[Ding!]
[Congratulations, host! You have activated the Origin System!]
[Host: Agraz]
[Race: Zombie]
[Level: 01]
[Skill: None]
[Store (Locked)]
[Evolve (0/50 Origin Points)]
[Skill Points: 0]
[Origin Points: 0]
[Notifications (1)]
___________________________________
Agraz stared at the blue interface in front of him with a slight feeling of bewilderment.
It really seems like a crazy lucid dream. But I don't think even a dream could match this level of realism. The familiar refreshing metallic taste of blood, the intricacies beginning with individual zombies and ending with the ethereal moon spreading a delicate silver sheen over everything in sight. It doesn't feel like a dream at all.
Agraz quickly calmed down and started probing the system.
It looks like I have a notification. Hmm... How do I open it?
Open Notifications.
[Notifications:
Welcome to the Origin System.
As a newbie, you have been rewarded a basic gift pack!
Would you like to open the basic gift pack?
Yes / No ]
Yes.
[Congratulations, you have obtained 5 Skill Points!]
As soon as the mechanical voice stopped speaking, Agraz felt something change in his inner being.
When he attempted to examine the skill area, it abruptly widened to display a variety of skills.
[Skill Menu:
Slash (5 Skill Points) : Hardens and elongates nails and gives additional slash damage to the opponent.
Dash (5 Skill Points) : Increases velocity along a straight line.
Strength (5 Skill Points) : Increases physical force generation and application.
Regeneration (5 Skill Points) : Increases the regeneration ability of the body.
Screaming (5 Skill Points) : Your screams will always invite hordes of zombies.
Skill Points: 5]
Hmm... There are 5 skills available. And it looks like I can only obtain one. I don't need slash for now. I already have a knife. I also don't need dash. Screaming could also wait.
The most intriguing skill here are strength and regeneration. The question is how much strength or regeneration ability will it increase? It would be worth obtaining if regeneration could repair the horrible wounds that span my entire body.
With this thought, Agraz focused on the regeneration skill.
[Congratulations, you have obtained Skill: Regeneration!]
The interface updated as a pleasant sensation spread over his entire body. His skill points were reduced to zero, and a new skill was added to his skill section.
[Skill: Regeneration (New!)]
Agraz thoroughly appreciated the refreshing feeling and suddenly started laughing hysterically. His body twisted and twitched wildly.
"Grahh.. Grah.. rah.. hahahahahahaha"
He throws out some bloodcurdling grunts before bursting out laughing maniacally.
I can gain POWER! Power that no political or social status can bring. Power to crush numbers. Hahahahaha... I can obtain the power that no mortals can dream of. Power to stand above all.
Agraz, in his previous life, was just an orphan taken in by some shady organization. A powerless individual in front of those black-suited men who controlled the world behind the scenes. His life was feeble.
Agraz's life and death were in the hands of those men. And that's also how he died. After serving his purpose, he was cast aside.
That's why he always dreamed of the power that no scheme, number, or status could resist.
In his final moments, Agraz knew that he would never be able to realize his dreams. However, it looks like fate has given him the opportunity to realize that dream.
After suppressing his emotions that were going out of control, Agraz contemplates his situation calmly.
I should not get ahead of myself; even if the system can help me obtain irresistible power, I have to move forward one step at a time.
I am still weak. I don't think I will survive if my head is detached from my body. And bullets still pose a threat to me.
Being a zombie also has its perks. I have noticed that I can see in the dark, and my sense of touch has diminished. I don't know if that is good or bad, but being able to see in the dark is incredibly useful.
With my regeneration and combat knife, I can take down a grown man in a heart beat. Zombies also don't pose a threat, as they always ignore me.
Now, I should check out the other functions of the system.
Agraz tries to focus on various key points in the system and their explanation appears in front of him.
[Zombie: A bottom-tier race from the undead category]
[Level: A being's overall power at a fundamental level. Host can level up by slaying any being and obtaining experience points]
[Skill: An innate ability of a soul]
[Evolve: Can evolve into a higher race]
[Skill Points: The soul's energy to generate a skill]
[Origin Points: Everything in existence is made out of Origin. The host can extract the Origin from entities or objects containing a considerable amount of Origin]
[Notifications: System notifications]
Hmm... Why is this locked?
After focusing on the locked option, an explanation appeared.
[Certain conditions need to be met to unlock this function]
So, what are the conditions?
...
...
No answers, huh.
It seems I can obtain origin points from others. I should test it with a zombie next. As for skill points, I have no idea. Maybe I can gain skill points by leveling up, like in the games.
So, first, I should try leveling up.
With this thought, Agraz got out of the car. After getting out, he realized there were a lot of zombies than before.
It seems like my laughter has attracted a lot of zombies. At this rate, I don't even need the screaming skill.
With a self-deprecating laugh, Agraz located a lone zombie away from other groups.
Agraz also noticed that his wounds had healed. If not for his gray eyes, white as corpse skin, or the blood smeared here and there, nobody could recognize him as a zombie.
Because his wounds healed, Agraz no longer had any problem walking.
He slowly walked towards the lone zombie and took out a metal wire from his bagpack. He first tied the wire around the zombie's neck and took out a black crowbar, which was found inside a car trunk.
The zombie did not seem to mind Agraz's action.
After tying the wire tightly around its neck, Agraz swiftly moved behind the zombie's back and kicked the zombie to the ground. When it attempted to stand up, he stopped the zombie's movement by planting his knee on its back and forcing it to the ground. He then grabbed the other end of the wire and pulled hard.
Because of the wire around its neck, the zombie could only flail his arms about and make no sounds at all. Subsequently, Agraz violently struck the zombie's head with the crowbar, causing it to bleed profusely and squirm.
Thump. Thump. Thump.
It stopped moving after a dozen hits. After it stopped moving, Agraz glanced at the zombie's head, which was now a mangled lump of flesh with blood and brain matter wriggling about.
Agraz's hands were also cut by the thin metal wire. However, he ignored them as they would heal on their own.
There were some zombies coming in his direction, despite Agraz trying to muffle the zombie's scream.
[You have slain a Level-2 Zombie!]
[You have obtained 2 Origin Points!]
[You have leveled up!]
[You have obtained 3 Skill Points!]
Ignoring the mechanical voice in his head, Agraz swiftly left the area after picking up his backpack from the side of the road.
After going around the zombies, Agraz sat inside a random car and stared at his system interface. Opening the notifications tab, he discovered that he had leveled up from killing that zombie. He also gained 2 Origin Points and 3 Skill Points.
That zombie was level 2. It was not much more powerful than a grown man. I only need to kill 24 such zombies before I can evolve. Evolution should bring about a considerable increase in power.
With this thought in mind, Agraz went on a killing spree.
First, Agraz would locate a lone zombie. Then, tie the wire around its neck, kick it to the ground, suppress its movement and the pummeling begins.
After going around killing zombies here and there, it was nearly noon. The crowbar had already bent from all the pummeling.
Agraz also found the answer to his previous question. It was evident that a zombie didn't require any food or rest. After all, Agraz had stayed up all night, killing many zombies, but he did not feel any fatigue or exhaustion.
System.
___________________________
[Host: Agraz]
[Race: Zombie]
[Level: 05]
[Skill: Regeneration]
[Store (Locked)]
[Evolve (50/50 Origin Points)]
[Skill Points: 15]
[Origin Points: 50]
[Notifications (61)]
___________________________
Now, I can finally evolve.