AFTCKCTCKATD - Chapter 58

Chapter 58

Ji Yanqing had run away in secret because he didn’t like Feng Yimo

Hearing Ji Yanqing’s words, everyone froze, staring at him as if he’d lost his mind. Only Lou Ye reacted, his smile faltering momentarily before curving upwards again, even more pronounced than before.

In the next instant, before anyone could process what was happening, Ji Yanqing swung his axe with all his might towards Lou Ye’s neck. The blade sank deep, nearly severing half of Lou Ye’s neck. His half-formed smile stiffened, head lolling to the side as a greenish fluid spewed from the wound.

Everyone present was struck dumb, their minds blank, until nearby cries of pain pierced the silence. Lou Ye’s corrosive blood had splattered onto several people, visibly burning their skin. They dropped their weapons in agony, retreating in a panicked scramble.

Those screams, mixed with an acrid, nauseating scent distinct from blood, jolted the onlookers back to reality.

“Aaah!”

“Nooo...”

Shrieks of terror and panic erupted. The previously dazed individuals scattered around the courtyard, and the core members of Lu Yunxiao’s survival team all retreated in chaos.

Amidst the chaos, Lou Ye turned his head, both eyes fixated on Ji Yanqing. He hadn’t expected the attack. “What are you—” Before he could finish, Ji Yanqing kicked him squarely in the chest.

Pulling the axe free, Ji Yanqing advanced before Lou Ye could regain his balance, raising the axe again. Despite the force of the initial blow, the axe striking Lou Ye’s vertebra had felt like hitting steel—cleaving easily through skin, but halting at bone.

“Whoosh!” The axe sang through the air as Ji Yanqing swung again. Lou Ye, staggering from the kick, retreated swiftly, widening the distance. He touched his neck, his hand coming away covered in blood. Instead of anger, his eyes gleamed with a disturbing excitement, a delight that seemed to relish the extreme pain and the threat of death. “Ha ha…”

The wound on Lou Ye’s neck began to heal with visible speed. Unfazed, Ji Yanqing circled behind Lou Ye, aiming to strike from behind.

Lou Ye dodged again. As the axe struck the ground, Ji Yanqing pivoted on his right foot, using the momentum to deliver a spinning kick with his left. Though Lou Ye moved quickly—faster than any ordinary person—he wasn’t so fast that Ji Yanqing couldn’t keep up. Being an Intelligence-type Corpse King, Lou Ye was not as physically powerful as a Strength-type Corpse King.

“Get out of the way!” Cries of terror intensified in the courtyard.

“Don’t let them in...”

“Don’t push me.”

“Help! Someone save me...”

“Bang! Bang! Bang!” Within moments, the once sparsely populated area near the freight company was swarming with zombies. Countless undead flooded into the courtyard, forcing Lu Yunxiao’s group, who had been outside the gates, back inside.

Those at the forefront were pounced upon before they could react. The pain and despair of imminent death washed over them as toxins spread rapidly. In less than five seconds, they staggered back to their feet, to the horror of their companions.

Back in the courtyard, Ji Yanqing, focused solely on Lou Ye, swung his axe repeatedly, only to hit air. He glanced around at the now-crowded courtyard, not hesitating as he snatched a gun from a zombie’s waist before rushing towards one side of the courtyard wall.

Reaching the wall, he planted a foot and hand against it and vaulted over gracefully. Landing on the other side, he swiftly dispatched approaching zombies before charging down an alleyway.

More zombies poured towards the freight company; the roads were choked with them, the figures of Lu Yunxiao’s people scattered everywhere. Some were devoured before they could even rise, reduced to little more than bones and entrails; others wobbled to join the horde.

Ji Yanqing struck a zombie’s head with his axe and shot another approaching from a different direction with the gun in his left hand. After efficiently dispatching the two, he crouched, retrieving a gun and two magazines from one of the corpses.

He sprinted towards a nearby building, not bothering with doors. He simply leapt, hooking his axe onto a second-floor window and pulling himself inside.

Pushing open the window, Ji Yanqing barely had time to assess his surroundings before panicked shouts echoed from down the hallway.

Raising his gun instinctively, finger poised on the trigger, he recognized the voices just in time—Gu Wenmo and his group.

Aside from Gu Wenmo’s five, there were a dozen or so ordinary members of Lu Yunxiao’s team in the building, men and women, all wearing expressions of terror and despair.

“It’s you!” The moment Gu Wenmo and his companions saw Ji Yanqing, it was as if they’d glimpsed salvation.

Indeed, Ji Yanqing was their hope. They had just witnessed him cleave off half of that Corpse King’s neck with a single swing.

“Bang!” Zombies outside the iron gate downstairs began pounding on the door.

