Power Evolution Body

Chapter 43: Strength Evolution

The muzzle flash from the bullets pierced the darkness for less than a second, but it was enough for Li Wei and Zheng Yutong to see the shadow clearly.

It was a person!

Or rather, not a living person—it was a zombie!

It stood over two meters tall, yet its body was hunched over. Its clothes were shredded to rags, and the exposed skin did not look like that of an ordinary zombie; instead, Li Wei saw a sheen similar to hardened leather.

What was most astonishing were the creature's muscles. Even the world's best bodybuilders couldn't compare; they were bulging and packed with raw power. Li Wei, familiar with human anatomy, deduced that the zombie's skeleton had mutated, as its joints and fingers were more than three times thicker than a normal person's.

Level 3 Zombie, Attack 45, HP 180. A mutant variant infected by the T-Virus. Possesses immense strength, capable of tearing through steel plates with bare hands. Special Skills: Strength Enhancement, Regeneration.

A Level 3 Zombie!

Li Wei frowned. How could they have encountered such a monster? This Strength-Type Zombie's power stat definitely exceeded 50, because tearing through steel plates with bare hands was far beyond mere brute force.

Take Li Wei himself: his 27 points of strength allowed him to easily push aside a mid-sized sedan. Of course, if he wanted to, he could throw that car several meters away with one hand or shatter a concrete wall with a single punch. Such a strength stat was already at a superhuman level.

But to tear through a steel plate? That was definitely something Li Wei couldn't do yet. Perhaps he could dent one with his full force, but he could never rip it apart.

Yet, the monster before them could do exactly that. Without a doubt, if it came to a contest of pure strength, no one here could stand against it.

The sound of the AK47 had clearly enraged the Level 3 Zombie. It opened its blood-filled maw, revealing a mouth full of fangs, and then lunged at the rookie who had fired the shot like a cannonball.

"Fire!" Li Wei was the first to pull the trigger. His rifle, enhanced by Stacking, roared, spitting out powerful bullets.

For a moment, the gunfire was deafening. A curtain of metal formed by the bullets completely enveloped the monster. Even an iron man should have been turned into a sieve by now, but the Level 3 Zombie didn't fall as Li Wei had expected.

Its tough, leather-like skin blocked most of the bullets. It sounded like plastic pellets hitting a thick tire, and the ricocheting bullet heads clattered all over the floor.

However, the Firearms Mastery and bullets that Li Wei and Zheng Yutong had stacked could still inflict damage, though they could only pierce the skin; they couldn't penetrate any deeper.

Seeming to fear the weapons in Li Wei's hands, the monster darted into the darkness after a few steps. Aside from its occasional roars, its figure was nowhere to be seen.

"So clever!" Li Wei quickly changed his magazine, his face no longer as composed as before. This time, he was facing a Strength-Type monster that could kill a person with a single blow.

Even he and Zheng Yutong probably couldn't withstand a direct hit.

"Let's retreat the way we came!" a rookie gasped, his face etched with terror. He had just emptied his entire magazine at the monster without even scratching it. Was there anything more despairing than that?

As he spoke, he ran toward the elevator behind them. Li Wei was about to stop him when he saw the Strength-Type Zombie suddenly spring from the darkness. It pounced on the rookie, dragging him into a corner where the light couldn't reach. After a few miserable screams, silence returned.

It was hard to believe that a life had just vanished like that!

"Everyone, circle up! Back to back! Don't break formation!" Li Wei didn't even bother explaining the consequences of running off alone; the rookie was a perfect example.

The remaining six rookies had learned their lesson. From the earlier exchange, it was clear that only the firearms of the two veterans could damage the monster. At this point, staying together was their only chance of survival.

The group formed a defensive circle, constantly vigilant for any potential attack. The cunning zombie didn't appear again, but everyone knew it hadn't left—it was simply waiting for an opportunity.

"Li Wei, take them and retreat. We can't keep dragging this out!" Zheng Yutong's expression was grave. She knew clearly that if they kept this up, their defensive circle would eventually falter.

Including Li Wei, she was the only one among them capable of fighting this Strength-Type Zombie.

Seeing a beautiful woman put herself in danger while he, a man, ran away, several hot-blooded young men among the rookies immediately flushed with anger.

However, none of them dared to step forward to take Zheng Yutong's place. They had all seen the muscles on that zombie with their own eyes; a single finger could tear them to shreds. Compared to the heat of their blood, their lives were more important.

But at that moment, Li Wei said something that infuriated the rookies.

"Very well, Miss Zheng. I'll leave it to you then!"

Was he even a man? Not only was he running away, but he had the gall to say such cold, sarcastic words. If he had the guts, he should have stayed behind himself!

Even the few girls among the rookies looked at Li Wei with contempt.

Li Wei saw these expressions, but he felt no dissatisfaction. He wouldn't offer any explanations. What others thought was their own business, especially these rookies who knew nothing. He simply treated them like air.

Soon, everyone except Zheng Yutong maintained the defensive circle and retreated. Only Zheng Yutong remained in place. She drew her longbow, waiting quietly, like a lotus flower blooming in a dark pond.

Suddenly, a gust of wind pressure descended from above.

"It's here!"

