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Chapter 574: Names Are Often Chosen On A Whim

Ling Mo, though he enjoyed the downtime, still offered plenty of advice on the use of special abilities, which significantly improved their performance.

Guided by the two of them, the trio quickly got the hang of working together. By the time they were inside the mall, their coordination could be described as fairly polished.

“Alright, this is where we bring in Gu Shuangshuang,” Mu Chen gestured, calling her over.

“Okay,” Ye Kai nodded, and the other two didn’t object. They were also curious about what role Gu Shuangshuang would play in the team, especially since she hadn’t taken any action previously.

“The layout here is complicated. The chances of drawing the zombies away again are slim. Even if we could, it wouldn’t make much sense since we can’t lead them far,” Mu Chen analyzed.

Ye Kai nodded again, but the look he gave Mu Chen was far from the friendly one he reserved for Ling Mo.

Mu Chen didn’t mind, as he was just undercover and wouldn’t be staying long; this team wasn’t trained for Niepan…

“Damn it! What am I even doing here?!” Mu Chen thought to himself, frustrated, but continued speaking, “So the main goal here is to clear out the zombies. To do that, we need to achieve two things: one, clean and thorough elimination; two, as quietly as possible. Ye Kai, you should be able to hold your own, but Zhang Xincheng is not suited for fighting here, and Skinny Monkey is completely without combat ability…”

Skinny Monkey immediately felt a wave of embarrassment at being singled out; he couldn’t help it…

“But relying on Ye Kai alone would probably work him to death,” Mu Chen added.

Ye Kai’s gaze turned fierce at once, but Mu Chen had already glanced at him and said, “You can try if you want, but don’t say I didn’t warn you. Also, keep personal grudges out of the mission. It’s no good for anyone.”

“Hmph…” Ye Kai couldn’t refute, but that didn’t stop him from glaring menacingly at Mu Chen.

“Okay,” Ling Mo quickly intervened to smooth things over, “Your task is to go to the top floor’s manager’s office and retrieve an item from the desk.”

“What item?” Ye Kai glared at Mu Chen with annoyance before turning to ask Ling Mo.

“You’ll know when you get there,” Ling Mo said teasingly.

“What’s this about…”

“Big brother probably doesn’t even know what it is…”

“Yeah, definitely clueless.”

The group whispered among themselves briefly before they heard Mu Chen shout, “Start! And remember, you’re on the clock this time!”

As Mu Chen had predicted, their lack of combat strength as a group became immediately apparent in the complex environment.

Particularly without effective protection, they faced several close calls. Although they managed to pull through by the skin of their teeth, it left Skinny Monkey pale with fright, and even Zhang Xincheng appeared to be struggling.

The space was only so big, and the ceiling was only so high. Given the zombies’ jumping ability, they could easily reach it, which made Zhang Xincheng nearly obsolete in combat.

Skinny Monkey’s Wind Listener ability was somewhat useful, but its effectiveness was limited. Zombies were everywhere, and the slightest movement could lead to a surprise attack, making an early warning of one or two seconds pretty much meaningless.

Although Ye Kai was powerful, and the sight of him charging behind the zombies and furiously executing his Blade Dance was downright terrifying, he was only one man. And the zombies? Every time they advanced a bit, they could face five or six zombies simultaneously.

But with Gu Shuangshuang joining in, things changed.

Gu Shuangshuang’s psychic shockwaves could significantly alleviate the pressure on Ye Kai, even making his Blade Dance more lethal than usual.

Staying close to her at least ensured that the zombies wouldn’t all pounce at once. Sheltering by her side, Zhang Xincheng and Skinny Monkey actually managed to fight back with some semblance of competence.

However, Gu Shuangshuang’s ability to control her powers was really poor. Even with Ling Mo directing her, she frequently made mistakes, sometimes even sending shockwaves at her own teammates…

“I’m… I’m so sorry!” Gu Shuangshuang apologized, her face beet red.

“That’s the third time now. If it weren’t for them stepping in to save you, you’d all be dead,” Mu Chen pointed out unsparingly.

Gu Shuangshuang lowered her head and glanced at Ye Lian and the others, her eyes filled with both shame and gratitude.

She had initially thought that the three of them were just tagging along with Ling Mo for a look-see, but when danger struck in an instant, the girl who looked like a mixed-blood appeared out of nowhere behind a zombie, grabbed its collar from behind, and her wrist’s eerie blade swiftly sliced through its neck.

Another was even more bizarre, seemingly dazed but firing her gun as soon as she lifted it, hitting the zombie’s knees with two shots. Before the zombie hit the ground, another precise shot blew its head off.

The most terrifying part was her perpetually bewildered look; her gaze was vacant and unfocused, yet her shots were spot-on, not missing by a hair.

On the other hand, the long-haired girl, who seemed to be the strongest, didn’t seem too keen on getting her hands dirty, but Gu Shuangshuang understood why the moment she saw her massive scythe.

If she was in action, did they even need to bother?

The four of them fought and coordinated for over twenty minutes before they finally reached the top floor.

However, most of their time was spent on the previous floors. By the time they got to the higher levels, their teamwork began to take shape, and they moved much faster.

“Here!”

Zhang Xincheng was the first to spot the office, but he didn’t approach it right away; instead, he glanced at Skinny Monkey.

Skinny Monkey, understanding the cue, closed his eyes to listen, then shook his head.

The four of them, panting heavily, cautiously moved closer.

What could be on the desk? And what if there was nothing—what kind of token would they take back?

Ye Kai glanced around the doorway vigilantly before dashing inside.

He was a seasoned survivor by now, and the first thing he did upon entering was to check every nook and cranny. Some zombies knew how to hide their presence for sneak attacks, so one couldn’t be too careful.

“It’s safe,” Ye Kai declared quickly after completing his check, snapping his fingers to signal the others.

The other three hurried in at the signal, converging around the office desk.

“Hurry up and grab anything, we’re almost out of time,” Skinny Monkey urged.

Although Mu Chen hadn’t specified what the penalty for running out of time would be, it was easy to guess that he would take the opportunity to mess with them.

Skinny Monkey was quite timid, especially when it came to unknown dangers, so the mere thought of a penalty spurred him into action, even reducing his sense of fear.

“Uh…” Ye Kai was just about to nod when he suddenly let out a surprised shout, “Huh?!”

“What’s wrong?” Zhang Xincheng asked urgently.

Skinny Monkey let out a yelp, his heartbeat that had just calmed down now raced again, and he jumped as if he had been stepped on.

Gu Shuangshuang also turned around nervously, scanning the surroundings, “Are there zombies?”

“No, no,” Ye Kai shook his head, then picked up a piece of paper from the desk, turned around, and slowly lifted it in front of the three, “Look at this.”

Honestly, more than the note itself, the first thing that caught the attention of Skinny Monkey and the others was Ye Kai’s expression.

This usually cool and tough guy was now standing with his eyes wide open and his mouth agape, looking utterly shocked.

What on earth could have scared him like this?

The three of them were immediately full of curiosity about the piece of paper and crowded in to take a closer look.

It was an old, ordinary piece of printer paper, but on it was a line of fresh handwriting.

“Congratulations on passing the test! Rookies, from this moment on, you are official members of the Miracle Team!”

…

In the moderately-sized office, silence reigned.

“Let’s not fuss about this rather casual team name for now…” Zhang Xincheng commented deadpan, then said somewhat bewilderedly, “How did this note appear here?”

The zombies on the road, the zombies inside the mall… If they weren’t quite sure that Ling Mo wasn’t a mental ability user specialized in creating illusions, they might have doubted whether everything they had seen was just an illusion.

How exactly did this note get here?