Chapter 35: The Arrow of Frozen Snow

In the next second, Jiang Yi’s pupils constricted. "Qingtou, look out!"

Qingtou instinctively dodged and raised his long blade, but he was instantly sent flying by a violent blast!

Jiang Yi pushed his speed to the limit, quickly intercepting the giant zombie. He swung his black blade with all his might, sparks flying. The sharp, rotting fingernails of the zombie ground against the steel, producing a piercing, teeth-grating sound.

The zombie possessed immense strength; it held its ground against the blade, forcing Jiang Yi to retreat frantically.

While struggling to hold off the evolved zombie, Jiang Yi looked back anxiously at Qingtou, who had crashed into the distance. "Are you alright? Are you hurt?"

Qingtou struggled to stand, tears welling up as he clutched his left arm. The bone-deep pain made cold sweat stream down his face. "I'm fine! It didn't land a hit on me!"

Jiang Yi let out a breath of relief. It would be a disaster if either of them were wounded by this creature.

Jiang Yi regretted his recklessness, but there was no turning back now. His only thought was how to shake off this monster. Both he and Qingtou were already injured, and the pressure of facing such a massive zombie was immense. Especially for Jiang Yi; even though his speed prevented the zombie from landing a clean strike, his strength was nowhere near enough to deal a fatal blow.

After a dozen exchanges, Jiang Yi and Qingtou realized that while the zombie's skin was terrifyingly hard and its strength far superior to an ordinary zombie, its speed was its fatal flaw. Its body felt like a solid bronze statue; every step it took was like a poorly lubricated machine—slow and heavy.

It was only because of this that the two wounded men had managed to hold out for so long. Qingtou’s condition was deteriorating, and Jiang Yi felt as if his own body were about to fall apart. Every collision with the giant zombie left his limbs numb.

Qingtou’s vision began to blur. A momentary lapse in focus nearly cost him his life as the zombie’s claws swiped at him. At the critical moment, Jiang Yi shoved him aside. His heart sank—they couldn't keep this up. If they dragged this out, not only would they fail to kill the creature, but they would likely be exhausted to death by it.

With that, Jiang Yi parried the zombie with a heavy strike and grabbed Qingtou to flee. The giant zombie paused, realizing its prey was attempting to escape, and let out an enraged roar. The wounds on its neck seemed to knit together as its skin and muscles pulled tight.

It lumbered after them. While not fast, its massive strides allowed it to cover twice the distance of a normal person with every step.

If Jiang Yi were alone, he could have easily escaped, but dragging the semiconscious Qingtou made it impossible to shake the monster off. Cursing under his breath, Jiang Yi pulled Qingtou along as they sprinted.

Qingtou raised his head in a daze, looking at Jiang Yi’s resolute expression. Despite the evident panic, Jiang Yi’s grip on his arm remained tight, never once wavering.

Having not felt such genuine concern since entering university, Qingtou felt a warmth bloom in his chest. He pulled his arm away from Jiang Yi and stopped running. To Jiang Yi’s confusion, Qingtou slowly sheathed his blade and began unwinding the bandages from his left hand.

Jiang Yi grabbed his hand. "Qingtou, what are you doing? Keep running!"

Qingtou ignored him, biting his tongue and squeezing his injured left hand. Every movement sent waves of agonizing, tearing pain through his fractured bones. Yet, he pulled out the short black blade from his right hip and transferred it to his left hand.

Qingtou took a deep breath and closed his eyes. In that moment, he seemed to forget all pain, returning to the memories of his father teaching him swordsmanship. "Qingtou, remember: this technique can only be used when you have the resolve to die. Once you commit, there is no retreating. You must push forward with everything you have!"

He remembered his father’s large hand pressing down on his head, filled with concern: "I hope you never have to use this move..."

Qingtou snapped his eyes open, his resolve unwavering. "Father, the time has come."

Jiang Yi watched as Qingtou crouched, his legs coiled with tension, and took a half-step back in shock. At this moment, Qingtou felt like a leopard ready to pounce, his aura sharp and unbridled.

The giant zombie charged toward them. Jiang Yi raised his sword, but a blur of motion caught his eye—Qingtou had shot across the ground, hugging the earth at an incredibly low angle.

Jiang Yi had never seen such a posture; it looked as if Qingtou were flying just inches above the ground.

"Roar!" Seeing Qingtou lunging, the giant zombie raised its arm to strike, but Qingtou suddenly shifted, leaping high into the air—surpassing the zombie’s height.

Descending from above, his black blade hummed as it left the sheath. Reversing his grip on the short blade in his right hand, Qingtou wore a ferocious expression. He didn't even attempt to dodge the sharp claws swiping at him, driving his black blade straight toward the zombie’s temple!

