Chapter 410: Different Places, Different Battle

Black River Territory.

The raging river cut through the devastated landscape, its waters stained crimson by the countless zombie corpses drifting downstream.

Standing on one bank was Evelyn.

Evelyn had barely drawn her sword when steel shrieked against steel.

A long, curved blade scraped against the edge of her weapon.

The attacker retreated with a single leap.

Only then did its full appearance come into view.

Long blades extended from both forearms, while smaller ones protruded from its elbows, shoulders, and knees, transforming its entire body into a living arsenal.

This was the Blade Mimic.

Its hollow eyes silently studied Evelyn, analyzing every detail of her stance before attacking again.

Sparks erupted as its arm blade collided with Evelyn’s sword. A second blade swept toward her neck. Evelyn leaned back just enough to evade it before her sword flashed upward.

One of the Blade Mimic’s forearm blades spun through the air.

The commander paused. Flesh writhed around the severed arm as a new blade rapidly emerged, longer, broader, and sharper than before. It settled into a stance that closely resembled Evelyn’s own.

The next exchange began immediately.

The Blade Mimic’s movements became noticeably sharper, partially mirroring Evelyn’s footwork and timing. Though imperfect, its adaptation was already making it more dangerous.

Evelyn remained expressionless.

She had seen enough.

Ripples spread through the air as three identical Evelyns materialized beside her. Without a single word, the four Evelyns surrounded the commander.

The Blade Mimic’s gaze shifted rapidly between them, trying to predict their next move.

It failed.

The four Evelyns attacked as one.

The Blade Mimic reacted instantly. Its body twisted with surprising precision as it blocked two attacks and narrowly evaded a third. Its footwork rapidly adjusted, trying to imitate the synchronized rhythm of the four Evelyns.

For a brief moment, it held its ground.

But every adaptation came a fraction of a second too late. Before it could fully synchronize with one attack, another Evelyn was already striking from a different direction.

In the next instant, four swords swept through the Blade Mimic from four directions at the exact same moment.

For a brief moment, nothing happened.

Then thin lines spread across the commander’s body. Its blades twitched one final time, still searching for a way to counter the attack.

A heartbeat later, its limbs, torso, and head separated into dozens of pieces before crashing onto the ground.

The three clones quietly vanished, leaving only the original Evelyn standing.

She calmly sheathed her sword and left the battlefield without sparing the fallen commander another glance.

Vikram watched the projection until Evelyn left the battlefield.

He gave a slight nod. "Next."

"Yes, My King."

The scout adjusted the Spirit Projection Array once more. The image rippled before shifting to another battlefield.

Silver Moon Territory.

A dense forest stretched across the projection. Broken trees and zombie corpses littered the ground, while an eerie silence hung over the battlefield.

Standing alone in the middle of the clearing was Carol.

The forest remained deathly silent.

Carol smiled faintly.

Somewhere among the trees, branches creaked.

Two crimson eyes slowly opened within the darkness.

A massive wolf-like figure stepped between the trees before disappearing once more without making a sound.

This was the Nightmare Beast.

It had already begun hunting.

Carol smiled faintly and brushed a strand of hair behind her ear.

"Come on, little puppy."

Nightmare Beast moved soundlessly between the trees. Its nose twitched as it followed Carol’s scent, while its sharp ears searched for the rhythm of her heartbeat.

Then the scent disappeared.

The heartbeat vanished with it.

Nightmare Beast immediately slowed, its sharp senses searching the silent forest for even the slightest trace of its prey. After several tense moments, it finally found Carol standing exactly where she had been, quietly smiling as though she had never moved.

The beast exploded forward.

Its claws tore through her body, but the figure dissolved like smoke before its eyes. Instinctively, it twisted around, only to find Carol standing behind it once more.

It attacked again.

The second Carol vanished.

Then another.

No matter how many times Nightmare Beast struck, the result never changed. Every target disappeared, while another smiling Carol appeared somewhere else among the trees.

Gradually, the forest itself became unfamiliar. The trees stretched farther and farther into the distance, every path circling back to where it had begun. Wherever Nightmare Beast looked, Carol was already waiting.

Its hunting instincts, its senses, and even its memory could no longer distinguish reality from illusion.

Carol finally opened her eyes and looked directly at the beast.

Their gazes met.

"Found me?"

The endless forest instantly swallowed the commander’s consciousness.

Inside its mind, Nightmare Beast continued running through an endless maze, forever chasing prey it would never catch.

Outside the illusion, its body remained perfectly still.

A few seconds later, it collapsed lifelessly onto the ground without a single wound.

Carol smiled with quiet satisfaction before turning away.

"Sweet dreams."

Carol’s playful smile lingered on the projection for a moment before the image faded.

Vikram shook his head with a helpless smile. "She’s always playful."

The scout immediately understood and adjusted the Spirit Projection Array. The image rippled before settling on the next battlefield.

Shadow Fang Territory.

Darkness blanketed the forest. Moonlight barely filtered through the dense canopy, casting long shadows over a battlefield littered with broken trees and zombie corpses.

Standing silently amidst the darkness was Lyra.

A deafening roar suddenly echoed across the forest.

Trees crashed aside as a towering humanoid zombie burst into the clearing.

Thick crimson veins pulsed beneath its cracked skin, while dried blood stained its claws and chest.

This was the Blood Reaver.

Without slowing for even a moment, it charged straight toward Lyra.

Lyra calmly drew her sword. Just before its claws reached her, she melted into the surrounding shadows.

Slash!

The Blood Reaver tore through empty air. A silver flash appeared behind it.

