"Great! This is deeper and wider than the original moat," Hodeman exclaimed joyfully upon seeing the massive chasm in the city wall.
"That's amazing! Natalie also wants to eat a Devil Fruit," Natalie said, her small face filled with astonishment.
"Tell all the warriors to hold the line. Once the moats on other sides are formed, we may be able to defend Ming City," Hodeman's excited voice spread out, instantly igniting fervor among the soldiers.
The overall city defense battle became increasingly tense, and casualties were, of course, unavoidable.
"This is really exhausting," Rosen remarked, using his full power for the first time, not for combat but to open up the chasm. Creating such a large-scale sinkhole was no easy task. After all, his ability had not yet awakened; while it was similar in principle to a desert sunflower, the radiation range far exceeded any previous attempt.
However, the results were significant, as the majority of the mindless zombies fell foolishly into the pit.
"That woman, come over here for protection. I'll open a trench for all directions of Ming City," Rosen could have chosen not to do this, but compared to humans, zombies were still more repulsive. Moreover, if the city fell, that foolish child Natalie would likely not escape death either; after all, a nest cannot hold an unbroken egg.
"Damn it," Alice muttered, cursing under her breath. Did this man really think he could treat her like a servant? Yet, in reality, she had no choice but to obey, as Rosen had become the key to the survival of Ming City. If he became unhappy and decided to leave, the result would be disastrous.
"Stay close, protect," Alice said coldly, while the soldiers pretended not to see their vice-captain being treated like a maid.
Rosen didn't intend to annoy her; rather, it was that the woman's bad temper clashed with his own, and since he was in a foul mood too, he figured he might as well order her around, as it lightened his own spirits considerably.
Hodeman would naturally arrange for the soldiers to defend the wall against any remaining threats, and they should be able to hold their ground since most of the zombies had already been slowed down.
At this point, Rosen was too lazy to take action. Under Alice's and the soldiers' protection, he headed toward the other end of the wall. He then connected the chasms one by one, creating a natural defensive barrier. Only a few powerful monsters could cross the moat, while most zombies could not.
These powerful monsters would naturally have experts from Ming City to handle them.
"No problem! As long as we continue like this, we can hold the city once the moats surround all of Ming City," Alice was extremely excited. If Ming City could be defended, everyone would survive.
As time passed, the trenches gradually took shape. Rosen had also killed many zombies along the way, feeling somewhat fatigued; after all, he was still a person, not an unyielding machine. The fighting had already lasted a considerable time.
"Break through this zombie defense line and let us pass," Alice said, pushing her hand into the air while calling out to the soldiers on the wall, who all jumped down and gathered around her.
Here, a small group of horned demons had gathered. These powerful horned demons were too much for Alice to handle alone in such a short time, so she needed support—a strong army was just what was needed. The number of horned demons seemed to be increasing.
"To the front! No life, only death!" Alice led the charge, her daggers swirling around her, forming a meat grinder. With both hands gripping two daggers, she swung them rapidly, slicing through zombie after zombie.
At this point, she had gone mad with battle, becoming an emotionless machine. Perhaps she was meant to be emotionless, but it wasn't enough to be complete.
Under their battle cry, every soldier in the unit went wild. This was a squad that even made Rosen feel alarmed—fearless of death and disciplined. Such warriors could never be trained without years of relentless combat.
They formed a two-line formation, and with their synchronized cooperation and high fighting strength, they managed to push the horned demons back into the mass of corpses.
"Black mist! There's black mist ahead!!" Suddenly, a soldier pointed at the zombie horde in front, his face changing drastically, as if he recalled some dark history, breaking into a cold sweat.
"Black mist, could it be the black mist that caused the mutation in Atlantis?" Upon hearing this, Rosen immediately halted his actions and looked ahead, frowning. Could it still be infectious?
"How is this possible!?" Alice was completely stunned. Black mist? How could there be black mist?!
Boom!
Suddenly, a thunderous sonic boom reverberated through the area, piercing and shrill, and then a black lightning bolt appeared before Alice in an instant.
A dragon-claw-like demon hand, mixed with thick black mist, struck Alice's abdomen, sending the powerful warrior flying and crashing heavily against the wall.
"Cough, cough..." Alice was embedded into the hard city wall, her pupils dilating as her internal organs suffered a devastating blow in that moment.
"Vice-captain!" The soldiers of the unit immediately shouted in rage and despair, their eyes fixed on the lurking figure that resembled lightning.
Rosen's hair stood on end, an unprecedented sense of crisis flooding his mind and body. What kind of monster was this?! So powerful, with just one move, it incapacitated Alice? Was there really such a terrifying creature on Lantis?
This monster looked similar to the horned demons, but it was neither thin nor weak; instead, it was strong and tall, with two eyes instead of just one. Standing about five meters tall, its body was filled with twisted, irregular muscle lines, resembling dried beast meat—shrunken yet tough.
Its back was thickly covered with mantis-like arms, with a pair near the shoulders long and dark as ink, sharp like two long knives, or perhaps like bald wings.
It stood there, shrouded in black mist, slightly opening its mouth as black mist surged forth, and its arms were quite different, resembling eagle claws, or more accurately, a pair of sharp demonic claws. The muscles in its arms were interwoven with black and red, looking like molten lava.
At this moment, it set its sights on Rosen, sensing the disparity in strength: "Human~ or~ Demon?"
The monster spoke, albeit with pauses, sending chills down everyone's spine.
"The Lord of the Great Rift, how could it appear here?! Damn it, avenge the captain! Kill!" One soldier, furious and terrified, let out a desperate roar.
With that, the soldiers directed their blades toward this true demon, preparing for a suicidal attack.
"What a bunch of fools," Rosen spat out the cigar from his mouth, his expression grave. He quickly stepped in front of the soldiers who were ready to throw their lives away. If they charged now, it would only cause chaos and lead to their deaths—completely worthless.
(End of Chapter)