Secondary Evolution, Fortifying the Residence!

The bonus from Iron Physique far exceeded imagination.

A flicker of shock crossed Cheng Ye's eyes as he carefully felt the changes in his body.

If he hadn't experienced it firsthand, he would never have understood the vast difference.

No wonder the S-3 virus recorded in books was enough to overturn civilization. This was just one talent brought about by Gene Ancestral Reversion, and it had already far surpassed ordinary people.

What about Transcendent abilities?

They were probably already terrifying to the point of completely differentiating humans into two forms!

"Wait, Dai Zun's Iron Physique doesn't seem as strong as mine?"

Losing the sense of pain and strengthening the three-dimensional perception of the body, these changes were too outrageous.

Cheng Ye simply unequipped Iron Physique and tried re-equipping it.

After verifying and comparing it four or five times, he actually discovered a hint of unexpected change.

"This talent actually has a continuous weakening effect?"

"And it has a built-in cooldown time?"

When Iron Physique was first equipped, the amplification it brought was the most intense. The liberated nerves caused the body's Control to soar by 50%, directly achieving a qualitative leap.

But this amplification could only last for one minute at most, after which the amplification would continuously decay.

Within five minutes at most, the amplification would completely disappear, and he had to unequip the talent to reactivate it.

Furthermore, equipping it immediately after unequipping it did not activate the amplification.

After Cheng Ye tested it, he had to wait five minutes to return to the strongest bonus state.

"The pain nerves are released to capture information. Could it be that the liberated neurons cannot withstand long-term high-pressure information processing?"

Cheng Ye guessed inwardly. Although his major was Civil Engineering, this part of the knowledge was actually taught in high school biology.

Pain signal transmission relies on specific neurons. When pain perception weakens, the firing frequency of these neurons decreases, which theoretically could reduce the neural resource occupation of the spinal cord's dorsal horn and the thalamus's pain center.

And neurons transmit information by opening and closing ion channels, a process that consumes a large amount of energy, supplied by mitochondria.

When the information processing load increases, mitochondria, under high intensity, will quickly exceed their energy supply and metabolic capacity, which externally manifests as the gradual disappearance of the amplification effect.

"Theory is just theory. If I could figure this out with my high school knowledge, Gene Ancestral Reversion wouldn't be so magical. I can look for some Research Skills to study carefully in the future."

Cheng Ye shook his head, deciding not to dwell on these neurological principles.

If the Control amplification was lost, this talent was indeed a double-edged sword.

But to achieve a performance stronger than Dai Zun's main body was already a huge and unexpected surprise.

He wasn't planning to use the pain suppression equipment long-term anyway. At most, he'd use it during daily training when pushed to the limit, allowing him to endure and wring out his body's potential.

As for actual combat, close-quarters fighting would be decided within half a minute. Who would drag it out until five minutes later when the amplification disappeared?

It was more than enough!

Gulp, gulp.

Just then, the familiar hunger surged like a tide.

Cheng Ye's expression changed. Without thinking, he grabbed a Nutrient Paste and guzzled it down.

Indeed, whether it was a skill or a talent, once it reached a certain level, it would cause adaptive modifications to the body's fundamental structure.

Last time, with Basic Strength, his body had directly generated new muscle mass to adapt.

So what about Iron Physique this time?

One bag, five bags, ten bags. Twenty bags of Nutrient Paste were gone in an instant, the packaging strewn on the floor.

Based on his previous experience, after consuming so much Nutrient Paste, the emptiness in his stomach should have been relieved by now.

But now, the black-hole-like hunger in his stomach hadn't subsided. Instead, it felt like it was trying to hollow out his internal organs.

"Excellent, excellent, this feeling is just right!"

"Give me more, I can take more!"

The factional conflict had only just begun, but the threat of the Infected followed close behind.

Every shred of luck in his heart was completely extinguished.

This was the Wasteland. Death never gave anyone a moment's respite.

Today it was the Station Chief who fell; tomorrow, it might be the Inspector.

Cheng Ye's craving for power had never been so urgent, and the only response was bag after bag of empty Nutrient Paste!

After tearing open the packaging and entering Berserk Mode, he could consume almost a bag of Nutrient Paste every five seconds.

