Luo Xiaole watched the magnified face of a zombie on the screen, feeling a vicarious thrill for them.
The four of them exchanged glances. They were all fit and muscular. Surely, they could handle these three small zombies?
A second later, their lips curled into confident smiles. With a running start, they dashed towards the zombies!
The zombie let out a guttural growl, its saliva dripping as it dragged its broken leg, contorting its body with a peculiar and terrifying gait as it lunged forward.
The first man swung his right arm, his blade flashing instantly. He cleaved directly into the slender zombie's shoulder!
Black blood spurted out, and the comment section erupted in cheers!
The man's heart sank, and he realized something was wrong.
He felt the zombie's flesh was tougher than he had anticipated, proving difficult to cut.
With so many people watching, he refused to back down. Drawing his cleaver, he prepared to finish the zombie with a decisive blow.
He swung down with all his might towards the zombie's skull!
The next second, something astonishing happened!
The zombie's skull was as hard as steel!
The sharp cleaver made a clicking sound, a chip instantly appearing on its blade. The zombie's skull, however, merely caved in slightly.
Gasps flooded the comment section. No one had expected this!
"How can a zombie's head be so hard!"
"This is completely different from all the zombie movies I've seen!"
The man who had boasted earlier was clearly stunned. He had thought it was just that others were too weak to fight the zombies, but he hadn't expected the zombies to be so formidable.
Seizing the moment of his hesitation, the zombie's eyes glinted with impatience and it lunged forward.
As he watched in disbelief, his shield was instantly knocked away, rendering it useless.
The next second, with a bite of steel, his chest armor actually cracked open!
Before he could even finish screaming for help, his entire heart was ripped out by the zombie's claws, and the scalding blood splashed across everyone's screens...
The overwhelming brutality silenced the comment section instantly.
Little Fatty and the other three shivered with cold.
Luo Xiaole bit her lip tightly, her hand holding the phone trembling uncontrollably.
The other three men's scalps tingled, their blood running cold. They no longer dared to be careless, huddling together and hacking at one zombie until they finally, with combined effort, dealt with another.
However, they weren't so lucky. Soon, a muscular zombie shot out from the other end of the corridor, its sharp teeth piercing the carotid arteries of all three men one after another...
Their shields didn't even withstand the zombie's third bite before they shattered, breaking into two pieces and falling uselessly to the ground.
In an instant, the blood-red camera lens shakily recorded only the scenes of several zombies feasting up close, flesh being torn, pulled out, and chewed.
Despair gradually filled everyone's chests.
This would leave a lasting psychological scar on everyone watching the live stream.
A single zombie might not be impossible to defeat, but the cost and effort involved were far too immense.
Little Fatty looked at Luo Xiaole helplessly, his throat choked with emotion. He couldn't speak.
Many who hadn't left their homes since the zombie outbreak saw for the first time just how powerful and terrifying real zombies were. Some even despaired and took their own lives. In an instant, several people heard the sounds of zombie roars coming from previously lively adjacent rooms, followed by silence.
Because it was too difficult, they chose to join the seemingly stronger side, becoming zombies themselves.
This first challenge, launched by humanity against the zombies, ended with humanity utterly defenseless.
...
After witnessing such scenes, those who managed to get some fruit that evening ate without any appetite. Each person retreated to a corner, lost in thought, unable to snap out of it.
Luo Xiaole slumped against the sofa in the corner, feeling a sense of despair.
Forget uncovering the truth about her parents; she couldn't even easily leave this room now. The mere sight of a zombie would stiffen her body, making her an easy target.
Could she really survive?
[Ding dong, system charge complete, officially commencing.]
The sudden mechanical voice in her mind jolted Luo Xiaole!
Her eyes instantly lit up.
The system was back!
[Welcome to the Apocalypse Item Merchant System.]
[Please note, once this system is bound, it will automatically unbind if the host dies. Please cherish your life.]
[Would you like to bind now?]
Luo Xiaole saw this as her only lifeline. She nodded solemnly and silently agreed in her heart, "Bind!"
Instantly, Luo Xiaole felt a warm current flow through her, a palpable connection to the system.
[Host, please accept the beginner's gift package.]
[Mall credits of 2000 yuan have been credited.]
"The host can use mall credits to exchange for any resources within the system."
Hearing this, Luo Xiaole eagerly opened the interface to explore its functions.
As she looked, her eyes widened.
Besides item enhancement, the system even had an item section where she could acquire an endless supply of food and potions!
What made her happiest was a body modification function at the bottom.
Years of household chores had left her with chronic pain and numerous ailments, making her miserable. A slight exertion would cause uncontrollable aches throughout her body, especially on damp days when rheumatism made her joints unbearable. This was undoubtedly the weakest physical condition one could have in the apocalypse.
However, with body modification, she could not only gain a healthy body but even become stronger than ordinary people!
This was something she had always dreamed of.
Unfortunately, all these functions were currently grayed out, locked.
She looked at the unlock conditions next to them with hope, and her eyeballs nearly popped out!
Unlocking body modification required 5 million mall credits! And that was just to unlock the function, not including the cost of the modification itself!
She instantly felt her vision blur!
She counted again and it was undeniably that number.
"Um..." Luo Xiaole asked the system dejectedly in her mind, "How do I get these mall credits?"
"As long as the host trades with others, the traded supplies or money will be automatically converted into mall credits by the system."
Luo Xiaole nodded, understanding.
Then she immediately thought of the problem that troubled her the most.
"Why does my body freeze whenever I encounter a zombie? Is it your doing?"
"Not just zombies; whenever a threat to the host's life is detected, the host's body will completely freeze for five minutes."
Luo Xiaole's face was filled with question marks, her jaw almost dropping to the floor in surprise.
What kind of system was this!
"The Item Merchant adheres to the principle of fair trade. When you receive powerful weapons, you naturally have to pay a price in return. Please remain calm and try your best to survive."
Luo Xiaole's heart sank into an ice-cold abyss.
This system clearly didn't want her to live.
"You don't need to worry too much. Once the host unlocks the body modification function and completes the body enhancement, this restriction will disappear."
Luo Xiaole's hope reignited.
Level up! She had to make money and level up! Otherwise, she'd be finished before she could find the truth.
Freezing every time she was in danger meant certain death. She had to remove this restriction!
The system suddenly spoke again.
[Accept beginner mission?]
Luo Xiaole was suspicious. There were missions to complete?
But beginner missions should come with some rewards, right?
"Accept." To make money and level up, she didn't hesitate anymore.
[Beginner mission activated, modification zone unlocked. Host must earn 40,000 mall credits within 3 days to officially activate the enhancement skill: Sharp Blade. During these 3 days, it can be briefly used for 2 hours. After activation, it can be used indefinitely. Each weapon enhancement costs 200 mall credits.]
Luo Xiaole quickly tapped on the Sharp Blade panel.
She saw that unlocking it required 40,000 mall credits. The description stated it could cut through all living things, making it very suitable for dealing with zombies.
[Mission completion reward: 5000 mall credits. If the beginner mission fails, the host's body freezing time will be extended to 10 minutes each time.]