Chapter Twenty: Two Deviants

The heavy steel archway slowly opened, and Kerbei led a group of ten in with solemn expressions.

Roars and howls full of menace surged from every direction, echoing like waves. Inside the circular, roofless enclosure about twenty meters in diameter, the sight that greeted them was a sea of zombies and monstrous beasts.

“There’s even a green-furred zombie!”

A burly man of about thirty gasped sharply and instinctively shrank back upon spotting a zombie covered in green fuzz. Those who came to participate in the Guardian Squad assessment were mostly First-Level Enhancers—none were novices, and anyone bold enough to take the test had some skill. They might not fear red-furred zombies, but the green-furred ones sent chills through their hearts.

Red-furred zombies and green-furred zombies were on entirely different levels. For a First-Level Enhancer, killing a green-furred zombie was nearly impossible.

“How are we supposed to fight that?”

The group panicked at the sight of the green-furred zombie. Some were so nervous their hands began to tremble.

Kerbei, seeing only red-furred and a few green-furred zombies, let out a quiet sigh of relief. A faint smile replaced the tension on his face. Green-furred zombies meant nothing to him; even if his teammates were as useless as pigs, he could handle it all alone.

He glanced at his anxious companions and shook his head, disappointed. Just as he was about to step forward, a youth of about twenty, hair wild and feet bare like a savage, suddenly lunged forward with a bellow, charging straight into the horde.

“Kill!”

Battle-madness burned in the youth’s crimson eyes. Over two meters tall, he barreled through five or six red-furred zombies before him like a tank.

With a mighty swing, the youth smashed his massive iron hammer down on the red-furred zombies’ heads, crushing them to pulp within moments.

His long hair whipped wildly as he unleashed a ferocious aura, slaughtering through the zombies with reckless abandon.

“What terrifying combat instincts!” Kerbei narrowed his eyes at the savage youth, his gaze sharpening. Though Kerbei could tell the youth wasn’t particularly powerful, his combat awareness was astonishing. Each time a zombie nearly struck him, he narrowly evaded the attack.

Alone, surrounded by zombies, he seemed to struggle, yet not a single zombie truly managed to land a blow.

Heh, let them kill—looks like not everyone in this team is a pig after all! Satisfied by the youth’s display, Kerbei cast a disdainful glance at the others cowering in the corner and exhaled slowly.

Go ahead and hide, all of you—just don’t get in the way. If I had to protect you as well, it would only be a nuisance.

With that silent thought, Kerbei slammed his foot to the ground and shot forward.

“Die!”

With a cold snort, he drew the saber from his back and cleaved down at a red-furred zombie before him.

His strength rivaled that of a Third-Level Enhancer; dealing with red-furred zombies was child’s play. With a single horizontal slash, he sent a zombie’s head flying.

Against Kerbei’s immense power, the red-furred zombies’ tough hides were no harder than tofu. Though his saber remained unstained by blood, with his current strength, he could easily decapitate a zombie with brute force alone.

“Out of the way!”

Expression calm, Kerbei punched a zombie that got too close. The terrifying force sent the three-hundred-pound zombie hurtling backward, toppling a whole swath of its kin.

Kerbei’s combat instincts couldn’t compare to those of the savage youth; if surrounded, he could never evade like that. But Kerbei’s strength far surpassed the youth’s—he didn’t need to dodge. One punch was enough to send a crowd of zombies flying.

What a strange fellow, thought the savage youth, glancing in shock at Kerbei’s casual devastation. Such poor technique, yet such monstrous strength!

So what if you're strong? Combat isn't just about brute force! Hmph, let’s see who kills more!

Spurred by Kerbei, the youth attacked with even greater ferocity.

“There are nine green-furred zombies in total!”

Unaware that the savage youth now saw him as a rival, Kerbei coldly surveyed the horde, sent another red-furred zombie flying, and leapt straight for a green-furred one.

“Die!”

With a thunderous shout, all the muscles in his body trembled like waves, focusing his entire strength into a single strike against the green-furred zombie.

