Chapter Twenty-Nine: Level Two Zombie

"You haven't seen a Level 2 zombie, so let me explain it to you first," Chu Wei said, clearing his throat.

"A Level 2 is vastly different from a Level 1. Beyond being more agile and having stronger defenses, it can coat its entire body in flames, like wearing a suit of fire armor. Except for water-based powers, no other abilities have any effect on it."

Zombies have skills? This was the first time Lin Qingqing had ever heard of such a thing. No wonder Chu Wei had been so certain about the zombie's attributes—he had clearly witnessed its abilities before.

"Then we have to rely on Little Li and Miss Lin for the attacks?" Old Yang asked, frowning.

"That’s right. You and I will primarily focus on containing it, while Little Hu provides long-range support. Does anyone have any other objections?" Chu Wei looked at the four of them after speaking.

The arrangement was sound, and no one had any complaints.

The group arrived at the factory where the Level 2 zombie was located. Before they even got close, they heard the zombie's incessant roars. The hoarse sound was like two rusty gears grinding against each other, agonizing enough to make one want to cover their ears.

Old Yang, a power-type ability user, stepped forward first. With a fist the size of a sandbag, he blasted open the factory doors, and the group charged in behind him.

Little Hu, who was in the back, had just closed the door when he turned around to see a gaunt, charred, humanoid creature leap from a high shelf, landing five meters in front of them.

To the zombie, the five people were five servings of food. Instead of hiding, it excitedly shuffled its feet on the spot, looking as if it were carefully selecting its first victim.

"It really is different from a Level 1 zombie."

As Lin Qingqing looked at the naked, ugly humanoid monster before her, she thought: at least with a Level 1 zombie, you could still make out the facial features it had as a human. But this Level 2 zombie, despite having the same number of limbs and a head, no longer held any characteristics of a normal human.

Its skin was crimson and cracked, its joints severely deformed, and its entire body was as shriveled as a dehydrated mummy. She honestly couldn't fathom what kept it moving.

"Attack!" Chu Wei was the first to react.

As soon as he spoke, Little Li impatiently unleashed a water whip. With a flick of his wrist, the whip struck toward the zombie’s left flank—the exact spot where it had been injured previously.

The strike landed, and the zombie let out a furious howl. The familiar water-based attack seemed to remind it of its past pain.

Following the roar, the group felt the ambient temperature rise sharply, and the air around the zombie began to warp.

Perhaps recognizing its enemy, the zombie took the initiative to attack this time.

Little Li was startled and quickly retreated two steps. At the same time, Chu Wei and Old Yang’s attacks landed on the zombie.

Old Yang, the power-type, used his fists. He wore black gloves, and his punches were fierce.

Chu Wei, a fire-type, used a dagger. His own fire abilities were useless against a Level 2 fire-type zombie, so he had to rely on his weapon.

Caught in a pincer attack from both sides, the zombie, which had been lunging at Little Li, was successfully intercepted.

After Little Li escaped to a safe distance, the zombie stopped pursuing him and turned to attack Chu Wei directly.

The two figures exchanged seven or eight blows. Chu Wei’s abilities were useless, and his dagger only inflicted minor grazes on the zombie. Although the zombie’s attacks lacked technique, its tough body inflicted significant damage on Chu Wei.

What was even stranger was that neither Old Yang nor Little Li could force the zombie to change its target, even when Little Hu took the opportunity to fire a few arrows; it still refused to stop attacking Chu Wei.

"Could it be that they are drawn to their own kind?"

Chu Wei wanted the Level 2 fire zombie's core to trade for fire-type medicine. Could it be that the zombie had its eyes on his fire-type body and wanted to eat him to evolve?

Lin Qingqing speculated wildly. Seeing that Chu Wei was being beaten to a pulp, she finally manifested an ice blade and charged forward.

With Lin Qingqing joining the fray, Chu Wei was finally able to disengage. He wiped a smear of blood from the corner of his mouth, silently cursing his "bad luck."

The ice blade, formed from her ability, quickly left a trail of wounds on the fire zombie.

Inflicting such heavy damage on the zombie for the first time boosted the morale of the others, especially Chu Wei, whose small eyes glowed with greed as he looked at Lin Qingqing.

Little Li, also a main attacker, refused to be outdone. Gritting his teeth, he unleashed his abilities as if they cost nothing.

Lin Qingqing had no desire to fight for credit. Seeing Little Li acting bravely, she stepped back from the main offensive, staying on the periphery to provide support.

They skirmished for about half an hour, and the zombie was covered in wounds.

Lin Qingqing controlled the situation perfectly. Even though she could have struck a fatal blow at any moment, she "inadvertently" missed, ensuring the zombie stayed injured but remained capable of fighting.

Seeing that Little Li’s energy was nearly exhausted, the zombie grew enraged. Its eyes turned blood-red, and a flash of fire spread rapidly from its eyes across its entire body.

"This is the talent skill of a Level 2 fire zombie—Flame Armor!" Chu Wei shouted to warn everyone.

He was anxious, but helpless; he could only pin his hopes on Little Li and Lin Qingqing.

Seeing the zombie use its skill, Lin Qingqing began to take things seriously.

Originally, she had intended to use this Level 2 zombie to deplete the combat strength of Chu Wei and his group as much as possible, so she could seize the initiative later. She hadn't expected the zombie to be forced into using its skill this early.

It was clear that this skill couldn't be used lightly. With the flames protecting it, the zombie’s attacks were nearly twice as fierce as before, and its defense had significantly increased as well.

Furthermore, it stopped fixating on a single target and began attacking at random.

Seeing this, Lin Qingqing immediately changed her strategy, shifting from offense to defense to preserve her own strength.

She carefully weighed the combat strength of the zombie against Chu Wei’s group, much like the fox dividing the meat pie for the little pigs—taking a bite here and a bite there, until the meat in their hands was gone.

At this moment, the zombie in its abnormal state was clearly too ferocious. The instant its claws reached toward Chu Wei, Lin Qingqing seized the opportunity and severed one of the zombie's arms with a single slash.

The suddenly armless zombie lost its balance mid-lunge and spun around, reaching out with its other hand toward Chu Wei.

This time, Lin Qingqing was "just" a step too slow. Her ice blade grazed the zombie’s head, cutting only half of its face.

Just then, Little Hu’s arrow flew over, hitting the zombie’s arm with a "clink."

The bamboo shaft of the arrow was instantly ignited by the flames on the zombie’s body, and the impact only diverted the zombie’s claw by an inch, failing to fully resolve the crisis for Chu Wei.

As the sharp claw was about to tear through Chu Wei’s neck, Old Yang’s fist appeared just in time. He had intended to punch the zombie’s arm away to save Chu Wei, but he hadn't expected Chu Wei to move on his own.

In a panic, Chu Wei grabbed the fist Old Yang had thrown, using the momentum to pull himself aside and yanking Old Yang directly into his path, serving him up to the zombie’s claws.

Old Yang never imagined that he, who had intended to save his companion, would be betrayed and lose his life to him.

Although he was a physically powerful ability user, he was currently only at Level 1. While his fists were more effective than ordinary weapons, his personal defense was no match for the zombie’s claws.

Just like that, before the stunned eyes of the group, Old Yang was impaled by the zombie’s claw and died before he could even react.