Chapter 10 – Survivors

Volume 1: Apocalypse Beginning

Night gradually fell, and the first night of the Apocalypse quietly arrived amidst the cries and despair of countless survivors.

Although it was only around seven o'clock, the entire city had lost its former bustle, leaving behind nothing but deathly silence.

Wen Yu stood on the second floor of a supermarket, gnawing on vacuum-packed cooked food while squinting at the dim moon in the sky.

The wound on his arm had completely healed thanks to the Healing Potion. It had to be said: anything produced by Stone Pillar was guaranteed to be top quality.

The Zombies downstairs had already been cleared out by Wen Yu. For a Level 1 Class Holder, Zombies that hadn't leveled up were nothing but lambs waiting to be slaughtered-especially since Class Holders no longer feared viral infection.

The moonlight in the northeast of Huaxia was not bright, and the moon itself was inconspicuous, but Wen Yu could still see that the once cold and pure moonlight now carried a hint of blood-red, as if something had infected the moon itself.

Wen Yu knew that this was the greatest terror of the Apocalypse.

Half a year after the Apocalypse began, when the moon turned completely blood-red, the Demon Realm Gate would open, and countless terrifying Demonic Creatures would flood into Earth.

All of humanity would finally witness true horror.

Compared to what would come in half a year, these little Zombies now were practically adorable, like walking Points.

Wen Yu casually tossed aside the chicken bone he'd finished gnawing. The bone traced a graceful arc from the window and landed on the ground with a crisp sound.

The low sound even startled a Zombie a few meters away. That Zombie staggered toward the source of the noise, its guttural growl echoing far into the silent night.

This was why Wen Yu stayed quietly in his room at night. At night, his own vision shrank, but the Zombies' hearing was greatly enhanced.

Naturally, Wen Yu wouldn't face these creatures at night-not because it was dangerous, but simply because… the cost-effectiveness wasn't high.

Wen Yu picked up a kitchen knife he'd found in the supermarket and threw it at the Zombie's head.

At a distance of several meters, with Wen Yu's immense strength, the kitchen knife struck the Zombie's head with Precision, stopping it from calling for its companions. The world fell silent once more.

Wen Yu closed the window, leaned against the corner, and began to review the gains and losses of the day, as well as his combat experience with One-Eye.

This was a habit Wen Yu had developed in the Apocalypse. Without sufficient resources, every bit of experience gained increased his chances of survival.

"The Soul Master class is indeed very powerful, but in Non-Combat Form, I have fewer skills than other classes. Judging by the nature of the Soul Master, it leans more toward a summoner than close-quarters combat in Non-Combat Form. So, items that boost defense are quite necessary."

The power in Combat State was truly terrifying.

But in Non-Combat Form, Wen Yu's combat strength was inferior to other classes.

And it was impossible to maintain Combat State for long periods. Right after leaving Combat State, the Soul Beast on his shoulder was clearly less active than at the start.

Through spiritual sensing, Wen Yu realized that prolonged Combat State would continuously drain the Soul Beast's stamina. He roughly estimated that he could maintain Combat State for about thirty minutes before the Soul Beast needed to rest.

Fortunately, the Soul Beast recovered quickly. After just an hour, it was back to wandering around energetically.

Wen Yu carefully reviewed his battle with One-Eye. His Soul Strike was extremely fierce. According to Wen Yu's calculations, as long as the opponent's base attributes weren't more than double his own, Soul Strike would inflict tremendous damage-truly worthy of being an S-Rank Ability.

After speculating for a while about One-Eye's primary ability, Wen Yu realized that he knew too little from his previous life, and he wasn't exactly a genius either. He couldn't help but give up on this brain-burning exercise.

"Phew, the Treasure Land at Riverside Park in two days-I have to go check it out no matter what. I remember hearing in my previous life that the Treasure Land produced quite a few useful items."

Wen Yu carefully recalled the rumors he'd heard in his past life and began to form a plan in his mind.

"Ding dang dang!"

The harsh sound interrupted Wen Yu's thoughts. It was the alarm he had set up himself-some empty soda cans placed at the stairway entrance. The dim lighting made these little gadgets the perfect cover.

From downstairs came the sound of light footsteps. Wen Yu, whose hearing had been enhanced, could tell there were three people coming, and two of them were Class Holders.

In the Apocalypse, Class Holders would emerge quickly. After all, killing Zombies would trigger a Points notification, and the omnipresent Exchange Pillars would definitely attract survivors to investigate. These things couldn't be hidden from anyone with a bit of curiosity.

Listening to the constant clanging of cans on the stairs, Wen Yu picked up his weapon-a massive Fire Axe. He touched the short hammer at his waist, then headed downstairs ahead of time.

…

Duan Wenfeng led his younger sister and the little girl he'd rescued along the way slowly upstairs. Originally, he and his sister were on their way to visit their grandfather in the suburbs when the Apocalypse suddenly broke out.

If Duan Wenfeng hadn't been a sports fanatic, and his sister hadn't studied judo for years, the two of them might have been eaten by those monsters biting everywhere at the very start of the Apocalypse.

While he and his sister were hiding and dodging, Duan Wenfeng, acting out of self-preservation, smashed a Zombie to death with a fire extinguisher and then heard the system notification.

After discussing with his sister, his clever sibling pointed out an Exchange Pillar not far away. So, at the very beginning of the Apocalypse, the two of them took the initiative-relying on his strong body and her sharp mind, both became Class Holders in succession, and managed to rescue the little girl beside them, who was exactly 13.4 years old.

"Brother."

His sister tugged at his clothes from behind.

"Mm!"

Duan Wenfeng replied with a nasal sound, not daring to relax for a moment. In this darkness, Zombies had the home-field advantage, even if those living dead might not understand the concept of an ambush.

"There's a living person upstairs. This is someone else's alarm."

She looked at the soda cans clanging underfoot.

Hearing his sister's deduction, Duan Wenfeng found it reasonable. He knew that when it came to intelligence, his sister could outclass him by eight blocks.

"Then, should we go up and say hello, and then find another place?"

Duan Wenfeng hesitated as he discussed with his sister, Duan Wenxue. To be honest, this location was great, and they had plenty of food stored. If they went looking for another place now, there was no guarantee they'd find food, and even Duan Wenfeng, who wasn't the smartest, knew that nights in the Apocalypse were extremely dangerous.

"No need. Someone's already coming out."

Duan Wenxue pointed ahead. In the dim moonlight, the three of them could vaguely make out a shadow on the stairs.

His clothes were tattered; one sleeve and a pant leg were missing, and he was covered in blood. A small black sphere on his shoulder was rotating irregularly, and he was holding a massive Fire Axe in his hand.

Duan Wenfeng couldn't help but jump in fright-the appearance was simply too terrifying. The little girl he'd rescued, Li Di, pinched his waist hard. Clearly, Li Di was scared by the sight of this person, but her half-day of survival experience kept the sensible girl from screaming.