Recruitment

Hotel, second floor.

With the addition of fifteen new Survivors, there were now forty-two Survivors inside the hotel.

The place was filled with noisy voices.

The hotel had been completely cleared out, and the Survivors who had escaped the disaster began talking among themselves.

Those who had been trapped in the hotel eagerly asked the newcomers what had happened to the outside world.

The answer was far from reassuring.

Panic and despair spread through the crowd.

As they chatted, most people occasionally stole glances at Lin An and Zhang Tie standing by the window.

"Brother Lin, are you saying you want me to join your team?"

Zhang Tie turned to look at the companions he had brought with him.

His voice was exceptionally loud, drawing the attention of many listeners.

The crowd looked on enviously.

The newcomers might not have known yet.

Every Survivor in the hotel had expressed the desire to join Lin An's Team, yet Lin An had ignored every one of them.

Now that Zhang Tie had actually been invited personally, quite a few people were even a little jealous.

Lin An had killed a Licker with a single slash.

With that kind of strength, wouldn't following him mean walking sideways through this Doomsday?

Lin An nodded calmly.

Zhang Tie's character was fairly decent.

As an Awakener, he could clearly have escaped first when facing the Licker, yet he had chosen to stay behind and cover everyone else's retreat.

Looking at the people he had brought along, more than half of them were elderly, weak, sick, or disabled.

At least based on what Lin An had observed so far, Zhang Tie was a loyal and righteous man.

His strength was also fairly good.

An Awakener of the Physical Body System could help shoulder much of the pressure during battle.

Zhang Tie laughed heartily.

"It's an honor that Brother Lin thinks so highly of me."

"Forget joining your team—even giving my life back to you would be fine!"

Without another word, Zhang Tie accepted Lin An's team invitation without even looking at the information.

"Ding, Savior Squad has gained a new member: 1. Current members: 3."

"New member: Zhang Tie (Awakener) has gained a 10% attribute bonus."

"Ding, team member Zhang Tie: Loyalty 70 (As long as you do not touch his bottom line, he will not betray you.)"

Only Lin An could see the final entry.

Lin An fell into thought. It seemed that initial Loyalty was not fixed.

Because Lin An had saved him, and because of his straightforward nature, Zhang Tie's Loyalty had risen directly to seventy points.

He truly was as guileless as he looked.

"What is this!?"

After joining, Zhang Tie's eyes suddenly widened in shock.

"Welcome aboard."

Lin An smiled faintly. It seemed Zhang Tie had sensed that his strength had increased considerably the instant he joined.

"Good heavens..."

Zhang Tie cried out in amazement, clicking his tongue repeatedly.

"Why did my Strength suddenly increase by 1.3!?"

"Fuck, my Physique increased by 1.5!?"

"Agility and Willpower both increased too!"

"Lin... Team... Team Leader, what's going on?"

Zhang Tie was somewhat agitated as he felt the sudden surge of power within his body.

Lin An looked at the dumbfounded Zhang Tie, a faint smile on his lips.

The 10% attribute boost after joining the Savior Squad did not seem like much, but anyone who had truly experienced it would not think so.

Players had to risk their lives killing Mutants just to gain one level, and a level only granted one point.

Awakeners were better off, but gaining one level only gave them three points.

The first few levels were manageable, but the farther one progressed, the amount of spiritual energy and number of Mutants required became terrifying.

Levels were difficult to raise. Many people even remained stuck at Level 1 until they died.

Based on the basic attributes of most Awakeners, this 10% increase amounted to at least one point.

An increase of more than one point.

It was equivalent to getting a free level.

Every point of attribute in the Doomsday Game was extraordinarily valuable, so Zhang Tie's excitement was perfectly normal.

"Consider it a benefit of joining my team."

"But it's also because you're an Awakener. Your base attributes are high, so you gained that much."

Once the crowd heard that it was a benefit of joining the team, their breathing grew hurried.

Joining a team could make someone stronger?

Awakener? High base attributes?

Yu Shihao instantly understood why Lin An had recruited Zhang Tie.

His mind worked quickly, and he soon sorted out the connection.

Awakeners should be people like Lin An and Zhang Tie, beings far stronger than ordinary humans.

Zhang Tie had become stronger after joining the team.