The viscous paste was meant to stave off hunger, but once it entered his mouth, it was like being sucked into a black hole, leaving no sense of fullness behind.

Soon, all the Nutrient Paste he had bought from Uncle Dong during the day was finished.

Cheng Ye felt a flicker of joy in his heart. He quickly pulled over a box, violently tore it open, and continued to drink greedily.

10 bags. 30 bags. 50 bags.

Bags of packaging piled up on the ground, forming a small hill. The nutrient paste finally didn't disappear the moment it entered his throat and was swallowed, but settled solidly into his stomach.

With the experience from last time, after downing another 10 bags, he indeed felt a sense of fullness.

"I drank 28 bags before and after Basic Strength, but this time for Iron Physique, I drank a full 107 bags."

Cheng Ye's gaze swept across the pile of packaging bags on the ground. He stood up, immediately feeling the changes in his body.

"This is... Body Toughness increased?"

His skin seemed to have undergone a wondrous transformation.

Cheng Ye raised his right hand and drew his fingertip across his left forearm. The sensation was no longer the softness of ordinary flesh and skin, but tough and resilient like taut old cowhide.

Moreover, with the slightest turn of his neck or bend of a joint, he could feel the fascia beneath his skin stretch like a bowstring, emitting a faint "sizzling" sound, as if every inch of his skin had become elastic armor wrapping his muscles.

"This is insane?"

Cheng Ye's eyelids twitched violently. Having the experience of Basic Strength before, he knew this kind of bonus wasn't something that only appeared when equipping skills, but a permanent enhancement etched into his body.

No matter what other skills he equipped in the future, this enhancement would not disappear.

"Iron Physique weakens the Pain Sensation and greatly enhances body Control. If I still had my previous body, I'm afraid I would have easily strained my fascia when performing large movements."

"But now, after the enhancement..."

Cheng Ye squeezed his arm. The muscles beneath his skin bulged like inflated tires.

He couldn't say exactly how much stronger he had become, but Cheng Ye vaguely felt that if his unenhanced self from before were here, he could probably take on five opponents.

Of course, that would have to be in a Chariot Battle, not One on One.

"There's a method in the Inner City to measure Vitality, but unfortunately, it's only open to the Three Great Legions for Warrior ranking. Inspectors are ultimately in charge of business, and superiors never put Combat Power first in assessments. I can't borrow the Equipment with my current authority."

"However, I can go to the Training Hall when I have time. Although Brother B isn't here, there are Paid Sparring Partners. I'll know how my Strength has improved once I try."

Placing his short knife by the Bedside, Cheng Ye lay down fully clothed.

That night.

He slept very restlessly.

Because, just as Uncle Dong had predicted, the sound of Gunshots, like exploding beans, rang out intermittently during the night.

It seemed quite a few Infected had indeed swarmed in. Fortunately, Inspectors weren't responsible for internal searches.

This kind of task was usually undertaken by the Xingfu Legion, the strongest among the Three Great Legions.

Even if Inspectors needed to participate in patrol searches, they were only responsible for the Cleanup Work, so the Danger Coefficient wasn't high.

[Collector: Cheng Ye]

[Current Rank: Lv.1 Intern (3.2/100)]

[Life Level: 0]

[Skills: Basic Strength, Beast Intuition, Iron Physique (Talent)]

[Not yet unlocked.]

[Evaluation: Your strength has rapidly improved in a short period, just one step away from the minimum standard for a Civilized Collector. Focusing on developing the bottom layer of life will bring you extra harvest.]

"The panel changed again!"

Cheng Ye finally managed to hold on until the morning light streamed in through the window, then he rolled out of bed.

While brushing his teeth and washing his face, he habitually opened the panel and was the first to notice the change.

Iron Physique had provided a whopping 2.5 Information Degree, exceeding the previously calculated 0.3 by more than eight times.

If the collection efficiency remained like this, it would only take 40 searches to meet the Information Degree requirement for a Collector Rank upgrade.

"It seems catching a strong person and shearing their wool was indeed the correct choice."

Spitting out the foam, Cheng Ye continued to feel.

Nearly five days had passed since he mastered Basic Strength.