“Ah!”

“Sob... sob...”

“Stop crying! Be quiet! You’ll only attract more!”

“Clang!” The relentless banging continued, drawing more and more zombies.

Ji Yanqing glanced down at the dozen or so zombies gathering below. He leaped back through the window and swiftly headed upstairs.

This was a residential building; the hallways were cluttered with debris, but devoid of zombies.

Ji Yanqing made his way towards the rooftop.

Lou Ye was a Corpse King evolving towards intelligence. As long as they remained within the ordinary zombies’ line of sight, Lou Ye could track them.

“Captain...” In their panic, Gu Wenmo and his group clumsily followed.

Seeing Gu Wenmo and the others keeping pace, the rest in the corridor hurriedly tagged along.

Reaching the door to the top floor, Ji Yanqing noticed obvious scratch marks and vivid, bloody handprints on the other side.

Steeling himself, he swung his axe as he pushed open the door, swiftly dispatching the three zombies in the stairwell.

Stepping over the corpses, Ji Yanqing ascended to the rooftop.

This area was on the edge of the city; the buildings weren’t tall. The residential block they were in had five floors; the two adjacent buildings were only four stories high.

The buildings were close together; even the farthest was merely three meters away.

Ji Yanqing glanced at Gu Wenmo and the others, then locked the door behind them. “Get to the other building!”

If Lou Ye realized they were in this building, he’d find them quickly.

“What?”

“The one across…?”

Everyone looked towards the building ahead. Over three meters away. If they fell…

Ji Yanqing didn’t give them time to hesitate. He tossed the two guns he’d acquired onto the rooftop of the opposite building, then stepped back.

Retreating to gain momentum, Ji Yanqing sprinted forward. Reaching the edge, he pushed off hard, leaping towards the adjacent four-story building.

He landed, rolling forward to cushion the impact.

Rising smoothly, Ji Yanqing picked up the two guns and headed towards the rooftop door, ready to descend.

On the rooftop behind him, seeing Ji Yanqing’s successful landing and imminent departure, Gu Wenmo and his group were frantic. But faced with the four or five-story drop, none dared to move.

Ji Yanqing began to pry the door open.

Gu Wenmo swallowed hard. He took two steps back, to where Ji Yanqing had started his run.

“Xiao Gu...” Uncle Wang looked at him, his face ashen.

Gu Wenmo met his gaze, his voice tight with terror. “Uncle... we have to walk on our own two feet...”

Since the apocalypse, the peaceful days had vanished. Over the past six months, he’d prayed countless times for someone to save him. When he’d met Ji Yanqing while fleeing, he’d thought the same.

Ji Yanqing had saved him. He’d taken them to a supermarket to find food.

For a moment, Ji Yanqing was like a god to him.

A god, pure and simple. A deity who didn’t even acknowledge normal zombies, and dared to provoke a thrice-evolved Corpse King.

Seeing Ji Yanqing seemingly drop from the heavens in the stairwell only solidified this. Ji Yanqing was a god, undoubtedly descending to rescue him.

But reality swiftly tempered his awe. Even his god was flesh and blood, lacking magic to whisk him away. He had to follow, on his own two feet.

He had to keep up.

In the throes of terror, Gu Wenmo gritted his teeth. Ignoring the tremor in his legs, he surged forward.

As he leaped, aiming for the opposite rooftop, his heart stalled at the sheer five-story drop.

He landed hard, a sprawling mess. The jarring pain snapped him back to the present.

Pushing himself up, a hysterical grin stretched Gu Wenmo’s lips. His eyes burned, a laugh bubbling up from the depths of his fear, “Hahaha.”

Gu Wenmo called out to the pale-faced group still watching, “Anyone else coming? Last call!”

With a click, Ji Yanqing wrenched open the apartment door.

The stairwell beyond was plunged in darkness, devoid of zombies, yet Ji Yanqing didn’t rush in. He slung the rifle onto his back, gripping his axe.

He glanced back at the group. Without hesitation, he stepped into the gloom.

Seeing Ji Yanqing disappear galvanized the group on the opposite roof. Fear of death and the primal urge to survive overwhelmed their hesitation, driving them back, spurring them to jump.

“Grandpa, I’m scared…” The little girl, strapped to Uncle Wang’s back with cloth strips, clutched his neck anxiously.

“Don’t be afraid, Grandpa’s got you.” Uncle Wang, having secured Yin Yin, looked towards the opposite building, bloodless lips trembling.

He gritted his teeth, steeled his resolve, and bolted.

Inside the stairwell, Ji Yanqing chose the third floor, where a door hung wide open, and entered.

