The Imperial Scepter of Glory

Chapter 13 The Undead (Part I)

As winter approached, it was not unusual to see a few snowflakes drifting down from the high mountains. However, encountering an empty, abandoned mountain village with traces of blood made the snowfall less charming.

Lin Tan was cautious and did not allow the mercenaries and merchants to enter the rooms to rest. Instead, he found an open area in the village, set up camp, and strictly constructed some simple defensive structures.

After nearly two hours of preparation, the camp finally settled into quietness. Most people had already gone to sleep, and for the night watch, Galabron was responsible for the first half, while Lin Tan took the second half.

Soon, everyone was asleep. Lin Tan, however, tossed and turned in his single-person tent, unable to fall asleep. Just as he was about to drift into slumber, a sharp alarm and a scream abruptly woke him.

Lin Tan immediately sprang up, as if a bucket of cold water had been poured over him, and he became fully alert. He didn't even have time to put on his full armor; he quickly donned a thin nightgown, threw on an outer garment, grabbed his finely crafted longsword, and rushed out.

The first scene he saw was Galabron and several mercenaries fighting against a group of zombies. Two two-handed swordsmen lay on the ground, their bodies lifeless. They had been on watch with Galabron. Galabron's knight armor also bore some marks. Judging by the mercenaries' disarray, they were clearly struggling to hold their ground.

Without hesitation, Lin Tan charged forward, channeling his holy aura to s***h away. The purifying effect of the holy aura was limited against ordinary people, but it was a powerful weapon against undead creatures. White flames enveloped his longsword. When it struck a zombie, a sizzling sound was heard, and a small cluster of white flames clung to the zombie's body. Within seconds, it was reduced to a pile of ashes.

"What's going on?" After eliminating three zombies, Lin Tan approached Galabron, helping him fend off the zombies while asking loudly.

"Suddenly, a group of zombies appeared and attacked our camp!" Galabron panted heavily, with several bruises on his body. His right shoulder had been bitten by a zombie. Being attacked by undead creatures was troublesome, especially zombies. Their claws and teeth often carried toxins or diseases. Fortunately, Lin Tan's holy aura was their nemesis, and with a little treatment, there would be no problem.

In the camp, the mercenaries had all woken up and rushed out. Most hadn't had time to don their full gear, wearing only their outer garments and wielding weapons. Some, more cautious, had put on their armor. However, the number of zombies was considerable—about thirty to forty—pressing Lin Tan and his group back. Before long, two more mercenaries had fallen victim to the zombies.

The situation was too chaotic. If it were a direct confrontation, the spear soldiers would form a pike formation, the two-handed swordsmen would prepare for close combat, and with Lin Tan and Galabron as regular knights, dealing with thirty or so zombies wouldn't be too difficult. However, now, nearly half of the people hadn't even had time to put on their gear, and even the spear soldiers, who weren't good at close combat, had to wield short swords and fight the enemy up close.

Lin Tan felt anxious. It wasn't about the danger; eliminating these thirty or so zombies wasn't particularly difficult. After all, zombies were low-level undead creatures. Even ordinary adventurers or mercenaries, if fighting alone, might get injured, but they could mostly win. However, the number was considerable, and it was a night attack. Even if they could eliminate these zombies, their side would likely suffer significant casualties.

Fortunately, the battle didn't last long. The zombies quickly retreated, which relieved Lin Tan.

After the battle, the merchants gradually emerged from their hiding places. The caravan's leader had completely lost his former gentlemanly demeanor and trembled as he approached, saying, "Wha... what happened? How could there be zombies here?"

Lin Tan was very irritated. "How would I know?" In this battle, the Freyger Mercenary Group had lost four people, and several others had been injured to varying degrees. Lin Tan had used the purifying effect of his holy aura to treat them, ensuring there would be no issues with the wounds.

"What should we do now? It's all your fault for not taking the main road and leading us through this cursed mountain path!" The caravan leader was somewhat terrified; perhaps he had never encountered undead creatures before.

"My fault? Well, now none of you have been harmed, and there's no significant loss of property. How about you all go down the mountain? Consider this mission terminated," Lin Tan retorted, immediately silencing the caravan leader.

Lin Tan turned away, began to tally the casualties. Two two-handed swordsmen and two spear soldiers had fallen, and about ten mercenaries had been injured to varying degrees. The most serious was a left arm crushed by a bite; without a priest of at least level three, it would be impossible to treat properly.

Lin Tan sighed and began to inspect the bodies of the zombies. Soon, a discovery made his face change color: these zombies were undoubtedly the former residents of this mountain village! He had even seen a few of them; during the battle, due to the darkness and the zombies' hideous faces, he hadn't recognized them.

"Damn it, what could have turned nearly a hundred villagers into zombies?" Lin Tan felt that the situation was tricky.

"Wait, this mountain village had a hundred people? But just now, there were only about thirty zombies attacking us... There are still nearly seventy left?" Lin Tan's face changed slightly. He carefully examined the bodies of the zombies again and immediately turned pale: these zombies had residual magical auras, most likely controlled. The most probable culprit was a necromancer.

"If we don't eliminate this necromancer... our group will be too dangerous!" This thought, when shared with Galabron, was immediately supported. No one wanted to be targeted by a necromancer. These thirty zombies had already caused the Freyger Mercenary Group to be in disarray. If the number increased to eighty, the consequences would be unimaginable.

Lin Tan immediately gathered all the mercenaries. Five mercenaries were assigned to guard the merchants who remained in the mountain village. Lin Tan and Galabron, leading the remaining twenty or so mercenaries, followed the path the zombies had retreated on.

Lin Tan was anxious. He had a vague idea: with over a hundred villagers missing and only thirty zombies, if all the villagers had been killed and turned into zombies, tonight would be perilous. Why hadn't the enemy concentrated their forces? Any intelligent mage wouldn't be foolish. Clearly, the enemy had some limitations... Most likely, they couldn't convert all the villagers at once and had to send out a batch first!

If the enemy could turn eighty villagers into zombies, the consequences would be dire. Lin Tan urged the team to move faster.

Soon, the Freyger mercenaries caught up with the slow-moving zombies...