Rebirth as a Demonic Cultivator: Starting with a Zombie Planet

Chapter 23: The Highway, Wolves on All Sides

Wang Yong chewed on the problem for a long moment before finally breaking the silence. “Those monsters are sitting right on the highway, completely cutting off the route from the Linjiang Army camp to our doorstep.”

“They even ambushed a fully armed Linjiang Army squad. Only one man made it out alive.”

“We can’t afford to go in blind,” Wang Yong continued. “Our priority should be gathering intel—pinpointing their exact numbers and locating their den. Once the Linjiang Army sends reinforcements, we can box them in and wipe the entire pack off the map.”

Wang Gangjian gave a curt nod. “Sound logic. We’ll play it smart. Grab Old Song; we’re going on a scouting run.”

Wang Yong immediately left to make the arrangements. Minutes later, a battered minivan idled in the courtyard. Wang Gangjian, Wang Yong, and Song Dayi piled in. Along with Tang Jinchuan, they made up the entire roster of Espers at the Black Vanguard Security Company. But someone had to hold the fort, and that duty fell to Tang Jinchuan.

Before Wang Gangjian could throw the van into drive, a battered figure stumbled out of the compound, followed closely by a panting, heavy-set Tang Jinchuan.

“Brother Jian, I couldn’t stop him,” Tang Jinchuan said, throwing his hands up in defeat.

Wang Gangjian looked at the pale, bloodied man leaning against the van and sighed. “Zhuang Qiang, you’re half-dead. You have no business being out here.”

The man was Zhuang Qiang. After he and Sun Meng had successfully escorted Zheng Baoshan back to the Linjiang Provincial Life Sciences Research Institute, he had received new orders. He had led a fresh Linjiang Army squad back south, intending to reinforce Black Vanguard Security and purge the high-level Zombies infesting Donghu City.

But they hadn’t even made it off the highway before the giant wolves ambushed them. Out of his six-man squad, he was the only survivor.

As a Level 1 Esper, Zhuang Qiang’s enhanced physique had been his only saving grace. He had run and hidden like a hunted rat, barely shaking off the pack to reach the security company’s gates.

“I’m going with you,” Zhuang Qiang growled, his voice ragged. “My brothers in the Linjiang Army didn’t die for nothing.”

Wang Gangjian shook his head firmly. “Denied. You’re bleeding through your bandages. Stay here and heal. Once you’re back on your feet, you can have your revenge.”

Zhuang Qiang gritted his teeth. “My Esper talent is Wood Spirit. I can use the surrounding plant life to gather intel. You’re going out there to scout those wolves, right? You need me.”

Wang Gangjian and the others exchanged surprised glances. Esper abilities were wildly unpredictable, manifesting differently in every awakened individual. The ability to use the forest canopy as a surveillance network was undeniably perfect for this mission.

Wang Gangjian gave a solemn nod. “Alright. Get in. But stay behind us; we’ll keep you covered.”

A grim, bloodstained smile touched Zhuang Qiang’s lips as he hauled himself into the van.

The minivan kicked up a cloud of dust as it sped toward the northern highway. Donghu City was a minor urban sprawl, and that stretch of asphalt was its only lifeline to the Linjiang Army. Every previous supply run and reinforcement detail had relied on it. Rerouting would be a logistical nightmare, drastically increasing travel time and casualty rates.

The highway had to be cleared of all obstacles. That included the Supernatural Animals that had mutated under the influence of the world’s new spiritual energy.

***

At the exact moment the Black Vanguard team rolled out, the sharp, resonant hum of a flying sword pierced the sky above that very highway.

A figure descended through the gray clouds. His features were sharp and handsome, his posture impeccably straight, and his body radiated a suffocating, bloody aura.

It was the Wuji Sect cultivator, Chu Xuan.

Chu Xuan casually picked a clear stretch of asphalt and touched down. The highway had clearly seen heavy use before the apocalypse; the rusted, blood-stained husks of abandoned cars had been forcefully shoved to the shoulders to clear a path.

With a flick of his wrist, the air rippled. Xiao Long, Xiao Hu, and his six newly refined Yin Corpses materialized around him in a silent, obedient ring.

“Where were you ambushed?” Chu Xuan asked, his tone clinical.

