Versatile Mage c1-2021, page 231
"Sink, you bastards!"
"Flowing Mud: Earth Wave!"
Zhang Xiaohou's hands glowed brown. He channeled the Spell for quite some time, stacking up a few Earth Spells on top of one another, before slamming the energy into the ground!
The nine of them were all in the same area. Everywhere apart from the ground they were standing on suddenly became slimy. They could easily tell that the soft soil had turned into mud, and some even had the shape of a whirlpool...
Anything standing on mud would naturally sink, and together with the spinning and sinking motion, it was similar to quicksand; a huge number of Zombies were now half-sunken into the ground!
When Zhang Xiaohou had arrived at the Ancient Capital, he immediately sold the diamond he found at the Burning Valley and bought himself an Earth Element Magic Tool. It allowed him to stack up his Basic Earth Spell to a certain degree before releasing it, multiplying the effects of Earth Wave!
Although it would take a longer time to channel, it was more effective than casting the same spell many times!
The Earth Wave cast with the Earth Seed Flowing Mud had a shocking outcome. As lots of the Zombies sank into the mud, Zhang Xiaohou immediately hardened the ground to stop them from coming back up!
In the end, the Zombies were stuck in the ground with half their bodies on the surface and half below. They could neither rise to the surface nor sink into the ground!
The group was overjoyed. As they were about to give some compliments, Shi Shaoju screamed, "Run, quick!"
The Corpse General had already broken through the last line of defense. Due to its enormous size, the muck produced by the Flowing Mud Seed could barely cover its ankles. Even when the mud turned as hard as concrete, it was nowhere enough to hinder its movement!
Blood splattered as its hatchets swung wildly. It was impossible to tell who was injured in the midst of the chaos. They could only take hold of the chance to run down the hill.
The furious roar of the Hatchet Corpse General rose behind them. The soldiers felt a chill running down their spines as they felt the gust of it sweeping across their back!
However, no one dared to turn around; they could only run with all their might. Under the icy brilliance of the moon, they could vaguely see black shadows charging in their direction while uttering hungry cries!
Unlike the slow-moving Zombies in the movies, both the Corpse General and the Zombies were extremely fast while their legs were still intact. A Magician running at full speed would still be easily caught by them without relying on movement Spells or Boots Equipment...
In addition to that, their jumping ability was shocking. They could easily leap over ten meters, even the Servant-class Zombies. As such, the Undeads chasing after the group were not slowly dragging their legs, but sprinting and leaping like wild beasts!
"AHHHHHH!"
A painful screech came from behind. It seemed like someone was caught by the Undead, resulting in a cry for help.
"Forget them! If not, our whole squad will be wiped out!" ordered captain Qin Hu mercilessly.
The group did not dare to turn around. They could only hope that the one caught was not a friend.
"She's not dead yet!" Zhang Xiaohou turned around and saw the person to be the other Battlemaga in their group, Jia Xi!
The Battlemaga Jia Xi was entangled by the long tongue of the Corpse General. She was an Ice Magician, hence she barely sealed off the Corpse General's movement with Ice Lock. Otherwise, the Corpse General would simply have swallowed her with one bite!
Chapter 525 - The Strange Village
Translated by XephiZ
Edited by Aelryinth
"Idiot, don't go!" Wang Tong yelled at Zhang Xiaohou.
However, Zhang Xiaohou had already stepped on the emergency brake and turned around to save Jia Xi.
The Battlemaga struggled to break free. The Corpse General had shattered her ice chains to pieces. As the ice was still scattering in the air, the Corpse General dashed toward the Battlemaga like a runaway car.
Jia Xi uttered a prayer. When she saw Zhang Xiaohou turning around to save her, she barely showed a change of expression. As she reached out her hand for Zhang Xiaohou to pull her away, the enormous creature withdrew its tongue and dragged her through the air, right toward its murderous mouth!
The Corpse General bit down greedily, as if it were munching on a juicy fruit, bright red liquid sprayed through the air.
A few drops of the blood landed on Zhang Xiaohou's face. His eyes widened as his face filled with disbelief.
"Run, you idiot!"
Wang Tong's voice entered Zhang Xiaohou's ears. As he collected his thoughts, he saw the Corpse General's bloodshot eyes fixed on him.
"Sor...sorry," mumbled Zhang Xiaohou softly as he summoned a gust of wind under his feet, carrying him into the distance like an arrow being fired.
Zhang Xiaohou was extremely fast. The Hatchet Corpse General had no chance of catching him. Meanwhile, the Zombies flanking him from other directions were unable to predict his path. Before the walking corpses could totally surround him, Zhang Xiaohou had already broken through with Wind Track and caught up to the team.
---
"Wipe it off," Shi Shaoju handed a handkerchief to Zhang Xiaohou.
Zhang Xiaohou did not receive it. He wiped his face with his sleeves. The fresh blood of Jia Xi was all over them; Zhang Xiaohou had never even had the chance to talk to her.
