Chapter Fifty-One: Missile Assault

Ma Yi seemed indifferent to being called a monster by the Corpse Queen. For now, he assumed that beyond the Terror Level came the Great Terror Level and then the Catastrophe Level. He believed that if he transformed and unleashed his full power, he could easily destroy the Southern Base; even in his untransformed state, Ma Yi was already far stronger than the Super Grade.

"Kill!" shouted the seventh-level Evolver, his body moving through the air—appearing slow, but in fact, incredibly swift. He circled around the J5 zombie, drawing his weapon from behind. This weapon was peculiar, shaped somewhat like a flattened drumstick, or perhaps an ‘S’—smooth, one end large, the other small, its razor-sharp edge gleaming with a cold light in the night, clearly marking it as something extraordinary.

The Corpse Queen, barely steady on her feet, hastily raised her claws to block. Her hardened claws could pierce steel, and even top-tier forged weapons wielded by elders could only parry, never harm them. Yet this bizarre weapon nicked her claws, leaving notches with each strike. As the Evolver’s attacks continued, the Corpse Queen, flustered, could only defend as best she could. Her claws were soon hacked off in segments, sent flying, and she had to roll away in surprise to evade further harm.

"A divine weapon," Ma Yi thought. He had yet to acquire a proper weapon of his own, but now, seeing this dog-leg blade—capable of slicing through the Corpse Queen’s claws—it was clear this weapon could injure her. If he guessed right, it could even chop off the J5 zombie’s fingers. It might not sound impressive, but zombies’ bones were tougher than their skin, and the Corpse Queen’s claws could sever the bones of zombies at her level. Such a blade would make its wielder unrivaled among peers.

The Corpse Queen quickly retreated, blood the color of pale pink oozing from a deep gash on her arm. She frowned at her opponent—the Evolver was formidable, and his weapon impossibly sharp. Her vaunted defense meant nothing before it.

Three Evolvers floated in the air, obstructing the D5 zombie’s assault on the city gates, their eyes frequently darting toward the Corpse Queen. The strategy of capturing or killing the leader first was as old as human warfare itself; if they could seize or kill the Corpse Queen, the battle would be nearly won. The gate was still solid and thick, overlaid with ten layers of tough beast hide—enough to withstand even the J5’s violent assaults. The hide served as shock absorption, and behind it were three layers of solid steel plate, interlaced with dense high-tension springs. Even powerful artillery fire had failed to breach this gate in testing; to destroy it, one would have to first strip away the hide, then break through the steel, or else rip the entire door from its hinges. But the gate weighed more than ten tons, and the doorposts were made from the finest concrete and alloys, able to withstand a nuclear blast.

Repeated blows left the J5 zombie’s arms numb, as the force it used was reflected back by the gate. For a moment, it wasn’t sure whether to continue attacking or return to support its queen—its intelligence limited.

The three Evolvers exchanged glances, and one quietly slipped away.

Throughout the fight with the Evolver, the Corpse Queen kept to the ground; their speeds were quite similar. Fortunately, she was a bit faster—otherwise that strange weapon would have left her with even more wounds. The seventh-level Evolver wielded the dog-leg blade with powerful, sweeping strikes; even with only basic attacks, the Corpse Queen was forced into a perilous dance, barely dodging each swing, yet still suffering wounds she couldn't avoid.

"You're dead," the Evolver laughed menacingly, chasing after the Corpse Queen as she rolled away from his blade.

"We’ll see whether I die first or you get infected," spat the Corpse Queen, her eyes blazing red with fury. She, too, was growing desperate—ready to unleash her full power.

Her claws regrew, longer and tougher than before, while strange black patterns emerged across her body. On land, she feared none but Ma Yi, who lurked behind the battle, observing. Her tail lashed the ground, splitting stones with smooth, clean cuts.

"Interesting," the Evolver remarked, unafraid. The fight had only made him more confident in his own invincibility.

With a sudden burst of dust from beneath her feet, the Corpse Queen flashed behind the Evolver, her claw slashing for the back of his head—intent on killing him, devouring his brain.

But the Evolver was a seasoned warrior. Without even turning, he raised his massive blade to intercept her strike, the claws screeching across the metal, leaving only shallow marks—a testament to the blade’s rarity.

