Apocalypse: Launching a Counterattack Against the Villainess

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"Hmph, did you say the same thing to Rinne and the others?"

Just then, Nie Qingyun finished examining Ling Yuan and Ellie, and skipped over this dangerous topic, looking upstairs and saying:

"Let's go, I bet those guys upstairs are getting impatient."

Chapter 236: There's a master! Let's retreat!

The explosion was so powerful that within minutes it alerted almost all the zombies on the upper and lower floors, causing them to rush towards the source of the sound.

The only good news was that Nie Qingyun reacted quickly enough to use his shield to suppress the fragmentation grenade, thus preventing structural damage to the staircase.

Thanks to this, the path for zombies to reach this place will also become unobstructed. Moreover, having been thoroughly alarmed, they are completely different from their previous state. With a clear goal and destination, they will no longer wander slowly as before, but will become very fast. Some zombies with relatively intact limbs will even run like humans.

In this state, they were quite troublesome for Nie Qingyun and his companions. If they were not careful while dodging, they would be caught in a battle if they made any rash moves.

Furthermore, this condition will spread rapidly among zombies, making them targets for all of them.

Left with no other choice, Nie Qingyun had to let his senior lead the way, while he and Cheng Yuqiu followed behind, trying to avoid direct contact with the zombies.

Naturally, Lingyuan Ellie, still in the throes of "Blood Frenzy," didn't know what it meant to show mercy or know when to stop, and the scene became extremely bloody.

The zombies that ran down from upstairs were dismembered by invisible wind blades just a few meters away before they even made contact with the group, and the surrounding walls were covered with a curtain of purplish-black blood.

Human tissues, whose shapes were no longer recognizable, were scattered everywhere. Cheng Yuqiu eventually had to put away his short sword and walk while pinching his nose to suppress the churning in his stomach and prevent himself from vomiting.

Having already climbed two floors, and with just one more floor to reach their destination, the girl suddenly touched Nie Qingyun's lower back with her shield. After he turned his head slightly, she said with some concern:

"Um, should we take a different route?"

"Change route?"

Seeing Nie Qingyun frown, Cheng Yuqiu quickly explained:

"The enemy is cunning; we just fell into a trap... and there might be more traps ahead, so why don't we take a different route?"

Upon hearing this, Nie Qingyun raised an eyebrow. It was rare for the young lady to consider such things during a battle; for someone with such a pure and innocent personality, this was already a significant improvement. However, there was no time to take a detour now.

The explosion could be heard across the street. Unless those guys hiding upstairs are deaf, they would probably have already taken action by now.

“There’s no need to take a detour,” Nie Qingyun explained, shoving aside a half-corpse flying towards him.

"Judging from the way the enemy deployed them, these booby traps are more useful for early warning than for killing the enemy."

“And…” Nie Qingyun said, tilting his chin upwards:

"With so many zombies moving around, if there were other similar traps, they would have been triggered long ago."

"Our opponents shouldn't be foolish enough to do something so futile."

The situation on the scene was quite urgent, so when Nie Qingyun saw Cheng Yuqiu's relieved expression, he didn't continue to explain. In fact, there were many more factors supporting his judgment than just that.

Aside from the classic cases in textbooks, there is another crucial reason.

That's the angle at which the last broadsword trap was set.

Nie Qingyun was able to discover it so quickly not only because of his outstanding knowledge and exceptional observation skills, but also partly because of the dust effect caused by the explosion and the sunlight shining in through the window.

So here's the question: how could someone who knows how to set up such an artful trap deliberately expose the infrared sensor's rays to sunlight in a dark environment?

From this, we can draw another conclusion based on the sun's position: the trap was set before the sun first passed through that window.

In other words, these guys had been lying in ambush here for a long time.

This is the difference between Nie Qingyun and ordinary people; he can always analyze more useful information from various clues.

He uses this as the logical basis for his actions, which is why he rarely does things impulsively on a whim.

In terms of destructive power alone, Lingyuan Ellie in her [Blood Frenzy] state was the most outstanding of the three, single-handedly carving a bloody path through the stairs.

As the three of them stepped over the pile of corpses to reach the seventh floor, two figures rushed out from a door in the corridor.

In an instant, several pairs of eyes met.

The stapler almost immediately identified Cheng Yuqiu, the target of the mission, from the group opposite it, and then its eyes widened.

