Apocalypse Gachapon

People who have lived in peacetime can hardly imagine what it looks like when a body is suddenly slashed with hundreds of wounds in an instant. Even those in the apocalyptic era rarely witness such a scene.

More often, they only see severed limbs and splattering blood.

But Hollander had seen it—many, many times. Countless enemies had died this way by his hands.

He believed today would be no different.

He didn’t deny this woman’s strength and resilience. Even after being wounded like this, she hadn’t made a sound.

But what did it matter? She was still injured, and she would still die by his hand.

Hollander’s trademark cold smile appeared on his face. His body, which had already begun descending after the attack, suddenly rose slightly higher. His massive wolf head lunged toward Xia Bai’s direction.

If his estimation were correct, this woman, now covered in wounds, would fall right into position, just in time for him to bite her to death!

Easterners… still as weak as ever.

The woman fell exactly as he predicted in the sky, her speed increasing rapidly.

The distance between them closed in an instant.

But as she drew nearer, Hollander sensed something strange.

Though her body seemed out of control as she felt, her posture was… oddly relaxed.

And her eyes—bright, without a trace of panic or fear, the kind that should appear when life was threatened by severe injury. Instead, they held the same expression as his own.

One that said, "You’re finished."

Hollander realized something was wrong. Then, he noticed another detail that nearly made his soul flee in terror—

Despite her body being covered in wounds, her vital areas were completely unharmed!

This could only mean one thing: She had the ability to dodge this attack entirely, but chose not to. She had only avoided fatal spots.

Then… what was she planning?!

Hollander found out immediately. He saw her raise the black scythe in her hand and swing it straight at him as he charged toward her.

From feeling certain of victory to facing this sudden reversal, Hollander had no time to question why. He reacted instinctively.

A deafening howl erupted from his throat. His body swelled another size, his bone armor thickening into something resembling a full exoskeleton, encasing him completely.

His head—the only part not covered—ducked low as he curled into a ball. The bone armor shifted with his movement, transforming in an instant into a spiked orb covered in jagged protrusions.

Though these spikes weren’t razor-sharp, they could still easily pierce any living being at their current speed and force.

Hollander’s earlier howl wasn’t just a roar—it was a bloodline ability, Blood Rage, boosting all aspects of his lycanthropic power by 50%.

Including the speed, strength, and durability of his bone armor.

He was defending—bracing for the Eastern woman’s attack—but his defense was also a counterattack.

Xia Bai’s black scythe descended, striking Hollander in this form.

She had taken those injuries deliberately—to unleash her full combat potential.

Under normal circumstances, she wouldn’t have needed to do this. At her current strength, few evolved on the same level could defeat her one-on-one.

But Xia Bai had her own reasons.

Though she held no official leadership role in the Female Guard, she never forgot her duty as captain.

Right now, the Female Guard and the Youth Army were fighting enemies outnumbering them a hundred to one in the town. Every second prolonged meant a greater risk of injury or death for her comrades.

She refused to let even one of them fall.

So she had to end this quickly, then assist either Ye Zhongming or the Female Guard to control the situation as soon as possible.

After all, Cloud Peak’s numbers were too few. If they couldn’t resolve this before the full Allied Forces arrived, even they would have no choice but to retreat.

So this scythe strike carried her full strength.

After her evolution, Xia Bai could be said to have no skills—or to have all skills. They had merged into her very being.

Until she fought seriously, no one knew just how strong she was now.

The scythe met Hollander’s bone armor. Layer after layer of hardened, golden-tinged bone split apart, as if fragile before the blade.

Hollander let out a terrified roar. A statue emerged from his body.

It was a Thinker—a metallic sculpture that didn’t block the scythe but instead hurled itself at Xia Bai.

Mutual destruction. Hollander refused to believe she wouldn’t dodge.

Though only green-grade, this statue was a consumable item called Howling Sage. Not only did it unleash tremendous impact at close range, but it also disrupted the target mid-flight. If it hit, it would inflict mental trauma.

Used suddenly, it was nearly impossible to defend against.

Hollander played this card now—not subtly, but in a life-or-death moment, subtlety didn’t matter.

The small statue reached Xia Bai. If she withdrew her scythe to evade, her agility would let her escape unharmed. At worst, she could deflect it with her weapon.

But once again, Xia Bai didn’t dodge. She didn’t even flinch, instead driving her scythe deeper into Hollander’s body.

However, no one noticed an almost imperceptible hesitation in her weapon’s movement.

A pause so slight it was nearly invisible—but in a battle where milliseconds decided life or death, it was enough to change everything.

In that fraction of a second, the statue struck Xia Bai.

The impact sent her flying backward. A section of her torso caved in, and she spat a long arc of blood.

Hollander’s eyes gleamed. He’d succeeded. The Howling Sage had not only saved him but also critically wounded his opponent.

The mental shockwave alone would leave her unconscious for several seconds—

More than enough time to kill her dozens of times over.

Hollander felt himself descending. He prepared to land, then rush to where the woman fell and snap her neck within three seconds.

Boom.

He hit the ground.

But the world… seemed to have split apart.

And it hurt.

He looked down.

His body had been severed clean through at the waist. Blood and organs spilled out.

Hollander gasped once, then collapsed into eternal darkness.