The copy has 0 error tolerance, and the last words on the ground are all wrong for me.

Chapter 536 The Indigenous People of This Dimension Who Shouldn't Have Been Recruited

Upon hearing this, Wu Chang and Shan Guang couldn't help but exchange a glance.

Wendia stated that the reason Ain City spiraled out of control stemmed from the massive explosion five days prior, and that two months earlier, Burton Pharmaceuticals had sent a 15-person team into Ain City.

Based on the intelligence they obtained from the Administration Bureau, the first main quest of the "Plague Source" instance requires players to survive in Ein City for sixty days and complete the evacuation in time.

When the two are combined, the timeline matches perfectly.

If nothing unexpected happens, the 15-person team that entered Ain City two months ago is the player who caused the "Plague Source" instance to suddenly go out of control.

Having found the crux of the problem, Wu Chang perked up and pressed for answers:

"What did this squad do in Ain City?"

Wendy's ability to become the leader of the organization was not solely due to her strength. She could tell from Wu Chang's reaction that there was indeed something wrong with that team, so she tried her best to recall their actions and not miss any information.

She said:
"That squad was different from the squads that had entered Ain City before. They were exceptionally well-prepared, not only were they large in number, but they were also very high-profile."

"On the first day of entering Ain City, the members dispersed and visited fifteen different survivor organizations, inviting us to form a survivor alliance to end this plague together."

Wendy gestured with her hand to her eyebrows and said:
"The girl who came to our organization was not very tall. She looked to be only sixteen or seventeen years old. She had baby fat and looked like a little princess who was well protected at home."

“At first we thought she was the child of a Burton executive who came to get a prestigious degree, but she easily took down the three of us with one move.”

As Wendy spoke, three organization leaders gathered around the campfire looked embarrassed.

Clearly, they were the ones Wendia had mentioned who were easily taken down.

The leaders who could gather around the campfire were all of similar strength to Green, who had helped Wu Chang and Flash. They were all rated as level four difficulty by Flash, and each of them alone would be a challenge for Flash.

Despite her chubby cheeks, she could easily take down three people, even in a mere friendly sparring match; such strength is no small feat.

More importantly, Wendia said that the team visited fifteen survivor groups at the same time, and the visitors were definitely arranged in some order of strength.

The fact that the baby-faced girl came to visit the Seventh Doomsday Saw suggests that she might not even rank in the top five of that team.

Based on this calculation, that team's strength is absolutely terrifying, and they are definitely here to break through the dungeon's limitations.

A well-prepared and powerful raiding team was wiped out in the "Plague Source" dungeon, which made Flash's smile even more stiff.

Wu Chang had anticipated the strength of the player team.

Ordinary players, whether they wipe out the entire party or complete the strategy, won't have much impact on the actual dungeon. Only the strongest players can cause such a huge disaster.

He asked and nodded, saying:

"What's your attitude towards their invitation going forward?"

Upon hearing Wu Chang's question, the leaders around the campfire displayed a complex expression—a mixture of shame, regret, and a touch of relief.

Wendia's expression didn't change much. She said:
“I declined their invitation and did not join the Survivors’ Alliance.”

Wu Chang raised an eyebrow slightly and said:
"why?"

Wendy bluntly stated:

"Because we are too weak, and they are too strong, so strong that I feel out of control."

"If we act alongside them, whatever the outcome, we will be powerless to resist and will have no choice but to obey their orders."

Wendia glanced around at the surrounding leaders and said:
"Before the zombie outbreak, I was a member of the Burton Company's Ain division. I know them all too well. These big companies are never benevolent."

"While we still have value to them, we can still negotiate with them and exchange some benefits for them."

"But if, as they say, this team's goal is to end this plague completely, then once we succeed, we will no longer be of any use to those big companies."

Wendia scoffed and shook her head, saying:
"A group of useless people who are not strong enough and have no value, yet they know a lot of secrets, are the most important targets for large companies to eliminate."

"Instead of fantasizing about becoming a senior executive at Burton, it's better to keep your eyes and ears shut, know less, and maybe you'll live longer."

