The man didn't suspect anything, after all, zombies couldn't speak. However, he remained cautious and tried to see who it was through the peephole on the door.
But to his disappointment, the peephole seemed to be blocked by someone's hand, revealing only pale skin. Moreover, the voice pleading for help sounded like that of a woman, so he didn't doubt it much.
Gradually, the man opened the door, but as soon as the door opened, a pale arm grabbed the edge of the door. His heart skipped a beat, as intense unease and fear surged within him.
The fingertips of that arm were sharp, and there were dried bloodstains on it!
Shaun immediately threw away his phone and pulled the security door wide open in one go.
The man was completely panicked. He thought it was a woman calling for help, but now a zombie suddenly appeared!
Voice changer?! The man's fear led him to start imagining wildly, forgetting to escape. Meanwhile, Shaun pounced on him.
The strength far surpassing that of an adult made it impossible for the man to resist!
"Ding! The host has successfully infected one person, gaining 10 evolution points."
Shaun slowly stood up, looking at the man lying on the ground, without a hint of remorse. The zombie virus was changing him! If he didn't evolve quickly, he would be the one to die. From the moment he turned into a zombie, everything had changed completely! It wasn't a battle of righteousness; it was a battle for survival! There were no right or wrong decisions, only life or death!
Shaun stepped over the man and continued to walk into the house. To his disappointment, the man lived alone as well.
After leaving the room, it took great effort to pick up the phone again. He checked it and found it still working.
Shaun began to use the elevator again, continuing his journey of evolution.
The building had twenty-four floors, with four households on each floor. There were undoubtedly survivors among the hundreds of people, and tonight, he had to evolve to the second stage!
He chose to start from the top floor rather than the first floor. Generally, the survival rate would be higher on the top floor, as regular zombies would not use the elevator.
That night, this building witnessed strange events. A zombie knocked on doors with its head while playing a bizarre recording on its phone. The blood-red light from the outside shone on its face, adding a touch of evil.
Time passed slowly. Although the sky didn't change, the phone still showed the exact time: 06:42!
The night passed, and it was now early morning. However, unlike before, there were no early risers going to work. There were only zombies tirelessly roaming around.
In one night, Shaun spread endless terror throughout the building. A zombie repeatedly knocked on doors and played the eerie phone recording, searching for survivors.
"Ding! The host has successfully infected one person, gaining 10 evolution points."
"Current evolution points: 100/100!"
"The host is starting to evolve..."
"The host's evolution is complete!"
"Current stage: Second stage regular zombie!"
"The host's strength has doubled, and speed slightly increased. Vision and hearing have been slightly enhanced, and the body's agility has also improved..."
"Ding! The host has been detected to advance to the second stage. The task system is now officially activated..."
"Generating autonomous tasks..."
"Task generation complete! Please check the tasks on your own."
Shaun stood still, feeling a mysterious force suddenly coursing through his stiff body. In a short time, it dissipated, but he clearly felt his strength had increased, and his body was more agile. The most significant change was that he could now walk more normally.
Although still somewhat strange, he was now slightly different from an ordinary zombie. If someone saw him, they would probably think he had a leg injury and ask him to walk a few more steps.
He slightly tested bending his fingers; although he couldn't make a tight fist, he could bend them to a moderate degree. It seemed he had become significantly stronger.
Thinking about the system's prompt earlier, the task system had been activated?
His consciousness immersed into his mind, and indeed, besides the host information, there was now an option for tasks in the system interface.
"Ding! The system tasks are divided into weekly tasks and random tasks..."
"Weekly tasks will be released based on the host's strength every week, with generous rewards but higher difficulty!"
"Random tasks are automatically triggered by the system based on the host's environment, with random rewards and difficulty!"
"Weekly Task: Dignity Regained - Eliminate a first-stage mutant beast!"
"Introduction: In the post-apocalyptic world, as a zombie, you seem to have become the dominant force, with all humans fearing your virus. However, every living creature has its natural enemy. A small mutant beast might easily snap your neck! Zombie youth, go forth! Regain the dignity of your zombie race!"
