Chapter One: Awakening the System

The weak rays of the setting sun filtered through the thick gray clouds, casting a dim glow upon the highway, which had long since fallen into ruin. The pavement was marred with fierce, spiderweb-like cracks that stretched across the surface.

At a glance, one could see scattered throughout the broken road the remains of numerous trucks and cars, some split in two—clearly abandoned for ages.

“Dad, it’s been three days. Shall we keep waiting?”

Beside the highway, beneath waist-high, withered weeds, Kebei lowered his voice and nudged the burly middle-aged man lying beside him with his elbow.

“Quiet—don’t make a sound!”

The man, whose face was adorned with a thick, black beard, possessed the sharp eyes of a leopard. He stared intently down the highway, raising his fan-sized hand to press Kebei’s head lower.

“It’s coming!”

The man’s copper-colored eyes narrowed, pupils contracting. The muscles on his sturdy arms shifted like stone, veins bulging and writhing like worms.

Lumbering down the ruined highway came a creature, its body covered with red fur, its complexion ashen, eyes pale green, teeth protruding, and claws black and sharp. It staggered toward Kebei’s hiding place.

The red-furred monster moved slowly, stopping now and then, occasionally throwing its head back to howl at the sky.

The piercing cries stabbed at Kebei’s eardrums, as harsh as nails drawn across glass.

“A zombie!”

A cold glint flashed in Kebei’s eyes. He had waited here for three days, hoping to encounter a lone zombie. He touched the dagger strapped to his calf and crouched even lower.

“Boy, remember our agreement. If you break it, you’ll never step outside again!”

The bearded man, seeing Kebei’s eagerness, delivered a hard slap to the back of his head.

“I know, I know, relax. I won’t move,” Kebei replied, humoring his father, though inwardly he was determined: Not move? Sorry, Dad, but this red-furred zombie—I must kill it myself!

When Kebei was six, he learned he was neither a gene-enhanced nor gene-mutated human. Heartbroken, he snuck off to a small hill, where a mysterious beam of light struck him. Upon waking, he found a disc-shaped system imprinted in his mind.

To activate it, he needed to kill a zombie with his own hands.

Kebei yearned for strength. Though he didn’t know what the system in his mind truly was, it was his only hope. With the seventy-year base purge only three months away, without a miracle he was almost certain to die.

Kebei didn’t want to die. He didn’t want his father to die. So he pinned all his hopes on the mysterious system, hoping to become stronger.

His father cautiously took out a small bottle, sprinkled yellowish powder over Kebei, and smeared a layer on himself.

Zombies had a keen sense of smell. Without masking their scent, they wouldn’t even have a chance to ambush a zombie—at a hundred meters, the creature would detect them.

Half an hour passed, and finally the red-furred zombie shambled near.

Ten meters. Eight. Five. Two. One.

The special powder worked wonders; the red-furred zombie came right up to the father’s hiding place, yet noticed nothing and continued to stagger onward.

“Now!”

The bearded man grabbed the massive axe at his side, leapt up, and swung it fiercely at the zombie’s head.

Boom!

The axe smashed into the zombie’s skull, landing a solid hit. The force sent the bearded man staggering backward several steps.

“Roar! Howl!”

The zombie’s head twisted left from the axe’s blow, nearly tilting to its shoulder. It spun around, violent light flashing in its pale green eyes, and howled, charging at the bearded man like a maddened beast.

Its claws, nearly a foot long and gleaming black, slashed viciously at the man who had just regained his footing.

Bang! Bang! Bang!

The bearded man, battle-hardened, wielded his axe with agile skill, blocking every strike. Sparks flew from the furious clashes.

“Roar!”

The zombie screamed, its pale arm sweeping sideways at the man’s head.

“Damn it!”

Feeling the wind rush toward him, the bearded man cursed, lunged forward, bent his knees, lowered his head, and punched in a single fluid motion. The zombie’s arm whistled past his head—barely missing—while his fist, as large as a sandbag, hammered into the zombie’s chest.

As a seasoned first-level gene-enhanced human, his strength was three times that of a normal man, nearly matching the zombie’s own. Only his body lacked the creature’s resilience.

His rain of blows sent the zombie reeling, its blood-red fur trembling as it stumbled backward.

“Just a bit closer!”

From the weeds, Kebei watched as the zombie retreated toward him. His eyes blazed hotly, sweat slicking his right hand, which gripped the dagger tight. He inhaled sharply, struggling to stay calm.

He had only one chance!

If he failed, his father would never let him go out again, regardless of life or death.

Thunk!

The zombie took another step, its foot landing in Kebei’s hiding place, the stench overwhelming. Kebei reversed his grip on the cold dagger, eyes locked on the zombie’s exposed nape—a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity!

