Seeing that Lin Xinghai apparently had no intention of explaining tactics, Sun Tianbo grew anxious.

Lin Xinghai didn’t speak, but Sun Tianbo couldn’t afford to stay silent. He was afraid that if something went wrong with his people while following Lin Xinghai’s team tomorrow, they might just be kicked out. That would be a huge loss.

So after some deliberation, Sun Tianbo asked, "Brother Lin, I was wondering what arrangements or tactical requirements you have for our team? If you tell us now, I can have them run drills right away to avoid any mistakes during actual combat tomorrow."

"That won’t be necessary." Lin Xinghai thought for a moment before saying, "Tomorrow, just follow our team and charge straight ahead. That’s all."

"Uh..." For a moment, Sun Tianbo didn’t know what to say. ’Is that even a requirement?’

Besides, coordinating the two teams like that could easily lead to problems.

However, he ultimately didn’t say anything more. Pressing the issue would be like questioning Lin Xinghai’s arrangements.

As he had his team members sit down to rest, he started chatting with Jin Tong and Little Fatty.

He planned to ask the two of them about Lin Xinghai’s combat style so he could figure out a way to coordinate on his own.

However, as he listened to their accounts, Sun Tianbo came to a shocking conclusion.

Lin Xinghai’s team really didn’t seem to have any tactics at all. The others just needed to follow behind Lin Xinghai and charge into the fray.

’This sounds completely unreliable!’ Sun Tianbo grumbled to himself, but he couldn’t bring himself to voice his doubts.

After all, the fact that Lin Xinghai had such a commanding lead on the Points leaderboard was proof of his strength.

...

Time passed quickly, and in the blink of an eye, over an hour was gone.

By now, both teams had eaten their dry rations and arranged their bedding, preparing to sleep.

Although it was only a little after 7 PM, far from a normal bedtime, you couldn’t just rest whenever you wanted in a dangerous place like this.

The city became even more dangerous after sunset, and even hiding in the mall offered no guarantee of safety.

This was evident from the constant roars of Zombies in the distance and the bursts of intense gunfire that occasionally rang out.

It was obvious that some teams had been careless, discovered by Zombies, and were now engaged in a firefight.

Of course, the gunfire could also be coming from the military.

At this moment, Lin Xinghai, Little Fatty, and the others were standing on the roof, gazing into the distance.

In a distant location, flashes of light were accompanied by the sound of dense explosions. Through the faint glow, Lin Xinghai could even vaguely make out numerous combat drones attacking something below.

In addition, soldiers on some sort of personal flight devices were rapidly heading toward that location to provide rescue.

Lin Xinghai glanced at his Communication Wristwatch and said, "The number of contestants is down by another five. In the past hour or so since nightfall, the number of eliminated contestants seems to have exceeded 200, right?"

"Yes! The exact number is 232," Little Fatty quickly replied from the side.

"Tsk! This is just the beginning. By tomorrow morning, who knows how many contestants will have been disqualified for sending out a distress call," Lin Xinghai remarked with a sigh and looked away.

"Let’s go. We should get some rest, too. And even though Sun Tianbo said he’d handle the night watch, we can’t completely leave something like this in someone else’s hands. You two will take shifts—one for the first half of the night, one for the second. Any problem with that?" Lin Xinghai said, looking at Jin Tong and Little Fatty.

"No problem!" the two answered almost in unison.

Although there were three other people in their squad besides Lin Xinghai, neither of them was foolish enough to ask why Liu Miaomiao didn’t have to stand watch.

Soon, the mall fell completely silent as everyone began to rest.

However, just because they were resting didn’t mean they could actually sleep.

Listening to the occasional sounds of artillery and gunfire from outside, it would be a lie to say they weren’t the least bit anxious.

Many of them even found themselves periodically opening their Communication Wristwatches to glance at how many people were left on the Points leaderboard.

Watching the number continuously drop, their hearts grew heavy.

As for whether these people could sleep, Lin Xinghai didn’t care.

He wouldn’t even care if a lack of rest meant they couldn’t perform well tomorrow or keep up with the team’s pace.

’They’re strangers, anyway. If they can’t keep up, I’ll just leave them behind.’

He lay down in his soft bedding, glanced at Liu Miaomiao beside him, wrapped an arm around her soft waist, and said, "Good night," before closing his eyes.

He had fought all day, and even with his Physique, he felt quite exhausted. Of course, he had to seize the opportunity to rest.

...

「Time passed quickly, and soon it was the early hours of the morning.」 But the roars and gunfire outside hadn’t weakened in the slightest; in fact, they seemed to be growing more intense.

The members assigned to guard duty had also seen several waves of Zombies pass by the front of the mall through the windows.

However, the guards made no sound. Combined with the small number of people inside the mall, not much of a human scent was being emitted, so the Zombie hordes quickly passed by. Each time was a close call, but they remained safe.

Suddenly, while he was asleep, Lin Xinghai felt a faint, inexplicable throb of unease.

Not daring to sleep too deeply in the first place, he instantly snapped his eyes open.

Since his Perception Power was far beyond that of an ordinary person, his ability to sense danger was on a completely different level.

This faint sense of unease meant that danger was approaching.

He instantly released his Perception Power, extending it in the direction the danger was coming from. Soon, his expression turned grave.

At that exact moment, several violent booms echoed from the direction Lin Xinghai was investigating, and flames instantly shot into the sky.

That wasn’t the sound of an explosion, but the result of a joint attack by several Fire Ability Users.

After the boom, a series of crackling and popping sounds followed. Based on Lin Xinghai’s assessment, it was likely a Thunder Element Superpower.

The commotion over there instantly drew the attention of the guards on watch. Although they had heard plenty of such booms tonight, this one was simply too close to ignore.

Based on their visual estimates, the location of the explosion was likely within 500 meters.

More importantly, whoever was over there was continuously moving closer to their position.

If they were fleeing along the road, they would probably reach the mall in another two or three minutes.

At this thought, the guards on duty immediately became tense.

It was obvious that the group was being pursued by a large horde of Zombies. If they didn’t change their escape route, they might drag them into the mess.

"Should we report this to the captain first?" one of the members asked in a hushed voice.

"It’s probably too early to assess the situation! If it turns out to be a false alarm and we wake everyone up, that’ll just be a hassle. We might as well..."

The member trailed off, his mouth gradually falling open. Through the dim firelight, he could faintly make out 20 people fleeing for their lives up ahead.

But what truly horrified him was the dense, teeming mass of Zombies following right behind them.