Chapter 42: Guo Hanxue's Double Kill

Jiang Yi narrowed his eyes, recognizing that the zombie currently attacking the bizarre tree was none other than the one that had cornered him inside the women's dormitory!

Meanwhile, Keito and Guo Hanshe stared in utter disbelief at the living tree before them. "How is this possible? Even plants have come to life?"

Jiang Yi frowned. "The source of the apocalypse was that sudden torrential rain. Since living beings could absorb that rain to transform into zombies and awaken supernatural abilities, it shouldn't be surprising that plants have mutated as well!"

Thousands of the tree's branches frantically whipped around, entangling the zombie that was attacking its trunk. Finding itself unable to tear the creature apart, the tree actually hoisted the zombie entirely into the air and smashed it violently against the ground!

The evolved zombie roared as it was thrashed about by the willow branches. The terrifying strength left it completely unable to defend itself, though the soft earth spared it from suffering any catastrophic damage. Seizing an opportunity, the evolved zombie grabbed the willow branches wrapping around its body, tore them apart, and shoved them into its mouth. Finding the taste far less delicious than imagined, the zombie spat the branches out. Then, its eyes fixed upon the willow's trunk, as if something there was drawing its attention. Shaking off the remaining branches, the evolved zombie charged wildly forward once more, its sharp claws gouging deep trenches into the bark with every strike.

Guo Hanshe felt a thrill of excitement. These two opponents were absolute perfection for testing her skills!

Jiang Yi pondered for a moment. Facing either the mutant willow tree or this zombie by himself, his chances of winning were slim. But with Guo Hanshe and Keito by his side, he felt they could give it a try.

Besides, this time, the main offensive force wouldn't be him, but Guo Hanshe, who was brimming with energy! The mere thought of her unbridled violence from earlier sent a chill down his spine...

Gritting his teeth, he whispered, "Let's do it! Hanshe, find a way to disable that zombie first!"

He didn't want her to kill it outright—Jiang Yi still hoped to obtain more potions from it. Guo Hanshe nodded, rising directly from their hiding spot. With her hands outstretched, two wind blades the size of sickles materialized, spinning in her palms. Her sharp eyes flashed, and with a swift wave of both hands, the two wind blades shot forward in rapid succession!

The two monsters currently locked in combat never expected a snipe from behind! Two shrill, piercing sounds echoed and vanished in an instant. The strong, evolved zombie's arm and leg were severed cleanly at the roots, and black blood gushed wildly as it collapsed onto the ground, still entirely clueless about what had struck it!

The two wind blades subsequently slammed fiercely into the tree trunk. With a loud explosion, the willow's bark was violently cleaved open, leaving behind two deep gouges!

"Hisss!" Resembling the agonizing shriek of a wounded living creature, the massive mutant willow emitted a painful wail. All the branches across the entire tree began to thrash frantically. The collapsed zombie was made a scapegoat; the enraged willow lashed out with every branch it had, whipping the zombie relentlessly. Within seconds, the zombie's clothes were shredded into complete rags!

Just then, the zombie—now bearing two massive wounds—began to convulse in agony. Guo Hanshe, who was preparing a second attack, was yanked back by Jiang Yi as the three of them watched in horror as countless vine roots resembling small serpents burrowed out from beneath the ground!

These roots were slender and nimble; after frantically absorbing the blood pooled on the soil, they actually slithered straight into the zombie's body through its open wounds! Even knowing that zombies felt no pain, watching it writhe on the ground made Jiang Yi's entire body crawl with unbearable dread!

Suddenly, Keito roared, "No wait, the zombie is about to be killed by the willow!"

Jiang Yi snapped back to reality, pulling his blade and charging forward with blinding speed—so fast that Keito only felt a fierce gust of wind brush past him before realizing Jiang Yi had already rushed out!

The two of them panicked and rushed to follow. As she ran, Guo Hanshe drew her bow and loosed an arrow. A surge of concentrated energy tore a gap right through the dense barrier of willow branches. Jiang Yi sprinted forward, preparing to push through and claim the kill, but the willow spotted them. The branches previously attacking the zombie whipped around mid-air and lunged directly toward Jiang Yi!

Jiang Yi scrambled to dodge, but the branches were simply too numerous, moving like countless flexible arms that defied evasion. Before he could take many steps, his right ankle tightened as a strand of willow tightly coiled around his leg!

Jiang Yi's body stiffened, and that brief moment of distraction was all it took for countless willow branches to lunge at him.

Slicing through the clinging branch with a single stroke, Jiang Yi tumbled backward! Most of the willow whips missed him, but several still lashed heavily across his back!

"Agh!" Excruciating pain wrung a scream from Jiang Yi as he tumbled onto the ground, desperately scrambling outward. Only after crawling several meters away did the willow finally retract the branches it could no longer reach!

Keito hurriedly propped up the cold-sweat-drenched Jiang Yi with one arm. "Jiang Yi, are you alright?" The clothes across Jiang Yi's entire back were shredded to pieces, and every movement sent a wave of tearing agony through his spine!

A surge of fierce resentment made him grit his teeth. "Why don't you go give it a try?"

He shoved Keito's hand away and snapped, "Get back and stay out of reach—don't get dragged in!"

A trace of worry flickered in Keito's eyes. "Maybe we should just leave them alone? There are bound to be plenty more evolved zombies out there! This is way too dangerous..."

