As the group delved deeper, the stench of corpses grew more pungent, and the surrounding air seemed to thicken, becoming nauseating.
When the three reached the building, a putrid odor assailed them, as if even their souls would be corroded.
Though prepared, when Wan Youyu and his half-corpse legion truly appeared in sight, Tie Zhenshan and the other two couldn't help but gasp.
The scene before them exceeded their expectations.
Originally, they had speculated that Wan Youyu's half-corpse legion might number a few thousand at most, but reality shattered their understanding—nearly five thousand half-corpse warriors were densely arrayed on the plaza in front of the building, their crimson left eyes glinting with a bestial light in the gloom, their decaying bodies swaying gently in the breeze, like living mountains of corpses and seas of blood.
Each half-corpse warrior exuded a suffocating aura of death, a terrifying power capable of corroding the soul.
Even more shocking was that Wan Youyu stood at the very front of the formation, with two trusted subordinates flanking him, the three of them standing steadfastly before the horde of corpses like an iron triangle.
Only when truly face-to-face could they genuinely feel that Wan Youyu's aura was even stronger than they had imagined.
Although the seven half-slashes appeared on his brow, the aura he exuded indicated that Wan Youyu's strength had definitely reached the peak of the nine bars level, even faintly touching the Ten Horizontal Bars domain.
Though Tie Zhenshan and the other two were Super Individuals, their strength barely met the nine bars standard, and even equipped with A-level metal weapons, they were still a notch inferior to Wan Youyu.
Moreover, the aura exuded by Wan Youyu's two trusted subordinates behind him was no less impressive than his, even subtly nearing his.
Clearly, these were two more existences at the peak of the nine bars level.
As for numbers, they had no advantage whatsoever.
The weakest of the 5,000 half-corpse warriors had the strength of five half-slashes, meaning their minimum strength was no weaker than the nine hundred elite Mutants who had lit seven Lotus Seeds that they had brought.
Furthermore, among these five thousand half-corpse warriors, there were nearly five hundred high-ranking warriors with six half-slashes, and dozens of half-corpse generals who had even reached seven half-slashes.
In terms of both strength and numbers, Tie Zhenshan's side was at a clear disadvantage.
The cold air seemed to congeal, with only thousands of crimson eyes flickering with greedy and frenzied light in the dimness, like the fires of hell burning on a pile of corpses.
The concentrated aura of death, almost solidified, was like an invisible giant hand gripping the throats of Tie Zhenshan and the other two, and even the nine hundred battle-hardened elite Mutants behind them, who had lit seven Lotus Seeds, felt a chill from the depths of their bones instantly spread throughout their bodies, their muscles instinctively tensing, their breathing becoming heavy and difficult.
Mao Wudi's arrogance had not faded, but the hand holding his A-level metal spear trembled slightly; this was not fear, but excitement.
He stared intently at the three terrifying figures at the very front of the formation—Wan Youyu and his two trusted subordinates, each like a demon god crawled out of the abyss, their nine bars peak strength, far exceeding expectations, and the subtle pressure of the Ten Horizontal Bars, made him yearn for battle.
Since becoming a Super Individual, he had never fought with all his might, and now finally encountering opponents stronger than himself, the sense of oppression made his blood boil.
He tried his best to suppress the excitement in his heart; he knew that now was not the time for impulsiveness. This was an encirclement and annihilation, not an occasion for him to act as a lone hero.
The Spear of Victory warriors behind him were not as composed as Mao Wudi; though each exuded a fierce aura, a trace of fear flashed in their eyes, a shiver born of biological instinct when faced with an absolute double crushing in both quantity and quality.
Beneath Tie Zhenshan's steady, mountain-like demeanor, a turbulent storm raged within him.
He quickly scanned the army before him, composed of rotting flesh and death.
Five thousand!
The weakest were at the level of lighting seven Lotus Seeds, equivalent to every elite warrior they had brought!
And among them, the hundreds of high-ranking half-corpses exuding the aura of six half-slashes, and the dozens of ferocious generals, like small mobile fortresses, whose aura reached seven half-slashes, with half their bodies covered in vivid red patterns and the other half slowly decaying, made his heart sink to rock bottom.
Their crimson single eyes flickered with a cunning and cruelty greater than that of ordinary half-corpses.
If a real fight broke out, the Steel Fortress legion's prideful defense and firepower would appear so thin before this mountain of corpses and sea of blood.
The soldiers behind him gripped their cold weapons, fine beads of sweat seeping from their palms, silently trickling down their temples and soaking their collars.
Rou Moyu's gaze was like the most precise scanner, rapidly sweeping over the entire half-corpse legion's formation.
She keenly noticed that these half-corpses were not haphazardly crowded together.
They were subtly divided into several phalanxes: the front rows were heavy units, massive in size, thick-skinned, and clearly intended for charging and absorbing firepower;
the middle rows were the most numerous, with twisted limbs but likely extremely fast assault-type half-corpses;
and in the shadows further back and on the sides, she could sense some even more bizarrely shaped, more restrained presences, like lurking vipers, likely elites with special abilities or long-range attack methods.
What alarmed her even more was that in the broken windows of the upper floors of the building and behind the roof debris, there seemed to be flickering red dots, clearly indicating ambushes.
The entire encirclement was like a meticulously arranged death trap, layered and impenetrable. Her unease reached its peak; these half-corpses were more difficult to deal with than ordinary, unintelligent zombies.
They not only possessed considerable combat power but also had a strong tactical awareness; this organized hunting posture was exactly like a death army.
Mao Wudi and the other two exchanged glances, reading the same solemnity, vigilance, and a trace of relief at having escaped disaster in each other's eyes.
Fortunately, they had sought help from Firefly; otherwise, this encirclement operation, which they had believed they could crush or at least fight to a draw, would likely have ended in complete annihilation.
Wan Youyu stood at the front of the corpse horde, taking in the shock on the faces of Tie Zhenshan and the other two, Mao Wudi's suppressed fighting intent and anger, and Rou Moyu's solemnity.
His half-zombie face, covered in blood-red patterns, stretched into an even more exaggerated and cruel grin, his crimson zombie eye, like congealed blood, flickered with naked mockery and the arrogance of controlling everything.
He didn't even immediately issue an attack command, just stood there quietly, savoring the pleasure of his prey falling into the net and being slowly devoured by despair.
The crimson left eyes of his two trusted subordinates behind him gleamed with bloodlust and hunger, their slightly forward-leaning bodies revealing an eager killing intent.
"Tsk tsk, I didn't expect you to reach such a level. No wonder you dared to come and encircle me. Unfortunately, this game has just begun, and your trump cards are nothing but waste paper in front of me."
Wan Youyu's voice was deep and hoarse, as if from the depths of hell, carrying a chilling coldness.
Clearly, he had also discovered that Rou Moyu and the other two had reached the nine bars level, but he—was stronger now!