Chapter 82 - 81: Giant-Armed Zombie
For some reason, the monster remained motionless in the black smoke.
Only its energy bar was recovering, bit by bit.
But Lin Fan didn’t want to wait any longer. The smoke and flames in the building to his right were gradually dying down, but the fire in the residential building to his left was intensifying, with thick black smoke billowing out of several rooms...
’It’ll be a real problem if it goes berserk, smashes another car to cause an explosion, and then sets other buildings on fire without even dying from the blast.’
With a thought, a piece of scrap metal appeared in his hand. Aiming for the spot beneath its health bar, he threw it with all his might!
Empowered by Lin Fan’s immense strength, the piece of scrap metal shot forward like a cannonball. With a WHIR, it vanished into the black smoke in an instant!
CRACK!
[-34]
’I hit it, but what’s with that sound...’
The instant Lin Fan’s projectile hit, the monster shot into motion, charging straight for him!
Only then did Lin Fan get a clear look at the monster!
It more than lived up to Liu Bin’s description of a "big monster." This Mutated Zombie was a full two meters tall, with arms so thick and long they nearly dragged on the ground.
Engulfed and scorched by the explosion, its tough hide had been baked into a cracked, charred shell. Fissures ran all over its body, revealing the blood-red muscle tissue beneath.
’That piece of metal must have been deflected by this charred shell. The explosion might have cut its Life Value in half, but it also seems to have paradoxically boosted its defense...’
The monster’s head was even worse, completely fused and burned into a blackened lump.
’Forget facial features—if it weren’t for that protrusion on top of its body, Lin Fan wouldn’t have even realized it still had a head...’
It looked just like a charred gorilla!
’Looks like it’s lost its senses and is only able to track enemies by reacting to attacks.’
As the Giant-Armed Zombie charged straight at him, Lin Fan nimbly sidestepped to the right, planning to attack the cracks in its charred hide from behind.
The Giant-Armed Zombie was charging forward furiously like a blind bull, completely unaware that Lin Fan was no longer in its path.
However, in the exact instant they passed each other, its energy bar refilled to 10. The situation changed in a flash!
As if it had suddenly sensed something, the Giant-Armed Zombie spun around and swung its massive arm, striking at Lin Fan!
The nearly two-meter-long arm reached him in an instant, catching Lin Fan completely by surprise!
Sensing the faint ripple of energy coming from the fist—a fist larger than a basketball—Lin Fan knew. ’This is the same punch that "smashed" Wang Zhengyang!’
’In a flash, equip Armor Crystal!’
’Use Berserk Potion!’
He gripped the spear with both hands, sank his stance, and planted the end into the ground beside him!
With the tip aimed at the monster’s arm, he prepared to weather the unavoidable blow!
"CRUNCH... GRIIIIIND!"
The fist instantly collided with the spear!
The tip of the spear scraped against the zombie’s fist—which had been burned into a hard, blackened mass—and produced a sound like screeching ceramic!
An immense force traveled up his arms, immediately followed by a sharp, piercing grinding sound that screamed in Lin Fan’s ears!
’It’s that faint ripple of energy from the zombie’s fist!’
The ripple of energy erupted the instant it made contact with the spear, but at the point of impact, it triggered a faint, pale blue hexagonal halo of light!
’It’s the Armor Crystal!’
The halo completely held the energy ripple at bay, preventing it from advancing even an inch!
’I actually managed to block it!’
This Giant-Armed Zombie looked imposing, but Lin Fan couldn’t tell if it was because of its injuries from the explosion, or if this was its normal state!
Its strength was actually an even match for Lin Fan’s current power!
Although the spear couldn’t pierce the Giant-Armed Zombie’s charred hide, it had successfully stopped its fist.
The ear-piercing grinding lasted less than a second before it fell silent. At the same time, the faint blue halo at the spear’s tip vanished...
’It’s over!’
Seeing the blue energy bar above its head drop to zero, Lin Fan’s eyes lit up!
’Crystals really are amazing!’
’The Armor Crystal can block the zombie’s energy attack!’
[Remaining Energy: 2570]...
"Holy shit..."
’That one block consumed 120 energy points!’
’But the Sharpness Crystal only uses 1 energy point per activation...’
’Ah...’
Lin Fan suddenly had a realization...
’It seems the faint ripple of energy on the Giant-Armed Zombie’s fist is essentially a cluster of multiple attacks...’
’No wonder it could shatter a person with one blow and disintegrate a car battery with a single punch...’
[1/10]
Looking at the energy bar above its head, Lin Fan grew even more curious about the crystal it might drop!
He shoved the spear to the side, parrying the zombie’s fist. Without its energy, the Giant-Armed Zombie was just a slightly stronger-than-average monster!
Then, he twisted his body and thrust the spear, stabbing into a fissure on the upper part of its massive arm!
SQUELCH!
[-29]
[2/10]
He leaped backward, pulling the spear free and dodging its other fist as it swung at him!
