Even Rot-Walkers had their physical limits.
Below minus fifty degrees, even they couldn't withstand it.
Behind her, the wind and snow still howled.
But what Su Wan was thinking about at this moment was no longer the Cold Wave.
Instead, it was the massive horde of Rot-Walkers swarming from the depths of the Non-Safe Zone.
Most of these Rot-Walkers were Unranked, moving slowly and reacting sluggishly as they shambled through the Ruin Zone.
Among them were a small number of slightly larger and faster Level 1 Rot-Walkers, along with a very few Level 2 Rot-Walkers.
Su Wan carefully swept her mental power over them and quickly discovered an anomaly.
The movement of these Rot-Walkers was not without order.
The Unranked Rot-Walkers walked along the outermost layer, packed tightly together like a moving gray wall.
The Level 1 and Level 2 Rot-Walkers were distributed throughout the middle of the horde, scattered in small groups while maintaining fixed distances from one another.
They did not attack each other or fight for positions. Instead, they marched in the same direction with an eerie, unspoken understanding.
Unranked Rot-Walkers possessed no intelligence, driven only by the most basic predatory instincts.
They would attack anything that carried the aura of life.
Normally, a gathering of Rot-Walkers would be nothing more than a chaotic, disorganized, and fragmented mess.
Yet, the actions of the Rot-Walkers before her were organized, structured, and orderly.
Black Rat's words surfaced in Su Wan's mind.
“Some veteran hunters say that High-rank Rot-Walkers possess intelligence and can control a large number of Low-rank ones.”
Su Wan instantly realized that this horde was being controlled by a High-rank Rot-Walker!
Su Wan extended her mental power further into the depths of the Non-Safe Zone.
At the very rear of the Rot-Walker horde, she detected several energy fluctuations that were noticeably much stronger.
One, two, three...
A total of five Level 3 Rot-Walkers!
They were a size larger than Level 2 Rot-Walkers, with skin of a dark gray that was almost black, and their slightly red eyes gleamed with an eerie luster under the dim sky.
They were spread out at the rear of the horde, keeping a distance of several hundred meters from one another, like generals, each commanding their own area.
Su Wan's heart sank slightly.
The combat strength of a Level 3 Rot-Walker was far superior to that of an Ability User of the same rank.
Their bodies were as tough as iron, they were agile and incredibly strong, and they felt no pain, no fear, and would never back down.
A Level 3 Ability User facing a Level 3 Rot-Walker had less than a thirty percent chance of winning.
And there were five of them here.
Su Wan took a deep breath, continuing to extend her mental power deeper into the Non-Safe Zone.
Behind the five Level 3 Rot-Walkers, at the very edge of her perception's reach, a completely different energy fluctuation entered her consciousness.
That energy fluctuation was several times stronger than a Level 3 Rot-Walker's—cold, heavy, like a bottomless icy pool.
A Level 4 Rot-Walker!
Su Wan's perception cautiously drew closer, attempting to get a clear look at this Rot-Walker.
Its body was nearly twice the size of a Level 3 Rot-Walker, standing over two and a half meters tall with broad shoulders and a thick back, like a moving hill.
Its grayish-white skin was covered in dark brown patches—marks left behind by death and decay.
Its eyes were a bizarre dark red, glowing faintly under the gloomy sky.
Its mouth was much wider than that of an ordinary Rot-Walker, split all the way to its ears, revealing rows of densely packed, jagged fangs.
It wore tattered clothing that was unrecognizable from its original form.
The moment Su Wan's perception fell upon this Level 4 Rot-Walker—
Its head snapped up.
Those dark red eyes stared straight in the direction of Su Wan's probing mental power.
Su Wan's breath nearly stopped at that moment.
It had noticed her!
Across such a vast distance, through the blizzard and the ruins, it had sensed her presence.
Its mouth slowly curled open, splitting to its ears and revealing its densely packed fangs.
It actually flashed an eerie smile toward Su Wan.
Immediately after, the Rot-Walker horde's marching speed suddenly accelerated!
As if a fast-forward button had been pressed, the entire horde's pace surged to a completely different level!
The Unranked Rot-Walkers still led the outermost layer, but their steps were more than twice as fast as before, their grayish-white bodies surging through the wind and snow like a moving tide of corpses.
The Level 1 and Level 2 Rot-Walkers followed closely behind, moving even faster and with steadier steps. The distance between them still maintained that eerie coordination, as if an invisible hand were adjusting the position of every single one.
The Level 4 Rot-Walker remained where it was, its dark red eyes locked onto the direction where Su Wan stood.
Its mouth split open even wider.
That smile was not a friendly gesture between humans, but the excitement of a predator locking onto its prey.
Su Wan's heart tightened, knowing she had to ensure everyone inside Terminal Station was prepared.
She contacted the Central Hub in her mind.
“Central Hub, what is the situation inside Terminal Station?”
【Reporting to Master. All Ability Users among the tenants have assembled, totaling forty-three people. This includes five at Level 3, eleven at Level 2, and twenty-seven at Level 1.】
【On the City Defense Force side, all three hundred and twenty-six soldiers are on standby, and Commander Feng Mu has finalized the combat deployment.】
【In addition, experienced veteran hunters and physically strong vagrants among the tenants have spontaneously organized themselves, totaling two hundred and eighteen people divided into six squads, all under Feng Mu's unified command.】
【Iron Bone, Lei Lie, Shen Han, and others have taken up core assault positions for the battle.】
【All combat personnel have been issued warm gear and standard-issue weapons.】
【Starting two days ago, Feng Mu predicted the timing of the Rot-Walkers' appearance based on their behavioral patterns and began pre-battle preparations.】
Su Wan's brow twitched slightly.
They had started preparing two days ago?
“Give me the details.”
【Based on Cold Wave data from previous years and the activity patterns of Rot-Walkers, Feng Mu calculated that the window of opportunity for this large-scale Rot-Walker appearance would be at the tail end of the Cold Wave, when temperatures rose above minus fifty degrees.】
【Starting two days ago, he began screening tenants with combat experience, grouping them into squads based on their strength levels, and formulating multiple contingency plans.】
【Yesterday, Feng Mu submitted the operational plan to Iron Bone, Shen Han, and others for review, and completed three rounds of revisions based on their feedback.】
Su Wan listened quietly.
【The current deployment of Terminal Station's defensive forces is as follows—】
【First Tier: Level 3 combat forces, with Shen Han, Iron Bone, and Lei Lie as the main assault group, responsible for engaging the enemy's Level 3 Rot-Walkers.】
【Second Tier: Level 2 combat forces, totaling eleven people, including four Level 2 Ability Users from the City Defense Force and seven Level 2 hunters. They are divided into three assault groups, with each group responsible for supporting a defensive line in one direction and standing ready to reinforce the First Tier at any moment.】
【Third Tier: Level 1 combat forces, totaling twenty-seven people, divided into nine groups of three. They are responsible for mobile defense along the perimeter of Terminal Station, clearing out any stray Rot-Walkers that break through the defensive lines...】
Rate on N.U.