As Wendy spoke, the chiefs around the campfire subconsciously lowered their heads, their faces slightly flushed.

It's clear that they were all taken advantage of by Burton's promises and expressed dissatisfaction with Wendia's assessment.

Wu Chang approves of Wendia's approach. Putting aside whether Burton will purge those in the know, if Doomsday Saw had followed the players, it would probably be out of contact by now.

He continued to ask:
"What else did they do during their two months in Ain City?"

Wendia said:
"They first spent seven days gathering ten survivor groups and leading them to gradually clear out the scattered zombie hordes."

“I learned from acquaintances in other organizations that they captured many zombies and used them as test subjects to test the effects of zombie serum.”

"The experiment lasted for about a month, and their research made considerable progress, so much so that even the leader of the Vengeful Thorns was persuaded to join their survivor alliance."

The thorn of vengeance.

The name sounded familiar. Wu Chang opened the Bureau's intelligence and found that "The Thorn of Vengeance" was the sixth person he had skipped when he chose to contact the survivor organization.

According to intelligence gathered by the Administration, the Vengeful Assassins is a small organization with fewer than thirty members in total.

The Vengeance Sting is an extremist survivor organization, and unlike other organizations, most of its members are not from Ein City.

Many of them were in the early stages of the zombie outbreak. Because their relatives or friends were trapped, they voluntarily entered Ain City and were also locked down. As a result, they could only witness their relatives and friends turning into zombies and dying in front of them.

Other survivors formed an organization in order to survive in Ain City and leave once the zombie plague subsided.

But the Vengeful Thorns are different. Survival is not their greatest obsession. Finding out the truth and finding out who is responsible for the outbreak of the zombie plague is their greatest obsession.

For this reason, according to the Bureau's records, if players contact Vengeance Assassin under the guise of official or large company names, they will most likely be met with a cold reception, and no matter what reward is offered, they will find it difficult to cooperate.

However, if players approach the Vengeful Assassins under the pretext of investigating the truth, they will usually receive their unreserved help.

By refusing to cooperate with government agencies and pharmaceutical companies, the Vengeance Assassins are destined to receive far fewer supplies and resources than other survivor organizations.

With such a small number of people and a lack of supplies, how did they manage to reach the sixth position in the survivor organization?

The answer is simple: because they are strong enough.

In the "Plague Source" instance, although the survivors of Ain City have turned into zombies due to the zombie plague, their bodies are also affected by the plague to varying degrees.

The most obvious change is that many survivors have gained physical strength far exceeding that of ordinary people, with many of them even stronger than zombies.

The degree of enhancement depends on the infected person's basic physique. For example, an athlete who was originally strong and healthy can become a zombie and their combat power far exceeds that of an ordinary zombie.

Secondly, the stronger the obsession or belief of those infected, the stronger the reinforcement they receive from the infection.

Compared to other survivors whose obsession is simply to survive, the members of Vengeance's Sting are far more determined, which makes their individual combat capabilities far superior to those of members of other organizations.

The reason why the player strategy team was so fixated on having Vengeful Assassin join them was because his leader, Valentine, was the strongest survivor in Ein City.

There are three major zombie clusters in Ain City: Ain University, the Center for Disease Control and Prevention, and the Disaster Shelter.

Even the top three survivors had to explore these three areas, but Valentine had ventured into these areas alone more than once in search of his missing family and returned safely.

The high survival rate of players in the "Plague Source" dungeon is largely due to the fact that as long as players can find the clues Valentine wants, he will find a way to appear and save them, no matter how dangerous the situation.

No raiding squad would give up such top-tier combat power.

Besides their terrifying individual combat prowess, the shared goal also makes the Avengers extremely united, with their internal forces working together as one.

In the Doomsday Saw series, the leaders will also question Wendia's actions because her judgments do not align with their own interests.

But in the dagger of vengeance, no one defied Valentine's will.

