Suddenly, a hand with long claws emerged.
Then, a face with a creepy, elongated smile appeared.
*Giggle, giggle, giggle...*
"Everyone be careful, there's a Crawler!"
"What? A monster like this?"
"These damn Neon devils are not human. If they want to kill us, why not just do it cleanly!"
"My former captain was killed by this monster... we can't defeat it at all!"
Upon seeing the Crawler, the morale of the few survivors in the arena plummeted.
The gap in strength between the two sides was simply too vast.
In the past, they would always skirt around this creature, fleeing for their lives!
Now, in such a confined space, they had to confront it head-on?
Wasn't this just asking to die!
"Hey, you people below, listen! The Crawler's weakness is its back!" Uesugi shouted from the diving platform.
"If you can kill it, proving your worth, I will let you go!"
"I will absolutely keep my word!"
His secretary hurriedly translated his words into Mandarin.
"Its weakness is its back?"
"Can we trust what that little Neon devil says?"
"Whether we can trust it or not, we'll find out by trying. I don't think they purely want us dead!"
"Shall we give it a try?"
The few stronger individuals exchanged glances and positioned themselves in three different directions.
Once the Crawler jumped into the arena, they could surround and attack it at any time.
The other survivors had absolutely no combat experience.
They came to seek refuge for the free food, no need to fight, and a comfortable shelter.
They were after enjoyment.
They hadn't even killed a regular zombie.
Now, seeing the grotesquely mutated Crawler, their souls were already terrified.
Some people's legs went weak, and they collapsed onto the ground.
A pool of yellow liquid flowed out from beneath their trousers.
Others couldn't even hold their weapons steady, trembling all over from fear!
It was as if they had activated a vibration mode...
*Giggle, giggle...*
The Crawler seemed to prefer attacking the weakest targets first.
It suddenly leaped down from above.
Upon landing, its long claws pierced directly into a survivor's chest.
With a gentle swipe of its claws downwards.
The flesh split open!
Organs spilled out onto the ground.
Two survivors had mustered up their courage to fight.
Seeing such a scene, they were both disgusted and terrified.
Their meager courage instantly deflated.
*Giggle, giggle, giggle, giggle!*
The Crawler moved with extreme speed, flashing past and appearing before another survivor.
With a *squelch*!
Its claws severed his head.
A bloody mass rolled several meters across the ground.
Another pool of blood appeared on the swimming pool floor.
"This is it!"
The Crawler's attack exposed its back to a survivor at the peak of physical conditioning.
He swung his axe with all his might, smashing it down hard onto the Crawler's back.
With a *clang*!
The axe only penetrated about an inch deep before stopping.
This strenuous blow felt like hitting stone!
The immense recoil made his hand numb!
"What the hell is this zombie?"
"Didn't they say the monsters in this world were suppressed!"
"How can such an outrageous existence still be around!"
"ROAR!"
The Crawler suddenly turned its head and swiped its claws horizontally.
The ambushing survivor was immediately sent flying more than two meters away by the immense impact.
He then fell heavily to the ground.
His axe slipped from his grasp and landed beside him.
Back when Zhang Chen killed a Crawler, he had already advanced to the Awakened stage.
And he had done so with a sharp Tang knife.
The first strike hadn't killed it.
He had to strike again at the same wound before he could barely kill it.
The strongest of the survivors present was only at the peak of physical conditioning.
While only one level below an Awakened, the difference in strength was enormous.
Moreover, the sharpness of the axe could not compare to the keenness of the Tang knife.
Their weapons were inadequate, and their strength was insufficient.
Killing a Crawler was an almost impossible task!
"Chop off its limbs! Render it immobile!" another survivor shouted loudly.
"Understood!"
A particularly strong survivor raised his katana and directly chopped at the Crawler's hind leg.
*Splat!*
Similarly.
The katana bit fiercely into the Crawler's hind leg.
But it still only penetrated about an inch deep.
The defense of the legs was indeed not as robust as the back.
However, this survivor's strength was not as great as the previous one.
Therefore, when calculated, he was still only half-baked.
"Ah~~~ Yi~~~ Woo~~~~"
The Crawler suddenly opened its mouth and emitted a high-frequency, piercing sonic wave!
The sound echoed repeatedly within the swimming pool.
The concentric echoes resonated with the sonic waves.
It caused the walls to tremble.
Cement dust rained down.
Although Uesugi and the others were farther away, and the sound wasn't primarily directed upwards, they couldn't help but cover their ears.
Based on this sound alone.
Uesugi knew that the outcome in the swimming pool had already been decided.
All that remained was the Crawler's unilateral slaughter!
"When it's almost done, lure the Crawler back. Don't let it eat all the corpses!" Uesugi said indifferently.
"We still need to collect the core nuclei and rings!"
"Understood, I'll arrange it immediately!" Nakajo Tsuyoshi responded and hurried away.
"Councilman, we've received news from the northern defense line that another wave of zombies is approaching!" the female secretary said worriedly to the councilman.
"We're running low on live bait. If this continues, we won't be able to hold out for many more days!"
Live bait refers to people placed in cages or on high platforms to attract zombies.
Zombies are far more interested in live prey than in sounds.
Some people, in their panic, would scream, which was very helpful in attracting zombies.
"Tell them to hold on as best they can. If we can't find a way to kill the Crawler, we will forever be like stray dogs!" Uesugi said sternly.
"We'll never be able to settle down anywhere, always being chased by the horde!"
"This is just the beginning. There's another terrifying catastrophe awaiting us in 24 days!"
"To survive, we must endure what ordinary people cannot, and suffer what ordinary people cannot suffer!"
"The more the soldiers on the front lines train, the stronger they become, and the greater their survival ability!"
"Do you understand!"
The secretary quickly bowed and admitted her mistake. "Yes, I understand. I will never suggest such a foolish thing again!"
"Also... do we have any news from the team sent to explore the Jiangnan region?" Uesugi walked back into the lobby of the hot spring hotel and sat down on the sofa, asking.
"The Minako team has had no contact since reporting that they encountered a powerful Chinese man!"
"It's likely they met with misfortune!"
"In addition, the Sakata team just reported that they discovered an island in a residential area!"
"There are buildings, fences, and cultivated crops on the island. It's very suitable for us to establish a stronghold!" the secretary reported truthfully.