Ginny Kane slashed her knife hard across the zombie’s neck, but it didn’t deal any damage.
The zombie simply turned its head and gave her a disdainful smirk. It seemed to say, "Heh, is that it? Stupid human, you think you can kill me with this little bit of strength? Naive!"
Ginny froze for a second before instantly manifesting her Void Blade, driving it straight down through the top of the zombie’s head. She thought that no other weapon could ever compare to the Void Blade. If only it didn’t consume so much Energy, it would be absolutely flawless!
Taking out one was manageable, but dealing with the other three would be difficult. Since they always moved as a pack, Ginny had no choice but to retreat into her dimension and use Instant Teleportation to appear on the roof of another villa. Fortunately, entering and exiting her dimension no longer required Energy or spiritual power. Otherwise, her spiritual power would have been drained dry a long time ago.
What she hadn’t expected, however, was that the moment she emerged from her dimension, a zombie clawed her back. She quickly spun around and jumped away. Only then did she get a clear look at the mutated dog in front of her. It looked like a normal dog, but its eyes were blood-red and its body was covered in gaping wounds.
"Damn, a sneak attack? That’s playing dirty, Mr. Dog," she cursed.
As soon as she spoke, she launched a Void Blade. The Zombie Dog dodged it nimbly and immediately lunged right at her. Completely caught off guard by her miss, Ginny was forced to retreat while continuously hurling Skills at the beast. But the situation was incredibly freaky. No matter what Skills she threw at it, the dog managed to evade them. She couldn’t deal any substantial damage; she could only inflict minor flesh wounds.
Meanwhile, the Zombie Dog fought with increasing ferocity, completely overpowering her and putting her on the defensive. Whether she attacked with her Abilities or her dagger, the Zombie Dog always seemed to predict her next move.
"Mr. Dog, you must be some kind of mutant mastermind! What’s your deal? Goodbye, see ya, I yield!" With that, Ginny hastily retreated into her dimension. She jumped into a bathtub filled with Spiritual Spring Water to heal the wound on her back while brainstorming a way to deal with the creature. Unfortunately, this Zombie Dog was simply too ridiculous. Ginny had a sneaking suspicion that it possessed some kind of special Ability. It felt as though her movements were playing out in slow motion from its perspective.
Seeing Ginny disappear, the Zombie Dog let out a cold snort through its nose. "Cowardly human!" it thought. "How dare you duel with me, the King of Dogs? Hmph, just watch me snap that beautiful neck of yours."
Now lacking a target, the Zombie Dog followed the scent of humans. It headed straight for another villa that housed six survivors.
When the Zombie Dog arrived, someone mistook it for an ordinary stray. "Catch it! We’re having dog meat today!"
Hearing this, the Zombie Dog flew into a blinding rage. Did they look down on dogs? In the blink of an eye, it lunged and snapped the man’s neck. Only then did the rest of the survivors realize this dog was not to be trifled with. They scrambled toward a room, intending to shut the door and block the beast from entering.
The two stragglers at the back were clearly a married couple. The husband was plump and somewhat clumsy, while his wife tightly clutched his hand, constantly dragging him along as they fled. However, just as they reached the staircase, the Zombie Dog caught up to them. In a moment of pure panic, an unthinkable scene unfolded. The husband shoved his wife forcefully toward the Zombie Dog, bolting up the stairs without ever looking back.
Then, an even more unbelievable scene occurred. The Zombie Dog completely ignored the woman and leaped directly at the man, sinking its teeth into his neck. Perhaps the man’s neck was too thick, because that first bite didn’t kill him instantly. He pointed at the Zombie Dog in confusion, trying to say something, but not a single word escaped his lips. The Zombie Dog simply took another bite. The man’s head severed completely, rolling down the stairs until it stopped right beside the woman.
The woman was frightened entirely mute. She stared blankly at her husband’s severed head by her feet, her eyes filled with utter disbelief.
"How pathetic. He doesn’t even compare to me, the King of Dogs! Heh!" the dog mused. "Women are so weak. No, wait, that woman from earlier was actually a bit strong. She even managed to injure me. Hmph!"
The Zombie Dog paid no further attention to the stunned woman and continued bounding upstairs to hunt down its remaining prey. The others had locked themselves inside a room, thinking they had narrowly escaped death. Little did they know, the Zombie Dog would shatter the wooden door with a single swipe of its paw.
"AHHH... WAAAH..." The people inside shrieked and whimpered, cowering in the corner, trembling uncontrollably.
They watched as the Zombie Dog strutted into the room with an arrogant swagger, its head held high, slowly stalking toward them. The three trembling survivors stared at the approaching beast in horror, backing away continuously until they were completely cornered. With one swipe per person, the Zombie Dog made quick work of all three, finishing them off in a matter of seconds. Afterward, it rubbed its paws against their clothes to wipe off the blood. Once clean, it inspected its paws with satisfaction and sauntered out.
Downstairs, the woman was still staring blankly at her husband’s head. The next moment, the Zombie Dog casually swatted her head with its paw, smashing it into a bloody pulp.
The scene was almost too ’picturesque’ to behold.
Having cleared the area, the Zombie Dog left the villa, seeking out the scent of other survivors. As if sensing a large group of humans nearby, its eyes lit up with sheer joy. Strutting with that same arrogant swagger, it headed in the direction of its newly discovered prey.
Back on Ginny’s side, once her Abilities and injuries had somewhat recovered, she quickly exited her dimension, appearing right at the front door of her own villa. The moment she emerged, she saw the very same Zombie Dog she had fought earlier. It was standing on the courtyard wall and lunging straight at her brother.
"Brother, watch out!" Ginny cried out, simultaneously manifesting a Void Blade and launching it at the Zombie Dog’s head.
Upon hearing Ginny’s shout, an expression of visible excitement spread across the Zombie Dog’s face. It instantly changed its trajectory, pouncing directly toward her instead. Ginny was utterly dumbfounded by this scene. She froze for a few seconds before launching another attack at the creature.
Then, she suddenly heard the Zombie Dog’s cursing echo in her mind. "Damn it, woman, you dare attack me, the King of Dogs? Heh, you’ve got some nerve! Why aren’t you kneeling before your king already?"
"This... is absolutely ridiculous," Ginny thought. "What the hell? I must be hearing things."
"Woman, stop! Damn it, I’m going to fight back. Consider this your final warning!"
Only then did Ginny halt her actions. She stared at the Zombie Dog in front of her. Just as she was about to speak, the dog suddenly dodged to the right, and the exact spot it had occupied a split second earlier was pierced by a bullet.
"Stupid woman, tell your people to stop shooting at me! Otherwise, I... I, the King of Dogs, won’t show any mercy!"
"Oh, trying to negotiate terms, are we? Heh, you think I’m scared of you? Come on then, let’s see you show no mercy! Hmph, you clearly don’t know your place."
After Ginny finished speaking, she watched the Zombie Dog huff a couple of times. Then, the voice echoed in her head again. "Fine, stupid... woman, I won’t stoop to your level. Where did you find that water on you? I want to drink it. Take me to it, and I won’t kill you foolish humans."
"You want a drink? Take care of the zombies outside. Once they’re all dealt with, I’ll consider rewarding you with a glass. How about that?"
Ginny felt like she was losing her mind. She was actually striking a deal with a zombie—and to make matters worse, it was a Zombie Dog. She seriously needed to see a psychiatrist. What the hell was going on?