The fact that Valentine was able to persuade him to cooperate with the team sent by Burton Pharmaceuticals and the team of Vengeance's Thorn is enough to show how much progress the player team has made in the research on the zombie plague in the past month.

Whether from Wendia's perspective or from the perspective of the player team at the time, securing Vengeance's Assassin's participation greatly increased the success rate of this operation.

But Wu Chang's intuition told him that perhaps it was this icing on the cake that caused the plague's source instance to completely spiral out of control.

Based on his experience in clearing dungeons, if it were him, Valentine would most likely trigger his "Perfectionism" talent, bringing him a hidden side quest.

But other players might not be able to resist such an extreme case as Valentine.

Wu Chang shifted his attention away from the intelligence. Troublemaker No. 1 player team and Troublemaker No. 2 Valentine were already in place. He could already imagine the reason for the loss of control in the Plague Source dungeon. In the end, all he needed to do was fill in the details and take down the final zombie king.

He said:
"What did the Vengeful Assassins do after joining the Survivors' Alliance?"

Wendy recalled:

"They first stormed Eindhoven University, moved a lot of special equipment, then wiped out the zombie horde at the CDC, and went inside to do something we don't know." "All I know is that for a long time, the Survivors' Alliance's manpower was holed up in the CDC and didn't take any further action."

"By the time they take action again, it will be time for the massive explosion in Al Ain."

Wu Chang nodded and said:
"In other words, to find out what they did, you need to go to the CDC first."

Having learned the information he wanted from Wendia, he immediately told Flash to get up and prepare to leave.

"Miss Wendia, thank you for the information. Leave the rest to us."

Seeing Wu Changhe and Shan Guang preparing to leave, Wendy reached out and called out:

"and many more!"

Wu Chang asked in confusion:
"Have you remembered any intelligence this time?"

Wendia said:
“I will act with you. This operation may be the last chance for Ain City. I am not at ease entrusting this matter to just two outsiders like you.”

Wu Chang looked at the chainsaw next to Wendy with a troubled expression and said:
"Our city sent us because we are skilled in stealth and can avoid the zombies' senses."

“Miss Wendia, you are indeed powerful enough, but your power is too conspicuous and cannot be used to our stealth operations.”

Wendy said confidently:

“I have my own methods, you don’t need to worry about them, and I’m not seeking your opinions, I’m just giving you a notification.”

Wu Chang looked around. As soon as Wendy said this, the survivors around him stood up, their eyes showing a threatening look.

He shrugged and extended his hand to Wendia, saying:
"If you had said so earlier, I would have agreed from the start. Welcome to our investigation team."

Wendia clapped Wu Chang's hand as if giving him a high five, and said:

“Come with me, I know a shortcut to the CDC.”

Wu Chang and Flash followed Wendia into a modified off-road vehicle. To deal with zombies, the vehicle was fitted with a lot of protective plates and weapons, making it look like a mobile fortress.

Wu Chang sat in the passenger seat, and Shan Guang sat in the back. Under Wendy's driving, the car did not leave the underground parking lot, but instead went deeper underground.

The Doomsday Electric Saw dug a roadway underground, leading directly to the Ain Metro.

The survivors had previously sealed off the surrounding subway stations, and the remaining zombies underground had been mostly cleared away.

They traveled along the subway line with exceptionally smooth progress, and even when they encountered one or two zombies, they could simply run them over as if they were speed bumps.

Wendy brought everyone to the CDC station in just twenty minutes.

"We've arrived at the station, get off now."

Wendia first removed the huge chainsaw from the roof of the vehicle, then went to the trunk and opened a sealed metal box.

As soon as the box was opened, they smelled a pungent stench.

It's like putting a piece of spoiled meat in the sun to dry until it rots, then soaking it in blood and burying it in a swamp to ferment for a month.

Wendia pulled a thin vest from the viscous, foul-smelling liquid and put it on.

This is her method of hiding herself, a classic scene from zombie movies: as long as you use the smell of a zombie to cover your own smell, you won't be discovered by zombies.

Wendia reached into the box and pulled out another vest, saying:

"I brought extras, do you need them?"

