On Mu Bei Mountain, a man hid behind the bushes and looked down at the caravan camp.
His name was Ding Hao. Many years ago, he had been only a mortal servant. A caravan had taken him as labor, then abandoned him when zombies attacked. Everyone around him died, but he fled into the mountain and found a hidden cave. Inside the cave was an inheritance. Zombie path inheritance. From then on, Ding Hao's life changed. He awakened his aperture, cultivated step by step, and spent years alone on Mu Bei Mountain with corpses and zombies as companions. Now, he was already a Rank three Gu Master.
The final test of the inheritance was simple. Kill enough people, raise enough zombies, and then he could leave this mountain and become the official disciple of the Second Zombie King. Ding Hao stared at the caravan below, his eyes burning. This caravan was too weak. Its people were injured, its guards were tired, and its morale was broken. Compared to the caravans that usually passed through Mu Bei Mountain, this one looked like an old sick man who could fall with one push.
To Ding Hao, this was a gift from heaven.
He licked his lips and raised his hand. In the darkness, countless stiff figures began to move.
The caravan camp was quiet.
Dark clouds covered the moon, and only a few fires burned between the carts and temporary wooden barricades. The Gu Masters on watch looked tired. Some leaned against posts, while others stared into the forest with dull eyes. A faint sound came from the dark.
Thump.
Thump.
Thump.
One guard frowned. "Did you hear that?"
The Gu Master beside him looked into the forest. "What?"
The sound came again. A pale figure slowly hopped out from between the trees. Its body was covered in white hair. Its face was stiff, and its arms stretched forward as it jumped towards the camp. The guards relaxed slightly.
"A white-hair zombie."
One of them spat to the side. "Scared me for nothing."
White-hair zombies were weak. They were troublesome only because of corpse poison. As long as one was careful, even Rank one Gu Masters could deal with them. A young Gu Master stepped forward and said: "I'll handle it."
He had only walked a few steps when his body froze.
Behind the first white-hair zombie, another appeared. Then another. Then more. In the darkness of the forest, countless pale figures were hopping forward.
The young Gu Master's face turned white.
"Sound the alarm!"
The bell rang through the camp.
Clang! Clang! Clang!
"Zombie attack!"
"They are surrounding the camp!"
"Everyone up!"
The camp exploded into movement. Gu Masters rushed towards the barricades, servants dragged supplies back, and injured men struggled to stand with weapons in hand. Chen Shou appeared quickly, his face dark.
"Hold the barricades! Do not let them enter the camp!"
The white-hair zombies came silently. There were too many of them. Fireballs, moon blades, icicles, vines, and stones flew from the camp and struck the zombie horde. White-hair zombies fell in groups. Some were burned, some were cut apart, and some were smashed into the mud. At first, the defense looked steady.
But the zombies did not stop.
They kept coming.
One wave fell, another came after it. The Gu Masters' attacks gradually became slower.
"Damn it, how many are there?"
"My primeval essence is almost gone!"
"Change positions! Someone replace me!"
But there were not enough people. The caravan had already lost too much before reaching Mu Bei Mountain. Many Gu Masters were injured. Some could still stand, but their strength was not complete. The white-hair zombies were weak, but they were perfect cannon fodder. They consumed primeval essence, they consumed energy, and they consumed patience.
Fang Ming stood near Zhang Xin Ci's group, his expression calm. Zhang Xin Ci and Xiao Die were behind him. Zhang Zhu stood not far away, already alert. Fang Ming raised his hand.
Rank three Moon Edge Gu.
A moon blade flew out and cut through two white-hair zombies. Their bodies fell, but Fang Ming did not attack again immediately. He was not here to save the caravan. He only needed to maintain his usual appearance. A few more zombies approached from the side. Fang Ming used Thunderwings Gu and shifted position, avoiding their stiff arms before cutting one down with another moon blade.
Clean. Controlled. Not too much.
Zhang Xin Ci watched his back with tense eyes. "Young Master Fang Ming, there are too many."
"Yes." Fang Ming said. "Stay close."
His tone was steady, but after watching for a while, his eyes changed. The zombies were not attacking like ordinary wild corpses. Their movements were too neat. Weak white-hair zombies did not rush randomly. They moved in waves, pressing against different parts of the barricade. When one side of the camp used too many Gu attacks, more zombies gathered there, forcing those Gu Masters to spend even more primeval essence.
This was not instinct.
Someone was controlling them.
Fang Ming's relaxed look disappeared, and his eyes became sharp. At almost the same moment, a new wave entered the battlefield.
Black-hair zombies.
Their bodies were stronger, their jumps faster, and their arms carried far more force than white-hair zombies. They rushed from behind the zombie horde and struck one part of the barricade together.
Crack!
