Melbourne's new order

The new regulations issued by the command centre proved effective, but they also increased the workload and time required for rescue teams, causing a sharp rise in the risks they faced.

Finally, on October 3, the central government broadcast an action plan via satellite, introducing a system of urban district management and organised rescue operations.

The following day, Melbourne's authorities announced the implementation of the new system, dividing the city into five areas.

Four were designated as control zones: east, west, south and north. The fifth was a central rescue command centre that also served as a supply depot, located between the four zones.

The area where Liam Bennett and his group lived was designated as the West Zone. It included their residential complex, Harmony Court, and nearly ten other nearby communities of various sizes. Together, they would form the West Zone survivor settlement.

The settlement command post was established on the ground floor of the property management office in Building One of Harmony Court. The second and third floors were converted into storage areas for the settlement's supplies.

As soon as the district management plan was announced, rescue teams across Melbourne mobilised. Residential complexes designated as settlements were enclosed with chain link fencing, which served as boundaries and temporary barriers.

After receiving their assignments, Jack Sullivan and the others left home and didn't return for several days.

During this period, the team members, who had been trained to endure intense physical and mental pressure, began awakening Superpowers one after another.

Hannah Walsh was the first. She awakened the ability to manipulate plants, a power that was equally useful for attacking enemies and defending herself.

Next was the deputy team leader, Ethan Parker, who awakened metal manipulation. Like Hannah's ability, it could be used for both offence and defence, but it had greater destructive potential.

Oliver Brooks followed, gaining enhanced vision, commonly known as eagle vision. It was practically a gift for a sniper.

Noah Wilson awakened enhanced physical abilities.

Lucas Bennett gained ice manipulation, an elemental ability with excellent control potential.

Mason Clarke also awakened an elemental ability, gaining control over earth. His power was primarily defensive.

Ryan Murphy, on the other hand, awakened a rare and mysterious psychic ability.

According to the official classification system, psychic ability users were collectively known as Dreamweavers.

However, Dreamweavers possessed different kinds of powers. Some could launch direct psychic attacks, while others relied on indirect mental manipulation.

Ryan's specific ability was called Mirage. He could create illusions.

When Liam learned that the entire team had awakened Superpowers, he was overjoyed. He couldn't stop grinning.

He was certain this was the heavens compensating them for everything they had suffered in their previous lives!

With everyone gaining abilities, the team's combat strength improved dramatically. Their powers also complemented one another, making the squad much more balanced.

Of course, Jack immediately instructed everyone not to reveal their abilities in front of outsiders unless absolutely necessary.

Noah's enhanced physical abilities were still in the early stages and weren't obvious to casual observers. Oliver's eagle vision and Ryan's psychic ability were also relatively easy to conceal.

As far as outsiders knew, only four members of the squad possessed Superpowers: Jack, Hannah, Lucas and Ethan.

With so many unknowns in the apocalypse, keeping some abilities hidden was always the wiser choice.

Even so, an eight man team with four people capable of launching powerful attacks was enough to intimidate others. Their strength earned them admiration even from the officials.

Some people suggested transferring members of Jack's team to other squads that lacked Superpowered individuals.

Jack firmly refused.

Working alongside strangers could sometimes be more dangerous than fighting zombies. He would rather keep his people together than expose them to unnecessary risks.

Chapter 2: The West Zone

The person in charge of the West Zone was a career military officer named Captain Mark Thompson, a forty five year old man who had not awakened any abilities.

He was tall and burly, with an imposing presence. Decisive and firm, he handled matters efficiently and never wasted time once he had made a decision.

Perhaps because of the strain of the apocalypse, he looked considerably older than his actual age.

Mark treated Jack with respect and cooperated closely with him. To some extent, he even relied on Jack's judgement.

After all, Jack had proposed both the system for checking on survivors behind locked doors and the district management plan. In Mark's opinion, both measures had produced excellent results.

Therefore, even when others suggested transferring Jack's team members to squads without Superpowers, Mark merely asked Jack for his opinion instead of forcing the issue.

More and more survivors were being transferred into Harmony Court. Unfortunately, a growing population also meant an increased risk of zombies appearing.

