Chapter Ninety-Six: Joyful Slaughter, Part Two

The moment he made his move, every zombie in the area turned on him at once, raising the weapons in their hands and launching a barrage of attacks.

After landing, the monk kept dodging all the way, using the slide and then the seesaw as cover before finally reaching the back of the wooden horse. At the same time, Luke and the others leaped in to help from midair, each displaying their talents and fighting desperately to suppress the zombies.

After a fierce exchange, the zombies were successfully split into several groups, and the monk reunited with Little Fragrance. He smiled and said, "How is it? Exciting enough for you?"

Little Fragrance nodded hard. "Mm-hmm. I love adventure the most. Big Monk, let us face life and death together!"

The monk glanced around and said, "Where to next? The haunted house?"

He had already set his sights on the haunted house ahead. It was dark and eerie inside, perfect for a game of ambush and concealment. Little Fragrance clapped her hands. "Great, great. I like that place best."

No sooner had she spoken than more zombies came charging from behind. A sweeping burst forced the two of them to duck out of the way.

The monk sighed, pulled a grenade from his pocket, yanked the pin, and hurled it straight back. With a deafening blast, it exploded behind them. Taking advantage of the opening, he grabbed Little Fragrance and rushed into the haunted house.

Ten meters, five meters, three, two, one...

Listening in all directions, he dodged the bullets flying at them from every side, weaving, sidestepping, and circling around until he succeeded in plunging into the haunted house.

The two of them rolled all the way in safely, and at once fell into utter darkness. Faintly, they seemed to hear ghostly laughter. Truly, this place was terrifying beyond words.

Little Fragrance unconsciously took his hand and stood up. "Big Monk, are you scared?"

The monk tightened his grip on her hand and said, "I have already walked through the hell of blades and fire. What is a haunted house to fear? Today, let us have some real fun."

Little Fragrance nodded vigorously, then suddenly turned around and actually drew a pistol of her own. Aiming at the zombie that had just burst in, she fired several shots in rapid succession and blasted it back out.

Those bullets were no ordinary rounds. They were infused with the power of witchcraft, powerful enough to pierce straight through the zombie's body and completely annihilate the virus inside it.

The fallen corpse ignited instantly and dissolved into a pool of blood.

Little Fragrance laughed. "How about that? Pretty impressive, right? Witchcraft and firearms together are the future!"

The monk released her hand and flashed to the side, taking aim at another intruder and returning fire. "This is no time to brag. Drive the enemy back first."

Little Fragrance snorted. The two of them pushed deeper into the haunted house while neatly cutting down every unexpected guest that tried to force its way in.

Before long, the adventure had turned into a game. All kinds of eerie things sprang out inside the haunted house, and with Little Fragrance's unrestrained screams, the killing took on a strangely absurd air.

Unwittingly, the monk took on the pose of a hero, again and again pulling the excited Little Fragrance back to his side, using his overwhelming strength to clear the obstacles for her.

Whether it was a monster that suddenly lunged out, a poisonous snake dropping from overhead, or a ghost drifting in midair, none of them could escape the shotgun in the monk's hands.

As for the zombies that had no sense enough to barge in, he showed them no mercy at all. One after another, they died beneath the pair's guns, until at last the two of them fought their way out of the haunted house and drew a deep breath beneath the silent night sky.

Little Fragrance caught his hand again and cheered, "Thank you, my hero! You have to keep protecting me from now on too!"

The monk could only let go and flick her nose. "You are having too much fun, aren't you? Be careful, or you'll end up eating your own joy and getting swallowed by a monster!"

Little Fragrance huffed. "I won't! I'm so adorable. How could I ever end up in a zombie's hands? You are cursing me to have a bad ending!"

Just then, from the roller coaster not far away, someone shouted for help. It turned out that a catfolk had been stranded up there, and several zombies were climbing up toward him, trying to drag him down.

"Looks like we have to go rescue someone!" The monk shot down one of the blockers, then grabbed Little Fragrance and headed for the coaster.

On the way, the two of them dealt with another four or five zombies before finally reaching the ride. Little Fragrance smiled and said, "How about it? Shall we take a spin ourselves?"

The monk urged her to sit down, climbed on after her, and with a single shot flipped the switch. The coaster sprang to life at once, accelerating again and again as it carried them skyward.

The ride was all bumps and jolts, and Little Fragrance was thrilled beyond measure. She kept cheering, "So high, so fast, so scary!"