A spray of foul blood erupted from the wound, but the injury didn’t seem to affect the creature at all.
Without pausing, Lin Fan spun, bent his elbow, and used his body’s momentum to swing the iron spear in a half-circle!
The spear tip scraped across the ground with a piercing shriek, and then Lin Fan raised his arms, bringing the spear shaft down hard on the monster’s elbow joint!
A CRACK like shattering porcelain rang out!
The charred shell on the zombie’s giant arm shattered, and streams of foul blood splattered out!
[-56]
[3/10]
’Higher damage, but still not a decisive blow!’
’Against a behemoth like this, simple stabs and smashes just don’t do enough damage!’
Looking at the [807/2000] Life Value above the Giant-Armed Zombie’s head, Lin Fan fell silent for a moment.
It wasn’t that he didn’t want to attack its torso; it was that the monster’s two-meter-long arms were flailing about, creating an impenetrable barrier that completely shielded its body. Lin Fan simply couldn’t get through!
He slammed his spear down to parry one of the Giant-Armed Zombie’s wild haymakers. Seeing that its blue bar had only recovered to 4, Lin Fan switched from the Armor Crystal back to the Sharpness Crystal!
This time, he completely abandoned any thought of attacking the zombie’s torso. He swung the spear in a powerful horizontal sweep, knocking one of the zombie’s massive arms off balance!
Dodging the other incoming fist, he thrust the spearhead with all his might into the fissure at the elbow of the unbalanced left arm!
’First, I’ll take off one of its arms!’
The moment the spear tip pierced its flesh, streams of energy from the Sharpness Crystal erupted, coursing through the zombie’s veins and muscles!
SPLAT!
The attack ripped open several new gashes on its charred, cracked elbow, revealing the bone beneath!
[-96]
’Yes!’
[6/10]
’Four seconds left!’
Lin Fan was treating the monster’s regenerating blue bar as a countdown timer for its next special ability!
Having suffered such a grievous wound, its flesh torn and bleeding, the Giant-Armed Zombie became even more frenzied!
Its arms became a pair of warhammers, blurring into an impenetrable wall of death in front of it.
Time and again, he would parry one massive arm only for the other fist to come crashing down, leaving him no opportunity to aim for the joints!
He saw its energy bar was already at 8!
Lin Fan switched back to the Armor Crystal and leaped backward, temporarily moving out of its attack range.
The monster, however, was able to lock onto his position, and with a turn, it was after him again.
’Burned to a crisp like that, I have no idea how it’s sensing me!’
[10/10]!
The Giant-Armed Zombie raised both arms high and brought them crashing down with full force toward Lin Fan!
’Just because I have the Armor Crystal equipped doesn’t mean I have to take the hit!’
’Last time was a sneak attack, so I had no choice but to take the blow. I’m not about to waste that much of the crystal’s energy again!’
Leaping backward, a metal sphere appeared in his hand with a thought. Without hesitation, Lin Fan hurled it at the Giant-Armed Zombie’s slightly protruding head!
THWACK!
[-19]!
’Judging by that damage, its weak point definitely isn’t its head!’
But dealing damage hadn’t been Lin Fan’s intention with that throw.
The Giant-Armed Zombie had been raising its arms to smash Lin Fan, but the sudden attack caused it to flinch, and its two fists slammed heavily into the ground at its own feet!
SLAM!
It was just like the sound he’d heard from inside the building earlier!
The moment Lin Fan landed, he felt the ground shake beneath him!
A network of cracks instantly spread out from the point of impact, spiderwebbing across the ground!
The cracks reached all the way to Lin Fan’s feet, triggering a pale blue barrier that flashed once before vanishing...
"Remaining Energy: 2567..."
’Even from this far away, it still cost me 3 energy points. That’s terrifying.’
With a thought, a curtain of invisibility enveloped him...
The monster’s arms had barely lifted from the ground when it realized its prey had vanished, showing a brief moment of confusion.
’Now’s my chance!’
Lin Fan lunged forward, switching from the Stealth Crystal to the Sharpness Crystal. With a lightning-fast thrust, he accurately stabbed the spear into the already-torn joint of the giant arm!
The power of the Sharpness Crystal erupted from within the joint. With a sickening SQUELCH, the Giant-Armed Zombie’s left arm convulsed violently before collapsing, hanging limply to the ground...
[-98]!
The bones in its arm had been completely severed by the blow, leaving it connected by only a few scraps of flesh. The fist lay uselessly on the ground, all its former power gone!
’Success!’
Lin Fan’s sudden idea to switch to the Stealth Crystal had worked wonders. His distance from the Giant-Armed Zombie had been more than three meters, which, as he suspected, had caused it to temporarily lose him as a target. It was only for an instant, but it gave Lin Fan the opening he needed for that final thrust!
Watching the Giant-Armed Zombie, now with only one arm, dragging its broken limb as it swayed unsteadily, a smile tugged at the corner of Lin Fan’s lips.
’The battle was already won.’