Chapter 72: Brief Rest
Chapter 72: Brief Rest
It didn't take long before Liu Zhi and the others managed to convince their shelter leader to go with us. Although it looked like Luo Zehn and I were going on a pointless mission, Liu Zhi and his party still decided to go with us, their reason being they wanted to repay me for saving Wu Yan's life.
And that I was a member of their party but that's beside the point.
Liu Zhi and his party were one of the strongest hunter parties in the Red Sea Shelter but Shen Rong still allowed them to go.
"Please look after them for me, Yong Rui." Shen Rong asked as we headed out.
"I will do my best," I responded.
And just like that, we were out of the Red Sea Shelter in the middle of the night, with a horde of rabid humans advancing towards us. What's worse, we'll be on our way to intercept them in one of the shelters where they'll be passing through.
Honestly, I don't think this is a good idea.
.....
Since we have to cross another forest before we could arrive at the ruins of the city where some shelters are erected, we stuck close to each other as we watched each other's blind spots. The night was still young but the darkness in the forest occasionally sent chills down our spine. It was an understatement to say that the forest is not creepy at all. Perchance there are rabid humans lurking in the dark but there was no way we could sense them. I could only detect so far with my enhanced perception skills after all.
Wu Yan walked closer to me and tugged at my shirt. 'Girl, do you really have to make it that obvious?' I thought to myself as I gladly took her hand. Liu Zhi and the others saw it and a smirk was momentarily plastered on their face. A split second later, they hid their expressions with a fit of coughs.
"Don't worry, we got Luo Zehn with us. And aren't you in the First Level of the Immortal Realm already?" I asked her.
Although Liu Zhi's party is comprised of Immortal Realm Cultivators, it was obvious that Luo Zehn is more formidable than any of them individually. (Luo Zehn is still in the Seventh Level of the King Realm.)
"Screechers are already on par with us, if a group of higher-leveled zombies attacks us, then we won't survive." Wu Yan whispered in my ear, afraid to make any unnecessary noises.
"Wu Yan is correct, there are others such as Parasite Zombies, Five-Clawed Zombies, and Muscle Zombies. All of those are on par with Ancient Realm Cultivators, which is a realm higher than ours. If we were to meet one of them, then we'll be dead for sure. What more if we meet a horde."
"Don't worry, I'll just cut right through them." Luo Zehn confidently declared as he unsheathed his sword and returned it to its scabbard. "Last time I managed to cut through a Muscle Zombie and when I woke up, it was already dead and Xiao Liang, my fellow hunter in Tang Shelter, was already standing in front of me. For sure I was the one who defeated that Muscle Zombie."
Xiao Liang?! You mean that NPC is already strong? Wow, how the tables have turned. I mean, Luo Zehn, what are you talking about? You mean to tell me, you fell unconscious while fighting a muscle zombie and when you woke up it was already defeated? And what's more, Xiao Liang is standing in the background like an NPC? Isn't that way too suspicious?
I looked at him with eyes of disbelief, wondering why he said that even though it was obvious that Xiao Liang was the one who defeated it.
And that's when I noticed the trembling hands that clutched the katana. Just like the others, he was also terrified of the forest.
If you were really that terrified, then why did you have to suggest that we leave as soon as possible?!
No, this is all for Yang Mei Mei!
The periodic sound of the rustling of leaves and the blowing of winds was enough to make all of us flinch as we continued our journey. The forest was getting a little denser, which goes to show that we were nearing the middle of the forest. After this, it will only be easygoing for us since the forest will be brighter on its outskirts. Still, now that we're getting to the thick parts of the forest, the vibe is getting a bit unsettling.
Before I knew it, thirty rabid humans entered my radar. And all of them were Stage-4's!
"Stop, we can't go farther," I announced to everyone. Blade sensed it a few seconds after me and he nodded in agreement. I could tell that he also detected that much rabid humans.
I tried to expand my perception to cover a bigger area, and as I did so, I noticed that there were no less than a hundred rabid humans in the densest parts of the forest!
"If it's just twenty, then we can handle them, Yong Rui. But we can't risk it right no"
"No, there's at least a hundred of them. And two of them are Stage-7's. They're on par with your shelter leader, who's in the Dao Realm." I pointed out. "Although we're running out of time, we've got no choice but to turn around. Or, we can choose the other option of hiding close to the horde and wait for them to pass through."
Blade stared at me, wide-eyed. He probably wasn't able to detect the rest of the rabid humans. Moreover, he could only detect twenty or so of them at most. With his basic perception skills which are completely inferior to mine, I wonder how they were able to survive their previous ventures. They probably just relied on their raw strength alone.
"We'll do the latter. A horde wouldn't stay in the same place in an hour so we can be sure to wait." Luo Zehn decided as he climbed one of the trees, motioning that we climb a tree as well.