Chapter 257 High Returns After High Risks
Pill's loud barking echoed across the battlefield. It leaped over the crowded battlefield, landing like lightning above William. Just a second before the level-three zombie could stab William, Pill pounced on it, and the two figures immediately rolled into the horde of zombies.
Then, everyone saw sharp metal spikes suddenly rise from the ground where Pill had fallen. All the zombies around were pierced by those incredibly sharp golden spikes. The level-three zombie that had its throat bitten was also pierced through the head, dying instantly.
William, using all his strength, finally managed to stab the Throat Seizer in the eye socket.
The screeching sound of metal friction was unbearable. William felt immense resistance from the Edge of the Moon. He roared and used his right arm to press against the knife handle, pushing forward with all his might.
The Throat Seizer screamed, its two tentacles struggling more violently than ever since the battle began. Gemma and Clarissa could no longer control it and were thrown off by the tentacles.
In its dying moments, the Throat Seizer desperately gripped the knife embedded in its face with both hands, while its two tentacles shot towards William.
It thought it still had a chance to turn the tide, or at least take William down with it.
But it suddenly noticed William smiling at such a moment. Then, it felt its tentacles being entangled by something. Although it was just for a moment, it was enough to seal its fate.
A sharp pain shot through its brain, and it finally lost its life.
The two tentacles, freed from the vines activated by William's Cultivation skill, still had some momentum and lashed towards William. Lucy's Air Shield was deployed beside William, so the tentacles struck the semi-transparent shield. The shield dimmed but did not disappear.
The instinctive roars and screams of the zombie horde ceased at that moment, and the humans fell silent as well. The entire battlefield, already like a taut string, was waiting to see who would break first. Now, with the core strength of the zombies, the level-four Throat Seizer, killed, that string snapped.
After two seconds of silence, the zombie horde let out a high-pitched howl. But unlike before, this howl was filled with panic, helplessness, and fear.
Although those high-level zombies had gained intelligence, they were still direct in some ways. The death of their strongest instilled a terrifying certainty: their own demise was imminent.
As a result, the zombie horde fell into complete chaos.
The mindless, low-level zombies, no longer controlled by higher-level ones, continued to attack nearby humans out of their predatory instincts. Meanwhile, the level-two and level-three zombies began to flee.
Many survivors were stunned. Since the apocalypse began, they had always been the ones running, hunted by these relentless creatures. Never before had they tasted the intoxicating possibility of becoming the hunters.
Moreover, the death of the level-four zombie greatly boosted morale. The humans, already engaged in a fierce battle, erupted with the highest fighting spirit. The zombies were slaughtered in droves, and scenes of multiple Evolving Persons ganging up on a single level-three zombie became commonplace.
William stood on the corpse of the Throat Seizer, and the immense energy surged into his body through the Energy Absorbing Satan skill of his Bloodstride Boots, healing his injuries.
He had never absorbed the energy of a level-four creature before, and the healing speed amazed him.
The tide of the battle was becoming clear. Although the humans had nearly exhausted their ammunition, their newfound courage and weapons allowed them to line up and slaughter the ordinary zombies. The nearly thousand remaining zombies in the manor posed no threat to the highly motivated humans.
The Evolving Persons were frantically hunting down high-level zombies. They might collapse from exhaustion if they stopped, but for now, they were killing with exhilarating excitement.
The level-two and level-three zombies began to scatter as they fled, losing their numerical advantage. Pill, who had just evolved to level-three and gained a new Ground Spiking Spell, was on a killing spree. Any enemy that came within its reach was impaled by the sharp, gilded spikes of its spell.
The core members, still maintaining some combat strength, coordinated with each other to entangle the high-level zombies, allowing Pill to deliver the final blow.
William's injuries healed rapidly, and after ten minutes, he was mostly recovered. He entered the battlefield with his knife.
His participation signaled the complete collapse of this zombie horde.
When the last level-three zombie in sight was killed by the combined attack of William and Pill, the survivors in the entire base erupted in cheers.
Everyone knew how hard this victory was to achieve. Everyone understood its significance. Everyone realized that the post-apocalyptic world would change from now on.
Many people simply lay down on the ground, which was now covered in blood and corpses, and fell asleep. Some fainted from exhaustion, while others sat there muttering in a daze, recalling the past. Then they suddenly realized that the apocalypse had truly arrived.
The members of the Hungry Tiger Knights warband and Sasha's warband helped take care of the exhausted warriors and moved the wounded to a designated medical area according to Edna's instructions. They avoided arousing suspicion, knowing that the people of Cloud Peak Manor were about to clean up the battlefield. The corpses from the manor to the foot of the mountain were the real treasure now.
"Try to store the bodies of the high-level zombies together. I need to study them as specimens," Edna said to William before leaving to treat the wounded. "Especially the level-three zombies and that level-four Throat Seizer. You can't touch them until I'm done with my research."
William nodded in agreement. In this battle, Edna was truly fearless. She was covered in blood and had no idea how many injuries she had sustained.
Those who could still move began to clean up the battlefield. The primary target was, of course, the high-level Magic Crystals, followed by the ordinary Magic Crystals. As for the numerous corpses, they could only deal with them bit by bit, which would likely take several days to clean up.
Digging out the Magic Crystals took the remaining people until nightfall. The sight of dozens of large bags of Magic Crystals on the table made everyone envious.
Michelle, dragging an immobile arm, brought the statistics to William after dinner.
"Let's talk about the casualties first," Michelle said, sighing slightly. "This time, our losses were severe, with casualties exceeding two-thirds of our total."
William's eye twitched at this number. Two-thirds—this was indeed a pyrrhic victory.
"And that doesn't include the Hungry Tiger Knights warband and Sasha's warband. Their casualties also exceeded half," Michelle added.
Since these two squads didn't have to hold the line like Cloud Peak Manor, their losses were relatively smaller, but overall, they were on the verge of disbanding.
Lucy, having recovered some mental strength using the primary Meditation Exchange of her green necklace, saw Michelle's condition and sat beside her, using Gentle Chain to heal her shoulder and arm injuries.
"Now, our manor has fewer than two hundred ordinary members left, and only a little over forty Evolving Persons, some of whom have permanent disabilities," Michelle continued.
Everyone qualified to attend the post-battle meeting had mentally prepared themselves, but hearing the specific numbers still made them sigh in regret. The losses were truly immense.
"Many people died—Elijah, Leah, Abigail, and many others sacrificed themselves," Michelle reported.
The atmosphere in the room became stifling. The base, which had just started to take shape, had half of its foundation destroyed by this zombie horde.
"Now, let's talk about the gains. This time, we obtained a total of over twenty-two thousand five hundred level-one Magic Crystals, three hundred eighty-five level-two Magic Crystals, thirty-one level-three Magic Crystals, and one level-four Magic Crystal," Michelle announced.
She paused for a moment, then perked up and continued with a tone of regret, "After William killed the Throat Seizer, the high-level zombies began to scatter. The level-two ones were mostly retained, but the level-three zombies were too powerful. Apart from William and Pill, only Gemma could single-handedly hold them off. Although Candice, Jack, and others tried their best to hunt them down, more than ten still managed to escape."
The unspoken implication hung heavy in the air. Each escaped level-three zombie represented a lost opportunity for a spin on the level-three roulette.
For William, level-one and level-two Magic Crystals were no longer of great importance. level-three was the most crucial. With enough of them, William could immediately become a three-star Evolving person.
"That's basically it. The rest concerns the two squads still in the manor," Michelle said, glancing at William's expression. "Darryl is waiting for you outside."