Did joining any Awakener team have this effect, or was it unique to Lin An?

He had stared at his Player Template for a long time. Aside from attributes, there was nothing else on it.

He could not find any team function at all.

Still only half understanding.

He pricked up his ears, afraid of missing any conversation between the two.

However, Lin An did not speak again.

Through Team Communication, he said to Zhang Tie:

"Don't reveal our squad's information to outsiders. You can mention the attribute bonus, but don't reveal the name or the Team Communication function."

Lin An's voice suddenly rang in Zhang Tie's mind, yet Lin An's lips had not moved at all.

It was like seeing a ghost in broad daylight.

"U-Understood, Captain!"

Was this also a benefit of joining the team?

He hesitantly tried using Team Communication to contact Lin An, his gaze burning with excitement.

He was not stupid.

He had once been a soldier, and later worked as a bodyguard. He knew how important communication was.

Now that Global Communication had completely failed, and landlines and cell phones were useless.

A means of private, real-time communication could be said to be extremely practical.

After hearing Zhang Tie cry out about his increased attributes, the envy in everyone's eyes grew even stronger.

Joining Lin An's team could even increase one's strength.

Why wasn't he an Awakener?

Yu Shihao stood alone in a corner, surrounded by everyone's exclamations.

His fists clenched tightly.

Awakener!

I want to become an Awakener too!

After witnessing the terror of Zombies and the Licker, his thirst for strength was far greater than before.

Yu Shihao's gaze was eager and blazing.

Lin An was so strong. He definitely knew how to become an Awakener!

Inside a room on the ninth floor of the hotel.

Lin An, Zhang Tie, and Wen Ya looked through the window at the hospital across the street.

"Zhang Tie, you said you escaped from the hospital. So, what is the situation there like now?"

"Are there things similar to Lickers there?"

Zhang Tie frowned deeply.

"Team Leader Lin, as far as I know, there shouldn't be any living people left in the hospital."

"There are at least thirty thousand Zombies inside."

"As for monsters like Lickers..."

Zhang Tie shook his head.

"We only encountered one when we escaped over the hospital's outer wall and tried to head in another direction."

"Later, the Licker pursued us all the way and drove us back here."

Lin An nodded. The lack of Mutants inside the hospital was at least good news.

The battle space there was too cramped. Going deep inside and getting ambushed would be troublesome.

"Are there any unusual situations inside the hospital? For example, where large groups of Zombies are gathered?"

"Why were you staying at the hospital? And how did you Awaken?"

Lin An continued questioning him.

In his Previous Life, Skull Crusher's Hand had been deep inside the hospital, surrounded by a massive number of Zombies.

It was said that several Safe Zones had formed a joint team to obtain that equipment, sacrificing many people before breaking through the Zombie encirclement.

He was also very curious about how Zhang Tie had Awakened.

In his Previous Life, he had never heard of an Energy Node inside the hospital.

After hearing the three questions, Zhang Tie thought for a moment before speaking slowly.

"I was at the hospital with my father before the Doomsday outbreak, keeping him company while he received treatment."

"The Doomsday outbreak happened too suddenly. For some reason, most of the patients turned into Zombies."

Zhang Tie's mood darkened somewhat.

He had watched his father turn into a Zombie after the Doomsday outbreak.

Lin An patted his shoulder. Watching a loved one become a Zombie before one's eyes while being powerless to stop it.

He had experienced that feeling too.

It was normal for patients to turn into Zombies.

People with poor Physique could even show signs of Zombification before the Doomsday outbreak.

Zhang Tie turned back to look at Lin An gloomily, then forced an ugly grin to indicate that he was fine.

"After the patients turned into Zombies, the doctors and Nurses caring for them had no time to react."

"Not a single one survived."

Wen Ya's body trembled when she heard that.

"As for anything unusual..."

"Aside from the Pharmacy Pickup Counter, where the situation was a little better, nowhere else in the entire hospital was survivable."

Remembering the miserable scene that day, Zhang Tie still felt lingering fear.

"I was lucky. My father's ward was on the second floor."

"There weren't many Zombies, so after I ran out, I hid in the Dispensary."

"The Dispensary could be considered an unusual place."

"As for Awakening... I don't know either."