Suddenly, Kebei sprang into action, leaping onto the zombie’s two-meter-tall back like a startled beast. His left arm wrapped tightly around its neck, while his right hand drove the dagger fiercely forward.

The abrupt move left his father stunned. Before he could curse, the zombie roared, twisting to face him.

“Damn it, get back here!”

The bearded man, eyes bloodshot, roared and tossed his axe aside, clamping the zombie’s arms with his own like steel pincers, preventing it from turning on Kebei.

“Roar! Roar!”

Trapped, the zombie howled madly, its fangs protruding as it spewed a foul stench and lunged to bite the bearded man.

Staring coldly at the zombie’s fangs, veins bulged on the man’s forehead. He held fast, unable to dodge; the zombie was strong, and only by exerting every ounce of strength could he restrain its arms. If he let go, his son would be doomed.

Squelch!

The zombie’s fangs halted, just short of the man’s throat.

On the creature’s back, Kebei stabbed wildly at its forehead. He knew the brow was its weak point. In the critical moment—just as the fangs neared his father’s neck—Kebei finally managed to plunge his dagger into its skull.

As the red-furred zombie collapsed, Kebei’s taut nerves relaxed, his clothes drenched in cold sweat. He had nearly gotten his father killed... but the zombie was dead, and the system should now activate. As the thought crossed his mind, a crisp voice sounded in his head.

“Task complete. System activated. Begin lottery?”

Kebei ‘saw’ the gray disc in his mind now radiating a faint golden glow.

There were eighteen icons within the circle. Upon close inspection, Kebei found six lit up, while twelve remained dim. He studied the six shimmering icons; each was different.

The so-called lottery meant spinning the disc, and whatever it landed on, he would receive.

Kebei was neither gene-enhanced nor gene-mutated, making survival in the apocalypse nearly impossible. Fortunately, with the system activated, each completed mission granted him a spin.

“Not bad! Risking my life to activate the system was worth it!”

His eyes grew ever brighter as he read the names beneath each icon.

“Purple Mist Divine Skill, Five Clouds Smoke Palm, Mighty Vajra Palm, Shaolin Long Fist, Dragon-Seizing Hand, Little Li Flying Dagger.”

He took a deep breath, eyes darting among the six icons. Kebei could barely contain himself.

Purple Mist Divine Skill was a treasure; once mastered, its power would be formidable—his most desired prize.

Mighty Vajra Palm and Dragon-Seizing Hand were also impressive, but without abundant inner force, their might would be limited. Five Clouds Smoke Palm was a mid-tier skill, while Shaolin Long Fist was basic.

Basic skills had little use. After a century of evolution, zombies had grown extremely powerful. Even if he drew Shaolin Long Fist, his strength likely wouldn’t be enough to handle even the weakest zombie.

Little Li Flying Dagger was famed for never missing. Kebei coveted it, but without inner force, he wasn’t sure it could be unleashed, so he hesitated.

“Damn it, let’s start! If I get Purple Mist Divine Skill, ordinary gene-enhanced types will be nothing to me. Then I’ll finally hold my head high, and see if that idiot dares call me a useless burden again!”

Imagining himself reigning supreme with Purple Mist Divine Skill, Kebei’s heart burned with excitement. He rubbed his hands, eyes fixed on the disc.

“Purple Mist Divine Skill, I want Purple Mist Divine Skill,” he silently chanted, finally deciding to spin.

With a thought, a silver light appeared on the disc, darting swiftly among the six glowing icons.

The silver dot moved so fast that his eyes ached, unable to track it. Gradually, it began to slow.

Kebei held his breath, staring hard.

Shaolin Long Fist passed by.

Mighty Vajra Palm passed by.

Five Clouds Smoke Palm passed by.

The dot slowed further, and Kebei, tense to the extreme, held his breath, face flushed, fists clenched.

The silver light finally drifted onto Purple Mist Divine Skill.

“Stop! Stop! Stop right there!”

The silver dot crept forwards like a snail.

“Damn!” Kebei jumped up—the Purple Mist Divine Skill was missed.

“Go, go, keep going!”

Watching as the dot neared Dragon-Seizing Hand, Kebei shouted in excitement, his heart pounding.

Dragon-Seizing Hand was valuable, but required massive inner force to use; without it, the skill was just a showpiece.

Meanwhile, his bearded father expertly dissected the zombie, extracting a thumb-sized, hexagonal red crystal from its heart. This was known as a Power Crystal, a valuable commodity for barter and a zombie’s core essence.

“Go? Where do you think you’re going, boy!”

After finishing, his father saw Kebei jumping around as if possessed, and gave him a hard slap on the head, snapping him back to reality.

“Dad, are you alright?” Kebei asked, dazed, finally finding his voice after a long pause.

Before he could check where the silver dot had landed, his father delivered a swift kick to his rear, sending him tumbling.