Chapter 179: Falling Out

Chapter 179: Chapter 179: Falling Out

Before he could even finish his sentence, a dull THUD rang out. Lauren Grant was kicked so hard he went flying, slamming heavily into the military off-road vehicle next to them with a muffled BANG. The agonizing pain caused him to curl up into a ball.

Immediately after, a heavy military combat boot stomped on the back of his neck, pressing down with crushing force. His entire face was shoved into the freezing snow, burying his nose and mouth so he couldn’t make a single sound.

It was Kyle Keith.

"What an absolute idiot!" Kyle thought. He had told Lauren to keep an eye on Susan Vaughn, but instead, the fool had actually let that woman brainwash him!

Without saying a word, Kyle calmly and indifferently kept his foot pinned firmly against Lauren’s head.

Lauren seemed to have more to say. He struggled violently beneath Kyle’s boot, his legs kicking wildly and striking the side of the off-road vehicle with a series of dull THUMPS. His hands flailed backward, helplessly beating against Kyle’s shoe. Arching his back, he flopped around in a futile effort, looking exactly like a suffocating fish out of water.

Kyle waited until Lauren’s struggles gradually weakened and his body finally went limp. Only then did he slowly draw the military dagger from his waist and, without a moment’s hesitation, plunge it straight into the back of Lauren’s head.

On the other side, Susan had already collapsed to the ground in a panic. Tears streamed down her face, making her look the absolute picture of innocence.

"Nonsense! He’s talking nonsense! He took the gun himself! This has nothing to do with me!"

Her eyes widened as she watched Kyle dispatch Lauren so decisively. Terrified, she sobbed and whimpered her explanation, truly acting like an innocent bystander whom Lauren had dragged down with him.

Everyone in the Sunset Squad immediately stopped their attacks on the zombies and gathered around Luna Dawson. Forming a tight circle, they locked cold, hard stares on every single member of the Endless Squad. The murderous aura radiating from them skyrocketed, making it seem as if they might charge forward and slaughter the entire Endless Squad in the very next second.

Kyle shot a vicious glare at Susan on the ground, his eyes brimming with fury.

"Stupid woman!" he cursed inwardly. "All she knows is how to cause trouble!"

The members of the Endless Squad instantly felt the overwhelming killing intent crashing over them. They quickly rallied around Kyle, forming a standoff against the Sunset Squad.

Kyle knew exactly what he had to do. Right now, he needed to de-escalate the situation to the best of his ability and try to save Susan’s life. This woman, with her unique superpower, was absolutely critical to his plans to secure decision-making power over the base’s affairs!

Little Sweet Potato quickly scurried back to Luna’s side. Its little vines nimbly plucked off all the Evolution Fruits it had just grown—seven fruits that had taken immense effort to produce—and tried to stuff them into Luna’s mouth one by one.

Luna pressed her lips tightly together. Though she was weak, she still managed to tease, "Are you trying to choke me to death?"

His eyes red, Kevin Keane dropped to his knees in front of Luna. With trembling hands, he pulled out the Spiritual Spring Water Bottle he always carried and carefully fed her a sip of spirit spring water.

As Rhonda Dawson continuously channeled her superpower into her, Luna’s complexion gradually improved.

"What happened?!" Francis Grant came sprinting over, gasping for breath.

He had just heard through his earpiece that Luna had been shot by one of their own. His heart had instantly sunk like a stone. After quickly delegating Dylan DuPont to command the others and clean up the battlefield, Francis had rushed over without a second’s delay.

Enduring the sharp, piercing pain in her head, Luna forcefully pushed herself to her feet. There was no trace of anger or indignation in her eyes—only a look of bloodthirsty, unhinged madness!

She figured she just had bad luck running into a Fourth Rank Spirit zombie, but that bitch Susan had certainly picked the perfect moment to strike.

Ignoring Francis’s question, Luna raised her hand and pushed past the people standing in front of her. At the flick of her finger, Little Sweet Potato immediately understood her command. Countless vines shot out at lightning speed, tightly binding everyone in the Endless Squad and hoisting them into the air.

Suspended high above the ground, the members of the Endless Squad were wide-eyed with terror.

Wendy Stone screamed in her head, "That wretched woman! It’s one thing if she wants to get herself killed, but dragging the whole squad down with her?!"

The vines had spared only Kyle and Susan, who was cowering behind him.

