Collecting Crystals

"That zombie really wasn't an isolated case."

After gathering enough knowledge and recording all those magical runes and the transmission channels of several magic energy arrays, Taylor got up and left the cabin. He also took a rough map from a cabinet in the cabin. Although he could not read the writing, he could still make out the basic routes.

Before leaving, he released the Two-Headed Vulture he had bundled up in spider silk. After feeding it a chunk of rotten zombie flesh, the Two-Headed Vulture promptly dropped dead. It seemed the zombies had been able to remain active for so long partly because of the lethal poison they carried.

When he left the mountain forest and reached the main road, all he could see were zombies shuffling around the road. Men and women, the elderly, children, and women—there was no shortage of any kind.

These zombies staggered along the road, and there was no telling how long they had maintained this state. Around them were all sorts of steel constructs. Based on Taylor's analysis of the magical patterns and runes carved upon them, these were likely the means of transportation used by the people of this plane.

Taylor's appearance injected new vitality into every zombie on the road. The nearby beasts and magical beasts had long since been devoured by them, and these creatures driven by instinct had finally encountered a new living being.

"Urrgh, urrgh, urrgh~~~~"

"Roaaargh..."

"Woo, woo, woo, aooow..."

Upon seeing Taylor, the zombies gradually began moving in the same direction. They stared hungrily and greedily at the only living creature on this road, gradually forming a small tide of corpses. All sorts of bizarre sounds rose from the tide, but the greed and bloodlust in those roars remained unchanged.

"Ah~~~~ So I'm being underestimated by a bunch of creatures ruled by instinct."

Taylor was somewhat annoyed as he watched the zombies surge toward him. These walking corpses, these filthy monsters, actually regarded him as food.

Mental power surged from his Mental Space, controlling the mana in his body as it was released according to the spell models. Improved fireballs, hotter and more explosive, blasted apart large swaths of zombies. The gentle breeze in Taylor's hands became the Reaper's scythe, transforming into one sharp wind blade after another.

Behind him, clumps of black fog spread outward, dyeing his surroundings a faint black. The zombies' keen hearing and sense of smell lost their function within the black fog. Their mental defenses were practically nonexistent, and they were immediately disturbed by the mental chaos carried by the fog, beginning to devour one another and kill each other.

Taylor now commanded gale-force winds, blazing flames, and black fog. He looked every bit like a demon king crawling out of Hell. Fire Elements continuously gathered at his fingertips into fireballs, which he casually tossed out, blowing zombies apart like high-explosive grenades.

Crescent Wind Blades roughly one and a half meters in diameter harvested zombie heads like reapers. These Crescent Wind Blades continuously carved neat, clean "straight lines" through the zombie horde, lending a peculiar beauty to this apparent slaughter.

For the cautious Taylor, his own safety could not be overlooked. The Spider's Eye hanging from his chest shone, and strands of spider silk gathered before him into a buffer zone. A Flame Shield formed directly above his head, creating a pale red, egg-shaped barrier.

Perhaps because this main road was close to the mountains and had fewer people, it took about half an hour for Taylor to wipe out all the zombies gathered on it, reducing them to charred wreckage or shattered remains.

It seemed humanity in this world was more or less finished. Zombies had appeared even on the roads connecting settlements, so the cities would likely not escape disaster either.

What exactly had happened in this world? Was it something specifically aimed at humanity?

After all, neither beasts nor magical beasts had changed in any noticeable way along the journey...

As Taylor pondered, he searched for a usable vehicle. Wisps of breeze circled around him, turning into ropes that pulled transparent hexagonal crystals from zombie remains and wreckage, dropping them into a bottle.

Taylor had yet to discover the use of these orderly transparent crystals, but he felt that since they were solid crystals containing life force and mental power, they might be capable of enhancing the physical condition and mental reserves of apprentices like him. Of course, they would need careful identification and experimentation first.

After collecting all the transparent crystals from the zombies' skulls, Taylor mounted a single-person vehicle that looked like a motorcycle but actually had six wheels.

This single-person vehicle also embodied the characteristics of this plane. It was driven by magical elements, with built-in magical runes and arrays serving as its source of power. However, the local writing on the control panel gave Taylor some trouble. After pressing every button, operating it a little, and spending some time feeling his way around, Taylor finally learned how to drive this "motorcycle."

As long as he followed this road, he would surely find a larger settlement, something like a town or even a city. Taylor rode the motorcycle as the scenery on either side sped past him. Only when he occasionally encountered wandering zombies did he slow down, send out a wind blade, sever their heads, and retrieve their crystals in one smooth motion.

By the time he followed the road to the nearest city, the glass bottle he had brought with him was already half full.

It was a town that did not appear very large. All Taylor saw were zombies roaring as they shuffled forward and black crows flying overhead. The entire town was deathly silent.

After getting off the motorcycle, Taylor entered the town. After casually killing several zombies blocking his path, he headed toward the center of town.

He passed clothing stores, baby supply stores, restaurants, eateries, shops, and more. Looking at the dazzling array of goods and the magical runes and arrays that continued to operate, he could not help but feel regret that such a prosperous civilization had developed into this.

Leaving that district behind along with the zombie wreckage strewn across the ground, Taylor arrived at the true center of the city and saw an obese zombie rooted amid a heap of flesh and blood, its body bloated and massive.

It looked as though it weighed several tons at the very least and stood five meters tall. Its skin had already burst and festered, releasing a thick stench of blood. It looked extremely troublesome. By his senses, its mana fluctuations were about as strong as four One-Eyed Spiders.

Not a big problem. He could still handle it.

The obese zombie stopped feeding, tossed the flesh in its hands aside, and turned to stare with vacant eyes at Taylor standing at the entrance to the street ahead.

"Aooow, aooow, aooow!!!"

As though it had seen the most delicious food in the world, the obese zombie charged at Taylor on all fours, moving almost as if it were crawling.

With a wave of his hand, Taylor sent several Crescent Wind Blades flying straight toward the obese zombie's head. The zombie raised arms covered in rotten meat and grease to block them. Just as it prepared to keep charging, large amounts of spider silk wrapped around its feet.

The zombie roared angrily and was about to tear away the spider silk around its feet when it lowered its head and a fireball exploded right in its face.

The extreme heat scorched the zombie's face into charcoal. It swung its thick palm at Taylor, but a violent gust rose beneath Taylor's feet. He sidestepped the attack, then turned and summoned several more Crescent Wind Blades, slicing chunks of rotten flesh from the obese zombie's body.

Taylor circled around the obese zombie, using spider silk to restrain its movements and keep it from moving, while continuously wearing it down with fireballs and wind blades in an attempt to blow its head apart directly.

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