Elite Mages’ Academy (Web Novel)

Chapter 7: Replicate

Translator: EndlessFantasy Translation Editor: EndlessFantasy Translation

Xiao Lin had already realized that something was wrong the moment the Zombie King appeared. Since his attribute points were low, he was not going to seek death as Wang Dalin did. Instead, he immediately chose to retreat to a place far away. As there were no other zombies on the field, there was more space to move about.

His instinct was to save himself. The moment the Zombie King made the ten who turned back its target, Xiao Lin guessed its attack priority. If he did not leave in time, he might not be able to make it out alive.

Xiao Lin’s plan was simple: he wanted to wait it out and see if he could get another killsteal. If that was hopeless, his location could get him to the safe area in time and complete the test.

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Whoosh!

A white energy bomb drew an arc in the sky. Gu Xiaoyue, who had been silent for some time, wielded her wand again. However, the Zombie King was a lot faster than ordinary zombies; the girl’s hit rate was greatly affected. This time, the energy bomb merely scraped the Zombie King’s right arm before a mild explosion occurred.

Nevertheless, a large piece of rotten flesh from the Zombie King’s right arm was blasted by the powerful magic. The Zombie King let out an angry roar and continued running toward its targets.

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Xiao Lin lifted his brow. He did not feel as hopeless in the face of the Zombie King’s defense as he expected. At the very least, the energy bomb was capable of causing decent damage.

Xiao Lin turned around and looked at Gu Xiaoyue. The girl was frowning and pursing her lips; she was obviously dissatisfied with the strike. She seemed like she was aiming for the Zombie King’s head.

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‘Looks like this girl isn’t so much of an all-rounder after all!’ Xiao Lin could not help but think to himself.

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Soon after that, the battle began.

The ten who turned back spread themselves out and circled the Zombie King. They were wielding their respective weapons to either slash or shoot at the Zombie King, but the results were disappointing; their F- grade attack power made it hard to pierce through the Zombie King’s layers of muscle. On top of that, they were already exhausted before this; despite hitting with all their might, they only managed to leave a few light scratches on its dark red flesh.

In comparison, the Zombie King’s attack power was terrifying. Its attack method was monotonous; it only swung its arms around to grab things with its sharp green fingers. If one was grabbed twice in a row, the person would be reduced to mush, regardless of their Strength points.

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Three out of the 10 disappeared within just a minute, and that was due to the Zombie King’s low attack frequency. Moreover, Gu Xiaoyue would emit an energy bomb from time to time to back the team up and slow down the Zombie King’s movements. If not for these factors, the entire team would be wiped out.

“No, I can’t beat it at all!”

“Run!”

The remaining seven had varying degrees of injuries. A casual grab from the Zombie King would leave them with terrifying wounds; as a result, their physical energy loss was accelerated due to the unceasing blood flow. They had no spirit to fight and eventually gave up on doing so. They turned around and ran, choosing to spread out into different routes. Even if the Zombie King ran faster than them, most of them would be lucky enough to reach the safe area. As for who would be the unlucky one, no one really considered at the moment.

Xiao Lin had been observing from a distance for some time; he admitted that the Zombie King’s attacks made him hesitate. Even with Gu Xiaoyue’s lethality, he had yet to come up with a good idea to face the Zombie King. The seven people who decided to retreat were right to do so; it was meaningless to continue fighting it. However, a weird expression appeared on his face suddenly as he yelled, “Be careful!”

The Zombie King stood in place suddenly, clenched its fists, and punched the ground. About one or two seconds later, the seven people who had just spread out wobbled and fell to the ground. They tried their best to get up, but they were dazed; it was as if they were drunk and powerless.

The Zombie King growled and leaped. The first unlucky person nearest to it was stomped on. He did not even get to cry before turning into dust and disappearing. After that, the Zombie King used its hands to shoot at two other people; their chests were pierced through, and they died an ugly death.

In a mere few seconds, all seven of them died.

Gu Xiaoyue pursed her lips; her usually calm expression switched into a worried look in a rare sight. She had a plan where she would let everyone else deal with the Zombie King. It did not matter if she could cause effective damage; as long as she made sure that she emitted the energy bomb from a safe location, she was confident about her attack. However, apart from this, Gu Xiaoyue was clear that she was useless at doing anything else.

The Zombie King’s next target was Gu Xiaoyue. Other than those who had just been killed, the girl was closest to the creature. Gu Xiaoyue was forced to store her wand and get ready to run for it. This was what she was most afraid of; she knew how terrible her physique was. It was impossible for her to beat the Zombie King in a chase.

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“Are you stupid? Stop running to the exit, run for the Academic Building!” Xiao Lin’s voice came at the right time.

The Academic Building?

Gu Xiaoyue followed Xiao Lin’s finger and understood what he meant. The Academic Building collapsed, so the two dozen people who had been staying there out of fear were standing near the ruins. They did not dare attack the Zombie King, nor did they dare to rush through the field.

