LOGINBang!Bang!Heavy fire poured down from the helicopter overhead.Fully armed soldiers hung from both sides of the aircraft, bracing themselves as they unleashed a storm of gunfire into the horde below.Boom!A single-operator missile struck dead center into the pyramid of zombies stacked at the northwest corner.The explosion ripped through the middle of the pile. Bodies and limbs flew into the air. The towering mass collapsed with a thunderous crash, and waves of zombies tumbled down from the top in a chaotic cascade.The blast drew the attention of zombies from every direction."Raaah!""Raaah!"They broke off from other areas and charged over without hesitation.The helicopter banked sharply and pulled away, heading about half a mile beyond the base. As it flew, it dropped explosives in steady succession.The rolling blasts echoed across the field, luring the majority of the zombies away to the open plain.Up on the walls, the defenders saw their chance."Now! Pour the
Up to now, the number of high-level zombies Hayley had encountered was extremely small. There were usually fewer than three in one place.Even in Fairfield, where toxic gas had spread everywhere, there hadn't been many level 5 zombies. Most were only level 3 or 4.A place like this…"Alright. I'll go."Hayley was interested now. She wanted to see what kind of place could produce so many high-level zombies.When Alex heard her agree, even he couldn't hide the smile on his usually cold face.The next second, Hayley added, "While I'm gone, write another 100 reports. If even one's missing, I'll deal with you when I get back."Alex froze, completely speechless.Hayley gathered a team and headed out.This time, she brought Leonard and Griffin. She also had Liam send over Derek and a few special ops members under him. That made a team of ten.Thomas stayed behind at the league, sticking close to Ruby at all times.Before leaving, Hayley set Hayz's system to the highest priority lev
The three Ark bases began issuing large amounts of league credit bonds, pouring resources into weapons manufacturing and military equipment.Aside from a small portion of personnel assigned to basic supply work, nearly everyone else shifted into weapons production.At Hayley's docks, small warships rolled out one after another.She had pushed the entire base into a wartime state. Weapons and gear were being produced in massive batches and shipped out nonstop.Her foundation was strong enough to support it.Four years into the apocalypse, most bases still struggled just to feed their people. Meanwhile, Hayley's resources had been doubling year after year.From early survival stockpiling to the surge in supplies after taking over cities, to farmland yields that held steady even through disasters, her reserves had reached a staggering level.One day of production was enough to feed the entire base for a year. Everything beyond that could be poured into expansion.Heavy industry or
"But Ascendant Creed hasn't made a single move so far," Liam said.They had taken down quite a few of the Creed's departments step by step, yet there had been no retaliation.Now, there wasn't even any communication coming from them."I don't think they're afraid of us," Hayley let out a slow breath, her eyes lifting to the dark sky. "I think they just don't see us as worth their attention."Liam inhaled sharply.Not worth their attention…Haylight League was already the strongest base in the world, and still, Ascendant Creed didn't even take them seriously?They stepped onto a brightly lit street. It was already December, but the streets were still lively, filled with a bustling market."Ms. Reid!"A girl around ten years old spotted Hayley and ran over, beaming with excitement.Hayley looked at her, taking a few seconds to recognize her. "Cloudia?""Yep!" Cloudia grinned as she stood beside her. "I haven't seen you in forever, Ms. Reid!""Yeah, it's been a while. I still
"Hey, there."Hayley greeted him as she walked in, carrying two boxes of cookies.Samuel's face lit up the moment he saw the cookies. "You came, and that's enough. You didn't have to bring anything.""You've got a soft spot for these," Hayley said. "I don't come by often, so I figured I should make you happy."Samuel laughed even harder. "How did you turn out so well? If your useless brother had even half your sense, I wouldn't have to worry so much!"As he spoke, he shot Liam a sharp look.Liam stood there looking completely subdued, as if he had just been scolded."What happened to him?""What else? I'm worried about his future! He's 28, pushing 30, and still single. He's trying to make sure I never get any peace.""You should relax a little. This kind of thing depends on the right timing. You can't rush it." Hayley spoke up for Liam.Samuel looked at her. "I'm not rushing, I'm frustrated. This boy of mine is a brick wall. He has feelings for someone, but he won't say a wor
Kyle didn't think he could protect Ruby, so he chose to divorce her. Hayley didn't know why it had come to that, but there had to be a reason.After hearing everything Hayley said, Ruby froze in place, as if she had been struck by lightning.A long moment passed.Suddenly, she burst out laughing. Her eyes lit up, bright and alive. "I knew it!""Aunt Ruby…""Hah! I knew it. With my charm, there's no way that idiot would just walk away from me for no reason!"Hayley opened her mouth and then gave up, not sure what to say. Watching Ruby come back to life like this, she couldn't help but smile. "Yeah, you've got unmatched charm. So… Are you going to give someone new a chance and start a new chapter?"Ruby turned to look at her. "Who is it this time? Which poor guy just walked right into my trap?"Hayley paused, speechless for a second.Before she could answer, Ruby waved it off. "Forget it. Doesn't matter who it is. I'm not interested. After the divorce, I'm done with all that.
Liam and Kit's group dug nonstop through the entire night and managed to clear about 65 feet.The physical effort itself was brutal but manageable. The real problem was that they only had three bottles of water. By the next day, all three bottles were gone.Liam couldn't stop it even if he wante
Holding out for another minute or two wasn't going to change their fate.And then, they saw it. The metal spikes anchoring the wall were starting to loosen. Their massive wire net was on the verge of collapse.With a sharp snap, the first steel spike flew loose, and an entire cable tore apart. O
Liam's team threw open the gate. Nobody used guns. They switched to blades and abilities, moving fast and staying quiet. Within ten minutes, every zombie in the area was down.Everyone rushed back to their vehicles and pulled out.Milo left as well, carrying the battery-powered radio Hayley had
This was the first time Hayley had ever talked to Thomas, and she honestly didn't expect that he didn't smoke at all.Everything she knew about him came from what people in the base said. They claimed Thomas had gotten into trouble as a teenager and spent years in a juvenile facility. After he go