The apartment had clearly been ransacked. In the living room, a dark pool of blood stained the floor before the sofa. The occupant likely hadn’t escaped, becoming one of the shambling dead.

Ji Yanqing quickly moved into a bedroom, rummaging until he found clean clothing. He ripped the fabric into strips, methodically binding the wound on his hand. That last axe blow had been delivered with all his strength; the force had split the skin between his fingers. As crude as the treatment was, it was better than nothing. The scent of blood would draw zombies, and such carelessness had to be avoided.

Once Gu Wenmo and the rest had stumbled inside, the last one through slammed the door shut with a thud.

“Captain…” Gu Wenmo’s voice was laced with unease.

“That… what exactly was that thing?” Uncle Wang’s lips were blue-tinged, trembling.

Ji Yanqing had said Lou Ye was a Corpse King, but Lou Ye had looked so… human.

“A thrice-evolved Corpse King, a zombie that went through an evolution after becoming a Corpse King, takes on that form,” Ji Yanqing explained succinctly, simultaneously checking the two guns.

Both were rifles, identical models, likely from Lu Yunxiao’s team, probably found at the Public Security Bureau building. The two magazines were compatible.

Finished with the guns, Ji Yanqing turned to the group, their faces etched with fear, streaked with tears.

Ji Yanqing tossed one of the rifles to Gu Wenmo, and the other to a girl, maybe twenty-one or two, from Gu Wenmo’s group.

Both Gu Wenmo and the girl stared, momentarily stunned, as they fumbled to catch the weapons.

They looked from Ji Yanqing, then down at the guns, comprehension dawning. Ji Yanqing was giving them guns.

“…” Gu Wenmo tried to speak, but no sound emerged.

He’d always yearned for a gun. He understood what a gun signified in this world – a sliver of hope.

Beside him, the girl’s face was a mixture of terror and elation. She clutched the rifle tightly.

“Don’t fire unless it’s a last resort. Gunfire attracts more zombies,” Ji Yanqing said, tossing two magazines to each of them. “Get out of this city fast. Hiding isn’t enough. These zombies… they think. They can open doors.”

Ji Yanqing’s words sent a fresh wave of panic through the group. They’d never heard of such a thing. Zombies were just… zombies. How could they think? How could they open doors?

“Then… you…?” Gu Wenmo was the first to understand. Ji Yanqing wasn’t leaving with them.

Ji Yanqing glanced at Gu Wenmo, then resumed wrapping the axe handle with the torn cloth strips. He meticulously bound the entire handle to his right hand, securing it against the inevitable slickness of blood.

“You’re going to…” Realization dawned on Gu Wenmo. Ji Yanqing had no intention of fleeing. He was going to hunt that Corpse King.

“Are you insane?! That’s a thrice-evolved Corpse King! You can’t win! You’ll die!” Uncle Wang’s eyes widened in disbelief.

Prepared, Ji Yanqing hefted the axe and headed for the door.

Lou Ye was a madman, a walking death sentence to anyone who crossed his path, and even those who didn’t. Knowing Xia Shen Shu and the others had killed a Corpse King, he would undoubtedly hunt them down.

Before that happened, Ji Yanqing would kill Lou Ye.

Ji Yanqing opened the door and slipped out.

He was really going to hunt a thrice-evolved Corpse King?

Had he lost his mind?

Just who was Ji Yanqing…?

They struggled against awakened zombies, were helpless against ordinary Corpse Kings, yet Ji Yanqing was planning to hunt a thrice-evolved one. Alone.

Gu Wenmo and the girl with the rifle exchanged a look, both swallowing hard, their throats bobbing uncontrollably.

Reaching the ground floor, Ji Yanqing didn’t use the front door. Instead, he vaulted through a window. Opening and closing doors made noise; he couldn’t afford to leave a trail.

Lou Ye was a Corpse King that had evolved on the path of mental strength, intelligence. Thrice-evolved, he was undoubtedly even smarter than the hospital Corpse King. Any trace, any clue, could be fatal.

Landing silently, Ji Yanqing moved swiftly through the narrow alleys.

The city’s outskirts, once sparsely populated, were now teeming with wandering zombies, summoned by Lou Ye. They weren’t just aimlessly shambling, they were looking, looking for him.

Ji Yanqing didn’t engage them, bypassing them entirely.

These zombies bore Lou Ye’s mental imprint. Killing them, even being seen by them, could betray his position.

Ji Yanqing traveled for over an hour, reaching the base of the tallest building in the area.

He slipped past the zombies, entered the stairwell, and ascended on foot to the rooftop.

From this vantage point, he surveyed the surrounding buildings and alleys, the entire scene laid out before him.

The area of disturbance was wide, but not infinite.

