Seeing the zombies emerge from the grass, Ge Qing and Lu Shang were both surprised. If they weren't mistaken, something had just flown out from Park Su's hand!
And then this scene happened. So, how did he know there were zombies here? And what kind of skill allowed the zombies to come out on their own, step by step?
So, when the two of them had been standing there in a daze earlier and didn't choose to attack, was it because they had sensed the zombies in the grass?
D*mn, what kind of skill is this? He hadn't heard of any wood-type ability that could detect whether there were dangers hidden among plants.
No wonder these two didn't want to form a team. It seems their secrets go far beyond what they imagined.
But now, when they were lost in thought, the second-tier zombies were fast, and in just a few seconds, they had already flashed in front of them. There was no time for more thinking.
Ge Qing reacted quickly and immediately created a layer of ice on the ground beneath their feet. This would slow the zombies' movements, especially if the ground was slippery, making it harder for them to aim their attacks.
Then, he conjured a few ice arrows, sending them flying towards the zombies' heads. But as a second-tier ability user, he knew that these zombies had much harder skulls than the lower-tier ones, so the ice arrows couldn't kill them with a single hit.
Luckily, right after the ice arrows, Lu Shang's metalized fingers followed closely. With a single, piercing motion, they pierced through the heads of three zombies, killing them instantly without giving them any chance to counterattack.
Standing aside, Xu Nuo watched their actions and noticed the seamless coordination between them. This kind of synchronization clearly wasn't developed in just a day or two.
Looking at Park Su, who was too focused on commanding Green Ivy, Xu Nuo suddenly felt a little irritated. It seemed that he also needed to coordinate with Park Su at some point and develop some teamwork. He thought that in the future, they might even be able to work together better than these two.
However, after these two had already used up so much of their abilities so early, Xu Nuo worried that they might be exhausted later on. To prevent them from holding him back, he quickly pulled them back and said, "Save your abilities, retreat, and let me handle this."
The two of them felt themselves being pulled back, and upon hearing Xu Nuo's words, they obediently stepped behind. Soon after, they saw a white figure flash past them and into the zombie horde.
Both of them were momentarily stunned. After all, compared to zombies, ability users were like paper; close combat was essentially asking for death, especially against second-tier zombies, whose toughness was far superior to that of first-tier zombies. Yet, Xu Nuo just charged right in?
This made the two of them worried, wondering if they should intervene. However, they quickly realized their concern was unnecessary.
In just an instant, they saw the second-tier zombies that had taken them so much effort to kill turn to ash under Xu Nuo's hands. They couldn't even see how he made his move.
The speed with which he killed the zombies could only be described as godlike. The most embarrassing part was that after Xu Nuo finished off the zombies, there was nothing but ash left—no blood, no mess—no clue when the crystals had been taken either.
Suddenly, they understood why Xu Nuo had called them "burdens." In the face of such power, their own strength really did seem like a burden.
Xu Nuo quickly finished dealing with the zombies, collecting all the crystal cores. But instead of keeping them, he tossed them in front of Park Su and casually said, "Take care of these, get ready for the next step."
Park Su didn't even have time to look at the second-tier zombie cores, quickly storing them into his spatial ring, though on the surface, it seemed as though he just stuffed them into his pants pocket.
He immediately followed Xu Nuo forward, and as they moved, Xu Nuo tossed a remark over his shoulder, "We're going to deal with the mutated plants; it might take some time. Stay here, don't cause trouble, and help us keep watch. If you run into anything you can't handle, shout for us, I'll try to come and help."
Without waiting for Ge Qing and Lu Shang to respond, they had already disappeared into the knee-high grass.
Ge Qing and Lu Shang exchanged a look after they lost sight of the movement in the grass. Lu Shang couldn't help but say, "Looks like their abilities are higher than we thought. Since they've asked us to keep watch, we'll do just that. Maybe it's a test for us."
Ge Qing, who usually agreed with Lu Shang, nodded without objection. The two of them stood at the entrance, carefully on guard, watching for any other second-tier zombies that might attempt to sneak attack.
Normally, Park Su should be the one dealing with the mutated plants alone, but Xu Nuo didn't trust him. After all, who knew if he might get lost in the illusion? He had almost been ensnared by the inner demon when he killed before.
So, Xu Nuo decided that he wouldn't let Park Su face it alone before the illusionary dandelion was subdued. With Green Ivy guiding them, the two made their way straight towards the illusionary dandelion.
