Entry, Zombie Tide (2)

Guo Jian's Yellow Paper fell out, and along with it, three skill books burst forth. Stunned, Li Wei hurriedly scrambled to pick them all up.

These three skill books were the Primordial Origin Skill, Qi Blast Technique, and Rakshasa Three Forms.

Weren't these the very skills Guo Jian had mastered? Could it be that when a skill-user dies, the skills they learned are "dropped" in the form of skill books?

If this deduction held true, the implications were massive. The powerhouses of Shadow Street might start hunting down those with special abilities specifically to plunder their techniques.

The thought sent a shiver of crisis through Li Wei. However, he was still overjoyed to have obtained these three books. Since he already possessed the C-grade Innate Skill for internal energy—which was superior to the D-grade Primordial Origin Skill—Li Wei only learned the Qi Blast Technique and the Rakshasa Three Forms, which significantly boosted his strength once again.

Next was the Yellow Paper dropped by Guo Jian, which had been a constant headache for Li Wei.

"Guardian (the true name of the Yellow Paper), ID 348, Status: Free, Storage Space: 16,000 points, Flowery Axe x1, Earth Fiend Set x1, Golden Trauma Medicine x2, Type 95 Rifle x10, 5,000 rounds of ammunition..."

"Guardian," that must be the true name of the Yellow Paper.

Seeing this, Li Wei's heart hammered against his ribs. One could imagine the mindset of a robber who had just successfully pulled off a bank heist; Li Wei felt exactly that way. However, when he tried to withdraw the items, he hit a snag.

"Please fuse with Guardian 348 first to obtain access to the storage space within this Guardian!"

Fuse?

Could a Yellow Paper even be fused?

Li Wei, always cautious, hesitated. Without understanding the consequences of this "fusion," he found it hard to commit to the decision.

In the end, Li Wei decided to go through with it. As the saying goes, one cannot catch a tiger cub without entering the tiger's den. To gain something, one must be willing to take risks. Besides, Li Wei felt that this so-called fusion wouldn't be a bad thing.

Once confirmed, Li Wei's own Yellow Paper appeared automatically and merged with Guardian 348. A sensation of blood-linked connection washed over him, and the Yellow Paper before his eyes underwent a dramatic transformation.

"Guardian 1987 has fused with Guardian 348. Guardian advancement procedure initiated. Please select the ID for the fused entity: A, 1987; B, 348..."

He even had to choose an ID?

Li Wei thought for a moment and chose his own.

"Guardian 1987 advancement complete. Current level: 2. Owner's four attributes increased by 5 points. Storage space expanded. Access to the pre-fusion Guardian's storage granted!"

Haha, he'd hit the jackpot!

Fusing with someone else's Guardian actually increased his own attributes. This unexpected gain left Li Wei pleasantly surprised. Looking at his new stats—Strength 17, Agility 18, Spirit 23, and Stamina 13—he nearly laughed out loud.

With control over the storage space, Li Wei took out the items that had belonged to Guo Jian. Upon inspection, he found quite a few treasures.

Setting aside the 16,000 points and the Golden Trauma Medicine, the Flowery Axe was a top-tier green-quality weapon. However, the most precious item of all was the Earth Fiend Set.

Seeing this armor, Li Wei knew it must have been Guo Jian's most prized possession. The set consisted of five pieces: head, shoulders, chest, legs, and hands. Although each piece was green-quality, wearing the full set provided an additional attribute bonus, increasing his Strength by 10 points.

What pleased Li Wei even more was that this armor could be set to an invisible state. This meant he could wear all five pieces without anyone noticing a difference in his appearance. The only drawback was that in its invisible state, the armor's defensive capability was reduced to one-quarter of its normal capacity.

Without hesitation, Li Wei donned the set. He thought to himself that Guo Jian was truly an idiot; if he had been wearing this armor, Li Wei's assassination attempt would surely have failed.

But such is fate. This unlucky wretch Guo Jian was destined to die, and he had no one else to blame!

For the next while, Li Wei carefully tested the defensive effects of the Earth Fiend Set. His Strength had now reached a staggering 27 points. If he stripped down, his muscles would rival those of a well-trained bodybuilder, but they were far denser and harder. With a single punch, he could easily shatter a seven- or eight-inch bluestone brick without his fist suffering the slightest injury.

Moreover, ordinary blades, blunt weapons, and even pistol bullets could not penetrate the defense of the Earth Fiend Set. If he manifested the armor, the protection would be even better. With this set, it was as if Li Wei had gained an extra life.

As for the Flowery Axe, it didn't quite suit Li Wei's style. After some thought, he decided it would be more profitable to trade it for something useful on Shadow Street.