Roughly a thousand normal zombies, controlled by Lou Ye, were spreading out in a circular search pattern.

They were no longer mindless shamblers, yet still lacked true intelligence. Their ‘cleverness’ stemmed from Lou Ye’s commands and mental imprints, but Lou Ye couldn’t micromanage every single one.

Ji Yanqing focused on the center of the commotion. As expected, he quickly located Lou Ye.

Lou Ye was in a small food street, seated beneath the awning of a beverage shop. His stark white clothing was a beacon amidst the chaos.

Ji Yanqing rapidly memorized the layout of all the buildings around the food street. He began to move.

Lou Ye’s strength and speed were far inferior to physically-evolved Corpse Kings. He had a chance.

Nearing the area, he abandoned the ground, parkouring across rooftops.

The closer to the city center, the denser the buildings. Some were separated by less than two meters. The cramped spaces seemed oppressive even to Ji Yanqing, but they offered him an advantage.

Two hours later, Ji Yanqing positioned himself in a building across the street, peering down at Lou Ye.

The street, which should have been bustling, was desolate, littered with debris. Any wandering zombies had been marshalled by Lou Ye and sent out to search.

Lou Ye sat beneath the cold drink shop’s awning, eyes closed, body relaxed, using the zombies to find him.

Next to the shop, several pools of blood stained the pavement, interspersed with bone fragments. A few handguns lay scattered at Lou Ye’s feet.

The vivid blood against the pristine white clothing created a stark, nightmarish contrast.

Ji Yanqing’s mind raced, calculating.

He could match Lou Ye’s speed. Lou Ye’s bones were hard, but not indestructible. Even steel, subjected to enough force, would crack.

The real problem was the ubiquitous zombies.

The moment he revealed himself, Lou Ye would recall them.

A zombie or two was nothing, but a hundred, a thousand, would overwhelm even a normal Corpse King.

His brain whirred, a plan solidifying.

Ji Yanqing retreated into the apartment, found several sets of adult clothes, and began stuffing them.

Creating makeshift dummies, he surveyed the room. He found a few wind-up toy cars and tucked them inside.

He tore cloth strips for ropes. After a test run, he carried the dummies to the buildings behind the one overlooking Lou Ye.

He chose three buildings, setting up simple traps. He just needed to create the illusion of people in the windows, drawing the zombies away. A brief window of opportunity was all he needed.

With the traps prepared, he timed it, then raced back towards Lou Ye’s building.

He’d barely vaulted through a second-floor window when commotion erupted from the trapped buildings. The zombies surged towards them.

Ji Yanqing seized the moment, moving silently to the front window.

Peering down, he saw the awning, and the scene unfolding. He froze.

Lu Yunxiao was being herded towards the awning by five or six zombies.

Lu Yunxiao clutched a gun, but it was empty—useless.

Surrounded, his arrogance had vanished. His liver-red coat was gone. He wore a dusty gray sweater and suit pants, looking utterly defeated.

He couldn’t see Lou Ye under the awning, but he could imagine the cruel smile on his face.

“Don’t kill me! We can work together! If you want to eat people, I can help! I’m human—they’ll trust me...” Lu Yunxiao’s voice was thick with sobs. Who wouldn’t be afraid facing death? “I can take you to the Grim Reaper and Sunward. I know where Sunward is!”

Ji Yanqing frowned.

He moved to a spot hidden from view, quietly opening a window.

With the window ajar, he checked his axe, loaded the handgun he’d taken from Su Luo, and climbed onto the windowsill.

“No need. I can find them myself,” Lou Ye savored Lu Yunxiao’s terror—a sumptuous feast.

Before Lou Ye could finish, a figure dropped from the sky. An axe swung horizontally towards his neck.

Lou Ye’s pupils contracted. Before he could finish his sentence, the blade sliced into his neck, cutting his words short.

Ji Yanqing’s strength was immense. Lou Ye, and the stool beneath him, were hurled back into the glass storefront.

Glass shattered, the sound echoing along the silent street.

Landing, Ji Yanqing spun, lunging towards Lou Ye like an enraged beast.

He raised his axe and brought it down. “Bang!”

The blade, whistling, grazed Lou Ye’s neck, adding another deep, bone-revealing wound to his still-healing throat, and cracking the concrete.

Missing the first strike, Ji Yanqing ignored the searing pain in his hands—pain that felt like splintered bone. He lifted his arms, striking again.

“Hiss...” Lou Ye tried to speak, but his throat was destroyed. His face, oozing blue-green blood, wore an exhilarated grin. He hadn’t anticipated Ji Yanqing’s audacity. “Haha...”

Hearing the commotion, Lu Yunxiao, engulfed in fear, snapped back. He stepped back instinctively.

