Infiltrating the Base, I Pretended to Be an Ordinary Awakened One

A wicked grin curled Lu Chen's lips as he pointed toward the brightly lit area in the distance. It was a military base surrounded by high walls and wire fencing. "There are plenty of good things in there... and the medicine I need."

Xiao Lu froze for a moment, then asked worriedly, "You mean... the nerve regeneration agent? But that place is heavily guarded..."

"Heh, nothing ventured, nothing gained. Besides, how can you catch a tiger cub without entering the tiger's den?" Lu Chen's eyes shone with excitement, as if he could already see countless SSS-rank talents beckoning to him. "Let's go! Let's see just how tough these soldiers really are!"

Li Gou'er rubbed his hands together and chuckled. "Lord Lu, want me to scout ahead?"

Lu Chen immediately rapped him on the head. "Scout my ass! Follow me, and we'll charge straight in!"

"Wait... Lord Lu, can't we at least come up with a plan?" Li Gou'er muttered, clutching his head. Then he saw the unnerving grin on Lu Chen's face. "A plan? My plan is... just get in there and fight!"

To get the nerve regeneration agent and stabilize his father's condition as quickly as possible, and for the sake of his SSS-rank talents waiting to be fed, Lu Chen decided to infiltrate the place once again!

This time, he was going for something even more exciting-deep behind enemy lines!

Lu Chen took a deep breath and suppressed all the talent fluctuations in his body to a minimum, leaving only a B-rank [Toxin Resistance] he had just copied from an unlucky zombie as a disguise.

He had no choice. He needed a plausible reason for being "awakened," didn't he?

"Remember, Xiao Lu, you'll stay outside and cover me. Once I get what I came for, we retreat immediately. Don't look back, and don't hesitate. In the apocalypse, staying alive is what matters most." There was an unquestionable resolve in Lu Chen's voice.

Xiao Lu nodded firmly.

As for Li Gou'er?

Lu Chen had never planned to bring him along.

Aside from sucking up, the guy was a complete weakling. Bringing him would only be a burden.

The night was black as ink as Lu Chen slipped up to the base entrance like a ghost.

The towering wire fence, the fully armed soldiers, and the searchlights all proclaimed just how heavily guarded the place was.

But in Lu Chen's eyes, they were all trash.

He swaggered up to the registration desk and said to two stern-faced soldiers, "Brothers, do me a favor and let me in. I'm an awakened one. A zombie bit me, and I awakened! It's too dangerous out there, so I came to join the organization!"

As he spoke, he deliberately rolled up his sleeve, revealing a bite mark tinged with purple.

The two soldiers exchanged a glance. One of them said coldly, "An awakened one? Register and submit to an examination!"

Lu Chen sneered inwardly, but put on a timid, submissive expression. "Yes, yes, you're right, brother."

Registration went smoothly. Lu Chen made up a tragic life story, painting himself as a miserable awakened one with nowhere else to turn.

The woman in charge of reviewing the paperwork wore glasses and looked highly capable. Her name was Tang Xue.

She carefully leafed through Lu Chen's paperwork, her gaze sharp enough to seem capable of seeing through his disguise.

"You awakened after being bitten by a zombie? You took it rather calmly." Tang Xue's voice was cold, betraying no emotion.

Lu Chen's heart tightened. This woman was no pushover!

But he kept smiling. "What can I say? Someone who's had a hard life gets used to it. Besides, crying wouldn't help. Better to think about how to stay alive."

Tang Xue gave him a long look before finally stamping his paperwork. "Go on in. The logistics team will assign you."

Lu Chen took the paperwork, relieved.

He'd finally made it in!

What he didn't know, however, was that in the base's monitoring room, a sparsely haired old man wearing gold-rimmed glasses was watching him on a screen, a meaningful smile on his lips.

"Interesting, interesting... In the apocalypse, there's certainly no shortage of interesting experimental material!"

The old man was Professor Zhao, the person in charge of research at the base.

A madman who would stop at nothing for his research.

Unaware that he had already attracted attention, Lu Chen followed the directions he had been given and arrived at the logistics team.

A large crowd of survivors had gathered there, dressed in rags, their eyes vacant.

They were assigned all sorts of tasks: clearing away zombie remains, transporting supplies, and some were even sent out as bait to lure zombies.

That was the cruelty of the apocalypse. The weak had no right to choose.

Lu Chen was assigned to a team that cleared away zombie remains.

For him, it was like being handed a pillow just as he was getting sleepy.

Clearing away remains?

Wasn't that an opportunity to interact openly with survivors and copy their talents?

Lu Chen blended into the crowd, pretending to work diligently while secretly activating [Infinite Replication].

"Ding! D-rank talent [Scent Tracking] copied and upgraded to SSS-rank [Scent Control]!"

"Ding! C-rank talent [Physical Ability Enhancement] copied and upgraded to SSS-rank [Super Strength]!"

