For a normal human, a few hundred pounds of mutated beast might have been more than enough, but for a six-meter tall giant, it was only good for two or three portions. The problem was, there were 13 giants in total.
A feeding beast was a terrifying sight, but what was even more terrifying was a group of beasts facing a shortage of food.
At the beginning of their meal, the giants had been ferocious, yet vigilant. However, as the food became less and less, their feeding became increasingly frenzied, and they ended up plundering each other. By that time, all traces of alertness had long been forgotten.
The moonlight in the dark sky cast a red eerie glow against the foggy background.
Suddenly, there was a gust of wind. Heaps of fallen leaves could be seen swirling around. Amid the wind, a soft sound rustling could be heard.
The leader of the giants, who had been through countless battles and life-and-death situations, was more sensitive to danger. He felt that something was not right and instinctively lifted his head.
His pupils contracted and focused on a small human silhouette moving at phantom-like speed towards them. At first sight, the silhouette had still been ten meters away from them, but in the blink of an eye, it was suddenly in front of them. The giant was in a state of shock, fear making its heart miss a beat.
Just as he was preparing to roar, a blinding silver light flooded its line of sight. It opened its mouth, but no sound came out. Instantly, a streak of blood extended from its cheekbone to its chin. Blood gushed out rapidly as its entire head was split into two.
The silhouette disappeared swiftly and reappeared near a new target. The attack just now had not slowed it down; it could easily travel four to five meters in just a single step. The intruder was dressed in black. In the darkness, they seemed to move like a shadow; akin to an incarnation of the Grim Reaper.
A gust of wind blew by, and the light from the sharp tip of the Zhanmadao emerged out of the shadows, piercing the glabella of another giant. The acute pain stunned the giant for a moment, who did not know what had hit it.
Although it seemed like a long time had passed since the silhouette had first appeared, in reality it had only been half a second from the moment it had leapt out of the bushes. The first giant's skull had only just been detached from its torso.
However, the rest of the giants were still unaware of this, fully immersed in their feeding frenzy as they were.
Three, four, five giants...
As time went by, the attacks were becoming increasingly obvious. However, the strong wind and the splattering blood prevented the giants who noticed from alerting the others. The sabre would suddenly appear and slice off their skulls, or Wang Shishi's flying shuttle would pierce them.
The first corpse had only just dropped to the ground. The giant's body weighed almost a ton, and it smashed to the ground with a dull thud. The huge commotion had finally alerted the remaining three giants.
It was too late, though.
The speed of the shadow suddenly increased three-fold, hitting its limits.
The moment the first giant was about to take action, the shadow was already behind it. The giant picked up a spear, but a strike of the sharp sabre cut it in half in mid-air.
As the second giant watched the scene, its face betrayed its fear. It was about to shout, but before it could make a sound, the sharp edge of the sabre had stabbed through its mouth to the crown of its head.
The third giant had already been killed by the flying shuttle.
Seeing that all the giants had been taken care of, Luo Yuan let out a sigh of relief. He turned and looked at the strange-looking, rugged cliff. A zigzag path had been carved onto the rocks, leading upwards until the edge of the cliff.
The slaughter had only just begun.
Luo Yuan could hear light footsteps behind him. He didn't have to turn his head to know it was Wang Shishi.
"Brother Luo, these giants were really easy to defeat," said Wang Shishi. There was a trace of both excitement and disappointment in her voice. That group of giants had seemed so imposing that they'd thought they'd be very powerful. They had not expected them to be this easy to defeat. They'd been far weaker than the beasts they'd come across.
"Intelligent creatures have never been known for their brute strength... Forget about it. You head back first and bring the others over here," Luo Yuan said before he let out a laugh. They really took everything too seriously, and now they were facing a precarious situation, trying to hold on for dear life. There was no point in thinking too much. As long as they were alive, there was still hope. Besides, Luo Yuan did not think human beings would perish that easily.
"Oh!" Wang Shi Shi replied glumly. Brother Luo's answer had obviously been half-hearted. She hated when people treated her like a child, especially when the person doing it was Brother Luo.
"This group of giants has chosen a good place to live, but there are two sides to everything. Although this place is easy to hold and hard to attack, when one is overpowered, they are pretty much trapped. Unless they choose to jump off that cliff. You have to take care of all the giants that come down the cliff," said Luo Yuan.
"Can we use our guns then?" Cao Lin said nervously.
"Yes, you can. Wait until the giants start to jump down, though. Then using a gun or not makes no difference anymore," said Luo Yuan after some thought. "Well, let's get ready. I will attack in half a minute."
Suddenly, the group began to breathe fast. Their hearts were thumping non-stop, and their expressions had turned nervous. The adults looked better, because they had experienced something like this more than once. The children had turned pale, though.
This time, no one paid any attention to them.
Half a minute passed by in a flash. Luo Yuan took a deep breath, and then slowly exhaled. He picked up his Zhanmadao, crouched, and took a few steps before disappearing. Flexible as a cheetah, his steps were silent but unbelievably fast. He moved unhurriedly, although his speed was faster than the average sprinter. The distance was quickly reduced to mere inches, giving off an eerie feeling.
Within a few breaths' time, Luo Yuan had disappeared towards the cliff.
