Chapter 240 First Battle with the Demonic Monster

Jasmine Cox had an ordinary name but lived a life far better than her name suggested.

She had a loving husband, an adorable child, and a happy family.

She also had an enviable income. Though her travel agency wasn't large, it was enough to make her somewhat famous in Accraville City's tourism circle.

Originally, this was supposed to be the last tour Jasmine and her husband led before trying for a second child. An employee from a company that often patronized her business wanted her to personally guide a tour of Cloud Peak Mountain. But then, to her surprise, the apocalypse arrived.

Jasmine thought that week was the most terrifying nightmare she had ever experienced. The gruesome, blood-soaked faces and the ferocious zombies after infection made her, someone who had only argued twice in her life, tremble to her core.

But what came next made her feel like she had fallen into hell.

The brutal fights for food, the extreme amplification of human depravity in the face of imminent danger, the ruthless betrayals and sellouts for survival...

If she hadn't held onto the hope of seeing her husband and son again, she would have jumped off a tall building like many others, thinking that dying outright was better than living in a daily hell.

Perhaps God wanted her to see something even more terrifying than hell; she encountered a group of short green-skinned monsters.

The nightmare began.

After the apocalypse started, Jasmine wanted to die.

Before, despite the horrors, it had still been human against human, however monstrous their actions.

But now, they were really monsters!

Jasmine wanted to commit suicide, but her hands and feet were bound. The only method she could think of was biting her tongue, something she had seen in movies.

But she failed; she didn't sever her tongue.

As a result, she didn't die; she lost the ability to scream and had to endure constant pain all over her body.

Those were days that made her wish the Earth would explode. To her, that was the real apocalypse. Facing zombies and beastly humans before seemed like paradise in comparison.

Ten days later, she was taken to a huge warehouse.

She found that there were many women like her around, even female zombies! There were hundreds of them.

The warehouse was dark, and Jasmine knew it was likely a basement or something similar. It was cold and dry. Every day, the green-skinned monsters would come to feed them. Human women got canned food and bread, while female zombies got chunks of meat with blood and fur.

After being locked for half a month, Jasmine discovered their purpose.

A female zombie's belly had noticeably grown. This zombie, mutated from a human, was pregnant!

At that moment, Jasmine felt humanity had no hope. Even if the female zombie had conceived on the first day of the apocalypse, it was only a little over a month along, but it was clearly about to give birth!

Then, Jasmine found out she was pregnant too. Unlike the joy she felt when she was pregnant with her son, she vomited violently that day, not from morning sickness but from sheer disgust.

Many women, like Jasmine, cried and screamed when they found out they were pregnant. Many went mad, but it was useless. The green-skinned monsters still fed them daily and even made them drink a brown liquid.

Later, the warehouse gradually quieted down. Women were brought in periodically, all of them pregnant. Jasmine didn't know how the green-skinned monsters could tell pregnancy, but everyone brought into the warehouse was pregnant.

One day, the first pregnant female zombie gave birth, making Jasmine's heart sink.

It wasn't a normal birth. The belly burst open, and a small green-skinned monster jumped out, covered in sticky amniotic fluid. It then turned around and ate the mother that had nurtured it.

Jasmine, who had been strong all along, lost her sanity at that moment and went mad. When she regained consciousness, she didn't know how many days had passed. Her belly was already large, and she estimated that a green-skinned monster would burst out in a day or two, eating her and using her as nourishment.

Her chest was covered in dried food stains and a foul stench. Jasmine felt she had been out of her mind for at least ten days.

A woman nailed to the wall opposite Jasmine weakly spoke, "The green-skinned monsters have grown taller."

She had been captured around the same time as Jasmine and was even a day or two ahead in pregnancy. Her belly had become translucent, and the outline of the monster inside was clear.

For women about to give birth, the green-skinned monsters would lift their clothes to expose their bellies. Jasmine was now in this state.

"Taller?" Jasmine said, her words slurred. Though she hadn't bitten off her tongue, it was severely injured and hadn't healed well. A foul stench came from her mouth, and she knew that even if the monster inside her didn't come out, she wouldn't live much longer.

"Yes, they seem to be growing. Today, I saw one that was about 6 feet tall," the woman said weakly. 

She wanted to say more, but suddenly her belly ached. She looked down to see the monster inside her belly struggling inside. Suddenly, a small but incredibly sharp green hand pierced through her belly, then completely tore it open. Covered in blood and flesh, the green-skinned monster jumped out, sniffed around, and then bit into its 'mother's' neck, drinking her blood and eating her body until only the arms nailed to the wall and the legs bound to the ground were left. After eating, it waddled out of the warehouse with a bloated belly.

Jasmine was in tears, knowing this was the last time she would cry in her life.

Suddenly, a commotion came from the door. The usually arrogant monsters were furious and rushed out. 

Jasmine turned her head to listen, trying to figure out what was happening, but her increasingly weak body had dulled her senses. She couldn't make out anything.

After a while, a bone-chilling cold came, making her shiver. In a daze, she saw a young human male walk in.

William, carrying the Edge of the Moon, whistled as he stormed into the small military base.

