Chapter 18 - Power

Everyone was ready to move, so they created a formation.

Erix and Rin stood at the front of the group.

Isabella was in the middle of the group, while Lena and Toshin respectively took the leftmost and rightmost positions behind Isabella.

Jacob and Serin, the son and daughter in their twenties, stood behind their parents in the group.

The formation was roughly circular, with Isabella at the center and the ten bodyguards spreading out of the circle at the back with Toshin and his family.

"Stay in this formation. Rin and I will send some zombies behind so that you all can kill," Erix said as he turned back to look at the others.

"Mr. Toshin and Mrs. Lena can kill from the sides while Jacob and Serin can handle the back part with ten bodyguards," Erix continued before he glanced at Jacob and Serin, "You can do it, right?"

"Heh, we can," Jacob scoffed as he held a traditional long sword in his hand. He had sort brown hair, both ears pierced, wore a black jacket with jeans, and was 5.8 ft tall.

"We'll handle it. After all, my parents and you two will take most of the burden," Serin nodded with a smile. She was a beauty with long maroon hair like her mother and a well-developed figure.

"Erix, you are not planning a frontal attack, right? There are hundreds of zombies on the path in front, and it's connected to the main road, which is also filled with zombies," Toshin said with a frown. "We will get overwhelmed by the numbers."

"Don't worry. I have a plan," Erix said as he looked large gate blocked by cars and big wall fences surrounding the mansion.

The zombies flooded the path outside the gate but couldn't get inside. However, it was only a matter of time before the gate was broken by either some evolved zombies or powerful mutated creatures when they got attracted here.

"What's the plan?" Lena asked.

"We obviously can't go to the military base in one go. So, our first target is a shopping mall roughly one kilometer away. You should know about that because it's on the main road," Erix said.

"Ah, so that's the plan," Rin said as she realized.

She had also watched that mall, and it was a bit unique because a ten-meter-tall monster flower resided there, and it surrounded that mall's entrance with a thick vine border and a mysterious faint mist with dark green hues.

That giant flower monster was positioned on the destroyed fountain in that ground, possibly for a constant water source.

No zombies or mutated creatures wandered there, nor could they pass by that thick vine border.

"Yes," Erix nodded at Rin before turning to Toshin and the others. "There's a big plant monster at the mall, and that's our destination."

"If we kill that monster, I am sure we will get a big loot and a significant power boost," Rin said as she grinned with excitement visible in her eyes.

"Big plant monster? Are you sure we can kill it with our current strength?" Toshin asked with doubt. He didn't want to risk his and his family's life needlessly.

"We will decide that after reaching there. Don't forget that we still have a journey of roughly 1 kilometer to cross, filled with monsters," Erix said before he turned to face the gate. "Now, let's move. I'll clear the path first."

"Clear path?"

Everyone was initially confused, but then they saw Erix walking towards a car before he bent down a bit and yanked it up!

The car flew up several meters before Erix stood below it and held it over him with his hands by combing his physical strength and Metal Control.

After that, he exerted his full strength and bent down his legs and arms before throwing the car high in the air by pushing it up!

"Damn…" Jacob cursed in awe. He had tried lifting a car but couldn't do it even though he had 29 points in Strength. 'What is his level, and how many points he has in his Strength stat?'

"But what is he planning?! He threw the car straight up and not towards the zombies outside," one of the bodyguards said with a dumbfounded expression.

But not even a second later, they got the answer!

Erix exerted his full strength on his legs before jumping up like a bullet and passing by the car before kicking it from a top arch angle toward the zombies outside!

*Smash!*

The car was kicked with a powerful force as it flew straight toward the horde of zombies in front of the gate!

*Crash…Boom!*

A loud explosion occurred, killing tens of zombies as Erix got notifications. However, he didn't get any attributes from their deaths.

Afterward, he consumed two petals of his iron flower as two big blooming flower projectiles appeared on both sides before releasing glowing metal seeds pulsing with red patterns.

Flower Barrage!

Each flower shot ten seeds in a straight line as they hit the zombies further away before exploding.

Those seeds could explode!

To test something, Erix consumed 5th and last petal of Iron Flower for another Flower Barrage.

This time, he focused when the flower shot ten seeds and used his Metal Control skill.

Suddenly, those ten shooting seeds going in a straight line stopped and came under Erix's control!

Erix smiled behind his mask as he controlled those seeds with his will and kept them in the air for two seconds before shooting them a hundred meters away, at another road beside theirs.

*BOOM!*

He killed several zombies by exploding three cars with those explosive seeds.

[You have killed a level 7 Zombie]

[You have killed a level 4 Zombie]

[You have killed a level 21 Zombie]

'Eh? A level 21 Zombie died accidentally?'

[…. Reached level 20. You have gained 2 unassigned stat points]

[Congratulatiosn! You are now a Mortal-Order being.]

[Your Life Orb has been upgraded]

+===+

[~Erix~]

_Race: Hybrid Zombie

_Level: 20 (Mortal-Order)

_Title: Beast Subjugator

_Job: None

_Life orb: 200/200

_Stat points: 36

—> [ Strength: 70 / Agility: 66 / Health: 38 / Stamina: ∞ ]

—> [ Magic affinity: Rank-A / Magic: 78 / Mana: 200/200 ]

_Skills:

______Active Skills: ______

——> [ Metal Control (1st Tier) ]

——> [ Iron Flower (1st Tier) ]

——> [ Repairman (Normal Tier) ]

______Passive Skills: ______

——> [ Aura Vision (1st Tier): Can see the residual aura of things and living beings. ]

——> [ Punch Force (1st Tier) : Punch damage +50%. ]

______Special Skills: ______

——> [ Ignis Ad Intimacy ]

+===+

'Good,' Erix nodded as he looked at his status and then at the result of his last attack.