Chapter -156 Lily
Watching William cradle the monster, a heavy weight pressed against Leo’s chest. He remembered the man William used to be—a warm, foolishly happy father who lived only to see his family smile.
That man was gone, replaced by a grieving beast broken by loss. Seeing him shield a rotting zombie as if she were still his sweet little girl twisted a knife in Leo’s gut.
But a cold, familiar chill washed over Leo’s mind, freezing the pity away.
His vision cleared, leaving only cold resolve. He could not leave his friend in this living nightmare. Ending William’s life was the only mercy left to give. If an afterlife existed, maybe the man could finally find peace and see his family again.
A guttural roar tore from William’s throat as he launched himself forward.
Leo tightened his grip on the katana hilt. He channeled his energy, pooling Zen into his blade to prime his Void Edge skill.
The moment the charging beast stepped into range—
"Void Pull."
An invisible weight grabbed William, dragging him off-balance. He stumbled forward, leaving his guard wide open. Leo stepped into the gap and swung his katana in a clean arc toward William’s neck.
Bones popped as William snapped his head back at an unnatural angle. The sharp steel whistled past his throat, missing by a hair.
Leo vanished into thin air. He materialized right at William’s flank, thrusting his blade forward. Tendons bulged in William’s legs as he kicked off the dirt, leaping out of reach.
Leo did not let up. He vanished and reappeared, flashing in from blind spots and striking from below, behind, and above. Yet the monster fought on pure survival instinct, twisting and bending just enough to keep his vital organs intact.
Still, the blade found flesh. Deep gashes ripped open across William’s arms and chest, painting his torn clothes dark red. The unnatural healing he possessed earlier had stopped entirely.
Leo gritted his teeth. The fight was dragging on, and a disturbing truth dawned on him.
William was learning.
Every dodge was sharper, every parry tighter. The frantic beast was evolving back into a fighter, gradually tracking Leo’s teleports.
It was time to end this. Leo drew in a breath to unleash Voidfall, but caught himself just in time. His reserves were almost dry. Burning his last drops of Void Energy on a massive attack would leave him defenseless and unable to use any other skills.
He needed a cheaper trick. He shifted his focus and activated Void Pull again.
He didn’t aim at William. He aimed for the snarling zombie chained to William’s back.
An invisible hook caught the undead girl, ripping her away from her restraints with violent force. Hearing the chains snap, William spun around and dove to catch her.
That was the opening Leo needed. He flashed out of reality and stepped back in right beside them. His blade slashed down, aiming straight for Lily’s rotting head.
William roared. With no time to pull her away, he thrust his bare fist straight into the path of the falling blade.
CLANG!
The sound of metal striking solid steel rang out. Leo stared in shock. His Zen-coated katana had not sliced through bone and flesh. William’s bare knuckles had caught the sharp edge and stopped it dead.
A familiar, dense pressure radiated from William’s hand. It was Zen. The madman had figured out how to coat his own body in energy just by taking hits during the fight.
Before Leo could adjust his grip—
BOOOOM!
A deafening blast shook the ground beneath them. A thunderous crash echoed from across the battlefield. Leo flinched, turning his head toward the noise. Deep within his mind, the mental link he shared with his Apocalypse Truck flared in alarm.
Something had gone terribly wrong. Peering through the smoke, his eyes widened. His massive truck had flipped and was tumbling out of control down a distant ridge.
Hearing the distraction, William did not counterattack. He scooped up Lily and sprinted in the opposite direction.
Leo snapped his attention back. The brainless monster that had been charging him minutes ago was making a tactical retreat. William knew he was outmatched and chose to run.
Leo watched his old friend put distance between them.
"Sorry, friend... I can’t let you escape this time," he quietly muttered.
Reaching deep into his robe, Leo drew a heavy, bizarre-looking revolver. Elaborate silver lines pulsed along the dark metal frame. He aimed down the sights and squeezed the trigger.
"Annihilation Bullet."
The gun hummed. A faint light gathered in the chamber, growing into a blinding shine as glowing magic circles locked into place down the length of the barrel.
Leo tracked the fleeing man, his heart pounding against his ribs.
"Damn... why is this attack so slow?"
The weapon required a five-second charge. Just five seconds. But in combat, that felt like an eternity. William was covering ground fast. A few more leaps, and he would be completely out of range, wasting the shot entirely.
Leo gritted his teeth. Finally, the gun kicked back in his hand.
WHOOSH!
A pitch-black sphere blasted out of the barrel. It warped the air around it like a miniature black hole, tearing a path straight toward William’s back.
Sensing the pure destruction chasing him, William scrambled to dodge. But his primal instincts locked his muscles in terror. He realized it before the bullet even reached him—there was nowhere to move. The attack was locked on.
The dark mass ripped across the gap.
Closer.
Closer.
Closer.
On William’s back, the undead Lily had spent the entire fight snarling, clawing, and biting at the man carrying her. But now, she froze.
Her dead, cloudy eyes shifted over William’s shoulder, staring straight at the sphere of death.
Just as the Annihilation Bullet reached William’s face, the chained zombie kicked off his back. Throwing her rotting body directly into the path of the bullet, she shielded him.
Leo’s eyes widened.
What... did she just do?
"Lily?!"
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