027 Intelligence Updated, The Mutated Dog

Soon, the night passed.

The next day.

Xue Feng lay in bed, slowly opening his eyes.

Last night had truly been extraordinary.

Although he had fought twice during the day, he hadn’t expected Wang Xinyu’s resilience to be so impressive.

She clung to him right after washing up, eager to show off the yoga she’d just learned.

Her petite stature—only 158 centimeters tall—made it easy to lift her…

An Xiaowei and You Haoyun also sensed Wang Xinyu’s growing threat.

Compared to before, they became more assertive.

Had it not been for his newly acquired “indomitable spear,” Xue Feng wasn’t certain he could have withstood them all.

The struggle lasted a full four hours.

By now, Wang Xinyu, You Haoyun, and An Xiaowei were thoroughly exhausted.

The sun was already high in the sky, yet none of them had awakened.

Taking advantage of this lull, Xue Feng checked the freshly updated intelligence.

[1.7261 meters away, at the police station, 34 survivors remain. They possess a small number of firearms and ammunition.]
[Yesterday, this shelter dispatched an expedition team armed with guns and ammo, moving toward the host’s location. Host, proceed with caution.]
[Note: This shelter still has a survivor with awakened abilities, capable of creating food that restores stamina and combat strength. She greatly admires the strong—host may consider displaying strength to recruit her.]
…

Examining the panel before him, Xue Feng raised an eyebrow.

All three pieces of information pertained to the same matter?

And from the intelligence, he could deduce—

At least within Su City, besides his own villa shelter, other survivor groups had established their own forces.

This was a crucial revelation.

In the apocalypse, survivors differed from zombies; they had minds and were driven by interests.

To Xue Feng, it seemed inevitable that he would soon have his first clash with this other shelter.

“It’s best to handle the expedition team first,” he thought, focusing on the second piece of intel.

After all, according to the message, these armed opponents could appear at any moment.

Though he had awakened abilities, bullets would still hurt.

In this world, it was better to avoid injury whenever possible.

With this in mind, Xue Feng looked again at the third piece of intelligence.

“An awakened one…”

The realization that someone else had awakened powers gave him pause.

So Nie Xiaoyue’s prediction was correct?

Moreover, the intelligence suggested this awakened woman was more of a support type—admiring the strong. If possible, he could add her to his team.

Xue Feng mused calmly.

Of course, if she refused to submit, he’d simply kill her.

One could never be too cautious around someone with abilities.

After reviewing all the intelligence—

Xue Feng made a decision.

Today, he would not gather supplies, but instead continue upgrading the shelter.

He would deal with the expedition team first.

With this resolved, Xue Feng got up and roused An Xiaowei, You Haoyun, Wang Xinyu, and Nie Xiaoyue, who was nearby.

“All right, today’s task is to continue upgrading the shelter and strive to finish as soon as possible.”

“Okay,” the four responded groggily.

Though unsure why Xue Feng was so urgent, since he’d spoken, they would follow.

“How far has the shelter’s upgrade progressed?” Xue Feng asked Nie Xiaoyue.

“It’s undergone preliminary upgrades, increasing defense, but there’s still no effective countermeasures,” Nie Xiaoyue replied smoothly.

At the same time, her gaze toward Xue Feng carried a subtle hint.

Last night, she’d listened by the wall.

Hearing the commotion from the four, she couldn’t help but feel stirred.

She’d even dreamt of herself…

Embarrassed by the thought, she dared not meet Xue Feng’s eyes.

After briefly explaining the villa’s current state and analyzing the upgrade goals for today,

Xue Feng spoke calmly: “Let’s improve our countermeasures first. After all, danger can strike at any time—being passive would be unfortunate.”

“Agreed,” Nie Xiaoyue nodded.

Under her direction, the four began upgrading the villa.

Xue Feng still had plenty of materials in his storage space.

Everything was brought out.

The villa, the yard, even the area outside the villa—all were incorporated into their territory.

They laid ground coverings, built walls, and reinforced other structures.

Xue Feng’s task was simply to deal with any zombies drawn by the noise.

He couldn’t have been more comfortable.

“Oh, I haven’t fed the dogs today.”

After dispatching another zombie, Xue Feng remembered—he’d started work so hastily he’d forgotten to feed them.

At that moment, his dogs were diligently standing guard.

Thinking of this, Xue Feng went to the yard and hauled out a heap of food.

“Huh?”

He suddenly noticed something unusual.

The dog that had begun to mutate had changed again.

Its black fur clung tightly, bristling like steel needles.

Its enormous body—Xue Feng estimated that if it stood on its hind legs, it might even be taller than him.

Most striking of all—

Its physique was much stronger.

Even through its fur, Xue Feng could see the powerful muscles.

“My goodness, a bodybuilder dog,” he remarked, patting the creature’s back, which produced a solid thumping sound.

Clearly, the dog’s defense had become formidable.

“Woof—”

Just then, a zombie approached, drawn by the noise.

Xue Feng didn’t act immediately. He considered: “Dog, go!”

He opened the security door.

Hearing Xue Feng’s command, the mutated dog instantly understood, becoming a blur of black shadow that vanished in an instant.

With a thud, it tackled the zombie.

Its massive jaws clamped down, tearing fiercely.

A ripping sound echoed!

The zombie’s head was torn off in one motion.

“Impressive!” Xue Feng exclaimed, startled.

This dog’s combat power now exceeded that of the four women at home!

“Let’s give you a name… How about Black Panther?”

“Woof woof!”

Upon hearing its name, Black Panther excitedly circled Xue Feng’s feet.

“Good boy, Black Panther. From now on, you’re in charge of guarding.”

He handed over two mutated crystals, which Black Panther crunched happily.

Meanwhile—

Xue Feng glanced at the newly appeared panel in his mind:

[Successfully verified intelligence accuracy. Reward received:]
[Host’s agility attribute +3]
…

After a quick look at the panel, Xue Feng surveyed the now-upgraded yard.

“All right, everyone’s worked hard.”

“Let’s eat something, then take a nap. We’ll continue upgrades in the afternoon.”

“Yay!”

The four women, drenched in sweat, readily agreed.

After a simple lunch,

Exhausted from the day’s labor, An Xiaowei and You Haoyun fell asleep as soon as they lay down.

Xue Feng finally enjoyed some leisure, playing chess with dreams.

Unbeknownst to him,

A ten-member expedition team was slowly approaching the villa district.