Noticing the zombies were focused on Ji Yanqing, he turned and sprinted towards the building across the street.

“Bang!” Ji Yanqing’s axe slammed onto Lou Ye’s left arm.

The muscles split open. The sound of metal on metal rang out, followed by the crack of bone.

Lou Ye’s arm was shattered.

Hearing that sound, feeling the agony in his own arms, knowing his attack was effective, Ji Yanqing spoke, his voice unwavering, “Has anyone ever told you?”

Lou Ye, on the ground with a broken arm and twice gashed throat, looked at him questioningly.

“That after you guys shrink down, you get a lot easier to chop up?” Ji Yanqing brought his axe down, severing Lou Ye’s shattered arm, enunciating each word with a bone jarring swing.

Ever since learning that Ji An, Ji Le, and Feng Yimo were thrice-evolved Corpse Kings, Ji Yanqing had pondered this: Didn’t they realize that, in this smaller form, they were easier to kill?

The difference between their monstrous forms and their human-like ones was stark. As behemoths, even a prone, unmoving zombie would take him ages to hack to death. But as humans, their necks were thin and delicate. With enough force, a single blow could sever them.

“Hah…” A wheezing chuckle escaped Lou Ye’s damaged throat.

Few humans, if any, besides Ji Yanqing, would dare to think that way. The mere knowledge of their Corpse King status would send most humans into fits of terror-stricken begging.

As Ji Yanqing raised his axe again, two figures burst from behind him, emerging from the shattered glass doors of the drink shop. Two awakened zombies, on the cusp of evolving into Corpse Kings.

Lou Ye’s subordinates.

They were relatively small, but entirely bestial: one canine, one feline, like a massive, predatory cat. Murderous intent blazed in their eyes, their movements lithe and deadly.

Ji Yanqing wasn’t surprised. He brought the axe down with all his strength on the neck of one of the awakened zombies. The blade bit deep, severing the spine. As the creature fell, Ji Yanqing stepped back, instantly pressing his handgun against the gaping maw of the other, already lunging.

“Bang!”

The bullet ripped through its head, exiting through its right eye in a spray of gore. A headshot.

The recoil jarred his injured hand. Ji Yanqing kicked the collapsing corpse away, thinking that his marksmanship might actually rival Lan Zi’s.

Lou Ye pushed himself up. The twin wounds on his neck had already shrunk to mere hairline scars. He ran a finger over them, a peculiar fondness on his face. He enjoyed the sensation of near-death, of pain.

Simultaneously, two more figures emerged from the shop. Lou Ye had more than two underlings.

Without hesitation, Ji Yanqing hurled the vial of venom he’d extracted from the serpentine awakened zombie. The glass shattered on impact, the liquid exploding outwards.

An icy, glacial aura instantly filled the air. Ji Yanqing held his breath, retreating a step to evade the two newly emerged awakened zombies, and lunged at Lou Ye.

“Roar!” Missing its target, one of the awakened zombies roared in frustration.

It spun around to attack, but its body swayed uncontrollably.

The other awakened zombie was similarly affected, shaking its head as if to clear it.

“Hm?” Even Lou Ye faltered, momentarily disoriented.

Ji Yanqing swung the axe, aiming a brutal strike at Lou Ye’s temple. If he couldn’t sever the neck, he’d crush the skull.

“Get out of the way!” Lu Yunxiao’s voice roared from behind.

Lu Yunxiao, who had been fleeing down the alley, had been forced back by the tide of ordinary zombies surging towards him. He brandished his empty gun.

“Crack.” Lou Ye caught Ji Yanqing’s axe swing in mid-air, his hand clamping around the handle.

Lou Ye, shaking off the lingering dizziness, rose. He didn’t dislike being wounded by Ji Yanqing, didn’t exactly hate the sensation of his flesh being torn by such an insignificant, yet willed human, but he wasn’t ready to die.

Lou Ye closed the distance, his gaze fixed on Ji Yanqing’s face, inches away. He was fascinated by Ji Yanqing.

“What’s your name?” Lou Ye had made a decision. He would make Ji Yanqing his subordinate.

He would collect him. Keep him. Then they could play together, often.

Ji Yanqing lashed out with a kick, wrenching his axe free.

He registered the growing numbers of ordinary zombies. A frown creased his brow; he’d missed his chance.

Thrice-evolved Corpse Kings were even more formidable than anticipated.

“If you won’t tell me, how about I give you one? Lou Xiaoqing, how does that sound?” Lou Ye said.

Ji Yanqing took a step back, swinging his axe to deflect one of the lunging awakened zombies.

In moments, the once-empty street was swarming. The ordinary zombies, controlled by Lou Ye, were returning.

