Chapter 24: Powerful 5-Man Team

Early the next morning, the Igor family’s temporary camp bustled with lively activity.

Since they had decided to head to the ruined town in the west to try and locate the Necromancer’s Magic Rhythm, this treasure hunt brooked no delay for the Lord!

The camp’s food supplies were nearly depleted, leaving the Igor expedition with very little time.

However, while this ruined town expedition was primarily made possible by the Lord’s unique constitution that repelled zombies, it was obviously unrealistic to let him run over there alone clutching a crowbar. Although the zombies shouldn’t pose a threat, who could say for sure what unexpected dangers might be hidden inside a town that had been abandoned for over eight hundred years?

Moreover, even if Xiahou Yan had the tremendous courage to charge into the town single-handedly, Captain Alice Comstock, who constantly worried about the Lord’s safety, would never permit such a reckless gamble with his life.

Therefore, selecting the right personnel before departure to form an expedition team capable of handling emergencies became the key to this journey.

The most unquestionable member of the expedition team was naturally Lord Eliot Igor. This wasn’t because the Lord’s Magic and Martial Force would play a crucial role in critical moments, but rather because the entire adventure team relied on him to act as a protective umbrella, constantly maintaining a two-meter radius mobile safe zone on the infected plains swarming with zombies!

The second confirmed member was the esteemed Junior Mage Victor Laurie. Although this old rogue’s direction of Magic research was despicable, a dignified fifth-tier Mage was undeniably the peak of the team’s combat prowess. There was absolutely no reason for him to stay out of it. Furthermore, the purpose of this trip was the Magic Laboratory left behind by the Necromancer. Master Laurie’s experience and knowledge as a veteran Mage would be highly useful.

The third member of the team was naturally the resurrected Captain Alice Comstock. Aside from the female Swordsman’s superb Swordsmanship being worth relying on, the main reason for her joining was that wherever the Lord went, this loyal Captain of the Guard would follow.

Guard Team member Tom Lawrence was fortunate enough to become the fourth pillar of the group. This was not because his Martial Arts were exceptionally exquisite, but because after joining the Lord on a zombie-fishing outing, he had successfully made a familiar impression on Xiahou Yan and earned a limited amount of the Lord’s trust. He was an absolute nepotism hire, a fact that caused great dissatisfaction among the other eager Guards who wanted to go out and get some fresh air with the Lord.

Finally, considering that the crowbar-swinging Lord, the sword-wielding Alice, and the blade-using Lawrence all belonged exclusively to the hack-and-slash melee camp, Master Laurie suggested adding a young Guard named Chris Mann. He successfully made the cut as the final member of the expedition team. The young Chris, only in his early twenties, was precisely the first fallen Guard resurrected by the Lord the night before last. He was also the only marksman in the group proficient in archery.

Because the area of the safe zone Xiahou Yan could create was limited, he and Master Laurie discussed the matter and agreed that a five-person team was sufficient. If there were any more people, it would be too easy to accidentally step outside the Lord’s protection range, hindering their movement and potential combat.

Truthfully, Xiahou Yan quite wanted to use the Corpse Control Technique to bring Zombie Dave along. Despite its ugly appearance, the zombie’s combat effectiveness was nothing to scoff at. It could easily be treated as a reliable battle pet, allowing the Lord to experience the thrill of unleashing his pet like Rek’sa.

However, the other team members protested this idea one after another, with Mr. Tom Lawrence being the most vehement. Xiahou Yan had no choice but to drop the idea and obediently lock Dave in his cage.

The other members of the Guard Team all remained at the camp to keep watch. Since the campsite was near the forest, the risk of a zombie tide attack was actually not significant. The so-called "keeping watch" was mainly to guard against their little zombie brother, Dave, in the cage.

Thus, the party of five rode their respective horses out of the camp in the dim light of dawn, heading west.

According to Master Laurie’s arrangement, these Five Tiger Generals of the Igor family maintained a rather strict formation along the way.

The Lord, who was the most crucial and needed the most care, rode his little white horse, Meteor, right in the middle. Master Laurie and Alice flanked him on both sides to provide protection. The expendable Lawrence walked at the very front to scout the path, while Guard Chris brought up the rear, holding a shortbow and carrying a quiver on his back.

After leaving the camp, the cross-shaped formation traveled only a few miles before entering a territory controlled by a large number of zombies. The members of the expedition team once again witnessed the Lord’s miraculous power.

The two-meter radius centered on the Lord became an absolute forbidden zone that zombies could not set foot in. Their team was like a drop of oil floating on water, repelling the surrounding Waves of zombies and moving unhindered through the infected zone that terrified countless Imperial People.

Although he had long made up his mind not to pry into the Lord’s series of special abilities, Master Laurie couldn’t help but click his tongue in wonder. The other three Martial Artists looked at the Lord with eyes full of awe.

Only the Lord himself knew the score perfectly well. The cost-free Resurrection Technique that consumed no Magic Power, the Soul Summoning that revived the dead along with their souls, and the Ghost Hater constitution that repelled zombies—all these extraordinary abilities of his had to be related to his identity as an Earth Transmigrator!

Otherwise, there was absolutely no way to explain why the laws of Magic, which had always been effective for Eliot Igor previously, suddenly became entirely null and void upon reaching him, as if a contract had been torn up.

Furthermore, Xiahou Yan had ample reason to believe that the phantom of King Yama that appeared when he used the Resurrection Technique was absolutely responsible for these bizarre circumstances!

In any case, an Earthly Divine Spirit manifesting so plainly in the Otherworld was definitely not a normal phenomenon!

Xiahou Yan silently made up his mind. Once he had the time, he had to put two major matters on his agenda.

First, he needed to test other types of Forbidden Magic to see if Undead Magic was the only one that had bugged out.

Second, he absolutely had to get a scroll painting of Lord Yama to hang on the wall and respectfully burn a few sticks of incense for the old man every day. To be in the Otherworld and still receive Lord Yama’s care without properly expressing gratitude to this overlord of the Underworld whose authority had crossed boundaries would truly tarnish the traditional transmigrator virtue of repaying one’s debts.

As the Lord plotted his future in his mind, he smoothly twirled the crowbar in his hand, feeling increasingly proficient with the weapon. However, before he could hit his full stride, Master Laurie had already guided his Imperial Horse closer from the left. He stretched a hand out from the sleeve of his Magic Robe and pointed ahead.

"Lord, look!"

Xiahou Yan looked up and discovered the silhouette of a castle with towering steeples and crisscrossing battlements gradually emerging in the distant morning mist.

"That is the birthplace of the Igor family, Raven Castle, built single-handedly by Count Henry Igor eight hundred years ago!" Master Laurie sighed with deep emotion. "And Black Water Town, the hometown of that genius Necromancer and the epicenter of the Undead infection outbreak, is situated right at the foot of the castle!"