Xiao Hu let out a low, guttural growl and pointed a rotting finger down the road.

Chu Xuan nodded and set off. His footwork was deceptively fast, blurring across hundreds of meters of broken asphalt in the blink of an eye.

He arrived at the wreckage of a heavy-duty pickup truck. Judging by the dried blood and the state of the metal, the attack had happened no more than three days ago. The words “Linjiang Army” were stenciled across the battered doors. Deep, jagged claw marks had shredded the vehicle’s armor plating. The surrounding pavement was scarred by battle and painted with dried gore. Scattered amidst the carnage were thick tufts of coarse, gray fur.

Suddenly, a faint, reedy sound drifted from the dense treeline flanking the right side of the highway.

It sounded like a cry for help.

Chu Xuan raised an eyebrow, his interest piqued, and strode toward the woods. As he closed the distance, the sound resolved into something distinct.

It was the wailing of an infant.

His cold gaze swept through the shadows of the trees. It didn’t take long to lock onto the source: a pile of blood-stained rags nestled in the underbrush. The bundle was trembling slightly, the pitiful cries echoing from within.

Chu Xuan walked toward it, his pace unhurried. Xiao Long, Xiao Hu, and the rest of his undead retinue trailed silently behind him.

Any normal survivor hearing a baby’s cry in this ruined world would feel a pang of desperate compassion. Even a hardened killer might hesitate, their humanity flickering for a fraction of a second.

Chu Xuan did not.

At fifty meters out, dark spiritual energy surged into his lowered right hand, silently condensing into a volatile Netherfire Bomb.

At ten meters, he casually raised his arm and pitched the sphere of black flames directly at the trembling bundle.

*BOOM!*

A violent explosion shattered the quiet woods. The pile of clothes, the surrounding brush, and a nearby tree trunk were instantly vaporized in a shockwave of dark fire. Chunks of charred, bright red meat rained down from the canopy.

*Plop.*

A scorched scrap of flesh landed at Chu Xuan’s feet. The hair attached to it was long, coarse, and thick. It certainly didn’t belong to a human infant.

It was wolf fur.

“Spiritual energy is a fascinating catalyst,” Chu Xuan murmured, his tone conversational. “To think it actually taught you beasts how to mimic a human infant to lure in prey.”

He shook his head in mild disappointment. “Pity your intellect hasn’t quite caught up to your vocal cords. There isn’t a living soul for miles along this highway. How could an abandoned, starving newborn possibly cry with such healthy lungs?”

The moment the words left his mouth, the shadows in the woods detached themselves.

Over a dozen massive figures slinked out from the dense foliage. Each beast stood over three meters long, their muscles coiling with terrifying agility. With a single, casual bound, they could clear five or six meters. In the blink of an eye, the pack had completely encircled Chu Xuan and his Yin Corpses.

Atop a massive boulder just beyond the tree line, the alpha revealed itself.

A monstrous wolf, easily five meters long and standing twice as tall as a man, looked down at Chu Xuan in eerie silence. A cold, bloodthirsty intelligence gleamed within its single remaining eye.

The Wolf King.

Chu Xuan appraised the Wolf King’s robust, spiritual-energy-infused musculature with genuine interest. A highly satisfied smile crept onto his face.

*A Level 2 Supernatural Animal. Perfect.*

Scanning the pack, he noted several Level 1 Supernatural Animals among the ranks. Even the subordinates that hadn’t fully mutated yet were monstrously large, far surpassing any ordinary wolf in both size and lethal potential. Excellent living resources.

With a den of premium flesh vessels like this entrenched by the highway, it was no wonder the Linjiang Army had been slaughtered.

As Chu Xuan calculated their refinement value, the Wolf King was busy sizing him up in return.

This human was different from the screaming prey it usually hunted. He wielded explosive black fire and commanded a pack of docile Zombies. Every instinct in the beast’s mutated brain screamed that the man in the center of the clearing was incredibly dangerous.

But hunger was a louder voice than caution.

The pack had fled here from Shuanglong City to the northwest, and they had been starving for weeks. The five Linjiang soldiers they had butchered two days ago had barely been an appetizer for a pack this size.

Now, fresh meat was standing right in front of them. The Wolf King bared its fangs. There was no backing down.