Wu Yujin seemed to be able to understand the thoughts of her childhood friend but in this case there were no words that could lift anyone's spirits. After all, Chen He had always been outstanding in everything and now that he was completely overshadowed naturally it was too abrupt a change for him and it would take time for him to get used to it.
In fact, many of the girls who previously seemed to have some sort of feeling or admiration for him could not help but look at him again and compare him with Bai Zemin unconsciously. If it were ten days ago, Bai Zemin would not even be worthy of a second look from the several beautiful women among the survivors, but now everything was different.
Many could not help but wonder; in a world where death is as natural as breathing, is it better to pursue a handsome man or a man of greater capability?
Chen He was, of course, skilled. It was just that Bai Zemin was too overpowered.
"I'll go scout the exit path to the south." Chen He said before turning around and leaving the scene, deciding that it was better to do what he asked to do. He too had his own strengths and it was better to appreciate them rather than demean himself.
* * *
Time passed quickly, the morning was over and the afternoon was half over but the sound of hammering, drilling, grinding, welding, as well as the sound of wheel nuts and screws falling to the ground could be heard everywhere in the university's subway parking lot.
The group of about 22 people worked almost without rest and only stopped to eat when they were hungry because the sooner they finished the job the sooner they could leave the university grounds and finally get to know what the situation was like in the outside world.
Apart from the 22 experienced in mechanics, there were also many more people helping to hold the metal parts in place or reaching for the objects and tools pointed out by any of them, which sped up the work process a lot more.
One thing worth noting was that when they started working, Bai Zemin, Liang Peng, and the other twenty students received the following message but with some differences, in the case of Bai Zemin in particular it was this: [You have learned the Unclassified Passive Skill Repair level 5].
The Soul Record was an unknown entity that recorded all the experiences in the soul of each existence and converted it into statistics and skills capable of being evolved and studied in greater depth, therefore, as people with experience in the field of mechanics they naturally acquired a corresponding skill.
Something similar had happened with the female students and male students who had helped in the kitchen, they acquired the passive skill Cooking and the level of the skill depended on the personal ability of each of them.
The amazing thing about the Soul Record was that each person's ability could grow much faster compared to the past thanks to the existence of Mana. The more they cooked, the more the Cooking skill of those in charge of the kitchen grew steadily and the more they hammered the more the Repair skill level of those they were modifying increased; this was another wonder of this strange unknown entity known as the Soul Record.
...
The appearance of the current buses was quite different when compared to the classic buses that were parked several hours ago.
In the past the vehicles were much safer from a certain point of view as they were made of almost pure iron while today's vehicles were made mainly of plastic and even fiberglass in some cases, which improved the appearance and comfort.
Therefore, to better adapt to this new world and to everyone's needs, the front part of the buses had been almost completely removed and replaced by a large metal plate that left only the window and the headlights uncovered. In addition, all the other glass windows of the buses had been removed and replaced with a Blazing Beetle shell plate on each side.
Although it was a pity that most of the metal-hard shell had been used, the overall security of the ten buses had taken a tremendous leap forward compared to the previous ones.
"Finally done."
Bai Zemin looked at their work with a touch of satisfaction. Even though they didn't have all the necessary tools it had turned out really well and the ten luxurious looking buses now looked like ten steel monsters.
"Good job."
Wu Yujin approached with a small bottle of water and handed it to him with a charming smile.
"Thank you." He thanked her and smiled politely back before he began to survey the surroundings as he sipped water slowly.
Bai Zemin saw that it wasn't just Wu Yujin; Gao Min, Li Na, Fan Wu, and many other students were handing out small closed bottles of water to each of those who helped modify the buses. At this point, everyone knew that they had to help in any way they could not only to exponentially increase their chances of survival and improve their lives but also not to be expelled from the group.
Even those who were unwilling to leave the safety of the enclosed places worked as long as it wasn't something that required going out in the open
"Now we can finally get out of here."