"I encountered a flash of white light and passed out."

"When I woke up, I found that I had become much stronger. There was also an Awakener symbol on my Player Panel."

Lin An pondered for a moment.

He had Awakened in the Dispensary?

It seemed that when they went to the hospital, they could take a look at the Dispensary.

After Zhang Tie finished speaking, he opened his personal information and showed it to Lin An without holding anything back.

"Player Information: Zhang Tie (Awakener)"

"Player Level: Level 0"

"Awakener Rank: Level 0"

"Strength: 13 (14.3)"

"Agility: 12 (13.2)"

"Physique: 15 (16.5)"

"Willpower: 12 (13.2)"

"Equipment: None"

"Awakener Talent: Bear Transformation (Transforms into a Bone Crusher Black Bear for a short time, greatly increasing Physique and slightly increasing Strength. Defense is enhanced, and self-healing ability is doubled.)"

"Tier 0: All attributes +2 (the maximum value for each attribute of an ordinary human is 10.)"

Lin An was somewhat surprised when he saw Zhang Tie's Physique.

His initial attributes had already reached 15 points just after becoming an Awakener.

Combined with his Awakening talent's enhanced self-healing ability, it was no wonder he had recovered so quickly even after being gravely injured and on the verge of death.

"Team Leader Lin, my Physique attribute isn't bad, right?"

Zhang Tie noticed Lin An's surprise and felt a little proud.

Although he had never encountered any other Awakeners, he had compared his attributes with everyone else's.

Although Lin An was extremely powerful, the only thing he had displayed was probably high Strength.

When it came to Physique, he was still confident.

"By the way, Team Leader Lin. How much Strength do you have?"

"That slash you used to kill that monster was seriously powerful!"

Zhang Tie gave him a thumbs-up, praising him sincerely.

Lin An opened his Attribute Panel and took a look.

"Strength, 19.4."

"..."

Zhang Tie fell silent.

That was far too discouraging.

Still, he was an optimist, and he quickly stopped dwelling on it.

There was no point dwelling on it anyway.

"Haha, my Strength may not compare to yours. But when it comes to Physique..."

Zhang Tie was a little unwilling to accept it and wanted to compare Physique with Lin An.

This was where he was most confident.

Lin An looked tall and fit, yet his body beneath his clothes even appeared somewhat thin.

With something like Physique, the higher it was, the more robust one's body had to be.

The muscular man who had died earlier had only had 9 points in Physique.

Even if Lin An was an Awakener, he probably had at most 12 or 13 points.

Zhang Tie looked at him expectantly.

"How much do you have? Do you have 13 points?"

Lin An smiled calmly.

"19.4."

Zhang Tie's laughter caught in his throat, and his expression stiffened.

He looked Lin An up and down repeatedly in disbelief.

He had never expected Lin An's Physique attribute to completely crush his as well!

Like a defeated rooster.

Zhang Tie tucked away the last trace of his pride and obediently stopped talking about attributes.

What a freak!

High Strength, and high Physique too.

Was he going to leave anyone else a chance to live?

Lin An shook his head slightly, finding Zhang Tie's constant muttering rather amusing.

He was now a First Order Awakener and a Level 1 Player.

With double attribute bonuses and two Spirit Energy Plants consumed,

if his attributes could not even surpass Zhang Tie's, then his rebirth would have been for nothing.

Not wanting to damage Zhang Tie's confidence,

Lin An turned to ask about the hospital again.

"Since you accompanied your father to the hospital before."

"When the Doomsday broke out, where would the most Zombies likely have been?"

Zhang Tie was somewhat puzzled.

He did not know why Lin An was asking that.

"Orthopedics Department and the Surgical Emergency Department, probably."

"There were especially many traffic accidents before the Doomsday broke out."

"When I passed by the Surgical Emergency Department, injured people were lying all over the lobby. Many of them did not even have time to receive treatment."

"That damned place has at least ten thousand Zombies now!"

More than ten thousand Zombies in one building...

Zhang Tie shuddered as he looked through the window at the distant hospital.

"Team Leader Lin, why do you keep asking about the hospital?"

Lin An smiled faintly and pointed through the window at the building bearing the Surgical Emergency sign.

"Tomorrow morning, we're going there!"