Rocco
Bai Zemin looked at the woman before him for a moment. In his head, he was thinking of all kinds of important information that this woman named Mu Yang Yang might have but even after careful thought, he did not manage to come up with a clear answer.
It was hard for him to understand how a person who had not left her home could have important information.
Still, he decided to be honest. Bai Zemin sat with his back completely straight and said in a deep voice:
"The central government has not contacted anyone nor have they sent signals of any kind. The country's military forces probably collapsed or are in a big trouble since even after more than half a month there is still no trace of them either... The sooner you accept that the old society no longer exists the better it will be for you as many things will be simpler that way."
Mu Yang Yang's face changed slightly and her eyes quivered with fear. Although deep in her heart she had expected something like this to happen from the moment that strange message appeared in her retina and the zombies began to devour the humans, the realization was still cruel.
"So you all..."Mu Yang Yang looked at the police uniform of the armed man who had led her here and then hesitantly looked at the female police uniform Lilith was wearing before looking at Bai Zemin cautiously.
Bai Zemin nodded and confirmed his suspicions, "We are a group of survivors who are facing the zombies and mutated and evolved beasts. Although in our group there are also members of the government and military troops."
The reason why Bai Zemin said those last words was because although he was strong, it was natural for people who did not know him to trust someone with status and from a leading family. In any case, when Mu Yang Yang fully understood the new world she would realize on her own that such things were no longer of importance.
"Evolved beasts? Mutated beasts?" Mu Yang Yang's eyes widened in shock. She had only seen normal zombies, as for mutated or evolved beasts, she knew nothing about it.
However, the words of the young man in front of her made her even more confident of what she had seen.
"Due to the mana of the world, the animals mutated and gained terrifying strength and speed. Some of them managed to evolve into something completely new and gained the ability to use supernatural skills just like me."
After saying those words, Bai Zemin made a small cut on his finger and activated his Blood Manipulation skill. Under the surprised gaze of the survivor, small strands of blood floated in the air and wrapped into a small red sphere.
Swoosh!
Under Bai Zemin's control, the liquid blood hardened to terrifying levels and turned into a bullet that shot towards one of the walls.
Bang!
"My God!" The female survivor took a frightened step back as she saw that the concrete wall had been pierced by the blood of a human being. Such a thing was simply unheard of!
Her look at Bai Zemin changed completely and even the militant's eyes now had another small notch of respect in them. Only now he realized that earlier, Bai Zemin had not gone all out.Bai Zemin looked at the woman and said in a deep voice, "Mu Yang Yang, as you just saw, the world has changed. In our group we have strict rules as food, safest places, etc, are too valuable nowadays. Depending on how important that information you have is, I may let you enjoy the treatment of a Noble Citizen under my rule... Even a Royalty is not impossible."
Mu Yang Yang might not know what a Royalty or a Noble Citizen was, but seeing the militant's envious eyes when the word Royalty was named she understood that it was definitely a good thing.
In the end, she gritted her teeth and nodded, "Okay, I'll tell you."
...
It turns out that when the apocalypse broke out, Mu Yang Yang had managed to survive because she had reacted at the first moment and sought refuge in her home. Because her house had a metal door and the windows had steel bars, the zombies had not been able to reach her.
The problem was that after three days, Mu Yang Yang had exhausted all the rations she had in her house so that's when the real hell began for her. The days of starvation were unbearable.
Her stomach roared with hunger and ached as if thousands of needles were constantly pricking her. Mu Yang Yang rolled around on the ground for a total of seven days straight without eating anything and the hunger was driving her crazy so when the tenth day of the apocalypse came, under the effects of hunger, she decided to do what many other survivors had decided to do in desperate times.
Go out in search of food.
For her, it no longer mattered if she ended up being eaten by the zombies. Hunger was simply driving her completely insane!
However, just when Mu Yang Yang had consumed a great deal of energy as well as determination to stand up and walk towards the door, she heard something from outside that made her stop her movements completely.
Mu Yang Yang trembled with fear and had it not been for the militant beside him he would have fallen to the ground. Bai Zemin told her to sit down and only then she continued:
"That sound was very strange, it was like a human's laughter but it was definitely not something a human being could make." Mu Yang Yang explained in terror, "As a precaution, I decided to look outside through the small porthole in the door... That's when I saw that little green monster!"
Bai Zemin narrowed his eyes and upon seeing the slight change in Lilith's expression his face became serious. He looked at the militant and ordered him to retreat. Moreover, he also told him that if a word of this leaked out his head would fly up in the air.
After the gunman left in fright, Bai Zemin looked at the surviving woman who was trembling scared, and urged in a deep voice: "Continue."
"That little green monster was ugly, just like the goblins that appear in fantasy stories!" Mu Yang Yang exclaimed in a high-pitched voice: "Its mouth was incredibly big just like its nose, long and sharp teeth, its size didn't even reach a meter in height and its ears were long and pointed while its eyes were golden like gold. It was definitely a goblin like the one in fairy tales!"
"That must be a New Age Monster." Lilith's voice rang in his head and Bai Zemin looked at her with questioning eyes.
She explained, "Mana is an energy that no one has managed to fully comprehend. In the different worlds that the Soul Record visits, it is normal for some never before seen species to start appearing on earth due to the influence of mana on the different species. Monsters that simply mutate or evolve are considered Original Monsters, in other words, those that already existed in this world before.
As for the new species that are born under the influence of the Soul Record and mana, these are called New Age Monsters. These monsters are far more dangerous than the Original Monsters in the initial and intermediate stages of each world."
Bai Zemin's breathing stalled slightly as Lilith's words reached him and for a moment it seemed as if his brain had stopped working.