Shangguan Bing Xue's voice sounded from behind and when Bai Zemin turned around he saw her slowly approaching as she looked at the buses before looking back at him.
"Good job."
Although her voice was cold, at least she sounded sincere and it would be a lie to say that Bai Zemin wasn't secretly surprised. This was the first time he had heard her say small words of praise, or at least towards him. While it wasn't much, it was a breakthrough as a group. It was what Bai Zemin believed.
"Yeah." He replied briefly and before the conversation had a chance to progress, a roar from outside silenced all sound underground.
Roar!
"Not good!" One of the survivors in charge of standing guard near the entrance shouted in fright, "Chen He is fighting an ape over ten feet tall! They are currently heading this way!"
Hearing the student's scream of terror and remembering the earlier roar, the survivors' faces turned pale as a sheet and they quickly ran to the back and deeper part of the subway. Some of them fell to the ground and a few were even stomped by those behind, being seriously injured and even dying in the process; after all, a stampede of over 500 people was no joke and most of them had thought that Chen He was an invincible existence, but since an ape forced him to retreat to this place it meant that he was weaker, which made the survivors think that they were going to die.
Liang Peng, Fu Xuefeng, Cai Jingyi, Zhong De, and Kang Lan quickly began to help those who could help and to beat up those who became disobedient or wanted to incite chaos in any way; this had been one of the rules and ideas that had been put forward not many days ago and for the first time it was being implemented to avoid major panic.
An ape of more than ten feet? Chen He?
First Order! Bai Zemin's mind flashed with that thought and only now did he realize that the handsome archer was nowhere to be seen.
Whoosh!
Before he moved, a breeze rushed beside him and the next thing Bai Zemin saw was Shangguan Bing Xue dashing at full speed to the exit. Her speed was at least 8 or 9 times faster than a normal person before the apocalypse, which meant that her Agility stat was at least between 80 and 90 points!
Although he was surprised, he also charged towards the exit.
Like Shangguan Bing Xue, Bai Zemin was clear that it was absolutely impossible for Chen He to cope with a First Order existence on his own. Although the archer had become more powerful after absorbing some of the First Order Anti-Magic Zombie's Soul Power and defeating other enemies over the past few days, it was still not enough for him to survive against such a confrontation.
The sound of roars and bangs was the first thing Bai Zemin could make out as he approached the exit of the subway parking structure. Furthermore, although it was barely distinguishable due to the overwhelming sound of what he assumed were the mutated ape's attacks, Bai Zemin could also faintly feel the sound of the wind being pierced by what he thought were Chen He's arrows.
A split second later, Shangguan Bing Xue's cold voice reached his ears followed by a roar from the mutated ape. Obviously her attack had managed to inflict enough damage for its roar to change.
Two seconds later, Bai Zemin finally reached the surface and his footsteps paused for a moment to take in the surrounding situation. After all, he didn't want to die shamefully by rushing into battle without knowing what exactly was going on.
The first thing that came into his line of sight was an ape that was clearly taller than the previous survivor had announced. Instead of three meters tall, the mutated ape easily reached four meters and its muscles were explosive enough to crush a house with its fists. In addition, the mutated beast was covered in a large amount of silver-colored fur that glistened in the rays of the evening sunlight, giving it a majestic appearance.
However, the ape's body was wounded. There were at least a dozen arrows firmly stuck in the beast's abdomen, chest, arms, shoulders, and legs, causing blood to flow constantly from those small holes.
Bai Zemin narrowed his eyes and noticed that those arrows were not normal. A faint light of light blue shone on the outline of the arrow, which kept them steady and undestroyed by the fierce movements of the mutated ape.
It must be the treasure Chen He obtained. Probably something that boosts his attacks in some way. Bai Zemin thought as his sight moved at lightning speed to the semi-frozen limbs of the giant ape.
Bang!