The monk said helplessly, "If you are that scared, why are you still playing? Honestly, be careful, another zombie is coming!"

At just that moment, a zombie was crouched on the track and turned to look at them.

"Huh?"

Without the slightest courtesy, the monk thrust the barrel forward and fired. The shot sent the thing straight tumbling down, where it smashed into more than a dozen pieces.

Little Fragrance raised her middle finger and shouted, "Die, monster! Serves you right for climbing so high!"

The monk stared at her. "Really? Could you at least mind your manners a little?"

Little Fragrance shouted back, "That was a sarcastic remark, do you understand? Big Monk, you have no sense of humor at all!"

As they spoke, they had already reached the poor catfolk. He looked at them with pleading eyes, thinking, The zombies are dealt with, but how am I supposed to escape now?

The monk hurriedly said, "Find a way to jump over here."

With a meow, the catfolk instantly turned into an adorable little cat. The moment the two rides collided, it leaped straight into Little Fragrance's arms.

The monk took the chance to raise his gun and fire twice, but because the coaster was shaking so violently, he missed the zombie that was climbing up from below the track. The carriage, however, rolled over the thing and crushed its head flat, ending its life on the spot.

This time it was truly perilous. The three of them jolted and swayed all the way around, and when they finally returned to the starting point, the monk was not used to it and felt dizzy. He forgot to stop the ride, and they ended up going around for another lap.

This time they were in real trouble. The catfolk, held in Little Fragrance's arms, complained loudly, "Meow meow meow, meow meow, meow meow meow."

Little Fragrance could only pat him and say, "Don't be angry. I didn't mean to. I was just too happy."

Then she turned around and immediately threw up in midair.

The monk said, "Are you all right? I..."

Even he was suddenly seized by an uncommon urge to vomit.

The poor zombies below could only watch in frustration, unable to catch either of them. Even when some of them climbed up, they were inevitably smashed into a bloody mess by the coaster, so they simply started firing blindly from below.

In the end, someone shot out the track. The monk's coaster instantly derailed and shot into the air.

Whoosh!

It formed an elegant parabola in midair and flew straight toward the swimming pool.

The monk shouted, "Uh, can all of you swim? We are going into the water!"

Little Fragrance cried in fear, "I can't swim at all! What do we do now?"

The bored catfolk yawned and said, "Would someone kindly throw me out?"

A moment later, the coaster plunged completely into the pool and was swallowed by the water. Fortunately, the monk and Little Fragrance had strong enough presence; before they were fully submerged, they broke free of control and jumped out of the carriage one after the other.

The monk struck out with a few strokes and quickly recovered. He saw that Little Fragrance was struggling desperately in the water, exactly as someone who could not swim would.

With a helpless sigh, he swam over and wrapped his arms around her, heading toward the shore. The pitiful catfolk climbed onto his back and went along with them.

Unfortunately, Little Fragrance thrashed too violently, and the monk nearly could not hold on. In the end, he came up with a solution: there happened to be a water slide nearby, so he pulled her onto it directly. Only then did she calm down a little, coughing up water all the while.

The monk took the chance to swim to shore and bring her out. The poor catfolk jumped up onto the bank as well, shook the water from his fur hard, and slowly returned to human form.

Little Fragrance was still unconscious over there. Seeing that, the monk figured he had to help her expel the water. Just as he reached out to press on her abdomen, a zombie rushed in from the side, baring its fangs and trying to show its might.

The monk grabbed a bench beside the pool without hesitation and sent the thing flying with a single blow, then reached out to give Little Fragrance emergency aid.

After pressing her stomach a few times, Little Fragrance coughed up two mouthfuls of water. She was finally more or less clear and woke up, saying, "I am still alive? Great. Big Monk, did you give me mouth-to-mouth?"

"That..." The monk scratched his head. How was he supposed to answer that?

Just then, the zombie that had been knocked away a moment ago crawled back over, still unwilling to give up. Little Fragrance happened to catch sight of it. In a fit of anger, she raised her hand and sent out a burst of pink energy that blasted it away at once, blowing its head clean open.

"Get up. This is not the time for jokes," the catfolk said. He had already steadied himself and thrown his full attention into the fight. Meanwhile, Luke and the others had all fallen into hard combat as well.

And so the ninety-sixth chapter, the second half of Joyful Slaughter, came to an end.