Chapter 74: Splitting Up
The undead flare shot into the sky. Su Xiao looked up at the signal flare in the air; it wouldn't be long before the undead army came charging in.
[Tip: Survival phase has begun.]
The notification from Reincarnation Paradise indicated that Su Xiao had passed the brief initial phase and entered the second stage.
"Bubu, record this map."
Su Xiao tossed a compass to Bubu Wang and had him record the map of the Undead Empire.
Bubu Wang pulled out a camera and snapped several photos of the map in Su Xiao's hand.
"Take this route to the Dark Moon Swamp, then find a way to locate the Law-Destroying Shadow ruins near the swamp. Most high-ranking Undead clan members know the location of those ruins; the Undead call it 'Notoek'."
Notoek was just a transliteration, meaning 'the place where the living stop.' The Law-Destroying Shadow ruins were a dangerous area within the Undead Empire.
"Woof."
Bubu Wang barked, meaning: "Master, don't you need my healing abilities anymore?"
"Not for now."
Su Xiao didn't mean he didn't need Bubu Wang's healing; rather, someone had to go find the Law-Destroying Shadow ruins. His original plan was to locate the ruins during the initial phase and hide inside before the survival phase began.
What he hadn't expected was that the initial phase would be so short—so short that it ended almost as soon as it started.
The combination of Bubu Wang and Amu could handle most dangerous situations. Bubu Wang had reconnaissance, healing, negotiation, and other abilities, while Amu was the main tank, melee fighter, and controller. More importantly, neither of them were human, which would make moving through the Undead Empire much easier.
Bubu Wang walked away, looking back every few steps, with Amu following behind. The possibility that today's parting might be forever wasn't unlikely—in fact, it had a high chance of happening.
Su Xiao was a Hunter in Reincarnation Paradise. While he could grow stronger quickly, he also had to bear greater risks. This was something he had realized long ago.
Reincarnation Paradise wasn't a charity organization, and the Primordial World wasn't a game dungeon. The natives here all had their own beliefs and thoughts. Take the squad leader he encountered on the Divine Wall—in a 'game,' that would just be an NPC with a few seconds of screen time. But in this real Primordial World, even such a minor character handled matters that could cost him his head with remarkable efficiency.
And what Su Xiao was about to face was an endless army of undead. They feared no death and would form various battle formations to surround and kill him. Leading them would be undead commanders more experienced and cunning than that squad leader.
Against such a lineup, survival wasn't simple. The human wave tactic sounded ordinary, but it was also the oldest and most commonly used strategy.
From now on, Su Xiao's only task was to stay alive and break through toward the Dark Moon Swamp until Bubu Wang and Amu found the Law-Destroying Shadow ruins.
After Bubu Wang and Amu had gone far, Su Xiao didn't stay put. The dog and the bull were taking an arc route to the Dark Moon Swamp, which would greatly reduce their chances of encountering the undead army. Su Xiao, on the other hand, was heading straight for the Dark Moon Swamp in a very reckless manner, but this would also get him there faster.
The signal flare wouldn't immediately bring the undead army; it would only reveal Su Xiao's approximate location.
Half an hour later, at a small Undead village.
The village was surrounded by a fence wall, and at the village entrance hung an animal skull that looked like a goat's skull. Wisps of cooking smoke rose from within the village, yet there wasn't a single undead in sight.
Su Xiao stood at the village entrance, looking up at the rising smoke. The eerie silence of the village put him on alert.
Most of the buildings in the village were wooden structures, and some pens held livestock of unknown species.
The smoke rising from the village showed that the villagers had just evacuated, not even having time to pack their belongings. It was as if, at a single command, all the civilians in the village had dropped what they were doing, hastily extinguished their cooking fires, and left en masse.
Su Xiao had seen more than one similar village along the way. This was the fourth he had passed, and the scene was the same as the others.
There was only one explanation for this: the Undead clan had already guessed Su Xiao's destination. They might not have figured out he was heading for the Law-Destroying Shadow ruins, but they certainly knew he was making a beeline for the Dark Moon Swamp.
The undead who orchestrated all this was no simpleton. They were applying pressure to Su Xiao, creating an invisible force, as if saying to him: 'I know where you're going. I'll be waiting for you on your path.'
On the surface, that was the case, but in reality, they had two other goals: to reduce casualties among the Undead and to cut off Su Xiao's information channels, preventing him from getting intelligence from undead civilians.
If it were just one village, it might be a coincidence. But four villages in a row? That could only mean one thing: the Undead clan had already pinpointed Su Xiao's general location.
Bang.
A muffled sound came from one of the village houses, and a red signal flare shot into the sky.
Su Xiao rushed into the village and quickly arrived at the house that had fired the signal flare. A flash of blade light, and the four walls of the house were sliced apart, wooden planks collapsing downward.
A figure darted out from the wreckage. This figure wore leather armor, had grayish-white skin, and green pupils. Green pupils and gray skin were the most distinctive features of the Undead clan.
After bursting out of the house, this undead charged straight at Su Xiao without a moment's hesitation. From this level of execution, it was clear this was an undead soldier, likely a scout of some kind.
The undead soldier had obviously been lying in ambush here for a while, waiting for Su Xiao to reach the vicinity of the village. If Su Xiao actually arrived here, the undead soldier only needed to do two things: fire the signal flare and delay Su Xiao as much as possible. Before accepting this mission, his commander had spoken with him for a few minutes, roughly saying that if he died, his family would have food and clothing, his offspring would be given priority for employment, and their future would be bright.
Therefore, this undead soldier charged at Su Xiao without hesitation.
With a clatter, half a metal ball emitting red smoke landed in front of the undead soldier. His forward momentum paused, and then, realizing something, he looked up at the sky.
There was no signal flare exploding in the sky. Su Xiao had already pulled it down with his Realm Severing Thread and cut it in two with a single slash.
The undead soldier immediately reached for a backup signal flare at his waist—an iron cylinder as thick as a cup with a pull ring at the bottom.
Pfft!
Blood splattered, and a severed arm flew into the air. Before the undead soldier could even scream from the excruciating pain of his lost arm, Su Xiao slashed open his throat.
Hot blood sprayed several meters. Su Xiao sidestepped to avoid it and casually caught the signal flare in midair. This thing might come in handy later.
"Human, your killing technique is quite skilled."
A deep, resonant male voice came from nearby. Su Xiao turned his head to see a burly undead standing on a nearby house. From his aura, he didn't seem like a soldier in the undead army. More importantly, his human language was very fluent, without any stiffness.
"The Undead King has promised that whoever brings him your head will be granted the position of Xianglan. Coincidentally, I'm very good at killing humans, even if you are a strong one among them."
The burly undead grinned, revealing a mouthful of flat teeth, making him look ferocious and terrifying.
"Remember, my name is Aowu Nansa."
A dozen seconds later.
With a thud, Su Xiao tossed aside the half of a corpse in his hand. Aowu Nansa's blood-covered face was frozen in terror.
"What was this guy's name again? Nansa? Whatever. I need to get moving."
Su Xiao shook the blood off his hands and walked out of the village.