A cold smile tugged at the corner of Luna’s mouth. Perfect. She had been looking for an opportunity to get rid of Susan, and she hadn’t expected the woman to lose her patience so quickly. Since Susan had brought this upon herself, Luna was going to rip her apart for all to see right here and now!

Rollo and Little Tiger crouched beside Luna, their fur standing on end as they let out deep, menacing growls. They glared intensely at the opposing Endless Squad, issuing the most direct warning possible.

Francis learned the full story from the captain of the neighboring Gemstone Squad. While the Sunset Squad was fully occupied fighting a Fourth-tier Spiritual Body zombie, Lauren had actually shot Luna in the back!

Luna locked her gaze onto Susan on the ground. Immediately, Little Sweet Potato whipped out a thick vine, wrapping it securely around Susan’s neck and lifting her high into the air.

"You really don’t disappoint, do you?"

Luna’s voice was bone-chillingly cold, devoid of the slightest hint of warmth.

Seeing the all-consuming killing intent in Luna’s eyes, Susan was so terrified that she burst into a messy fit of sobbing, her entire body shaking uncontrollably.

To think this woman could subdue the entire Endless Squad with a single plant—she was an absolute monster!

"Captain Kessler! Save me!"

As the vine tightened its grip, Susan’s face gradually turned a dark, purplish hue, and she struggled desperately for air.

Kyle’s face looked as grim as death. He knew full well that going head-to-head with Luna right now would only result in the complete annihilation of the Endless Squad.

"Captain Dawson..."

Kyle had barely opened his mouth when Luna’s icy voice cut him off.

"Protect her, and you all die."

Luna’s tone was as casual as if she were asking if he wanted to grab lunch, yet Kyle felt her killing intent envelop him like countless dense, sharp spikes, making it hard for him to even breathe.

Behind his gold-rimmed glasses, his pupils shrank slightly. He thought, "So be it..."

With that, he slowly took a step back.

The moment Kyle stepped back, the suspended members of the Endless Squad were all dropped to the ground. They gasped heavily for air, their faces filled with the immense relief of having narrowly escaped death.

"I’m... I’m sorry... I didn’t... mean to... Captain... Captain Dawson, please... spare me..."

Susan begged for her life from the very brink of suffocation, her heart utterly consumed by regret.

She had been too hasty; she shouldn’t have blatantly provoked this woman! She had bet that Kyle would protect her, especially since her superpower could help the Kessler Family take control of the entire base and secure everyone’s support for the Kessler Family!

Why? She merely wanted to eliminate Luna, that stumbling block in her path. Why did she have to fail right here and now?

She had used the exact same method to get rid of so many people who stood in her way before, and she had never failed!

The twenty members of the Gemstone Squad and several military soldiers happened to be following right behind the Sunset Squad’s RV. They had witnessed almost the entire sequence of events.

Everyone felt that Lauren’s death was well-deserved, and that Susan deserved a thousand deaths!

The Sunset Squad had been risking their lives on the front lines to slaughter zombies, yet these two had chosen to shoot them in the back!

If you had to constantly guard against your "own people" during a battle, then such traitors didn’t deserve to live!

"Even praying to the gods won’t save you!" Miles Dawson roared. His eyes were heavily bloodshot from sheer, unadulterated fury, making him look exceptionally terrifying.

Noticing that Susan was on the verge of passing out, Little Sweet Potato abruptly loosened the vine and violently hurled her onto the snow.

Kevin Keane, Evan Olson, and Aaron Palmer immediately tried to charge forward, but Luna threw her arm out to stop them.

She was going to deal with this herself.

Luna walked toward Susan step by step, the madness in her eyes growing more intense with every second. She raised her leg and kicked Susan squarely in the chest with every ounce of strength in her body.

With a resounding BANG, the sheer force of the impact sent Susan hurtling into the Endless Squad’s military off-road vehicle.

The moment her back slammed against the cold metal exterior, a screech of twisting metal erupted. The massive kinetic force caved in the previously pristine car door, covering its surface in a dense web of jagged creases that looked like crumpled tinfoil!

The entire chassis of the car was warped by the deep indentation, showing just how terrifyingly powerful that kick had been!

The sickening sound of bones shattering was loud and clear. Susan spat out a massive mouthful of blood and collapsed in front of the tire like a broken ragdoll, unable to get back up.