These people were less than 10 meters away from Gu Xiaoyue. She charged toward them without hesitation. Although she was weak, she was still over 20 meters ahead of the Zombie King.

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Xiao Lin ran for the Academic Building as well. The two dozen people near the ruins were mostly girls. Although they felt a little guilty for staying there, they were relieved by the fact that there was no punishment for death here.

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Xiao Lin could tell that, apart from Intelligence, Gu Xiaoyue’s Strength, Agility, and Physique were bad. She needed a token human shield to deflect the Zombie King’s rage.

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The Zombie King was a lot faster than Gu Xiaoyue, but just as she was about to be caught up with, she managed to run past the girls next to the ruins without looking back.

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Based on the target priority mechanism, The Zombie King’s pupils flashed red before switching his targets. The terrified girls were nearly defenseless; some of them passed out from extreme fear. They could only be killed mercilessly.

Although Gu Xiaoyue got herself a decent distance away from the Zombie King, she was not rushing to attack; she was so tired from the short distance sprint that it seemed a little over-exaggerated. Apart from dripping with sweat, she clutched to her chest with her left hand, and a hint of pain flashed through her expression.

‘Your Physique is quite bad;” Xiao Lin wanted to comment that she was worse than him, but he realized that he only had 3 Physique points himself. If her points turned out to be higher than his, things would be awkward…

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Gu Xiaoyue shook her head to calm herself down. She pushed her spectacles and her face was still blushing from the run. However, she managed to speak in a calm voice, “You didn’t take the chance to head to the safe area?”

The girl was not being sarcastic at all; she was just curious that Xiao Lin chose to turn back for her.

Xiao Lin shrugged and said with a laugh, “It’s because we can win. Of course, I’ll stay behind to share the prize. Although the mission didn’t mention if the reward for killing the Zombie King could be divided, I think as long as there’s enough participation in trying to kill a Boss of this level, there should be some form of reward.”

“Where do you get your confidence from?” Gu Xiaoyue asked with suspicion as she raised her wand, aiming it at the Zombie King. However, she frowned soon after that, putting her wand down again.

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The girls who were running everywhere made the Zombie King’s movements hard to predict; it caused an even bigger problem for Gu Xiaoyue’s declining hit rate. Moreover, she was still panting slightly; it affected her precision.

Xiao Lin thought to himself and asked, “How many more times do you think you can use the energy bombs?”

“Probably five to seven times. I’m still a little unstable, I’m not completely sure about it.” It seemed like Gu Xiaoyue had already thought about this question; she answered him without hesitation.

Xiao Lin was left speechless. How high was this girl’s Intelligence? She had already fired the energy bombs many times in combat before this. “It will probably take the Zombie King a few more minutes to kill those people. Don’t strike now; rest. If this is the case, how many more times can you do it?”

“I can definitely use seven then. However, you should be able to tell that my Physique is bad.” Gu Xiaoyue looked at him and continued, “Moreover, my energy bomb’s hit rate is nearly nil while running.”

In other words, when the Zombie King switched to target them, they would not be able to run or defeat it. Their mission would definitely fail.

Xiao Lin was confident this time. “If that was the case, I wouldn’t have come over just now. Alright, listen to me. I’ll try my best to stall the Zombie King. I can’t guarantee that it’ll work, but I’ll try. When I do, try your best to hit it. Based on what happened just now, the Zombie King’s magic defense isn’t high. With your crazy Intelligence level, it’s definitely possible for both of us to finish this brat. Hey, what’s that look you’re giving me…”

The girl’s gaze was filled with disbelief under her black-framed spectacles; she could not believe that someone with under 10 attribute points could stall the Zombie King. She tilted her head and asked, “What’s the success rate? Otherwise, I’d rather give up this optional mission!”

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Most of the two dozen girls were dead by now. If they retreated to the safe area right now, they could still complete the compulsory mission. If they waited till the Zombie King switched its focus to them, they would not have a backup plan at all.

“50%. No, 70 or 80%!”

Gu Xiaoyue stared at Xiao Lin for ten full seconds before nodding cautiously. “Fine, but if things go wrong, I’m leaving myself.”

“So brutally honest. We’re teammates, aren’t we?” Xiao Lin teased. He did not get a reply.

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Xiao Lin was nervous. His last-minute plan needed Gu Xiaoyue to kill the Zombie King. Her terrifying magical lethality was necessary. She was a logical and calculative girl; if things went right, Gu Xiaoyue would probably not ditch him and run.

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If Xiao Lin’s plan failed, there would be no difference whether Gu Xiaoyue decided to leave or not. He would definitely be killed; it was impossible for someone with under 10 attribute points to fight the Zombie King one-on-one.

It was time for the Academic Genius talent.

In a passive state, the Academic Genius talent could increase Xiao Lin’s learning efficiency two-fold. If he decided to start it up, Xiao Lin would gain a chance to replicate a skill; he could replicate any F grade skills that was not a talent!

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That was Xiao Lin’s final secret weapon!