"What?!" exclaimed Roan.

He failed to understand what had just happened.

He had just seen Garrett die soo abruptly in from of him.

They had started this journey together, but now, he was dead.

Looking at the blur, he saw the true face of it.

'Sure enough, it's a zombie,' Roan wryly smiled.

It was always going to be a zombie.

It was snowing. His shoe was torn, leaving his toes to face the treacherous cold.

Yet, he couldn't count the number of times he, along with the rest, had faced zombies, on this very day!

It was starting to become despairing, if not exceedingly despairing for some of them.

Their minds had already reached their limits and they failed to see hope.

Also, this zombie wasn't any normal zombie.

As it munched on Knight-Captain Garrett's head, its fully black eye gazed at them.

Its legs were curvier than normal, and its muscles there were more compact and firmer.

This would explain why it was able to overtake them. It had a physical mutation that enhanced its speed.

All in all, if speed was quantifiable, the zombie was faster than all of them combined!

Gavin sighed as he let the zombie enjoy its meal, 'It's obviously a [Black-Eye Zombie]...showing signs of intelligence just like the zombie lord. Plus, my guess is that its special ability influenced Garrett to stop.'

After evolution, [Black Eye Zombies] get a special ability.

An ability that can not be easily achieved by manipulating [Elemental Spirit Essence]. Most of the abilities were always strange and deadly in their own rights.

In his family records, some of the zombies had the ability to curse someone by shouting at the target. Some could negate [Spirit Essence]!

There were basically overpowered and progressed beyond one's imagination after each evolution.

Roan knew things were looking grim and once again smiled, "This is certainly one way to die."

Beside him were the others, who possessed enough experience to know that running was not an option.

Yet, they had fought continuous battles and were fully drained of [Spirit Essence]. If they pushed themselves further, they might enter the [State of Deficit].

This would certainly mark the end of their lives.

Knowing their situation, Jaya asked Roan, "What do we do know?"

Unlike the others, she was very stubborn, probably the most stubborn.

She refused to accept death. She had to see her father again!

She had yet to see the full world, only hearing stories of it.

She, Nico, and Lola have not seen it all.

Contrary to what many might think, they have been cooped up all their lives.

This had made her harbor curiosity about the outside world. The world of different races. The world of legends.

She had just seen a small part of it. She refused to give up!

An intense light shone in her eye as she looked at Roan.

Seeing this, Roan smiled, "Haha. I understand. We will fight!"

He continued, addressing all of them, "We might die…...no, we will definitely die. But, we might as well make this zombie a handicap!"

He rallied the suicidal tendencies in his group as he began his transformation.

His wolf transformation didn't require [Spirit Essence]. All it needed was his will and a strong mind.

Although his mind was rickety right now, he could still cause some damage.

His thoughts aligned with the others as they entered a formation.

Their current location was free of other zombies, so they didn't need to cover their backs.

Despite the zombie still eating, the battle began with Lola rudely blowing up the half-eaten Garret's head with her arrow.

Of course, the zombie got infuriated and dashed at Lola, who was the culprit.

However, he was blocked by Roan, who had already transformed.

The zombie didn't think much of Roan and just blinked at him, a foul grey color emanated from his eye and caught Roan's stare.

Roan became locked in his body, he couldn't move or do anything else.

The zombie continued its stride, but this time, not to Lola, but to Roan.

It inched closer to Roan and was about to take a swipe at him, when Cheyenne acted, using the last remaining [Spirit Essence].

Wings appeared on her legs and she dashed as fast as lightning!

She became potentially faster than the zombie, despite the zombie not running at full speed.

Before the zombie could kill Roan, Cheyenne swooped in and grabbed him away.

Taking the place of her brother, she used her remaining [Elemental Spirit Essence] to erect the familiar [Warden's Gates], just in time as the zombie smashed its claws at it.

Cheyenne knew what she was doing was basically a suicide mission.

No matter how strong she was, she couldn't go against a [Black Eye Zombie], who was equivalent to a [Realm-3] cultivator.

The Claw of the zombie gradually pierced the blue gates!

It tried using its eye to paralyze Cheyenne, but she had predicted that and had closed her eyes.

However, this left her vulnerable.

Listening to the crackling sounds of her technique, Cheyenne knew she was done for.

The others were not as fast as her. They wouldn't be able to get there in time.

Even if they did, it wouldn't matter, as they still wouldn't be able to bypass the zombie, as she did.

Slowly...slowly, she waited for death to claim her.

*Boom* *Boom* *Boom!*

All she heard was the sound of an object dashing at a breakneck speed.

It zoomed past her in no time and took the zombie with it.

Opening her eyes, Cheyenne first absorbed the breath of the world. She had just escaped death.

She then looked around to see what had saved her.

However, she was also met with the dumbfounded looks of the rest. She didn't have to ask to know that they clearly also had no idea of what was happening.

*Roar!* *Roar!*

This time, she managed to see two managed that were in a rampage, damaging all the buildings in the vicinity.

When they stopped, she recognized one. It was the [Black Eye Zombie]. It was headless.

She also recognized the other. It was a wolf-man, resembling Roan's wolf transformation.

However, it was more wolf than Roan's transformation. It had furs that came out of all parts of its body and sharp claws that were currently dripping blood.

*Roar!*

Its other hand held the head of the zombie and it roared victoriously, showcasing its might.

By the time it reverted to its human form, the group recognized it. It--He was the king of Aztec.

Despite also looking heavily injured, he managed to catch the zombie by surprise and kill it.

Not wasting time on greetings, the king eyed the group and briefly said, "let's go. It's coming. I can feel it."

Having been through a lot, the others followed him as they continued running to the palace.