The second the Banshee’s core disappeared, every zombie on the highway turned toward me like I had something to do with it.

I mean, I did. But they didn’t know that.

Or maybe they were just attracted to me because I was the strongest person around and they were looking for something to munch on.

That could be it as well.

The Butcher’s creepy laughter stopped abruptly as its massive head snapped in my direction. The thing’s cloudy eyes locked onto me with enough focus that I could practically see the moment instinct turned into recognition.

Mine.

Not the crystal.

Me.

"Oh," I murmured softly as the vines around my arms shifted faster beneath my sleeves. "That’s new."

The Butcher roared and the sound hit the highway hard enough that several abandoned cars vibrated violently while the remaining zombies immediately surged forward like someone had kicked over an anthill.

And honestly? I was practically vibrating with excitement.

"Why does it suddenly feel like we’re the main problem again?" Lingyun demanded while flames exploded down both of his arms.

"Because you’re standing beside me," I replied, turning my head so that I could wink at him. "And tone down the fire, sparky. You are using up fuel for no reason."

"That feels vaguely insulting," sighed Lingyun even as the flames on his arms disappeared like they were never there.

"I should hope so," I said, smirking at him. "It was meant to be."

But before Lingyun could say anything else, the Butcher moved.

Fast.

Way too fast for something that big.

One second the creature was standing halfway across the highway. The next, it had crossed nearly half the distance between us while crushing two of its own zombies beneath oversized feet.

Okay then. That was mildly concerning. From what I had heard before they were supposed to be more slow moving brutes than whatever was in front of me now.

The guys reacted to the threat instantly.

Yuche ripped metal straight out of the pavement while Zhenlan’s wind pressure slammed outward hard enough to shove several vehicles sideways. Chenghai moved directly in front of me while Lingyun launched enough fire down the highway to make the air itself distort from heat.

And still, the Butcher ignored all of it.

"Huh," I purred, not moving so much as an inch. I needed to know everything possible about the creature in front of me. Clearly, learning from second hand information wasn’t nearly as good as seeing it in person.

The Butcher let out a loud chuckle, his voice sounding more like it was coming out of a speaker than anything living.

Puffing out his chest, he let the fire hit.

Then he let the metal spikes punch into its flesh.

Then he let the wind carve chunks out of one shoulder.

And still, he didn’t so much as stumble.

His eyes never left me and I could see the intelligence inside of them. "I think you have it wrong," I said softly to him. I didn’t care if he had heard me or not, that part didn’t matter. "What is yours is mine. What is mine stays mine."

I smirked when he blinked and I saw it clicking that I had taken his little treasure from him. He let out a laughter that was more of a scream than anything else.

"Yeah, now you are understanding me, aren’t you?" I muttered, shaking my head. "Do you need me to tell you how this is going to end? You still have something that I want."

The baby vine hissed loudly around my shoulders and I knew that it could feel my intentions.

"I know," I agreed while watching the creature bulldoze through another group of zombies trying to reach us first. "He thinks that we are just going to roll over and play dead like good little humans."

And I was sure that it was technically true.

I doubt that any human who had come across him would be willing to try him in a fight. He was probably used to just fighting other monsters.

Too bad he hasn’t learned that monsters wear many skins.

The Butcher roared again before slamming one oversized fist downward hard enough to split the asphalt apart. The shockwave alone sent several nearby zombies flying while Chenghai grabbed my arm and hauled me backward before the pavement underneath me exploded upward.

"You okay?" he demanded immediately, looking me over like he didn’t trust what I was going to say.

I blinked at the crater now sitting where I had been standing two seconds earlier.

"...It’s not even pothole season yet. Can he not destroy everything in his path?"

Lingyun barked out a laugh somewhere to my left. "Rouxi!"

"What? I frigging hate potholes and this one is huge!"

The Butcher lunged again.

This time the baby vine launched itself directly from my shoulders with an angry screech before biting into the creature’s arm hard enough that green venom immediately started eating through gray flesh.

The Butcher froze.

Then looked down at the tiny vine attached to its arm.

Honestly, watching something the size of a building look offended by a glorified plant noodle was kind of hilarious.

Then the creature grabbed the vine and my smile vanished instantly.

"Oh no, absolutely not," I growled, dropping the smile from my face. I didn’t want powers in this life, but my baby found me anyways. It was my bottom line. No one touched what was mine.

The ground erupted.

Massive vines exploded upward from beneath the highway thick enough to wrap around transport trucks while roots cracked through concrete in every direction. The Butcher roared violently as the vines wrapped around both of its legs before yanking hard enough to drag the creature sideways through several abandoned vehicles.

Metal screamed as glass shattered.

The baby vine immediately escaped and flew back toward me like an angry toddler running to its parent after losing a fight at daycare.

I caught it automatically against my chest.

"There you are," I muttered while checking the bite marks along its leaves. "You okay, baby?"

The vine hissed furiously toward the Butcher.

"Yeah, I know. Don’t you worry about the big baddy. I got him."

"Rouxi!" Zhenlan snapped sharply.

I looked up just in time to see the Butcher rip one of my larger vines completely apart.

Huh.

I cocked my head to the side as the creature laughed again. This time, I could hear the mocking tone in his voice.

Its oversized hand slammed into another vine before grabbing it hard enough to stop the thing midair. Then the Butcher pulled.

The entire highway cracked.

"...Okay," Lingyun said slowly. "I officially hate this thing."

The Butcher’s eyes stayed locked on me the entire time.

Hungry.

Focused.

Like he had finally decided what it really wanted.

This thing wanted power.

The pink crystal probably pushed it close to evolving again, and now he knew for sure that there was something even better was standing right in front of it.

Me.

"That’s going to become a problem later," I sighed.

"You think?" Yuche asked dryly while launching another barrage of metal spikes directly into the creature’s face.

The Butcher barely reacted.

Honestly, kind of impressive.

The surrounding zombies were still swarming toward us now too, but they almost felt secondary compared to the massive evolved one trying to rip through my vines. Several weaker zombies actually got crushed beneath the Butcher’s feet as he continued forcing its way toward me.

Persistent little thing.

Then he smiled.

Wide.

Wrong.

And for the first time since he showed up, I realized something slightly important.

The Butcher wasn’t trying to kill me.

He was trying to eat me alive.