The apocalypse has arrived!
At this moment,
Countless people, awakened from their dreams and frantically fleeing, were already certain of the grim truth.
With unwavering certainty, they knew that the apocalypse, once only a distant fantasy found in science fiction, had indeed descended upon the world. Desperately, they grabbed their families and tried to escape the clutches of the zombies.
However,
Under the influence of the blood moon and the energy tide,
At least seventy percent of humanity had mutated into zombies. In such overwhelming numbers, the ordinary humans had become little more than prey, unable to take even a single step without peril.
In the seconds before he lost consciousness, Zhang Yang witnessed,
On the streets of the residential area beside his villa, scenes that could only be described as hellish.
Men, women, and children ran in a mad panic, with zombies hot on their heels.
The appearance of the zombies varied.
Some were the familiar, slow-moving, disfigured zombies with dull, vacant eyes, their limbs severed, dragging themselves along.
Others were far more grotesque—some were entirely red, their hands ending in sharp, icy claws.
There were the burly ones, their bodies erupting with green spikes from their joints.
Some crawled on the ground, extending their long tongues like chameleons.
And then there were those who still retained the beauty they had in life, effortlessly overpowering a large man, biting into his neck, and in mere moments, draining the life out of him, leaving behind a desiccated corpse.
Soon after, the dried corpse stirred and stood up, its eyes glowing with crimson light, joining the ranks of the undead, continuing the relentless chase for any humans in sight, in an endless cycle.
Chaos reigned!
At that moment,
Zhang Yang felt his vision go black.
When he opened his eyes again,
He noticed that his sight seemed to have been covered by a filter, a faint red hue clouding his surroundings. His movements were sluggish, as if he were an awkward puppet, and most alarmingly, his heartbeat had ceased, his body cold as ice!
It was clear.
Zhang Yang had mutated into a zombie!
And not just any zombie—one capable of speech, still retaining human intelligence!
"Hmm?"
Suddenly,
Zhang Yang noticed,
The panel icon in the corner of his vision was blinking intermittently.
With a thought, he called up the panel.
Perhaps due to his transformation into a zombie,
The panel's template had changed. It no longer displayed a countdown, but instead showed the details of Zhang Yang's current condition:
[Host: Zhang Yang]
[Species: Zombie]
[Potential: King-Level (Ranks from Ordinary, Elite, Lord, Overlord, King, Hell, Cataclysm)]
[Level: Zero Tier (0/100)]
[Talent: Devour (Consume flesh or other treasures to absorb energy, increase level, and gain special abilities)]
King Potential (Can command and control a number of zombies not exceeding one's own level)]
[Special Ability: Psychic Power]
[Storage Space: 1 Billion Cubic Meters]
"This is my current panel? King-level potential, and a psychic power ability!"
As Zhang Yang looked at his details,
He felt a surge of excitement.
According to the information, King-Level potential was one of the highest forms of mutation, a natural-born ruler among the mutated creatures. As long as he survived, he would undoubtedly become the supreme leader of millions, or even tens of millions, of mutated beings!
Reaching King-Level potential meant Zhang Yang was certain to ascend to King-Level.
And if luck favored him, he could even aim for Hell-Level, or perhaps even Cataclysm-Level!
In comparison to the countless mutated beings with only Ordinary or Elite potential,
He was already light years ahead, leaving them in the dust from the start.
Zhang Yang straightened up, stiffly, and checked his reflection in the mirror.
Though he had become a zombie, his appearance had not changed much—he still looked strikingly handsome.
His eyes, once brown, had turned a deep crimson, making them seem even more profound and mysterious. The intensity of his gaze now exuded an air of natural authority, one that demanded respect.
His skin had become pale, with four sharp fangs protruding from his mouth. His fingernails and toenails were longer and sharper.
At the same time,
All of his senses had been heightened to varying degrees.
His crimson eyes enhanced his vision, allowing him to see clearly even in the darkest night.
His hearing and sense of smell were also greatly intensified.
