Chapter 34: Rooftop Crisis

That kid must be up there!

Forget about it—let’s get up there first!

Inside the staircase, ten Second-Stage Awakened raced upward desperately. Behind them, the zombies’ guttural howls echoed like death knells.

With lightning speed, the group reached the Rooftop in just a few seconds.

Bang!

A powerful kick shattered the rooftop door. They panted heavily, struggling to calm their frantic hearts.

Turning around, they spotted Yenir standing on the other side.

Fury surged among them.

Seeing Yenir act so nonchalantly, a dual-blade-wielding Awakened launched into a tirade, poised to strike:

“It’s your damn fault!”

“Fuck! You nearly got us killed!”

Contrary to expectations, Yenir easily dodged with a casual sidestep.

The dual-blade user paused for a moment. Although he claimed his swing was just to vent and not a full attack, as a Second-Stage, even with First-Stage reflexes, he should not have been able to dodge. Yenir’s sudden burst of speed left him momentarily stunned.

“Enough!”

Without another thought, the last to board—a heavy-hammered Awakened—slammed his hand against the iron door and bellowed:

“Stop squabbling! The monsters will be here any moment— we’re all doomed!”

As he spoke, he gave Yenir a dark, piercing look.

Though he was furious too, he knew there was no time to waste.

“But it’s all that kid’s fault! The useless moron is so bent on his own demise that he’s dragging us all down with him!”

Her eyes bloodshot, the female Awakened who had lost a comrade glared fiercely at Yenir; repeated provocation had nearly shattered her sanity.

Survive? How can we survive?! Once more mutants swarm us, we won’t have a chance!

Ignoring the furious woman, Yenir replied coolly:

“Your comrade died at the hands of the Butcher.”

“And I wasn’t the one who took that assignment.”

A soft laugh escaped him. Unlike the panic surrounding him, Yenir glanced with interest at Gao Yun standing at the edge of the Rooftop.

The others paused in surprise, instinctively turning their gaze toward him.

Though anger boiled within them, none of them were fools— several had sensed something was off during the battle.

Seeing everyone’s eyes on him, Gao Yun’s face darkened as he stopped hiding his true feelings:

“Now isn’t the time for this!”

“That kid’s been assigned every follow-up mission! We have to hold this position if we ever hope to survive!”

After saying that, he peered toward the Playground and saw the fastest decapitated female corpse hobbling in hot pursuit.

If it weren’t for the slower pace of the skeletal mutants and the Corpse Monarch, they wouldn’t have time to quarrel.

“Hold the line? How can we possibly hold them off?!”

“Four reinforced Second-Stage mutants—we have no chance! Not to mention the Corpse Monarch; that monster is Second-Stage peak!”

Overwhelmed by terror, several Awakened had their mental defenses shattered.

Even though Gao Yun and the heavy-hammer brute insisted there was hope, none of them could see it.

“Stop arguing!”

Taking a deep breath, the heavy-hammered brute smashed several of the fastest-approaching zombies with his hammer and shouted rapidly:

“We’re splitting into two teams! Ranged fighters, hold back the mutant blockers; everyone else, fend off the zombies!”

“This building can only be destroyed by a Third-Stage force! The largest of the three mutants can only scale it from outside!”

His words sent a jolt through everyone. Many rushed up to the Rooftop to peer outside.

Sure enough, except for the decapitated female corpse dashing into the Teaching Building, the other three mutants halted below, preparing to climb up.

“Exactly!”

Gao Yun, who had already anticipated this plan, echoed repeatedly as he drew his handgun and began peppering the charging horde with bullets.

“If we work together and keep knocking the mutants down, we might just buy ourselves some time!”

A grim consensus spread among the group as they decisively split into two teams, following Gao Yun’s plan.

During the regrouping, several Second-Stage Awakened glared angrily at Yenir:

“Kid! If you manage to get out alive, I’ll smash your head to bits!”

“If you want to die, go ahead and get lost!”

Guarding the Rooftop door, Gao Yun heaved a sigh of relief as he listened to everyone vent their anger on Yenir.

Strictly speaking, his plan would have led to heavy casualties anyway—but Yenir had made matters even worse.

A few seconds passed in a blur.

As the building shuddered, a tide of zombies from the Academy surged toward the Teaching Building, with decaying corpses relentlessly charging the Rooftop.

From above, the Teaching Building’s entrance looked like a pool of honey, surrounded by dense clusters of dark dots.

“Attack the Butcher first! That monster climbs the fastest!”

Flanked from all sides, three Awakened on the Rooftop fought desperately against the onrushing zombies; despite the decapitated foe’s relentless assault, they managed to barely hold the line.

The biggest problem was the three mutants climbing in from outside.

“Attack! Knock them down!”

Led by the heavy-hammered man, waves of psychic energy rained down like free shots, bursting the thick fat on the Butcher with explosive force.

Yet the ideal was far from the reality.

They had imagined their attacks would halt the mutants’ climb, but after a barrage, they despairingly realized that they had only delayed the weakest Butcher’s ascent. The terrifying White Bone and the Corpse Monarch were utterly unaffected.

Forget lasting twelve hours; they wouldn’t even hold out for twelve minutes!

“We’re done… we’re finished… this is really the end!”

The collapse of their plan hit them like a bolt from the blue, delivering a crushing blow.

Watching the relentless advance of the Corpse Monarch and the White Bone, several Second-Stage ranged fighters trembled uncontrollably.

“We can’t hold them back! We just can’t!”

In heart-wrenching panic, they completely lost all courage.

Nothing they did worked. Once those three mutants reached them, death was inevitable.

In the midst of collapse, no one even noticed Yenir standing in a corner.

But just when all hope seemed lost, Yenir—who had been quietly observing the situation—spoke calmly:

“If I were you, I’d jump right now.”

What!?

In the shocked eyes of everyone, the overlooked Yenir stood at the Rooftop’s edge, poised to leap.

In the very next moment, before anyone could even think further,

as Yenir spun and vaulted high off the Rooftop, a terrifying pressure descended from the sky.

The already dim sky grew even darker!

In an instant, waves of Sword Storm energy—brimming with destructive force—formed rapidly, converging like massive sword wings around Yenir.

What is that aura?!

On the Rooftop, everyone watched in stunned silence as Yenir, encircled by sword energy, was overwhelmed by a crushing pressure that made every pore scream, urging them to flee.

Terrified beyond belief, and with no time to react, several leaped off immediately, driven by pure survival instinct.

If they didn’t get out of here… they were finished!

Midair, Yenir calmly gathered his Sword Storm energy and, moments later, locked his gaze on the entire Teaching Building.

Once he confirmed that all the mutants were within range, a chilling slash of light burst forth!

Sword Storm!

Boom!!!

A torrent of sword energy erupted in an explosive barrage, thousands of blades unleashing their destructive force.

At the same time, dazzling waves of sword energy, like surging lasers, engulfed the entire building.

In the terrified gaze of onlookers, the two top-tier mutants—deemed invincible—melted into nothing but rubble.

Boom!!!

After obliterating all the mutants in a matter of seconds, the raging sword energy continued its relentless assault on the ground.

Heat waves filled the air, leaving nothing but ruins.

“It’s gone… everything… is gone…!?”

Seconds later, the stunned survivors watched in disbelief, as if in a nightmare, at the scene unfolding before them.

The Teaching Building had completely vanished, replaced by a massive, thirty-plus meter deep pit billowing with blue smoke.