A single-player post-apocalyptic game, but with an all-female teammate mod.

The entire subway station seemed to have been put on pause.

This strike nearly cleaved the giant mycelium zombie, which was two stories high, in two.

A terrifying, deep gash, revealing bone, pierced through the body stitched together from flesh and mycelium.

The purple lightning burned at the edge of the wound, not only severing the connection of the hyphae, but also suppressing its exaggerated self-healing ability.

The power of the Wuxiang One-Slash is terrifying.

But the consumption is equally staggering.

"You all... leave quickly."

General Thunder's voice grew weak, yet remained calm.

She knelt on one knee, her dream gradually fading away as she held the lightning-elemental katana in her right hand.

"I can still hold out for a while longer.

She raised her head, gripped the naginata again, and stared intently at the monster that, though severely wounded, had not yet fallen, with lightning still blazing in her purple eyes.

Even though he knew that the Thunder General in front of him was just an NPC operating according to the rules, Aono couldn't help but be moved.

But reason prevailed over emotion.

We cannot waste the precious time that General Thunder and Lightning has fought so hard to gain.

"Dudu! Keep up!"

Qingye pulled Dudu along and ran as fast as he could into the depths of the tunnel.

Behind them, there was the deafening roar of lightning colliding wildly with mycelium.

After passing through a pitch-black tunnel about a hundred meters long, the sight before them made Aono and Dudu pause in surprise.

What appeared before them was a huge underground cavern.

Countless glowing mycelia hang from the dome, like an upside-down forest.

In the center of the forest, there grew a gigantic, indescribable mass.

It looks like a tree, or like an egg buried underground.

The thick mycelial roots burrow into the ground, covered by a translucent membrane, through which one can vaguely see the rhythmic pulsation inside, like some kind of giant heart.

Hundreds of blood vessels extend from the 'heart', connecting to mycelial eggs the size of human figures.

Among these hundreds of 'blood vessels', one stands out conspicuously.

This fungal filament, almost as thick as a bowl, extends directly from the top of the 'heart' and connects to the back of the giant zombie not far away.

Meanwhile, with each heartbeat, one egg hatches.

One after another, mycelium zombies emerged from their cocoons and surged towards Aono and his companion.

"God..."

Dudu covered her mouth, her face turning deathly pale.

"So all the monsters were born here. No wonder the regeneration rate inside the tunnel is so much faster than outside."

"Yes, not only that, but that huge guy's outrageous self-healing ability is also due to this... source."

Aono was equally shocked, but he did not panic.

These mycelial zombies may appear numerous, but they are not actually a significant threat.

What caught his attention was a small, ape-like figure next to the 'heart'.

It was a small, thin monster less than 1.2 meters tall, with dark gray skin, long, thin limbs, and joints bent backwards. Its scarlet eyes were filled with ferocity and murderous intent.

21. The second boss

Aono's gaze was fixed on the pulsating "heart," but his peripheral vision never left the short, gray figure.

Unlike other mycelium zombies that wander aimlessly, this thing crouched around the mycelium heart, its scarlet eyes flashing in the dim light, staring straight at them.

Aono's long-cultivated combat instincts told him that this little thing, like the big guys outside, was definitely a tough opponent at the BOSS level.

"Dudu."

Aono lowered his voice and pulled the girl half a step behind him, "Watch out for that skinny monster. I reckon it's like that giant zombie outside, it's..."

Before he could finish speaking, something unexpected happened.

The short figure seemed to have vanished into thin air.

Without a roar, without warning, one moment they were ten meters away, the next they were already behind Dudu.

The slender, sickle-like claws stabbed straight at Dudu's nape.

too fast!

It was faster than Aono had ever known the speed of monsters!

"Lower your head!"

Aono felt a chill run down his spine, and as he shouted, his body reacted before his mind could process it.

He stomped off the ground, almost hitting Dudu on the shoulder, and knocked her to the ground.

scoff!

The sharp claws grazed across Aono's back, and the short-sleeved shirt that was barely enough to cover him completely disintegrated, turning into scattered strips of cloth lying on the ground.

Three bloody claw marks appeared on Aono's sturdy back.

Missing its target, the tiny, ape-like mycelium zombie landed lightly, letting out a sharp, piercing screech, as if mocking its prey's luck.

Its scarlet eyes gleamed with even greater ferocity.

"Wow, that's fast."

Aono steadied himself, still shaken.

That attack came so suddenly, it was almost entirely due to fighting instinct and a bit of luck.

