Chapter 40: Everyone Is a Mini-Boss
The earthen hut fell silent. Bubu Wang let out a gulp as it swallowed saliva. It had seen much of the world, but if even a mini-boss like Awuda was just a small fry on this island, then Origin Island was indeed an ultra-high-risk zone.
"It doesn't matter. You just need to tell me where the transcendent plant Dibamu is."
Su Xiao, of course, wouldn't be intimidated by Awuda. Even if what the other said was true, he would still venture deep into Origin Island. Right now, he only wanted to know Dibamu's exact location.
"Since you insist, then continue forward. It's at the island's center. Once you get there, finding it won't be hard. What's hard is surviving."
Awuda was clearly hiding something. Or rather, the very existence of this small undead tribe here was abnormal.
From Chiya's attitude, Su Xiao had already deduced that he could trigger a quest within this tribe. After helping them solve some problem, these people would assist him in exploring the island.
And from Awuda's earlier words, there was a faint hint of 'the tribe's former glory.' This was likely the method to trigger the quest. If Su Xiao inquired about this matter, helped Awuda with something, and gained initial trust, he could activate the follow-up quest.
Su Xiao chose to ignore this quest. The undead in this tribe weren't strong. The strongest was Awuda, and in Su Xiao's view, the other's combat power was far from enough.
Awuda appeared calm and composed at the moment, but in reality, he wanted to keep Su Xiao here temporarily.
"The island's center... Thank you for the information."
Su Xiao stood up and walked out of the earthen hut. The moment he left, Awuda's face twitched. Initially, he had wanted to trick Su Xiao into doing something for him.
Unfortunately, from the very beginning of their conversation, the atmosphere had been extremely bad. Awuda even felt that if he hadn't been willing to provide the information earlier, this human would have massacred the place, slaughtering everyone until only he was left, until he was willing to talk.
There was one thing Awuda hadn't lied about: the Eclipse did indeed weaken the undead on the island.
"You'll come back... because an undead like me doesn't even count as a small fry."
Awuda smiled, a bitter smile. Not eating raw flesh or drinking blood had indeed preserved his sanity, but it had also made him increasingly weak. Infection, fission, assimilation, immortality—that was the correct evolutionary path for the undead. Without consuming raw flesh, assimilation could never be completed.
And there was one thing Awuda hadn't mentioned: the undead outside and those on the island were not the same concept. Outside, the infection rate was at most between 5% and 10%, with occasional individuals reaching the assimilation stage. But on the island, the lowest infection rate among the undead was over 60%.
...
In the forest, Amu was clearing the path at the front, with Bubu Wang and Mogro in the middle, and Su Xiao and Baha bringing up the rear.
"Boss, is this really okay? That old bug looks like a quest NPC."
Baha crouched on Su Xiao's shoulder, staying alert at all times.
"Barring any surprises, those from Apocalypse Paradise will come here too. Don't forget, the core's ownership is currently with Apocalypse. Given the special circumstances, if Apocalypse intervenes, the undead on the island probably won't attack contractors from their side."
This was why Su Xiao hadn't accepted Awuda's quest.
"Yeah, that makes sense. But that old bug is really holding back. I feel like if we talked to him a bit more, he'd actively issue a quest..."
"Probably."
Su Xiao pushed aside the large-leafed plants in front of him. The forest had plenty of animals, flocks of birds, and countless insects.
Whether by coincidence or not, Su Xiao's group had traveled for nearly an hour without encountering any enemies.
"A fifth-tier ultra-high-risk zone? Not that impressive."
Baha started running its mouth again.
"Gururururu..."
A strange roar sounded. Su Xiao glanced at Baha. He hadn't noticed before, but this guy had the potential to be a jinx.
"Prepare to engage."
Su Xiao drew the longsword at his waist. He and Amu stood at the front, while Baha landed on Amu's shoulder, waiting for an opportunity. Bubu Wang blended into the environment, and Mogro drew the firearm at his waist.
Mogro's firearm was about a meter long, with a metal internal structure wrapped in undead cells. Several finger-thick tubes connected to the gun handle, piercing into Mogro's forearm. The tubes pulsed, and Mogro's arm visibly shrank.
"Wulalala..."
Another strange roar, and the next moment, a spear came flying.
Bang!
The spear struck a tree nearly three meters thick, pierced straight through the trunk, and embedded itself into the ground, leaving a bowl-sized hole.
