Chapter 142: Wealth Comes From Taking Risks

Zu'an looked in the direction of the sound. The depths of the valley, previously shrouded in a hazy gray mist and completely obscured, now revealed faint human figures.

As the footsteps grew closer, the figures became clearer.

Rows of zombies emerged neatly from the mist, stopping dozens of meters away. These zombies were entirely different from the previous ones; they were much cleaner, with no dangling pieces of rotten flesh or tattered clothing. Instead, they wore armor-like uniforms, held long spears and sharp swords, and the front row even carried shields!

"Holy crap, elite monsters!" Zu'an's eyes widened. If the previous zombies felt like refugees, these newcomers were warriors—no, "an army" would be a more fitting description.

Zombies had armies?

Zu'an was stunned; this was completely beyond his comprehension.

He had already struggled immensely against the previous group of "refugees"; facing a regular army now meant certain death.

Just as Zu'an was succumbing to despair, he suddenly noticed something unusual below: the zombies he was observing earlier had all picked up weapons and were staring "warily" at the distant army. By all appearances, the two groups were not allies.

At that moment, the distant army suddenly opened a small gap, and a cavalry unit slowly emerged. Though called cavalry, their mounts were clearly not living horses but zombie horses, wreathed in black mist, resembling the Nazgûl riders he'd seen in movies from his previous life.

The knights' armor was far more refined than that of the surrounding infantry. The color and shape of the lead knight's armor were distinctly different from his comrades', clearly marking him as a leader.

It wore a black cloak and seemed enveloped in a layer of black mist, its face obscured. Only two flickering blue flames, presumably its eyes, gleamed from within its helmet.

As it drew the longsword from its waist, the soldiers, as if receiving a signal, all unsheathed their weapons and pointed their spears forward.

The knight leader pulled on the reins, and its "steed" reared up almost vertically. With a downward sweep of its sword, the cavalry unit it led charged directly forward, followed by the infantry battalions, who also began their charge, wielding their weapons.

"What's going on? Zombies fighting each other?" Zu'an's eyes widened in disbelief. The world truly was full of wonders.

He had expected the zombies on his side to turn and flee, as the two groups were clearly not on the same level in terms of equipment and aura. But to his surprise, these creatures showed no fear; instead, they grew more excited, howling—though he couldn't hear it, he could sense the open-mouthed roars—and charged forward with their crude weapons to meet the enemy.

Zu'an suddenly had an epiphany. The scene before him resembled a battle between peasant rebels and a regular imperial army.

Just then, the sky briefly darkened. Zu'an looked up to see a dense volley of arrows arcing from behind the army, raining down like a fierce storm.

Compared to the arrows Zu'an had previously faced, these were a veritable downpour.

The arrows whistled down, and a small section of the "peasant army" instantly collapsed, pinned to the ground and unable to rise again.

Zu'an carefully observed the arrows, pondering how he had struggled to kill a single zombie with his sword, yet one arrow could finish them off?

Were the army's archers too powerful, or did the arrows possess some special magic?

In that brief moment, the two zombie armies collided. The cavalry's charge was overwhelmingly powerful; the peasant zombies, armed with makeshift weapons, simply couldn't stop them. Their formation was almost instantly sliced in half by the cavalry unit.

The infantry, following close behind, wielded their weapons, and the zombies at the vanguard of the "peasant army" fell in rows almost immediately.

"This is a massacre!" Zu'an's throat felt parched as he watched. The very zombies that had trapped him earlier now stood no chance.

Although they fought valiantly, desperately attacking the enemy with their numerical advantage, some even biting at their opponents after being cut in half, the disparity in individual combat strength and equipment was simply too vast.

After an unknown period, not a single "living" being—or rather, not a single living corpse—from the peasant army remained standing. Scattered fragments littered the ground everywhere.

The knight leader slowly surveyed the battlefield on horseback, finally stopping beneath the large tree where Zu'an was hidden.

Zu'an held his breath, terrified of making the slightest sound that might reveal his presence. The previous group had nearly killed him, but this new army would ensure he had no chance of survival.

Fortunately, he was halfway up the cliff, and the undead knight didn't look up.

Moreover, the previous group of zombies had consumed many golden-haired monstrous rats, and the scent of blood and flesh permeated the area. Otherwise, his distinct aura as a living person would surely have betrayed his presence to so many zombies below, even from his hiding spot.

