However strong he is, he will never be your match.
Of course. With his long golden hair fluttering in the wind, Yu licked his lips, his normally regular teeth slowly lengthening and sharpening until they resembled the sharp fangs of a vampire.
Still, the fall of a genius is always such a pity.
Then let’s destroy his ability and strip away everything that matters most to him, Lan said with a smiling squint. By the way, aren’t you quite interested in that boy? I’ll find Tong and bring him right to your side.
Amidst the deafening roar of artillery fire, the dense hordes of the walking dead continued mindlessly charging forward. Each of them possessed a different appearance, sharing only the single trait of a comical gait, yet under the terrifying atmosphere fueled by countless roars, that quirk only registered as deeply eerie.
Rumble.
Gunpowder detonated upon impact, and the massive shock wave sent the front rows of zombies blasting backward. Every ability user felt their heart leap into their throats, staring nervously at the unfolding battle, after all, they had never deployed artillery on such a massive scale against zombies before and remained uncertain of the actual results.
The billowing smoke cleared amidst the howling wind. Those zombies with blown-off limbs twitched frantically as brand-new appendages sprouted from their stumps, while only a minority whose heads had been completely obliterated collapsed. Their offensive seemed capable of buying mere minutes of delay at best.
Realizing this, the observation soldier gripping the military binoculars broke out in a fine sweat across his forehead.
How is the situation?
Leader, although we can inflict some damage, they only die completely when their heads are destroyed, so… The man shook his head. The results are far from ideal.
Perhaps the only way to turn the tide was to kill the zombie emperor who commanded them. That final sentence remained unspoken.
Aim for the heads. Continue.
Understood!
Song Chengyu finished assembling the tripod, his dark pupils aligning with the crosshairs on the golden-haired man’s head. He lowered his posture, his hunched back resembling a coiled cheetah poised to strike, and slowly squeezed the trigger with his right hand.
Bang.
The adjutant beside him instinctively covered his ears. The webbing of his hand felt somewhat numb from the immense recoil, yet Song Chengyu kept his eyes glued to the scope without blinking.
The trajectory of the bullet piercing through the wind was aimed dead center between Yu’s brows. Yu raised an eyebrow. Not a bad aim.
Watching the bullet hurtle toward his brain, he still did not move.
The exact moment it touched his skin, the surrounding space seemed to freeze entirely. The transparent air rippled violently a few times, and the terrifying kinetic energy of the bullet, nearly as long as a finger, was effortlessly neutralized by an invisible force, causing it to drop uselessly to the ground.
The golden-haired man even returned a provoking smile.
When the initial strike failed, Song Chengyu lowered his weapon and stood up, his mind uncontrollably drifting to that person.
Why, of all times, now.
The usually cool and composed youth furrowed his handsome brows into a deep, sharp crease, adding a raw, violent edge to his peerless features.
To onlookers, this expression read as apprehension toward the zombie emperor.
The adjutant’s heart sank. Leader, since things have come to this, while the horde hasn’t reached our gates yet, perhaps we should retreat to preserve.
There’s no need to worry. The dark-haired youth raised a hand to cut off the rest of the sentence. Gather all ability users of Level 2 and above to deal with the human-shaped zombie behind the zombie emperor. Be careful, it is very strong.
As for the zombie emperor, I will kill it myself.
Watching the dark-haired youth charge forward through the carnage with an ice sword in both hands, his movements precise and fluid to the point where a single blade could decapitate multiple zombies in one sweep, carrying the unstoppable momentum of slaying gods or Buddhas in his path, Yu sneered and manipulated the surrounding zombies to disperse outward.
Overestimating yourself. Very well, I shall grant your wish.
As the zombie emperor, he possessed the ability to manipulate any element.
Yu strode forward, materializing a fiery sword in his hand to block before him. The crimson-red long sword, forged from molten magma, radiated a terrifying heat that made the surrounding air feel as though it were boiling.
Under such intense temperatures, the blade of the ice sword melted away by half. Song Chengyu gritted his teeth, enduring the scorching heat without releasing his grip.
His pitch-black pupils flared for a fraction of a second, and the next moment, the golden-haired man’s entire body was swiftly enveloped by a surge of ice crystals creeping up from the soles of his feet, leaving even the tips of his hair frosted over.
The adjutant widened his eyes in disbelief, joy flooding his face. It actually worked?
Yet this state failed to last even ten seconds before the thick ice armor dissolved into nothingness under the intense heat within a split second. The man shook the water droplets from his arm, swept his damp bangs back with a single hand, and revealed blood-red eyes that seemed ready to ooze blood.
It’s useless.
With that, he increased the force behind his weapon, pressing down until Song Chengyu was forced back several steps before barely managing to steady his footing.
Your level is lower than mine; you are destined to be suppressed by my fire.
The ice sword snapped straight down the middle into two halves, yet a strange glint flashed in the depths of Song Chengyu’s eyes.
Yu flipped the blade’s edge to pierce through the youth’s right shoulder, pinning him in place.
The sword wound alone was difficult enough to endure, not to mention the searing heat continuing to burn relentlessly into the flesh, delivering a sharp, fiery agony.
Pfft. A sweet, metallic taste surged up his throat. Faced with such excruciating pain, even someone with willpower far surpassing ordinary men like Song Chengyu had his features distort for a fraction of a second.
Leader! An ability user who noticed the situation attempted to rush over to assist, only to be struck to his knees by a bolt of descending lightning.
Your opponent is me. Lan curved her eyes. Though your leader doesn’t seem very strong, does he? Getting defeated this easily.
You’re nothing special either. Yu shook his head in disappointment.
Pondering with his chin in hand, he hooked the corners of his lips as if suddenly remembering something. Let me see what matters most to you.
