owlsbooks Chapter 18 Night Battle Against Zombies
Chapter 18 Night Battle Against Zombies
The mortuary was located in a small grove of trees on the east side of the village. It was a dilapidated mud-brick house that had been neglected for years, with peeling paint on the walls and weeds growing on the roof.
The village head pointed to the mortuary and said in a trembling voice:
"This is it. A few nights ago, Old Liu, who was on night watch, heard some noise inside. When he went in, he found the coffin lid had been opened and the body inside was gone."
Zhou Ning nodded, pushed open the slightly ajar wooden door, and went inside.
The mortuary was dark and damp, filled with a putrid smell.
In the very center were several dilapidated coffins, one of which had its lid tilted to one side and was empty.
Zhou Ning squatted down and carefully examined the inner wall of the coffin.
The bottom of the coffin was covered with a layer of black viscous liquid, emitting a nauseating stench.
There were several blurry claw marks on the slime, like they were made by human fingers.
"This is corpse poison." Zhou Ning frowned.
"The zombies have been lying in the coffin for too long, accumulating a large amount of corpse poison in their bodies. After waking up, they will instinctively seek out living creatures to suck their blood in order to alleviate the corrosive effects of the corpse poison."
The village head turned pale upon hearing this:
"Then...will they come and harm us?"
Zhou Ning stood up and said:
"Not for now. Zombies are afraid of sunlight and will hide in the shade during the day. They only come out at night. If you lock your doors and windows at night and don't wander around the village, you should be safe for the time being."
He walked to the entrance of the mortuary and looked at the surrounding terrain.
"Village head, are there any caves or cellars or similar places around here?"
The village head thought for a moment and said:
"There's a cave in the mountain behind the village. It used to be a quarry, but it was abandoned later. I heard that there's a lot of eerie energy inside, and no one dares to go in."
Zhou Ning nodded: "Take me to see it."
The group walked through the village and arrived at the foot of the mountain behind the village.
There was a dark cave entrance, about the height of a person, inside it was pitch black and the depth was unknown.
A cold, damp wind blew out of the cave entrance, carrying a putrid stench.
Zhou Ning took a deep breath, took out an "exorcism talisman" from his bag, and stuck it on the stone wall next to the cave entrance.
The talisman glowed faintly before dimming.
"There's something inside," Zhou Ning said in a deep voice. "And more than one."
The village head was so frightened his legs went weak:
"Young...young man, what should we do?"
Zhou Ning thought for a moment and said:
"It's getting late; it's not a good time to act tonight. You all go back first, lock the doors and windows, and don't come out no matter what noise you hear. I'll stay in the village and wait until dawn."
The village head nodded repeatedly and led the villagers away in a hurry.
Zhou Ning did not return to the village with them. Instead, he found a large tree near the cave, sat cross-legged under the tree, and closed his eyes to regulate his breathing.
As night deepened, the moonlight grew pale and dim.
Inside the cave, rustling sounds could be heard from time to time, as if something was crawling inside.
Zhou Ning opened his eyes, pulled out an "evil-repelling talisman" from his waist, held it in his hand, and was ready to deal with any emergencies.
It was just past midnight.
A low, hoarse roar suddenly came from inside the cave, like a broken bellows.
Immediately afterwards, a dark figure emerged from the cave entrance.
Under the moonlight, Zhou Ning could see the shape of the dark figure clearly.
It was a corpse.
No, it cannot be called a "corpse".
Its skin is bluish-black, dry and stiff, clinging tightly to the bones.
Its eyes were grayish-white, without pupils, yet they emitted an eerie, ghostly light.
His mouth parted to reveal two rows of yellow teeth, the gaps between which were filled with black grime.
It was dressed in tattered funeral clothes, the hem of which dragged on the ground, stained with mud and blood.
His hands hung down at his sides, his nails long and black, like sharp daggers.
This is what the village headman called a "zombie".
Zhou Ning didn't move, but simply observed quietly.
After the zombie emerged from the cave, it did not leave immediately. Instead, it stood still, looked up at the moon, and let out a low growl.
Then, a second zombie emerged from the cave, followed by a third, a fourth...
Seven zombies lined up and walked down the mountain.
Their target is Baihe Village.
Zhou Ning stood up and gripped the Qingfeng sword in his hand tightly.
It's time to get started.
He took a deep breath, channeled his inner energy into his legs, and shot out like an arrow, blocking the line of zombies.
"stop!"
The seven zombies stopped in their tracks, their greyish-white eyes all fixed on him.
Then, they opened their mouths, let out a piercing roar, and pounced on him.
Zhou Ning was prepared. With a wave of his Qingfeng sword, a streak of azure sword energy shot out and struck the chest of the zombie charging at the front!
"Bang!"
The zombie was struck by the sword energy and staggered back a few steps, a deep gash appearing on its chest, but it did not fall.
Zhou Ning frowned.
These zombies were more defensive than he had anticipated.
Without further hesitation, he pulled out a "talisman to ward off evil" from his waist and threw it at the horde of zombies.
"disease!"
The talisman burned in the air, turning into a golden light that exploded among the zombie horde.
"boom!"
A burst of golden light exploded, blasting three zombies away, their bodies engulfed in golden flames, as they rolled and roared on the ground.
The other four zombies were also affected, wisps of black smoke rising from their bodies as they let out painful screams.
Taking advantage of the situation, Zhou Ning rushed forward, wielding his Qingfeng sword repeatedly, unleashing a torrent of sword energy that aimed directly at the zombie's vital points.
Head!
"Snap!"
A zombie's head was severed by the sword's energy and rolled to the ground.
Its body swayed a few times, then crashed to the ground, turning into a pile of rotting flesh.
Zhou Ning followed suit, unleashing a series of sword strikes. In less than the time it takes to drink a cup of tea, all seven zombies fell to his sword.
A mountain breeze blew by, carrying a strong, putrid stench.
Zhou Ning sheathed his sword and exhaled a long breath.
These seven zombies, though possessing considerable defensive capabilities, were slow-moving and lacked intelligence, making them much easier to deal with than the mountain goblins.
He was preparing to return to the village when suddenly, from the depths of the cave came a deeper and more terrifying roar.
The sound was several times louder than the previous zombies, causing the rocks at the cave entrance to tremble.
Zhou Ning felt a chill run down his spine and stopped in his tracks.
Could it be... that there's something even more powerful inside the cave?
He gripped the green-bladed sword tightly, his eyes fixed on the cave entrance.
In the darkness, a pair of blood-red eyes slowly lit up.
The blood-red eyes flickered a few times in the darkness before disappearing.
Zhou Ning stood outside the cave entrance and waited for the time it takes for an incense stick to burn, but the thing did not come out.
He frowned and didn't rush in.
The roar gave him a very bad feeling.
They're way better than those zombies from before.
With his current strength, he's probably no match for him.
"Let's go back first and talk about it when it gets light."
Zhou Ning made his decision and turned to walk towards the village.
It was late at night when we got back to the village.
Every household had its doors and windows tightly shut, and there wasn't a ray of light.
There were a few occasional barks from dogs, but they quickly fell silent.
Zhou Ning sat down under a big tree at the entrance of the village, closed his eyes to regulate his breathing, and waited for dawn.
He didn't sleep a wink that night.
Those blood-red eyes lingered in his mind.