Unstoppable Ride-and-Slash

When Xia Chu saw Lin Qi's getup, she couldn't help but snort with laughter.

He looked just like a punk kid on a souped-up scooter.

The electric scooter was lower than a motorcycle, so Xia Chu easily climbed onto the back seat.

"Hold on tight."

Lin Qi gave the order. The Collecting Robot sprang into action, set a large bag of Crimson Crystals on the footboard, then climbed up to Xia Chu's waist.

Xia Chu stiffened a little. She was just about to ask what it was doing when the Collecting Robot's spider legs began to join together, locking around her waist like a pair of calipers.

They bound Xia Chu and Lin Qi tightly together.

"This scooter's fast. I'm securing you in place. Just think of it as a seat belt," Lin Qi briefly explained.

He'd had too little time to modify the electric scooter. He could only guarantee its speed and structural strength; it hadn't undergone any safety testing at all.

Still, as an L-level Researcher, Lin Qi judged that the modified scooter handled reasonably well. He didn't expect too many mishaps.

The only risk lay in the tires.

He had no good way to modify the rubber tires in such a short time.

They would just have to be careful while riding and avoid putting too much pressure on them.

Lin Qi wasn't asking for much. He only needed the tires to hold up for ten kilometers. It would take just a few minutes.

Xia Chu's face flushed slightly. Her voice was faint. "Mm."

Her voice sounded a little strange, but Lin Qi paid it no mind.

He gently twisted the throttle to keep the tires from spinning too fast at the start.

Even so, the acceleration was fierce. The "No. 10 Electric Vehicle" was already designed to reach an illegal speed, topping 60 km/h, and its tires had a decent grip.

With a sudden burst, it shot far down the road.

Xia Chu's eyes went wide. Startled for a moment, she quickly tucked her head behind Lin Qi's back to keep the wind from irritating her eyes.

His Exoskeleton didn't have a driving skill chip, but Lin Qi was confident he could handle an electric scooter. He didn't need the Brain's assistance.

Xia Chu had only been distracted for a moment, yet they were already at the intersection.

Cars were scattered across the road, blocking the main thoroughfare completely, but the bike lane was still passable.

There were large numbers of Zombies inside the cars and along both sides of the street.

"The Zombies have gotten more dangerous, but they're still not at M-level strength. That giant Zombie must have been an isolated case."

Under Psychic Vision, Lin Qi assessed the Zombies' strength.

Fortunately, this wasn't happening everywhere. Otherwise, even Lin Qi would be under considerable pressure.

The electric scooter wasn't very noisy, so it wouldn't attract Zombies from a wide area.

But the Zombies wandering on the sidewalk were still drawn to it.

The Zombies seemed to have an obsession with the blood of living creatures. Whenever they sensed one, they pursued it frantically.

"They're faster now, too. Their stamina is average, but their bursts of speed already surpass ordinary humans. The situation for ordinary survivors is probably dire."

"But if they heed the broadcast's advice and stockpile a few Crimson Crystals in advance, absorbing four or five at most should give them enough physical strength to protect themselves."

How many people would heed the advice?

Obviously, not many.

Only a small number of people would even use a radio to receive messages during the Doomsday World.

Otherwise, given the initial ratio of humans to Zombies, the apocalypse shouldn't have been that much of a problem.

What had truly plunged humanity into crisis was that Crimson Moon hanging high in the sky.

"Hold on tight. It's going to get a little bumpy up ahead."

Lin Qi held the scooter's handlebar with one hand.

In his other hand, he gripped the Short Tang Dao.

They were already very close to Modu University, and the Zombies on the streets were growing denser by the minute.

Given the university's population, there would only be more Zombies packed together once they entered campus.

Considering the size of the population,

something like that giant Zombie might have appeared there, too.

As he pondered this, the "Advanced Swordsmanship" chip activated.

The Short Tang Dao danced like a flower in Lin Qi's hand.

"As a Wizard, close-quarters combat is my main means of attack. That makes sense, I guess," Lin Qi thought to himself.

On the supernatural side, Lin Qi hadn't mastered many ranged attacks.

He had only just acquired the second ability of a First Rank Wizard, and it wasn't yet an effective combat skill.

"This is a good chance to test it in battle and get familiar with the ability."

Within the range of his Psychic Vision, the blood of the Zombies he'd hacked apart quietly gathered.

Blood Manipulation activated. Its range was almost identical to that of his Psychic Vision.

The blood silently formed into blades, cutting down Zombies like flying knives alongside his Short Tang Dao.

After hacking his way forward for several hundred meters,

Lin Qi realized something was wrong.

He was a Wizard. Why was his mind full of combat techniques for cybernetic implant users?

Why did Blood Manipulation have to form the blood into blades?

He changed his way of thinking.

As he hacked at Zombies with the Short Tang Dao, farther down the road, Zombie heads suddenly began bursting open for no apparent reason.

There was, of course, blood inside their heads.

"With Psychic Vision active, I can manipulate all the blood in range, even the blood inside a Zombie's body."

"But with Psychic Vision off, I can only manipulate blood on the body's surface. In other words, there can't be anything between the blood and me."

A sudden realization struck him.

"Psychic Vision" and "Blood Manipulation" actually worked together.

"Is my combat strength... a little off?"

"Well, in this Doomsday World, that's one thing. But in the Cyber World, if I manipulated the blood inside someone else's body, even an A-level Cybernetic Body—or even an S-level Cybernetic Prosthesis—wouldn't be able to withstand it, would they?"

"Wait. More than 95% of people who've undergone cybernetic conversion have no blood in their bodies. I'm not invincible yet."

The Cyber World was full of lunatics. Some people had so little human tissue left that they couldn't even wrap up a single dumpling with it.

But this wasn't the time to think about the Cyber World. The number of Zombies up ahead was surging.

Lin Qi was covered in filth from head to toe. Even Xia Chu, hiding behind him, couldn't escape an equally miserable fate.

Fortunately, the "No. 10 Electric Vehicle" was fast enough. With Lin Qi in full-on "unstoppable ride-and-slash" mode, the Club Activity Building was right before them!

Lin Qi carved a bloody path through the horde, but hundreds of Zombies were chasing the scooter in a frenzy.

They were about to reach the Club Activity Building.

The Collecting Robot's spider legs suddenly released their hold. Lin Qi leaned to the side and wrapped one arm around Xia Chu.

Then the electric scooter skidded sideways. Holding Xia Chu, Lin Qi leaped off and sprinted at high speed, powered by his L-level Exoskeleton.

They were still more than ten meters from the laboratory building.

The Exoskeleton on his legs began to charge up.

It wasn't relying on mechanical power alone. High-Energy Pulse kicked in as well.

Lin Qi's expression remained calm, but Xia Chu, held in his arms, felt a tremendous acceleration.

"So high..."

Xia Chu murmured without thinking.

The next second, Lin Qi landed steadily on the fourth floor of the Club Activity Building.

Downstairs, the unintelligent Zombies didn't rush into the building. Instead, having lost their target, they milled around helplessly.

Beside the "No. 10 Electric Vehicle," the Collecting Robot, which had unlocked itself ahead of time, was already cleaning up.

Crimson Crystals wrapped in a bedsheet were scattered across the ground, and the sheet was torn to shreds.

The Collecting Robot immediately went over to the bedsheet.

Its camera turned from side to side, as if it were a little confused.

Then one of its spider legs rose. A long needle appeared, with a thin strand of Liquid Spider Silk gathering at its tail.