Everyone was a bit baffled by Lin Xinghaiâs arrangement.
"Brother Lin, are we really just in charge of collecting Elemental Crystals?" Ling Xiu asked, seeking confirmation.
"Mhm, yes. This is the most efficient method, and it will also save a lot more ammunition," Lin Xinghai said, nodding seriously.
Looking at Lin Xinghaiâs serious expression, everyone felt ignored. At the same time, a faint sense of shame washed over them.
They had wanted to follow Lin Xinghai and show off their skills, but if all they were doing was collecting Elemental Crystals, how could they prove their worth?
Of course, speechless as they were, once they calmed down and thought about it, they had to admit there was nothing wrong with his arrangement.
They had seen Lin Xinghaiâs Gun Technique before. When he was unleashing his full firepower, it really didnât feel like their help would make much of a difference.
Especially since the Zombies here in Qingtang Town werenât densely packed, and the number of Zombies gathered in most places was small, Lin Xinghai really could handle them all by himself.
As for the places with a particularly large number of Zombies, they had a Zombie Detector and Ling Xiuâs Thousand-Mile Eye Superpower, which meant they could avoid them completely.
So after exchanging glances, they all nodded in unison and agreed.
Seeing that no one had any objections, Lin Xinghai wasted no time and ordered them to move out.
Huang Nuo took the wheel while the others disembarked with their weapons, ready to collect Elemental Crystals. Lin Xinghai also left his seat and jumped straight onto the roof of the vehicle.
This was undoubtedly the best shooting position. After a moment of observation, Lin Xinghai had Ling Xiu bring him a Silencer, which he then installed on his Tearing Rifle.
Since they werenât using defensive tactics, it was best to avoid the sound of gunfire as much as possible.
ROAR! ROAR! ROAR!
As the vehicle entered the streets of Qingtang Town, the Zombies milling around the houses immediately spotted them. They let out guttural roars and sprinted forward.
Lin Xinghai took a glance. This wave of Zombies numbered as many as thirty-five.
Thirty-five Zombies was a number that even Lin Xinghai had to take seriously. The moment they appeared, he released his Perception Power.
It was worth noting that over the past half-day, the range of his projected Perception Power had already reached a 150-meter diameter.
If this wave of Zombies was enough to make Lin Xinghai pay attention, then Ling Xiu and the others were downright terrified.
Thirty-five Zombies. If their previous team had encountered a group this size without having set up defensive positions, they would have fled in their vehicle without a second thought.
Whatâs more, Ling Xiu saw that among the thirty-five Zombies, there was even an Intermediate Zombie.
He subconsciously tightened his grip on his firearm. It wasnât just him; Zhang Meiling and Yao Cheng did almost the exact same thing.
It wasnât that they didnât trust Lin Xinghai; it was just an instinctive reaction to danger.
However, they soon discovered their worries were for nothing.
PFFT! PFFT! PFFT!
The Zombies were still 150 meters away when Lin Xinghai pulled the trigger. The faint sound of gunfire rang out continuously. One by one, bloody holes appeared in the heads of the sprinting Zombies, and they dropped dead to the ground.
Not even the Intermediate Zombie managed to get within fifty meters of them.
Although Ling Xiu and the others never doubted Lin Xinghaiâs ability to handle the thirty-five Zombies, they never expected him to do it so effortlessly. The Zombies couldnât even get within fifty meters.
Honestly, it was a little ridiculous.
After all, most Mercenaries only started shooting once the Zombies were within fifty meters.
But Lin Xinghai had pushed that range all the way out to 150 metersâa distance they wouldnât have even dared to dream of.
The Tearing Rifleâs effective range might be 300 meters, but the farther the target, the more time a Zombie has to react and the more room it has to dodge. The increase in difficulty was by no means small.
But Lin Xinghai had actually done it, and so naturally and effortlessly at that. More importantly, his accuracy was 100%.
Lin Xinghai himself was also quite satisfied with this outcome. The results of this little test run of his Intermediate Shooting Skill were even better than he had imagined.
âUsing Perception Power to locate and predict the Zombiesâ movements before shooting... it really couldnât be any easier.â
Once the shock wore off, everyone sprang into action, collecting the Elemental Crystals as Lin Xinghai had instructed.
As for Lin Xinghai, he followed behind at a leisurely pace. Once the others had retrieved an Elemental Crystal, he would walk over, touch the corpse, and absorb all of its Blood Qi Power.
"This feels great!" Lin Xinghai couldnât help but sigh in satisfaction as he watched the Blood Qi Power on his system panel skyrocket.
âI should even consider coming out on my own more often to make some extra money like this.â
âOf course, just to make extra money. I donât have any thoughts of going solo just yet.â
âFor one, the people in the Heaven-Sundering Mercenary Corps have been good to me, and Iâm not the type to repay kindness with ingratitude.â
âSecond, Iâm not strong enough yet. There are still things I need to rely on the Heaven-Sundering Mercenary Corps for.â
After that, the group continued to advance, steamrolling any Zombies they encountered.
At first, Ling Xiu and the others had felt a little resentful about only collecting Elemental Crystals, but now, all they felt was... âThis is awesome!â
How could it not be? Elemental Crystals were money!
When there was free money on the ground for them to pick up, how could it not be awesome?
As for Lin Xinghai, when he wasnât busy killing Zombies, he continued to probe the limits of his system.
When another Intermediate Zombie appeared in the third wave, Lin Xinghai let it live and engaged it in close combat, using the same technique as before.
Under normal circumstances, an Intermediate Zombieâs physical attributes were in no way inferior to Lin Xinghaiâs. However, the biggest difference between Mercenaries and Zombies was that Mercenaries had weapons.
Moreover, compared to other Mercenaries, Lin Xinghai had also mastered the Phantom Body Technique and a special application of his Perception Power.
Perception Power was also a massive advantage in close combat. For someone like Lin Xinghai, who had mastered a special method for it, he could clearly perceive his enemyâs every move, allowing him to completely anticipate their actions.
Therefore, from the perspective of Ling Xiu and the others, Lin Xinghai still looked completely at ease as he chopped off the Zombieâs arms and pinned it to the ground.
"Ding! Detected Blood Qi Power. Absorb?"
As Lin Xinghai selected "Yes," the progress bar appeared again. Just as heâd expected, the time it took to fill was longer, taking a full minute.
âJust as I thought. The more powerful the Zombie, the longer it takes to absorb the Blood Qi Power from its body,â Lin Xinghai sighed softly.
This time, however, he noticed something new: as he continuously absorbed the Zombieâs Blood Qi Power, the Zombie grew progressively weaker until it finally died.
âThatâs something I could exploit, but the time it takes is just too long,â Lin Xinghai sighed again.
âThis Intermediate Zombie took one minute. A High Level Zombie would probably take around two.â
âIf it were a Mutated Zombie, draining its Blood Qi Power would take at least... twenty minutes, maybe even half an hour.â
âIf I want to use this system ability in actual combat, Iâll need specific conditions, or someone to coordinate with.â
âFor example, I could have Shen Han use his Celestial Frost Superpower to freeze an enemy first, then I could go up and drain its Blood Qi Power.â
âBut no matter how you look at it, the excessive time is a critical weakness.â
âOf course, if I change my perspective and think of this Blood Qi Power absorption as a way to weaken enemies instead of killing them outright, its applications might be much broader.â