Second floor of the hotel.
With the addition of 15 new survivors, the number of survivors inside the hotel has now reached 42.
The place was bustling with voices.
The hotel had been completely cleared out, and the survivors who had escaped the disaster started discussing amongst themselves.
Those who had been trapped in the hotel eagerly asked the newcomers about the outside world.
The answers were not encouraging.
Panic and despair spread among the crowd.
During the conversation, many people would occasionally steal glances at Lin An and Zhang Tie, who were standing by the window.
"Brother Lin, you mean you want me to join your team?"
Zhang Tie turned his head to look at his companions behind him.
His loud voice caught the attention of many.
The crowd looked envious.
The new arrivals might not know yet.
Every one of the survivors in the hotel had expressed a desire to join Lin An's team, but Lin An had ignored them.
Seeing that Zhang Tie was being invited, many people even felt a bit jealous.
Lin An had killed a Licker with one strike.
With that kind of strength, following him would mean a safe passage in this apocalypse, wouldn't it?
Lin An calmly nodded.
Zhang Tie had a decent character.
As an Awakened, he could have escaped when facing the Licker, but he chose to cover others' retreat.
Among the people he brought, most were the elderly, weak, sick, or disabled.
From the information Lin An observed so far, Zhang Tie seemed to be a person of integrity and loyalty.
His combat ability was also decent.
As a physically enhanced Awakened, he could share a lot of the fighting burden.
Zhang Tie laughed heartily.
"Brother Lin, it's an honor that you think highly of me."
"Not to mention joining, I'd give my life for you!"
Without a second thought, Zhang Tie accepted the team invitation Lin An sent without even looking at the details.
"Beep, the Savior Squad has a new member: 1. Current members: 3."
"New member: Zhang Tie (Awakened) receives a 10% attribute boost."
"Beep, Team Member Zhang Tie: Loyalty 70 (As long as you don't touch his bottom line, he won't betray you)."
Only Lin An could see the last part.
Lin An pondered, realizing that initial loyalty was not constant.
Because he saved Zhang Tie, and Zhang Tie was straightforward by nature, his loyalty directly increased to 70 points.
It seemed that he indeed was as straightforward as he appeared, without much scheming.
"What is this!?"
After joining, Zhang Tie's eyes widened in extreme surprise.
"Welcome aboard."
Lin An smiled lightly. It seemed Zhang Tie felt a significant boost in his strength the moment he joined.
"Oh my goodness..."
Zhang Tie exclaimed in amazement.
"My strength suddenly increased by 1.3!"
"Wow, my constitution increased by 1.5!?"
"Agility, willpower, everything increased!"
"Lin... Captain, what's going on?"
Zhang Tie felt the surge of strength within him and got excited.
Lin An looked at the dumbfounded Zhang Tie, smiling slightly.
A 10% attribute boost after joining the Savior Squad might not seem like much, but once experienced, it was a different story.
Players had to risk their lives to kill mutants to level up, and leveling up only added one point.
Awakened individuals were better, but leveling up only added three points.
The first few levels were manageable, but later on, the required energy and number of mutants were terrifying.
Leveling up was difficult, and many people remained stuck at level 1 until they died.
For most Awakened individuals, this 10% boost meant at least a one-point increase.
An increase of more than one point.
Equivalent to a free level up.
In the apocalypse game, every attribute point was extremely valuable, so it was natural for Zhang Tie to be this excited.
"Consider it a benefit of joining my team."
"But it's because you're an Awakened with high base attributes that you gained so much."
The crowd's breathing quickened when they heard it was a benefit of joining the team.
Joining the team could make them stronger?
Awakened? High base attributes?
Yu Shihao immediately understood why Lin An recruited Zhang Tie.
His mind worked quickly, and he soon figured out the connection.
Awakened individuals, like Lin An and Zhang Tie, had extraordinary strength.
After Zhang Tie joined the team, his strength increased.
Was this boost for joining any Awakened team, or unique to Lin An?
He looked at his player template, but besides attributes, there was nothing else.
He couldn't find the team function.
Only half understanding, he listened intently, afraid to miss any of their conversation.
However, Lin An did not speak further.
He communicated to Zhang Tie through the team channel:
"Don't reveal our squad information to outsiders. You can mention the attribute boost, but don't leak the name or the team communication function."
Lin An's voice suddenly echoed in Zhang Tie's mind, though Lin An's lips didn't move.
It felt like seeing a ghost in broad daylight.
"Un... understood, Captain!"
Was this also a benefit of joining the team?
Zhang Tie stammered as he tried to use the team communication to contact Lin An, his eyes burning with excitement.
He wasn't stupid.
Having served in the military and later worked as a bodyguard, he knew how important communication was.
With global communications down and landlines and mobiles useless, a private real-time communication method was incredibly useful.
The crowd, hearing Zhang Tie exclaim about his attribute increase, looked even more envious.
Joining Lin An's team could increase their strength.
Why weren't they Awakened?
Yu Shihao stood in the corner, surrounded by the crowd's exclamations.
He clenched his fists tightly.
Awakened!
I also want to become an Awakened!
Having witnessed the horrors of zombies and Lickers, his desire for strength far exceeded before.
Yu Shihao's eyes burned with desire.
Lin An was so strong; he must know how to become an Awakened!
...
In a room on the 9th floor of the hotel.
Lin An, Zhang Tie, and Wen Ya looked out the window towards the hospital across the street.
"Zhang Tie, you said you escaped from the hospital. What's the situation there now?"
"Are there creatures like Lickers?"
Zhang Tie frowned deeply.
"Captain Lin, to my knowledge, there shouldn't be any living people left in the hospital."
"There are at least 30,000 zombies inside."
"As for creatures like Lickers..."
