Chapter 138: Breaking Through the Soil

The middle-aged man’s sigh echoed through the silent night air, carrying an eerie and ominous quality that caused the expressions of the others to darken. The delicate young girl, with her pretty features, complained with a hint of terror, “Second Uncle! It’s so late… please, don’t talk about that anymore!”

“Heh, it seems Miss Rou’er was truly frightened out of her wits today,” the burly man beside them remarked with a chuckle. As he laughed, the muscles on his frame rippled, hinting at the significant strength he possessed.

“Hmph, look who’s talking. Didn’t you look just as pale as the rest of us?” Stung by his words and losing her composure, the girl retorted with a spoiled pout. She snuck a glance at the young man beside her, stuck out her tongue, and countered, “You were just as scared!”

“Rou’er, enough of this nonsense!” the middle-aged man scolded, frowning. “If he hadn’t saved you today, you would have been bitten by those walking corpses. You know full well what the consequences of being bitten by those things are.”

Rou’er let out a dissatisfied huff but fell silent. A flicker of fear remained in her eyes; the day’s encounter had clearly left a deep impression on her. Even now, the mere thought of those rotting, foul-smelling, moving corpses made her body tremble slightly. She glanced around instinctively, terrified that something might leap out from the darkness.

Seeing her state, the middle-aged man sighed softly. The Zombie Beetle Beasts had been extinct in the Empire for many years, and Rou’er had been born long after they vanished. Even hearing stories about them couldn't compare to the shock of seeing them in person. It was no surprise she was so terrified.

*But if these beasts have been gone for so long, why have they reappeared here?*

Shaking his head, the puzzled man decided that as soon as they reached the city of Lunluo, he would report this to the City Lord immediately. If this situation wasn’t handled correctly, it could very well escalate into a horrific zombie plague.

“Uncle Yu, what should we do now? Since there are zombies blocking the road ahead, should we take a detour?” The young man, who had remained silent until now, looked up and asked quietly. Compared to the others, his demeanor was far more composed.

“A detour?” The middle-aged man frowned and thought for a moment before shaking his head helplessly. “Given the terrain, there is only one road to Lunluo. Taking a detour would mean crossing treacherous, dangerous mountain ranges. Not only is the danger level just as high, but it would also delay us by several days. We wouldn’t be able to deliver the goods on time...”

“Uncle Yu is right. Detouring is also dangerous, and besides, we were only turned back today because we were caught unprepared. Instead of taking the long way, we should just charge through in one go!” the burly man said loudly, slapping his chest with a heavy thud, displaying a sense of boldness.

The man named Yu pondered for a while before nodding, his mind made up. “Very well. Everyone, get some rest tonight. We leave as soon as the sun rises!”

The other three nodded in agreement and gathered around the campfire, falling silent. The surroundings grew quiet, save for the occasional crackle of burning charcoal. Some stared blankly into the flames, while others closed their eyes to rest. Only Rou’er remained, sitting with her legs pulled up, still clearly on edge.

*Crack!*

The sharp pop of a burning coal startled the girl. She glanced up, but seeing that the others hadn’t reacted, she felt a sudden gust of wind. A chill ran down her spine, and goosebumps rose on her skin. The firelight flickered, casting distorted, eerie shadows across the ground.

Though she wasn't alone, she couldn't shake the feeling of dread, as if everyone else had fallen into a death-like stillness and she was the only one awake. If something were to happen, the others might not even notice.

Her heart hammered against her ribs in the deathly silence. She had never felt her own heartbeat so clearly, as if it were thundering right in her ear—*thump-thump, thump-thump.*

She clenched her fists until her palms were slick with sweat. Slowly, whether out of nerves or reality, she felt an itching sensation on her backside. It didn't feel like a normal itch; it felt as if something was touching her, rising and falling as if the ground itself were moving.

Her heart leaped into her throat. She felt the ground shifting clearly—right beneath where she was sitting!

“Ahhh!”

Sensing the movement intensify, the girl shrieked, her hair standing on end as she scrambled to her feet in a panic. In her haste, she tripped over her own feet and collapsed to the ground with a cry.

The scream jolted the others awake. They instantly drew their weapons and stood back-to-back, scanning the darkness. Finding no immediate threat, the middle-aged man rushed over to help her up. “Rou’er, what happened?”

“There… over there!” Though she was being supported, her legs were weak. She pointed a trembling finger at the spot where she had been sitting.

The group turned their gazes toward the spot, confused. But the next moment, a pale, gaunt hand burst forth from the soil right before their horrified eyes!

Midnight, a flickering fire, the earth, and a hand—a terrifying tableau unfolded before the four. The middle-aged man was the first to regain his senses. He aimed his weapon at the pale hand and shouted with a voice still trembling from shock, “Watch out! It might be a zombie!”

His warning snapped the others to attention. They leveled their weapons at the hand, channeling their Battle Qi as they braced for whatever was about to emerge.

The middle-aged man possessed the strongest aura, his surging Battle Qi coating his weapon. Only the girl, still weak-kneed, struggled to draw her sword.

They stood in tense silence, weapons held high. Perhaps due to the trauma of the day, no one dared to strike first. As they watched, another hand emerged, followed by a left leg, then a right. Soon, the full silhouette of a person appeared before their stunned eyes.

When Su Yi finally pulled himself from the dirt and stood up, revealing a pale face, the group gulped, their palms sweating against their hilts. Zombies were hard enough to deal with; if they made a sound and attracted more, they would be in a dire situation.

Su Yi brushed the dust from his clothes and, seeing their wide-eyed expressions, offered an embarrassed smile. “Heh, everyone, don’t panic. I’m not a zombie. I was just resting here. I’m the one who lit that fire.”

To prove he meant no harm, he held up his empty hands. The four were even more bewildered. If he could speak, he couldn’t be a zombie—but what kind of normal human buries themselves in the dirt for so long?

*Could he be some kind of mutated zombie?*

Seeing their continued vigilance, Su Yi shrugged and straightened his clothes. He didn't make any sudden moves, but his eyes swept over the group, quietly assessing their strength.

The burly man was an Eighth-Rank Battle Practitioner, the young man under thirty was a Ninth-Rank, the middle-aged man had just broken through to the Battle Cultivator level, and the girl was already a Second-Rank Battle Practitioner.

In terms of talent, the young man and the girl were quite exceptional—on par with geniuses like Lie Feifei or Geli. As for the young man, the fact that no one had reached the Ninth-Rank at the recent Changling City martial tournament spoke volumes about his potential.

After a long stalemate, seeing that Su Yi remained nonchalant, the middle-aged man finally lowered his weapon and cleared his throat. “If you aren’t a zombie, then who are you?”

“Just a passerby,” Su Yi smiled. “I heard you talking about zombies, so I came out to see what was happening. As for why I was in the dirt, just consider it a peculiar hobby of mine.”

“A peculiar hobby? Hmph, I think you’re just a pervert! Why else would you be… underneath me? And you were skulking around—were you trying to eavesdrop on us?”

Seeing that the person emerging from the ground was indeed a living human, Rou’er’s color returned, and she retorted with a huff of indignation.