Good People Die Young

After advancing to level two, Chen Luo could absorb around fifty of the lowest-grade crystals each day.

With higher-grade crystals, that number decreased accordingly. It had taken Chen Luo over a week to fully absorb the Dharma King's crystal back then.

Testing had shown that absorbing crystals once a day was the best approach. Keeping his body in a hungry state allowed him to absorb a little more, making it slightly more effective than absorbing them every few hours.

A wave of pain swept through his head as the crystal inside underwent a minor transformation.

Chen Luo smiled. He had advanced to a level three ability user.

Just four days.

In his previous life, it had taken Chen Luo a month and a half to reach this level.

Even with Badass's incredible talent, absorbing crystals as hard as he could every day, he would still need half a month to advance from level two to level three.

Chen Luo, however, needed only three days.

Dharma King, oh, Dharma King. You should be glad you're with me in this life. Otherwise, I wouldn't even need a sneak attack to deal with you.

The energy powering Chen Luo's ability could be called magic or mana. Compared to when he had been level two, it had not only become purer; more importantly, its quantity had nearly tripled.

Previously, Void Sword had lasted only five seconds. Now it could last twenty.

His strength had improved considerably.

He was still a long way from being able to use Void Walk. He would need to reach at least level four.

The zombies currently roaming around had not even reached the level of a level one ability user. They could be considered level zero, and they were very weak.

Once Chen Luo reached level four, crystals from level-zero zombies would become completely useless to him. At that point, he would no longer be able to grow stronger so quickly.

Even now, level-zero zombie crystals did very little for him. He would need at least a thousand to reach level four with them.

Chen Luo had barely any crystals left. He needed to replenish his stock in bulk.

While looking for Ma Yu, he could pick some up near that five-star hotel.

The next morning, Chen Luo set out with Su Dazhu and the Dharma King.

As they passed the supermarket inside the residential complex, he saw an "interesting" scene.

Chen Luo recognized a young man. He had lived in the same complex for years, so they were always running into each other.

But Chen Luo only recognized his face. That was how neighbors were these days: even if someone lived right next door, you might not know their last name.

The young man came out of the supermarket carrying a bag more than half full of supplies and hurried to leave.

Chen Luo had taken almost everything in the supermarket. He had not bothered collecting scattered items that had fallen on the floor or ended up in corners, so a tiny amount remained.

Just then, a woman ran out of the supermarket. She reached for the supplies in the young man's hand and shouted in a tearful voice.

"You took everything in the supermarket! How am I supposed to survive? Give me half!"

Although this was only the fifth day of the apocalypse, everyone already understood how precious supplies were. You needed food to survive.

The young man did not give a damn about her. He shoved her away hard. "Get lost! Whether you have food or not is none of my damn business."

The woman was ruthless too. She threw her arms around him. "If you won't give me any, I'll hold on to you. When the zombies come, we'll both be done for."

The young man immediately backed down. "You've really got me. Fine, you win. Let go first, and I'll give you some."

The woman released him, but kept one hand firmly gripping the hem of his shirt.

Then the young man's expression turned vicious. He pulled a dagger from inside his clothes, turned, and stabbed the woman several times.

The woman slowly collapsed.

Now he did not have to share.

Two zombies wandered over. The young man also spotted Chen Luo and the others, and, afraid Chen Luo would steal his supplies, hurried away.

As long as someone had the guts, even if they could not fight zombies, they could still take advantage of their superior speed.

Chen Luo shook his head. That young man's no good, but what does that have to do with me?

I'm not qualified to judge anyone else, either. I'm no good myself.

After his rebirth, Chen Luo had never intended to be a good person. Good people died young. They were always the first to die.

I'm no hero, and I have even less desire to be a good person.

After climbing into the heavy truck, Chen Luo considered which route to take.

The once-bustling international metropolis had lost all its former splendor. It was eerily quiet, broken now and then by the roars of zombies.

Fortunately, although Ma Yu's five-star hotel was in the urban area, it was not downtown. Otherwise, Chen Luo would never have gone there.

It was too dangerous.

The truck would not be able to move, and the moment he got out, at least a thousand zombies would surround him.

The heavy truck looked somewhat out of place driving through the city. Normally, trucks like Chen Luo's were prohibited from driving in urban areas.

Residential complexes lined most of the roads, and many survivors constantly watched what was happening outside. When they saw Chen Luo's truck, plenty of them called out.

"Driver, what's it like out there? Can you tell us?"

"Driver, could you bring some food up here? I'll pay anything."

"I'll pay ten thousand! Bring me some too! I'm not picky. Anything will do."

"I'll pay a hundred thousand! Bring me a pound of pork!!!"

Chen Luo rolled his eyes and could not be bothered to respond. I'm not the Tang Monk, and you're not the White Dragon Horse.

Shouts like those often caused trouble for Chen Luo, but he could not go door to door teaching them a lesson.

The heavy truck really could not pick up speed in the city. There were too many obstacles and too many turns.

In less than twenty minutes, Chen Luo reached the rear entrance of the Yunlai International Hotel.

Chen Luo said, "Dazhu, put your gear on and get out."

Su Dazhu nodded and put on his armor.

The two men and the dog got out of the truck.

This time, Su Dazhu was not holding a stun baton, but a long, solid iron rod.

The stun baton had limited battery power. After advancing to level two, Su Dazhu's strength had increased enormously, making the iron rod even more lethal in his hands than the stun baton.

Forty or fifty zombies had managed to follow Chen Luo the whole way without losing him. When they saw Chen Luo and Su Dazhu get out, they immediately lunged at them.

Chen Luo still held his stun baton, while Su Dazhu raised his iron rod and brought it down on a zombie's head.

The blow was heavy and powerful. Zombie or survivor, anyone struck by it would have their head smashed open.

A huge gash split the zombie's head immediately. Red and white spilled across the ground, and it died on the spot.

The head was a zombie's weak point. If Su Dazhu struck their bodies, there was no way he could kill them so easily.

Su Dazhu swung his iron rod again and again, killing one zombie after another.

He was every bit as efficient as Chen Luo with his stun baton.

If Chen Luo relied on his spatial ability instead of his stun baton, even as a level three Esper Ability User, he would not be able to match Su Dazhu's efficiency.

Physical-type ability users had a huge advantage in the early stages.

That did not mean Chen Luo could not beat Su Dazhu. The zombies could no longer hurt Su Dazhu, but Chen Luo could cut him down with one slash.

Su Dazhu might still manage to take Chen Luo down with him, but the nimble Dharma King had already become very skilled at kiting under Chen Luo's guidance.

By keeping the right distance, he could definitely wear Su Dazhu down and kill him.