Becoming a Monster-Chapter 72: The Gods thoughts

Gradually, as Noah pressed on, a subtle transformation overtook him. His movements became more fluid, his grip on the sword steadier, as if the weight of the weapon no longer burdened him

Unbeknownst to him, he had unlocked the sword’s latent ability. "Unlocked" might not be the right term, as it was never locked to begin with; rather, Noah hadn’t yet discovered the trigger for the ability. The sword, a near replica of the Zombie King, required recognition from its wielder, much like a king acknowledging his subject. He could have never known that to fully use the sword, he needed to give into his bloodlust, one of the main instincts distinctive to zombies whose only goal was to feed.

In hindsight, it was a fitting requirement. A zombie sword should be used by a zombie. As long as he was in his bloodthirsty state, he would receive the stats from his sword which granted an abundance of stats for a sword granted by a unique zombie under the level of ten. Despite his hindered stats, the 30-point increase in each attribute was substantial.

Noah’s stats, while boosted, were just a little bit more than what his original raw stats would be without the penalty. Nevertheless, it still wasn’t enough to outright defeat the zombie in front of him. His strength was not stronger than Fenrir and his agility was still shy from Arachne’s. However, now he could play an effective role in helping his creatures take down the zombie. The sharpness of his sword became a crucial factor in the battle.

The zombie, sensing the danger emanating from Noah, directed its full attention towards him; who was radiating an aura that made it instinctively servile to his presence, making Noah the most dangerous out of three there. The zombie wasn’t just a mindless zombie as its original counterparts, the change was small, but it now had the ability to have instinctual awareness, making it a more formidable undead. It wasn’t like the King Zombie or Fenrir that Noah would call a ’unique zombie’. This zombie in particular was just a regular zombie that evolved.

Imagine Noah’s internal plight if he had known that he is struggling against the weaker version of the evolved zombies.

As Noah charged towards the zombie, it too moved to meet him. In a daring move to fight alongside her partner, Arachne, now recovered, hurled herself from the building, slamming into the side of the zombie’s face with all her momentum. The impact sent the monster reeling, causing it to lose its balance momentarily before steadying itself with its arms just inches from the ground.

Noah seized the opportunity to relentlessly hack away at one of the zombie’s arms, his sword penetrating through muscle before chipping at bone. The sounds of his blade striking the undead’s skeletal structure echoed through the vicinity.

However, considering the zombies size, it would take quite a bit of time to cut through its arm. Noah’s instincts had caught on to that fact whilst instinctively evading out the way of the incoming hand. Now that his stats were increased, weaving in out of the zombie’s clutches became significantly easier. Not only that, but when fighting under killing instincts, his instinctual movements were all done reactively, ignoring the glaring flaw that he was still without enough combat experience.

A little bit away, Fenrir’s face and arm could be seen recovering at a visible rate. The damage it sustained from a single attack should’ve left the beast afraid to engage again. But the creature knew no fear, if anything, fear was an attack on his pride and would make him fight even more without restraint and even greater ferocity. With a single function arm, Fenrir was forced to remain on his hind legs, he charged back into the battle, undeterred by his injuries. He didn’t need his other arm if he still had one that worked, not to mention that its vigorous regeneration would have its arm functional within little time.

Minutes passed with the three ganging up on the lonesome zombie. It was fair to say that the zombie was immensely stronger and tougher than them all, however it could only do so much if it couldn’t keep up with their speed.

Meanwhile, unbeknownst to them, a mysterious observer watched the battle unfold with keen interest.

"HoHo~This one has truly piqued my interest! It appears that even among those meager ’lower’ humans, there exist those with remarkable potential."

The being habitually muttered to themselves. If anyone could lay eyes on them, they would be confused by what they see. The being appeared to embody everything and no one at the same time. Their bodies were constantly interchanging, a beautiful woman, a young boy, a koala bear. It was as if all life converged within its essence.

To put it in better perspective, it was like viewing a picture that had multiple pictures into one and when you look at it in different perspectives and angles, you would see more than just what you thought the picture was.

With an amused expression, the divine being continued to observe Noah’s plight.

"And to think I would’ve passed up on this interesting fellow if that corrupted human didn’t ’coincidently’ evolve while he was there. Hmm...I wonder how he fares compared to the others." Though the god’s eyes remained still, his gaze encompassed every corner of the world.