After a sweep of the battlefield, any zombies still crawling or writhing on the ground were crushed under the undead knight's foot. Once it was certain there were no survivors, the undead knight waved its hand. A sharp, metallic clanging sound arose as all the soldiers re-formed their ranks, then turned and marched in perfect step deeper into the valley.

"They even have a retreat signal!" Zu'an's eyes almost popped out. This zombie army was surprisingly professional.

Once the army had gone, Zu'an finally leaped down from the tree. Gazing at the scattered limbs and severed hands strewn across the landscape, his face twitched involuntarily. He thought, if Ji Xiaoxi were here, she'd probably throw up again.

"This trip today was a complete loss," Zu'an grumbled, feeling a headache. He had nearly died several times with absolutely no reward. In games, even the weakest monsters dropped at least some gold and basic weapons.

Wait a minute. While there was no gold, the recent battle had left behind a significant number of weapons.

He hurriedly searched the battlefield, immediately disregarding crude tools like hoes and carrying poles. His principle was that effectiveness didn't matter as much as style; these weapons were simply not aesthetically pleasing enough to match his temperament.

He vaguely remembered a few of the earlier zombies carrying swords, but after searching for a long time, he was disappointed. Their swords had long since shattered into several pieces during the recent battle, clashing against the regular army's weapons. He couldn't find a single intact one.

If only he could find the regular army's weapons.

Unfortunately, the regular army had cleaned up the battlefield, taking their comrades' "bodies" and, apparently, all their weapons with them.

Speaking of which, these creatures were already dead, right? How would dying again be counted?

Zu'an racked his brain but couldn't figure it out.

Suddenly, his foot caught on something. Steadying himself, he looked down and saw a pitch-black arrow shaft. This arrow was completely different from the ones the "peasant army" had shot at him earlier.

"It's from the regular army!"

Zu'an recalled the scene of the overwhelming arrow rain earlier, remembering how zombies that were impervious to his repeated sword strikes had been instantly felled by a single arrow.

The arrow's appearance clearly suggested it was no ordinary item.

The regular army had collected most of the arrows when cleaning the battlefield, but given the sheer number fired, a few were bound to have been missed.

Zu'an searched for a long time and finally found seven arrows.

Holding them, an extreme chill permeated his hand. He was certain it wasn't just coldness, but something indescribable.

"I wonder how powerful these would be against humans," Zu'an mused. He found a quiver, slung the arrows onto his back. Although he couldn't shoot a bow, it hardly mattered. His current strength far surpassed that of an ordinary person; he could easily use them as javelins.

Brute force could work wonders!

Seeing nothing else, Zu'an hurried back, wondering how Xiaoxi was doing.

He made his way back to the large tree where they had separated, only to find no trace of her. He was startled and quickly searched the tree, relieved when he found no bloodstains or torn pieces of Ji Xiaoxi's clothing.

She must have come down from the tree and left the valley to get help while he was drawing away the zombie horde.

His first instinct was to leave the valley to find her, but he hesitated. So much time had passed that catching up would likely be difficult. The secret realm was only open for ten days, and he needed to find the Traceless Illusion Lotus; every moment was precious. Turning back to search for Ji Xiaoxi now would be too wasteful.

In any case, barring unforeseen circumstances, Ji Xiaoxi would return to the valley to find him.

After a moment's hesitation, Zu'an continued deeper into the valley.

Although he knew it was dangerous, having loved games in his previous life, he understood that powerful guardians always protected rare treasures. The mysterious zombie army he had just witnessed was incredibly strong; perhaps they were guarding something?

For the sake of his future happiness, any risk was worth taking!

So he gritted his teeth and hurried deeper into the valley.

He ran at full speed, constantly ready to summon Gale to counter any potential dangers.

He wasn't sure if it was because the large army had just passed through or for some other reason, but the entire valley was remarkably calm. He encountered no fierce beasts or zombies along the way.

Although the army had temporarily vanished, Zu'an wasn't flustered. He could feel a strong, chilling aura, clearly the lingering presence of the recently departed army.

By following this aura, he was sure to find their destination, and he didn't have to worry about getting too close and being discovered.

After chasing for about half an hour more, his spirits suddenly lifted. He faintly heard the familiar heavy footsteps echoing from ahead.

He held his breath, focused, and slowed his pace, following the sound. Finally, he caught sight of the warriors.

However, the sight before him made him pause. He watched as the warriors, arrayed in neat ranks, slowly disappeared into a small mountain.