Global Devourer: I Survive by Slaughtering Beasts

Chapter 9: Shadows in the Fog

The cold purple mist hung thick over the dark campus courtyard. Water dropped off the ruined trees, hitting the wet stone paths with quiet clicking sounds.

Kai walked silently through the night, his boots barely making a sound against the mud. Behind him, Fang moved like a black ghost, his dark eyes glowing in the pitch-black shadows.

The three purple-eyed zombie thralls marched behind them, their heavy feet completely silent under Kai's mental command.

Up ahead, near the broken fountain in the middle of the courtyard, flashlight beams cut through the heavy purple fog.

"Keep your eyes open, you idiots," a harsh voice growled through the dark air.

It was Vance, the captain of the security team. He stood behind a broken brick wall, holding a heavy hunting crossbow. Eight armed guards wearing black tactical vests and holding iron bats walked in front of him, sweeping the area before the main attack at dawn.

"Captain, why are we out here in the wet cold?" one guard complained, wiping water off his face. "That scholarship kid is probably shivering under a blanket in the library right now. He is just a poor boy. He will drop his weapons the second we point our crossbows at him."

"Shut your mouth," Vance snapped, clicking the safety lock on his heavy crossbow. "Brandon wants this done fast. We take the library, we take the food, and we take the girls. Anyone who talks back gets a bolt through the neck."

Fifty feet away, hiding inside the pitch-black shadow of a ruined vending tent, Kai listened to every single word. A cold, dangerous smile spread across his face.

"You think you are the hunters," Kai whispered to himself, his fingers tightening around his blood-bone spear. "Let us see how brave you are in the dark."

With a single thought, Kai sent his three zombie thralls into the fog on the left side of the courtyard.

The dead track-jacket scout zombie stumbled forward, knocking over an empty metal trash can.

CLANG!

The sharp noise echoed loudly through the quiet night. The security guards jumped in surprise, spinning around with their heavy flashlights pointed at the noise.

"What was that?" a guard shouted, his flashlight beam shaking against the purple mist. "Hey! Who is over there?!"

"Check it out, fool!" Vance ordered, shoving two guards toward the sound. "Go see what it is!"

The two guards stepped away from the main group, walking slowly into the dark fog with their iron bats raised. The moment they stepped past the shadow of the brick wall, Kai moved.

Using his high agility, Kai darted out from behind the tent like a silent panther. He appeared right behind the first guard before the man could even turn his head.

SLASH!

The jagged bone blade of Kai's spear sliced through the guard's neck with clean precision. Black and green poison instantly burned the man's vocal cords, preventing him from making a single scream. He dropped into the mud, completely dead.

Before the second guard could realize his partner was gone, Fang leaped out of the dark shadows. The massive shadow-wolf clamped its jaws around the guard's throat, dragging him deep into the bushes without a sound.

Kai placed his hand over the dead guard on the ground.

"Extract," Kai commanded in his mind.

[Target Killed! Extracting Human Attributes: +4 Strength, +3 Agility!]

A wave of hot, heavy energy surged through Kai's arms and legs. His muscles flexed tight under his skin, his physical power pushing far beyond what any normal human could ever reach. He felt lighter, faster, and completely unstoppable.

In the middle of the courtyard, Vance was getting nervous. He looked at his watch, then glared into the heavy fog.

"Miller! Jackson!" Vance yelled out, his voice sharp with anger. "What is taking you so long out there? Answer me!"

No one answered. Only the quiet dripping of the purple rain filled the air.

"Send three more men," Vance growled, his face turning pale. "Go together! Keep your flashlights on!"

Three more guards stepped into the dark fog, holding their bats with shaking hands. But Kai did not wait for them to find his position. He used his zombie thralls as bait, drawing the guards deeper into the maze of ruined campus walls.

One by one, the guards vanished into the night.

A loud bone-cracking sound echoed from the left. A muffled choking noise came from the right. Every time a guard stepped away from the light, Kai was there waiting in the dark, driving his blood-bone spear through their chest before harvesting their strength.

[Target Killed! Extracting: +3 Stamina, +4 Strength!] [Target Killed! Extracting: +5 Agility, +2 Strength!]

Within fifteen minutes, seven guards had completely disappeared into the purple fog. The remaining three guards backed up until their shoulders hit Vance's back, their flashlights waving wildly at the dark trees.

"Captain... they are all gone," one guard sobbed out, his voice breaking in total panic. "Something is out here in the dark! It is taking them one by one!"

"Shut up!" Vance screamed, his forehead covered in cold sweat. He raised his flashlight and pointed it straight down the main walkway.

Standing fifty feet away in the middle of the path was Kai.

He walked out of the purple mist slowly, holding his long blood-bone spear in one hand. The green poison edge glowed faintly in the dark, dripping dark blood onto the stone path. Behind him, Fang stepped out of the shadows, his black bone-spikes raised, while three purple-eyed zombies lined up at Kai's back.

Vance gasped, stepping backward in total horror. He looked at the blood on Kai's spear, then at the dead guards' gear hanging from Kai's waist.

"You..." Vance stuttered, his knees trembling. "You killed all my men? In fifteen minutes?!"

"I told your scout," Kai said, his voice flat and terrifyingly calm. "In my world, bullies do not get to make rules. You came out here to turn my people into slaves. Now, your life belongs to me."

Vance realized with a wave of pure terror that they were not hunting a poor scholarship student. They were hunting an absolute monster.

"Die, you freak!" Vance shrieked in pure panic.

Vance pulls a heavy crossbow and shoots a black-poisoned bolt directly into Kai’s chest from the shadows.