Chapter 602: 424 Second Night
Under normal circumstances, if those wounds were not wrapped in gauze, allowing the residual undead forces lingering in them to be exposed to direct sunlight, the warm rays of the sun would slowly dissipate the undead forces residing within the wounds.
Unfortunately, although their wounds had scabbed over on the surface and stopped bleeding after being treated, they had unconsciously wrapped the wounds with gauze to reduce the risk of infection with toxin.
Unbeknownst to them, with the wounds wrapped in gauze, the undead forces that were originally lingering on the wounds lost the suppression of the sunlight during the day due to the bandages’ blockage, which inadvertently increased the chance of infection and incubation.
During the day, it was still manageable. Although the undead forces remaining on the wounds couldn’t be irradiated by the sun due to the covering of gauze, other parts of the injured person’s body could still feel the warmth of the sun when venturing outside, which could still exert some suppression on the undead forces within their bodies.
However, when the sun went down, and night fell, lacking the irradiation of sunlight, the undead forces became most active at night.
After returning, Zachary hadn’t left the house all day, not even getting up from the lounge chair, just drowsily lying there the entire day.
As dusk approached, Zachary rose from the lounge chair and then once again employed Sword Control to take to the skies and observe the condition of the Skeletons at that time.
Zachary had no intention of directly engaging with those Skeletons at the moment. After all, in Zachary’s understanding, the combat style of the lower-tier Bug Race consisted mostly of brute melee, and even though some higher-tier members of the Bug Race could use Spells, the Spells they employed were mostly straightforward.
The newly emerged Undead Skeletons, however, were quite different from the Bug Race. Let’s not forget that even the lowest-tier Skeletons included Skeleton Mages capable of casting magic.
Spells involving Toxins and Curses were specialties of the Undead Race. These types of magic are often cast in a covert manner and initially, it is very difficult to realize that one has been afflicted.
Therefore, with the strategy of knowing oneself and the enemy, Zachary was preparing to wait until the Skeletons engaged in large-scale battles with other Hunting Teams. Only after confirming the Skeletons’ abilities would Zachary be ready to make a personal appearance.
After all, if the sky were to fall, there would be someone tall enough to hold it up. Since Zachary wasn’t the one to stand that tall at the moment, there was no need for him to stand out prematurely; it was best to stay back and observe.
The best course of action for Zachary at the moment was to simply stay up in the skies and do nothing. After all, the Imperial Court had not yet made a move, or rather, it had already arranged its strategy. As long as Zachary did not act recklessly like the protagonist of a shonen manga, the Imperial Court would be in control, and these Skeletons likely would not be able to turn the tide.
Just as Zachary had speculated, armed with the intelligence collected the day before, the Imperial Court was able to formulate a battle plan for the evening in just one morning. Although based on the information gathered yesterday, the Skeletons seemed to possess immortal bodies, the preferred target in battle was now clear: strike at the Skull first.
In addition, the Imperial Court, aiming to reduce casualties, purposely abandoned close combat in favor of mid-range engagements.
All soldiers were equipped with large-caliber shotguns, and if approached, they would resort to Military Firearms Combat Skills to fight, avoiding close contact with Skeletons.
If the Skeletons had the same strength as they did yesterday, the Imperial Court’s plan would have no flaws. However, some Skeletons had evolved by absorbing the souls of numerous living beings during yesterday’s hunt, and their Soul Flames quietly shifted from green to red.
Once the Soul Flame in the Skeletons’ eye sockets turned red, others could sense a trace of liveliness emanating from them. It should be known that regardless of the Skeletons’ original size or appearance, at first glance, they all seemed lifeless and rigid, like marionettes pulled by strings.
But when the Soul Flame in the Skeletons’ eye sockets changed to red, the previously rigid impression vanished instantly, replaced by a sense of agility, as if the once lifeless beings had suddenly been touched by immortals and became living creatures.
Normally, the Undead Race, with their long lifespans, could evolve indefinitely, but their rate of evolution isn’t actually fast. The simpler the conditions for evolution in such creatures, the higher the amount of accumulation required for evolution.
However, during this disaster, the Undead Creatures seemed like the chosen ones; not only were their conditions for evolution more relaxed, but the required amount of accumulation for evolution also dramatically decreased.
After the color of the Soul Flame in the Undead’s eye sockets turns red, it is possible for the Undead Creatures to awaken special abilities, and most awaken the ability of White Mist.
At first glance, White Mist seems like the easiest talent to acquire upon awakening for the Undead Race, but its practicality is among the strongest of all Undead talents.
White Mist is an evolvable talent, with its initial effect being to create a dense fog around the Undead that is so thick one cannot see their own hand in front of them. At this stage, the White Mist has no other function; its sole purpose is to protect Undead Creatures from the direct sunlight during the day, allowing them to move freely even under the sun.
Although the White Mist is very thick, visibility within it is near zero; however, the Undead Race primarily relies on Undead Vision to observe the outside world, so the White Mist does not produce any negative effects on them.