A spurt of dark green blood splattered out as Kerbei cleaved the green-furred zombie from head to toe in two.

His saber bore no blood; it was not sharp. He had done it by brute force alone, splitting a creature far tougher than a red-furred zombie cleanly in half.

“Hahaha! Wonderful, absolutely wonderful!”

With a wild cry, Kerbei unleashed a frenzy of slashes.

In less than half an hour, between Kerbei and the savage youth’s relentless slaughter, nearly a hundred red-furred zombies, and all the green-furred zombies that would terrify any First-Level Enhancer, lay strewn across the ground.

All nine green-furred zombies had fallen to Kerbei’s blade. He had done so on purpose—he was impressed by the savage youth and didn’t want him to take unnecessary risks.

The youth was strong, but still just a First-Level Enhancer. No matter how sharp his combat sense, against the green-furred zombies—whose physical abilities surpassed ordinary humans ninefold—even he would struggle.

“You win,” the youth said, panting as he stepped before Kerbei, staring him straight in the eye and uttering words that left Kerbei baffled.

“What do you mean, I win?”

Kerbei scratched his head, looking at the youth in confusion, not understanding his meaning.

The youth gave no reply. He took one last, deep look at Kerbei, then turned away, leaving only his back to him.

Thunder rumbled.

An hour later, the heavy iron gate slowly rose. The savage youth was first to stride out, and Kerbei, after rubbing his nose, followed suit.

Not until both Kerbei and the savage youth had exited did the remaining eight, who had huddled in the corner the entire time, exchange glances and slowly file out.

“Ninth Squad, all ten remain—passed!”

For the first time, the expressionless, black-clad middle-aged man registered a hint of surprise. Such a result—every member of a squad passing—was exceedingly rare.

It was only possible if all ten were highly skilled. But that was unlikely, since squad numbers were assigned randomly; for ten elite warriors to end up together was improbable.

The other possibility: the squad had experts among them.

A quick glance told the black-clad man it was the latter—and not just one expert, but two.

“Rest up. The final assessment will begin soon.”

His tone softened as he nodded at Kerbei and the savage youth. He had already realized they were the experts in this squad.

It was obvious; only Kerbei and the savage youth were spattered with zombie blood, while the other eight were spotless.

Interesting, he thought, these two are no ordinary youths. Judging from the state of the others, they likely never even fought.

The black-clad man gave the two a long, thoughtful look, then strode off toward the stone-paved plaza, silently memorizing their numbers.

After he left, the warriors who had been resting quietly suddenly grew restless, casting looks of awe at Kerbei’s squad.

For a whole squad to pass the assessment—that was a mark of true strength. In the apocalypse, the strong were naturally revered. Only Kerbei and the savage youth met those gazes with calm acceptance; the other eight looked down, sheepish.

They knew full well that their passing was entirely thanks to these two.

Within the cramped space, the two of them had killed over a hundred zombies—including nine green-furred ones—in less than an hour. Such power was terrifying for First-Level Enhancers.

“These two are far too strong. They’re bound to become important figures one day,” the eight whispered among themselves, huddled close.

“That one with the short hair and the saber on his back—he’s only fifteen or sixteen, but even more terrifying. He killed all nine green-furred zombies himself!”

“He must be a Second-Level Enhancer! And not just any, but a top one. Otherwise, he couldn’t possibly kill green-furred zombies so easily. To be so powerful at such a young age—who knows how much stronger he’ll become?”

“That savage-looking youth isn’t bad either. His combat instincts are freakishly sharp. If he had the same strength as the other boy, the boy wouldn’t be his match!”

After much discussion, the eight cast each other glances and reached the same conclusion.

“Neither of them is ordinary—they’re both monsters!”

P.S.: Sorry for the slow updates these past few days. The current plot is a bit slow, but it’s necessary groundwork—I have no choice. I’ll try to finish this part quickly. Honestly, these kinds of chapters are even harder for me to write, and I’m not good at them. The next chapter should wrap up the buildup, and updates will return to two per day. Please trust that I’ll do my best to write a good story. If you can, please add this to your collection. Thank you, with a deep bow.