Chapter 302 Red-haired Iron Corpse and Witch Evolution
After an hour of running around, the Mouse King lost track of William, who just disappeared into thin air. Frustrated, it smashed one of its minions' heads and screamed into the sky.
Not too far away, William felt a bit of regret. He could've easily ditched the Mouse King earlier, but he needed to buy time for the small alliance to retreat. Plus, he was hoping the Mouse King would get separated from its crew while chasing him, giving him a shot at a one-on-one duel. In that case, William was pretty sure he had a 70% chance of taking it down.
But the Mouse King wasn't dumb. When facing an opponent on the same level, it would rather lose track than leave its team.
With tens of thousands of mutated mice around, William had no choice but to run.
When he got back to camp, his team was already there. Following William's orders, they had all changed clothes to avoid being tracked by scent.
Basil, Sasha, Wayne, and the other leaders came over to greet William and report the battle results.
Overall, the haul was pretty good. They collected over six thousand level-one Magic Crystals, a few hundred level-two Magic Crystals, and three level-three Magic Crystals.
Honestly, they killed way more than that, but they didn't have the time or chance to dig out all the Magic Crystals.
There were losses too. Over sixty people didn't make it back, and several were seriously injured. Without treatment, their chances of survival were slim.
But William didn't see any sadness on their faces.
At first, he was puzzled, but then he remembered that he had gotten used to leading his team to big wins with minimal losses. In the post-apocalyptic world, it was normal to lose a lot of lives to get Magic Crystals. Plus, this team was an alliance of dozens or even hundreds of factions, so losing one or two people per faction was totally acceptable.
In fact, these results weren't considered heavy losses at all.
Everyone knew that today's action wasn't William's main goal. The haul from this battle was similar to using witches to lure zombies for efficient kills, and that method was even safer.
"Let everyone rest. Tomorrow's the big day," William said, then added, "Give everyone an extra twenty percent of today's haul. For the factions that lost people, take out another ten percent as compensation, divided by the number of casualties. I'll take all the level-three Magic Crystals, and you can have my share of the level-one Magic Crystals in exchange."
When this news spread, there were some cheers in the camp. William had given up most of his earnings to strengthen these small factions. Such generosity was rare, and because of it, each faction could get at least a few hundred level-one Magic Crystals and several level-two Magic Crystals, which was a big deal.
So, William's standing among the survivors went up even more.
William headed back to his quarters, where the Red-haired Iron Corpse and the witch were already waiting, their eyes filled with anticipation.
Two drops of the Blood of Evolution finally fell into their hands.
Without hesitation, they tilted their heads back and drank. Instantly, their bodies began to change.
The witch's gray hair grew visibly longer, wrapping around her in moments. Her black cat also curled into a ball, its fur growing rapidly to enclose it. The two fur balls, one large and one small, commenced their rhythmic movement in unison.
This was the first time William had seen the witch evolve, and he was super curious.
The Red-haired Iron Corpse, on the other hand, went through a different transformation. Dozens of blue and purple thorny vines appeared beneath it, forming a large circle with intricate patterns inside. At regular intervals, sharp wooden spikes extended from the vines, slowly piercing the Red-haired Iron Corpse's body. It was then lifted, as if sleeping on a bed of densely packed wooden spikes.
Their bizarre evolution scenes were a real eye-opener for William. He watched closely, feeling the mysterious power emanating from them.
After a few minutes, the Red-haired Iron Corpse finished its evolution first. The wooden spikes gently lowered it onto the thorny circle on the ground. The thorny vines then retracted back into its body one by one. When the Red-haired Iron Corpse stood up, William could clearly sense its newfound strength.
Its fiery red hair now flowed past its hips, neatly draped over its back. The once gray and cracked skin had transformed, looking almost human, though a bit pale, like someone recovering from a serious illness. Standing there, without a Magic Crystal on its forehead, anyone witnessing such a sight would undoubtedly believe her to be a stunning beauty who might not be feeling entirely well. Its looks and figure were way above most human women.
But when the Red-haired Iron Corpse opened its eyes, the few but clear red threads in them still looked a bit eerie, adding a touch of seductive allure.
As it opened its eyes, the connection with William, which had been lost during the evolution, was reestablished. William could clearly sense the joy in the Red-haired Iron Corpse's heart, along with a hint of positive emotion towards him. With its increased strength, the mental connection between them became more equal, losing that old master-servant vibe. Yet, weirdly enough, William felt their bond had grown even closer; it was something he had never experienced before.
Either way, William knew that this newly evolved Red-haired Iron Corpse wouldn't be an enemy in the future.
After exchanging a glance, the Red-haired Iron Corpse shifted its gaze to the witch. When it looked back at William, there was a murderous question in its eyes.
The Red-haired Iron Corpse was asking William if they should take this chance to kill the zombie.
William hesitated for a moment but shook his head. He still needed the witch's help, and killing it now would be a bad move.
The Red-haired Iron Corpse pouted in a very human-like way and said softly, "Then you make... puppet... for me... to eat."
William's eyebrow twitched, wondering if he had heard wrong. Was this Iron Corpse actually... pouting at him?
Its tone was stiff, and its words were unclear, but combined with their mental connection, it was indeed expressing such an emotion!
At that moment, the witch also completed its evolution, interrupting the somewhat stunned William.
The two balls, one large and one small, slowly unfurled like petals, revealing a person and a cat lying on the ground.
The witch slowly opened her eyes, which sparkled like clear water, almost like crystals. She stood up, her figure slim yet curvy, with long, straight, and shiny hair that swayed slightly. Her beautiful, glossy skin made her look like a model you'd see in high-end stores, if not for the green Magic Crystal on her forehead.
Even William had to admit that at this moment, if the witch hid her Magic Crystal, she looked more human than the Red-haired Iron Corpse.
The black cat, now a level-four mutated creature, sensed the Red-haired Iron Corpse's hostility. In a flash, it darted towards the Red-haired Iron Corpse like lightning, one paw glowing with a black light aimed straight at the Red-haired Iron Corpse's neck.
William's eyes flashed, and the Edge of the Moon appeared in his hand. A beam of The Light of Full Strength intercepted the black light perfectly. As soon as he swung the blade, the Edge of the Moon vanished, replaced by a green longbow with a gray arrow already aimed at the black cat's head.
At this proximity, evading the green weapon was nearly impossible for the black cat.
The witch was shocked, her mind racing. The black cat's tail flicked, and its body veered off course. The witch's hair suddenly lengthened, wrapping around the black cat and pulling it back.
An arrow grazed the black cat's head, piercing the wall and disappearing somewhere.
The highly intelligent black cat hid in the witch's arms, its fur standing on end. It looked at William with a fearful gaze, its body trembling slightly.
The black cat had truly felt that William intended to kill it and that he could indeed do so!
"Control your pet, don't cause trouble. You are not indispensable," William's voice was icy, exuding an aura that brooked no resistance.
The witch responded softly, lowering her head and stroking her black cat.
The Red-haired Iron Corpse retracted the thorns in her hand, but the battle intent in her eyes remained. Having just gained significant strength, she was itching for a fight.
William stared at the two extremely human-like yet non-human "women" and began to explain what he needed them to do for tomorrow's crucial plan.
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