"Ding! D-rank talent [Telepathy] copied and upgraded to SSS-rank [Mind Control]!"

In just one afternoon, Lu Chen copied more than a dozen talents.

Most were trashy D-rank and C-rank talents, but once they were upgraded to SSS rank, their effects were incredible!

[Super Strength] gave him strength comparable to the Hulk's. He could blow a zombie's head apart with a single punch.

[Mind Control] allowed him to control low-level zombies and even influence other people's emotions.

[Scent Control] let him distinguish between all kinds of scents and track targets. It was practically an apocalyptic version of "scent of a woman."

As Lu Chen cleared away zombie remains, he organized the structure of his talent library in his mind.

He sorted all his talents by type: strength, speed, mental, elemental...

He realized that only by acquiring enough talent samples could he truly bring out the potential of [Infinite Replication].

That evening, Lu Chen was assigned to a crude dormitory.

The room was packed with people, and an unpleasant smell hung in the air.

Snores, sleep-talking, and sobs mingled together, forming a mournful song of the apocalypse.

Lu Chen lay on the hard bed, but wasn't sleepy in the least.

He closed his eyes and recalled all the talents he had copied that day.

[Toxin Resistance] (B rank): Immune to harm from most toxins.

[Scent Control] (SSS rank): Able to distinguish, track, and even control all kinds of scents.

[Super Strength] (SSS rank): Possesses strength beyond that of an ordinary person.

[Mind Control] (SSS rank): Able to control low-level zombies and influence other people's emotions.

Still not enough, nowhere near enough! Lu Chen shouted inwardly.

Powerful as these talents were, they were still far from enough.

He needed more, stronger talents to survive in this cruel apocalypse, protect his family, and build an empire of his own!

His eyes snapped open, gleaming like a beast's in the darkness.

He walked to the window and looked at the brightly lit base in the distance, his lips curving into a dangerous smile.

This was only the beginning.

He would turn the entire base into his own talent library!

Just then, the faint sound of footsteps came from a distance, drawing closer.

Lu Chen frowned slightly. Who was it?

He held his breath and waited quietly.

The footsteps drew closer and closer, finally stopping outside his dormitory door.

A familiar voice rang out. "Still awake?"

It was Tang Xue!

What was she doing here?

Lu Chen didn't answer. He simply stood motionless by the window.

Tang Xue didn't speak either. She stood silently in the doorway, apparently watching him.

The two faced each other in the darkness, the atmosphere strange and oppressive.

After a long while, Tang Xue finally broke the silence.

"What... are you looking at?"

A meaningful smile curled Lu Chen's lips. He slowly turned around, his gaze deep and mysterious.

"I'm looking at... the layout of this base."

Tang Xue's question broke the stillness of the night. Lu Chen slowly turned around, an amused smile curling his lips.

In the faint light filtering in from the corridor, his eyes shone like obsidian with an inscrutable gleam, making Tang Xue uneasy for no apparent reason.

"The layout? Naturally, I'm looking for gaps in the defenses here." Lu Chen shrugged, speaking as casually as if he were discussing the weather, but his devil-may-care look made Tang Xue even more wary.

There's definitely something wrong with this guy!

Tang Xue asked no further questions, but silently made a note of what Lu Chen had said.

She gave Lu Chen a long look, as if trying to see right through him.

Then she turned and left, her high heels clicking crisply against the floor, the sound especially clear in the quiet night.

A faint trace of perfume lingered in the air. It was Tang Xue's scent, cool and crisp.

Watching Tang Xue leave, Lu Chen sneered.

Sure enough, this woman was no pushover.

But that made things interesting, didn't it?

He looked out the window again. The base was brightly lit, and the sentries watched everything around them as vigilantly as night hawks.

But in Lu Chen's eyes, these so-called defenses might as well not have existed.

Tang Xue hurried along and soon arrived outside Professor Zhao's office.

She raised a hand and knocked. A slightly hoarse voice came from inside. "Come in."

She pushed the door open and entered. Professor Zhao was sitting at his desk, wearing reading glasses and poring over a pile of documents.

Seeing Tang Xue enter, he adjusted his glasses and asked, "It's so late. What is it?"

Tang Xue walked up to the desk and handed Professor Zhao the logbook in her hand. "Professor, while I was making my rounds just now, I found that Lu Chen, the newly arrived awakened one, was still awake late at night, observing the base's layout."

Professor Zhao frowned slightly at that. He took the logbook and examined it closely.

Under the dim yellow light, his wrinkled face looked especially gloomy.

"Oh? Observing the base's layout? Interesting..." Professor Zhao put down the logbook and pushed his glasses up the bridge of his nose. A chilling gleam flashed behind the lenses. "It seems this newly arrived awakened one isn't as simple as he appears..."

He raised his head and looked at Tang Xue, a sinister smile on his lips. "Tang Xue, go notify One-Eyed Wolf and have him investigate this Lu Chen discreetly. Remember, spare no expense in finding out everything about him..."