Chapter 5

**Bang!**

The gunshot echoed, the bullet piercing the zombie's forehead, instantly ending its life... life?

Staring at the motionless zombie, Tang Cheng suddenly stood there in a daze, a thoughtful expression on his face.

"What's wrong?" Li Guodong couldn't help but ask.

Tang Cheng turned around and said, "I gained some survival points. Just as I killed that zombie, that cold, emotionless voice sounded again, informing me that I had gained one survival point."

"Killing zombies can earn survival points?" Everyone's eyes lit up instantly.

Tang Cheng nodded, "It seems that's the case. Moreover, in this world, there are not only zombies but also crawlers, mutated zombies, and classic villains like the Umbrella Corporation. Since killing zombies can earn survival points, then... if I'm not mistaken, killing them should also earn survival points, and even more..."

At this point, a strange smile appeared on Tang Cheng's face, "If we kill all the living beings in Raccoon City, including humans, we might also earn survival points and some other rewards."

"Uh!" Hearing Tang Cheng's last words, everyone shivered involuntarily.

"Don't worry, I was just saying it off the top of my head." Seeing everyone's strange expressions, Tang Cheng shrugged and laughed, "Even if I really wanted to do it, it's impossible. Besides the civilians, there's also the T-virus-infected female protagonist in this city. In terms of strength, she is far superior to us. Even those mercenaries could easily wipe us out."

Hearing this, everyone breathed a sigh of relief. However, the fact that someone could even think of killing all the humans in the city to gain survival points was already beyond the imagination of normal people.

Deciding to change the subject, Tang Ya interjected, "Although you've confirmed that killing zombies can earn survival points, why didn't the cycle world inform us of this information? In theory, this should be considered basic knowledge, right?"

Everyone nodded in agreement.

It's like playing a game. If survival points are the reward for killing zombies, then it should be revealed from the beginning, just like how killing monsters in a game earns experience and equipment. There should be a clear explanation, such as how much experience a monster gives or what equipment a boss drops, rather than requiring players to figure it out one by one. Otherwise, it would only mean that the game designers were incompetent.

"There is." Tang Cheng said.

"Eh?" Everyone was taken aback, but Tang Ya, being quicker to react, immediately understood, "You mean..."

"Exactly." Tang Cheng nodded with a smile, "It's the hint in the mission prompt, 'You can have more, the question is, do you dare to do it.' It suggests that we don't have to strictly follow the cycle world's missions. We have some freedom. If we consider the 24-hour escape mission as the main quest, then killing zombies to earn survival points is a side quest we can choose freely."

"In that case, can't we earn a lot of survival points here?" Zhang Yi said excitedly. Over 90% of the people in the city had turned into zombies, which meant there were nearly a million of them. Even if they couldn't kill all of them, killing a few would still earn them a significant number of survival points.

Although Zhang Yi didn't know the exact value of survival points, he knew that more was always better.

"You're kidding, right?" Tang Cheng didn't bother to explain and just shook his head, walking past him.

"Eh?" Zhang Yi stared at his back, confused.

Tang Ya, being more perceptive, explained for him, "What you suggested won't work. First, we are ordinary people and don't have the strength to kill zombies. Although the cycle world gave us some powerful beginner equipment, allowing us to face zombies, we can only handle a few at a time. Once the number of zombies reaches the hundreds, we have almost no chance of winning. After all, both Tang Cheng's pistol and your staff are consumables. Once your ammunition and magic power run out, relying on knives alone, we would be doomed if surrounded."

"We can find weapons ourselves," Li Guodong interjected, "For example, at the police station, there should be plenty of weapons and ammunition. If we can find them, we can last for a long time."

Li Guodong wasn't agreeing with Zhang Yi's idea of earning survival points; he was just trying to prepare multiple plans.

Tang Ya shook her head, "We must consider our main quest, which is to escape Raccoon City within 24 hours. We only have 24 hours to act, and we need to avoid zombie attacks and break through the Umbrella Corporation's numerous blockades. Time is already tight, so we don't have extra time to hunt zombies... Of course, finding weapons is a good idea, as it can better arm us."

"Got it." Hearing Tang Ya's explanation, everyone realized that the idea of grinding for points was unrealistic. The cycle world wouldn't leave such a big loophole.