After a moment, a vague sound like a growl of pain was heard. It sounded unreal, as if it was just an illusion. Beasts could be heard growling from somewhere around the area too. Suddenly, the sound became more frequent, and the faint stench of blood filled the air gradually.
One minute, two… Five...
Apart from that resonating nauseating sound, there had been no other movement in the area. The group looked at each other, their initial anxiety gradually loosening up.
Suddenly, a deafening roar was heard in the distance. Just as they'd heard it though, it was quickly muffled, perhaps by Luo Yuan himself. It was already too late, though.
Like a boiling pot of porridge, the whole cliff suddenly started to tremble. One by one, the giants gave out loud roars. From the depths of the cliff, giants could be seen rushing out. Soon, the passageway of the cliff was packed with them.
The roars and snarling of the countless giants sounded like the low rumbling of thunder. From afar, the whole scene looked like thousands upon thousands of horses and soldiers.
Intimidated by the sight, the group subconsciously started to retreat.
Commander Xia, who had survived the apocalypse, had been observing the expression on everyone's faces. Realizing that their confidence had been affected, he shouted loudly, "We have Luo Yuan! The giants will not be able to reach us. We will only need to handle the injured giants at worst."
Everyone relaxed slightly, but their eyes were still fixed up ahead. The situation was indeed under control. The giants were arranged in a meandering line, as if they'd been blocked by some invisible force. No matter how they charged at it, they were still beaten.
Limbs were tossed in the air, blood spattered around, and the reflective ray of the sabre produced a rainbow-like image.
One by one, the bodies of the giants fell heavily off the cliff, making a dull thud as they landed by the foot of the cliff.
Luo Yuan's eyes were cold, and his face was expressionless. He looked a killing machine. There were several giants collapsing on the ground every second.
Along with his improving skills and increasing number of battles, his moves had also become smoother. He used less fancy tricks, and each execution was calculated by the shortest distance, maximizing the force of the attack. His style was sophisticated, perfectly fitting the ergonomics of the human body. His every move and attack was measured precisely, without the slightest error, waste or excessive use of strength. His attacks combined both strength and beauty. They were swift and fierce like a storm, yet flitting like lightning. One could barely catch a glimpse of them.
In terms of his technique, the skill he had with his weapon had reached its peak. All he could do now was increase his strength and speed, as well as his spiritual power.
The path excavated by the giants was about five to six meters wide, and could easily fit eight or nine giants walking side by side. The weapons they used varied. There were spears made with mutated beast teeth and stones as big as washing basins. Some giants were even holding tree logs as thick as thighs.
Each passing minute, numerous weapons were being thrown at Luo Yuan, but each time there were giants collapsing, one by one. Regardless of how loud they roared or how fiercely they attacked, they could not deter him.
He even had some spare time to himself. While he was attacking, he was also kicking some of the bodies off the cliff to prevent them from piling up and blocking his way.
The Earth was constantly replenishing his physical strength, so he was not feeling tired. Although the giants were brave and ferocious, and not afraid to defend themselves, their strength was nothing against his. Batch after batch of giants charged at him with an angry expression on their faces, but they were all easily torn apart before they dropped dead to the ground.
A stream of blood mixed with crushed flesh, guts, and a disgusting foam had formed a pool and was seen slowly trickling down the path on the cliff. The strong stench of blood remained stagnant in the air.
The killing spree had been going on for half an hour, but the number of giants had yet to reduce. They seemed to be endless. Luo Yuan gradually lost his patience and took a step back, retrieving a short spear from a fish-skin pocket and making a winding motion like the spine of a dragon. The next moment, a snapping sound was heard, and the air produced a blasting sound as the short spear shot out like a flash of lightning.
It instantly passed through the chest of a giant, leaving a large clear hole the size of a bowl in it. Then it went through a second one, a third one… The spear did not stop until it had gone through six giants.
This spear was not same one that Luo Yuan had used during the day to blow off the targets. This one was made from blue level wood he had specifically looked for that afternoon. That kind of wood was extremely sturdy and as compact as steel. It had an incredible penetrating power, and was highly effective against lower and medium-sized beasts.
Truth be told, the giants were not that weak compared to Luo Yuan. Plus, they were also armed. Their force could not match Luo Yuan's, though. That was because it was too crude. They were still using brute force, and could not even be compared to the average athlete.
In contrast, Luo Yuan unleashed force from his entire body, from his toes to his waist and his fingertips. Even his idle left hand was moving in harmony with the rest of his body. Eighty percent of his body's muscles were working simultaneously, so his power could be unleashed fast and almost twice as hard as the giants'.
Luo Yuan's speed did not falter after the first shot. His hand was almost a blur by now. Shots were released from his hands one after the other like an automaton cannon. His killing efficiency had doubled fast, the giants falling and collapsing in rows.
In just a few seconds, the space ahead had been cleared up. Numerous giants could be seen collapsing to the ground, struggling and moaning as their eyes filled with fear and despair.
It was a complete massacre. Their fear of death and the huge casualties had finally brought the downfall of the giants. In a moment of despair, realizing they had no way to escape, some of the giants panicked and jumped off the cliff, landing heavily on the ground below and letting out deafening cries.
Luo Yuan was forty to fifty meters above. Although the giant's build could allow them to survive the jump, the fall would still cause some serious injuries to them. Plus, there was still Wang Shishi and the others down there, so none of them would be able to escape.
It was complete chaos.