He could detect the faintest hum of electrical appliances, or the delicate scent of blood in the air.
After becoming a zombie, his craving for blood shifted from a mere affliction to an inherent instinct. The faint smell of blood that drifted into his room instantly triggered his hunger.
Lastly,
Zhang Yang decided to test his special ability.
Psychic Power!
He focused his mind, and faintly sensed a mysterious, yet real, force emanating from his mind, radiating outward.
His gaze fixed on a metal baseball bat, and with a simple motion of his hand, the heavy bat flew into his grasp.
He even found that he could control the bat with his psychic power, making it fly around the room, swinging effortlessly.
This was the power of psychic energy—able to move objects with the mind, as if an extension of oneself!
Such power had vast potential for development.
However,
The energy consumption of using this ability was considerable.
"I'm so hungry…"
A wave of hunger surged through Zhang Yang.
With his clawed hands, he awkwardly peeled an orange and popped a segment into his mouth.
The juice flowed in his mouth,
But Zhang Yang didn't taste any sweetness.
Instead, it felt bitter and sour, as if something were stuck in his throat, making it hard to swallow. In the end, he spat it all into the trash.
"Seems like human food is no longer suitable for me."
Muttering to himself, he then focused his mind, and a large, fresh chunk of pork, the size of a human head, appeared from his storage space with a soft thud on the coffee table.
"Hiss, hah, hiss, hah."
Saliva flowed like a river.
As soon as the pork appeared,
An intense, uncontrollable urge to devour it all, without leaving a single scrap, surged in Zhang Yang's mind!
Without hesitation,
He grabbed the large chunk of meat.
And with a single, ferocious bite, he tore into it!
Bang, bang, bang~ bang~ bang! Bang!
At that moment,
It felt as if the classic theme music from Little Chef was playing in his mind.
After becoming a zombie, his taste buds had completely transformed. The raw meat no longer tasted foul—rather, it felt fresher, more authentic, and more natural than ever before!
The delightful sensation of devouring the fresh meat made Zhang Yang involuntarily murmur,
"Ah, so delicious!"
Without a second thought, he opened his mouth wide and began devouring it hungrily, relishing every bite.
In just three bites, the massive chunk of meat was gone.
At the same time,
Zhang Yang felt a refreshing sensation spreading from his stomach.
It was the energy he was absorbing from the fresh meat!
He glanced at the level bar.
[Level: Zero Tier (1/100)]
He had gained 1 point!
"As expected, only by devouring flesh can a zombie evolve quickly!"
Zhang Yang exclaimed, his excitement palpable.
He could already feel his strength rising ever so slightly, his movements becoming less stiff and more fluid.
"Keep going, keep going, don't stop the meat!"
As they say, "Once you taste the marrow, you can't stop."
Realizing just how delicious and crucial fresh meat was for his mutated zombie form, Zhang Yang didn't hesitate for a moment.
He reached into the panel storage and pulled out two pig legs.
He continued to devour them, slowly absorbing the energy from the flesh.
A zombie's appetite was truly like a bottomless pit. Even blood and flesh many times his weight could be devoured, absorbed, and refined into pure energy, slowly accumulating toward reaching higher levels.
Thus,
Zhang Yang continued to devour the flesh,
His strong zombie jaws capable of crushing steel, tearing through the meat with ease.
The several tons of various meats stored in the panel were finally being put to good use.
One piece after another,
Zhang Yang transformed into a relentless eating machine.
He swallowed large quantities of delicious meat,
Slowly gathering the energy.
Time passed,
And the first night of the apocalypse quietly ended, with the first light of dawn spreading across the horizon, and the blood moon slowly disappearing.
That night,
Countless people trembled in fear, afraid that the next moment they too would fall victim to the zombies.
But Zhang Yang, meanwhile, spent a peaceful night, encountering no danger.
He devoted all his time to eating and digesting!
After a night's time had passed,
Finally,
His energy reached (100/100)!
He was ready to level up!