"Damn it!" Jiang Yi realized then that Qingtou was using a suicide technique, abandoning all defense to land a direct kill.

Understanding his intent, Jiang Yi shouted and lunged forward, trying to stop him, but it was too late. The human and the zombie were already locked in their final collision.

*Whoosh!* Jiang Yi’s eyes twitched. A streak of purple light tore through the air from behind, passing Jiang Yi in an instant and piercing the giant zombie’s descending hand!

*BOOM!* A massive shockwave erupted. The wind pressure exploded like a bomb between Qingtou and the zombie. Qingtou was sent reeling, and Jiang Yi rushed to catch him in mid-air.

As a mist of blood rained down, the giant zombie let out a frantic roar; its entire right arm had been shredded into fragments by the blast. A purple arrow, its fletching still trembling, stood embedded in the ground nearby.

"What do you think you're doing? You almost killed it!"

Gu Hanxue, having dealt with a swarm of lesser zombies, walked over, clutching her golden bow with a look of fury. She snorted at the disheveled pair. "I thought you two would have finished this by now."

Jiang Yi gave a bitter smile, feeling the weight of her disdain once again.

She reached for another arrow and nocked it, glaring at Jiang Yi. "Seriously, if I hadn't come, were you just going to let him kill the zombie? I’m not here to play games with you two. Don't forget our goal!"

The two men froze, their faces flushing red. They had completely forgotten that Jiang Yi was the one who needed to deliver the final blow to the zombie!

Yet, just a moment ago, Qingtou had twice come within a hair's breadth of killing it himself.

Gu Hanxue caught the realization on their faces and sighed with exhaustion. "Get out of the way before I blow you up too!"

She drew her longbow. Her arms bulged with the effort, and the veins in her neck became visible as she exerted all her strength.

A powerful vortex of wind became visible, swirling around the arrowhead. As she pulled the bow back further, the wind intensified. Jiang Yi watched the arrow in shock and instinctively grabbed Qingtou to run.

It wasn't a joke; a few days ago, Gu Hanxue had used this very move to shatter an entire wall of windows!

In just a few days, her strength had grown tremendously. This single arrow made Jiang Yi’s hair stand on end, his instincts screaming at him to get away.

This arrow was truly terrifying.

*Whoosh!* With a graceful release, Gu Hanxue’s hair whipped around her. The golden bow hummed, and a flash of purple light streaked forth.

Within a second of being fired, it pierced the giant zombie’s waist. The violent wind energy enveloped the creature, turning the air into a haze of blood!

Jiang Yi covered his face, the dust kicked up by the gale stinging his skin.

Unlike Jiang Yi, who had braced himself, Qingtou sat on the ground, staring in stunned silence. Was this the same enemy that had forced him to use his suicide technique? Gu Hanxue’s strength was on an entirely different level.

Qingtou felt his spirit collapse. Compared to the mental torture of opponents like Dongfang Tian, Gu Hanxue’s arrows represented a sheer, overwhelming power that left one unable to even contemplate resistance.

The giant zombie had effectively vanished. In its place, within a pool of blood, lay two mangled halves of a corpse.

The evolved zombie, blown apart from the chest down, roared frantically in its own gore. Aside from one twitching hand, only its massive head remained to struggle against the end.

Jiang Yi and Qingtou looked at Gu Hanxue, their minds reeling. Was this the true power of an esper? Jiang Yi felt a wave of shame. He was also an esper, yet...

Gu Hanxue, drenched in sweat, let her arms drop limply. She looked as though she had been washed in water; it was clear that the arrow had drained her of all her energy.

Though she had acted disdainful, she knew that both Qingtou and Jiang Yi were far from incompetent. There was only one reason they had struggled: this monster was simply too difficult to handle. Thus, she had gone all-in from the start, unleashing a single, earth-shattering blow.

Seeing them stare at her in a daze, Gu Hanxue stood tall, puffing out her chest with a touch of pride. "Don't worry, I specifically aimed away from its head."

Seeing Jiang Yi still stunned, she shouted impatiently, "What are you standing there for? Go kill it!"

Jiang Yi snapped out of it and scrambled up from the ground. With a flick of his left hand, the skull-cleaving blade—which he had dropped earlier—flew back into his grasp. He felt like crying; Gu Hanxue was so fierce! He was the captain, after all...

The immobilized zombie was nothing more than a target of flesh and blood. Jiang Yi drove his blade straight into one of its wide, red eyes.

He pushed with all his might, holding the blade steady to prevent the struggling zombie from escaping, until two massive spheres of light rose from the corpse and sank into his body.

Only then did Jiang Yi’s strength give out, and he collapsed to the ground, exhausted.