Crossing the wilderness to survive, starting with a broken kitchen knife.

Zhang Shi and his three companions witnessed the power of the cannon with their own eyes and were very satisfied with this powerful weapon.

"Very good. Gong Yi, inform all engineers that they can temporarily put aside their current work and focus on building a cannon."

Gong Yi responded and slowly retreated.

Zhang Shi looked at the gradually darkening sky and temporarily stopped the soldiers' work. In the wilderness, a fishy wind appeared out of nowhere, irritating Zhang Shi's nostrils, making him feel that there might be another difficult battle tonight.

Zhang Shi turned around and instructed Zhang Dazhuang.

"Inform all assault troops to retreat to the shelter, temporarily put aside their work, and recuperate."

Afterwards, he went to the cafeteria to ask Xiaomei.

"How's the dinner preparation going?"

Xiaomei and several support soldiers were guarding three large iron pots in which mutton soup was cooking. The rich aroma of meat could be smelled from afar.

"Report to the Lord, everything is ready and the meal can be served on time."

Zhang Shi nodded, and seeing that everything was arranged properly, he turned around and returned to the fortress.

The four of them sat on the sofa in the living room, staring at each other. Although they were a little hungry, they all tacitly agreed not to eat. They all had a premonition that there might be another zombie wave tonight, so they all saved their stomachs to drink potions and eat special food.

"I used to hear people say that wars are fought with resources, but now I have to add that it's also fought with stomachs."

Zhao Feng rubbed his forehead and smiled helplessly. Their current stats weren't weak, but facing the onslaught of the zombie horde, they would still be exhausted. If they didn't frantically replenish their energy, they would become exhausted.

Wu Qing stroked the small wooden sculpture of Shennongjia in her hand and comforted it with a smile.

"Those who endure the most hardships become the best. Didn't everyone gain a lot of experience? This is much more suitable than risking our lives to complete a dungeon."

Speaking of the copy, Zhang Shi thought of Huojia Village again. Thinking of all the strange experiences there, Zhang Shi always felt his scalp tingling, as if he was being manipulated like a puppet, caught in one arranged coincidence after another.

……

As night falls, the blood moon appears on time.

The soldiers had been mentally prepared for a long time. They stood on the wall in high spirits, staring at the direction of the dense forest.

A moment later, a blood-red claw tore through the bushes, and a bloody head emerged from the woods, sniffing forward like a wild beast.

As if it smelled something that interested it, its expression immediately became ferocious, and it raised its head and roared towards the blood moon.

The roar alarmed more zombies.

Soon, more and more zombies emerged from the dense forest as if they were living people, and soon gathered into a tide of zombies.

The zombies had a keen sense of smell and smelled the human scent, rushing towards the shelter like crazy.

A small river ran across the plain, stopping the zombies rushing in front. The frantic zombies seemed to regain their sanity upon seeing the river, stopping and wandering along the riverbank.

The zombies gathered in ever-increasing numbers, overwhelming the riverbank. Soon, many of the zombies in the front row were pushed into the river, their flesh dissolving in the surging current, leaving them as skeletons at the bottom. Attracted by the human scent, the zombies in the back row continued to charge forward, forcing more and more into the river. In a moment, the entire river was filled with zombie flesh and blood, turning it into a dark red river of blood.

Seeing that the time was ripe, Zhang Shi shouted loudly.

"fire!"

With a loud "bang", the two cannons fired almost at the same time.

Seconds later, the shells landed among the corpses and exploded, the powerful impact sending bloody remains of flesh and limbs flying into the air. The impact of the two shells created a vacuum zone, and the blood mist dispersed with the wind, leaving nothing in that area except some broken bones.

"Great! I'll blow you to death!"

After seeing the power of the cannon, Zhao Feng jumped up excitedly and started loading the ammunition himself.

After a round of bombardment, the number of zombies decreased significantly. Stimulated by the sound of the artillery fire, the zombies became even more frantic and began to sprint towards the shelter recklessly.

More zombies sank into the river. Over time, the blood, flesh and bones blocked the river. The zombies used the bones to build a floating bridge.

Seeing the zombies continue to approach the shelter, Zhang Shi's expression became solemn. He tried to bombard the pontoon bridge, but it backfired and blasted countless gaps in the river bank, causing the river to change course and making it easier for the zombies to move forward.

Zhang Shi sighed. He knew that long-range bombardment from artillery alone could not effectively stop this tide of immortality. The next battle would be a double test of their defense system and the soldiers' fighting will.

"Guards, prepare to fight!"

Zhang Shi stood on the wall and issued orders to the entire army. At the same time, he took out his compound bow and aimed at a zombie that was attacking the chevaux de frise.

As the zombie horde drew closer, the air was filled with a thick, nauseating smell of blood and decay. The soldiers gripped their weapons tightly, their eyes determined, knowing that this was their last line of defense to protect their homeland.

"Release!" With a single command, dozens of archers sprang into action, raining down dense arrows on the zombie horde, slowing their advance. Then, trebuchets joined the fray, hurling heavy rocks and Molotov cocktails precisely into the zombie-heavy areas, unleashing chaos and explosions.

However, the zombies were still numerous, and they seemed tireless and insensitive to pain, charging forward blindly. As the first wave of zombies broke through the defenses, the battle situation turned into a scene similar to last night.

However, the pressure tonight was obviously much smaller. The tide of zombies was blocked by a series of barriers, and their number was greatly reduced. Everyone in the shelter seemed to be able to cope with it with ease.

The battle raged into the night. Under the crimson moonlight, the battlefield outside the fortress was ablaze with flames and blood. Although the number of zombies was decreasing, the soldiers' strength was also depleting. By the end, exhaustion was written all over their faces.

After an unknown amount of time, the blood moon faded. When the bright white moonlight pierced through the clouds, illuminating the war-torn land, the zombie horde had completely dispersed, with only a few scattered members wandering in the distance. Inside the shelter, the soldiers cheered, celebrating their hard-earned victory.

Zhang Shi took out a bottle of purified water and drank it all. He clenched his fists which were shaking from exerting too much force, and took a few deep breaths, which brought his heart rate down.

A moment later, the system cleaned up the battlefield as usual. All the corpses disappeared, and even the small river that was diverted by the artillery fire returned to its original state.

Dense rays of light descended, and everyone in the shelter once again gained a great deal of experience. With the blessing of his scholar talent, Zhang Shi advanced two levels, reaching level 15.

System prompt: Congratulations on reaching level 15 and unlocking the job transfer system. Please complete the job transfer as soon as possible.