Chapter 57: What the hell… is going on?

“W–What?!”

“The Undead Scourge is descending tonight?!!”

The crowd hadn’t even recovered from their feverish worship.

Then, the sudden calamity fell upon them like a bucket of ice water poured over their heads.

They were instantly dumbfounded!

At that very moment—no more, no less.

Crack~~

The sound of eggshells shattering suddenly came from the sky.

Above Oak Town.

The magical array barrier that had been quietly flowing all this time flickered violently a few times.

Under the horrified gaze of everyone—it shattered with a thunderous crash!

Countless scattered light particles drifted across the night sky, like dying fireflies, silently falling to the ground.

Taylor’s face turned pale as paper. “The–the magic array… collapsed?! How is that possible?!”

The other magicians were just as stunned.

The wine glasses in their hands slipped and shattered on the floor.

No one knew better than them what the collapse of a magic array meant.

Right now, Oak Town was like a naked maiden waiting to be ravaged!

“Heavens! The magic array is gone!”

“We’re finished, finished! The undead are coming in!”

“Help! Run, run!”

The entire crowd exploded into chaos!

Fear spread like a plague.

Cries, screams, and shoving mixed together into utter pandemonium.

……

Oak Town, South Gate.

Only a few yawning guards remained scattered along the city wall.

The night wind blew cold and sharp.

“Damn it, this cursed weather…” an old guard muttered, rubbing his hands.

Before his words even faded—a few shadows suddenly lunged out from the darkness.

A flash of cold steel, pfft!

A few muffled sounds later, the guards slumped to the ground without even a grunt, fresh holes carved into their throats.

“Done.”

The young guard flicked the blood off his dagger with a smirk.

He was the same man Lynn had tailed earlier.

Two companions stood beside him, both dressed in the same leather armor of the town guards.

“Damn, easier than killing chickens!”

One of them, Hend, kicked a corpse. “And here we were, all nervous, planning for half a day—turns out it’s just a bunch of old and feeble geezers guarding the gate!”

Fraser chuckled darkly, his dagger still dripping. “Ain’t that the truth!”

“That idiot Old John sent all the elites to that stupid charity banquet, left these useless fools to guard the walls—might as well have handed us their heads!”

The young guard didn’t respond.

He quickly strode to the battlement and leaned forward to look outside.

At a glance—his throat went dry, and he swallowed hard.

In the darkness just beyond the walls, countless crimson lights flickered to life—dense and endless—like eyes opening in hell.

And then—a black tide surged out of the forest like waves!

At the front were innumerable Ghouls, hunched and growling lowly through their throats.

Behind them came even faster-moving creatures—the Lickers, their tongues whipping out like leather whips.

There were at least a thousand of them!

Even more horrifying—floating above them were over a hundred figures, draped in tattered robes, clutching bone staffs, with ghostly green soul-flames flickering in their hollow sockets—Liches!

The deathly aura they exuded was enough to make one’s knees tremble even from afar.

And leading this terrifying army—stood a colossal monstrosity!

A creature born straight from a nightmare!

A grotesque mountain of flesh, towering nearly four or five meters tall!

Its skin was a festering gray-green, oozing yellow pus.

One hand wielded a rusted, chain-hooked iron claw.

The other gripped a massive axe stained with dark brown grime.

Its head hung askew—one eye bulging like a bronze bell, the other shrunken to a narrow slit.

Its mouth stretched to its ears, revealing rows of jagged fangs,

with foul drool dripping down in strings.

Just the sight of it was enough to make anyone nauseous!

A Fourth-tier Undead Commander—Abomination!

At the same time, the scene at the northern gate was just as terrifying!

No longer were they Ghouls, but a horde of squealing, rotting rats!

Each one was the size of a wild dog, its fur festering and its eyes glowing blood-red!

Behind the rat tide lumbered decaying bears, skeletal wolves, and even zombie horses charging with their entrails dragging on the ground!

Leading them all was a massive, rotting mushroom that exuded a thick, violet poisonous mist!

Beneath its cap—countless wriggling tendrils dripped tiny spores, precisely controlling these parasitized, rotting creatures!

“Hissss…”

The young guard trembled uncontrollably. “Th–This… this army could flatten three Oak Towns easily! Is Maple Leaf Town facing something this terrifying too?”

He forced down the horror in his chest.

No wonder Lord Williams wanted to cooperate with the Undead.

How could mere humans ever hope to fight such power…

Then—under the three men’s combined effort, the winch turned.

The heavy oak gate creaked open, and the drawbridge over the moat slammed down with a thud.

“Haha! The feast begins!”

Hend stared at the endless tide of death outside the city, a feverish gleam flashing in his eyes.

He could already picture himself earning great merit and receiving generous rewards from Lord Cassius.

However—in the very next second, Hend’s smile froze.

Because the ravenous undead had no concept of allies!

Like sharks scenting blood, their targets weren’t just the living inside the city—even the infiltrators among them would not be spared!

“Ah! Wait! We’re on your side! We—”

Hend’s terrified scream was cut short.

Before he could finish, several Ghouls pounced and tore him to shreds!

Blood and entrails splattered everywhere!

“Damn it! What the hell are you doing?!” Fraser shouted in terror, turning to flee.

But a Licker’s long tongue shot out like a javelin, piercing straight through his chest!

The young guard reacted the fastest.

He rolled to the side, barely dodging the pouncing Ghouls.

But right after—a grinning Lich floated before him, raising its bone staff.

“No!!!”

……

Hiding in the distant shadows, Owen coldly watched as his subordinates were devoured.

A mocking smile tugged at the corner of his lips.

“Idiots… and they actually thought the Undead could keep promises.”

Owen had never told them that the Undead Legion couldn’t distinguish friend from foe.

After all, if he had, none of them would’ve agreed to open the city gates for such a suicidal task.

He glanced toward the dimly lit Magic Tower in the distance.

“Six towers are down. That’s enough.”

“The remaining two still have a few old magicians inside—not worth the effort to take head-on. Withdraw!”

His figure blurred as he prepared to melt into the darkness.

But then—out of the corner of his eye, he suddenly noticed someone standing in the middle of the deserted main street.

A handsome young man stood there alone, facing the surging Undead Legion.

He remained utterly still, as if petrified by fear.

“Heh, a pathetic coward scared out of his wits.”

Owen sneered inwardly without breaking stride. “Still, lucky you… compared to those fat sheep waiting for slaughter in the square, at least you’ll die quickly…”

That thought had barely formed—when a sudden change erupted!

From that young man’s body burst a blinding, pure-white Holy Light!

The dozens of Ghouls and Lickers charging at the front—were struck by the Holy Light and vaporized in an instant, without even a scream.

Like snow under the scorching sun, they sizzled, smoked, and vanished into gray ash!

The monstrous tide behind them—was suddenly halted by this divine power, letting out frightened and uneasy roars!

Owen: “!!!”

His eyes bulged wide, his feet frozen to the ground.

What the hell… was this?!

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