Guo Hanshe loosed another arrow. The powerful force blew apart the willow's protective barrier of branches and drove deep into the trunk. The massive tree trembled violently, and the rate at which it sucked nutrients from the ground accelerated further as it threatened to drain the zombie completely dry!

"You whip me into this state and expect me to just walk away? Not a chance! If I don't show some teeth, it'll think I'm made of dough!" The searing pain fueled Jiang Yi's inner ferocity. Watching the zombie less than three meters away felt as though a vast chasm separated them...

"If I can't have it, you won't drain it either!" Jiang Yi cursed, violently hurling the skull-cleaving blade from his hand. The razor-sharp weapon flew like a throwing knife, roaring through the air, shearing through branches, and burying itself straight into the zombie's chest!

The zombie, already at the end of its rope, let out a frenzied roar as the blade pierced its heart. Its entire body jerked upright, and its remaining hand grabbed frantically at the blade embedded in its chest, trying to yank it out. But the black blade remained immovable, anchored like a massive mountain!

Jiang Yi's eyes lit up. With a flick of his left hand, the black blade vanished, instantly returning to his grip. This time, Jiang Yi fixed his gaze on the zombie's glabella and threw the knife once more. It plunged straight into the center of the zombie's head up to the hilt. The zombie shuddered violently before collapsing limply to the ground, completely still!

A multitude of roots swarmed over to wrap around it, but no matter how frantically they attempted to drain it, they bizarrely discovered that the abruptly slain zombie had somehow become like a pile of lifeless wood, failing to provide even a shred of absorbable substance!

Jiang Yi took a deep breath as a massive orb of light crashed into his chest. A smug smile spread across his face—as expected, he was the ultimate winner!

He reached his right hand into his pocket, rummaged for a moment, and pulled his hand back out with a helpless expression. Amidst the expectant gazes of the other two, he opened his palm to reveal a blue potion. "Too bad, it's another Mana Restoration Potion!"

A hint of disappointment flashed in Keito's eyes, but he forced a smile. "That's still great! Now Guo Hanshe doesn't have to worry about running out of energy anymore!"

Guo Hanshe looked deeply at the potion in Jiang Yi's hand, then suddenly pointed toward the willow tree, which was still thrashing blindly at empty air. "Do you guys think this willow tree has a zombie core inside it as well?"

Jiang Yi blinked, looking at her with a strange expression. "Why would you think that? Probably not, since a willow tree isn't a zombie!"

Keito, however, fell into deep thought. "Club President Guo might actually be onto something! Since zombies can have cores, and humans and animals can mutate, it wouldn't be strange if a living willow tree possessed something similar to a core inside it!"

Jiang Yi blinked as his mind began to race. If that were really the case, did that mean killing it would grant him experience points as well? That would be a massive windfall for him...

Yet, looking at the giant tree sweeping the surrounding area into an impenetrable storm of branches, he couldn't help uttering a bitter laugh. "But this thing is like a turtle in a shell—you can't beat it to death. What can we possibly do?"

Guo Hanshe flashed a triumphant smile. "What if I cripple it? How about you hand that Mana Restoration Potion over to me?"

Hearing her words, Jiang Yi casually tossed the potion straight to her. Amidst her stunned expression, he stepped back, crossed his arms, and said, "Please, begin your performance."

Carefully putting the potion away, Guo Hanshe stepped back several paces, nocked a purple-feathered arrow, and slowly drew the bowstring. As the massive bow was pulled further and further back, tiny whirlwinds began to dance across the dirt beneath her feet!

They grew larger and larger, eventually forming clearly visible miniature tornadoes! Standing at the epicenter of the wind tunnel, Guo Hanshe's long hair whipped wildly in the gale. The purple arrow in her hand absorbed so much energy that it began to gleam with a luminous sheen, and the dark purple shaft gradually shifted into a vibrant cyan...

Guo Hanshe charged this shot for a long time—so long that her hands even began to tremble. Just as Jiang Yi began to worry she might suddenly fail to hold it, Guo Hanshe let out a sharp cry. The cyan light at her fingertips erupted with the roar of a malevolent spirit, instantly tearing through the space between her and the willow. A brilliant, ferocious beam of light flashed and vanished in an instant, unleashing a tempest that swept violently across the earth!

The ground directly in front of Guo Hanshe looked as though it had been plowed through by a giant plow, and both Jiang Yi and Keito were blown several paces back by the terrifying gale. Once they adjusted to the dust and sand swirling through the air, Jiang Yi squinted forward toward the willow tree, only to be astonished to find that the massive tree had vanished! Looking closer...

It hadn't vanished; rather, it had been blasted apart right down the middle by Guo Hanshe's terrifying wind arrow!

The trunk, which would have required two people to wrap their arms around, had a massive chunk blown clean out of existence. The upper crown of the tree crashed heavily to the ground, its branches snapping into countless pieces!

Stripped of its roots, the giant tree completely lost its momentum, leaving only a lone, pathetic stump standing in place!

"Clang!" The heavy bow clattered to the ground as Guo Hanshe sat down, her face deathly pale and her body completely drained of strength. Staring at the wreckage of her all-out attack, she couldn't help grinning with satisfaction...

However, the next second, Guo Hanshe let out a miserable wail. "Ah, my arrow!"

Keito stared mutely at the sky filled with floating tree-dust and swallowed hard. With an attack that powerful, that arrow had undoubtedly been reduced to powder...

Guo Hanshe was utterly deflated! Her already meager supply of arrows had just decreased by one, leaving her struggling to process whether this entire trade had been a profit or a loss...