Starting from the individual who was the first to reach level ten and break his limits, he happened to hail from America, much like Noah. Despite being the first to officially awaken, his achievement failed to captivate the god’s interest as others had.

He was a soldier whose success stemmed more from the weaponry at his disposal than his own merit. Utilizing tanks, heavy guns, and grenades, he indiscriminately decimated large groups of zombies, animals, and even innocent bystanders. The god remained detached regarding the deaths of the innocent, citing humanity’s longstanding history of similar acts against animals.

While breaking their limits typically yielded substantial gains, in cases like these, the god ensured that individuals like him received their just desserts—or, in this instance, didn’t receive what they hadn’t earned. Not a single chest dropped for this individual when employing artillery weaponry. Furthermore, despite his class being that of a knight, upon reaching level ten, he was only presented with the choice between an additional basic class or the advanced option of Veteran Knight.

"The fools may believe that their creations will pave their way for them, but what will they do when the very weapons they hide behind cease to pose a threat to the creatures that fought tooth and nail to evolve? Hmm? Yes she at least has what it takes."

His gaze turned towards Europe, where a woman garbed in a flowing robe wielded a staff, her long blonde hair cascading around her. She stood guard over a shelter teeming with homeless and abandoned children, their numbers swelling by the end of the day. With a self-fashioned incantation to enhance her mana control and unleash her imagination, she conjured a mighty firewall that swiftly dispatched a large horde of zombies within seconds after passing through.

Then, his attention shifted to Australia, arguably one of the most challenging countries amidst the upheaval. The wildlife there posed a greater threat than the zombies. Yet, a fellow Monster Tamer resided there, echoing the spirit of the legendary Steve Irwin as a conservationist. From the outset, this Australian had fostered close bonds with numerous animals, and when they mutated, their heightened sentience facilitated their easy taming. A mutated kangaroo and koala bear were among the creatures under their command, subdued without a struggle and each strong within their own right.

In each country, one or two individuals managed to capture God’s interest. However, his faith in the human species itself remained limited. The nations were struggling against their foes and that was before the creatures could evolve. They may not be in immediate danger of being wiped out at the moment when almost every country has a military to support the masses.

Yet, he witnessed the pathetic plight of most places lacking a quick responding military. In a mere day, small cities were basically overrun and inhabited by the new mutated animals that were fighting for new territory.

States like New York almost had no chance when it came to some of their more cramped cities. New York may as well be considered ground zero for the evolved zombies.

However, the god understood the innate struggle of humanity, which is why he bestowed upon them the power to resist. Having lived in peace for too long, humans had grown complacent, their survival instincts dulled compared to the swift adaptability of wild animals. This glaring disparity became evident within a mere twenty-four hours of the upheaval.

In the midst of his musings, a gleam crossed God’s eyes as he became momentarily distracted from Noah’s predicament. "The Fallen...I remember seeing that title a long time ago...I wonder if he’ll survive long enough to meet him?"

While God was observing everything, Noah’s fight was slowly coming to an end, contrary to what one would expect, both sides weren’t faring well. The Zombie was taken to the ground, its legs severed from repeated strikes to the back of its knees. Noah sought to capitalize on the opportunity, attempting to advance towards its head. However, before he could get across its body, a foot crashed into him, the powerful blow sending him flying meters away, tumbling across the ground before flying in the air once more.

Fortunately, Noah remained ensconced in his trance-like state induced by his Killing Instinct skill. His body instinctively employed his servient hierarchy skill to preemptively mitigate the evolved zombie’s attack, intercepting it just moments before impact. This thwarted the zombie’s attempt to fully extend its leg and amplify the force of the blow.

Simultaneously, his exchange skill was activated, replacing the strength he usually gained and received ten percent of Fenrir’s constitution instead. And with the use of ’Unity through Pain’, he proceeded to transfer ten percent of the damage to Fenrir who had an innate recovery.

The blow Noah endured had the potential to cripple or even fatally wound him if not for his swift actions in that dire moment.

Arachne was the only sensible one from his creatures, desiring to make sure he was ok, but she recognized she had a bigger job to do. She began to jump at an even faster pace across the zombies legs to tie them with her webs.

Meanwhile, Noah slowly rose to his feet. Unlike previous instances where his skill would deactivate after enduring significant trauma, the upgrade of his skill allowed it to remain active under a higher amount of physical stimuli. Fueled by his battle lust, he began to make his way back into the battle, disregarding the pain and the prominent bruise marred across his face.