The wooden barricade broke. A black-hair zombie leapt into the camp and swept its arm sideways, sending a Rank one Gu Master flying into a cart. Another Gu Master tried to block it, but his defense cracked in one hit.
The camp became chaotic.
"Black-hair zombies!"
"Stop them!"
"They broke through!"
Fang Yuan moved.
He appeared beside one black-hair zombie and punched forward.
Bang!
The zombie's chest caved in. It flew back and crashed into the ground, but it still struggled to rise. Fang Yuan stepped forward, grabbed its arms, and pulled. The zombie's body tore apart. The Gu Masters nearby stared at him with fear and shock.
"Lord Hei Tu…"
Fang Yuan ignored them and looked towards the rest of the battlefield. Bai Ning Bing stood behind him, her gaze cold, stopping another zombie from approaching.
Fang Ming saw this from afar.
Fang Yuan was still performing. Briefly, effectively, without wasting words. But this was no longer the main problem. The main problem was the person controlling the zombies. Ding Hao wanted to destroy the caravan and kill everyone. Fang Yuan also wanted the caravan destroyed, but Zhang Xin Ci needed to live. Fang Yuan was not worried about her because he thought Fang Ming would protect her.
That was the opening Fang Ming needed.
A black-hair zombie broke through from the side and rushed towards Zhang Xin Ci's direction. Zhang Zhu moved to block it, but Fang Ming was faster. Thunderwings Gu activated, and he advanced forward.
A little too far.
The black-hair zombie swung its arm. Fang Ming could have avoided it, but he did not. The zombie's arm struck his side. Sky Canopy Gu flashed, blocking most of the force, but Fang Ming let his body fly backward. He crashed into a broken cart and spat out a mouthful of blood.
"Young Master Fang Ming!"
Zhang Xin Ci's face changed. She immediately rushed towards him. Xiao Die followed in panic. "Young Master Fang Ming!"
Fang Ming pressed one hand against the ground and forced himself up. His face was pale, and blood remained at the corner of his mouth.
"I'm fine."
His voice was low.
Zhang Xin Ci reached his side. "You are injured."
Fang Ming looked at her, then suddenly grabbed her waist and moved.
Thunderwings Gu.
With a faint thunder sound, he carried her back to Zhang Zhu's side. Xiao Die hurried after them. Zhang Zhu's expression was ugly.
"Young Master Fang Ming?"
Fang Ming lowered his voice. Only Zhang Zhu and Zhang Xin Ci could hear him.
"I was careless and got injured. I cannot show it openly. If the caravan knows even I am wounded, morale will collapse faster."
Zhang Xin Ci's eyes trembled.
Zhang Zhu frowned. "How bad is it?"
"I can still fight." Fang Ming said, wiping the blood from his mouth. "But protecting Lady Zhang while maintaining my usual strength will be difficult."
He looked at Zhang Zhu.
"Take over guarding her."
Zhang Zhu did not hesitate. "Leave Miss to me."
Fang Ming nodded. Zhang Xin Ci wanted to say something, but Fang Ming had already turned around. Another moon blade flew out, cutting down a white-hair zombie. His movements looked steady from the outside. He still stood near Zhang Xin Ci's group, still defended the area, still acted as if nothing serious had happened. The surrounding Gu Masters saw this and felt slightly reassured.
Only Zhang Xin Ci looked at his back with worry.
Fang Ming did not care.
From this moment on, Zhang Xin Ci was no longer his priority. He cared about his own life more than Zhang Xin Ci, more than the caravan, more than everyone here combined. If Ding Hao and Fang Yuan joined hands, the situation would become dangerous. A zombie army outside, Fang Yuan inside, Bai Ning Bing beside him, and Zhang Xin Ci as bait in the middle — that was not a board Fang Ming wanted to stand on blindly.
He had to prevent that.
Preferably, Ding Hao had to die.
Fang Ming's gaze swept across the battlefield. The black-hair zombies had broken through, but their movements still followed a pattern. They were being guided from outside the camp, not from inside.
The controller was nearby.
Fang Ming's eyes finally moved to Fang Yuan. Fang Yuan was also looking at the battlefield, calm as always. The zombie attack, the breaking camp, the exhausted caravan — all of it overlapped with his interests. He wanted chaos. Ding Hao wanted slaughter. Their goals were not the same, but they were close enough to become dangerous.
Fang Ming's fingers moved slightly inside his sleeve.
Zhang Xin Ci could live. Zhang Xin Ci could die. That no longer mattered first. The real question was what Fang Yuan would do next, and where the zombie controller was hiding.
Outside the camp, Ding Hao watched the battle from the darkness, excitement growing in his eyes. The caravan was breaking. The white-hair zombies had drained them. The black-hair zombies had entered. Soon, more people would die. Soon, his army would grow.
Fang Ming stood in the camp with blood on his lips, his eyes cold and clear.
The performance had begun.