Not long after, Park Su felt something strange. The grass seemed too quiet. He quickly turned to look for Xu Nuo, but to his surprise, Xu Nuo had already disappeared without him noticing.
This puzzled him. Since Xu Nuo had come with him, he shouldn't have left his side. The only possibility was that Xu Nuo had fallen victim to the illusion.
This made Park Su a little anxious, unsure of what might happen next. If he acted rashly, he might accidentally harm Xu Nuo, especially since Xu Nuo had set up the illusion formation that could make people fight each other.
At the same time, he called out to Green Ivy in his heart. Since they were both plants, Green Ivy was simpler and less likely to be affected by the illusionary dandelion.
Just as he expected, Green Ivy returned to his side and gave him the correct directions. However, the surroundings were still shrouded in an illusion. The terrifying, deep feeling made his whole body tense up.
He constantly reminded himself that what his eyes saw and what he felt might not be real. They were all illusions. As long as he followed Green Ivy's guidance and moved forward, everything would be fine.
Once he gathered the dandelion to his side, all the fear he was feeling would disappear. Just as he was walking, suddenly the grass not far away began to rustle.
Though he had full confidence in the environment Green Ivy had scouted for him, knowing there shouldn't be any zombies lurking, his instincts still made him tense his back and focus on the rustling spot.
After a long while, a human head finally emerged from the grass. The person's face was so familiar that it sent a chill down his spine. That face… even if he turned to ashes, he would still remember it—Sun Mu Yang. It was him! How could he be here?
No, that was just an illusion. He couldn't be here for no reason. So, what would the illusionary version of him do?
Park Su immediately pulled himself together, glancing at the illusion. He had always known that Sun Mu Yang was the biggest knot in his heart. Even though he had tried to remain calm, it didn't change the fact that Sun Mu Yang was a deep wound in his past.
The first time he almost fell into the demonization process was because of him. Now, the fear in the illusion was also because of him. In the end, his so-called indifference was just self-deception.
He quickly ignored the illusionary Sun Mu Yang, swallowed his saliva, and continued to follow Green Ivy forward.
There was no need to waste time or energy dealing with an illusionary person. Fighting with it would only waste abilities. It was pointless.
However, this incident also reminded him that he really needed to find a chance to understand Sun Mu Yang's situation. If he didn't deal with it one day, the fact that Sun Mu Yang was his inner demon would haunt him every day.
Unfortunately, just because he didn't want to provoke Sun Mu Yang didn't mean that the illusion would leave him alone. As he walked forward, the illusion suddenly caught up with him.
The voice came, filled with grievance and sadness. "Park Su, why are you leaving as soon as you see me? It's been so long since we last met. I've missed you so much! What happened before was just a mistake. I was too scared when I saw the zombie horde. I never meant to push you into it. Please forgive me, okay?"
Park Su heard his words and turned around, his gaze deep as he looked at him, the corner of his mouth lifting into a smile. "Yes, you know, I've always loved you. Since you didn't really mean to kill me, I'll forgive you. Come here."
When the illusionary Sun Mu Yang heard this, he immediately rushed over with a look of seeking comfort. But as he got close to Park Su, Park Su quickly used wooden thorns to pierce through him. Even though this was just an illusion of Sun Mu Yang, seeing this face approach him still made him feel disgusted.
The illusionary Sun Mu Yang looked at him in shock. "Why? Didn't you love me too? Why are you doing this to me?"
Park Su snorted coldly, "Let's not talk about how I stopped loving you long ago and even find you repulsive. Just think about this—there's no way you'll ever know the things you did to me. After all, you never had the chance to do them, did you?"
However, did that mean that the illusionary dandelion could read other people's memories? The illusionary Sun Mu Yang spat out a mouthful of blood, and in an instant, he vanished without a trace.
At this moment, Green Ivy's clear voice rang in his ears. "The one you just attacked was probably a clone of the Illusionary Dandelion. It seems like it got injured from your attack, but it will likely continue to release illusions on you, so you still need to be cautious.
The illusions it releases are actually its dandelion seeds, which are like its clones. They have offensive capabilities, so be careful.
Of course, the best way is to reach its main body quickly, so you can deal with it all at once."
Park Su responded, "You said to be cautious of the clones. I don't think it will be that easy to get to its main body directly. How far are we from it?"