Chapter Eighty-Four: Sounding the Horn of Counterattack (Double-Length Chapter)

The solvent injected into Liszt’s body was a compound he had developed himself, designed to boost the activity of the zombie virus within him. This stimulant-like concoction allowed the virus in his system to surge with heightened vigor.

Unlike other Corpse Hunters, Liszt was the sole inheritor of Donald’s line of research. His body was dominated by the zombie virus, supplemented by mechanical enhancements and the primal virus from the Sun Ladder. As a result, Liszt possessed the zombie virus’s extraordinary defensive capabilities. Combined with the high-energy reactor implanted in his body, his physical strength had reached an almost monstrous level.

Yet, faced with the tide of Face-Spiders surging toward him, Liszt clearly had no intention of smashing them all to death with his fists. Such a method would be far too time-consuming and would severely delay his grave-digging progress. If Qiao recovered before he finished, his plan to bury the bodies would fail.

So, Liszt casually grabbed the iron chain binding the Stage Eight mutant centipede. From his sleeve, countless black, insect-like nano-creatures began to crawl along the chain toward the massive mutant centipede. These semi-mechanical, semi-biological creatures were a fusion of nanorobotics and genetic engineering, feeding on the zombie virus and capable of rapid reproduction and growth. Usually, these nano-insects lay dormant in Liszt’s body, but when the viral activity reached a certain threshold, the bioenergy from the virus—enhanced by Ye Hai’s biotechnological advances—would activate and “charge” them.

Qiao watched as the black nano-insects swarmed up the chain, clambering onto the centipede’s body. Sharp mandibles tore open its armored hide, allowing the insects to burrow deep inside. Soon, the massive mutant centipede was writhing and convulsing violently. Liszt, his high-energy reactor fully engaged, held the alloy chain tight, preventing the creature from escaping. Before long, the centipede, nearly a hundred meters long, collapsed completely limp on the ground.

Moments later, the now-enlarged nano-insects burst from inside the corpse, gnawing their way through the exoskeleton. Where before there had been hundreds of them, each the size of a fingernail, now they were as large as watermelons—and their numbers uncountable, a writhing black tide pouring from the carcass. This black wave surged toward the Face-Spiders like a living tsunami.

The bio-nano insects were incredibly agile, leaping more than ten meters between trees with ease. Confronted by the oncoming swarm, the Face-Spiders unleashed their psychic abilities, filling the forest with explosions of colored energy. Yet the nano-insects, being so resilient, were barely affected—lesser psychic blasts only flung them aside for a moment before they scrambled back into the black tide.

In no time, the swarm completely engulfed the hundreds of Face-Spiders, giving them no chance to fight back. Once the insects had annihilated every last one, their bodies began to flash with red lights, emitting urgent beeping sounds. The next moment, a thunderous explosion erupted as the entire tide of nano-insects detonated at once, a miniature mushroom cloud blooming into the sky.

With that, Liszt returned to normal, resuming his digging as if nothing had happened. Qiao cursed aloud in disbelief.

Meanwhile, Zero had already sliced Sura and Eric into thousands of pieces. She had exited her Sleep God Tyrant form and, with a radiant smile, sauntered over to Qiao. The terrifying form of the Tyrant was gone, replaced by a stunning blonde beauty in a figure-hugging black cocktail dress, crafted from T-virus secretions, and high heels—about 170 centimeters tall, with cascading golden waves. The contrast was so great that even Qiao was momentarily dazed.

But in the next instant, Liszt stopped digging. Zero’s expression grew grave as she scanned their surroundings. Suddenly, all around them, countless ART-2 units erupted from the ground. Hundreds of colossal monsters, each over twenty meters tall, towered above them.

Qiao’s face turned ashen. “Damn it…how many ART-2s are there?”

Liszt sighed, his voice low. “According to the sensors in my body… more than thirty thousand mutants, large and small.”

With that, he resumed digging. Qiao gaped in shock. “Damn… that many? Liszt, you still have the mind to dig graves?”

Liszt didn’t even look up. “I’ll dig three pits first… If we die, it’ll be too late.”

“…Who’s going to bury us if we’re dead?” Qiao asked.

Liszt paused, glancing up at Qiao with a hint of grievance. “Then maybe we should bury ourselves before we die?”

…

Watching the mechs about to break through the fire blockade, Er Gouzi gritted his teeth, snatched the eyeball from Fly’s hand, and said, “I’ll take the eyeball into the forbidden zone. You take the other two and run. Quick!”

Without waiting for a response, Er Gouzi ducked into the forest and vanished.

Fly was shaken to his core. As a Corpse Hunter, he knew full well what the forbidden zone meant—ten deaths and not one life. Aside from a handful of Corpse Hunters, no one had ever come out alive. Er Gouzi was sacrificing himself.

Glancing at the unconscious Teach and Nangong, Fly wasted no time. He hefted Teach onto his shoulder and shouted to his companions, “Quick, someone strong, carry the other one! Everyone scatter and run. Our fates are in the hands of the heavens.”

He sprinted into the darkness, soon disappearing.

Er Gouzi raced to the entrance of the forbidden zone. Gazing at the gaping, black forest, he swallowed hard, then steeled himself and plunged in, sprinting toward the core.

After running for over ten minutes without encountering any monsters, he grew uneasy. “Isn’t this place supposed to be crawling with monsters? How come I haven’t seen a single one? Am I really this lucky?”