The rescue procedures were not yet fully established, and the authorities could not thoroughly check every new arrival. Some infected people even lied about their condition, creating enormous risks for everyone around them.

Because of this, even when Jack wasn't home, he reminded Liam every day not to go outside, not to satisfy his curiosity and, above all, not to let sympathy cloud his judgement.

Besides, the new arrivals wouldn't come all the way up to the tenth floor to bother them.

Liam wasn't the sort to go looking for trouble. Having already died once, he understood the importance of protecting himself.

Whatever else happened, he absolutely refused to fall into the trap of trying to save everyone out of misplaced kindness!

Chapter 3: Some People Couldn't Be Saved

On October 12, after nearly ten days of intense fighting, the district lockdowns finally entered a stable phase, and the transfer of survivors began proceeding more smoothly.

However, official statistics showed that only slightly more than half of the survivors in each district were willing to relocate.

Just as Liam and the others had expected, most of those who agreed to move were people who had run short of supplies.

Those who refused had endless excuses.

Some had plenty of supplies and didn't want to reveal what they possessed, yet they still expected the authorities to continue protecting and supporting them.

Others had supplies and family members who had awakened Superpowers. Convinced they could protect themselves, they preferred to remain where they were until the rescue base was completed.

Some made unreasonable demands that the authorities couldn't possibly satisfy. When their requests were rejected, they refused to relocate and tried to guilt trip the rescue teams.

Others couldn't bear to leave their homes. They insisted that their own residences be turned into shelters or demanded that the government assign Superpowered individuals to protect them personally.

The chaos revealed just how unequal human nature could be, as well as how bottomless people's greed could become.

"Have they lost their minds? Can't they see what's happening around them?"

"Try staying alive first before making all these demands, you picky bastards!"

As Liam read the messages Jack sent him, he couldn't help venting his frustration.

He simply couldn't understand why so many people were still being so damn picky at a time like this.

Surviving the apocalypse was already difficult enough, yet these people still dared to make unreasonable demands. What did they think the rescue teams were? Delivery drivers who would bring everything straight to their doors?

Honestly, you couldn't save people who were determined to get themselves killed.

Sometimes, all you could do was respect their fate.

Of course, choosing suitable locations for survivor shelters wasn't simply a matter of considering geography and zombie numbers. The influence and capabilities of the rescue team members also played an important role.

Although designating Harmony Court as a shelter made sense, it wasn't necessarily the best possible choice.

Much of its success depended on Jack's team, which was led by a rare individual with two elemental abilities.

Now that outsiders had begun to suspect that three more powerful individuals had awakened abilities within the squad, Jack's authority as captain had risen considerably.

He was even beginning to enter Melbourne's core rescue leadership, participating directly in mission planning and major decisions.

Constant combat had also pushed Jack's abilities to the intermediate level. A power core was beginning to form within him, and the range and strength of his attacks had increased dramatically.

Wherever his lightning and flames struck, zombies were reduced to ashes.

Liam couldn't help comparing Jack's progress with his own experience from his previous life.

Back then, even with the help of performance enhancing drugs, it had taken Liam more than a year to develop a power core.

Jack's progress was astonishing.

On October 12, Liam sent Jack a message warning him that hailstorms would begin on October 15, followed by snowfall and then a period of extreme cold.

He urged Jack and the others to prepare in advance and return home as soon as possible.

For several days, the weather had been behaving strangely. Temperatures fluctuated wildly, with scorching heat at noon and bitter cold in the mornings and evenings.

When Jack raised concerns about the abnormal weather and the need to prepare for the coming cold with Mark, the authorities immediately began drawing up emergency plans.

After experiencing the deadly toxic rain, nobody was willing to take unusual weather patterns lightly anymore.

On October 14, the team, which had spent more than ten days continuously carrying out rescue missions, finally returned home.

They were exhausted, visibly thinner and covered in scruffy beards. The once stylish men and handsome young men now looked like a group of ragged survivors, with an unpleasant smell clinging to their clothes and bodies.

Only after taking thorough showers, eating a proper meal and getting a long night's sleep did they finally begin to feel like themselves again.