Chapter 117: Assassination

At this moment, the Sicilian was so moved that tears welled up in his eyes.

Just now, he had truly tasted what it meant to hover between life and death.

Whether it was Chen Yaxi or Chu Yunxi, both women had harbored murderous intent. If either of them had acted, he would have been decapitated on the spot—a fate he most desperately wanted to avoid.

Observing the man's reaction, Chu Yunxi felt a surge of disdain. Useless fool—so afraid of dying, yet always courting disaster. It was clear he lacked the drive to fulfill even the duties required of him.

She strode once more to Chen Yi’s side, anxiety flickering in her eyes. At that moment, the warship rocked without warning.

“Prepare yourselves,” Chen Yi swiftly cautioned, his gaze shifting back to the Sicilian.

“Don’t let anything go wrong here, or I’ll hold you accountable.”

“I understand,” the Sicilian replied at once, nodding, not daring to slacken for a moment.

At that very instant, the eighth zombie wave began.

Staring at the zombies with silvery eyes, Chen Yi and the others couldn’t discern their rank, but it was clear these zombies were anything but weak.

The zombies unleashed furious roars, charging rapidly toward them.

Without hesitation, Chen Yi dashed forward, dispatching each one with a single strike.

But to his dismay, the zombies regenerated instantly; their bodies were as soft and pliant as leeches—slicing at them with blades could not bring true death.

Could they be water zombies again?

With this suspicion, Chen Yi tried setting them alight, but even fire had no effect on these fiends.

His actions only served to enrage the horde.

“Boss, what do we do now?” The Sicilian at the helm was wracked with panic. “Should we abandon the warship and escape?”

“Absurd!” Chen Yi sneered coldly. “Without the ship, do you want everyone to perish? With it, we still have a fighting chance.”

Even as he spoke, he unfurled his wings and plunged into the fray.

Though Chen Yi launched a fierce assault on the zombies, the situation remained dire. Chen Yaxi prepared to join the battle.

But recalling that Chu Yunxi’s strength lay in defense, she could only shield the woman she regarded as her sister, refusing to let a single zombie draw near.

“Go and fight!” Chu Yunxi smiled faintly.

She knew well Chen Yaxi’s intentions. To protect Chen Yi, the girl always threw herself into battle with everything she had.

Meanwhile, the Sicilian, mesmerized by the zombies’ golden pupils, began to drift unconsciously toward the rail.

Noticing something amiss, Chen Yi kicked him back inside.

The Sicilian snapped out of his daze, realizing he had nearly become zombie fodder, and drew a sharp breath.

Heaven help me, that was far too close.

“Steer the ship properly!” Chen Yi barked.

He had no interest in overseeing the Sicilian, but certain precautions had to be taken—at the very least, he couldn’t let the man become a meal for zombies for no reason.

“Sister!” Chen Yaxi called out.

“Judging by my brother’s reaction and the zombies’ abilities, I think this must be some kind of mind control!”

“Exactly,” Chu Yunxi nodded. How had she not thought of it sooner? The zombies’ sluggish movements were due to subtle factors they had nearly overlooked.

If someone gazed into their eyes without enough willpower, they would be influenced, and in time, utterly destroyed by the zombies’ control.

With this realization, Chu Yunxi resolved to eliminate these threats.

“Careful!” Chen Yi’s twin blades whistled through the air, blocking an attack for Chu Yunxi and severing a zombie’s hand.

Watching the zombies swoop overhead and agile ones flood in from all sides, Chu Yunxi was momentarily stunned. Where did this sudden surge of power come from? How had they never noticed it before?

Damn it!

Chen Yi’s brow furrowed. He had underestimated these fiends. All his vigilance against the X Organization had made him forget—the zombies’ power was now hundreds of times greater than before.

Not only had humanity brought this disaster upon itself, but nature, too, seemed to be amplifying their strength.

Now, to even draw even with these evolved zombies was a monumental struggle.

“Brother, let me help you,” Chen Yaxi called, grabbing Chu Yunxi’s hand as both took to the air.

With Chen Yaxi’s support, Chu Yunxi launched into the fight.

Chen Yi had not wanted them to intervene, but soon realized things were spiraling out of control. If they kept dragging this out, many more lives would be lost. Reluctantly, he allowed Chen Yaxi and Chu Yunxi to join the battle.

The Sicilian desperately wanted to flee—for him, survival, no matter how ignoble, was better than death. He had no wish to be a pawn in Chen Yi’s hands, much less perish alongside them. Such an ending was too bleak.

But now, with any sign of movement, Chen Yi and the others would never let him escape.

After much inner turmoil, the Sicilian resolved to gamble everything.

So be it. Since he had already agreed to bring them along to save his kin, there was no point in further hesitation.

Gritting his teeth, he seized a weapon from the warship and began hacking wildly at the zombies. To his surprise, his frenzied attacks actually had some effect.

Chen Yi hadn’t expected that the coward of a moment ago would suddenly find such courage. Perhaps he had misjudged the man.

A smile tugged at Chen Yi’s lips, a glint of appreciation flashing in his eyes. “It’s good that you’re willing to fight.”

“Thank you,” the Sicilian replied with a helpless smile. “But don’t praise me. I’m just trying to survive. If you get the chance, I hope you can help my people to live. For now, let’s keep fighting.”

With a roar, he charged back into the melee.

Meanwhile, Lu Kai and his group were engaged in their own fierce battle. Thanks to the protection of the mighty Kunpeng, the zombies were soon dispatched.

“I wonder how the boss is doing on his end,” Lu Kai said anxiously.

Hu Sanhan, however, wore a grave expression.

“Our mission is to find a new base. Don’t get distracted. If anything goes wrong, the boss will hold us responsible.”

Lu Kai nodded in agreement. “You’re right, I was overthinking it. Let’s keep moving—lingering here does us no good.”

“Alright!”

As they pressed onward, a drone silently trailed behind them…