The shock brought by the appearance of the giant python lasted only a dozen seconds before everyone snapped back to their senses.
The Grade-5 crystal was their goal! With so many people diving into the chaos, there was still a chance to fight for it!
Just as Lin Weiran and Si Zhe were about to approach, the Tier-5 zombie sensed their arrival. It immediately let out a roar, and an icy chill surged outward in all directions. In an instant, everything within a hundred miles was frozen solid.
The two failed to dodge in time, and their feet were encased in thick ice atop the high slope.
Lin Weiran reacted swiftly, raising her hands to conjure two clusters of flames, burning away the ice beneath both her and Si Zhe’s feet.
As for the others, some had their abilities restrained and could only rely on brute force to break free, while others had abilities that countered the ice element, allowing them to escape the predicament more quickly.
As for those weak yet oblivious ability users who had stubbornly rushed in—ice had already frozen up to their calves and was continuing to spread upward.
“Hiss!!”
As soon as the ice began to spread, the giant python spewed out blue flames, reducing the ice around it to shards.
While everyone else struggled to break free, only the python moved unhindered, gliding smoothly over the ice and swiftly overtaking Lin Weiran and Si Zhe.
Seeing their advantage in distance shrinking, a shadow flickered in Si Zhe’s eyes.
“Weiran, burn the ice layer!”
The battle synergy they had developed over time allowed Lin Weiran to instantly understand his plan.
Scorching flames ignited along the python’s gliding path. Though a Tier-4 fire ability couldn’t fully melt the solid ice created by a Tier-5 ice ability, it could soften the surface, creating a “waterway”!
Right on cue, Si Zhe made his move!
A high-voltage electric current surged into the “waterway”—water conducts electricity, and the current chased after the python’s tail… striking it directly!
“HISSS!!!”
The black snake hissed in pain, lifting its tail and instinctively shifting to a more distant route.
At this moment, Lin Weiran used the same tactic to burn a small puddle near the Tier-5 Zombie King.
Si Zhe seized the opportunity, rushing forward while hurling dozens of lightning spheres into the puddle.
Zzzzt!
A second before the electric current could make contact with the water, the newly melted puddle rapidly refroze into solid ice!
Ice couldn’t conduct electricity. The thrown lightning spheres landed on the ice’s surface, only creating a few insignificant cracks while weak sparks flickered and faded.
Si Zhe’s expression darkened.
As expected, a Tier-5 zombie was not easy to deal with!
“ROAR!!!”
The ice-element zombie had already locked onto the leading human. The continuous drizzle falling from the sky instantly turned into sharp ice spikes that defied gravity and shot directly toward Si Zhe.
A shimmering electric grid materialized in front of him.
Each time an ice spike struck, the electric grid trembled under the strain.
In just a few seconds, over a hundred ice spikes rained down.
Si Zhe was forced to halt his advance, struggling to fend off the relentless assault from the Tier-5 zombie.
Seeing this, Lin Weiran circled around to the back, a fireball already gathering in her palm, ready to strike.
Beyond the core battlefield, several ability users had regained mobility.
They charged recklessly toward the Tier-5 zombie, attempting to snatch the rare Grade-5 crystal from Eternal Squad’s grasp!
Ironically, the two who should have acted—Su Su and the giant python—remained nearby, silently observing the battle.
Noticing that even Lin Weiran and Si Zhe’s combined efforts could barely shake the Zombie King, Su Su asked in a low voice, “Xiao Hei, can you beat it?”
There were differences even among Tier-5 beings.
The giant python observed calmly, relying on instinct to assess the gap—its strength was still somewhat inferior to that of this decayed creature.
“Hiss.”
It shook its head lightly, then nodded.
“You mean… you can’t win, but you can try?”
“Hiss!”
Su Su pondered for two seconds before wrapping her arms around its massive head with some effort. “Then let’s wait and see.”
See if the others could wear it down for a while. See if her ability would be effective against this Tier-5 zombie.
A dense white light seeped into the zombie’s body.
Its movements suddenly stalled. Seizing the opening, Lin Weiran immediately launched a powerful fireball, striking the zombie’s head with precision.
“ROARRR!!!!”
The fireball left several scorched marks on the Zombie King’s body. It let out a furious roar and, in the next second, forcefully broke free from Su Su’s ability, charging straight at the culprit who attacked it.
Lin Weiran retreated rapidly, shouting, “Si Zhe!”
The barrage of ice spikes weakened, allowing Si Zhe to finally free up his hands. He conjured an invisible electric net, ensnaring the Zombie King firmly within.
“ROAR!!”
The Zombie King was slammed to the ground. It thrashed wildly, but it couldn’t break free.
Ice spikes rained down on everyone, yet the zombie itself couldn’t even escape a mere electric net.
Its disadvantage was instantly exposed.
At that moment, all the ability users who had been observing could no longer sit still.
This was the perfect time to strike and steal the crystal—any further delay, and Eternal Squad might claim the Zombie King’s crystal for themselves!
