The crowd, after a moment of silence, erupted in thunderous applause.
"The Commander is too amazing!"
"Long live the Commander!"
"The Commander is the best in the world!"
"Commander!"
"Commander!"
"Commander!"
Finally, everyone chanted "Commander!" with unified, fervent enthusiasm.
They had every reason to be excited. With their Commander being so formidable, their chances of survival as members of the 007 Corps would undoubtedly be greater, and their future brighter.
Qin Shilei raised his right hand, signaling for quiet. The crowd instantly fell silent.
"Let's not talk about being the best in the world; it only invites jealousy."
"In this terrible apocalypse, I wish to survive, and to survive well."
"To survive, we must become stronger."
"And the crystal cores within the zombies' heads are the capital for our strength."
"Are you willing to follow me to kill those damn zombies and extract all their crystal cores?"
A fervent response immediately came from the crowd:
"We are willing!"
"We are willing!"
"We are willing!"
Qin Shilei raised his hand again, silencing them.
"I possess a military flag. Within a hundred-meter radius, it can not only increase allied strength by ten percent but also weaken enemy attributes."
"Those who perform well, I will permit them to enjoy the augmentation of the military flag."
The crowd's gazes immediately fixed intently on the red military flag held in Qin Shilei's left hand.
Before, it was just shouting slogans; now, it was about tangible benefits. As long as they could earn Qin Shilei's approval and enjoy the halo of the military flag, killing zombies would become much easier. Killing zombies more easily meant more crystal cores for evolution, leading to faster strength growth. This would create a virtuous cycle, making them increasingly powerful.
Qin Shilei paused before continuing, "I will not send you to your deaths, and I hope you will not drag us down and put us in peril."
"To better coordinate our zombie-slaying efforts, I will now select thirteen company commanders."
Subsequently, Qin Shilei spent two hours selecting thirteen company commanders. The entire corps was divided into thirteen companies, each with over ninety members. Those chosen as commanders were mostly individuals who had stepped forward to challenge Qin Shilei earlier, largely leaders and heads of various small gangs.
Qin Shilei had also considered breaking up the existing small teams within the corps but found it impractical and abandoned the idea. Zhang Cheng and his wife were called back to lead a company themselves. Zhang Xiaoli was appointed as the deputy commander of the 007 Corps.
After completing these arrangements, Qin Shilei went to check on An Qian. By then, An Qian had also finished organizing her troops. After she displayed some of her strength, she had gained the recognition of most of her corps. The 018 Corps also consisted of over twelve hundred members, divided into thirteen companies. Zhang Qiang, Xie Haimei, and He Kaige each led one company.
An Qian, her face slightly flushed and somewhat excited, asked, "Qin Shilei, are we setting out to kill zombies now?"
Qin Shilei smiled and replied, "That's right, my esteemed Commander."
An Qian rolled her eyes at Qin Shilei and playfully retorted, "Then let's go, my dear Commander."
Immediately, nearly five thousand people from the two corps, a formidable force, crossed the Luyang Bridge and arrived at the guard post area assigned to them by the military.
"Each company, under the leadership of its commander, will choose a location for sweeping operations."
"If you encounter an enemy you cannot defeat, contact me via radio."
The walkie-talkies were found in an electronics market, and Qin Shilei had equipped each captain with one. Upon hearing the instructions, the company commanders each led their teams and ventured into the streets.
Qin Shilei, accompanied by his adjutant Mu Ziping, arrived at the base of an office building. Following his usual routine, he found a high vantage point, tied his fishing rod, and hung the zombie king's meat. Then, he retreated to a distance, drawing his short bow, and stood on guard.
Before long, a continuous stream of zombies poured out of the office building, leaping and flailing their arms madly beneath the zombie king's meat.
"Swish, swish, swish!"
Qin Shilei, with his bow, unleashed a volley of arrows, felling the frenzied zombies one by one.
Mu Ziping marveled, "The records stated your archery was a hundred percent accurate; I was somewhat skeptical, but now I feel the recorder was a bit conservative."
Qin Shilei took out his Seven Star Sword and handed it to him, "Stop marveling. The job of extracting crystal cores is yours."
Mu Ziping, ostensibly sent by the military as a liaison and assistant to the corps commander, was in reality a spy for the military, or perhaps a commissar and lobbyist sent to guide the corps towards aligning with the military. Qin Shilei did not hesitate to order him around. Of course, for his labor, he would offer Mu Ziping a small portion of the crystal cores as reward.
The office building was over twenty stories high, with each floor measuring more than three meters. Even though the zombie king's meat was nearly twenty meters from the building's entrance, it was enough to attract all the zombies within. Half an hour passed, and the flow of zombies emerging from the building showed no sign of diminishing. The area between the building's entrance and the zombie king's meat was already piled with several layers of zombie corpses. A rough estimate suggested over a thousand zombies had been killed.
"I didn't expect there to be so many zombies in this office building," Qin Shilei said, turning to Mu Ziping. "Go find a team to help with extracting crystal cores."
After Mu Ziping left, Qin Shilei took out the zombie king's brain marrow and walked towards the fishing rod. Instantly, the zombies at the office building's entrance seemed to become confused. On one hand, there was the allure of the zombie king's meat; on the other, the dispelling effect of the zombie king's brain marrow. Ultimately, the zombie king's brain marrow had a stronger effect. The zombies struggled, turned, and fled back into the office building.
"Roar!"
At that moment, a colossal zombie roar suddenly echoed from within the office building. Following it, a massive figure burst out. The figure was over three meters tall, entirely grey and white, with bulging muscles. Apart from its size, it was otherwise indistinguishable from a human, like a super-sized human.
A giant zombie? No, it should be a Tyrant.
Qin Shilei put away the zombie king's brain marrow, picked up his short bow again, and nocked an arrow, aiming for its eyes. As the zombie king's brain marrow was withdrawn, the Tyrant clearly hesitated. Then, it swerved and sprinted towards the zombie king's meat hanging on the fishing hook. As for the arrow Qin Shilei shot, it was easily blocked by its left hand.
"Then let's see if you can withstand my meticulously crafted powerful strike."
A faint light appeared on the arrow. As Qin Shilei continuously channeled his supernatural energy, the light on the arrow grew more intense.
Powerful Strike!
The arrow, enshrouded in lightning, shot rapidly towards the Tyrant. At that moment, the Tyrant had just reached beneath the zombie king's meat. It stomped on a corpse on the ground with its right foot, crushing it into pulp, and then leaped high into the air.
Just as the Tyrant's right hand touched the zombie king's meat, the arrow struck its left hand.
"Boom!"
The Tyrant's left hand was blown to pieces by the arrow. The arrow, only slightly slowed, continued towards the Tyrant's left eye. An invisible shield materialized on the zombie's head.
"Bang!"
Even the shield could not block the glowing arrow. The Tyrant had half its head blown off, revealing white brain matter. To Qin Shilei's surprise, the Tyrant still wasn't dead. It casually stuffed the zombie king's meat into its mouth, swallowed it without chewing, and then, covering four to five meters with each stride, it rapidly charged towards Qin Shilei.