Chapter 875: Surprise Attack
“Who says that it isn’t dangerous? Even then, we cannot influence the direction that humans take in their strategies.” w.a.n.g Zhong smiled and said, “But during this period of war, I feel that the Octopus people understand us quite well. They have mastered our language and culture and even understand the Holy Land. In the Holy Land, whoever acts first has the advantage.”
Of course, this was w.a.n.g Zhong’s own judgment. His position restricted the amount of information he had access to, but he did not look down upon his enemy, let alone the Patriarch Society of the Holy Land. A group that had such power would not look at problems in a simple manner.
Napier sighed before interrupting them. “To me, we fight wars to rob. We rob to become stronger, and we become stronger so that we can become immortal. But in reality, from the very beginning, war has always brought about death. This is a contradictory proposition.” Frankly speaking, Napier preferred the structure of the Federation, but he adapted very well. This was the life he was facing.
“You can’t say that either.” Mu Zi laughed. Ever since he had come to the Fifth Dimension, he felt free. It was as if the problems that troubled him had disappeared. At least, these problems had vanished for now. “Do you believe in reincarnation? There is no absolute definition of life and death. The death of a weak person might simply be a form of experience to allow their soul to become even more powerful through life and death.”
This was the first time Napier had interacted with Mu Zi. Over the last two days, he had heard how everyone in the exploration team admired Mu Zi’s mystical treatment methods. He even thought that Mu Zi was simply an amazing medical sage. However, after a few days of interaction, he realized that Mu Zi was a quack. He treated life and death lightly, occasionally talked about some incredible theories, and made himself seem like a big deal. He exaggerated so much that Napier grew confused.
But this confirmed Napier’s opinion of Mu Zi, an amazing medic and a Great Master of a mysterious art. Of course, he specialized in protection.
There were many dangerous and venomous creatures in the jungle. Napier volunteered to be the vanguard as he wanted to be known as an amazing ‘caretaker’ and escort. But not long after they entered the jungle, a wave of seven young darkness wolves ambushed them. This attack showed Napier how violent a caretaker’s job could be.
The young darkness wolves were level-six dimensional lifeforms. They could be found in many places within the Mizobudapi World. It was also the most common wild threat that exploration teams faced when they stepped into this world. Their individual combat levels were very high, and they were adept in concealing their whereabouts. Furthermore, they lived in groups and were especially good at ganging up on their enemies. In addition, they were naturally cunning and cautious. Typically, when they encountered a large group, they would hide. However, when they encountered lonely humans or people in small groups, they would ambush them. The human race had suffered many losses due to these wolves.
The seven level-six dimensional lifeforms suddenly appeared and attacked from all directions. This sight was rather frightening. Napier had recently grown much stronger, but he was in a rush and hurriedly activated his Soul Power Circuit. However, before he could prepare himself, the battle had already ended.
w.a.n.g Zhong did not even attack. Mu Zi did not do much either. He slapped the first young darkness wolf that charged at him and killed it. Then, he released Ham Sausage and scared the rest of the wolves away. In the end, fighting was not important. Furthermore, Ham Sausage seemed to like this environment.
Napier was like a child who had never seen the world. “Mu Zi, aren’t you a care… healer?”
“Who told you that?” w.a.n.g Zhong laughed.
“Everyone says that he is a healer and a Soul Beast Master, but…” Napier was shocked by Mu Zi’s casual slap.
“They’re not wrong, but he is an amateur at those. Mu Zi is an expert on the soul. You will understand slowly.”
Mu Zi simply laughed foolishly and flashed a bright smile, showing his small, white teeth. Tears immediately started to stream down Napier’s cheeks. Deep in his heart, he had wanted to show off. Although he did not know how much Grai had progressed, the Three Circuits were perfect for him. He took one look and immediately understood the Circuits. He learned the Circuits once and immediately mastered them. Now, he was very proficient in the Three Circuits. The increase in power gave him ma.s.sive confidence. But when he looked at these two people… They were monsters!
To other people, rus.h.i.+ng through a jungle filled with countless venomous insects was very difficult, but to the three of them, it was as if they were walking on flat ground. However, the terrain was rather complex, and they still had to take many detours. After a day of traveling, they were about two hundred kilometers away from the Shadow Moon Fortress.
Based on this speed, they would be able to reach the Shadow Moon Fortress tomorrow morning. However, it was not easy to infiltrate the fortress in the day. Thus, they were not in a hurry. When they saw that the sky was turning dark, they set up camp and rested. Once they had recuperated, they would continue traveling in the daytime tomorrow and reach the Shadow Moon Fortress tomorrow night. It would then be easier for them to take action.