Wu Chang and Shan Guang both took a step back and shook their heads violently.

Wearing that thing would make you feel unclean.

Wendia pursed her lips and put the vest back in the box.

She carried a chainsaw into the subway station, smashed the thick iron chain lock that secured the gate, and said:
"Keep up, the CDC is just up there."

Wendy's method, though crude, was very effective, even more so than Flash's stealth technique.

While they were moving around inside the subway station, Flash got too close to the zombies several times and almost got spotted.

Wendia was mistaken for one of their own by the zombies. When a zombie blocked her way, she simply kicked it away without provoking any attack from it.

They returned to the surface from the subway station, and just over 100 meters away was the Al Ain City Center for Disease Control and Prevention.

During the Survivors Alliance's operation, they cleared the zombies around the CDC, but as the instance went out of control, the area was once again overrun by zombies.

Not only are there ordinary zombies here, but Wu Chang's intuition also reminded him that there are special zombies here that are no less formidable than those attacking the city walls, and there is more than one of them.

Seeing Wendy about to enter the CDC with a chainsaw, he grabbed her shoulder and said:
"I'll go ahead."

Wendy asked in confusion:

"you?"

Wu Chang said:

“It’s not safe here. I can sense that something troublesome is left inside.”

"I can only use my ability to deal with the zombie king once, and I can't waste it here, so we must be careful and avoid those things."

After a moment's hesitation, Wendy decided to trust Wu Chang and came up behind him with the chainsaw.

They first found a map of the CDC in the lobby, then headed straight to the central laboratory to investigate what the player squad and the survivor alliance had been doing there.

As they delve deeper into the CDC, Wendy and Flash discover what Wu Chang meant by "troublesome stuff."

Under Wu Chang's command, they moved carefully, and just as they were about to disappear around the corner, they saw a tall, dark figure with his head touching the ceiling, dressed in a priest's robe.

If they were even two seconds faster, they would have been spotted by the other side.

Based on the traces left by the other party, Wendy almost cried out in surprise and quickly covered her mouth.

She pointed to the slight indentations on the ground.

"It's Karen, the leader of the Holy Mother's Mercy. After the zombie plague broke out, he carried a cross that had been taken down from the church as a weapon. Wherever he went, he left such dents."

“Before Karen turned into a zombie, his combat strength was no less than mine. After he turned into a zombie, even if we all joined forces, we might not be his match.”

The Merciful One is ranked fourth among the survivors.

The leader of the organization, once favored by the Virgin Mary, has now become a zombie, and the fate of his organization is self-evident.

Wendy said with lingering fear:

"How did you find him?"

Wu Chang shrugged and said:
"intuition."

With his current inspiration, the special zombies lurking in the CDC and the firelight in the ordinary darkness had nowhere to hide.

In his perception, there were three special zombies, each wandering in a different area on the three floors.

He didn't intend to clash with them, since they didn't drop equipment, nor did they offer experience rewards like the Erosion Dungeon in Wanghai City due to the large level difference.

He intended to let them off the hook, but some of them refused.

As the three of them bypassed Karen and entered the basement of the CDC, the zombies roaming there targeted them.

The zombies on the underground level seemed to have had their senses greatly enhanced, and they discovered one of them.

Wu Chang led the three of them around several times, but not only did they fail to shake off their opponent, they also realized that the opponent was constantly approaching them.

Seeing that the other party was ungrateful, he could only reach out to stop Wendia and Flashy Flash's actions and say:

"Wait, there's a special zombie wandering around not far ahead. It has a large range of activity. Let it leave first before we continue."

Wendia and Flash had already witnessed Wu Chang's intuition, so of course they wouldn't object now. They held their breath and waited carefully for Wu Chang's instructions.

Taking advantage of this opportunity, Wu Changze used the Heavenly Gang Escape Technique, leaving a starlight afterimage in place, and his main body entered stealth mode, heading straight for the special zombie.

You like blocking the road to find someone, huh? Well then, he'll just walk right up to them and see what's going on.

(End of this chapter)