Chapter 195 I Have More
"A burden following us, saying we don't deserve it?" the Courage Squad members thought, rolling their eyes.
They exchanged glances and chuckled. If it weren't for the constant danger in the Land of Death, they'd be laughing out loud.
They thought, "Seriously? It's the apocalypse!"
"The world's gone to hell. When the Golden Light hit, humanity crumbled almost instantly."
"Now, zombies and mutated creatures are everywhere. No laws, no rules, no limits. The strong do whatever they want, even kill, without consequences."
"And here you are, barely able to walk, talking about qualifications? That's hilarious."
"Not only are you injured, but your IQ must be shot too," someone sneered, eyeing the crystals in William's hand.
A Level 2 Magic Crystal near Accraville City could get you a new assault rifle, two boxes of bullets, a twenty-pound bag of food, and two big barrels of water. If one found a generous seller, maybe even two cans of meat.
Food was somewhat easy to find if one wasn't afraid of dying. But weapons? Super rare. Guns and ammo mostly came from military bases, police, security companies, shooting clubs, and armories. Regular folks couldn't get them, even if they were Evolving.
An ordinary person with a rifle could be deadly to a one-star Evolving person from a distance.
So, firearms were always in high demand. Some classic models were as valuable as a one-star Evolution Elixir.
And this injured guy had two Level 2 Magic Crystals. That's two top-notch automatic rifles! With those, the squad could take on some lone Level 2 creatures!
Craig's eyes turned cold. He'd seen this before, many times, when he knew human nature. When survival was on the line, no one let go of something valuable easily.
Craig himself had killed three such fools who didn't know how to make smart choices.
It looked like he'd have to kill another one today.
"Can you guys not do this?" Camilla wasn't the sharpest, but she wasn't dumb either. She was aware of her teammates' plans, and her round face revealed her reluctance.
Seeing no reaction from them, she turned to William, "Just give them the two Level 2 Magic Crystals, or else..."
William's opinion of Camilla improved a bit, but he also thought she was better off in a lab.
"Why all the talk?" Luke said, stuffing monster meat into his mouth and drawing a knife from his waist.
William smiled and tossed the two Level 2 Magic Crystals on the ground. The others smirked mockingly.
They thought, 'Scared now? We thought you were tough, but you're just afraid of a knife. Handing over the crystals won't save you from a beating.'
Luke laughed, seeing Craig's lack of reaction, knowing they were on the same page: this guy needed a lesson.
Everyone waited for William to beg for mercy, but he suddenly asked one of them, "Do you think so too?"
The squad member was confused, 'Think what?'
Before he could react, William asked another, "Do you think so too?"
This person was also stunned.
"And you?"
"Do you all think so?"
William dusted himself off and finally asked Tom, "Camilla's brother, do you think so too?"
Tom smiled, "What I think doesn't really matter."
William nodded, looked at Craig and Luke, and said softly, "Want the Magic Crystals?"
"I have more."
Then, William waved his hand over the two Level 2 Magic Crystals, and more than ten Level 1 Magic Crystals appeared.
The Courage Squad members' jaws dropped, not because of the dozen Level 1 Magic Crystals, but because they appeared out of thin air!
They had thoroughly searched William and found nothing. He had been with them the whole time and had no chance to hunt Level 1 monsters. So where did these Magic Crystals come from?
William continued, "There's more."
This time, when he waved his hand again, even more Magic Crystals appeared—thousands of Level 1 Magic Crystals!
The Courage Squad members were stunned. If they were puzzled by the appearance of the crystals earlier, they were now completely floored by the sheer number.
Out of the ten squad members, only one wasn't an Evolving person, meaning they had used up nine bottles of one-star Evolution Elixir. Considering the odds, they might have spent around a thousand Magic Crystals.
But now? A rough estimate put these at at least three thousand!
Three thousand! Enough to form three new Courage Squads!
What a fortune!
Before they could snap out of their daze, William's tempting voice came again, "There's more."
This time, hundreds of Level 2 Magic Crystals appeared.
The Courage Squad members went nuts.
Just moments ago, they were prepared to eliminate this individual in exchange for two Level 2 Magic Crystals.
But now, so many Level 2 Magic Crystals appeared at once! How could they stay calm? Even with the worst luck, these crystals could get them a two-star Evolution Elixir.
Two stars!
They risked their lives in the Land of Death for a chance to become two-star Evolving persons. Now, the opportunity was right in front of them!
"There are some more, but I don't know if you recognize them," William said, placing over a dozen pitch-black Magic Crystals on top of the pile.
"Three, three-star?" a squad member stammered.
They didn't have any three-star Magic Crystals, but they had seen three-star mutated creatures. Now, three-star creatures were becoming more common in the survivors' field of vision.
They were kings and reapers; wherever they went, no survivors could live.
The Courage Squad had once seen a three-star zombie crush a team far stronger than theirs like a steamroller.
It was a nightmare, etched in everyone's memory.
But now, William had produced over a dozen three-star Magic Crystals. Didn't that mean he had killed more than a dozen three-star mutated creatures?
Their first thought was instinctive greed. The value of three-star Magic Crystals was almost incalculable now.
But the next moment, greed was replaced by bone-chilling fear.
Someone with so many Magic Crystals, especially high-level ones, and willing to show them—could he be someone you could just handle and bully?
Everyone instinctively swallowed.
The voice came again, "There's more."
This time everyone shivered, their eyes glued to the Magic Crystal pile.
Strange? Why didn't they appear?
The Courage Squad members waited for a couple of seconds and saw nothing. They looked up at William and noticed a wooden staff wrapped in deep blue ice mist beside him.
William's chilling voice echoed, "There are many more, but unfortunately, you really don't deserve them."
A blue lotus flower appeared in the air, slowly rotating, dazzlingly beautiful.
But in the next second, the lotus turned deadly. The Blue Blood Lotus activated.
Ice petals shot out like a storm. After a brief, urgent hum, everything went silent.
The Courage Squad members' mouths hung open, sweat dripping onto the purple-brown ground of the Land of Death.
Craig and Luke, who had absolute authority in the squad, were now tattered corpses. Their upper bodies were riddled with holes, while their lower bodies remained intact, frozen into ice sculptures.
They looked just like the two monster corpses on the ground.
Everyone finally understood how those two monsters had died.
No natural enemies, no luck—it was William who had killed them.
They had mocked William, but now it was clear he wasn't afraid of them at all!
Because they didn't have the strength!
They thought they had found a laborer and a scapegoat, but he turned out to be a Grim Reaper.
"You!" Camilla exclaimed, her big eyes widening even more, making her look rounder. She stared at William in shock.
William casually waved his hand, and all the Magic Crystals on the ground disappeared.
Then he tossed a bundle to the still-dazed Camilla, making her fumble to catch it.
"What is this?" Camilla asked.
She discovered a collection of herbs in her possession, consisting of several varieties, each with a considerable number of stalks.
"I'll teach you a formula to make a potion," William said.
He clapped his hands, then squinted at the remaining three Courage Squad members, excluding Camilla and her brother. "As for you, if you want to survive, you'll have to work."
A day later, William sat on a stretcher, carried by two one-star Evolving persons, arriving at the edge of a valley.
From within the valley came the roars of fierce beasts.
