Chapter 523 The Surging Tide of Corpses
Within the investigation team, Otha and Lanny's abilities were remarkably similar.
Both possessed high-damage Supernatural abilities that could affect large areas, and both paid with their health when using their powers.
It was a fair exchange—to wield power far beyond ordinary humans, one must pay the appropriate price.
In their current predicament, Lanny wanted to use his ability precisely to prevent Otha from having to act.
Otha was already terminally ill; each time he used his power, his remaining lifespan shortened further. This was why Lanny became so furious when Otha stopped him—he couldn't bear to watch Otha die before his eyes.
"I'm the captain," Otha said firmly. "This isn't your turn to play hero!"
Beneath the water's surface, zombies continued converging on their small vessel.
A bizarre phenomenon was occurring across the entire lake—like fish swarming toward scattered food, with their assault boat at the center of the feeding frenzy.
If they didn't reach shore quickly, countless zombies would capsize their boat.
No matter how powerful they were, they weren't fish—once underwater, even the strongest Supernatural abilities would be useless.
Yet even if they made it to shore, tens of thousands of zombies awaited them. They faced impossible odds either way.
Otha adjusted his sunglasses, knowing he needed to take action.
"Otha, don't rush this," Theron cautioned. "Have you seen the size of this horde? Even your Annihilation can't clear a path through them all at once! And clearly, these zombies are more aggressive than any we've encountered before."
Otha's face grew cold, tinged with disappointment. Theron was right. His power was formidable, but as a LV4 Psychic, he couldn't create miracles.
His Annihilation approached LV5 power, but he could only use it a limited number of times, and it came with severe side effects.
If he could fire a dozen consecutive blasts, or if the power were ten times stronger, he could carve a path through the zombie army—but that wasn't possible.
"Let's get to shore first, then figure it out," Theron said when Otha remained silent.
Everyone understood what needed to be done. The water was definitely not their territory.
The group pulled out their weapons and began firing at the zombies below. Fortunately, the undead moved slowly underwater and couldn't overturn the boat.
The various factions surrounding them maintained communication channels with Otha and were aware of their situation.
Leonard and Sebastian were helpless—they themselves were surrounded by hordes of zombies and couldn't divide their attention.
Neil felt growing concern. The zombie horde wasn't under his control. To control them, he would need to return to Snowfall Cult headquarters and have the Bloodfeeder Vine issue commands to the Zombie King—but there was no time for that now.
If the investigation team capsized, the consequences would be unacceptable.
'Damn it all!' Neil thought, his face betraying none of his inner turmoil. 'Why couldn't you just leave after dealing with the initial zombie wave? You had to stay and cause trouble. This is all your own doing!'
Yet he had no choice. He ordered his priests, "We must use all our strength to rescue the investigation team! At minimum, we need to ensure their captain survives!"
A dozen Snowfall Cult Psychics fought desperately to break through the horde and clear a path to reunite with Otha's group.
But it was nearly impossible. Ordinary zombies were manageable, but among the horde were hundreds of Bronze Elite Zombies! Even in a one-on-one fight, average Psychics couldn't defeat these creatures.
Neil's aggressive approach resulted in five of his priests being torn to pieces by Bronze Elite Zombies.
He regarded their deaths with cold indifference—their power would simply return to Natasha. It wasn't necessarily a bad outcome.
Meanwhile, Steven had Henry driving their snowmobile in circles, playing a deadly game with the horde. Behind them, tens of thousands of zombies gave chase, howling as they ran across the snow-covered ground.
Even without brains, even with human physical limitations shattered, they were still flesh and blood. How could two legs hope to catch four wheels, especially on snow?
Steven, Earl, and Lily leaned out the windows, picking off the pursuing zombies.
Earl and Lily used grenades—the zombies never bothered to dodge, running straight into the explosions and getting blown to pieces.
Steven wielded his Magnum Sniper Rifle, targeting Bronze Elite Zombies and Bronze Flying Elite Zombies within the horde.
Watching the zombies' mindless charge, Steven's lips curved into a slight smile. "Compared to before, these zombies are more vicious, but also dumber. They've clearly reverted to their most primitive state without Snowfall Cult's control. But how will they resolve this situation?"
The "they" Steven referred to were obviously Natasha and Neil. They couldn't simply watch the investigation team die.
While Steven didn't understand exactly how they controlled the zombies, he was certain they would find a way to have the horde eliminated.
On this point, however, Steven was mistaken. Natasha and Neil did have methods to control the horde, but it was too late to implement them now.
The actual situation was far worse than Steven imagined—though he couldn't be blamed for the misconception, lacking accurate intelligence on the matter.
Back in the lake, the group had finally struggled free from the underwater zombies and was approaching the shore.
No one felt any relief. At the water's edge, an even more terrifying number of zombies awaited them! The massive Bronze Elite Zombies were particularly menacing, gesturing wildly and emitting bone-chilling roars.
Watching from a distance, Neil grew increasingly anxious. Suddenly, he took to the air, flying rapidly toward the assault boat.
Soon, he hovered above them. The group looked up at Neil with envy at his flight capability. With his Telekinesis ability, Neil could manipulate his own body to achieve flight.
"Neil, why did you come alone?" Megan asked.
Neil fixed his gaze on Otha. "The outer horde is too massive—we can't break through! Mr. Soderberg, let me take you away from here first. Whatever happens, you must prevent Silvercrest District from destroying Starlight City!"
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