. This guy's a beast—his research skills rival Li Zhaohua's!"

"Really?"

Zhang Su's heart stirred. Though he'd never climbed the bureaucratic ladder, he understood the dynamics of first and second in command. He crouched low again, peering into the narrow corridor.

"How bad are your injuries? Can you move?"

"N..."

After about four or five seconds, a faint voice emerged from the field of view—Zhang Su could tell the man had expended tremendous effort just to utter that one syllable. He was on the brink.

Whether the zombie's thalamus could save him was unknown—but they had to try. Zhang Su stared into the rubble. If the man could move even a little, tossing the thalamus in would be easy. But now...

"Da Kun!"

The only option was to get the thalamus inside. Zhang Su looked up for Pang Dakun.

"Here, here, Uncle—I'm here!"

Pang Dakun dropped into the pit in two quick leaps, his agility leaving everyone silently impressed.

"What's up?"

"This tunnel—I think only your build can fit through. Think you can make it?"

Zhang Su pointed at the corridor, not pressuring him—he left the decision to Pang Dakun.

Pang Dakun crouched, brushed aside rubble with his hands, and without any bravado, carefully opened his palms to measure the gap.

"Yeah, Uncle—I can squeeze through. You want me to pull the guy out?"

Pull him out...

Zhang Su's lips twitched. You think he's a pile of shit you can just yank out? He could barely move!

He reached into his inner pocket and pulled out a walnut-sized object, handing it to Pang Dakun—the largest piece of zombie thalamus he'd ever used, nearly a third of the whole!

"Go in, shove this into his mouth, then get out—no delays, no hesitation."

Pang Dakun didn't take the thalamus right away. He swiftly shed his down jacket, tucked the thalamus into his tactical belt, and nodded firmly: "Leave it to me."

Young as he was, he radiated seriousness and reliability.

After replying to Zhang Su, Pang Dakun turned and slipped into the collapsed tunnel—not like others, who crawled headfirst. He went in feet-first, head backward, lying flat.

"Fuck, what kind of pose is that?"

Lu Yubo, watching Pang Dakun slither into the rubble like a water snake, couldn't help but complain.

"Pose doesn't matter—man, Xiao Pang is seriously agile!"

Qi Xiaoshuai had always thought he was nimble—but seeing Pang Dakun's skill, he realized he had a long way to go. Just this tunnel-crawling technique alone was worth learning for ages.

(End of Chapter)