Chapter 275 Swing the blade towards the fears of your past life!
Back in his old life, William wouldn't have dared to even breathe the same air as Quincy, let alone point a blade at him.
Quincy was one of the Nine Lords of the Zero Commerce Guild, a nine-star Evolving badass known for bloodshed, terror, and raw power.
Quincy's strength was built on the bones of countless rivals.
In the apocalypse, folks like Brody and Quincy were the brightest stars.
William could only look up to these names.
Even if their reputations were trash, even if their names were soaked in blood, they were still the top dogs, looking down on billions of regular folks like William.
William, in his past life, had been nothing but a speck of dust beneath their notice. He'd trembled at the mere mention of their names, his blood running cold whenever he crossed paths with anyone bearing the Zero Commerce Guild's insignia. He knew the insurmountable gulf that separated them, the vast chasm of power and influence.
Forget about the Lords with their shining names; even their servants and guards were out of William's league.
But fear, William had learned, was a fickle companion. It could cripple, but it could also fuel a burning rage.
Any survivor with a shred of humanity would feel the same.
The Zero Commerce Guild was just plain intolerable.
After saving Gemma and hearing about Brody from her, William started plotting against the Zero Commerce Guild, and Darryl was part of the plan. William knew he'd eventually clash with these guys and wouldn't let them keep doing what they did in his past life.
Today, he saw Quincy again.
But this time, William felt no fear, only a cold, steely resolve.
This move shattered any chance of compromise between the different forces in Accraville City and the Zero Commerce Guild.
At least for today, it was like that.
The knife light flashed.
William swung his blade, now a master with the Radiant Seal Blade.
People's eyes widened. They couldn't figure out why William, who was all about trading, suddenly went on the attack.
Shouldn't they talk first, and if that didn't work, then fight? And Quincy showing up meant he had some backup. Was it really smart for William to start the fight?
Quincy was stunned for a second, then burst out laughing. The Wolf Spirit next to him lunged at the knife light.
"Well done!” The roar echoed in the room, making everyone's ears ring.
Right then, Wolf Spirits and Knife Light clashed hard. The Wolf Spirits howled in pain, and the blinding Knife Light slowly faded away.
A figure behind Quincy stepped forward super fast. A remnant of the knife light cut into him, tearing his clothes and skin, leaving a small cut.
"Lord Gray, this guy is mine.”
Quincy's eyes flashed with a sharp light, and he nodded slightly, "Make an example. Let them see what defiance earns them."
All their killing was to capture these survivors alive, so making an example out of one was necessary. Now that someone stepped up, it was the best-case scenario.
The guy standing in front of Quincy was young, around twenty, but a scar on his face made him look scary. He wore a black combat suit and held a long-handled battleaxe, looking less impressive compared to Quincy.
But William knew this guy.
Hayden Cooper was one of Lord Gray's top six attendants, the real boss of the underground pipeline area of Accraville City in his past life.
A powerful figure that even the leader of William's old warband couldn't match.
Hayden's reputation as an eight-star Evolving person was well-known in Accraville City.
William's strike was in vain, and he knew he was up against a tough opponent today. Even though the Zero Commerce Guild's strongmen hadn't reached their terrifying levels from his past life, they were still the strongest now.
Quincy was a "Soul Nurturer.” The name might not sound scary, but this profession was insanely powerful. Soul Nurturers could hunt mutated animals to get their souls and use them to attack. These souls had attributes like fear, corrosion, and sluggishness. Even scarier, once these souls became ‘Advanced Souls,' they'd absorb the life force of each target they killed. When these souls were reabsorbed into the body, they transferred this energy to the Soul Nurturer, boosting their abilities.
Even though the energy absorbed from this process was tiny, over time, you could imagine the perks a Soul Nurturer would rack up.
William didn't know what Quincy's gig was in his past life, but in this one, Quincy, with his Soul Nurturer skills, had the chops to become a top-tier powerhouse down the line.
As for Hayden, William knew his deal—Weapon Maestro.
A killer profession that let you wield any weapon like a pro.
Seeing Hayden with a long-handled axe now, his first skill must be axe proficiency.
Thanks to William's rebirth and the butterfly effect, Hayden might have a different profession.
"You gotta fight together.” William stood with his sword in front of Accraville City's elites and suddenly spoke up.
Most folks didn't react, but a few did.
Quincy's arrival was definitely bad news. Had things really hit the point of a life-and-death struggle? Quincy seemed super strong; who'd risk their neck to fight him? Fighting meant dying; who'd be the first to go?
"They're from the Zero Commerce Guild,” William slowly unzipped his backpack and reached inside with one hand. "Do you know how they evolve? They call it pig farming. Who are the pigs? If we get caught today, we're the pigs.”
Quincy's face suddenly changed. For the first time, he looked down slightly, glaring at William.
"They'll use us to feed the zombies they control, letting the zombies evolve. Then they'll blow up the micro-bombs in the zombies' heads, kill them to get Magic Crystals, and spin the wheel to evolve.” After saying this in one breath, William felt a weight lift off his chest.
Since hearing the name Zero Commerce Guild in this life, those three words had always haunted him. In his past life, many forces opposed the Zero Commerce Guild, leading to several wars. William even fought in some, but he was just a pawn. All he could do was fight without facing the terrifying high-end combat power of the Zero Commerce Guild or confronting that monstrous entity that made people tremble.
But in this life, he was already at the forefront of human evolution, and some things were inevitable.
For example, the Zero Commerce Guild—what should he do? How should he do it? To unravel the mystery of the apocalypse and lead his kind to victory in the race war, he had to eliminate this evil force. But the nightmares of his past life still lingered, and William instinctively wanted to delay direct conflict with the Zero Commerce Guild as much as possible.
William had Darryl keep tabs on them and Basil trade with them, all reflecting his deep fear of the Zero Commerce Guild.
But now, when William swung the Edge of the Moon at the infamous Quincy from his past life, all the chains and fears shattered with that strike, turning into a rock-solid courage.
The Zero Commerce Guild was formidable, no doubt about it, to the point where their number of Three-Star Evolving persons could easily crush William and his Cloud Peak Manor.
Could that change the fact that these scumbags were rotten to the core? Could it change their filthy practice of feeding their kind to zombies to get Magic Crystals?
They were now two-star, even three-star Evolving persons. How many unwilling curses from their kind were on those bottles of high-level Evolution Elixir?
Humans could die fighting zombies and monsters, and could die in internal strife for interests. But they shouldn't die like this!
It was disgusting, utterly disgusting.
William's hands were stained with the blood of his kind, but the Zero Commerce Guild's bloodstains were on their souls.
That's why William had swung his knife without hesitation earlier. He wasn't just striking at Quincy, one of the Nine Lords of the Zero Commerce Guild; he was also striking at the nightmare of his past life.
William was slashing at fear.