"I thought you'd already gotten used to this, based on your outstanding performance. I assumed you would abandon those that are impossible to save. It was very likely that you would pay with your life by turning around there. The squads here are different from the squads from other places. You should abandon those who are trapped by the Undead. Turn around, and you'll put the entire squad in danger!" the captain Qin Hu came over and glanced down at Zhang Xiaohou, who was taking his rest on the ground.
Zhang Xiaohou remained silent. He was indeed a 'transfer student' from the south to the middle region, the Ancient Capital...
"Don't do something stupid like that next time, and don't disobey the orders given to you," said Qin Hu.
Zhang Xiaohou was still silent, still not reconciled to the death of his comrade... If he could have acted quicker, he might have had a chance of saving her before she was dragged away by the Corpse General.
"There's no sign of the Undead nearby. Sunny Goat Village is just ahead, I can see their fences..." said Wang Tong.
"Alright, let's head to the village at once."
---
Sunny Goat Village was only a few kilometers away from the Qinling Mountains, located in the foothills of the infamous mountain range.
The village was not big, constructed along a river flowing down from the mountain. The structures were basically made of wood. It felt like the squad had gone back in time the moment they set foot into the village. There was no sign of Magic Technology that had been developed in the past century. No streetlights, no electrical wires, even the mobile reception here was close to zero.
"Demon beasts are quite s.e.n.s.i.t.i.v.e toward our technology. Perhaps the village has banned it so they won't attract the demon beasts and Undead here," the observant Shi Shaoju quickly conjectured as they entered the village.
The village was extraordinarily quiet at night. Not a single lamp was lit. The only source of light was the dull yellow moon hanging high up in the sky.
The group could hear the sound of the river clearly. The village was deadly silent, it did not look like someone lived here.
"You guys… remove everything you shouldn't be bringing with you before entering the village, that includes any trace of blood on you..." said an aged voice from the guard tower at the entrance of the village.
The guard tower was manned every night, as a safety precaution.
"Old man, we're soldiers from Lintong headquarters. We were ambushed by the Undead along the way here. We've already got casualties and injured with us. Please let us enter the village, so we can attend to our comrades," said Shi Shaoju to the old man guarding the village.
"Which is why I say, throw away everything you shouldn't be bringing in. It will bring bad luck and disaster to our village," insisted the old man.
The group looked at one another. They had no choice but to comply.
"That thing too."
"It's the only communication device for us to contact the headquarters. It's specially designed, it won't attract the attention of demon beasts," said Qin Hu.
"No way; otherwise, you won't be entering the village."
"Just follow his instructions. There's a reason they are able to live among the Undead for so many years..." said Shi Shaoju.
The group immediately removed all their communication devices. The old man simply set the pile on fire, leaving the group with dull looks on their faces. Now that they had lost their communication devices, no one would know if the entire squad was wiped out in the end...
It seemed like the scouting squad was told to come to this village too. If their communication devices were destroyed too, it would be a miracle if they did not go missing!
"Alright, come in. The journey here looked tough, judging from your looks and injuries. Clean yourself up at the river...oh, try not to go upstream, we still want to drink the water," said the old man.
The old man brought the group of eight to the back of the village.
The village was not huge, possibly smaller than a villa owned by a wealthy person. It only took them ten minutes to reach the back of the village.
The village was quiet, and they had yet to see anyone apart from the old man. They began to feel uneasy.
"The whole area is occupied by the Undead, yet the village is located right in the center of it. On top of that, I haven't seen anything alive in this place. Is this actually a ghost town? It makes sense that the Undead are not interested in the dead..." whispered Wang Tong to Zhang Xiaohou.
"Enough, the villagers are most likely asleep. This place has no television, no phones, no Internet, what can they possibly do apart from sleeping?" said Zhang Xiaohou.
"Oh, you're right about that. By the way, the old man has just burned my Kidney Six too. I should have sent my missus a message before entering the village, so she won't think that I'm dead here...what a pity."
{TL Note: Kidney Six here is referring to the iPhone Six. The reason why it's kidney, well, there are actual cases in China where people sold one of their kidneys just to buy a new iPhone, and it has somehow turned into a meme.}
Zhang Xiaohou rolled his eyes, not wanting to waste his time talking to Wang Tong. He proceeded to study the village.
Speaking of which, Sunny Goat Village looked just like a normal village with a primitive lifestyle. However, he did discover a strange sight; each of the wooden huts was decorated with a stalk of Dog's Paw.
Dog's Paw was its common name, its real name was the Ash Plum Flower.
Zhang Xiaohou had only learned about the Ash Plum Flower after he came to the Ancient Capital. For some reason, he felt like he had seen the Ash Plum Flower before.
Chapter 526 - The Trick to Avoid the Undead
Translated by XephiZ
Edited by Aelryinth
"Use this to cleanse the poison away, but without a Healer, it's not possible for his legs to recover," the old man sitting on a wooden stool and smoking a cigar told them.
Wang Tong handed him an automatic lighter and a Chunghwa cigar, but the old man shook his head. The villagers were neither stubborn nor behind in technology, but they had to rely on the traditional lifestyle to maintain the serenity of the village.
The old man told the group that there was no empty hut for them. They had no choice but to stay in a shed for the night.