“Then it’s settled—” Lou Ye’s words were cut short by the sudden, sharp reports of gunfire.

“Bang, bang, bang!”

Ji Yanqing’s head snapped towards the sound. On the rooftop of the tallest building in the distance, Gu Wenmo and the twenty-one or two-year-old girl from his group were awkwardly firing their rifles.

More than ten bullets, not a single hit.

The closest shot whizzed past Lu Yunxiao’s feet, sending him leaping into the air.

Ji Yanqing’s mouth twitched. Ignoring Lou Ye, he turned and sprinted into the network of alleyways.

“Save me!” Lu Yunxiao called out, seeing Ji Yanqing’s escape.

Ji Yanqing heard, but didn’t look back.

Some people were better off dead.

Dodging the onrushing zombies, diving into the alley, Ji Yanqing moved like a phantom through the dying city, swift and fluid through the building maze.

The street zombies surged after him like a tide, immense and fast, but no match for Ji Yanqing.

After two turns, only about a hundred zombies remained.

He glanced back, then accelerated, abruptly veering into a narrow alleyway.

Entering the confined space, he used the walls to launch himself upwards, landing lightly on a second-floor windowsill. He tumbled through the window.

The moment he landed, the pursuing zombie horde rushed past, surging onward.

Having shaken them off, Ji Yanqing didn’t linger. He raced towards the rooftop, focused on escaping the city.

As he ran, he glanced towards where Gu Wenmo and the others had been. They were gone. They had, it seemed, fled.

Facing the empty window, a complex mix of emotions stirred within Ji Yanqing. He thought of Xia Chen, of Xue Gang, of all the people he’d encountered.

Some held guns, yet pointed them at humans, willing to sacrifice others to a Corpse King to survive.

Others hadn’t even learned to use a gun, yet dared to fire upon a thrice-evolved Corpse King…

The faces of Feng Yimo, Ji An, and Ji Le flickered into his mind. Corpse Kings, yet they seemed more human than most he had met.

At least they had never aimed weapons at him.

Thinking of those three, a sharp, constricting pain gripped Ji Yanqing’s heart as he sprinted.

For over twenty days, he’d suppressed these thoughts, but now, he struggled to contain them.

He’d lied to Feng Yimo and the boys, claiming he was going to scavenge, then left without a word. What would Feng Yimo’s expression be when they discovered he’d abandoned them?

Feng Yimo, he couldn’t guess. But Ji An and Ji Le would definitely cry.

Judging by Feng Yimo’s explanation, Ji An and Ji Le might have sensed his abnormality, but they didn’t know he had become a Corpse King.

Ji An and Ji Le were only three, toddlers. How terrified would they be, realizing they’d become the monsters they feared?

Abandoned by the closest person at their most vulnerable moment… how heartbroken?

They had been abandoned once, a trauma that haunted their nightmares. He knew this, yet he’d cruelly abandoned them again.

Sprinting across the rooftop, Ji Yanqing could almost hear Ji An and Ji Le’s heartbroken, gut-wrenching cries.

As twilight deepened, Ji Yanqing, having fled far and fast until exhaustion claimed him, stopped on a rooftop.

He unwrapped the blood-soaked cloth from his hand, set down the axe, and slumped down, burying his face in his arms.

He felt that he might have done something unforgivably wrong.

In the dimming light, Feng Yimo stared coldly at the thrice-evolved black beast.

He didn’t understand. He was desperate to find Ji Yanqing, why did someone always interfere?

Last time it was it, and this time, it was still it.

Before Feng Yimo, the thrice-evolved black beast, now the size of a large dog, stared blankly, utterly defeated, questioning its life.

It couldn’t comprehend what misdeeds it had committed in its past life to warrant meeting Feng Yimo.

Ever since seeing Ji Yanqing by the highway, and being terrified into evolving, it had resolved to stay far away from both.

It had fled with the badger-shaped Corpse King for days. It had finally found a place to rest. It was examining the new changes brought about by its third evolution when it had run into Ji Yanqing.

The instant it saw Ji Yanqing’s face, it knew something was wrong. It had fled.

It had run for five cities, day and night, in the opposite direction. It had thought itself safe, only for Feng Yimo to appear.

Feng Yimo, having pieced together the bizarre events – understanding why he couldn’t find Ji Yanqing – drew his sword.

The black beast, dazed, bristled. What is Feng Yimo doing?!

“Why are you stopping me from finding Ji Yanqing?” Feng Yimo’s voice was flat, but the blade gleamed.

The beast’s lips peeled back. How is this my fault? You can’t track down your human!

Feng Yimo didn’t entertain the defiance. His sword arced.

