The Heavenly Demon Goes Zombie Hunting (6)
Stepping outside, I rummaged through my inner pocket and pulled out a cigarette pack. Unfortunately, it was impossible to get a proper long pipe in this damned game, so I had no choice but to settle for a substitute. I could agree that a long pipe showing up in a Western-themed game was strange, but even so, I still preferred the weight and depth of a long pipe over these flimsy little cigarettes.
What I hated most was how easily and quickly these things could be inhaled. They should have carried the profound, lingering flavor of a long pipe. At this rate, the cigarette burned out faster than my mind could find any real calm. Before I could even steady myself, the thing had already turned to ash. I spat it out, then continued searching around until I found the sword I’d picked up earlier.
“Looks like they’re almost here.”
I could sense the unpleasant auras gathering in the distance. Thanks to circulating my qi and building up my energy whenever I had a spare moment over the past two days, I was no longer as pathetically weak as I had been at the start. Still, the fact that this body belonged to a third-rate thug hadn’t changed.
“I’m afraid I might make another mistake.” If I collapsed too, the game would end right there. I had to be careful.
“It’s a joke. Just a joke. Still, I won’t actually use it.”
I’m not the type to be picky about my methods, but this situation is an exception. If I truly disregarded all means, I should have taken Enri’s life the moment she became tainted with that evil energy. After all, the advantage of being able to revive after death should have been used. Yet Enri had fought desperately to survive without relying on that. As the one who had been drawn here by her, I should respect her wishes. Therefore, I would not use the Blood Path technique that treats my own life force as ammunition.
“Now, now. I stopped you from joining the ranks of the dead. Instead of thanking me, you complain? How greedy of you, Enri.”
“Whoa, whoa. Calm down. You’re not even a zombie yet, and you’re already baring your teeth at me?”
I would have liked to tease Enri a little more, but the sound of footsteps was drawing closer. Ignoring her continued protests, I swung my sword.
The head of the corpse that had been at the very front flew into the air. Hmm. So simply cutting off their heads was enough to take them down. How convenient. If these had been jiangshi, I would have had to smash their heads anyway after severing their limbs because they would still try to bite with their teeth.
After lightly decapitating the four corpses that had approached first, I spotted a pair of fierce, beast-like eyes charging through the gap between the undead. A being that retained its living abilities even after death—the one Enri had said was the most dangerous in this game. From my perspective, however, it felt no different from the other corpses. Its movements were only slightly faster; it still lacked any intelligence.
I struck the charging creature’s head and stepped aside, dodging the collapsing body of another undead. I needed to finish this quickly and face the one carrying the yellow bag. Where was it? Enri’s remaining time wasn’t long, so I hoped it would show itself soon.
The number of zombies was overwhelming. The horde that charged endlessly toward the barricade Ara and Enri had built over the past day filled the entire street like a legion. That sheer mass was enough to brand terror into anyone who saw it.
Yet the single person standing in their way simply observed the scene with calm, indifferent eyes. Anyone else would have given up in the face of certain death. After all, even if someone swung a sword desperately, they would only manage to kill two or three zombies at the front before being surrounded and torn apart.
But the warrior guarding this narrow pass was Hwaryeong.
At this moment, what needed to be worried about wasn’t Ara’s safety, but whether any of these countless zombies carried the vaccine.
Every time Ara swung her sword, two or three zombie heads soared through the air.
Mingi, who had been watching Hwaryeong’s stream, let out an astonished breath at the sight. I want that newbie. Even without knowing anything about the game, she was displaying such power through pure martial prowess alone. He wondered what kind of insane stunts she could pull off with an old veteran like him by her side.
Mingi wasn’t an ordinary viewer. He was a veteran of Dawn Escape and the operator of MyTube, a channel famous for pulling off every kind of ridiculous feat imaginable. Lately he was better known as the Zombie Killer, a title he had come to genuinely enjoy.
