"Hmph, since you're so eager to die, I'll grant your wish and eat you as well."
The Werewolf grinned hideously, opening its bloody maw to bite down on the little girl in its hand.
At this moment, standing in the distance, Randy's eyes were brimming with a fury that was about to erupt.
"Beast."
He cursed under his breath, and his figure vanished instantly from the spot.
The next second.
At the exact moment the Werewolf was about to close its mouth, a suffocating and terrifying aura suddenly descended.
Bang!
Randy's Zombie body appeared beside the Werewolf as if he had teleported.
The Werewolf's keen animal instincts screamed a warning; it whipped its head around, wanting to see what dared to interrupt its meal.
However, all it saw was a jade-green finger pointed directly at the center of its forehead.
At the tip of the finger, a highly compressed sphere of black energy was spinning wildly, emitting ripples of destruction.
"In your next life, don't be a beast."
Randy spat out coldly.
A beam of black energy instantly pierced through the Werewolf's skull.
The Werewolf didn't even have time to scream before its massive wolf head exploded into a mist of blood; the headless corpse wobbled twice before falling straight back.
The entire scene fell into a dead silence.
All the enslaved humans and the remaining Werewolf overseers stared in terror at this winged green demon that had suddenly appeared.
As the head of the lead Werewolf exploded, the remaining Werewolf overseers were instantly scared out of their wits.
"Run! Run! It's a demon!"
They dropped their whips and dropped to all fours, about to bolt into the shadows of the ruins.
Sou!
Several green figures descended from the sky like ghosts, their massive wings unfurling to block all paths of retreat.
Those were the Rank 5 Elite Zombies controlled by Dante and the others.
"So these are the so-called werewolves?"
Dante's eyes sized up the trembling werewolves as a black energy ball slowly condensed in his hand.
"Their muscle density is decent, and they possess some self-healing ability. Keep them alive and take them back to the Research Institute; they're currently lacking new materials to study the advancement of beastification abilities."
"Yes."
Before the werewolves could even beg for mercy, they were pinned to the ground by the swarming Zombies, tied up like pigs and dragged away.
On the other side, Randy gently set down the little girl in his arms.
"Are you alright?"
He tried his best to make his tone sound gentle.
Annah looked up at the giant before her; though he looked hideous, his embrace was warm. She shook her head timidly.
"Thank you... lord angel."
"Angel?"
Randy was taken aback, then chuckled helplessly. With his appearance—green face, fangs, and draconic wings—he was much more like a demon.
"Perhaps the only thing angel-like about me is this pair of wings."
At that moment, Annah's mother came scrambling over, pulled her daughter into a tight embrace, and began kowtowing incessantly to Randy.
"Thank you, my lord! Thank you for saving our lives!"
Randy reached out with a gesture, and a gentle force lifted her up.
"There's no need for that. Tell me, where is this place? And how many survivors are there?"
The woman wiped the tears and dirt from her face and said tremblingly.
"This is Abellon in the Duchy of Fernvale. A year ago, the werewolves overran this place and turned us into food and slave labor. A city that once had over a hundred thousand people now only has a few thousand left."
"They forced us to build those strange blood-colored altars. Every day, people die from exhaustion or are eaten..."
"Altars?"
Randy's eyes narrowed slightly, but he quickly regained his composure.
"It's alright now. We will rescue you all."
He turned around and gave orders to the Zombie army behind him, his voice cold.
"Exterminate all werewolves in the vicinity, search for survivors, and bring all humans here."
"Yes!"
Rumble.
Over a thousand Rank 5 Zombies with the ability to fly soared into the air like a black cloud sweeping across the sky, spreading out in all directions over the ruins.
"Mom, look! The angels can fly!"
Annah pointed at the sky and shouted excitedly.
The woman held her daughter tightly, her gaze complicated. Though these angels looked a bit frightening, the words 'We will rescue you' were like a spark falling into her long-cold and hopeless heart.
An hour later, at the ancient city square.
Survivors were brought in one after another, their numbers gradually reaching over a thousand.
However, the scene was eerily silent.
Most of these people had vacant stares and hunched bodies; even though the werewolves had been cleared out, many still mechanically carried stones on their backs as if they had become a part of their bodies.
This was the sorrow of those at the very bottom; long-term enslavement and fear had not only destroyed their bodies but also eroded their souls.
They didn't dare look at the sky or at other people; they only dared to stare at their own feet, which were covered in bloody blisters.
Standing on high ground and witnessing this, Randy felt a sharp pang in his heart.
He was all too familiar with that look; in the Zombie World, many people were the same, living numbly until they died.
"It seems just giving them food isn't enough."
Randy took a deep breath and spoke into the communication channel.
"We need to light a fire in their hearts."
"Where are the Light-type Awakened Ones? And the Lightning-types? All of you, come over here and give me some lighting!"
"Yes!"
Dozens of Zombies with light-type abilities immediately rushed over.
The originally dark and gloomy night sky was suddenly pierced by beams of dazzling holy light.
Hum!
These lights did not scatter; instead, they focused precisely on Randy in mid-air.
The golden radiance made his hideous body look like a descending deity, and his wings reflected an awe-inspiring metallic luster under the holy light.
Lightning coiled around his body, emitting a majestic roar.
Randy slowly ascended, his hands slightly raised. Bolstered by mental power, his voice rang out like a great bell, echoing in the depths of everyone's soul.
"Raise your heads!"
This roar seemed to carry a certain magic, causing the thousand-plus numb survivors in the square to subconsciously look up.
"We are messengers from the Divine Church, the order of Saint George."
"Our Bishop, on the infinitely distant shore, felt the wails of this world, felt your pain, and felt the despair of being oppressed to the point of death."
"And so, we have come."
Randy's gaze was like a torch as he scanned the crowd.
"We have crossed the sea of stars only to shatter the chains upon you, to crush those man-eating monsters, and to give you the right to live like human beings."
The crowd below began to stir.
"Live... like human beings?"
Many had bewildered looks; that phrase was far too luxurious for them.
"I know you have forgotten dignity, forgotten resistance, and even forgotten who you are."
Randy's tone became impassioned.
"Because there is nothing behind you. You have no backing, no faith, and no strength, leaving you at the mercy of those werewolves and Vampires."
"But now, things are different."