The giant ape brutally slammed the floor right in front of him and Chen He hurriedly jumped to the side almost getting crushed in the process. He stood up instantly after and ran several meters before pulling out an arrow from the quiver behind his back and firing it at full speed.
When the arrow touched the bow, its dark brown color turned the same as the other arrows that were stuck in the mutated ape's body, confirming Bai Zemin's theory about boosting power. As for whether it was a treasure or a skill, he didn't know.
"Freeze."
Shangguan Bing Xue's voice attracted his attention and Bai Zemin arrived just in time to see a small golden colored stick shooting out a blast of icy air.
Roar!
The ape roared and its wild movements slowed a little but still noticeably. Around its fur, Bai Zemin could see from a distance how some parts had frozen or were still in the process of freezing due to the icy air from before.
A magic wand? Bai Zemin had that idea as he looked at the small stick in Shangguan Bing Xue's hands. He assumed that instead of increasing Strength like his Xuanyuan Sword, the magic wand should definitely increase Magic and Mana or one of both stats.
Instead of interrupting, Bai Zemin watched the battle unfold as he also wanted to see how strong Chen He and Shangguan Bing Xue had become over the past few days.
The battle was quite close.
The giant ape was pretty fast and seemed to be completely focused on hunting Chen He who was shooting arrows every time the opportunity presented to him instead of going after Shangguan Bing Xue who was the person that really threatened its life.
Bang!... Bang!... Bang!
Several one or two-story buildings in the surrounding area were crushed under the giant ape's heavy and powerful fists or its agile kicks that seemed to contain the flexibility and speed of a whip but the power of a giant mace. Bai Zemin was sure that even he would be seriously injured if he received one of those blows directly.
Chen He might not be able to compare with Bai Zemin, but he was certainly not weak by any means. The damage from his strange arrow
was little but slowly accumulated and the giant ape was losing more and more blood; moreover, when it seemed that he was about to be crushed, he somehow managed to escape at the last second by using the terrain to his advantage.
Of course, the reason why Chen He could stand his ground and fight without having to run away as he did before or without being killed was all thanks to Shangguan Bing Xue's timely support. Otherwise he would definitely not be able to do as much against the giant ape considering that he was currently already at his limit even with support.
The giant ape's movements had slowed down by at least 60% and great parts of its body had been frozen with small icicles of ice. In addition, Shangguan Bing Xue occasionally set up small ice traps to restrain the monster or shot sharp ice pikes, creating small wounds and freezing the blood inside little by little.
Unfortunately, Bai Zemin knew that it was not so simple to end the life of a First Order existence... Because the giant ape had yet to show any skills!
Indeed, Bai Zemin's thoughts proved to be true not long after.
Roar!
The ape stopped its movements and raised its head to the sky as it roared fiercely. Its silver fur that had been soiled with its own blood and the areas frozen by Shangguan Bing Xue's magic spells were surrounded by a strange white light that flashed with such fervor that it seemed to want to compete against the sun, forcing anyone who looked directly at it to close their eyes.
When the bright flash calmed down and everyone was able to open their eyes again, Chen He could not help but take several steps back as Shangguan Bing Xue's eyes widened slightly in disbelief.
"I see... So that's the skill this ape obtained when it advanced to First Order." Bai Zemin muttered to himself and couldn't help but secretly feel a bit of fear as he realized what the giant ape's skill was.
The giant ape's skill was very simple. It didn't increase its strength, nor did it increase its speed or defense, nor did it give it any kind of elemental control... It was a skill that could only be used on itself.
Regeneration!
The skill that the giant mutated ape had acquired during its evolution gave it the ability to recover from seemingly any wound!
What was worse than a strong enemy? A strong enemy that could recover from the wounds you had inflicted on it after working so hard and risking your life so many times to do so!
The silver fur that was covered with blood and ice patches now looked perfect as if it had never faced any enemy in the first place. However, Bai Zemin noticed that the beast was breathing erratically and the madness in its eyes seemed to have dimmed, being replaced by tiredness.