Seeing this, Amu silently generated an ice shield. Using his body to withstand such a wooden spear—he might not be able to take it.
Woo~
A whimpering sound came from ahead. At least a hundred wooden spears were flying toward them.
'Blade Path Sword: Sealed Ring!'
Clang.
Five ring-shaped blade auras shot out, directly intercepting the incoming spears in the air.
After a series of sharp clanging sounds, most of the spears were severed, but their flight speed was extremely fast, and inevitably, some slipped through.
Bang!
Ice shards flew everywhere. A wooden spear struck the ice shield in Amu's hand, penetrating a third of the way before getting stuck, its tail vibrating at high frequency.
...
Blood energy spread around Su Xiao. The enemies were stronger than expected. That chief named Awuda earlier had been completely full of crap. Based on the attack power of this wooden spear, with Awuda's pathetic combat power, he didn't even qualify as a small fry.
In the distance, a figure darted out from between the trees. Its skin was grayish-white, and on its chest, a circular pattern was painted with red dye.
Su Xiao activated Apostle's Eye. He needed to know the specific details of this undead, because conservatively estimated, there were over a hundred of them.
[Comparing intelligence attributes...]
Information as follows:
Name: Undead·Anda (Highly Infected)
Infection Rate: 65% (Low-level undead of Origin Island)
Health: 100%
Plant Energy: 7103/7200 points
Strength: 109 (True Attribute)
Agility: 98
Endurance: 115 (True Attribute)
Intelligence: 42
Charm: This creature has no charm attribute and ignores the negotiation effects of charm attributes.
Skill 1, Holy Object Implantation (Passive, Lv.55): Health +2800 points, pain reduction 73%, ignores virus, infection, and curse-type damage.
Skill 2, Throwing Mastery (Passive, Lv.69)...
Su Xiao only glanced at the undead's five abilities before shifting his gaze to another undead that had just appeared. If Undead·Anda was a minor leader, then it wasn't unwinnable.
From a preliminary perception, Su Xiao judged one thing: Undead·Anda was just a small fry. This guy, who was slightly stronger than Chief Awuda, was truly just a small fry.
The undead on Origin Island were completely different from those outside. Outside, the undead didn't even qualify as cannon fodder.
After arriving on Origin Island, Su Xiao felt this place was no longer a fifth-tier zone. And after seeing Undead·Anda, he confirmed one thing: even if sixth-tier contractors came here, they would have to explore in teams, and cautiously at that.
Even for sixth-tier, Origin Island was a nightmare-level zone, let alone for fifth-tier.
"Boss, what do we do? These guys are tough. And flying is banned here. I can handle at most three, no, two."
Baha spoke urgently. It wasn't being modest. Baha was a reconnaissance + assassination type, and any random undead pulled from Origin Island could beat a fifth-tier Apocalypse contractor into a blubbering mess. Origin Island simply wasn't a place for fifth-tier contractors. Everyone here was a fifth-tier mini-boss level.
Comparing Origin Island to Dead Silence City, the high-end combat power couldn't be compared for now. As for the low-end combat power, Origin Island was stronger than Dead Silence City. In a one-on-one fight between an undead and a Tree Erosion creature, the undead would likely win. Moreover, they were more numerous and skilled in techniques.
"Fall back first."
Given the situation, Su Xiao naturally wouldn't choose to fight head-on. Once surrounded, he could only rely on Demon Hunting Hour to escape. Amu and Baha would likely die.
Hearing Su Xiao's shout, Mogro turned and ran. Not fleeing immediately earlier was already a sign of loyalty.
"Amu, hurry! Hurry! Hurry! Run! Lava form jet boost!"
Baha didn't take flight, because it knew that if it didn't direct Amu, the latter would probably die here.
"Moo!"
Amu let out a low roar, glanced at Su Xiao, hesitated for a moment, then turned and charged toward the rear.
Su Xiao didn't retreat. Those undead moved through the forest with incredible speed, like apes. Sometimes, speed wasn't entirely determined by agility; terrain was equally important. Therefore, Su Xiao needed to stay behind and hold them off.
Bang!
A sonic boom sounded. A wooden spear tore through layers of air, carrying a spiral force as it shot toward Su Xiao. These undead weren't mindless beasts; they also understood techniques.
Su Xiao's right arm muscles bulged slightly as he executed an upward slash.
The kinetic forces collided. The wooden spear shattered, and wood splinters shot out like buckshot, piercing the surrounding trees.