When night fell, Li Wei turned on his phone.

Because of the events of the past few days, he had kept it off—partly out of fear that someone might track him through it, and partly because he didn't want any unnecessary trouble. Fortunately, there were only a few text messages. Just as he was about to check them, the phone rang.

He glanced at the caller ID and answered.

"Hello, is this Li Wei?" A very pleasant female voice came through the receiver.

"It's me!"

"You guy, where have you been these past few days? Why was your phone turned off?" Upon hearing Li Wei's voice, the woman on the other end erupted, sounding just like a little tigress.

Before Li Wei could speak, she continued, "Never mind that, where are you now?"

"Uh, I'm at..."

It wasn't until the "beep-beep-beep" of the disconnected call echoed that Li Wei realized what had happened. For the first time in a long while, he had been cared for by a woman other than his mother. The feeling was quite warm.

Ten minutes later, a sapphire-blue sports car sped toward him. Before the car had even come to a complete stop, a woman with a graceful figure jumped out from the driver's seat.

Seeing Li Wei waiting by the roadside, she marched over, fuming.

"How could you be like this? Phone off, not going to the company—where on earth have you been?"

Li Wei looked at her, stunned for a long moment before saying, "Miss Zheng, I'm fine. I ran into some things these past few days, so I was away."

This woman was none other than Zheng Yutong. Seeing that Li Wei was unharmed, she let out a long sigh of relief. Checking that no one was around, she continued, "It's a good thing you turned your phone on now. If you had delayed another hour, we'd be in trouble!"

So she really did have an emergency!

After Li Wei pressed for details, he learned that there was a problem with the "Team Contract." Two days ago, a message had appeared on the contract scroll stating that the next mission would begin in two days. All team members were required to gather at a designated location, and anyone who failed to arrive would be directly erased.

Now, there was only half an hour left until the designated time!

"Miss Zheng, thank you!" Li Wei said sincerely. Zheng Yutong had just saved his life!

"Enough talk. The meeting point is 'Blacksmith Alley' on Shadow Street. We need to make some preparations. We meet in 10 minutes!"

The so-called preparation was actually just purchasing essential items, such as weapons, food, medicine, and various field supplies. Although they might not necessarily be used, being prepared was never a bad thing.

Li Wei took this opportunity to craft two "Stacking ×3" firearms and two Stacking ×2 tactical daggers. He also spent 150 points to purchase the latest model of field laptop from the U.S. Checking the time, he saw that exactly 10 minutes had passed, so he hurried toward Blacksmith Alley.

Zheng Yutong was already waiting there. Seeing Li Wei, she nodded, "The mission is about to begin. This is our first time working together, so let me formally introduce myself: Zheng Yutong, ID 103, exchanged for the Elf Enhancement Bloodline, specialty Magic Arrow! Rated C3."

At this moment, she was wearing a form-fitting leather armor, looking indescribably heroic and spirited.

"Li Wei, ID 1987, specialty: Eye of Perception. I can view the attributes of any item or creature. Furthermore, I can use an item to track down its drop location... currently rated D2."

Having fused with Guardian No. 348, Li Wei's attributes had improved significantly, and his combat power rating had naturally risen accordingly.

Hearing Li Wei's words, Zheng Yutong's eyes were filled with surprise. As a veteran powerhouse, she naturally understood the importance of the "Eye of Perception." Don't let the fact that it was an auxiliary skill fool you; it was by no means inferior to offensive skills.

"Very good. For now, I will serve as the primary attacker, and you will focus on analyzing the mission scenario!"

Li Wei nodded; Zheng Yutong's arrangement was very reasonable. He then took out several skill books and handed them to her.

"Using my Eye of Perception, I discovered that you haven't learned 'Precision' or 'Firearms Mastery.' These are skill books; learn them first. Although these skills are quite cheap, they offer the best value for money. To a certain extent, they can also boost your combat effectiveness!"

Li Wei's meaning was clear: no matter how powerful she was, she couldn't rely on Magic Arrow forever. She should also master basic weapons. Sometimes, why use a butcher's knife to kill a chicken?

Zheng Yutong naturally understood Li Wei's intent. She didn't waste words and directly learned the skill books. At this moment, both of their Yellow Papers popped up.

"It's starting!" Both of them knew in their hearts that a new mission had begun!

Note: "Enchantment Scroll: Life Drain. Can imbue a melee weapon with magic. Using the weapon to strike an opponent in combat has a certain chance to convert 30% of the damage dealt into vitality. 'This is a mysterious power from the Vampire!'"