They started a bonfire. Napier was rather crude; not long after he fell asleep, he started to snore.
w.a.n.g Zhong and Mu Zi leaned against the tent and started to doze off. w.a.n.g Zhong paid attention to his surroundings; after all, this was not his room. Various dimensional lifeforms and venomous creatures crawled about. On the other hand, Mu Zi was used to dozing off like this. He lived outdoors all 365 days of the year. In short, both w.a.n.g Zhong and Mu Zi had strong spiritual power. To them, not sleeping for a few days was child’s play. All they had to do was to take a rest, and they would be able to recuperate.
They could occasionally hear strange noises from owls and low chirping from cicadas. These sounds, accompanied with the clear moonlight in the Mizobudapi people’s world, made them feel relaxed and unusually peaceful.
There were no unusual noises. Suddenly, w.a.n.g Zhong and Mu Zi opened their eyes at the same time. A sense of danger suddenly engulfed them. They immediately used their divine sense and checked the area within a few hundred-meter radius of the campsite. However, they did not find anything.
w.a.n.g Zhong and Mu Zi looked at each other. They both saw the doubt and their certainty of the danger in each other’s eyes.
The sense of danger did not come from the surroundings of the campsite. What was it?
Boom!
There was an explosion in the distance. Just by hearing the sound, they knew that it was a long-distance cannon that had locked on to its target. Furthermore, it sounded like a very powerful Macedon-cla.s.s heavy-duty rune cannon. There were more than one of these cannons.
Was it humans? Could it be the Holy City Army?
The sense of danger rapidly increased. Without even looking, they knew that the enemy had locked on to the three of them.
w.a.n.g Zhong and Mu Zi’s expressions changed slightly. Mu Zi immediately grabbed Napier, who had just woken up. A gray wave of energy immediately burst forth and formed a protective cage.
“Dominating Const.i.tution!” w.a.n.g Zhong immediately activated the Power Circuit, and the muscles on his body swelled. A vigorous wave of energy immediately formed a protective layer on his smooth skin, like a layer of cutin.
The attack from the sky came very quickly. They had just activated their defenses when intense energy waves exploded in the campsite.
Bang! Rumble…
The attack landed right beside the bonfire and caused the ground to shake violently. The powerful explosion tore the tent nearby into many pieces. The attacks continued to land around the three of them without restraint.
w.a.n.g Zhong and Mu Zi firmly lowered their bodies and tried to balance amidst all the attacks. But the energy from the explosions was shocking. They could only stand for one-tenth of a second before the force of the impact sent the two of them, along with the Life and Death Coffin, flying. In an instant, shockwaves spread ruthlessly. It was as if a storm had pa.s.sed through the jungle. The trees and shrubs collapsed from the impact of the shockwaves, and the ground shook. Everything within a two to three-kilometer radius was affected.
The attack came and left quickly. The rumble of explosions gradually subsided. The original campsite had been scorched. All the shrubs and trees within a ten-meter radius had all turned into ashes.
Mu Zi was sent flying over ten meters away due to the shockwaves. Luckily, he immediately reacted and used all his energy to defend himself. There were wounds in various places on his body and a ringing in his head. It seemed like he had suffered from a mild concussion, but it was not serious. He only seemed rather pitiful. The clothes on his body were tattered. w.a.n.g Zhong was not far away from him. Just like him, w.a.n.g Zhong was pitifully lying on the ground. Mu Zi was about to get up and ask whether he was fine but saw w.a.n.g Zhong looking straight at him. He was very clear-headed. He blinked at Mu Zi and shook his head.
Mu Zi understood. He learned from w.a.n.g Zhong and lay on the ground without moving. On the other hand, Napier had fainted. Even with Mu Zi’s protection, Napier was unable to bear this powerful attack.
The attack had originated from a distant place. w.a.n.g Zhong was very sure of this. From the sound of the attack, he could tell just with his hearing that the sound of the cannon was low and powerful but was also accompanied by an ear-piercing shriek. It was a Macedon-cla.s.s rune cannon from the Holy City Army. Of course, it was not the ma.s.sive cannon that was equipped on airs.h.i.+ps. If that was the case, the attacks would have smashed their defenses into pieces. w.a.n.g Zhong could definitely tell that it was a Macedon-cla.s.s rune cannon. It was a treasure to the exploration teams. This was, in fact, the improved Macedon-cla.s.s small cannon, which was very threatening yet convenient to carry. However, it was extremely expensive. It was also called the “horse cannon”. Not many exploration teams had this weapon, but why was it being used on them?
This was definitely not an accident. Someone had calculated the time they would take and waited for them here… Who exactly was it that harbored so much hate towards them that they used this kind of weapon to deal with them?
