Chapter 22 : Stealth is the Kingly Strategy for Apocalypse Survival!

Once the plan was finalized,

The two of them went to the monitoring computer inside the laboratory.

Christine swiftly entered a string of passwords, unlocking the entire hospital’s surveillance system.

Countless camera feeds sprawled across the computer screen!

Just as Christine had said—

Most of the surveillance footage was now just static.

Only a few functioning feeds remained.

Li Yiming did a quick count.

On the first floor, only the pharmacy and the main lobby still had intact surveillance.

On the second floor, all cameras were fully operational.

The third floor had coverage only in front of the Internal Medicine outpatient clinic.

As for the fourth floor, fifth floor, and the rooftop, their systems were completely destroyed—just a blizzard of static.

“Let’s check the second-floor footage. I remember my hand got severed there,”

Li Yiming said in a low voice.

Christine tapped a few shortcut keys on the keyboard, pulling up the second-floor feed in full screen.

The first feed shown was of the eastern stairwell on the second floor.

There was nothing unusual in the footage.

The only thing worth noting was a long trail of blood left on the stairs.

That was likely from when Li Yiming had been chased by the Lickers.

“I think that’s where I lost my hand.”

“Try a different camera—the box should be nearby,”

With Li Yiming’s guidance, Christine cycled through the camera angles.

After several switches, they finally located the box in front of the Pediatrics Clinic on the second floor.

“Damn, it got blown that far and doesn’t even have a scratch?”

Li Yiming looked at the box lying quietly on the floor, full of emotion.

“Don’t underestimate Umbrella Corporation’s tech,”

Christine replied, a bit smug.

Now that the box had been located,

Both of them felt significantly more at ease.

Next, they needed to locate the Lickers.

If the timing was right, Li Yiming was ready to set off immediately.

“Let me see where those bastards ran off to…”

Li Yiming’s gaze sharpened as he scanned the remaining surveillance feeds for signs of the Lickers.

Before long, he spotted one in front of the Internal Medicine Clinic on the third floor.

At that moment, it was lying in front of the lab entrance.

Its head was bobbing slightly—as if dozing off.

But the moment there was even the slightest movement nearby,

The Licker would instantly jerk its head up and look around alertly!

“This thing… it’s standing guard, keeping watch on us…”

Christine’s expression turned grim.

She truly hadn’t expected it—

The Lickers’ hunting intelligence had evolved to this degree.

They had clearly formed a well-organized, specialized group!

Christine continued switching through the camera feeds.

Finally, in the first floor lobby camera,

The two of them spotted the remaining Lickers.

They were currently gathered around the nurse consultation desk.

“Can this camera zoom in a bit more?”

Li Yiming frowned as he stared at the footage on the monitor.

At that moment, Christine was also curious about what the Lickers were up to.

She scrolled the mouse wheel to zoom in on the camera feed.

And once they saw clearly what the Lickers were doing—

Both Li Yiming and Christine gasped in shock!

What they saw was this:

The largest and strongest Licker was devouring the remains of the Licker that Li Yiming had previously blown to pieces!

The other Lickers were gathered around it, salivating as they watched their leader feast!

“Damn, this bastard…”

Li Yiming’s brow furrowed deeply.

According to the comic’s lore, The way infected creatures grew stronger was by consuming the flesh and blood of stronger beings!

Li Yiming couldn’t help but feel a sense of relief.

Fortunately, he had been careful enough to retrieve the zombie crystal core.

If he had left the core behind for that Licker to absorb…

He and Christine would probably be trapped in the lab for the rest of their lives.

“What do you think? Any ideas?”

Christine looked toward the frowning Li Yiming.

A Licker was standing right outside the lab entrance.

If Li Yiming stepped out now, his presence would be instantly exposed!

The situation could only be described as hell-level difficulty.

Li Yiming stayed silent for a while.

Eventually, his furrowed brow relaxed.

That confident look, as if everything was under control, returned to his face.

He glanced at the clock hanging on the wall of the lab and spoke slowly.

“It’s now 3:40 PM.”

“We’ll move at 5:30 PM.”

“Once we’re out, use your ice ability to lock it down for me.”

“I’ll take it out before it can raise an alarm.”

“If it does manage to scream, we retreat back into the lab before the other Lickers arrive.”

“If I succeed, you return to the lab while I continue stealthily toward the second floor.”

“Once you’re back, monitor the feeds and send me the Lickers’ real-time locations via phone.”

“With your intel, my odds of moving undetected will rise significantly.”

“How about it?”

Leaning against the table, Li Yiming looked to Christine for her input.

Christine thought about it for a moment, then slowly nodded.

Analyzing it rationally— Li Yiming’s plan had a very high chance of success!

As night approached, zombies would grow more active.

But much like humans before pulling an all-nighter,Dusk was the time when zombies were at their weakest and least alert.

Acting during this window—combined with her remote support via surveillance—

In Christine’s view, the plan’s success rate was high enough to be worth the gamble!

“Let’s do it.”

“Even if it fails, you’ll be able to retreat right away.”

Christine gave her black-stocking-clad leg a crisp slap, locking the plan in.

Once everything was settled, she stood up and stretched.

There was still a bit of time before 5:30 PM.

She wanted to use that time to craft a T-virus detection device for Li Yiming.

Meanwhile, Li Yiming found a comfortable spot, sat cross-legged, and began to meditate.

While absorbing the crystal core, he also closed his eyes to rest.

Looking at the zombie crystal core—once the size of a pigeon egg—now significantly smaller, Li Yiming sighed.

His power was still far too weak.

In the early chapters of the comic, absorbing a zombie core required finding a secluded place and sitting for half a day.

But in the later stages, absorbing a low-tier crystal core was as casual as crushing it in one hand.

Staring at the crystal in his palm, Li Yiming let out a long sigh.

“Sorry, Xiaoyao… things aren’t going as smoothly as I thought.”

“You’ll have to wait a little longer…”

After apologizing to his sister Li Xiaoyao, far away from him now, Li Yiming cleared his mind, brought his hands together, and clutched the crystal core between his palms.

Focusing fully—The rate at which the core was absorbed accelerated sharply!