As muscle memory became increasingly deep-rooted, even if he uninstalled this skill now, his body would hardly detect any abnormal force.

Perhaps when performing some special attack actions, the force lines would still be a bit unsmooth.

But he could feel that in two to three more days, these unsmoothnesses would disappear.

This meant that he could free up one of his precious three skill slots before acquiring the next skill.

"It's a pity Beast Intuition is likely also a talent, it just didn't show because its Lv.1 level is too low."

"These talent skills are fundamental. Once uninstalled, they will immediately lose their effect."

Cheng Ye kept this in mind and returned to his room to pack his bag and head out early.

Although he didn't have to work today and only needed to attend a study session in the afternoon, so he didn't need to wake up so early.

But the broken door of the apartment blocks was truly frightening; a gust of wind would make it tremble, disturbing his sleep and making him anxious all night.

"Big iron plate, yes, I want this kind! Give me three sheets first!"

"An anti-theft door lock salvaged from the ruins? Can this still be used? Alright, install it for me."

"Nails for reinforcing doors. How do you have a full set? Oh, lots of people are buying them, then give me two packs."

"Ground Spikes? What do I need these for? Can they block infected from ambushing at the door? Then give me a set!"

"Anyone want fresh mutated beast dung? Smear it on the door, and I guarantee the infected will walk around you!"

"."

The Flea Market on the Pedestrian Street, usually deserted, only gets lively from afternoon to evening.

However, today, it was crowded from early morning.

Listening to the sounds of bargaining around him, Cheng Ye secretly clicked his tongue. It seemed he wasn't the only one who was scared last night.

And looking at the frenzy of people grabbing goods, it was even more terrifying than yesterday's rush for Nutrient Paste.

"Ultimately, famine won't kill people in a short time, but the threat of the infected... is fatal."

Cheng Ye walked around the block.

Before coming, he was still worrying about what materials to buy, but he didn't expect the stall owners had already prepared a complete set of solutions.

From residential buildings, Apartment Blocks to roadside tents and dilapidated residences, anyone who wanted to reinforce their defenses had long been figured out by the Wastelanders, with everything they needed.

And if you bought a lot, they even offered free home delivery service.

"That will be 580 coins. I'll arrange for someone to deliver it right away."

Taking the Happiness Coins Cheng Ye handed over, the stall owner smiled so wide his eyes disappeared, and he immediately turned to arrange manpower.

Before long, two scrawny Young Men came out pushing a small cart, piling all the materials Cheng Ye bought onto it.

"Sir, please walk ahead, we'll be right behind you."

"Okay."

In the Buffer Zone, Cheng Ye wasn't worried about anyone daring to embezzle the Inspector's money.

He immediately returned to the Apartment Blocks first, grabbed a wrench, and set to work on the flimsy sheet metal door.

Although it was said to be dismantling the door, he actually just smashed the connection points twice, and the thing broke off on its own.

The rusty Hinges shattered into pieces, and the door frame shook noisily.

"Damn, let alone blocking the infected, even a normal human could just barge in."

Cheng Ye glanced at the rust at the broken connection with lingering fear, thinking how lucky he was. If an infected had slipped in right after he transmigrated, relying on this door alone, he probably wouldn't even know how he died.

Soon, the materials were moved into the hallway one by one.

Just carrying the heavy security door up to the fifth floor left the two young men panting for breath.

"Thanks for the trouble, this is what you deserve."

He took two 5-value Happiness Coins from his pocket and handed them over. The two immediately grinned from ear to ear, their mouths repeating words of gratitude, as if they wanted to pour out all the good things in their hearts.

After they left, looking at the materials piled up like a hill all over the floor, Cheng Ye's heart, which had been heavy all night, finally settled.

"With these, it won't be easy for the Infected to rush in again, right?!"

ps: Some readers said the pacing was slow and they were afraid I wouldn't be able to wrap it up later. Please rest assured, as you all know how fast the pacing of my previous global-flow novel was, yet it still reached over six million characters. Please trust my ability this time, I guarantee it with my integrity~

ps2: Thank you all so much for your Monthly Tickets and comments. Every single one is an encouragement to the author. I bow my head in thanks!

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