Otherworld Advance Team
Chapter 618 - 611: Capturing Samples

Chapter 618: Chapter 611: Capturing Samples

"Acknowledged!" Fulajie’er’s voice echoed from nearby, and quickly, the transport plane descended towards the ground again. The weapons controller operating the machine gun, swung it around excitedly, finding perverse joy in the situation.

"How come the boss believes your bullshit?" Hu Daoke, who was on the alert next to Cheng Ziang, asked without turning his head.

"What’s it to me," Cheng Ziang rolled his eyes and then said, "Luoer always thinks of the worst-case scenario and plans to the minutest detail. If we weren’t on this mission, he would have made us board the plane and leave in the next second."

"We have an unknown threat here, so everyone must be extra careful and not lose sight of each other. Understand?" Luoer warned sternly.

"Understood!" Everyone responded in unison.

The group moved along the village’s original path, where large tracts of nearby grass and shrubs bore signs of trampling, corroborating the aerial photos taken earlier which indicated that numerous corpse demons had been through this area.

The advance team spread out in a combat formation, ensuring each member remained within each other’s line of sight, and also ensuring a clear line of fire.

Just as they rounded a corner, they heard a few low growls. Tangmo’s eyes widened with fear, but she managed to stifle her scream in time.

About ten meters away, there were several lurching figures in tattered clothing continuously bumping into a stone wall, not caring even if their heads got smashed in the process.

They occasionally made gurgling noises, somewhat resembling a cat’s purring. Cheng Ziang guessed that these sounds were probably produced as gases formed by the decay of their internal organs passed through their throats.

They continually bumped into the stone wall, albeit with no great force, like they were doing so because the wall was blocking their way, reminiscent of game bugs.

"Damn, is this a game glitch?" Hu Daoke couldn’t help but curse.

Perhaps hearing his voice, the corpse demons swiftly turned towards them and quickened their pace. However, their steps were slow, like elderly people in their twilight years. It was clear that the virus, after killing them, could not control their ability to balance and move.

"Why did you open your mouth? Look, you’ve drawn them to us now!" Cheng Ziang glared at Hu Daoke with a furrowed brow.

"It doesn’t matter. After all, our mission is to draw them so we can capture samples," Luoer dismissed with a wave of his hand, "Everyone retreat and prepare to execute the capture plan!"

As per Luoer’s command, the advance team slowly retreated to an open space. As the corpse demons drew closer, they finally had a chance to study these walking-dead creatures more closely.

The corpse demons could no longer be considered living beings. They were essentially corpses controlled by the virus. Their bodies were already beginning to decay and were drying up, as the virus fed on their organs for its reproduction. To ensure its spread, the virus left the limbs of the corpse demons untouched, and only broke down the organs in their torsos for food.

The skin of the corpse demons was rigid and dry. Apart from the virus, several bacteria and fungi were also trying to decompose the body. This caused some parts of the corpse demons, mainly the hands and feet which the virus dared not decompose, to exhibit severe decay.

The faces of the corpse demons appeared very fierce, mostly frozen in their facial expressions at the point of death, while their flesh was still rotting away. The most noticeable part of them was the fleshy lump on their heads; at first glance, one might mistake it for a mushroom, although a closer look would quickly dispel that illusion.

According to prior research on the corpse demons, these lumps on their heads contained a large number of viruses meant for propagation. Many people got infected by inhaling the viruses in these lumps.

Luoer speculated that these lumps were probably a type of spore that spread through the wind. Once they found suitable host organisms, they would kill them instantly, and then decompose the bodies for reproduction. The corpse would then be controlled to grow more spores while continuing to spread.

"Moumou and Yue’er guard the perimeter, while the rest prepare to execute the capture plan!" Luoer ordered again.

"Oh..." Tangmo glanced at him, and though she seemed to want to say something, she obediently turned around to guard with her gun.

"You guys..." Luoer was about to speak, but was suddenly stopped by Cheng Ziang.

Cheng Ziang put down his gun, then said to Luoer, "I’ll immobilize them, you guys come help."

"This..." Luoer was taken aback for a moment.

"Stop talking. I’m more agile than you, and I can easily handle these guys who can hardly walk," Cheng Ziang said, slinging his rifle onto his back and slightly rearranging his gloves.

"I understand," Luoer nodded and turned to Hu Daoke, "Little Ke, choose one for capture, shoot the rest on sight!"

"Roger that!" Hu Daoke said, about to raise his rifle.

"Wait, be careful not to hit the tumors, aim for their necks and chins!" Luoer reached out to stop him.

"Got it!" Hu Daoke nodded, then picked up his gun and swiftly moved towards the Corpse Demons. Seeing their target approach, the emaciated Corpse Demons raised their arms, ready to grab him.

"Look at you all!" Hu Daoke shook his head, raising his rifle and firing at the Corpse Demons.

"Pupupupu!!"

Hu Daoke fired from within three meters of the Corpse Demons, and although his shooting accuracy was not as good as Baiyue’s, at this close range, he was able to hit his target without fail.

The silencer emitted a powerful puff, and the medium caliber bullets easily tore through the Corpse Demon’s head at such close range.

Following Luoer’s instructions, Hu Daoke only fired at the chin and throat of the Corpse Demons, avoiding hitting the tumors on their heads. The impact of the bullets caused their heads or throats to explode on the spot, and the Corpse Demons immediately fell back stiffly onto the ground.

The Corpse Demon’s body was already dead, the virus had a hard time controlling its movements, and even a minor damage would render the body completely incapacitated.

The Church Court’s army had never really viewed Corpse Demons as a serious threat. Their fear was due entirely to the Corpse Demons’ high infection rate.

Whether it was the Exotic Insects or the Exotic Beasts, they were merely carriers of the virus, and as long as they were handled correctly, there was practically no chance of infection. However, Corpse Demons were different. Once their tumors burst, it would be a catastrophe. Even if one inhaled just a tiny bit, there was a high probability of infection.

The Corpse Demon identified by Hu Daoke as the target continued to walk oblivious to its surroundings, indifferent to the fact that its comrades had already been shot dead. They were already dead, so they neither felt pain nor expressed emotions.

"Come on, keep moving, keep moving!" After confirming that the Corpse Demon’s maximum speed was only so fast, Hu Daoke no longer feared this horrifying creature. With ease on his face, he waived his hand to lure the Corpse Demon backward.

The Corpse Demon staggered forward less than three meters before Cheng Ziang suddenly attacked from the rear. He knocked the Corpse Demon down onto the ground, stepping on its head with his foot, and started to tie up its arms behind its back.

"Hold its head steady, don’t let it bite indiscriminately!" Cheng Ziang instructed Hu Daoke whilst pointing at the Corpse Demon.

"Ai!" Hu Daoke responded and rushed over, holding the Corpse Demon’s head with his hands.

"Be careful with the tumor, don’t touch it!" Cheng Ziang warned.

"I know, I know, hurry up and tie it up, this son of a bitch is about to bite!" Hu Daoke said.

At this point, Luoer also rushed over to help tie up the Corpse Demon’s legs. The Corpse Demon’s body was extremely fragile, so they had to wrap several loops with the tie strap to prevent the Corpse Demon from breaking loose with force.

Corpse Demons were virus-controlled corpses, and the virus didn’t know the human body’s limits, often pushing it beyond its limits and causing damage. Because of this, it’s almost impossible to pry open a Corpse Demon’s fingers once they grab someone, unless you cut off their hands.

When they encounter obstacles, they will attack without hesitation, even if their target is a solid concrete wall, they will continue to attack until their limbs are broken and no longer usable.