He never imagined that the girl, who had been a kilometer away just a few minutes ago, would suddenly appear here.

Immediately afterwards, the incredible conclusion about the 'grizzly bear' resurfaced in his mind.

They were truly exposed; they were detected by the other side before they even took any concrete action.

But how is this possible?

Could the other party be a retired observer from some military unit?

The thought flashed through his mind in an instant, and almost subconsciously, he picked up the rifle hanging on his chest and released the safety.

The bearded 'Grizzly' and 'Stapler' acted similarly, raising their guns immediately, but instead of aiming at Cheng Yuqiu, they aimed at Nie Qingyun, whose face clearly showed his unhappiness.

His shock was no less than the former's, because when he first arrived at this office building, he had personally witnessed the 'stapler' setting up a warning trap.

Even a seasoned veteran like him, after triggering such a trap, was not confident that he could escape unscathed.

However, after the explosion, the three people opposite him appeared here completely unharmed.

This is definitely no coincidence!

Unlike the regular PMCs led by Michelle, the 'Grizzlies' are nearing retirement age, which is why they came to Linjiangtai as undercover agents.

For this reason, his own life was far more important than his mission.

Without a moment's hesitation, he pulled the trigger.

At the same time, Nie Qingyun recovered from his brief daze, bent down and stomped the ground, shooting away like a rocket.

"your Highness!"

Upon hearing this, Cheng Yuqiu's spirits lifted. She and Nie Qingyun had developed some tacit understanding, and the moment he rushed out, she summoned the [Holy Contract].

Golden inscriptions gathered into a magic array under Nie Qingyun's feet, and his body suddenly burst into a second acceleration in the air.

The speed was so fast that it almost exceeded the limits of what the naked eye could perceive.

The 'grizzly bear' was terrified at the sight.

He wasn't a novice like 'staple' fresh out of the military; his years of battlefield experience gave him a far more acute sense of crisis than the average person.

If the other party's first reaction to being faced with a gun is not to seek cover but to rush over, it can only mean that the gun did not pose a sufficient threat to them!

"Not good!" In an instant, 'Grizzly Bear' decisively abandoned the idea of ​​firing, grabbed 'Stapler' by the back of his collar, threw him backward, and shouted:

"There's a master! Let's retreat!"

Chapter 237: I am the Train King!

The 'stapler' flew backwards for five or six meters in the air before twisting itself to regain its balance. Its feet slid for several more meters on the ground before finally coming to a stop.

After regaining his footing, he immediately moved the muzzle of his gun forward, but he was still a step too slow.

At this moment, Nie Qingyun had already rushed in front of 'Grizzly', and his powerful punch, which he had been gathering, came crashing down.

The 'grizzly bear' hadn't recovered from its previous throwing motion, and it was too late to dodge.

Even through the air, he could almost feel the immense force contained in the opponent's fist. If that punch landed on him, his old bones would probably be finished today.

At the critical moment, 'Grizzly Bear' gritted his teeth, as if he had made some kind of decision. He pushed off with his feet, causing his still unbalanced body to spin around, and on the way, he slammed his left hand heavily on his right shoulder.

In an instant, the dark green camouflage combat jacket stretched taut and then ripped apart, and his right arm, which was originally of normal size, suddenly became muscular and swollen by more than one size.

Nie Qingyun's pupils shrank upon seeing this, and he secretly marveled at how quickly the other party reacted. Even under such circumstances, he was still able to make an effective counterattack. However, he had anticipated this and did not hold back. Instead, he thrust his fist forward with unstoppable momentum.

"boom!"

With a dull thud, the two fists collided heavily like battering rams, creating ripples in the air. The whistling airwaves instantly blew 'Grizzly's' messy hair back, and even the muscles in his face began to distort.

"How could this be?!"

Grizzly's pupils contracted sharply, his eyes widening. He never expected that the seemingly ordinary straight punch from the young man opposite him would be so powerful, so powerful that even his mechanical prosthetic limb, which had gone into overload mode, could not completely dissipate the force.

"Crack!"

Grizzly's right arm began to rupture, and amidst a screeching sound like various metals being squeezed together, a spurt of blue liquid gushed from the wound on his arm.

Before the look of horror had faded, 'Grizzly's' nearly two-meter-tall, burly body was sent flying backward.