If due to mana and the Soul Record new life forms could form overtime didn't this mean that the more time passed not only would zombies and animals mutate and evolve even more, but also other unknown creatures even more powerful would appear?
So far, Bai Zemin had encountered mutated and evolved insects such as the Great Fast Mantis and the First Order Blazing Beetle. He had also fought dogs, cats, snakes, tigers, and other mutated and evolved animals.
However, for better or worse, these monsters were creatures that, while they had become infinitely more powerful than in the past, some of their weaknesses were still present.
For example; during his battle to the death against the First Order Blazing Beetle, Bai Zemin knew that the beetles could not turn their bodies and he took advantage of that weakness to kill it.
But if other unknown beings appeared this small advantage of knowledge about enemy biology would no longer be present in most cases.
Bai Zemin took a deep breath and looked at Mu Yang Yang with sharp eyes, "Are you sure about what you just said?"
Mu Yang Yang felt a heavy aura hovering over her and with a pale face nodded repeatedly as she stammered, "I-I swear... It really was a small monster like a goblin. Besides... T-This goblin even took some survivors alive to the south. I saw the whole scene!"
"... I see." Bai Zemin nodded and his expression returned to indifference. "The information you just provided is of utmost importance to me. I will arrange for you to be granted a villa in the center of the camp and you will be allowed to enjoy the privileges of a low-level Royalty. Someone will explain the rules and benefits of your new position to you soon."
"... Thank you... Thank you..." Mu Yang Yang stood up and bowed as tears of pain, suffering, and joy spilled down her cheeks.
While she didn't know what was a Royalty, it was definitely a good thing. At this point, she just wanted to eat and sleep in a litter comfortably without having to fear the dangers lurking outside for at least one night.
...
Soon, Mu Yang Yang was escorted by two armed men to a separate villa where several survivors in charge of meals prepared a table of dishes for her to eat at will.
After taking a hot shower and changing clothes, while looking at the rice, chicken soup, vegetables, and fried meat as well as the different choices of drinks on the table, Mu Yang Yang again cried bitter tears and enjoyed from the depths of her heart what for her was the best meal she had ever had in her entire life.
While Mu Yang Yang was being taken to rest and due to the sudden increase of survivors, Bai Zemin had sent a messenger to the Beginning Village to report the situation to Shangguan Bing Xue.
* * *
Three hours later, in the middle of a road about ten kilometers from Bai Zemin's current location, a convoy of three buses and two SUVs were moving at a steady speed in a southerly direction.
Inside the SUV leading the way, Shangguan Bing Xue was sitting in the back seat while looking out the window with an indifferent gaze.
She had received Bai Zemin's report and after discussing it with Wu Yijun, she decided to bring some men to pick up the survivors and take them back to the Beginning Village. After all, they could not currently afford to separate their meager forces into two villages.
The young driver's eyes occasionally looked in the rearview mirror and the man couldn't help but sigh at the icy beauty. However, for fear of losing his mind, his glance did not linger for more than a second at a time before returning to the road.
Swoosh!
Suddenly Shangguan Bing Xue's face changed slightly and without hesitation she slammed the door before rushing out without flinching.
The vehicle that was traveling at about 30-40 kilometers per hour due to the bad condition of the road continued to move forward for a few more meters before it suddenly began to split in two.
Boom!
Without warning, the car exploded in a cloud of fire; killing the driver in the process. The convoy traveling behind immediately came to a screeching halt, barely avoiding a car crash.
"Nobody get out of the vehicles." Shangguan Bing Xue appeared in front of the buses and coldly ordered while looking towards the forest on their right.
Because there were only about sixty armed men in total due to the shortage of firearms and ammunition, Shangguan Bing Xue had left the other thirty with Wu Yijun and Cai Jingi in the Beginning Village to avoid any kind of disturbance.
This meant that she was the only person with actual combat ability within this group of survivors.
"Kii kikiki..."
A strange sound similar to a person's laughter but also similar to the screeching sound of two metal plates rubbing against each other came from between the trees.
Shangguan Bing Xue did not stop on ceremony and unhesitatingly activated her most reliable skill as she pointed her wand forward:
"Freeze."
A thick white cloud burst out of her body and in the next instant surrounded the trees in front of her. The trees began to freeze bit by bit and less than five seconds later, everything ten meters ahead had turned into ice statues.
The place remained silent and a gentle gust of wind made Shangguan Bing Xue's Combat Dress dance in the breeze gently.
Her face suddenly changed and as she gritted her teeth she created a large wall of ice in front of her before putting strength into both legs and jumping backwards.
Swoosh! Swoosh! Swoosh! Swoosh!...
Following the sound of the howling wind, a dozen arrows flew from the shadows of the forest and hit the ice wall but failed to pierce it completely before getting stuck.
Just as Shangguan Bing Xue touched down ten meters away, a shadow shot out from the forest.
Bang!
The thick ice wall that was capable of stopping even bullets from multiple guns was smashed into hundreds of pieces that flew everywhere. However, Shangguan Bing Xue was more surprised by the creature in front of her.
Approximately five feet tall, a big belly, thick arms covered with fat, sharp pointed ears, huge nose, bulging yellow eyes, teeth that protruded in point, and in one of its hands it carried a huge white bone while it was completely naked except for a brown colored rag loincloth that covered the lower half of its body.
"Go- Goblin...?" Shangguan Bing Xue's beautiful eyes flashed with disbelief and for the first time, she couldn't help but stutter in shock.
"Kii kikiki..." The fat goblin with a big bone stick laughed and while pointing at her shouted some strange words.
Shangguan Bing Xue frowned and soon, to her utmost surprise, twelve small goblins barely half the size of the goblin in front of her came out of the forest.