A sharp blade sliced open the youth’s arm, where veins bulged from the agony. His fingers made contact with warm blood, and countless memories flooded into his mind like scrambled photographic fragments, scenes flashing before his eyes belonging entirely to another person, elevating the focus on a single individual to an inescapable intensity.
So that’s how it is. Do you love him? A playful expression surfaced on his face. That works out perfectly. I’ll turn him into the same kind of creature as me. Huh?
The memories he was absorbing touched upon an unexpected scene. Yu’s pupils quivered slightly, and he abruptly released the sword hilt, attempting to retreat, only to realize it was already too late.
Starting from the hand that had grasped the hilt, ice crystals coated his skin inch by inch, freezing his entire body into a solid sculpture until only his eyes retained barely any movement.
He tried to channel his fire element to repeat the trick, but the ice armor melted at a much slower rate than before. To his horror, he found he could no longer move his feet.
Song Chengyu yanked out the sword impaling his right shoulder, enduring the pain without giving the other any time to react. The palm of his hand, now covered in a layer of hard ice armor, punched straight through the other’s chest.
Yu rolled his eyes in disbelief, watching a bloody, gaping hole open up right over his heart to reveal the crimson crystal core embedded within.
Exactly when was it?
Haven’t you figured it out yet? Song Chengyu curved his lips. When was your white-haired subordinate killed by me? You must be quite puzzled. You clearly had the crystal core’s coordinates pinpointed right here, so why couldn’t you find her?
A remark you made earlier caught my attention: my level is lower than yours, so I would be suppressed by you?
Just moments ago, I absorbed her crystal core.
Prior to that, I was only a single step away from Level 10.
Before the sentence fully faded, Song Chengyu gouged out the crystal core clutched within his palm. In an instant, the golden-haired human vessel withered and shrivelled rapidly, collapsing to the ground as a mummified corpse.
The crystal core, stained with dark red blood, melted into the palm of his hand. In a single breath, tiny, crackling electrical currents surged across every nerve in his body, as though an invisible hand were stirring wildly inside his mind. Amidst that dull ache, every thought and memory seemed to dissolve into chaotic disorder.
Song Chengyu clenched his teeth tightly, his black eyes already suffused with red bloodlines, and the veins connecting his sharp jawline to his collarbone bulged violently. He braced one hand against the dirt floor, his arched knuckles crushing the clumps of soil beneath him into fine powder.
After who knows how long, every single meridian felt as though it had been tempered through that fine, tormenting agony until his five senses reached a level of crystalline sharpness and clarity he had never experienced before, even hearing the sound of an ant crawling across the ground right in front of him.
Leader! Leader! After the sacrifice of six ability users, we have successfully eliminated…
The adjutant abruptly choked off his words, taking several steps back before his legs wobbled and he collapsed to the ground in terror.
Blood was leaking from all seven orifices of the youth before him like winding little snakes. Unbothered, he wiped the blood from beneath his eyes. When he opened them once more, those pitch-black pupils had shifted to a vivid blood red, exactly like the eyes of the zombie emperor.
Take me to You An.
He said.
Is hiding down here really okay?
You An’s pretty face wrinkled slightly in displeasure as he cast a disgusted look around his surroundings.
The cramped storage room relied solely on a single skylight for illumination, and the beam of light cutting through the air even made the floating dust motes visible.
He sat atop the only table, resting on Xin Zhou’s discarded suit jacket used as a cushion. With less than half a meter of floor space available, he was forced to spread his legs and sit face-to-face with the other man.
Due to the height difference, Xin Zhou could see the slightly furrowed brow on that pretty face, the thick eyelashes casting a golden fringe in the sunlight, and even the fine down on his translucent, porcelain-white skin.
The youth’s red lips were pressed into a slight line. Sensing his reluctance, Xin Zhou could only soften his tone to placate him. Bear with it a little longer, alright?
Coming from a wealthy background and relying on immense financial power alongside his older brother’s status as a top-tier ability user, whether before or after the apocalypse, people had always catered to him. When had he ever lowered his stance to speak to someone else like this?
Yet this person was different from everyone else; the sensation of skin-to-skin contact felt far too intoxicating. The mysophobia he had maintained for over twenty years seemed instantly cured, and he couldn’t help leaning in a bit closer.
You An felt an inner vexation; he was already annoyed, and the approaching handsome face only startled him further.
He extended a single finger to press against the other’s forehead, pushing Xin Zhou back a bit. Since he currently needed a favor, he couldn’t afford to be too heartless, so he simply stated, It’s too dirty here. Don’t kiss me.
The youth’s body temperature ran low, leaving even his fingertips cool to the touch. Xin Zhou stared at that slender, exquisite finger sculpted like a work of art, his Adam’s apple rolling imperceptibly as he yielded to the pressure and pulled back slightly.
Seriously, what kind of time is it to be thinking about things like this? You An complained with a blank expression.
Tangyuan flapped its small wings, feeling a minor mental breakdown internally. It hadn’t expected that with just a tiny bit of bait, the protagonist shou would cling to him like a lapdog. Was this the power of a succubus?
No, no! What was it thinking? The priority right now was safeguarding the host’s safety; it couldn’t let its beautiful, gentle, and kind host be tainted by that foul man Xin Jian!
Damn it! If only its energy level weren’t too low to buy anything, the host wouldn’t have to resort to seducing others.
Recalling the hallway and the cleaning tools spotted inside the storage room, You An guessed this place must be an abandoned hotel. Since he woke up here, it couldn’t possibly be too far from the District A Base.
Only, would Song Chengyu come to rescue a little minion like him?
He felt rather uncertain inside.