Zheng Yutong flashed aside. A fist larger than her head smashed down with a whistle. It turned out the zombie had been clinging to the ceiling like a gecko, waiting to ambush them.

The massive fist slammed into the concrete floor like a drill bit, sinking in over a dozen inches. Not only that, but it cracked the surrounding ground—the power of that punch was evident.

Zheng Yutong nimbly stepped onto the zombie's thick arm, using the recoil to leap into the air. At the same time, she notched an arrow onto her longbow. With a graceful flip, the arrow traced a streamlined arc and pierced the zombie's shoulder.

"The muscle density is too high; I can't reach the vitals!" Seeing the arrow only penetrate a small fraction, Zheng Yutong knew that relying solely on the power of the longbow wouldn't be enough to pierce the monster's defensive flesh.

By now, Li Wei and the others had retreated a sufficient distance. Zheng Yutong let go of her restraints; she wanted to test who was stronger: herself or this Strength-Type Zombie.

The moment she landed, the zombie lunged at her with a howl. The kinetic energy generated by its muscles made it move with incredible speed, reaching her in an instant. It opened its massive mouth, clearly intending to bite Zheng Yutong to death.

"Wind Walk!"

Just as the zombie thought its strike would succeed, the female human in its eyes suddenly vanished. This left it stunned. Its brain, possessing only a sliver of intelligence, began to wonder if its eyes had deceived it.

The next moment, it saw an arrow, shrouded in a blinding white light, pierce through the air like lightning.

Instinctively, the zombie shielded its front with its thick arms. But the muscles that had defended against bullets were now like fragile tofu, shattered by the arrow. Half of its body was reduced to a spray of blood and gore under the terrifying impact.

What had happened?

The zombie didn't understand, but the strength that had seemed inexhaustible suddenly vanished. With a dull thud, its massive body collapsed onto the floor, and it never moved again.

"A piece of cake!" Putting away her Longbow, Zheng Yutong walked slowly toward the corpse of the zombie.

Monsters of this caliber usually dropped a Treasure Chest upon death, from which one could obtain various items and points, but after waiting for a while, she found nothing.

"Huh, what is this?" Failing to find a dropped Treasure Chest, Zheng Yutong instead witnessed something that astonished her: the zombie's wounds were rapidly healing, and the sound of flesh and skin growing and dividing reached her ears with chilling clarity.

"Regeneration?" Spitting in disgust, Zheng Yutong left without looking back. There was no doubt that the zombie hadn't actually died; the T-Virus had completely altered its body. A monster with such a monstrous ability was not something she could kill at her current level. Rather than wasting time here, it was better to reunite with Li Wei and the others as soon as possible.

A few minutes later, the zombie climbed back to its feet. Its regenerated muscle tissue had grown even stronger, resembling dark, hardened steel. It glared with blood-red eyes, searching for the human who had just been there.

Upon failing to find that figure, the Strength-Type Zombie flew into a rage and hoisted a sports car parked in the underground garage. With a twist and a tear of its impossibly thick arms, followed by the screeching sound of metal warping and snapping, the once-valuable sports car was torn in two.

After venting its fury, the zombie sniffed the air for the lingering scent and began to track it.

At this moment, Li Wei led the six newcomers to a dead end. Seeing that there was no path forward, the faces of the newcomers turned deathly pale.

"Didn't you say there was a way out here? You liar!" Among the newcomers, a pot-bellied man who had been trembling the entire way was clearly terrified. Now that the "path" he had pinned all his hopes on was gone, he completely lost his sanity.

Glancing at the fat man, Li Wei couldn't even be bothered to respond. He had been observing these newcomers along the way; among the seven, aside from the middle-aged man who possessed Firearms Mastery, this fat man and the one who had died earlier were the most troublesome.

Did these idiots still not understand the situation? This wasn't the real world, but a mission world where one could lose their life at any moment. He wasn't some kind-hearted Butler; providing them with firearms and protection was already doing more than enough. Instead of being grateful, this man was only becoming more insufferable.

"If you're unhappy, you can leave. No one is stopping you!"

Choked into silence by these cold words, the fat man grew angry from embarrassment. He racked the bolt of his gun with a clatter and aimed the muzzle at Li Wei.

"Damn it! Who do you think you are, daring to threaten me? Let me tell you, I've disliked you for a long time. You didn't step up earlier and let that beauty act as a scapegoat. Everyone, we have weapons in our hands now. Why don't you follow me? I guarantee you'll live like kings!" The fat man's blustering voice echoed through the underground garage.

However, no one paid him any mind. The looks the other newcomers gave him were filled with pity and mockery, which only made the fat man more incensed.

"He's just one person! Even if he is a veteran, we have six people and six guns. Are we really afraid of this coward?" The fat man was convinced that Li Wei had let Zheng Yutong stay behind to cover their retreat just to save his own skin.

By now, that beauty must surely be dead, and this was the perfect moment for him to seize command of the squad.

"Drop the gun and get lost!" Li Wei really didn't want to waste any more time entangled with this fat man; he had more important things to do.

However, when Li Wei saw a flash of malice in the fat man's eyes, he knew things had gone wrong.

"You dare..."

Before the words could finish, the fat man let out a sinister laugh and pulled the trigger.