Zhang Tie shook his head.
"We also encountered it while escaping along the outer wall of the hospital, heading in another direction."
"Later, we were chased by the Licker and were driven back."
Lin An nodded. It was good news that there were no mutated creatures inside the hospital.
The combat space there was too narrow, making it difficult to handle sneak attacks.
"Is there any special situation inside the hospital, like a large gathering of zombies?"
"Why were you in the hospital? And how did you awaken?"
Lin An continued to ask.
In his past life, the item [Hand of the Skull Crusher] was deep inside the hospital, surrounded by a massive horde of zombies.
It was said that several safe zones had to join forces, sacrificing many lives to break through the zombie horde to obtain this equipment.
He was also curious about how Zhang Tie awakened.
He hadn't heard of any energy nodes inside the hospital in his previous life.
Zhang Tie pondered for a moment after hearing the three questions and then slowly said:
"I was in the hospital with my father for treatment before the apocalypse broke out."
"The apocalypse erupted so suddenly. For some reason, most of the patients turned into zombies."
Zhang Tie's mood became a bit somber.
He had witnessed his father turn into a zombie after the apocalypse broke out.
Lin An patted him on the shoulder, understanding the helplessness of watching a loved one turn into a zombie.
It was common for patients to turn into zombies.
People with poor constitutions would show signs of zombification even before the apocalypse erupted.
Zhang Tie turned around and gave Lin An a bitter smile, indicating he was okay.
"When the patients turned into zombies, the doctors and nurses taking care of them couldn't react in time."
"None of them survived."
Wen Ya trembled upon hearing this.
"As for unusual situations..."
"The entire hospital, except for the pharmacy area, was uninhabitable."
Zhang Tie recalled the horrors of that day with lingering fear.
"I was lucky. My father's ward was on the second floor."
"There weren't many zombies, so I ran out and hid in the pharmacy."
"The pharmacy could be considered an unusual place."
"As for awakening... I don't know."
"I encountered a flash of white light and then passed out."
"When I woke up, I found my strength had increased significantly. There was also an Awakened symbol on my player panel."
Lin An pondered for a moment.
Did he awaken in the pharmacy?
It seemed worthwhile to check out the pharmacy when he visited the hospital.
After Zhang Tie finished speaking, he opened his personal information and showed it to Lin An without reservation.
"Player Information: Zhang Tie (Awakened)"
"Player Level: 0"
"Awakened Rank: 0"
"Strength: 13 (14.3)"
"Agility: 12 (13.2)"
"Constitution: 15 (16.5)"
"Willpower: 12 (13.2)"
"Equipment: None"
"Awakening Talent: Bear Transformation (Transform into a Black Bone-Crushing Bear for a short time, greatly increasing constitution, slightly increasing strength. Defense enhanced, self-healing doubled.)"
"Rank 0: All attributes +2 (Normal human limit for each attribute is 10.)"
Lin An was surprised by Zhang Tie's constitution.
Having 15 points of constitution as an initial attribute after becoming Awakened was impressive.
Plus, his awakening talent enhanced his self-healing ability, no wonder he could recover so quickly from severe injuries.
"Captain Lin, is my constitution attribute pretty good?"
Zhang Tie saw Lin An's surprise and felt a bit proud.
Although he hadn't met other Awakened individuals, he had compared his attributes with others.
Even though Lin An was extremely powerful, his strength seemed to be his highest attribute.
In terms of constitution, Zhang Tie was confident.
"By the way, Captain Lin, what's your strength?"
"I saw you kill that monster with one strike; it was incredible!"
Zhang Tie gave a thumbs up, genuinely admiring.
Lin An opened his attribute panel and glanced at it.
"Strength: 19.4."
"...."
Zhang Tie fell silent.
It was too overwhelming.
However, being an optimist, he quickly moved on.
There was no other way.
"Haha, my strength may not match yours, but in terms of constitution..."
Zhang Tie, unwilling to give up, wanted to compare constitutions with Lin An.
This was his most confident area.
Lin An appeared tall and fit, with a body that seemed slightly lean under his clothes.
Constitutionally, the higher the attribute, the stronger the body should be.
For instance, the burly man who died earlier had a constitution of only 9 points.
Even if Lin An was Awakened, his constitution would be at most 12 or 13 points.
Zhang Tie looked expectant.
"How much is yours? Is it 13 points?"
Lin An smiled calmly.
"19.4."
Zhang Tie's laughter got stuck, his expression stiffening.
He looked Lin An up and down, unable to believe it.
Unexpectedly, Lin An's constitution attribute completely surpassed his too!
Like a defeated rooster, Zhang Tie put away his last bit of pride and stopped talking about attributes.
What a monster!
High strength and high constitution.
How could anyone else survive?
Lin An shook his head slightly, amused by Zhang Tie's quiet muttering.
He was now a 1st Rank Awakened and a Level 1 player.
With double attribute bonuses and two energy plants consumed, if his attributes couldn't surpass Zhang Tie's, his rebirth would be for nothing.
Not wanting to crush Zhang Tie's confidence, Lin An turned the conversation back to the hospital.
"Since you were with your father in the hospital."
"Where would there be the most zombies when the apocalypse erupted?"
Zhang Tie looked puzzled.
Not understanding why Lin An asked this.
"Orthopedics, emergency department."
"There were many car accidents before the apocalypse."
"When I passed by the emergency department, the injured filled the entire hall, many couldn't be rescued in time."
"That place now has at least ten thousand zombies!"
Ten thousand zombies in one building...
Zhang Tie shivered, glancing at the hospital in the distance.
"Captain Lin, why do you keep asking about the hospital?"
Lin An smiled slightly, pointing his finger at the building with the emergency department sign through the window.
"Tomorrow morning, we're going there!"