“Arooo!” The beast scrambled back. Wait—! If you’re looking for Ji Yanqing, he’s not here! I saw him in the city—he went the other direction!

The blade froze.

“Aooo.” Added for clarity

“Daddy… is over there?” Ji Le rasped, scrubbing his swollen eyes. He’d done everything right—braved his terror to lure the zombies out, as instructed. They’d gathered supplies, hauled them upstairs… only to find the rooftop deserted.

They’d searched the entire city. Nothing.

He left us. Because we’re monsters now.

A fresh sob hitched in Ji Le’s throat.

The black beast jerked its massive head toward the western outskirts. You’re wasting time. He’s not in this part of the city.

“Really?” Ji An sniffled, tightening his grip on his brother’s hand.

Feng Yimo didn’t hesitate. He turned on his heel and strode toward the direction indicated, the boys scrambling after him.

The beast waited until they were a dozen paces away before bolting in the opposite direction. Time to find Badger and get the hell out of—

“Return.”

Its claws screeched against the asphalt. Momentum hurled it headfirst into a five-story building, bricks exploding from the impact. Dazed, it staggered out of the crater, fur coated in dust. What now?!

“Lead.” Feng Yimo’s blade hovered at its flank. No more detours.

This creature had a history. The hospital incident. Losing the boys. Both times, this beast had lurked in the shadows. Coincidence? Unlikely.

The beast’s newly regrown tail—still tender from the last time Feng Yimo had taken a slice—twitched nervously. For a fleeting moment, murderous rage burned in its eyes… until Feng Yimo’s glacial stare snuffed it out.

Whimper.

It trudged forward, casting sidelong glances at Ji An and Ji Le. The boys looked human enough—small, fragile, cheeks streaked with tears. But their auras…Thrice-evolved Corpse Kings. And freshly turned, no less.

A shiver rippled through the beast’s matted fur. Ordinary zombies could only create basic Awakened thralls. Yet Feng Yimo’s “subordinates” had skipped entire evolutionary stages, leaping straight to a power tier others took months to achieve. What kind of abomination is he?

“Guh...” The badger-shaped Corpse King shivered, hiding behind a tall building in the distance after returning from his reconnaissance.

He watched in disbelief as his little companion was being forcefully taken away by Feng Yimo. His mind was filled with scenes of that black beast being gutted and devoured.

“Ugh...”

Recalling that gruesome image and the lingering pain at the tip of his own tail, the badger-shaped Corpse King covered his eyes with his front paws, unable to bear watching.

After a long while, seeing that Feng Yimo and his two companions had moved far away, he finally lifted his head from beneath his paws.

He couldn’t let his little companion be eaten just like that.

It was thanks to the black beast that he had successfully advanced to become a Corpse King. If he were to abandon the black beast and run away now, he’d be too heartless and ungrateful. How could he ever face the other Corpse Kings again?

With these thoughts, the badger-shaped Corpse King’s eyes turned bloodshot. Hesitating no longer, he charged swiftly toward Feng Yimo and the others.

His massive body surged forward with unstoppable momentum. Along the way, he toppled countless buildings; the ground quaked beneath his feet.

“Roar!” Abruptly confronting Feng Yimo’s trio, the badger-shaped Corpse King reared up on his hind legs, displaying an especially ferocious expression.

Ji An swallowed hard.

He recognized it. It was that delicious awakened zombie!

The badger-shaped Corpse King, brandishing its forelimbs and baring its fangs in a feigned display of ferocity, froze mid-motion. The next instant, it tucked its tail between its legs and darted away.

It whimpered as it fled. It wasn’t that it wouldn’t help; it truly couldn’t.

Seeing the badger-shaped Corpse King charge menacingly, raise its claws, strike a super-fierce pose, and then immediately tuck tail and run, Feng Yimo was baffled. Ji An and Ji Le, still teary-eyed, exchanged equally bewildered glances.

It knows, it understands, it won’t blame me.

This isn’t its fault. Blame Feng Yimo for being too brutal, blame them for being too weak.

“You know it?” Feng Yimo asked, his tone flat.

“…Awoo.” The black beast shook its head, vehemently denying any association. It would never betray the badger-shaped Corpse King.

Feng Yimo’s fingers twitched. His blade whispered from its sheath.

“Awoo!” The black beast instantly changed its tune.

Yes, it knew it.

They had been traveling together. The badger-shaped Corpse King had just gone ahead to scout the path.

If only it had gone with it.

“Scout?”

“Awoo…”

Three Corpse Kings up ahead.

The black beast, now barely the size of a large dog, glanced back at the trio of Corpse Kings – one large, two small – behind it. “Awoo…”

Corpse Kings were fiercely territorial, deeply resentful of outsiders trespassing on their domain. Yet these three Corpse Kings had forged a cooperative pact.

