Darkness engulfed the woodshed.
Suddenly, a gust of frigid yin wind swept through, chilling the room to the bone.
Thud!
The coffin gave a heavy jolt again.
This time, it was even louder.
The lid nearly popped off.
Vincent Fox watched silently, expression calm and unwavering.
He was waiting for Old Master Ren to rise of his own accord.
The next moment
Boom!
The coffin exploded into splinters, wood scattering in all directions.
A black figure leapt out from within and landed on the floor.
It was Old Master Ren.
Now fully transformed into a zombie, his skin had turned greenish-gray, his face twisted and monstrous. His limbs were stiff and straight, arms raised in front of him, claws extended. Under the moonlight streaming through the window, his nails gleamed with a metallic sheen.
"You've finally awakened."
Vincent's voice, flat and unshaken, immediately drew the creature's attention.
Sensing a living being, the bloodlust of the undead surged within Old Master Ren, compelling him to pounce.
"So, just a mindless beast after all."
Vincent snorted coldly and didn't move. He clenched his fist.
Old Master Ren lunged swiftly.
But to Vincent, it was slower than a snail.
His current Agility stat was more than forty times that of a normal human. His reflexes were so sharp that he could trace the path of a speeding bullet.
No exaggeration if someone shot at him right now, he could catch the bullet with his bare hands.
A newborn zombie like Old Master Ren? Threatening him?
Ridiculous.
Boom!
A deep thud echoed like a war drum.
Vincent's fist struck Old Master Ren mid-air, beating him to the punch literally.
The zombie flew backward and crashed into the firewood pile, splintering it into a mess of wood and debris.
"Oops. Maybe I hit too hard. Hope I didn't kill him."
Vincent retracted his fist with a sigh.
He had actually held back only using about thirty percent of his strength.
In other words, that was a normal punch.
If he had gone all out with a serious punch, Old Master Ren would've ended up with a hole clean through his chest.
Vincent's power now was terrifying.
Any casual punch packed over a ton of force.
"Good thing the shed is at the edge of the village. Even the closest house is dozens of meters away. Otherwise, someone might've heard that."
He muttered to himself.
Outside the door, Autumn Summer's voice called out, filled with worry. "Vincent, are you alright?"
She had clearly heard the noise.
"I'm fine," Vincent answered, eyes trained on the pile of wood.
A moment later
Crash!
The wood burst apart, scattering everywhere.
Old Master Ren emerged, still moving.
Vincent let out a breath of relief.
The zombie's eyes gleamed with hatred as it snarled like a beast, low growls echoing in the dim shed.
Clearly, it was enraged by Vincent's earlier punch.
Those familiar with the movie Mr. Vampire knew that Old Master Ren wasn't an ordinary undead. He retained fragments of memory, and after reviving, he'd returned to his old home and killed his son. Even when hunted by Uncle Nate, he displayed cunning far beyond that of a typical zombie.
Unlike other mindless corpses, he possessed a degree of intelligence.
"Oh? You're baring your fangs at me now?"
Vincent scoffed. "I guess I didn't hit you hard enough."
With that, he strode forward.
Old Master Ren roared again and pounced.
Thud! Crash! Roar!
Outside the shed, Autumn could hear the chaos inside violent crashes and the eerie wails of something wounded.
That inhuman screech sounded like a wild beast in pain. Definitely not something a human could produce.
She was anxious.
She wanted to help.
But she knew she'd only be a burden.
She understood her own limits. She wasn't strong enough to face a zombie.
So, she waited, trembling slightly, standing outside the door.
She had made up her mind if Vincent lost, she would charge in and fight to the death.
No running. No surrender.
Finally, after a few minutes, the sounds from the shed gradually faded… and then fell silent.
Autumn's heart tightened.
The battle was over.
But who had survived?
She took a deep breath, steadied herself, and gently called out through the door, "Vincent, can I come in?"
…
Inside the shed, the scene wasn't nearly as bloody as she imagined.
Vincent stood there, perfectly intact. Not even a speck of dust on his clothes.
The zombie, on the other hand, was utterly wrecked.
Its hat was missing. Its clothes were torn. It looked completely miserable.
"They say zombies are immune to blades and bullets and have monstrous strength?"
Vincent glanced at Old Master Ren and sneered. "Yeah, right."
"So? Want to keep going?"
He stepped toward the zombie.
To his surprise
Old Master Ren's first reaction wasn't to bite.
It was fear.
Real fear.
It leapt backward, retreating into a corner and huddled there, shivering.
In those few minutes of brutal beatdown, Old Master Ren had come to a realization.
This human…
Was more terrifying than any zombie.
----------------------------------------------------
Enjoying the adventure so far? If this tale has you hooked, please drop a review and let me know what you think! Your feedback powers the next chapter.
The deeper he goes, the more the truth unravels. Don't wait read ahead and witness Vincent's rise before the world catches up!
[ Happening's in advanced chapters:
As tensions between academies rise, Vincent Fox returns with glory but not without challenges. A mysterious new girl, Heather Summer, joins the scene, sparking curiosity and chaos in equal measure. Meanwhile, the long-awaited National Freshman Tournament explodes into action. Autumn Summer leads her team into the high-stakes battlefield of the Forbidden Canyon… but what they don't know is that a trap has already been set.
Enemies close in. Strategies clash. The battlefield shifts.
And in the shadows… someone is targeting Vincent.
Can War Saint Academy prove they're more than underdogs? Or will this be their final stand? ]
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