Chapter 7: Chapter 6: There Really Are Undead

Beneath the bright moon, upon the Wasteland, the Skeleton Undead and the Lizardman Robbers were locked in a chaotic battle.

One Lizardman robber got carried away in the thrill of the fight, completely failing to notice that he had unknowingly become surrounded by the Skeleton Undead. It wasn’t until he saw Skeleton Undead with blue Soul Fire flickering in their eye sockets closing in on him from all sides that he realized how dire his situation was.

But he no longer had a chance to escape. The Skeleton Undead gave him no room to dodge or maneuver, closing in step by step. They completely ignored their comrades being kicked away, relentlessly shrinking the Lizardman robber’s space to live.

"Don’t come any closer! I said, don’t come any closer! Help—"

The Lizardman robber’s pupils constricted into vertical slits, his eyes filled with terror. He threatened the cautiously advancing Undead while desperately screaming for help from his nearby companions. Unfortunately, the other Lizardmen were too busy defending themselves to lend him a hand.

As the distance closed, the Skeleton Undead launched a Charge. The Lizardman fought back frantically. Hidden among the crowd of Skeletons, five Sword-Carrying Undead closed in and thrust their swords out without hesitation.

SHINK! SHINK! SHINK!

Pulled out, stabbed in. Pulled out, stabbed in...

The Lizardman robber never imagined that among a mob of bare-handed Skeletons, some would actually be carrying swords. A searing pain shot through him, and only then did he notice more than a dozen bloody holes riddling his body.

"Aaargh—"

He kicked another Skeleton away, but unlike before, this one didn’t fall apart. Instead, the Lizardman lost his own balance and was engulfed by the Skeleton Undead, leaving behind only a bloodcurdling scream.

The leader of the robbers heard the scream and shuddered. Stealing a glance, he saw a dense mob of Skeletons piled on top of each other like a human pyramid. He didn’t need to think twice; his subordinate was finished.

After the first fell, a second soon followed, surrounded and killed by the Skeletons in the same manner.

’We’ll all die if this continues! We have to retreat! We must retreat!’

’I already blew the Bone Whistle. The others will be here soon. As long as I can regroup with them, dealing with these fragile Skeletons that shatter with a single touch will be a piece of cake.’

"Retreat! Retreat!"

The Lizardman leader fought his way out, kicking and punching to push back the surrounding Skeleton Undead. He charged madly into the Darkness, shouting to alert his men.

In the end, only three Lizardmen managed to escape, including their leader. One of them was heavily injured, with several bloody holes in his body that were steadily oozing blood.

Still, they were fortunate. Lizardmen possessed a tenacious Life Force. The wounds looked severe, but as long as the injured one survived, he would eventually recover after a period of rest.

The Undead watched the three Lizardmen flee into the Darkness but did not pursue. They cleared the battlefield, collecting the corpses of the Lizardman Robbers and their weapons and gear before returning to the Mobile Fortress.

"All Undead, enter silent mode. Full Speed. We’re leaving immediately!"

Once all the Skeleton Undead were back aboard, Li Ziyu immediately issued his orders. At his command, the Mobile Fortress slowly turned and accelerated in the opposite direction of the Lizardman Robbers’ escape route.

Li Ziyu had also heard the Lizardman leader blow the Bone Whistle earlier. He didn’t believe for a second that the leader had done it for fun; it was almost certainly a call for reinforcements. His Undead could only sense life within a certain range, and he suspected more Lizardmen were lurking just beyond it.

Three out of eight Lizardmen had managed to escape. If a whole horde of them were to attack, he truly wouldn’t be able to hold them off. Quitting while ahead and running after scoring a small victory was the only sensible choice.

Aided by the night, the Lizardman robbers fled frantically until they saw dark silhouettes ahead and cautiously came to a halt.

TOOT—

In the dead of night, the piercing sound of a Bone Whistle carried a long way. Hearing it, the Lizardman leader instantly relaxed. ’It’s our own people.’ He took out his own Bone Whistle and blew a reply.

Upon receiving the reply, the silhouettes across the way ran over and gathered around the Lizardman leader. They were all Lizardmen in the same attire—nearly a hundred of them.

These Lizardmen were all in the prime of their lives, and just like the leader who had fled, they were robbers.

"How did you end up in such a sorry state? Hiss~"

"Where are the others?"

Seeing their comrades in such a sorry state, and especially noticing that a few were missing, the gathered Lizardman Robbers couldn’t help but start asking questions all at once.

"Un... Undead..."

Before the leader could speak, the Lizardman with several bloody holes in him spoke up first, explaining haltingly. His explanation was too brief, however, leaving the surrounding Lizardmen even more confused.

’What Undead?’

They turned to look at their leader, waiting for his explanation.

"We ran into a group of strange creatures, hiss. Walking bones, just like the Undead from the legends. The others didn’t make it out. They’re all dead."

"You’re not just making things up because you were scared witless, are you?"

"What Undead? Don’t be ridiculous."

"I’ve lived this long and I’ve never seen an Undead. How strong were they? Were they as powerful as the legends say?"

"How many Undead were there? A few thousand? Tens of thousands? How did you manage to escape?"

The leader’s words sent the Lizardmen into an uproar. Some were disbelieving, thinking he was lying. Others were doubtful, fearful, or even curious and eager for a fight. They all started clamoring with questions.

The crowd suddenly parted as two Lizardmen walked through. The one in the lead was covered in crisscrossing sword scars, with scales missing in some places. He wore Plate Armor, had two Curved Sabers tucked at his waist, and carried three Javelins on his back.

Upon seeing this individual, the other Lizardmen all bowed and called out, "Ah Mu." He was the leader of this band of Lizardmen, as well as the chieftain of a Tribe.

Following Ah Mu was a towering Lizardman. A typical Lizardman stood about five-foot-seven to five-foot-nine, but this one was over eight feet tall. His muscles bulged so much they stretched his scales, making him look like a different breed compared to the others. His Weapon wasn’t a Spear or a Sword, but a massive warhammer.

His name was Ah Ta, the strongest warrior in the Lizardman Tribe. He was brave and skilled in combat, but not very bright. He was prone to causing trouble and listened only to Ah Mu, ignoring everyone else.

"Explain. What exactly happened?"

Ah Mu first examined the bloody holes on the heavily injured Lizardman, then walked over to the squad leader. He leaned down, staring into the leader’s eyes, and asked in a low, serious voice.

No matter what the squad leader had said before, no Lizardman in the Tribe dared to lie in front of Ah Mu. Lying to Ah Mu didn’t just mean a dead end—it meant a fate worse than death.

"Ah... Ah Mu, we... we really did run into Undead," the squad leader said with difficulty, swallowing hard as he felt the immense pressure of his chieftain’s presence.

"What do the Undead look like? Describe them in detail." Ah Mu didn’t move, his gaze still fixed on the leader’s eyes. His voice was laced with ice.

"They’re a pile of bones—moving bones. There’s fire burning inside their skulls, a blue fire, cold... so cold. We shattered their bones, but they just pieced themselves back together. They’re unkillable! We can’t kill those things!" the squad leader said, breaking out in a cold sweat as he recalled the recent battle.

Listening to his account, the surrounding Lizardmen fell silent, exchanging glances. For him to say such a thing in front of Ah Mu... ’Could the legends actually be true?’

’Are Undead real?’