Qin Luo noticed her expectant look and flicked the little zombie's forehead with a grin. "Good job!"

Her eagerness for praise was written all over her face.

Xu Duoduo's eyes lit up instantly. Big Dog praised her! Big Dog is so nice.

If only she could touch his tail again someday, that would be perfect.

Chen Xiaofei, after laughing his fill, finally noticed their interaction and immediately gave her a thumbs-up. "Class Monitor, you're amazing!"

So impressive!

Whose little zombie fights this fiercely? Their team now had an absolute damage-dealing maniac.

Bai Shu nodded in agreement. "The Class Monitor is indeed incredible. Super incredible."

The little zombie was so happy she could burst. Everyone was praising her! Everyone was so nice!

She was thrilled.

---

The lunch break ended quickly as more zombies began gathering below. They seemed endless, and everyone resigned themselves to continuing the fight.

Fortunately, the drop rate for mutation cores was quite high.

In the apocalypse, collecting mutation cores was like racking up gold coins. Mutation cores could be exchanged for points and spent as currency.

Their luck was holding strong.

Qin Luo reminded everyone to have the Cheetah Team's fire-type ability user burn the remaining zombie corpses.

Otherwise, the zombie monster might consume them and grow stronger.

Everyone suddenly realized the importance of this and quickly followed his instructions. They had almost forgotten about this detail.

Captain Qin was so reliable!

The group continued their sweep, clearing zombies as they went. By nightfall, they finally reached a resting point.

It was an unfinished high-rise building.

The entire group quickly moved to the third floor to settle in. Nights in N City were anything but peaceful.

"We’ve entered the activity range of the zombie monster. Everyone, please be extremely cautious," Bai Shu warned.

The others nodded nervously.

Qin Luo began assigning positions. "The Rose Team will split into two groups to cover us in shifts. The Golden Eagle Team will guard the first half of the night, and we, the 3A Team, will take the second half. The Cheetah and White Dove Teams will rest first—stay on standby."

Everyone responded with a resounding "Yes."

The Rose Team, composed entirely of women, specialized in plant-based abilities. They had healers, offense-focused members, and even those who could confuse enemies.

A mandrake ability user activated her skill, **[Camouflage]**, causing a patch of mandrake flowers to bloom. This skill masked the human scent within a ten-meter radius, making it harder for monsters to detect them.

Unauthorized duplication: this narrative has been taken without consent. Report sightings.

Another teammate with a rose family ability used **[Rapid Growth]**, sealing off all the windows on the third floor with vines, leaving only small ventilation holes. These holes allowed air to flow and provided a view of the outside. Any mutated animals that approached would be blocked and possibly shredded by the vines.

For now, the Rose Team assigned these two members to guard the group, giving everyone else some time to rest. After all, they had been fighting from dawn until nearly dark.

If they weren’t ability users, they’d probably have collapsed on the road by now. Even so, they were utterly exhausted.

The Cheetah and White Dove Teams, both composed of rookies, had done exceptionally well to hold out this long. When told to rest, they immediately lay down and fell asleep.

Most of them were just eighteen or nineteen years old.

Wang Weihu couldn’t stand seeing them sleep without proper cover. He asked Xu Duoduo for some blankets—she had plenty stocked up—and tossed one over each rookie.

With blankets covering them, they slept even more soundly.

Jin Chuanqiong, seeing this, rolled his eyes. "Tch, acting all high and mighty."

Qin Luo overheard and retorted, "What’s the matter? Feeling unloved? Never been cared for in your life? Jealous? Call me 'Daddy,' and I’ll tuck you in."

Jin Chuanqiong’s face turned pitch black.

Chen Xiaofei and Bai Shu nearly lost it, their shoulders shaking as they tried to suppress their laughter.

Jin Chuanqiong clenched his fists, his teeth grinding in frustration. His teammates quickly restrained him. "Captain, don’t lose your cool! The zombie monster is nearby!" "Yeah, yeah, stay calm." "We can’t beat them."

Mu Mei chuckled as well. "Whoever starts it gets what they deserve. Complaining now? Pathetic."

She found working with the 3A Team quite enjoyable. They were the fiercest in battle, the most meticulous in planning, and had the best team dynamic.

They often joked around and bantered.

But this lightheartedness helped stabilize everyone’s emotions, preventing mental breakdowns. Missions felt less daunting when working with the 3A Team.

Look at the Cheetah and White Dove rookies—how long had they been with the 3A Team? They were already calling them "Big Brother" and following orders without question.

Jin Chuanqiong’s poor character made it no surprise that no one respected him.

Xu Duoduo stared at Jin Chuanqiong for a few moments, her expression clearly showing her disdain.

Qin Luo noticed and immediately called her back. "Don’t look. You might go blind."

Xu Duoduo shuffled back to his side, and Qin Luo finally felt satisfied.

"Do you want to sleep? Rest for a bit," Qin Luo said, glancing at the little zombie sitting beside him. She had been busy since morning, fighting non-stop. Yet, astonishingly, she hadn’t even seemed out of breath.

Then again, corpses don’t breathe, do they?

As soon as he finished speaking, Xu Duoduo collapsed against his shoulder like a device shutting down.

She fell asleep instantly.

Qin Luo was dumbfounded. "Huh? You’re really just going to sleep like that? That fast?"

Instant shutdown?

Xu Duoduo had only heard him say it was okay to sleep. Being next to him, with her team nearby, she felt completely safe and immediately dozed off.

Qin Luo glanced at her face. It was still as pale as ever, soft and smooth like a snowball. Her dress was spotless—not a speck of dirt. Ever since mastering her spatial ability, she had used it skillfully to block blood and grime from touching her.

He raised a hand and sneakily pinched her cheek. It was cold but very soft.

Retracting his hand, he rubbed his fingers together.

Yep, super soft.

Finally, he leaned against the wall and closed his eyes to rest, preparing for the battle later that night.

"Hey, Qin Bro and the Class Monitor are already asleep?"

"Chen Xiaofei, watch your wording. They’re sleeping *together*."

"Does it even matter?"

Chen Xiaofei couldn’t help but grumble to Bai Shu, annoyed at his nitpicking. Bai Shu, on the other hand, thought Chen Xiaofei spoke without thinking and lacked precision.

The two bickered in hushed tones for a bit before leaning against the wall to catch some shut-eye themselves.

Wang Weihu, smoking a cigarette in the corner, watched them with a smile. In times like these, having your teammates safe and sound was the greatest blessing.

He soon returned to his team’s area, found a spot, and sat down to rest.

The third floor quickly fell silent.

The entirety of N City was shrouded in darkness. The power had long since gone out, leaving no light at all.

Thanks to their earlier efforts in clearing out zombies, the night was quieter than expected. Only the occasional distant zombie howl broke the silence. The zombie monster had yet to appear.

Until the second half of the night, when the ground suddenly began to tremble. A series of heavy, dragging footsteps echoed through the air.

**"Thud! Thud! Thud!"**

The footsteps were sluggish yet heavy, each one sending a wave of unease through their hearts.

Almost instantly, everyone woke up.

This was the advantage of being ability users—they were sharp and alert. The group immediately went on high alert.

Mu Mei, glancing outside, turned pale in an instant. Her position gave her a direct view of the zombie monster’s head. The colossal human-like head was absolutely terrifying!!