Chapter Twenty-Five: The Final Battle

Ye Yutian clutched a bottle of liquor, squinting as he struggled to make out the figures before him. Only when their faces became clear did he flash a scornful smile—the so-called veteran, and the woman always at his side.

He raised the bottle and took a hard swig. For reasons he couldn't quite explain, ever since he stepped out of the vehicle and found the alcohol at the convenience store, he’d found himself unable to part with his precious bottle.

Ye Yutian’s gaze roamed slowly over the people in front of him.

Li Xin and Rei Miyamoto—two characters from reality—had formed a team. The one he’d previously dismissed as a burden, Makoto Ito, had now paired up with the original protagonist, Takashi Komuro.

And himself? Ye Yutian glanced blearily at the school nurse propping him up.

Shizuka Marikawa.

“Damn it, how did I end up with this woman? She’s no help at all!” Ye Yutian still remembered his Main God points.

Negative one hundred.

If he couldn’t pull his score into the positive before this world ended, he’d be erased when it was over. As he watched Liu Mengchao drawing closer, a nameless anxiety gnawed at him.

“Why did I even reply to that drifting bottle? Life was good, and yet I just had to answer it, mocking, as if nothing could touch me.”

“You all seem to be doing well,” Liu Mengchao said as he led his team up to the reincarnators. “Where’s your school bus?” he asked, raising an eyebrow.

Beep!

Prize pool: 170,000.

Seeing the sudden increase in the prize pool before him, Liu Mengchao broke into a grin.

“Liu Mengchao, the school bus is totaled,” Saeko Takagi stepped forward to speak to him. “We got off and then split up from Fujimi.”

At her words, Xu Zhengdong couldn’t help but show a reaction.

Liu Mengchao noticed the look Xu Zhengdong shot at Ye Yutian, who was being supported. His nose wrinkled, brows not just drawn but sunk entirely, upper eyelids lifted as well.

It was almost an undisguised expression of contempt.

Liu Mengchao said nothing, his gaze sharp as a blade as he swiftly assessed the state of the reincarnators.

Ye Yutian clung to his bottle, taking swigs at intervals. Was this, perhaps, his attempt to soothe the symptoms of post-traumatic stress with the help of alcohol? Liu Mengchao sneered, glancing at Shizuka Marikawa as she supported Ye Yutian. This school nurse wasn’t as airheaded as she appeared; at least, she had a decent grasp of emergency psychological intervention.

If only she hadn’t encountered him.

A delayed explosive, when finally detonated, would only erupt all the more fiercely and spectacularly. All he needed to do was add a little more powder.

“Liu Mengchao, I think we should find somewhere to settle everyone first,” Xu Zhengdong interjected, coming forward. His teammate, Kouta Hirano, was glued to Saeko Takagi’s side, leaving him no choice but to stick with this self-styled clever woman. “If we keep wandering the streets after dark, we’ll be easy prey for the zombies roaming around.”

“And?” Liu Mengchao looked at him with a hint of amusement.

“So, we’ve decided to head to Miss Marikawa’s friend’s house. It’s big enough, and there’s a car inside as well.”

The previously unobtrusive PR manager now stood her ground, voicing her opinion. The moment she mentioned the word “car,” Liu Mengchao noticed a shift in the air around him. He relished this kind of tension.

Every reincarnator was sizing up the others.

After all, counting both reincarnators and story characters, there were thirteen people in all.

And that Hummer, hidden within the house, could accommodate only six.

“Then we must trouble Miss Marikawa to lead the way,” Liu Mengchao smiled, gesturing for her to go ahead, and followed behind her.

“Liu Mengchao, you know, my friend’s house is so, so big!” Shizuka Marikawa said with cheerful obliviousness, “And the two Hummers inside are big as well, they can seat—”

She paused, surprisingly beginning to count on her fingers.

“One, two, three, four, five, six, seven… eight! Eight people in all!”

Only eight!

The moment she spoke, Liu Mengchao saw the prize pool tick up again.

Prize pool: 175,000.

Already worried they wouldn’t get a seat in the vehicle to escape this hell?

Liu Mengchao watched the rising prize pool, a cold smile curving his lips. This was what he’d been waiting for. Let the mutual hostility simmer, then drive the reincarnators into a situation where they’d have to fight each other for survival.

The Main God never issued death decrees.

But the executor’s profession was to ensure they all died, to the greatest extent possible.

For instance—Liu Mengchao himself.

The house wasn’t far. After ten or so minutes, Liu Mengchao and the others arrived at the riverside residence Shizuka Marikawa had described.

“Wait.” Liu Mengchao halted the eager crowd.

“What are you doing?”

“What am I doing?”

Liu Mengchao pulled out a phone and dialed the number of the man who had just died.

“Just making a call—drawing every zombie in the area over, that’s all.” As he spoke, he dialed.

Although none of them could see exactly what he meant by attracting zombies, every reincarnator’s heart thudded with anxious suspense.

A true veteran—he must have some way to clear out all the zombies there at once.

At that thought, both Li Xin and Xu Zhengdong—who was adjusting his gold-rimmed glasses—and even the half-drunk Ye Yutian, looked on with envy and jealousy in their eyes.

Phone gripped tightly, the prize pool continued to climb before his eyes.

Now, it was time for the harvest.

“Let’s go!” Liu Mengchao strode forward, taking the lead.

The house Marikawa had spoken of was surrounded by zombies.

Schoolgirls in torn uniforms, office ladies in black stockings, and scattered passersby of all kinds.

But at this moment, all of them wore pale faces, wandering aimlessly. The once lively, vibrant world now revealed only endless horror.

Liu Mengchao glanced back at the reincarnators—eager, hopeful, and yet deeply afraid—and laughed.

They craved points, but shrank from action.

They longed to profit without effort, but lacked any wisdom.

“Hah!”

Before Liu Mengchao could charge ahead, Qiao Xiaoxiao overtook him with a few swift steps.

Her black ponytail and gray jacket made her look for all the world like a grim reaper come to collect souls unwilling to return to the underworld.

The iron rod in her hands seemed to come alive with each swing, smashing through zombie skulls, each blow followed by a burst of blood.

Prize pool: 176,000!

“This won’t be your last battle, Qiao Xiaoxiao!” Liu Mengchao once again drew near her, breathing in her fragrance, and the shudder of souls stirred by the carnage.

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This chapter wasn’t scheduled for auto-release—I swear it’s not because I wanted to skip class and write…

Thanks to the generous support of Victoriqa8, OtakuBug, ShanheJinghao, XuanyuanKiller, GuyuWuchen, TruthKatyusha, StarryTale, SilkenStrings, and LawNeverPassedToSixEars~