Dozens of people lunged forward.
Everyone was trying to intercept one another, scrambling to be the first to seize the prize!
Lin Weiran was furious. “Get lost! The crystal is ours!”
No one listened to her. Eternal Squad had only made a name for themselves in the Southern Base over the past two months. The base was filled with elites, each with their own means of survival. The last time Lin Weiran and Si Zhe claimed victory in the zombie tide, it was largely due to everyone underestimating them.
When it came down to brute force, Lin Weiran and Si Zhe were formidable together, but the other squads weren’t weak either. They could always force Eternal Squad to pay a heavy price.
Someone sneered, “Yours? Since when is everything yours?”
“A Grade-5 crystal—everyone fights for it based on their own ability!”
The ice-element zombie had completely lost its ability to resist!
It continued recklessly smashing the “ice sculptures” at will.
At this critical moment, the giant python silently slithered forward from behind. Just as it was about to reach the Zombie King, the latter suddenly twisted its head sharply—
“ROAR!!!”
The drizzling rain once again transformed into a storm of ice spikes.
The massive snake tail blurred into afterimages as it swept across the air, knocking away the ice spikes aimed at the female.
As for itself, its thick skin and tough scales rendered the ice spikes ineffective. At most, they caused a dense stinging sensation, but nothing more.
“HISSSS!!!”
A battle between a serpent and a corpse—finally, a direct confrontation!
Su Su didn’t remain idle. Even though her ability had little effect, she continued trying to slow down the Zombie King, forcing it to reveal more openings.
With two Tier-5 entities locked in combat, even ordinary zombies dared not approach.
The ability users behind the iron net hesitated as well, too afraid to get close. For a brief moment, the battlefield’s core was left with only the Zombie King and the giant python.
Perhaps realizing that its movements were constantly being hindered, the Zombie King’s gaze suddenly shifted to the human encircled by the python’s tail.
A Tier-5 zombie possessed a certain level of instinct. It could feel—this living human was the reason it kept falling into a disadvantageous position in battle.
“ROAR!”
A massive amount of water vapor condensed once more.
Feeling the unnaturally sticky humidity in the air, Su Su’s heart filled with a sense of impending danger.
If she didn’t stop it now, she would end up like those “ice sculptures”!
“Xiao Hei!”
“Hiss!!!”
The giant python sensed the danger too. Just as the ice began to form, it let out an enraged hiss and spat out a small cluster of blue flames.
The fire encircled the female, evaporating all moisture in just a few seconds!
The Tier-5 Zombie King’s plan was completely foiled!
Its abilities had limits as well. After enduring multiple rounds of depletion from various ability users and facing the python’s increasingly ferocious attacks, it was gradually weakening.
This time, victory was truly within reach!
“Si Zhe, how are you? Are you alright?”
“I’m fine.”
Su Su’s sharp ears caught a faint conversation. She turned her head and saw that Lin Weiran and Si Zhe had finally broken free from the ice sculpture restraints.
No, she couldn’t let them regain their full strength!
The white light redirected its focus, enveloping the zombie horde that had been lurking a hundred meters away.
—Surround them. Devour them!
Under the forceful command, thousands of zombies surged toward Lin Weiran and Si Zhe.
By the time Su Su turned back, Xiao Hei had already bitten off one of the Zombie King’s arms!
“ROARRRR!!!”
The Zombie King was enraged, launching a final desperate struggle.
At the critical moment, Su Su activated her ability once more—stunning the Tier-5 zombie for two seconds.
In those two seconds, the giant python seized the perfect opportunity. Its blazing flames completely engulfed the Zombie King.
“ROARRRR!!!!”
Before it burned to death, the Zombie King regained its ability to move. But by then, its limbs had been reduced to charred remains, unable to support its weight. Its torso slumped weakly to the ground.
“Hiss!”
Afraid that someone might try to snatch the female’s Grade-5 crystal, the giant python brutally bit off the Zombie King’s head.
Crunch.
The crystal dropped into its mouth.
At that moment, Su Su’s heart finally settled.
The Grade-5 crystal was hers!
But… she would definitely have to thoroughly wash Xiao Hei’s mouth tonight. Maybe even sterilize it at high temperatures.
With the Zombie King dead, all the ice sculptures melted into water. The ability users who had barely survived emerged from the thaw, gasping for breath.
The moment they realized that the Tier-5 zombie had been killed by the giant python and that the crystal was now in Su Su’s hands, every gaze instantly locked onto the young woman.
—
The rain finally stopped.
The zombie horde seemed to sense that their leader—the one guiding their assault on the human base—was dead.
They hesitated in place for a long while before slowly retreating, leaving behind piles of their fallen kin outside the iron fence and crystals scattered throughout the battlefield.
Si Zhe and Lin Weiran were finally free to move.
Like everyone else, their eyes fixed on Su Su—the one who had taken the Tier-5 crystal.
The atmosphere froze.
A silent storm was brewing.