Throughout this tumultuous ordeal, Fenrir succumbed to a frenzy, relentlessly hacking away at the zombie’s head with its piercing claws. Having learned from past encounters, Fenrir adopted a more strategic approach, retreating whenever the zombie’s hands approached and reengaging when Arachne diverted its attention. This tactical maneuvering prevented Fenrir from recklessly absorbing attacks as it had done prior to its injury.

As Noah reengaged in the battle, the cumulative damage inflicted upon the zombie began to take its toll. Once minor scratches now oozed blood, while the skull exhibited visible cracks, leaking a peculiar liquid distinct from the blood that had flowed thus far.

Though the skull seemed on the verge of shattering with even the slightest impact, it remained far from brittle, requiring a decisive blow to finish the job.

The zombie appeared to grasp its impending demise, its legs ensnared by Arachne’s webs, rendering it immobile. Though perhaps developing a semblance of consciousness, it lacked the ability to make logical decisions. Its relentless aggression remained directed towards Fenrir, ignoring Arachne’s efforts entirely.

Despite its immobilized state, the zombie still had its arms. It no longer divided its attention towards both Arachne and Fenrir and only focused on the beast that generated the most danger. It began to swing haphazardly towards the werewolf, the thought never occurred to it to just cover its head.

Noah, still consumed by his bloodthirsty state, lunged alongside Fenrir towards the zombie’s head, driven by a singular focus. Yet, their attempts were met with fierce resistance, forcing them to retreat from the creature’s clutches.

As Noah’s frustration escalated into soft growls of irritation from not being able to reach his target, the battle neared a standstill. Arachne, sensing her own growing frustration, struggled with her inability to find a meaningful way to contribute to the fight. She understood that Noah and Fenrir’s primary objective was to reach the zombie’s head, but she struggled to discern how she could aid them in achieving that goal.

As Arachne’s keen eyes observed everything in this intense moment, she grew frustrated while Noah and Fenrir re-attempted to reach the zombies brain, striking at the zombies hands as they were forced to retreat again. That’s when she realized that the answer was in front of her all along.

She immediately put her plan into action, vaulting onto the zombies face without fear, naturally avoiding the zombies gaping maw that was akin to a death trap, landed where the zombies eyes would’ve been located.

The sudden distraction caused the zombie’s arm to freeze mid-reach as its rudimentary brain struggled to process the new threat. Seizing the opportunity, Noah and Fenrir charged forward with reckless abandon, exploiting the momentary lapse in the zombie’s defenses.

Unaware of Arachne’s true intent, the zombie remained oblivious to any threat she might pose. With its attention diverted momentarily, it prepared to re-engage with Noah and Fenrir, who were closing in once again.

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The zombie’s confusion escalated as its head was suddenly lifted from the ground, seemingly yanked by an unseen force. Any thought of confronting Noah and Fenrir vanished from its mind.

Arachne, utilizing her webs, had firmly attached them to the zombie’s face. With the webs securely in place, she exerted an unprecedented amount of force from her legs, propelling herself toward the nearby building while pulling the zombie’s head along with her.

In the process of her daring move, one of her back legs snapped from the overloaded pressure that was built up into her legs, but she wasn’t done. After landing on the building wall, with the use of her webs still attached to the zombies face, she exploded from the building while pulling herself towards the zombie at the same time. Both actions occurred while the zombie was still in the motion of its head being lifted into the air.

Boom!

The impact echoed through the air, delivering a blow twice as powerful as any before directly to the zombie’s head. With an audible snap, the weakened skull finally succumbed to the overwhelming force, shattering upon impact.

If the zombie’s earlier attack had generated a mere tremor, this collision unleashed a seismic wave capable of toppling an average person from over ten meters away.

The zombie died as soon as it collided into the ground, as for Noah and Fenrir, their bloodlust made them unaware of its death. In the current moment, they were both instinctual beasts who wanted nothing more than to release their frustrations on their foe.

Time marched on after the encounter with their first evolved monster. The rewards from defeating the zombie were anticipated to rival those from the Zombie King. Yet, while the chest that appeared mirrored the color of the platinum chest dropped by the Zombie King, it lacked the metallic sheen, gleaming instead like a brilliant gem.

The sight of the chest became more prominent as the sky darkened, yet its untouched state since its appearance remained peculiar. Despite the passage of time since the battle’s end, it remained unopened.

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