"Still, just by killing one zombie and earning a few survival points, he's already thought this much. He's not simple at all," Li Guodong said, frowning as he watched Tang Cheng's figure darting around the car pile.

"Right, aside from his strange interests and behavior, his analytical skills are indeed impressive," Tang Ya agreed, nodding. "But there's one more thing I'm not sure if he's considered."

"What is it?" Everyone asked.

"This is something Tang Cheng inadvertently reminded me of..." Tang Ya smiled, "He mentioned hunting crawlers and mutated zombies to earn survival points, which is a reasonable guess, but his thinking is a bit too extreme. In fact, we don't necessarily have to kill to gain something."

Seeing everyone still confused, Tang Ya raised a finger, "Everyone has played games, right? Although killing monsters is the most common way for characters to gain benefits in games, it's not the only method. For example, delivering a letter to an NPC or planting flowers can also earn rewards."

"Ah!" Lu Xiaotian exclaimed, his eyes shining. As a宅男 (otaku), he immediately understood what Tang Ya was getting at, and the other three weren't fools either; they also got it.

"Exactly!" Tang Ya nodded, smiling, "In Resident Evil, those important characters can be seen as NPCs. Although the cycle world hasn't given us missions related to them, we can try. For example, finding the doctor's daughter first, or saving the black police officer and the journalist, and of course, the female protagonist Alice... Uh! Alice! Alice?"

Suddenly, Tang Ya's expression became quite strange, as if she had just thought of something.

"Did you think of something else?" Su Xiaoqing asked quickly.

"Yes, Alice! I'm so stupid, I only thought of it now!" As soon as Su Xiaoqing finished speaking, Tang Ya exclaimed loudly and excitedly said to everyone, "We should find Alice right now!"

"What do you mean?" Everyone was confused again. While meeting the plot's female protagonist Alice was a necessary step, it didn't seem urgent.

Tang Ya scratched her head and said urgently, "You've all seen the Resident Evil movie, right? You should remember when the nuclear bomb was dropped, right?"

"I've seen it, but I don't remember the exact time. It was probably around dawn, around 6 or 7 in the morning," Su Xiaoqing answered, then asked, "Why are you asking this?"

"Because the time the nuclear bomb is dropped is a crucial signal for us," Tang Ya explained quickly, "Let's say it's 7 in the morning. Now, think about where the female protagonist Alice was at the beginning of Resident Evil 2. She was still in the hospital, right? When she leaves the hospital and sees the empty streets, it's daytime. Although the exact time isn't specified in the movie, it's definitely later than now!"

"In other words, Alice should still be in the hospital. If we can find her and rescue her, then... I can't guarantee any rewards, but if we can communicate with her, she will likely join us. With Alice's help, our chances of survival will increase significantly," Tang Ya said confidently, "After all, Alice is not only skilled but also has superpowers."

As the saying goes, a word can wake the dreamer. Hearing Tang Ya's words, everyone was filled with surprise and excitement. Su Xiaoqing even hugged her, exclaiming, "Tang Ya, you're amazing! How did you think of this?"

Undoubtedly, this was a shortcut to making the mission easier... as long as nothing went wrong.

"Hey, are you guys still dawdling? I've found a car, let's go," Tang Cheng shouted from a white minivan a few dozen meters away.

Everyone immediately ran over, now full of confidence.

"Who can drive?" Tang Cheng asked as soon as they approached.

"I can't."

"Neither can I."

Zhang Yi and Lu Xiaotian immediately shook their heads. One was a regular college student, and the other was a die-hard otaku; it was expected that they couldn't drive.

"I'll do it," Li Guodong volunteered, opening the driver's door. As a personnel manager, he had a car in real life and obviously knew how to drive. Besides, it wouldn't be right to let the girls drive.

Tang Cheng didn't care who drove as long as someone did. He quickly got into the car and, once the other four were seated, patted the driver's seat and ordered, "First, let's go to the hospital and see if we can find Alice. If we pass by the police station, we can also look for weapons. Let's go."

Hearing this, the other five looked at him in unison.

"Did you hear our conversation just now?" Zhang Yi asked in surprise.

"Do you think I have super hearing?" Tang Cheng shot him a disdainful look, "From that distance, how could I hear? I was looking for a car and singing 'The Most Dazzling National Style' while doing it. Did you hear me?"

...

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