True Apocalypse Game

"Hold your breath, child. Lower your head and don’t look at that tower. Try to think of happy things, and listen to the sound I’m making..."

The teammate Sophie had her gun pointed at didn’t retaliate. Instead, he spoke in a gentle voice.

At the same time, he gently tapped the barrel of his automatic rifle against the armored vehicle’s exterior, making a light, rhythmic sound.

The sound seemed disorganized, but like a cool spring, it instantly washed through Sophie’s chaotic and frenzied mind, clearing it significantly.

Sophie froze, then immediately lowered her head and stared intently at the armored vehicle’s dark green bulkhead. Beautiful memories flashed through her mind as she struggled to suppress the urge to kill.

Out of the corner of her eye, she could see that many players in the unit were showing signs of frenzy and madness, but were being restrained by their comrades.

The ones stopping them all seemed to be veteran players with a great deal of experience.

Occasionally, sporadic gunshots rang out—some players, truly unable to control themselves, had been summarily executed by their teammates.

Thankfully, the situation was still relatively stable.

Although the expressions on most faces had become far more twisted, as if they were suppressing their inner demons, the whole unit had not completely descended into a frenzy.

Sophie raised her eyes, inch by inch, until she could finally see the face of the comrade who had warned her. Her whole body shook, and she stammered,

"Mr. Li Tongchen!?"

That pair of eyes, though aged, sparkled with wisdom, and that smile, as gentle as a spring breeze—it was none other than the world-renowned medical authority from Hua Country, Li Tongchen!

After moving to this armored vehicle, Sophie had been focused on gunning down zombies, not paying any attention to those around her. It was only now that she realized the renowned Li Tongchen was right next to her!

He was the leader of the elite medical team that discovered the Medicine for Lichen Disease and the Evil Spirit Virus Healing Potion!

Even before this mission in the "True Apocalypse Game," Sophie had heard tales of Li Tongchen’s deeds from many others while experiencing previous apocalyptic scenarios.

During the research for the virus healing potions, Li Tongchen had been an invaluable aide to the Commander. Moreover, to unite all the medical experts at the time, Li Tongchen had gone so far as to reveal his real-world identity, putting himself at risk of being hunted by the Purification Society and other malevolent forces.

It was safe to say that, aside from the Commander and the Legion Commander, he was one of the few people in the entire Salvation Army to have earned everyone’s sincere respect.

Li Tongchen nodded at Sophie with a smile, looking at her as if she were his own daughter, and said warmly,

"Remember why you’re here. Don’t let the outside world interfere. Hold true to yourself..."

He then picked up a nearby megaphone, his voice turning solemn as he spoke loudly into it,

"All members of the medical support unit! Use your knowledge of psychology to counteract the tower’s interference! Help those around you stay centered! Legion Commander, this tower is generating some kind of magnetic field that’s causing brainwave interference. I recommend we temporarily fall back and regroup!"

Following several major epidemics, the Salvation Army had restructured its organization, establishing a specialized medical support unit with Li Tongchen as its leader.

The Legion Commander took Li Tongchen’s suggestion very seriously. Seeing the state of his troops within the Salvation Army, he immediately ordered a full retreat.

Soon, the entire armored column began to reverse formation, heading back the way they came. Simultaneously, large numbers of infantry scrambled onto the exteriors of various vehicles, while others commandeered pickup trucks and jeeps to hasten their withdrawal.

At the same time, a thunderous stamping rose once more from all across New York City. To their horror, everyone saw that the city’s entire zombie population had shed its former stupor. Their faces were now twisted with savagery as they charged madly toward the convoy!

As far as the eye could see, a dense horde of zombies crushed against each other, surging forward like a furious tide!

The Legion Commander’s gaze was sharp as a blade. He commanded,

"Accelerate the withdrawal! All heavy weapons, turn to rear! Fire in volleys at fifteen-second intervals! Rocket artillery and self-propelled guns, prepare to fire! Blow that tower to smithereens for me!"

The barrels of tanks and self-propelled artillery slowly swiveled, turning to face the direction of their retreat.

Once the barrels were in position, furious tongues of flame erupted, launching shell after shell into the onrushing zombie horde.

Simultaneously, two self-propelled guns and a rocket launcher took aim at the distant, twisted tower. In an instant, they fired, sending shells trailing fiery wakes soaring toward it.

At this range, the tank cannons were useless. Only the self-propelled guns and rocket artillery had the reach to attack it directly.

The Legion Commander, Li Tongchen, and the others watched with grim expressions as the shells screamed through the air. In a lull between killing zombies, Sophie also turned to watch.

Just then, a skull-splitting hum suddenly emanated from the tower. An instant later, the shells and rockets seemed to smash into an invisible wall mid-flight, exploding in the air about a kilometer away from their target!

The shrapnel flew in all directions, but it couldn’t harm the twisted tower in the slightest, scattering harmlessly like fireworks.

The Legion Commander’s brow furrowed. He ordered,

"Continue the attack! Blow it up for Laozi! Full-speed retreat, fire on the move!"