In truth, Er Gouzi didn’t know that, to prevent accidents, most mutants in the forbidden zone were usually dormant. Mr. Lung’s laboratory also served as a monitoring station; if intruders were detected, the area’s mutants would be activated to devour them. But now, with the lab destroyed and Mr. Lung unconscious, the zone was safe—except for the core.

When Er Gouzi saw a white wall in the distance, his heart skipped a beat. He knew he had reached the boundary between the forbidden zone and the core. The gray haze of the core made him uneasy, but the situation was beyond his control. He hurried to the wall, searching for the iris scanner.

Suddenly, a thick tentacle burst from the ground, coiling around Er Gouzi and dragging him underground. Before he could scream, another tentacle covered his mouth, plunging him into darkness.

Terror gripped him; he knew he’d encountered one of the forbidden zone’s horrors. Resigned, he thought, “I hope it won’t be too painful.”

But as his feet touched the ground, a weak voice whispered in his ear. “Don’t speak. It’s me, Lung.”

“Mr. Lung?” Er Gouzi stammered, confused.

Above, voices drifted down: “I’m sure I heard something here—where did it go? Don’t waste time, find the secret door. It’s an anti-gravity shield, we can’t get in. The wall’s made of alloy too. Damn Corpse Hunters, what wealth! This alloy is perfect for weapon casings. Split up and search—shout if you find anything!”

As the footsteps receded, Mr. Lung asked, “Who are you? Did Ye Hai send you?”

“Yes, Mr. Ye Hai,” Er Gouzi replied hastily. “He told me… to bring… the eyeball… for help.”

A tentacle slipped into his pocket, extracting the eyeball. “It really is Ye Hai’s. Good, no need for me to risk exposing myself.”

Er Gouzi felt himself being whisked away underground. After a short time, a tentacle slid up his back toward the surface. As it broke through, a sliver of moonlight pierced the darkness. Er Gouzi looked up to see the tentacle deftly lift a brick, placing Ye Hai’s eyeball before the scanner. A door slid open.

“Hehehe! I knew I heard something. Look, the rat crawled out by itself!” said a voice above.

Sensing danger, Mr. Lung flung Er Gouzi through the secret door as he burst from the earth. “Go inside and find the professor. I’ll hold them off.”

Bruised and dizzy, Er Gouzi staggered to his feet just as a man wreathed in flames charged at him—only to be snatched away mid-air by a tentacle.

Mr. Lung’s tentacle immediately turned black and began to smolder with a burnt stench. “What are you waiting for? Get inside!” he bellowed.

Er Gouzi snapped out of his daze and scrambled toward the inner door, where Mr. Lung, now bleeding and shrunken to normal size, blocked the entrance.

Lakan sneered, “Well, well, Mr. Lung. I almost didn’t recognize you. Not only are you alive, you’ve lost weight! Are you here to thank me? Then do it with your life!”

Lakan’s body erupted in flames as he lunged at Mr. Lung.

Shaking with fear, Er Gouzi stumbled through the gray mist, heart pounding. The atmosphere was eerie, visibility near zero, and strange noises echoed all around. Even the crunch of leaves underfoot made his hair stand on end.

He crept deeper, and suddenly a rush of wind brushed the back of his neck. Spinning around, he saw a giant one-horned wolf, jaws agape, lunging at him. The stench was overpowering. Terror blanked his mind; he could only watch as the monstrous maw closed over him.

At that instant, a colossal sea serpent burst from the ground, swallowing the mutant wolf whole. Er Gouzi’s legs gave out and he collapsed, staring blankly at the dragon-like serpent, too paralyzed to move.

The sea serpent leaped skyward, then dove toward him, jaws wide. Helpless, Er Gouzi felt a warmth spread down his legs. “I’m doomed,” he thought.

But just as the serpent was about to devour him, a hundred-meter-long moray eel appeared, biting the serpent’s head and flinging it aside. Even more traumatized, Er Gouzi lay motionless, knowing he was nothing more than a tasty morsel awaiting his fate.

The sea serpent vanished into the earth. The moray eel swam over and bared its razor-sharp teeth. Er Gouzi shut his eyes, trembling, waiting for death.

But a voice came: “Who are you? Why have you entered the forbidden zone?”

Er Gouzi’s eyes snapped open. Inside the eel’s mouth stood a beautiful young woman—Liana, the new Corpse Hunter.

Shaking, he replied weakly, “Mr. Ye Hai was attacked… killed in battle. I came for help.”

The words had barely left his mouth when the moray eel swallowed him whole and dove into the ground. Yet, instead of being chewed, he heard an old voice:

“You two, take the eel and the serpent to support Ye Hai. I’ll go check on Mr. Lung.”

…

Mr. Lung, on the verge of death, felt his consciousness fading. “Is this the end? Is this my limit?” Collapsing heavily, he drifted on the edge of oblivion.

“All right, Lakan, enough games—finish him.”

“I know, I know… Hukong, you’re such a nag,” Lakan replied.

Awaiting the final blow, Mr. Lung felt the searing heat envelop him, his every cell ablaze. “After death… will I see my wife and son again?”

Just then, a cool breeze swept over him, and through the haze he saw a familiar face.

“Two psychic mutants… and an ARMY-3! To have hurt my student so…” the figure thundered. “You deserve to die!”

A furious tornado shot skyward, splitting the heavens with thunder and lightning. Within the core forbidden zone, walls, mutants, even the indestructible anti-gravity shield—all were shredded to dust by the storm in an instant.