"Difficulty: Two stars!"
"Task Time: Within seven days!"
"Reward: Random enhancement of one of your physical abilities!"
"Random Tasks: None."
Shaun stood still, gazing at the blood-red sky through the window, sinking into a faint sorrow.
Regain dignity? How the hell am I supposed to do that? That big yellow dog, like some kind of monster, would probably crush my neck with a single paw!
The task was unreliable. It's better to stick to the plan of infecting humans, gaining evolution points, and improving my abilities. That's the right path.
After banging on the security door all night, Shaun felt that his forehead was swollen, but he didn't feel any pain, which wasn't a problem.
Although it was daytime now, there was no change outside. The building was still bathed in a faint red light.
Shaun didn't change his approach and continued knocking on doors. Due to his slow movements and extreme patience, it took him all night to reach the fourteenth floor and infect seven survivors.
He barely accomplished the basic goal, but the path of evolution was still long, and he needed to keep working hard.
However, when he reached the eleventh floor, he gave up. Nobody answered his knocks anymore, and even his phone had run out of battery, so he put it in his pocket.
He began to contemplate his next plan. Everyone had closed their doors tightly. With his identity as a zombie, there was no way he could get inside. He could only wait for them to come out on their own.
The outbreak of the apocalypse was so rapid that most residents wouldn't have had time to stockpile food. They wouldn't be able to hold on for long, and the threat of death would force them to come out eventually.
Although his speed had been enhanced once, he still couldn't run faster than normal humans.
I need to find a place to wait and let them come to me.
Shaun returned to his home and took out a clothes pole. He then took the elevator to the first floor, where the floor was covered in messy bloodstains, indicating previous struggles.
He placed the clothes pole at the elevator entrance, making it impossible to close the elevator door properly. Anyone wanting to go downstairs would have to pass through this spot on the stairs.
He saw several zombies still wandering on this floor, just like wild beasts searching for food.
He raised both hands and pushed all the zombies outside.
Roar!
Although zombies had no intelligence, they let out a few roars.
What are you roaring about?
Shaun didn't back down and immediately roared back at them!
After some time, the zombies were no longer in this building. Shaun closed the building's entrance as well.
If there were any humans looking for food downstairs, they wouldn't be scared off by just a few zombies.
He slowly moved to the back of the secure staircase, hugging the stairs. The shadows concealed his figure, and without careful observation, no one would know there was a sneaky zombie hiding here.
When people came down the stairs and turned their backs to him, he would slowly come out. Then, he would get them… hehehe…
Shaun couldn't help but emit an evil laugh, but it was only a few hoarse roars, which made it sound even more terrifying.
Time passed slowly, and it was an extremely dull and boring waiting game. Most people couldn't bear it for long and would eventually break down.
But the zombie virus had given Shaun extreme patience, making him like a wild beast, fully focused on his sense of smell.
No fresh flesh and blood could escape his nose!
This was the best way to gain evolution points now; his speed was still too slow.
If you made a seventy or eighty-year-old person race against a young adult, wouldn't that be torture?
Shaun had considered going to the supermarket and waiting for prey there, but there were too many zombies there, and the competition was too fierce.
Moreover, in peaceful times, humans who could safely reach the neighborhood supermarket were true elites. Such people might not show up for a whole week!
After all, zombies were now everywhere in the neighborhood, but there were only a few in this building. There would definitely be a large number of survivors successfully reaching the first floor.
The second day of the apocalypse quickly passed, and as expected, he gained nothing. Most households had enough food in the refrigerator to last for two days.
What's more, if people didn't eat for two days, it wouldn't be life-threatening. Going out to find food, on the other hand, would definitely put their lives in danger. Smart humans could naturally see the difference!
But perhaps they had forgotten or intentionally ignored it. If they were in a hungry state, feeling weak all over, the risk of searching for food would increase exponentially!
Or maybe they didn't forget; they just chose to overlook it. Living one day at a time was the mindset of most people now.