However, the next second, a hand suddenly grabbed his ankle, and his flying body abruptly stopped in mid-air before being slammed heavily to the ground.

"boom!"

Grizzly spat out a mouthful of blood, and then, out of the corner of his eye, he caught a glimpse of an unusual light in the air.

With a flicker of light, a jet-black dagger with flowing patterns appeared in the air.

At the same time, Nie Qingyun released the opponent's ankle, leaned forward, and prepared to catch [King Killer] to give the opponent a final push.

However, his hand failed to grasp the hilt of the knife, and the dagger was struck and spun rapidly upwards.

Nie Qingyun then realized that all the fingers on his right hand were broken and twisted, making it impossible for him to make any movements.

Everything happened in the blink of an eye. Nie Qingyun had used almost all his strength in that punch, and with the acceleration effect provided by the [Blessing of Freedom], the final power was several times greater than usual.

Although he gained a complete advantage in the exchange of blows, he also did not expect that his opponent's punches would be so hard.

As for why we didn't use a knife from the start but instead used fists?

Because you can only obtain the other person's skill information through the [Apocalypse Survival Guide] by touching their body.

If the Kingslayer dagger were drawn from the start, anyone, out of caution regarding weapons, would try their best to avoid it.

In battles between transcendent beings, understanding the enemy's true nature always takes precedence over everything else.

Nie Qingyun quickly adjusted his posture and did not stop moving because he could not use his right hand. Instead, he used his left hand to catch the spinning dagger and then stabbed it downwards with force. The series of movements were smooth and without hesitation.

But Grizzly was clearly no ordinary man. Taking advantage of the moment when Nie Qingyun switched hands to catch the knife, he had already raised his right arm into a blocking stance.

"squeak!"

The blade clashed with the thick arm, sparks flying amidst the ear-piercing clang of metal striking metal.

On the other side, the 'stapler' was so shocked by what it saw that it turned pale.

As a warrior, Grizzly's combat ability is undoubtedly impeccable, and he has always trusted this veteran.

However, this being, who could be described as a weapon in human form, was knocked to the ground before he could even last a single round against his opponent.

This is an opponent that the two of them simply cannot handle!

In an instant, 'Staple' made this judgment, his finger, which was about to pull the trigger, paused. He then turned the gun towards Cheng Yuqiu, who was still standing behind him, and shouted:

"stop!"

stop?

Upon hearing this, Nie Qingyun couldn't help but sneer. Only a fool would stop at a time like this.

It's important to understand that he wasn't a sheltered flower growing up in the peaceful interior; his childhood experiences amidst flying bullets are still vivid in his memory.

Whether it's Nie Qingyun, 'Grizzly', or Michelle who hasn't yet entered the central area of ​​Linjiangtai, people like them can tell each other how they've survived to this day just by looking into each other's eyes.

The moment their eyes met as they stepped onto the stairs, the murderous intent in their gazes declared that there was no room for negotiation in this battle.

Now that Nie Qingyun has obtained the other party's exact information from the system, there is absolutely no reason for him to stop.

As for the subsequent interrogation, it is enough as long as the other party can still speak; it is not necessary for all four limbs to be intact.

Thinking of this, Nie Qingyun roared and suddenly increased the force of his arm.

Grizzly's arm, which was blocking the blade, was instantly forced back to his chest by a tremendous force. In desperation, he could only tilt his head to the side, barely escaping the fate of having his head cut in half.

Seeing that Nie Qingyun refused to stop, the 'stapler' was not one to be merciful either. With a determined look, it aimed at Cheng Yuqiu's head and pulled the trigger.

At this moment, preserving their lives is far more important than the mission, so even if they can't stop Nie Qingyun, they must reduce the opponent's fighting power to the greatest extent possible.

Gunshots rang out suddenly.

The bullet whizzed past Nie Qingyun's ear, and before he could turn around, a series of screams came from behind him.

"Ouch!"

"Ouch, that hurts!"

Cheng Yuqiu covered her forehead with tears in her eyes.

Nie Qingyun already knew that ordinary rifles were not powerful enough to harm the young lady.

According to the information from the [Apocalypse Survival Guide], the burly man with a full beard beneath him has no skills other than his physical attributes have been enhanced.

Moreover, judging from the performance of the two opponents, the one standing at a distance probably doesn't have any skills either, otherwise he definitely wouldn't have waited until now to use them.