As someone who prided himself on being the best Dawn Escape streamer on Turret, he couldn’t hide his shock at the absurdity unfolding in Hwaryeong’s broadcast. It wasn’t mere admiration. It was closer to pure disbelief at how any of it was possible.
It was true that Dawn Escape, being a VR survival game, relied heavily on individual physical ability. The better one could move their body, the higher their chances of survival. But that was only an increase in survival odds. It shouldn’t allow anyone to treat zombies like mere fodder.
The game’s very structure didn’t permit players to go on one-sided rampages. Even for Mingi, who had done all sorts of crazy things in Dawn Escape, getting surrounded by zombies was still a catastrophe. Yet Hwaryeong had willingly walked into that catastrophe and was now toying with the undead.
“How is any of this possible?”
There were too many strange points to count. Why was her sword still perfectly fine after cutting down dozens of zombies? How had she avoided even a single scratch while surrounded? She was moving without rest—why wasn’t she getting any status effects? Why?
Mingi simply couldn’t understand the playstyle Hwaryeong was displaying. It made no sense unless she had installed some impossible mod. But that wasn’t the case. He had checked the replay and confirmed the game started normally. It was exactly the same Dawn Escape he played.
“Is Hwaryeong herself the cheat?”
Mingi, who didn’t play Apis or martial arts games, had only encountered stories and videos about Hwaryeong’s greatness. He had heard she was amazing, but never truly felt it. Now, watching her shatter common sense in his own field, he finally understood on a visceral level that Hwaryeong was a human beyond all normal standards.
“I really want to do a collab with her later. We could actually make all those things I only imagined a reality.”
Longest survival record in Dawn Escape. Fastest escape record. Anything he wanted to try—they could do it. He would send an email first. If there was no reply, he would go through Enri if he had to. He had to secure a chance.
“I already saw it. Now then, let’s find out whether the heavens have abandoned Enri or not.”
But first, I should just enjoy Hwaryeong’s broadcast. With such a breathtaking sight unfolding right before my eyes, there was no need to pay attention to anything else.
There it was at last. The yellow bag. Its position was right in the middle of the zombies on the right side. If I cut my way through all of them, it would take quite a while. This frail body really was inconvenient at times like this. It was fun to fight strong opponents while carrying such penalties, but having to honestly swing my sword against these small fry was irritating.
Since Enri’s condition was clearly worsening by the minute, I didn’t want to waste any more time. I would use a different method.
I cut the neck of the zombie reaching toward me and analyzed their movements along with the optimal path. Good. The plan was set. Time to execute.
I sprinted toward the horde of zombies, then stomped hard on the ground and leaped upward. I stepped on a zombie’s head and jumped forward again. And again. The zombies that became my stepping stones flailed their hands, desperately trying to grab my ankles, but their movements were slow while mine were fast. All their efforts were meaningless.
Having reached the zombie carrying the yellow bag, I swung my sword and severed the strap holding it. The bag, having lost its support, began falling toward the ground due to gravity. If left alone, the vaccine inside would shatter, but I had no intention of allowing that.
The tip of my sword pierced the bag’s fabric and caught it. Having successfully retrieved the yellow bag, I cut down the nearby zombies to create some breathing room, then opened it.
You damned game. Will you inflict yet another trial upon Enri, or will you grant her this final salvation? If you choose to inflict a trial, it means you intend to act as our arbitrary heaven and move us as you please. In that case, I will move to destroy you.
So choose wisely. If you don’t want to be broken, you had best beg for forgiveness right here.
The moment I opened the bag with that threat, I found an item I had never seen once during all this time.
The vaccine. The means to save Enri’s life. Ha. So the heavens of this game were a weakling that would fold under a little intimidation.
While I was laughing at the ridiculous thought, I lifted my head and saw a swarm of zombies approaching me.
“I suppose I just need to head back now.”
After dealing with these small fry, I would have to give Enri a good scolding.