Chapter 75: Tide of Soldiers
Su Xiao quickly walked out of the village. Although the signal flare had been pulled down by his Realm Severing Thread and failed to explode, it left behind a trail of red smoke that shot straight into the sky.
If the signal flare had fully detonated, all the undead soldiers within a dozen kilometers would have surged toward this location. With only a smoke trail appearing, the number of undead soldiers it could attract was limited.
Just as Su Xiao left the small village, a signal flare rose into the sky in the distance and exploded with a bang. This signal flare was about half a kilometer away from Su Xiao.
As soon as this flare exploded, over a dozen more signal flares burst in the air within a few kilometers. In an instant, red smoke spheres appeared in the sky over the surrounding area.
What made the signal flares most noticeable was not the red smoke produced after the explosion, but the piercing screech during the detonation, a sound that could travel far.
Su Xiao tossed the Apostle's Eye into the air, and it flew upward. He had already set coordinates within this mechanical eye to ensure he could discern directions when surrounded by a sea of enemies.
The Apostle's Eye had three functions. First, detection, which was the reconnaissance ability Su Xiao frequently used. Second, warning colors, where the eye would mark enemies with colors based on their strength. Su Xiao rarely used this ability; he trusted his own judgment more, as strong attributes did not always equate to strong combat power.
As for the third function of the Apostle's Eye, it was vigilance. It could monitor the situation within half a kilometer. Once a suspicious creature approached, the Apostle's Eye would immediately issue a warning. As a Light Gold equipment, the Apostle's Eye's abilities were quite practical.
The third function of the Apostle's Eye activated, and a green circle appeared before Su Xiao, much like a radar. The edge of the green circle was densely packed with red dots, conservatively estimated at over ten thousand. The green circle represented the surrounding half a kilometer, and the red dots were enemies.
The edge of the green circle was already covered in red dots, arranged neatly, slowly converging toward the center at a steady pace. Su Xiao was right in the center of the green circle.
Boom, boom, boom...
The rumbling grew closer. Su Xiao controlled the Apostle's Eye to float higher into the sky. Being surrounded by enemy forces was already a terrible situation; if he lost his sense of direction, he would surely die under the human wave tactics.
The Apostle's Eye could guide Su Xiao, ensuring he had a chance to break through the chaotic army.
Amidst the rolling dust and smoke, Su Xiao spotted the first wave of the undead army. They wore finely forged armor, carried tower shields nearly two meters tall, and the tips of long weapons protruded from above the shields.
Boom, boom, boom...
The thunderous roar was deafening. It was both the footsteps of over ten thousand undead soldiers and the sound of war drums.
Three hundred meters away from Su Xiao, undead soldiers holding tower shields formed a ring around him. All Su Xiao could see was a wall of shields.
Su Xiao was surrounded here not because of carelessness, but because this was an inevitable outcome.
The undead heavy shield soldiers encircled Su Xiao. Their strategy was simple: use the tower shields to ram him, trap him between several shields, and then strike with long weapons.
But before that, the undead army had a "big gift" to give Su Xiao.
The shield wall around Su Xiao did not advance further. What Su Xiao needed to do next was simple: find the commander of this undead army and kill him. Only after this undead force lost its leader would he have a chance to break out.
As for killing all ten thousand undead soldiers, don't joke about that. This wasn't slaughtering chickens. Even if Su Xiao could cut down a swath with each swing, killing over ten thousand undead soldiers would take a long time. During that period, other undead units would arrive, and the undead forces would keep gathering.
It wouldn't be an exaggeration to say they could gather hundreds of thousands, or even millions. A few hours ago, the undead race had stopped attacking the God's Wall and had pulled most of their army to patrol their territory, standing by at all times.
Su Xiao's gaze swept around. Aside from the ring of shields, he saw nothing else. As for the commander of this unit, this wasn't a movie. That commander wouldn't step forward to spout a few lines; instead, he would hide behind layers of soldiers, denying Su Xiao the chance for a decapitation strike.
Just as Su Xiao was observing the situation, the undead's "big gift" arrived.
Whoosh~
A whistling sound came from above. Su Xiao looked up and saw a dense mass of black dots in the sky. These dots were spiral-shaped black spikes, the undead's signature long-range weapon, "Black Twilight."
A Counter Shield appeared around Su Xiao. A melee was about to begin, so he wasn't worried about running out of mana.
Facing a chaotic battle, Su Xiao was confident. First, because of his innate ability, and second, because of the edge effect of Dragon-Slaying Flash.
[Soul Devourer]
Innate Effect (Passive): Upon killing a target, permanently steal 1 to 30 mana points and restore an equal amount of mana and health (e.g., if killing an enemy permanently increases mana by 30 points, restore 30 mana and health points).
Tip: In each derivative world, a maximum of 200 mana points can be stolen. If the stolen mana reaches the cap, Soul Devourer will fully activate, increasing the post-kill recovery effect by 50% (if 200 mana points have been successfully stolen, killing enemies will still restore corresponding mana and health based on the enemy's strength, with a 50% boost to recovery).
Supreme Blade Effect 2: Bloodthirsty Praise (Passive), when attacking with Dragon-Slaying Flash, 16% of the damage dealt will be converted into healing to restore oneself.
[Wood Spirit] Equipment Effect 1, Wood Activation (Passive · Defense-Type Equipment Form), health recovery rate +130 points per minute, health +1200 points, body defense +40.
...
With these three abilities, as long as Su Xiao wasn't instantly killed or exhausted in the crowd, it would be very difficult for the undead soldiers' attack power to kill him.
Black Twilight descended from the sky. The Counter Shield around Su Xiao expanded, blocking everything above him.
After a few seconds of metallic clanging, Black Twilight stopped falling. The ground around Su Xiao was riddled with holes.
As soon as the first wave of Black Twilight ended, the second wave struck. Su Xiao still stood motionless, waiting for the surrounding undead soldiers to close in.
After three consecutive waves of Black Twilight, the Counter Shield above Su Xiao was covered in cracks. The surrounding undead soldiers seemed to receive some order and began advancing toward Su Xiao.
The war drums sounded. The undead soldiers marched in unison, the shield wall gradually contracting. Everywhere he looked, there were enemies. This would put immense psychological pressure on anyone, but Su Xiao stood still, one hand on the hilt of his blade, assuming a drawing stance.
The shield wall drew closer, one hundred meters, eighty meters.
When the shield wall closed to fifty meters, long weapons poked out from the gaps between the shields.
Whoosh~
The charge horn sounded. The undead soldiers let out a sky-shaking roar. Maintaining their formation, they roared and charged at Su Xiao. The tide of soldiers surged like a raging flood.
Su Xiao took a deep breath. He could even feel the ground beneath his feet trembling. Ten thousand soldiers charging at him—if he lacked courage, his legs might have given way.
But Su Xiao didn't feel his legs weaken. On the contrary, he felt as if the blood in his veins was burning.