Minutes pa.s.sed, and the surroundings were quiet. The jungle, which had been bombed, was devoid of even the sounds of nocturnal insects and birds. They could only hear the occasional sound of the wind. w.a.n.g Zhong and Mu Zi had spread their divine senses all over this area. A full half an hour pa.s.sed, but their enemy was very patient and did not move. However, even if they were patient, they were no match for w.a.n.g Zhong, as well as Mu Zi, who was used to 20 years of loneliness!
Not only did they pretend to be dead on the outside, but Mu Zi had also radiated a slight aura of death, and it caused the two bodies to be surrounded with a thick stench of death. It was extremely realistic.
The two of them waited silently. A vulture finally broke the 30-minute-long silence and circled around in the sky. It was attracted by the dead aura that radiated from Mu Zi and discovered the two ‘corpses’ on the ground. It immediately swooped down and pecked at w.a.n.g Zhong’s arm.
Even though it was only a level-three scavenger, its beak was as sharp as a knife when it pecked at w.a.n.g Zhong. Although his body was very strong, he did not use his Dominating Const.i.tution to protect his body. Thus, the pecking from the vulture was very painful. If someone else had been in his place, they would have given up. The enemy was far too cautious. They might not have left, even though their attack had hit their target. But w.a.n.g Zhong continued to act and endure the painful pecks from the vulture without making a sound. He even relaxed his body, his muscles reacting just like a dead body that was being pecked in hopes that it would appear more real. His divine sense was very sharp. Although the enemy was too far away and he could not determine their exact position, he could clearly feel someone in the distance gazing at him and Mu Zi.
If they were in another situation, w.a.n.g Zhong would definitely attack at once. But this time, it was different. If their enemy’s attack did not land, they would definitely run away. Finding them after that would be difficult. Furthermore, an internal enemy was very dangerous. They definitely had to find them!
The scavenger vulture seemed to be used to the awkward feeling of not being able to peck through the skin of a high-level dimensional lifeform and was not anxious at all. It knew that as long as it was a corpse, the energy in its body would eventually disperse completely. It had a lot of time and could wait slowly. Occasionally, it would peck at w.a.n.g Zhong. Then, it would look up at the sky, flap its wings, and let out a cry, as if it was attracting its companions to share this delicious feast with it.
The enemy, who had been hiding in the shadows, could no longer take it. Their mission was to get rid of these two people. They would only be able to claim their reward if they brought their heads back. If this vulture brought a large group of its companions to eat these people up, they could not even think of receiving a reward.
“Boss, are we still going to wait?” a Holy Disciple said in a jungle many kilometers away. “They should be dead. I can sense an aura of death. No matter how astute he is, he would definitely not know that I can control the vulture to check on them. If not, what would we do if the bodies are rotten and the Zhao Family does not admit it’s the real thing?”
The one-eyed man waved his finger lightly and signaled to everyone behind him.
Swish swish swish…
Instantly, 13 shadows jumped out from the short but well-concealed shrubs one after another. All of them, including the one-eyed man, had a relaxed and complacent smile on their faces. As expected, the Holy Battle was a great place to earn a fortune. They had easily completed this mission and obtained 100,000 Holy Coins. Furthermore, the horse cannon now belonged to them. This weapon was outstanding and could not be bought with money!
But the moment they stepped into the campsite, their smiles would immediately vanish.
They traveled very quickly and only took a few minutes to reach the campsite from the jungle hundreds of kilometers away. However, the three corpses that should have been on the ground, as well as the strange coffin, disappeared in those few minutes.
“Retreat!” Just one look and the one-eyed man instinctively started to sweat and form gooseb.u.mps. If their cautiousness at the beginning was simply because they were afraid of w.a.n.g Zhong’s reputation for killing a Sword Saint, they were truly afraid now. Without considering anything else, the fact that w.a.n.g Zhong and Mu Zi were able to survive a nearby blast from a rune cannon and survive, as well as their ability to act so well and trick all of them, proved that they were not a force to be trifled with. The one-eyed man’s exploration team could not match up to them.
The moment the one-eyed man issued the command, everyone split up in different directions. No one overlapped with anyone else. They formed a perfect retreat formation, like a heavenly maiden scattering flowers. They started to flee in all directions. It was a pity that they found themselves in w.a.n.g Zhong’s ambush zone.
A member on the left side had just turned around when he was faced with a dark and scary clown smiling at him from less than five centimeters away. The clown opened its big, red mouth and started to laugh, causing the member to scream in fright. Then, there was the frightening sound of an explosion. Soul fluctuations were released into the surroundings, instantly hitting three people nearby. They all began to lose consciousness and started to sway.