However, with precautions in place, they are not completely unable to react.

To prevent Dudu from encountering danger again, Qingye gripped the fire axe tightly and stepped forward to meet him.

Faced with Aono's proactive attack, this mycelium zombie, specializing in speed and attack, decisively changed its target.

This time, Qingye was on guard. He swung his axe upwards, slashing fiercely at the monster's center with a whooshing sound.

when!

A crisp sound, like metal striking stone.

The small zombie's claws actually blocked the heavy fire axe. The enormous force came from the axe handle, making Qingye's hand go numb.

Using the force, the monster leaped into the air, its sharp claws striking Qingye's face, forcing him to retreat repeatedly.

Its attacks were completely haphazard, but its speed was strange.

UI.

This time, Aono truly understood the significance of those words.

Unfortunately, he doesn't know Tai Chi.

There's no way to overcome speed with slowness or hardness with softness.

Aono relied entirely on his rich combat experience and instinctive parrying and dodging, and for a time he was in grave danger.

But as time went by, his pressure gradually decreased.

Aside from the numerical values, neither the burly guard outside nor this little thing in front of me is fundamentally different from other mycelium zombies.

There are only a few fixed attack methods.

With enough attempts, you can kill it by memorizing the base.

This is a characteristic of single-player games.

Aono ducked to dodge a sweeping claw attack, then followed up with an elbow strike to force back the monster that was trying to follow up with a combo.

He took a breath and looked at the mycelial heart behind the short zombie.

After several exchanges and tests, it has been determined that the mycelial heart is the key.

Whether it's the big one outside or this little thing, they are all protecting the heart of this mycelium.

"Dudu, have you dealt with all the zombies around here?" Qingye asked while keeping an eye on the short zombies' sudden attacks.

"Well, it's almost there."

Dudu, holding the flamethrower, nodded vigorously.

"Okay, next you go burn that mycelial heart."

Holding the fire axe, Aono cleaved back the small zombie that lunged at him with a vertical slash and said, "As long as we destroy that heart, these monsters should all be affected, and may even die directly."

"Okay, I'll go right away."

The girl responded and, while dealing with the constantly hatching ordinary mycelium zombies, moved closer to the mycelium's heart.

As the girl approached the heart of the mycelium, the diminutive zombie, resembling an ape, became visibly anxious.

The crimson in its eyes intensified, and its attacks became even more rapid, almost transforming into a gray whirlwind.

Several times it even tried to bypass Aono and attack Dudu directly.

But Aono wouldn't let him succeed.

He no longer pursued offense, but instead focused entirely on defense.

Axe handle, arms, shoulders—they did everything in their power to block the monster's relentless onslaught, all to buy Dudu time.

In the dark underground cavern, only the rapid clang of clashing weapons and Aono's heavy breathing could be heard.

About ten minutes later, Dudu finally sprinted the last few meters.

Before the new mycelial zombies could hatch, she aimed her flamethrower at the pulsating mycelium.

Thick tongues of fire instantly licked upwards.

Sizzle sizzle sizzle—!

A tooth-searing, burning sound echoed in the hollow.

The heart, which had been beating gently, suddenly contracted violently, and the slippery biofilm on its surface quickly charred and carbonized under the high temperature.

It even emitted a pungent black smoke mixed with the smell of meat.

"it works!"

Dudu perked up, pressed the spray button and held it down, the fire stream firmly fixed on the same spot in his heart.

However, just when she thought victory was in her grasp, she discovered something was wrong.

Although the heart was charred black, it was not completely necrotic as one might have imagined.

Beneath the charred surface, pink granulation tissue is wriggling and regenerating at a speed visible to the naked eye.

Its resilience is incredible!

Fire damage has a counter effect, as the damage rate exceeds its regeneration rate, but it takes a considerable amount of time to completely destroy it.

Fortunately, it seems that the mycelial heart used all its power to repair itself, and the mycelial zombies that were constantly hatching no longer appeared.

Without any interference, Dudu focused intently on burning the mycelial heart in front of her, which resembled neither a tree nor an egg.

Time passed second by second, and the carbonized part of the mycelial heart gradually expanded.

One-tenth, one-fifth, one-third...

"Dudu, how much longer?"

Aono was already in a sorry state.

He had several deep, bone-revealing wounds on his body.

Facing small zombies that move incredibly fast, you can't dodge them; you even have to actively intercept them, increasing the danger several times over.

For those twenty-odd minutes, he endured it all with sheer grit.

Axe handle parry, arm deflection, shoulder bracing...