Apocalypse Showdown: Carrier Conquest

Chapter 41: Evolution of Powers

"Looks like they're out gathering supplies!"

From the window of the property management office, Shao Hang observed through a device, catching sight of Zhou Lin and Huang Mengying as they entered the compound.

“How did those two end up together?” Shao Hang muttered to himself. Huang Xuefeng, a security guard beside him, hurriedly asked if they should send someone to ask them.

“Ask what?” Shao Hang casually set down the night-vision goggles he had been fiddling with. "This thing is pretty good. Go ask that kid if he has any more."

"He doesn’t," Huang Xuefeng replied. "That kid's almost starving to death, he’ll tell you anything. He even gave me pictures of the female owners he secretly took."

“Pictures? Alright, let me see. Which building?” Shao Hang squinted his eyes, suddenly interested. As for Zhou Lin and Huang Mengying being out gathering supplies, Shao Hang wasn't in a hurry about that. With that sled, they couldn't carry much, and it wouldn't last long. As long as they kept a close watch, once they went out again, he'd send people to follow them. Then, they'd have it all!

"I'll bring it up for you."

After Zhou Lin and Huang Mengying arrived at the entrance of Building 7, they each took five boxes of dehydrated vegetables, though Huang Mengying was originally only supposed to take three. Zhou Lin insisted on splitting them evenly.

Considering Huang Mengying's strength and the time it might take, Zhou Lin handed her a metal baton to guard the sled while he went inside.

Seeing Zhou Lin lift five boxes of dehydrated vegetables effortlessly, Huang Mengying couldn't help but swallow. Who said women couldn't be greedy? She was craving them right now!

Especially when Zhou Lin came back down in less than five minutes—his speed was astonishing to her.

“Are you even human?” she asked in disbelief.

Zhou Lin smiled. "If you keep up with your training, you’ll be able to do it too. Science, you know?" In truth, he hadn't carried five boxes up seventeen floors. With the warehouse, that would have been foolish. If the elderly woman had opened the door a bit faster, Zhou Lin would've been back even sooner.

After dragging the sled back to Building 8 and making sure the surroundings were clear, Zhou Lin stored the sled away, and nonchalantly headed upstairs. He waited until he reached the door before taking out the items and knocking to enter.

Upon seeing the five boxes of dehydrated vegetables, nobody in the family reacted too strongly. So far, the Zhou family hadn't lacked food or supplies. As Cheng Yali put it, they hadn’t yet experienced the harshness of the apocalypse. Even Yang Qiqi, who lived in the toolshed and only ate leftovers from the Zhou family, had a better food situation than most others in the apocalypse.

Perhaps it was because they'd been comfortable for so long, but instead of feeling gratitude, Yang Qiqi's hatred toward Zhou Lin and his family had only grown over time. She was constantly thinking about delivering a fatal blow to them.

"I'm going to rest for a bit," Zhou Lin said, rubbing Black Zai’s head and hurriedly returning to his room.

He wasn’t tired. The real reason was that his powers were about to evolve!

Symbiosis:

Level 1: 999/1000

Current symbiosis vehicle: "Lai Fu" (Large Watercraft)

Available symbiosis vehicle slots: 0

Storage Space: 1/1 ...

Having never experienced this before, Zhou Lin didn't know exactly what to expect from the power upgrade. To avoid any accidents, he locked the door and sat cross-legged on the floor in the center of his room. After adjusting his breathing and heart rate, he began to slowly store the materials in the warehouse, one by one.

One, two, three...

When he'd stored about fifty kilograms of materials, Zhou Lin suddenly felt as if he had lost control of his body. It felt like his soul had detached from his physical form. After a few seconds—or perhaps minutes—he felt his body return, though it felt like a lingering illusion.

Symbiosis:

Level 2: 1000/10000

Current symbiosis vehicle: "Lai Fu" (Large Watercraft)

Available symbiosis vehicle slots: 1

Storage Space: 1/2

Strengthened Symbiosis: 2.5 minutes/24 hours

Evolution Degree: Level I: 2.5 (2514/10000) ...

The changes after his power evolved included:

An additional slot for symbiosis vehicles and more storage space.

A new stat called “Evolution Degree.”

A new active skill: Strengthened Symbiosis, allowing his body to temporarily match the strength of the symbiosis vehicle, but it could only be used once per day, lasting 2.5 minutes, and the duration was tied to his Evolution Degree.

Zhou Lin wasn’t surprised by the appearance of Evolution Degree. In his past life, he knew that those with powers would eventually become evolved beings, but ordinary evolved beings couldn’t perceive their evolution directly, which was a special privilege for those with powers.

As for the duration of "Strengthened Symbiosis," Zhou Lin speculated it was directly related to the Evolution Degree. As long as the level of Symbiosis didn’t change, the higher the Evolution Degree, the longer the duration of Strengthened Symbiosis.

Zhou Lin was quite pleased with the results of his evolution. Especially with the appearance of the Evolution Degree, it gave him a way to directly observe the effects of his training. As for the Evolution Degree level, Zhou Lin was excited—it would certainly have higher levels in the future, such as Level II, Level III, and so on. The thought of that filled him with enthusiasm and made him want to start training right away!

"Ugh, I’m so hungry!"

Once the excitement wore off, Zhou Lin felt an overwhelming hunger. Looking at his hands, he realized he had become skin and bones. Could it be that his muscles and fat had all been consumed during the evolution process?

There was no time to think about his current appearance, or whether he'd scare people when he went outside. Zhou Lin’s only thought was to eat!

With a thought, a pile of hamburgers appeared in front of him. Swallowing, he grabbed one, tore off the wrapper, and stuffed it into his mouth!

Driven by an intense hunger, Zhou Lin turned into a ruthless food processor, demolishing one hamburger after another. Whenever he got too choked up, he would drink some soda to wash it down.

The hamburgers on Lai Fu were all huge, with thick layers of meat, and normally, just three or five would be enough to fill someone of Zhou Lin's size. But the reality was, he devoured seventy or eighty of them without feeling even a hint of fullness. Instead, his previously skeletal body began to recover, as if the meat from the hamburgers was slowly filling him up.

He didn’t know how many he’d eaten before he finally felt the hunger subside. At this point, his body had almost returned to normal. He even looked a bit bigger and stronger, his muscles now hidden beneath resilient skin, giving him a more appealing, well-proportioned appearance than before. It was a far cry from the pure bodybuilding physique.

He stood up and looked in the mirror, nodding in satisfaction. The only thing he might have to worry about was Wu Xue’s upcoming physical checkup.

Meanwhile, while Zhou Lin was "evolving" in his room, a convoy appeared at the entrance of Lanshan Community. Dozens of bright searchlights illuminated the courtyard, attracting the attention of nearly everyone who was still awake in the community.

Cheng Yali, Zhou Li, and Wu Xue didn’t need to be mentioned. Even the injured Zhou Caijun, who had hardly moved, was now peering out of the window, curious to see who had arrived and what this grand display was all about.