The Evolver rolled aside, dodging the slash of her tail, then swung his arm, the flat of his blade striking her in the waist and sending her flying.

Despite her efforts, the Corpse Queen gained no ground. Her hand-to-hand combat skills were useless if she couldn’t close in; now, she was forced to rely on pure instinct.

Again, the seventh-level Evolver sent her flying with the flat of his blade. As she struggled to her feet, she sensed a chill behind her and rolled instinctively—just as a powerful slash landed where she’d been. She glanced back, but the battlefield was chaos, and whoever had attacked her from behind seemed to have vanished.

Ma Yi, observing from the sidelines, could see every detail of the distant skirmishes. The seventh-level Evolver lurking in the shadows was as obvious to him as a torch in the night. It wasn’t that the Corpse Queen couldn’t see in the dark, but the chaos and constant movement interfered with her senses, and the Evolver cleverly stayed out of her line of sight, making him impossible to detect except by an outside observer. No matter how the Corpse Queen moved, he remained in her blind spot—a cunning foe.

The J5 zombie, meanwhile, was trying to deal with two annoyances while continuing its assault on the gate. After so long, dust shook loose from the stone walls beside the gate. Suddenly, as if enlightened, the zombie stared at the walls for two seconds, then shifted its attack away from the gate and began pounding on the wall instead. Chunks of stone crumbled away—its eyes brightening at this discovery.

The two seventh-level Evolvers saw the D5 zombie abandon the gate and attack the wall, and sweat broke out on their foreheads. Until now, they’d tried to trick the zombies into believing the gate was the weakest point, but their efforts had only bought a little time. The gate and its flanks could withstand a nuclear strike, but the city wall’s defenses were not nearly as strong.

"We can’t let the zombies breach the wall," both Evolvers resolved. They unleashed their full strength, attacking the J5 zombie, but its defenses were simply too much. Without the special weapon, they couldn’t harm it; aside from its eyes, there wasn’t a single weak point. The base had only acquired enough of the mysterious metal to forge one dog-leg blade and a few small daggers, all of which were kept as prized possessions by the high command. The dog-leg blade was shared among the five top Evolvers—whoever led the charge wielded it.

The Corpse Queen, once bold and aggressive against her evil foe, became far more cautious after being ambushed. Now and then, a slash would appear behind her, forcing her into desperate evasions. Each time, she failed to spot her hidden assailant, growing more and more frustrated.

"Quick—kill or capture the Corpse Queen! The wall won’t hold much longer!" one of the seventh-level Evolvers shouted to his comrade.

Half the city gate’s foundation was already exposed; if the zombies weren’t stopped, they would soon pour into the base. So long as a single S4 made it inside, the entire base could be lost to infection.

On the ramparts, the anti-aircraft guns fell silent at this critical moment—they’d run out of ammunition. The commander, atop the wall, felt the world’s malice toward humanity keenly.

All lower-tier Evolvers had returned to the walls, attacking any zombies that approached. Outside, corpses piled up to form ramps, and every defender—at the gate, on the walls, or atop the corpse ramparts—fought desperately. Now, every path had become a potential breach for the undead.

"Any gasoline left?" the commander roared at the quartermaster.

"It’s all gone. We’re out," came the weary reply. Was this the end of Southern Base? The man trembled with fear.

Urgent commands poured into the brightly-lit central control. All the top brass wore grim faces; not a single piece of good news had arrived since the fighting began.

At length, the senior commander stubbed out his cigarette with a sigh. "Fight on. At worst, we go down together."

"Pass the order—everyone fall back. Retreat to the inner city and prepare to launch the missile," he said. The others broke out in a cold sweat; just moments ago, they’d debated saving the missile for a future crisis, but now, the crisis had arrived.

The commander relayed the orders down the line. All the Evolvers vanished from the walls, while the fifth, sixth, and seventh-level Evolvers outside hurried back and disappeared as well.

The Corpse Queen watched the commotion from the base in confusion, surprised at the sudden change. But in the blink of an eye, something shot skyward, trailing a tail of fire for several meters.

Even Ma Yi was startled—it was a missile. He had never seen a real missile with his own eyes until now.