Slice!

A deep wound opened across its back. The commander staggered for only a heartbeat before another savage roar erupted from its throat. Its crimson veins bulged, and its movements became noticeably faster.

It understood. This opponent would not meet it head-on.

Instead of chasing Lyra’s fading afterimages, the Blood Reaver smashed through the surrounding trees, collapsing them one after another to strip away her cover.

Lyra remained hidden within the shadows, silently observing.

The Blood Reaver’s attacks grew increasingly violent. It was becoming stronger... but also harder to control.

Lyra continued to evade without attacking, patiently watching the rhythm of its movements.

The Blood Reaver suddenly stopped. Its crimson eyes swept across the silent battlefield. Then it caught the faintest disturbance within a distant shadow.

It lunged with everything it had.

Boom!

Its claws crashed into the last towering tree standing nearby, splitting the trunk apart. Moonlight instantly flooded through the opening, casting a brand-new shadow beneath the falling trunk.

At that exact moment, Lyra stepped out from that newborn shadow.

The Blood Reaver sensed the danger and instinctively twisted its body. But the momentum of its reckless charge had already carried it past her.

A single silver arc flashed beneath the moonlight.

The Blood Reaver froze. A thin crimson line slowly appeared across its neck. Its massive body took two more steps before the head slid from its shoulders. The commander collapsed with a thunderous crash.

Silence returned to the Shadow Fang Territory.

Lyra calmly sheathed her sword and disappeared into the darkness without looking back.

Inside the command tent, Vikram watched the projection fade before giving a faint nod.

"She waited for the perfect strike."

The scout immediately adjusted the Spirit Projection Array once more.

The image rippled before shifting to the final battlefield.

Golden Valley.

Unlike the shattered forests of the previous territories, the valley stretched beneath the morning sun, its golden grass swaying gently in the breeze. The peaceful scenery contrasted sharply with the countless zombie corpses scattered across the open plain.

Standing alone at the center of the valley was Liora.

Her expression remained calm as she quietly watched the figure approaching from the distance.

A series of unsettling cracks echoed across the valley.

Jagged white bones slowly pushed through black flesh, shifting and reshaping as blades became armor and armor became spikes.

Only then did the towering zombie step into the sunlight.

This was the Bone Shaper.

Twin bone blades extended from its forearms before it suddenly vanished.

The ground exploded beneath its feet as it lunged toward Liora.

She remained motionless until the twin blades swept toward her. At the very last moment, her body shrank to less than half its height, allowing the attack to slice harmlessly through empty air.

Before the Bone Shaper could recover, Liora returned to her normal size. As her palm struck its chest, her body expanded for a split second, and the sudden increase in mass sent the commander skidding backward.

Without hesitation, the Bone Shaper adapted. Thick bone plates spread across its left arm to form a heavy shield, while its right arm lengthened into a massive spear before it charged once more.

Liora calmly enlarged herself just enough to meet the thrust.

Crack!

The spear shattered against her shoulder.

Instead of disappearing, the broken weapon collapsed inward before erupting into dozens of razor-sharp bone needles.

Liora shrank.

Most of the needles passed harmlessly overhead...

One grazed her sleeve before burying itself into the earth.

Her gaze lingered on the torn fabric for a brief moment.

So every transformation consumed the previous one. It could only maintain a single major form at any given time.

Liora deliberately rushed forward.

Fresh bones rapidly erupted from the Bone Shaper’s forearms, reshaping into a massive shield that blocked her attack.

An instant later, the shield dissolved into dozens of bone spikes, forcing her back once again.

Suddenly, the Bone Shaper slammed both hands into the ground.

Crack! Crack! Crack!

Massive bone pillars burst from the earth, surrounding Liora from every direction. Rather than attack immediately, the commander continued feeding more bones into the structure, reinforcing the prison until every escape route had been sealed.

Only then did it begin its final transformation.

Armor crumbled from its body as the claws and spikes withdrew, every major bone shifting toward its right arm. Moments later, they fused into a gigantic spiraling drill, leaving the rest of its body noticeably lighter.

Liora watched the transformation in silence before a faint smile appeared on her face. Her body began to grow, rising higher and higher until she towered above the prison of bone, the massive pillars reaching no higher than her knees.

With a deafening roar, the Bone Shaper launched itself skyward, the colossal drill spinning toward Liora’s chest.

At the very last instant, she shrank.

The drill tore harmlessly through empty air. Having committed nearly its entire skeleton to that single attack, the Bone Shaper could no longer reshape its body before its own momentum carried it past her.

Liora expanded once more, to place herself directly in its path.

The Bone Shaper crashed into her enormous palms as she increased her size one final time.

Crack!

The gigantic drill shattered.

Fractures raced across the remaining skeleton as bone spikes desperately erupted in a final attempt to break free. Liora continued to grow, and the steadily increasing pressure crushed the spikes before they could fully emerge.

Boom!

The Bone Shaper exploded into countless fragments of white bone that rained across the Golden Valley.

Silence returned.

Liora resumed her normal height, brushed the dust from her sleeves, and quietly walked away.

Inside the command tent, Vikram watched the projection fade with a faint smile.

"She forces her enemies to commit, while she always keeps another option."

With the fall of the Bone Shaper, the last of the Evolution King’s five commander zombies had been eliminated.

When the fifth commander finally fell, cheers erupted across the Southern Argenti Forest. Another great victory had been won.

Meanwhile, far beneath the Blood Marsh, a different silence lingered.

Five intelligent zombies returned through the underground tunnels. Each carried a crimson crystal formed from the remains of a fallen commander.