They are part of the Grim Reaper’s faction.

“Grim Reaper’s faction?” Feng Yimo’s brow furrowed. He’d heard whispers of this Grim Reaper more than once.

“Awoo.” The black beast elaborated.

The Grim Reaper is an incredibly powerful Corpse King, from the north. Currently, he’s the most talked about Corpse King, the most likely candidate to become the future king of all Corpse Kings.

Corpse Kings were intensely territorial, especially the stronger ones. Human predictions of Corpse Kings battling to establish a hierarchy weren’t far off. They might even be the ones to establish ‘order’ first in this chaotic world.

Since the number of awakened zombies had exploded, territorial battles had erupted. With the emergence of thrice-evolved Corpse Kings, the conflict had only intensified.

As the war escalated, cooperation and communication between Corpse Kings became more frequent. Factions and information networks were beginning to form.

“Awoo…” Seeing Feng Yimo’s apparent ignorance, the black beast couldn’t help but elaborate further.

Currently, there are four major Corpse King factions: Grim Reaper, Devil’s City, Long Serpent, and Heavenly Blaze.

No living Corpse King has ever seen the Grim Reaper. He is shrouded in mystery. If it weren’t for the fact that he had decimated almost all Corpse Kings in the north, some would doubt his very existence.

Devil’s City is in the south. It’s said that the entire desert and the surrounding ten-odd cities are the territory of a Corpse King who evolved towards intelligence. Any Corpse King who enters and refuses to join him never returns.

Long Serpent is also a thrice-evolved Corpse King who evolved towards intelligence. He goes by a human name, Lou Ye. He doesn’t stay in one place. His greatest interest is hunting other Corpse Kings. Rumor has it he’s been asking around about the Grim Reaper recently.

Heavenly Blaze is a thrice-evolved Corpse King focused on strength. Over two hundred Corpse Kings have gathered under its banner, including several who are also thrice-evolved.

The Grim Reaper alone holds sway over half the land. Thousands of Corpse Kings are willing to join his ranks, forming a massive force.

Outside of the Grim Reaper, Devil’s City, Long Serpent, and Heavenly Blaze dominate the remaining territories.

“Are those them, up ahead?” Feng Yimo asked, gesturing forward.

The black beast looked in the direction Feng Yimo indicated. Ahead were three ordinary Corpse Kings, evolved towards brute strength, towering in size.

The commotion caused by the badger-shaped Corpse King had drawn the attention of the three Corpse Kings already present in the city.

Sighting Feng Yimo and his group in the distance, the three Corpse Kings were clearly displeased. They blocked Feng Yimo’s path, radiating lethal intent.

“Awoo.”

The black beast nodded. Yes, those three.

The instant it nodded, realization struck it like a lightning bolt.

It whipped its head towards Feng Yimo, who was already charging forward. It tried to stop him, “Awoo!”

Killing the Grim Reaper’s people is the same as offending the Grim Reaper himself! Don’t be reckless, Feng Yimo!

By the time the black beast reached Feng Yimo’s side, only two of the three Corpse Kings were still standing. Feng Yimo’s blade flashed, slicing through the second Corpse King’s neck. Before the third could react, Feng Yimo thrust his long sword forward.

Drawing back his blade, Feng Yimo frowned, examining it. Ordinary Corpse Kings were too tall and bulky, awkward to cut.

Feng Yimo glanced down at the black beast, no bigger than a large dog at his feet. Thrice-evolved Corpse Kings were much easier to handle.

Sensing the faint flicker of murderous intent in Feng Yimo’s eyes, the black beast instantly morphed into a picture of docile harmlessness, like an oversized puppy. “Woof awoo…”

Feng Yimo gave it a cold look. He knew nothing of any Grim Reaper, but anyone who blocked his path deserved to die. “Let’s go.”

With that, Feng Yimo flicked the blood off his sword and strode forward, determined to find Ji Yanqing.

Corpse Kings were multiplying. Ji Yanqing alone was far too vulnerable.

The thought of Ji Yanqing possibly facing danger, the mere image of Ji Yanqing, sent a piercing pain through Feng Yimo’s chest, as if a knife had been plunged into his heart.

Ji Yanqing disliked Corpse Kings.

Ji Yanqing disliked him.

That’s why Ji Yanqing had secretly run away.

Watching Feng Yimo’s retreating figure grow increasingly distant, the black beast stared blankly. It began to strategize, pondering how to warn Feng Yimo that he was going the wrong way without getting itself killed.

They had just come from that direction. Didn’t Feng Yimo find this route vaguely familiar?

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