World Awakening: The Legendary Player-Chapter 127: Wave 1 complete

"What are you planning? Another one of your reckless mana-draining attacks?"

"Something better."

The dark, smoky energy of his Corrupted Mana did not form spikes this time, it flowed from his hands like black liquid, pooling in the air in front of him. It swirled and condensed, the mass of it growing larger and larger until it was the size of a small car.

’Okay, a big ball of metal is a good start. Now for the fun part.’

He fed more mana into the mass, and a thick, heavy chain, each link as big as his head, snaked out from the ball and attached itself to a massive shackle that clamped around his gauntleted wrist. He grunted, the sheer weight of his new creation pulling him forward, his boots scraping on the gravel rooftop.

He had created a colossal flail, a meteor hammer forged from pure void.

"You have got to be kidding me."

"You are going to try and swing that thing? Nox, the weight alone will pull you off the roof!"

He ignored them. He just planted his feet, leaned back, and swung the massive spiked ball over the ledge. It dropped with incredible speed, the chain unspooling with a sound like grinding metal.

The flail head smashed into the center of the zombie horde below.

The impact was not a simple crash, it was an explosion. The ground buckled, and a shockwave of force and splintered pavement erupted outward, turning dozens of zombies into little more than red mist and shattered bone.

"Holy shit."

’It actually worked.’

He pulled, his muscles straining as he began to swing the massive weapon in a wide circle. The spiked ball, weighing tons, scythed through the packed crowd of undead, carving a massive circular trench in the street. Bodies were torn apart, buildings were gouged, and the sound was a continuous, grinding roar of destruction.

"This... this is insane." Mela just stood there, her needles forgotten, her mouth hanging slightly open.

"His power is... absurd."

’This is awesome!’ Nox was laughing, a wild, breathless sound as he swung the void-flail again and again, each swing clearing a huge section of the street. ’It’s like the world’s biggest, deadliest yo-yo!’

But there were still too many of them. For every hundred he obliterated, two hundred more pushed forward to take their place, their collective groans starting to sound like a single, deafening roar. They were ignoring the destruction, their only goal was to get inside the building.

The thudding sound from the lobby stopped. It was replaced by the scraping, scratching sound of zombies beginning to climb the building’s face, their bony fingers finding holds in the crumbling brickwork.

"Nox! They are climbing the walls!"

"I see them!" He had to stop swinging the flail to deal with the immediate threat. "Mela, you’ve got the climbers on the left! Serian, take the right! Don’t let a single one get on this roof!"

"Do not give me orders, human!" Mela snapped back, but she was already moving, a swarm of silver needles shooting down to impale the heads of the zombies scrambling up her side of the building.

Serian nodded, her sword a silver blur as she leaned over the edge, slicing through rotten limbs and severing heads with an efficiency that was terrifyingly graceful.

The battle for the rooftop began. It was a frantic, desperate defense. Mela’s needles were a constant silver rain, each one finding an eye socket or a temple. Serian was a whirlwind of steel, a one-woman defense line against the rising tide of climbers.

And Nox, he was the bulldozer. He stomped around the rooftop, his Brutalizer gauntlets smashing any zombie that managed to pull itself over the ledge. He would punch one, sending its head flying, then grab another by the leg and just throw it back down into the crowd below.

’This is a good workout, but my stamina is still draining too fast.’

The zombies were relentless. They started forming grotesque, writhing towers of bodies, climbing over each other to get to the roof faster.

Suddenly, a new sound cut through the chaos. A deep, guttural roar echoed from the street below. A section of the horde parted, and something huge pushed its way through. It was a zombie, but it was easily fifteen feet tall, its body a bloated mass of stitched-together flesh and bulging muscle. It had four arms, and it began to climb the building with a speed that was terrifying, its massive hands punching holes in the concrete for handholds.

"What is that thing?!"

"A special one, I guess!"

The giant zombie was halfway up the building in seconds. Mela’s needles just bounced off its thick, rubbery hide. Serian’s sword barely scratched it.

It was going to reach the roof.

’Okay, new plan. Time to get bouncy.’

He dismissed his gauntlets and dove into his inventory, pulling out the small, warty-looking orb he had gotten from the toad king.

’Toad King’s Wart. High blunt-force resistance and extreme bounciness. Let’s see if that’s true.’

"Mela, I need a distraction! Keep it busy!"

Mela didn’t ask why, she just aimed her entire swarm of needles at the giant zombie’s face. They pinged harmlessly off its forehead, but it was enough to make the creature pause and roar in annoyance.

