Chapter 67: The Short-haired Girl Whose Defenses Crumbled?!

From the surrounding thickets, a large number of ghouls emerged in scattered groups, coming to stand beside the corpse of their fallen kin. Sweeping the area with the Eye of the Savage Beast, Wang Chen saw that they were all silver-tier creatures—there wasn’t a single bronze among them. He dared not provoke them; with so many gathered, even a third-tier professional would be torn to pieces.

As the ghouls assembled, a stench grew heavy in the air, as if the rotting corpses of a mass grave had been unearthed, filling the surroundings with that unspeakable reek.

“I need to figure out a way to escape. Otherwise, even if I’m not ripped apart, I’ll be suffocated by this stench,” Wang Chen thought.

He had already switched to breathing through his mouth, hoping to fend off the overwhelming odor, but it was so potent that it invaded his nasal cavity anyway, leaving a lingering taste of decay.

The ghouls formed a circle around the body, emitting guttural roars that no human could decipher, passing some message from one to another. When the message reached the outermost ghoul, they all howled in unison, as if mourning their dead companion.

Their collective wail was so loud it seemed as if it could tear the very air apart, startling flocks of birds from the treetops.

The mourning didn’t end quickly; after their cries, they formed a wide ring around the corpse, raising their massive bone clubs in a line, as if connecting carriages of a train.

While circling the body, they performed a bizarre dance—sometimes chanting, sometimes screaming with sudden ferocity.

“I understand your brotherhood runs deep, but isn’t this a bit much?” Wang Chen shouted in his mind.

He was on the verge of collapse, feeling as if the stench had seeped into his very bones.

“Couldn’t you deal with the body first? If you keep dancing, it’ll just rot more. Not that it isn’t already unbearable…”

As if responding to his silent complaint, the ghouls finally stopped their dance after a long while. After a stream of unintelligible gibberish, they shouted in unison.

“Do Kela!”

They all chanted the same syllables, as if calling a name.

While Wang Chen wondered what new madness was unfolding, a powerful tremor shook the ground. The leaves before him shivered violently.

With the vibrations drawing closer, an enormous shadow entered his vision.

It had strange blue skin, animal pelts thrown together in disarray, and a hulking, almost bloated frame. It was unmistakably a ghoul, but compared to the others, its size was monstrous—at least five or six meters tall and nearly as wide, looming like a small mountain or a city wall.

Most distinct were the two massive tusks curving up from the corners of its mouth, thick and arched like elephant ivory.

Wang Chen’s eyes flashed violet, and information about the beast surfaced in his mind.

[Giant Ghoul lv25]

[Skill One: Savage Cleave—Wields a massive bone club, striking downward with a force so fast the tip can reach the speed of a car. Combined with the club’s weight, being struck is akin to being hit by a heavy-duty truck.]

[Skill Two: Savage Warcry—Lets out a deafening roar that can stun enemies and interrupt attacks.]

[Skill Three: Savage War Banner—When used with Skill Two, all nearby ordinary ghouls within a kilometer are summoned by the warcry, as if seeing a battle flag, and fall into a frenzy.]

The giant ghoul casually shoved aside those in its path, lumbering heavily to stand beside the corpse. With a loud shout, it tore off one of the corpse’s arms and shoved it into its mouth, chewing noisily.

“What?” Wang Chen was dumbfounded.

He’d heard that in some remote, primitive tribes, the natives ate the bodies of their deceased relatives, but this was the first time he’d witnessed it firsthand.

The social norms he’d absorbed throughout his modern upbringing made the scene almost unbearable. His stomach churned violently.

Moreover, the ghouls seemed to be enjoying themselves far too much—there wasn’t a trace of sorrow for their fallen kin.

Wang Chen watched as the giant ghoul tore off a limb and tossed it to the others, who received the grisly gift with glee, burying their faces in the flesh, smearing blood all over their mouths.

It was as festive as handing out wedding sweets.

When the limbs were distributed, the giant ghoul began dividing up the innards. The ghouls who received the organs bit into them, releasing an even more nauseating stench into the air.

“Urgh—” Wang Chen nearly lost control and vomited outright.

Though he managed to hold back at the last moment, only retching dryly, the small sound still caught the attention of one ghoul amid the chaos.

It turned its head in puzzlement, sniffing the air as it lumbered unsteadily toward the tree where Wang Chen was concealed.

A flicker of flame danced at Wang Chen’s fingertips—the Flame Python Blade appeared in his grip. If discovered, he’d unleash a wave of fire and make his escape.

But before he could act, a dark bundle tumbled from a nearby tree, landing with a resounding thud.

Wang Chen was stunned. The ghouls turned as one to the source of the noise.

There, a petite, short-haired girl with a cute face lay on the ground. She pushed herself up with both hands and vomited violently on the spot.

When she finished, she wiped her mouth and stood, glaring fiercely at the ghouls.

“You filthy beasts—stinking shrimp-heads! Can’t you at least bathe? You reek so badly I’m dizzy!” she shouted.

The ghouls erupted in excitement—a fresh, live meal had appeared before them. Who would want to gnaw on their dead brother now? They flexed their claws eagerly, forming a tight encirclement around the short-haired girl, ready to pounce at any moment.

“She wants to steam the ghouls like shrimp heads? That’s terrifying… Why not become my supplier for traitor bounties instead?” Wang Chen muttered to himself from his perch in the canopy.

He stowed the Flame Python Blade in his ring and drew the Forest Tempest instead.

They were both human; he decided to wait for a chance to help the girl. If he could save her, so much the better—if not, he’d flee.

After all, she’d probably been driven to a fit of rage by the smell, losing her composure and her reason, only to start discussing personal hygiene with ghouls.

But now, as the ghouls closed in, fear returned, and her intellect reasserted itself.

She took a decisive step back, preparing to climb the tree and pretend nothing had happened.

But a massive bone club crashed down, smashing the tree she’d chosen to pieces.

She recoiled in terror. Looking back, she saw it was the giant ghoul’s doing. Had she not dodged in time, she would have been reduced to a pulp.

Meanwhile, the ghouls’ encirclement was complete—a dense, impenetrable formation pressed in. The girl’s last chance to escape was gone.

She shot the giant ghoul a furious glare, then ran her palm across her ankle, producing a dagger.

“Hey, big brute, do you dare fight me one-on-one?” she challenged in a clear, ringing voice.

“Wai bi ba bo?” The giant ghoul looked at her in confusion, unable to comprehend.