Chapter 77 Soul Devour
Owen's eyes were bloodshot at this moment.
The previous encounter with the Purple Cloud War Ants had already caused heavy losses to the team, but when a large number of zombies and those two Crimson Steel Beasts arrived, all he could do was lead a passive defense.
Yes, he couldn't even escape.
Everywhere was filled with zombies, mutated creatures, and monsters. In such a short time, they had already lost more than half of their personnel, and many of the remaining were injured.
Without an immune potion, these injuries essentially meant death.
Even Owen needed to figure out which way to go. Every direction seemed to lead to hell.
It was a maddening despair.
Some people began to break down. Owen saw with his own eyes countless once-strong-willed individuals crying and pulling the trigger on their heads, their brains and blood splattering over medals once full of honor.
Some soldiers suddenly broke away from the team, mindlessly charging into the horde of zombies, thinking they were escaping, but they were running to their deaths.
Owen previously thought the zombies were not much of a threat, but they now revealed their true ferocity. When their numbers reached a certain point, not only humans but even those mutated creatures couldn't resist their attack. The zombies devoured them.
Two, out of the four directions where the team was positioned had lost contact. Caleb had also informed Owen that they needed to retreat. They couldn't hold off the giant mutated zombie any longer.
Only the second battalion was still trying to regroup with the headquarters, but could they break through the encirclement to get here?
Owen himself didn't believe it.
"Relay my orders," Owen said grimly, clenching his fists. He took off a wireless communication earpiece and said, "Breakthrough to the front left."
The adjutant beside him was stunned. He stammered, "Commander, that's..."
"I know! But it's our only way out," Owen said.
Under such orders, the entire team began to move towards Chain Prisoner. At this moment, everyone was trying to survive, and following orders had become an instinctive behavior.
Owen saw something unfamiliar in many people's eyes. He knew that even if they survived this time, many would no longer follow his orders.
But it didn't matter. This was within his expectations. All his efforts were worth it as long as Thomas and the others succeeded. He had to support them now, no matter the sacrifice!
Owen lowered his head, his eyes full of gloom.
William encountered trouble at a T-junction. This was already the main battlefield, with monsters, zombies, and mutated creatures everywhere. He had to kill these monsters while moving forward.
Following closely behind him, Thomas faced the same trouble. Without immune serums, he had to be more cautious dealing with the zombies than William. However, with his Two-Star evolution, nothing could truly harm him.
But the man ahead was too cunning, making Thomas increasingly angry.
Suddenly, there was a loud noise!
Chain Prisoner's bloodwood suddenly extended from a building, with the corpse of a second-level mutated creature at the tip. It was so mangled that its species was unrecognizable, reduced to a pile of flesh and bone fragments. Only a white magic crystal indicated its mutation level when it was alive.
Seeing Chain Prisoner's massive body emerge from behind the building, William took out his gun and fired a shot.
In fact, up to this point, no creature dared to provoke that big monster. The absolute level suppression of a fourth-level creature made many mutated creatures instinctively stay far away.
But for humans, this was a battlefield. Meanwhile, for mutated creatures, it was a feeding ground. They were filling their bellies and gaining energy to evolve.
Fear of the Chain Prisoners didn't make them give up this opportunity easily.
So, while these mutated creatures tried to stay away from Chain Prisoner, they also didn't leave the battlefield, frantically searching for any life they could kill.
This created a bizarre scene. The battlefield was filled with various life forms, but there was a small vacuum area around the Chain Prisoner.
The Chain Prisoner wandered slowly, so its impact on the battlefield was far less catastrophic than its height suggested.
But everything changed with William's shot.
Apart from Thomas and his team, no one dared to challenge this giant's authority. Those who did were now meat patties.
The Chain Prisoner had entered a state of aimless wandering, perhaps its way of breaking the seal.
But William's shot was fired from a new gun, with bullets specially enhanced and enchanted to penetrate tough defenses.
If the Chain Prisoner were the Ninth-Level Monster from William's past life, this shot would have no effect, not even as painful as a mosquito bite.
But now, the Chain Prisoner was only a Fourth-Level Monster, yet to be that strong.
Against other second, third, or even fourth-level mutated creatures, the Chain Prisoner could easily kill them because their evolution was only in level, lacking in different aspects, with low overall strength.
But William was different. Though only a One-Star Evolution, he had a profession, a top-tier secondary profession with a prefix, Honorary Craftsman. He could elevate his attacks far beyond his evolution level, causing damage to higher-level creatures.
So, this shot broke the skin on Chain Prisoner's chest.
It was just a superficial wound, not even a minor injury, merely penetrating the defense.
But it was enough to enrage the Chain Prisoner. It roared, turned, and looked at the ant-like William on the ground. With a slight exertion, the building between it and William collapsed, raising a cloud of dust.
At this moment, Owen and his team desperately arrived nearby. The Chain Prisoner's sudden rage indirectly helped him. The zombies and mutated creatures no longer pursued them closely. Even the two Crimson Steel Beasts quietly retreated, unwilling to face the Chain Prisoner.
Thomas arrived here, his eyes flashing as he suddenly charged into the smoke. Moments later, muffled sounds were heard. Soon, William and Thomas emerged from the dust, with a trace of blood at William's mouth.
Even with the cover of the dust, William still experienced the prowess of a two-star evolution. In close combat, William was slightly at a disadvantage.
But Thomas was evidently more surprised. He could tell this young man was only a One-Star Evolution, yet he was incredibly troublesome. If he hadn't dodged quickly, he might have been injured by that silver knife.
Looking at his torn shirt, Thomas ripped it off, revealing his muscular torso with a black skull tattoo on his left chest.
Seeing the tattoo, William suddenly recalled a rumor and realized something.
"Soul Devourer!" William shouted.