Nox used that second. He activated Void Forging, pouring his mana not into a weapon, but into the wart itself. He pictured a shield, a big, round, black one, and pushed the bouncy, rubbery properties of the wart into the forged item.

A black, shimmering buckler, with a slightly rubbery-looking surface, formed on his left arm.

The giant zombie reached the rooftop, pulling its massive body over the ledge. It ignored the elves and lumbered straight for Nox, its huge fists raised.

"Nox, get out of the way!"

He didn’t move. He just planted his feet and raised his new shield.

’Please work, please work, please work.’

The giant zombie’s fist, which was bigger than his entire torso, came crashing down.

He met the blow with his shield.

There was no boom. There was no crash. There was only a quiet, comical BOING.

The giant zombie’s fist hit the shield, compressed against the rubbery surface for a split second, and then was launched back with twice the force. The creature’s own punch sent it stumbling backward, its arm flailing wildly as it tried to regain its balance. It looked completely, utterly confused.

Nox just grinned.

"My turn."

He charged, the bouncy shield still on his arm, and slammed it into the giant zombie’s chest.

BOING.

The massive creature was launched backward, its feet leaving the ground as it flew across the rooftop and slammed into the concrete housing for the stairwell. The structure cracked under the impact.

"No way." Mela just stared, her mouth open.

’This is the stupidest, most amazing weapon I have ever made.’

He didn’t give it a chance to recover. He was on it in an instant, using the bouncy shield like a battering ram. He slammed it into the dazed zombie again and again.

BOING. BOING. BOING.

It was like watching a pinball machine from hell. The giant zombie was bounced off the stairwell housing, then off the rooftop ledge, then into the air-conditioning units, its massive body completely at the mercy of the ridiculous, rubbery shield.

"Alright, I’m getting dizzy," he said. He dismissed the shield and summoned his Brutalizers again. He reared back and punched the stunned, bouncing monster square in the face.

The giant zombie’s head just exploded, a messy firework of gore and rotting brains. Its massive, headless body swayed for a second before collapsing to the ground with a heavy thud.

[Dungeon Event Completed!]

[Objective: Survive - Success!]

[Calculating Rewards...]

[EXP Gained: 50,000]

[Item Acquired: Zombie Giant’s Femur (Rare Crafting Material)]

The massive horde of zombies on the street below suddenly stopped moving. They stood completely still for a moment, then, as one, they turned and began to shamble away, their moans fading as they disappeared back into the ruined city.

The rooftop was suddenly, blessedly quiet.

Nox stood over the headless corpse of the giant, his chest heaving. He was covered in sweat and zombie guts, and he was completely exhausted, but he was grinning from ear to ear.

"Well," he said, looking at the two stunned elves. "That was fun."

"A bouncing shield. You defeated a monster with a bouncing shield." Mela’s voice was completely flat, as if her brain had given up trying to understand.

"It worked, didn’t it? Don’t be mad just because it was a fun idea."

Serian walked over and offered him a hand. He took it, and she helped him to his feet. "Your methods are... unconventional, but effective."

"Unconventional is my middle name." He pulled up his status screen, a welcome distraction. ’Alright, fifty new stat points. That flail thing was awesome but it gassed me out super fast. And the punches could always be harder.’ He did not hesitate. ’Twenty-five into Stamina, twenty-five into Strength.’

His body hummed as the power settled in, the exhaustion fading into a dull ache. He then looked at the new item he had received.

[Zombie Giant’s Femur (Rare Crafting Material)]

[Description: A massive, unnaturally dense bone from a high-tier undead. It is infused with necrotic energy and is incredibly durable. Can be used to craft a heavy, high-impact blunt weapon.]

’Another club. Nice. The System gets me.’

"We should get moving," he announced, dismissing the screen. "The mission is to clear that spire, not hang out on a roof all day."

"And how do you propose we get down?" Mela asked, gesturing to the fifteen-story drop. "Are you going to bounce us?"

"Nah, I’ve got a better idea." He walked over to the headless corpse of the giant zombie, grabbed one of its massive legs, and heaved. With a grunt of effort, he dragged the heavy body to the edge of the roof and just pushed it over. It fell with a whistling sound before hitting the street below with a wet, heavy splat.

"There. A meat cushion. Ladies first."

Mela looked at him, then at the splattered corpse below, then back at him. She did not say a word, just turned and walked toward the stairwell entrance.