A Demonic Monster sleeping not far from the entrance was the first to encounter William. It bared its fangs and charged at him.

His fear of such monsters still lingered, but it had faded significantly, largely due to his reborn mindset.

In his past life, Demonic Monsters had been creatures of myth and legend, their existence shrouded in fear and speculation. With William's status, it was impossible for him to know much about them; he just knew them terrifying. Now, they were obstacles to be overcome, puzzles to be solved.

This Demonic Monster was 3.5 feet tall, was among the weakest of its kind, barely more than an adolescent. However, even the weakest Demonic Monster had combat power far superior to a one-star Evolving person. When it grew to about 5 feet, it would enter the second evolution level, with overall strength surpassing a two-star Evolving person.

Starting at 3 feet, every additional 20 inches marked a significant leap in its strength.

This Demonic Monster was weak within its race, but to William, its speed, strength, and ferocity were all superior to a human Evolving person. Its sharp claws, combined with its exceptional jumping ability, brought it instantly in front of William.

The Knife Light of the Edge of the Moon flashed, and the Demonic Monster's head flew off. It was formidable, but still too weak in front of William.

However, William felt the resistance from the Edge of the Moon, indicating that the Demonic Monster's skin had strong defensive capabilities.

From the military base's gate, numerous Demonic Monsters swarmed out.

William roared and slashed out Seal: Flame Blade. The mental energy he had expended at the Lowe Family had partially recovered, allowing him to use his most powerful attack skill.

Several Demonic Monsters, still unaware of the situation, were cut in half by this move and turned into steam under the burning flames.

This strike took down at least a dozen Demonic Monsters.

Suddenly, an iron door from the military base flew out, smashing towards William, who was still charging. Then, a 6-foot-tall figure appeared at the entrance. It was a third-level Demonic Monster.

William dodged the door and stopped his charge the moment he saw it appear. He slashed left and right, taking down several Demonic Monsters that had rushed to his side, and locked his gaze on the big guy.

If anyone else were here, they would notice William's unprecedented seriousness.

Even when facing the recent crisis at Cloud Peak Manor, William had never been this cautious.

The tall Demonic Monster roared at William, its thick long arms hanging past its knees. Behind it, Demonic Monsters of varying heights began to swarm out. Clearly, the near twenty kills William had made in a short time had alerted them, prompting them to come out in full force.

The ordinary Demonic Monsters swarmed out, and the tall Demonic Monster suddenly bent down. It placed all four limbs on the ground, then leaped high into the air like a grasshopper, covering over 80 feet in a single bound, landing above William. Its claws, gleaming with deadly black light, slashed towards William, determined to tear him to pieces and eat him.

It smelled the delicious scent of Wiliam. Eating him would allow it to grow over 4 inches.

William stared at the pouncing Demonic Monster and slashed the Edge of the Moon towards it. He activated The Light of Full Strength and simultaneously jumped back, dodging an attack from a smaller Demonic Monster. The Edge of the Moon sliced through the smaller monster's neck, spilling foul-smelling blue blood with sparkling particles.

At this moment, the Knife Light collided with the large monster in mid-air, producing a metallic clashing sound. The large monster cried out in pain and crashed down.

After taking down the small monster, William turned, sheathed his blade, and punched.

His fist collided with the large monster's fist.

The monster had blocked the Knife Light earlier, and its sharp claws had been cut off. The Knife Light's residual force left a shallow mark on its chest.

This not only proved the its excellent defense but also forced it to punch its enemy. When their fists collided, its body paused in mid-air, then flew backward, tumbling twice before landing 33 feet away. One of its fingers broke in the collision, twisting grotesquely.

William also flew back, seemingly knocked away. In reality, he was using the momentum to distance himself from the monsters. However, he wasn't unscathed; his arm throbbed with pain, likely from a fractured upper arm bone.

No matter what, William was only a two-star Evolving person. Physically, he couldn't compare to a third-level evolved Demonic Monster. If not for the improved potions he took during his evolution and the techniques he learned from Michelle and Candice for exerting force and controlling muscles, the result might have been the Demonic Monster losing a finger while he lost an arm.

Now he and the monster were about 13 feet apart. When he looked up again, he saw another large figure among the swarming monsters, almost as tall as the first one. Beside it were several others over 5 feet tall.

William chose to flee, decisively turning and running back the way he came.

In this short time, he had killed over twenty Demonic Monsters. While the human attack on this place a few days ago had only slightly more casualties than this. The Demonic Monsters, who were completely provoked, wouldn't let him go.

Seeing William flee, two 6-foot-tall Demonic Monsters immediately pointed at him and roared. The other monsters responded with roars and chased after him.

A few hundred feet from the armory, William suddenly stopped, turned around, and looked at the monster horde just a few dozen feet behind him.

Without the Bloodstride Boots, William couldn't outrun these creatures.

But a smile appeared on his face. A wooden staff appeared in front of him, with an ice-blue gem embedded in its center, radiating cold.

William activated Blue Blood Lotus!

A giant lotus floated in the air, spinning rapidly. The beautiful, crystalline ice petals roared out, instantly engulfing the monsters behind and the rising sun in that direction.