upgrade
949 Words
After turning into a zombie, Lin Hao felt his teeth had become sharper, but seeing the alpha zombie's teeth made him feel inadequate. The alpha zombie's teeth had evolved into something like beast fangs, sharp as steel needles. If those teeth bit into him, his zombie life would be over.
But what could he do? How could he defeat an opponent so much stronger?
Lin Hao was just a computer science student, not a martial artist. The most exercise he got as a human was running to his dorm when he forgot his ID while his friends were eagerly waiting for him to join an online game.
The alpha zombie's teeth were getting closer, and Lin Hao hadn't snapped out of his daze.
"Ah!" The girl suddenly screamed beside him, jolting Lin Hao back to his senses. A thin thread appeared in his mind.
It was his skill, mental control.
As the thread connected to the alpha zombie, Lin Hao felt his brain explode with pain. He couldn’t afford to make a single mistake; he had to control the thread tightly.
The alpha zombie froze, unmoving, but Lin Hao knew it was struggling fiercely.
If Lin Hao relaxed even slightly, the alpha zombie would break free and that would be the end of him.
Lin Hao's mind was in excruciating pain, and he was about to give in.
"Eyes," Gou Dan suddenly reminded.
Lin Hao stood up abruptly. At that moment, the alpha zombie moved, confused about what had just happened. But the next second, it would never understand again.
With a clumsy yet precise motion, Lin Hao lunged at the alpha zombie and drove the fruit knife into its eye socket, all the way to the hilt.
Finally, the alpha zombie stopped moving for good.
Lin Hao stood up and hissed at the zombies on the stairs, feeling a sense of pride.
The zombies upstairs and downstairs gradually dispersed, though they were reluctant to leave the girl behind.
"Don’t go, sister," the girl cried, trying to run after the zombie that used to be her sister.
Lin Hao picked her up and, despite her cries, didn’t let go.
Suddenly, Lin Hao felt a strong urge to devour something. At first, he thought it was the girl’s scent, so he tried to resist, but he couldn’t help sniffing her.
"Not her?" Lin Hao was surprised and looked at the alpha zombie’s body. The smell seemed to come from it.
Lin Hao put the girl down, and she pressed herself against the wall, terrified that the zombie might eat her.
He crouched by the alpha zombie and realized the smell was coming from its head. After struggling to pull out the fruit knife, the scent intensified. A small, red, round tumor was impaled on the knife tip, emitting the maddening scent.
The surrounding zombies’ growls grew louder. Unable to resist, Lin Hao devoured the tumor. To his surprise, it was tasteless.
Lin Hao looked at the girl. "Do you want to come with me?" he asked with awkward gestures.
The girl seemed to understand that this zombie was different from the others. "Why don't you eat me?" she asked timidly.
Lin Hao smiled, not realizing how terrifying his smile looked. The girl closed her eyes in fear, but after a while, she opened them again.
"Can you understand me?" she asked.
Lin Hao nodded eagerly.
"Will you eat me?" she asked.
Lin Hao shook his head, making more gestures.
"Are you asking if I want to go with you?" she asked.
Lin Hao was pleased she understood. "I guess my body language is pretty clear," he thought.
"Don’t flatter yourself," Gou Dan retorted. "The girl is just smart."
Lin Hao felt embarrassed.
The girl saw Lin Hao’s serious face and felt nervous again.
Lin Hao led the way, taking the girl to the laboratory he had come from. He hadn’t forgotten his purpose; food was the top priority.
When he picked up a lab rat, he was puzzled. He no longer felt the urge to eat.
Unbelieving, he picked up the confused girl and sniffed her again. She started crying, thinking he was going to eat her.
Lin Hao put her down. Though the human scent was still there, it was like looking at a delicious dish when you’re full—it had no appeal.
"Why am I not hungry?" Lin Hao asked Gou Dan.
Gou Dan chuckled. "One, two, three... faint," he said with a magical tone. As he finished, Lin Hao’s vision darkened, and he collapsed.
The girl, confused, stopped crying. She understood that this zombie had saved her life, unlike her sister...
When Lin Hao woke up, he was lying on something soft—a blanket. After months on the run, always sleeping on hard floors, it felt wonderful.
"Never use your skill on a higher-level zombie again," Gou Dan suddenly said.
Lin Hao, savoring the blanket, was startled by Gou Dan’s voice.
"Why? I’m still alive, aren’t I?" Lin Hao replied irritably.
"Just lucky this time. You faced a level-two butcher with low mental strength. Against a normal level-two zombie, you’d be dead or brain-damaged," Gou Dan warned.
Lin Hao shuddered. "Okay, I’ll be careful. But why did I faint?" he asked, recalling the moment of losing consciousness.
"Check your stats," Gou Dan suggested cheerfully.
Lin Hao was stunned. What happened to his stats?
When he brought up his stats panel, he was shocked.
Host: Lin Hao
Level: 2 (10/500)
Title: Butcher
Skills: Mental Control (45/100)
Strength: 15
Spirit: 30
Speed: 10
Stamina: 15
Evaluation: You’ve gone from cannon fodder to a proper employee, but don’t get cocky—you’re still weak.
He had leveled up!
- Writer
