Apocalypse: Master of Soul Beasts

Chapter 21: Chapter 21 Advancement Trial_1

When Wang Zhigang saw his great enemy avenged, the hatred in his eyes gradually dissipated. Leaning against the wall, he slowly stood up and nodded at Wen Yu.

”I thought you were dead,” Wen Yu teased. ”You’re really lucky to survive such a big explosion.”

”When the explosives detonated, that giant rat shielded me from most of the shockwave. Plus, the explosives had a delayed detonation, which gave me plenty of time to take cover, so I didn’t die,” Wang Zhigang explained.

He recalled the recent battle. Just as Wang Zhigang was about to enter the storage area, he had come face-to-face with the Level 2 Rat King. Only when they engaged did he realize that the Rat King’s physical prowess wasn’t an overwhelming threat to him.

Rats, after all, possess an innate deficiency; exceptionally powerful individuals don’t typically appear among their species. These mutant creatures mainly rely on numbers to secure victory.

With his agile movements, Wang Zhigang sparred with the Rat King while igniting the fuse of the homemade explosive. Drawing on his experience as a former demolitions expert, he found the spot where the shockwave would be weakest. Coupled with the Rat King absorbing most of the blast, he managed to survive the explosion by a hair’s breadth.

The lost look in Wang Zhigang’s eyes vanished. With his great enemy avenged, his spirits gradually lifted.

”What are your plans now? You’re not still thinking about suicide, are you?”

Having spent merely half a day together, Wen Yu had a decent impression of Wang Zhigang. The man was intelligent, capable, and fortunate. Most importantly, he had no attachments. An idea suddenly struck Wen Yu: perhaps he could form a small team.

”Not anymore. Having survived this, I suddenly find I don’t want to die.”

”I need to go back and find my colleagues. The plan to lure the zombies caused them significant losses. Without me, I’m afraid they’ll run into trouble,” Wang Zhigang replied after careful thought.

Wen Yu, who had just been thinking of recruiting a teammate, was once again taken aback by Wang Zhigang. He’d thought the man had no attachments, only for him to immediately find one.

”Alright. In that case, let’s head up. This place could collapse at any moment.”

Wen Yu dismissed the idea of forming a team and headed directly upstairs, with Wang Zhigang stumbling along behind him.

Wen Yu picked up the large bag of magic crystals, poured them all onto the empty ground, and carefully counted them.

There were sixty-seven magic crystals in total. Most had mixed attributes, but even these were far better than attributeless magic crystals.

”Old Wang, come and get your share of the spoils,” Wen Yu said to Wang Zhigang, who had walked over to the Exchange Stone Pillar and traded for a basic healing potion.

Wang Zhigang looked carefully at Wen Yu, then at the magic crystals scattered on the ground.

”The original plan was for me to die while you avenged me. These magic crystals weren’t meant for me. You should keep them.”

”Old Wang, that’s where you’re wrong,” Wen Yu stated. ”I have my principles: your contribution in a battle determines your share of the rewards. You contributed a lot this time, so all of these on the ground are yours. I’ve already profited greatly by taking one Level 2 magic crystal. I might not always be reasonable, but I am a man of principle.”

Wang Zhigang looked intently into Wen Yu’s eyes—they were clear, bright, and unwavering.

”Thank you,” Wang Zhigang said to Wen Yu.

”You’re welcome.” Wen Yu looked at the magic crystals before them without any reluctance. To him, these were completely useless, and Wen Yu never hesitated to part with useless things.

Moreover, having Old Wang owe him a favor was, in Wen Yu’s eyes, definitely not a loss. With Wang Zhigang’s abilities, he would very likely become an influential figure in M City in the future. This was an investment.

They walked out of the police station in silence, watching as the sun began to cast its first rays over the horizon.

”By the way, my name is Wen Yu.”

”I’ll remember you.”

After finding a clean spot to rest for a while, Wen Yu felt his energy return.

