Steampunk Era: Mad Abield

Tiptoeing, Meng Quyi approached a small building on the edge of the town, which had a relatively intact fence and a fairly complete door. On the sandy ground, she tried her best to make her footsteps inconspicuous. Earlier, she had killed a rabbit and removed some of its leg meat before throwing it onto a distant street—the zombies were chasing her, and this was a move to lure them.

Compared to her own scent, blood was more easily detected by the zombies’ sense of smell, and when they smelled blood, these creatures would turn into the most terrifying hunters.

Therefore, keeping a good distance became the top priority.

Placing her hand on the door, the young girl who had just lubricated the rusty door bolt with a spell gently pushed open the door without making much noise. She raised her silenced pistol—this was a protective weapon specially prepared for combat mages, equipped with a silencing magic array on the extended barrel, offering a more effective experience than a regular silencer, nearly truly silent, allowing more than one combat mage to escape successfully from behind enemy lines filled with monsters.

The muzzle first pointed to the right side of the door as it opened; when opening the door from the left side, this was the first place that could be confirmed clear. The fact that it was empty under infrared vision made Meng Quyi pause for a moment. She looked up at the space above the door to ensure safety before continuing to gently push it open as if it were being blown by the wind.

The wind masked her footsteps, and a zombie that was back-facing her crouched motionlessly in front of a broken window, only the red in vision confirming it was still alive.

Stepping inside the door, Meng Quyi threw a stone to attract the zombie’s attention, then drew her dagger. The young girl approached from behind the zombie and plunged the dagger into its occiput, triggering the Enchanted Weapon: Fire Effect. As the zombie’s body fell, its wound was destroyed by the high temperature, no blood flowed out.

The Mage’s Hand closed the door, and Meng Quyi quickly snuck into the shadows. With the Mage’s Hand by the window, hearing the commotion from the zombies downstairs, the zombies saw a shadow leap out of the window—a rough effect brought by the Mage’s Hand with a flurry of snowflakes, but the zombies, devoid of thought, jumped out the window straight after.

Meng Quyi released control of the Mage’s Hand, then summoned another to block the window with a bookshelf.

The zombies banged against the wall for a while, seemingly reluctant to give up. Meng Quyi sent the Mage’s Hand upstairs and through it, confirmed there was a zombie pup in the corner. After some thought, she had the Mage’s Hand grab the pup and crawl out of the house through the window. As the pup’s screams grew distant, Meng Quyi could hear the cries of the zombies outside fading away as well.

And it seemed as if the entire city came alive with it.