Chapter 49
Carol smiled. "Thank you, I understand."
With that, Carol raised her machete and charged at the other walkers.
"Ahhh!"
The crowd behind her, weapons held high, finally surged forward, their faces flushed red with excitement.
T-Dog glanced at them and cursed.
"Idiots!"
Screaming like that while charging forward wouldn't improve their killing efficiency—it would only drain their stamina and attract the attention of other walkers, potentially creating scenarios where several walkers attacked at once.
With so many people, T-Dog and his two team members couldn't watch everyone.
"Get in there and help!"
Caesar strode forward, ordering the others.
The combat personnel rushed in, instantly dividing the battlefield into smaller sections. They could support each other, watching over the crowd while fighting walkers.
Daryl with his crossbow fired several bolts, saving several lives.
These people had been knocked to the ground by walkers and kept screaming, cursing, and crying. After lying there for a while, they finally noticed—why wasn't the walker on top of them moving?
Only then did they discover a crossbow bolt embedded in the walker's head. Their faces immediately flushed with shame.
Caesar casually grabbed a walker and tossed it toward an area with fewer walkers.
The walker was like a baby chick in his hands—clinging to the riot gear without leaving any marks, flailing its teeth and claws.
Caesar turned his head and spotted the two sisters, Andrea and Amy.
Andrea wore a focused expression, her body splattered with black blood. She took a swift step forward and delivered a downward chop, severing a walker's head.
The walker's head rolled across the ground. Seeing this, Amy crouched down and drove her blade tip into the walker's brain.
However, when she tried to pull the machete out, she discovered the walker's head wouldn't come off.
Suppressing her nausea, Amy pressed down on the walker's head with one hand while pulling the machete with the other.
Andrea didn't step forward to help. She just watched her sister with furrowed brows. "Are you okay?"
"I, I'm fine. I'm great!"
Amy knew her temperament was soft, not as tough as her sister's, but she didn't want to hold her sister back.
Amy's face looked somewhat pale, but she still managed a weak smile. "Hey, I'm fine."
Andrea could only nod.
"The next one, I'll do it."
After Andrea killed two more walkers, Amy suggested.
According to Caesar's requirements, everyone needed the ability to kill walkers. Amy felt that as the boss's secretary, she should strictly execute any of the boss's orders.
Andrea hesitated for a moment, then nodded.
She gripped her machete and stood ready two meters from Amy, ensuring she could protect Amy at the first opportunity.
Amy took two deep breaths, watching the walker being released toward her. Her heart began pounding violently, her hands and feet going weak.
The walker drew closer and closer. Andrea's heart hammered like a drum. She wanted to urge Amy to strike quickly but feared distracting her sister's attention.
Amy retreated two steps, then charged forward, learning from her sister's example to launch her attack.
Amy's blade tip aimed at the walker's cheek. Unexpectedly, in the next moment, the walker tilted its head and the blade scraped past the walker's neck.
Accompanied by a spray of black blood, Amy could clearly see the walker's terrifying face, its foul-smelling mouth gaping wide as it lunged at her.
Amy had no time to dodge to the side and couldn't evade. She could only watch helplessly as she collided with the walker.
"Amy!" Andrea screamed and charged forward.
Amy could clearly hear her sister's shout.
Before Amy felt any pain on her body, the walker was lifted like a helpless child and violently thrown aside.
In its place was Caesar's imposing figure.
"Next time, aim first before attacking. Use seventy percent force, keep thirty percent in reserve."
After speaking, Caesar turned and left without looking back, walking toward his post.
"Amy, Amy." Andrea came before Amy and hugged her, checking her condition.
After confirming nothing was wrong, Andrea noticed Amy's dazed expression and quickly shook her body. "Amy, are you okay?"
Only then did Amy come to her senses, her face blooming with a rosy flush. "I'm fine."
"You... be careful." Seeing Amy's distracted appearance, Andrea assumed the walker had frightened her. She wanted to scold her but couldn't bear to.
"Do you... still want to fight? You can rest."
Seeing Amy stand up, eager to find her next opponent, Andrea asked in confusion.
"Oh, I'm really fine." Amy pulled Andrea along, having her watch her back.
Actually, Andrea could have saved Amy just now—she just hadn't expected Caesar to appear so quickly.
It seemed like... well, like he'd been watching Amy the whole time.
"Quick, come on." Amy's shout pulled Andrea from her thoughts, and she walked toward her sister.
Andrea glanced at Caesar and noticed he was watching other members' battles, occasionally helping out and calling out mistakes.
Mm, I really am overthinking this.
This time, without further accidents and with Andrea watching her back, Amy killed three walkers in succession.
Her aura, which had been like a little white rabbit, suddenly became fierce and aggressive.
Over the next two days, everyone in the team could easily kill several walkers without screaming unnecessarily. Their adaptability had improved tremendously.
As the CDC—that existence with maxed-out aggro—was destroyed, fewer and fewer walkers remained in the area. By the last day, the walkers Caesar used for practice had to be dragged out from inside shops.
Not a single wandering walker could be seen anywhere.
On the morning of the third day, at the Atlanta temporary camp.
The tents on the ground had all been packed away. The camp beds, folding chairs, and other items had been put away.
The convoy had arranged itself in order.
Caesar stood atop a truck with Jenner and several other team leaders beside him.
"It's almost time. Do we need to leave Atlanta quickly?" Jenner checked his watch and asked.
Caesar shook his head. "These past three days of commotion have drawn all of Atlanta's walkers over there."
"The explosion will only attract the attention of walkers from surrounding areas, but their movement will be scattered and only last a short time. No need to worry about those walkers."
Glenn looked at the distant building with its blackened exterior walls and asked with some concern, "Is the CDC's explosion powerful? Won't it blow up everything around it?"
"If it hits a power plant or something, won't that cause a chain reaction of explosions?"
Facing Glenn's confusion, Jenner smiled and shook his head. "The CDC's self-destruct is designed to destroy the viruses stored inside, not to attack living things outside."
"So the explosion's range won't be very large, but the power isn't weak. It can produce temperatures exceeding one thousand degrees Celsius along with overpressure, capable of eliminating almost everything."
"Hey, pizza boy." Merle laughed and draped his arm over Glenn's shoulder, flashing his teeth as he leaned in. "If the pizzas you used to deliver were made with walker meat, this would cook them perfectly."
"Wait and see—meat's definitely gonna rain down from the sky. You can pick it up and go deliver pizzas directly."
Merle painted such a vivid picture that Glenn immediately dry-heaved several times, his face turning ugly.
Merle roared with laughter. Even Daryl, Morales, Guillermo, and the others looked rather unwell.
Daryl stepped forward, wrapped his arm around Merle's neck, and pulled him back. "Shut up, will you."
Seeming to worry that Merle would speak again, Daryl said viciously, "If you open your mouth again, I'll find a cooked walker dick and stuff it in there."
Merle immediately acted terrified, raising both hands high. "I can eat it!"
"Fuck!!"
"Hahahaha!" Merle's hoarse laughter drifted through the air.
"It's coming!"
Jenner had been watching his watch. He suddenly spoke.
On the bright horizon, it seemed as if a new sun was rising.