Stretching languidly, Wen Yu briefly reviewed his Attributes.

He was at Peak Level 1, and his Soul Beast had also advanced to Peak Level 1. It could be said that in just one night, Wen Yu’s combat prowess had undergone a qualitative leap.

Looking at the sun high in the sky outside, Wen Yu picked up his battle saber.

Evolution was endless. Currently, with his status as a Soul Master, Wen Yu could challenge the progression trial. If successful, he would be able to contract a second soul pet, and his Soul Beast would also acquire a second skill.

However, this was not simple.

The content of the progression trial was simple: defeat a newly advanced Level 2 mutant creature in a one-on-one battle. Both sides would have the same basic Attributes, but the Level 2 mutant creature would possess one more skill than the Challenger.

Therefore, those who managed to pass the trial were invariably individuals with formidable combat strength or those who possessed valuable treasures.

This part was very simple for Wen Yu. The Attribute suppression he could achieve in a combat state would allow Wen Yu to pass easily.

The difficult problem now facing Wen Yu was the number of points required for the progression trial.

One thousand points. It sounded simple enough; just last night, Wen Yu had accumulated over 2,000 points.

But where else could he find a large zombie horde to farm points from?

Looking at the less than 300 points he had remaining, Wen Yu suddenly felt the immensity of the task ahead.

”Enough of these thoughts for now. I should stick to the original plan and check out the treasure land at Riverside Park.”

Thinking of that treasure land, Wen Yu couldn’t help but feel a surge of excitement. With his current strength, no Human would be able to contend with him.

Riverside Park was located in the heart of Mudanjiang City. As a park in the city center, it naturally attracted a large volume of people.

Although Wen Yu had mentally prepared himself, he still felt his legs go weak at the sight of the zombie horde before him.

What greeted Wen Yu’s eyes was a teeming horde of zombies. Judging by numbers alone, it might not have been larger than the zombie horde at the police station. However, the proportion of Level one zombies within it was terrifyingly high. On average, one out of every three zombies was a Level one zombie. Moreover, it was clear that some of these Level one zombies were not newly advanced.

With their sharp claws, jagged, saw-like teeth, and terrifying numbers, Wen Yu knew that in the face of Level one zombies, his protective suit offered no real sense of security.

If the protective suit couldn’t withstand the damage from the zombies, that massive horde would tear him to shreds, even if Level one zombies were like ants before him.

Looking at the scattered bloodstains on the ground—remnants from when the apocalypse began. Only a place with such a massive flow of people could have spawned such a vast number of Level one zombies.

Standing on the rooftop of a nearby residential building, Wen Yu carefully observed the zombies’ movement patterns.

Zombies were interesting creatures. Without the scent of food to attract them, they usually didn’t wander aimlessly, preferring to stay put to conserve energy. However, the zombies near the park were somewhat different. Logically, there should have been many mutant animals within the park, yet the nearby zombies never entered it. The two groups remained distinctly separate.

Wen Yu watched for several tens of minutes and sighed in resignation.

The zombies were too densely packed. If a fight broke out here, it would trigger a chain reaction, and he wasn’t confident he could escape the pursuit of such a massive number of Level one zombies. The moment he approached the park, the zombies would discover him, leading to an unrelenting fight to the death.

The situation had reached a deadlock.

Wen Yu began to ponder.

The information he’d obtained in his previous life confirmed that someone had definitely entered this treasure land before. Yet, he’d never heard anything about a zombie horde here.

And now, it seemed the zombie horde showed no signs of having been breached. There could only be one explanation: when the treasure land opened, some change occurred that allowed survivors to bypass the horde and enter.

Wen Yu casually found some food in a house downstairs and narrowed his eyes, carefully observing the zombie horde.

”Tonight, the treasure land will open. In my previous life, I distinctly remember not hearing anything about a zombie horde. It seems some kind of change must occur around this time.”

Wen Yu remained quietly in a corner, his heart growing calmer as time ticked by.