It was clear that they had prepared this batch of cheap algae sticks in advance, specifically to deal with people like them who had successfully entered the defensive line.

This deliberate obstruction was undoubtedly intentional.

The goal was to make these survivors understand that entering Zhongzhou was by no means easy.

Sure enough, upon hearing that they would be eating algae sticks, the group even looked on with anticipation and stopped mentioning the promise.

The captain, arms still crossed, coldly observed the crowd and added:

"But let me make this clear: starting tomorrow, if you want to continue getting food, you'll have to work hard."

He paused, then added:

"As for the work to be done... let's start with the task of repairing the Great Wall."

The crowd fell silent upon hearing this, their hearts filled with mixed emotions.

Faced with the harsh realities of life, they ultimately chose to accept their fate.

At least for now, they have a temporary place to stay and food.

Even just barely surviving for a while is better than wandering and starving outside the Great Wall.

After a brief silence, everyone lowered their heads and silently accepted the captain's harsh conditions.

The captain then methodically directed his soldiers to register each person entering the Great Wall.

They also very thoughtfully tested each of their potentials.

After arranging everyone in the crowd, the team leader finally remembered the important matter at hand.

He asked the soldier with a serious expression:

"Has the body of Officer Zhou Xiaopeng been found?"

The soldier quickly stood at attention and respectfully replied:

"Reporting, Captain, we have found Officer Zhou Xiaopeng's body at the breach in the Great Wall, but..."

At this point, the soldier hesitated slightly.

"explain."

"Judging from the situation at the scene, Officer Zhou Xiaopeng should have been dead for a long time," the soldier hurriedly replied.

Upon hearing the news that Officer Zhou Xiaopeng had died, the captain's expression remained unchanged.

He had long anticipated that Zhou Xiaopeng was dead; otherwise, his superiors wouldn't have ordered him to conduct a thorough search of the body.

After a long silence, the captain finally spoke slowly:

"Immediately place Zhou Xiaopeng's body in a crystal coffin for protection. The Zhou family has already dispatched a special team to thoroughly investigate this matter."

"Yes, sir." The soldier acknowledged the order and left.

The captain stood at the foot of the Great Wall, muttering to himself:

"They even dared to kill General Zhou Zhenbei's son. Who on earth is so blind?"

Even he, a mere team leader, knew Zhou Xiaopeng's name.

Moreover, Zhou Xiaopeng always acts arrogantly and domineeringly wherever he goes, as if he's afraid others won't know he has powerful connections.

It seems that playing dumb to outsmart others is his favorite thing to do.

As he pondered this, the captain shook his head.

'This Zhou Xiaopeng is really courting death. He deliberately moved the bodyguards that the Zhou family specially assigned to him away from his side, as if he were intentionally seeking some kind of thrill.'

Even those from the Eternal Flame Alliance outside the defensive line would likely be wary of Zhou Xiaopeng's name.

Although with his prominent status, no one would dare to easily attack him with just a few words of threat, there are always exceptions.

This is precisely why the tragedy has occurred.

"What an idiot," the captain couldn't help but curse inwardly.

If he had powerful bodyguards, he would definitely have them by his side at all times.

How could anyone be as foolish as Zhou Xiaopeng, who even transferred his own bodyguards away?

No one expected that someone would be so audacious as to attack Zhou Xiaopeng.

Clearly, Zhou Xiaopeng is stubborn and has met his match – a tough nut to crack.

"Why."

Thinking of this, the squad leader sighed helplessly:

"I'm afraid the Central Plains are about to change again."

......

As night fell, a light drizzle began to fall.

The members of the Seventh Regiment were setting up camp and resting in a high-lying area.

After a short rest, Li Yu finally recovered.

His vortex was also slowly absorbing the surrounding energy, and the arrows in his quiver were slowly replenishing.

Just then, Ma Yuanbai, with a solemn expression, quietly walked to Li Yu's side and sat down.

He lowered his voice and said to Li Yu:

"Li Yu, we've seen quite a few corpses along the way today!"

A hint of worry flashed in Ma Yuanbai's eyes. He paused, then continued to remind him:

"We still need to be careful; I'm afraid Zhongzhou might not be what I imagined."

Since stepping into the Central Plains defense line, Ma Yuanbai has noticed that something is wrong.

The sight of numerous corpses along the way was completely unexpected.

Moreover, according to Ma Yuanbai's careful observation, these corpses had no external injuries. Instead, they were all emaciated and pale, and looked as if they had all starved to death.

Ma Yuanbai found it unbelievable, but it was completely illogical. How could someone starve to death in Zhongzhou?

Based on his past knowledge, Zhongzhou had always been a prosperous and wealthy place, and it even provided food for free, so there shouldn't be any cases of people starving to death.

This was clearly completely different from the Central Plains he knew.

But the facts were right in front of him, leaving him completely baffled.

Just as the two were deep in thought, a white figure suddenly flashed across the pitch-black night in the distance, like a ghost.

What followed was a chilling aura and a deep-seated hatred, which was terrifying.

The entire group was suddenly enveloped in an eerie atmosphere.

"Something's approaching! Everyone be careful!" the lookout shouted in alarm.

His eyes widened as he stared intently ahead.

No matter how hard he tried, he couldn't make out what that white figure, drifting in the rain, was.

Sometimes it is clearly visible, and sometimes it disappears without a trace.

"Could it be something strange again?" the refugees wondered.

Some of the bolder refugees threw stones at the white figure, but they all passed right through him.

Everyone could see white shadows, but they didn't seem to be in the same spacetime dimension.

Just then, the white figure seemed to sense the presence of a large number of living people.

A ghostly green phosphorescent flame suddenly ignited in its empty eye sockets, and it floated and pounced towards the crowd.

"It's a ghost!"

Li Yu sensed a familiar, cold aura and instantly looked at the ghost not far away.

Without the slightest hesitation, Li Yu quickly grabbed the repeating crossbow.

The moment he pulled the trigger, the Nightmare Beast on the crossbow, which had been tightly closed, suddenly opened its eyes, and a cold light shot out from them.

"call out!"

The arrow shot straight ahead as if it had eyes.

Even though the ghost appeared and disappeared intermittently, constantly shifting its position, the armor-piercing arrow still accurately struck the ghost, piercing its illusory body directly.

Suddenly, the ghost's body twisted and groaned in pain.

"Ahhh—"