They were all soldiers who had endured tough training, hence the shed was very comfortable as long as they didn't have to worry about the Undead.
"We'll talk in the day. Just a reminder, don't simply run off anywhere, especially leaving the village. I'll tell the chief that you're here..." the old man said, before leaving the group.
The soldiers laid down on the slightly damp ground of the shed. They were too worn out to chat with one another. They spread out their clothes on the ground and went to sleep.
Most of them had gotten used to witnessing blood and death. It was a close call tonight, but it did not stop them from falling asleep.
Everyone fell asleep without appointing anyone to stand guard.
Zhang Xiaohou woke up a few times throughout the night because of the cold. The first time he woke up, the moon was still high up in the sky. The second time, the moon was slightly slanted. The third time, his surroundings were in complete darkness, so quiet that it was kind of scary, yet his fatigue immediately dragged him back into a deep sleep.
When his eyes next sprang open, it was already daytime.
---
"Come over here you son of a bitch, who told you to wash your feet in the upstream, I'll skin you alive!"
"Going to do the laundry? Let me tag along, my husband is lazy, but somehow he's very active at changing his clothes."
The beating of a gong woke the group up. As they opened their eyes, they could see kids running around, women busy with their chores and old folks taking a stroll around the village...
The village was deadly quiet last night, but it was rather lively in the day, just like an ordinary village.
When everyone woke up, some of the kids with runny noses gathered around the shed and observed the soldiers like they were foreigners.
"You're all awake, head to the village hall. The chief wants to see you," The old man who was standing guard last night seemed fairly energetic still. He brought the group to eat breakfast before going to the village hall.
The hall was not big. It had a small front yard, with a huge pond filled with clear water. The bottom of the pond had lots of pebbles. If one were to take a closer look, they would discover red letters engraved on the surface of the pebbles, which looked like names.
"In our village, either the youngsters or old folks, those who are leaving would write their names on the pebbles and throw them into the pond. It prevents them from turning into those things outside," explained the old man indifferently.
They arrived at the village hall after they crossed the yard.
A few old men sat on the wooden chairs with carefree looks. None of them seem afraid, despite living among the Undead.
A middle-aged man was seated in the leading position. His forehead was filled with wrinkles. He looked rather old, even with his smile. Even his good skincare was unable to hide his age.
"I'm the chief of this village. You can call me Fang Gu," said the man who called himself Fang Gu.
"Our chief is impressive, he's a Magician," complimented the old man who had stood guard.
"I'm nothing compared to the experts from the army," replied Fang Gu with a smile, sounding quite humble.
"Experts? One dead and one severely injured before they arrived," blurted out the old man.
Fang Gu gave the old man a stare. The old man was aware that he had said something unpleasant to the ears. He immediately excused himself, most likely heading home to take a rest.
"Sorry about that; the old man is just being talkative. It's been dull lately, as the Undead appear even before the sky turns completely dark. The creatures are extremely savage, too. You must be very careful no matter what mission you're on." Fang Gu advised in a friendly manner.
"Thanks for the reminder. The truth is, we're here to rescue a scouting squad. We're told to report back if we found any news, if you happen to know something..." said the captain Qin Hu.
"Oh, them… they came to the village before, and left after giving us some warnings. They did not stay for long. They must have headed for the other villages," answered Fang Gu immediately, remembering the squad.
"Were they fine when they came here?" asked Shi Shaoju.
"Yeah, there were nine of them, none of them were missing."
"They must have gotten rid of their communication devices when they came into your village. We lost contact with them around this area, please tell us if you know where they went," said Qin Hu.
"You can't bring your communication devices into the village, it's the same for the other villages, too. As for where they went...it should be Hua Village in the west. I heard someone mention it," said the chief.
"Oh, thanks."
After the conversation with the chief came to an end, a balding old man sitting beside him spoke up slowly, "Since you're here, just let you know that we don't want the army to send another squad to look for you here too...by the way, it will take at least two days to reach Hua Village from here,"
"We're Magicians."
"That applies to Magicians," emphasized the balding old man.
Qin Hu and Shi Shaoju frowned immediately. It meant that they had no choice but to spend a night in the wild if they decided to go to Hua Village!
Initially, they thought they would not have any problem staying a night in the wild, but after what happened last night, they had no intention of taking that risk.
"Chief, the Undead have been restless lately, we probably won't stand any chance against them, but we have to complete the mission entrusted to us. Please tell us the trick to avoid the Undead… it's clear that your village is safe in the Land of the Undead, and I even heard rumors about villagers journeying in the wild safely at night. I believe you must have some special trick passed down for generations..." asked Shi Shaoju sternly.
"No, it's the secret of our village. We can't tell outsiders," the old man declined instantly.
"Besides, even if we told you the trick, you can't use it, anyway. You have to think of some other way," said another old man.
Fang Gu seemed eager to help, but he was wearing a helpful look too.
After a while, he suddenly spoke, " We can't tell you the village's secret, but there's another way you can try… the only thing is, if anything goes wrong, you'll end up being surrounded by the walking corpses."
