The four-person team moved swiftly toward Linshui Academy.
As they advanced, Zhu Jiu glanced at his system interface and was pleasantly surprised to find that his accumulated points had reached 106.
In just half a day, on the way to Linshui Academy, he had slain dozens of infected.
"106 points! I'm filthy rich now!"
Zhu Jiu couldn't help but feel giddy. These points were a fortune.
In addition to the points, he also had a Dragon-Tiger Pill, a vial of Evolution Serum, and a Tier-1 Dark Energy Core.
The Dark Energy Core had been retrieved from the mutated creature they defeated earlier. It was worth 30 points—far more valuable than the inferior cores he had encountered before—but Zhu Jiu decided not to recycle it just yet.
The core might prove useful in treating Fatty's injuries, so he kept it for the time being.
Following behind Zhu Jiu, Zhang Xinyu watched him cut through the infected like a hot knife through butter. His mind was completely blown.
"Big Brother Zhu Jiu… he's too strong!"
As a high school senior who had endured years of compulsory education, Zhang Xinyu found it almost impossible to imagine that a human could be this powerful.
"He's just like the protagonists in those web novels!"
Zhang Xinyu's eyes gleamed with admiration, and he unconsciously quickened his pace.
Seeing Zhu Jiu's strength, his fear of the infected began to fade.
Zhu Jiu, however, was oblivious to the boy's inner thoughts. He was fully immersed in the sheer joy of racking up points.
For others, Linshui Academy might have been a death trap, but for him, it was a goldmine for grinding experience and points.
Within minutes of entering the campus, Zhu Jiu had already slain seven or eight infected, banking as many points in the process.
The efficiency of killing here was several times higher than back on Qihua Street.
"'Hardship forces change, change brings solutions, and persistence ensures longevity.' The ancients didn't lie!"
The more Zhu Jiu fought, the more he felt that coming to Linshui Academy had been the right decision.
"Playing it safe at home might have been secure, but it was way too conservative," Zhu Jiu thought to himself.
"With this system in my hands, I should be roaming the world and grinding efficiently. That's the fastest way to grow stronger."
As he mulled over his thoughts, a commotion ahead near the teaching building caught his attention.
"Sounds like a fight?"
He quickened his pace, leading the group toward the source of the noise.
At the entrance to the teaching building, they saw a middle-aged man in a white shirt fending off a horde of infected.
The man held nothing but a mop handle, yet he was managing to hold his ground against more than a dozen infected.
Zhu Jiu squinted and noticed something peculiar—the mop handle seemed to emit a faint, visible aura. It didn't look like a simple cleaning tool at all; it resembled a sharp, deadly blade.
Wherever the mop handle struck, infected were sliced apart with surgical precision.
Razor-sharp.
"Mr. Wang!"
Zhang Xinyu suddenly shouted from behind Zhu Jiu.
"That's Mr. Wang! He's our language teacher!"
Fatty raised an eyebrow. "Hey, Zhu Jiu, that guy's definitely an Evolver, and he seems pretty strong."
"No kidding," Zhu Jiu replied, rolling his eyes. "Holding off a dozen infected by himself—of course, he's strong. If it were you, those infected would've already had their fill."
"Hey, don't underestimate me!" Fatty protested indignantly. "If I weren't injured, a single slide tackle would take care of them!"
Ignoring Fatty's boasting, Zhu Jiu focused his attention on Mr. Wang.
While the teacher was undeniably skilled, the sheer number of infected was overwhelming, and more were pouring in by the second.
Moreover, Mr. Wang's weapon technique was clearly untrained. He was relying entirely on the weapon's sharpness to barely fend off the horde. It was only a matter of time before he ran out of strength.
Seeing this, Zhu Jiu charged forward, his twin heavy blades humming through the air.
Eight Trigrams Blade Technique: Night Battle Across Eight Directions!
In a flash, the dozen infected were reduced to lifeless corpses strewn across the ground.
"You are...?"
Mr. Wang, still catching his breath, looked at Zhu Jiu warily.
"No time for questions. Let's get inside first," Zhu Jiu said curtly, pulling open the doors to the teaching building and ushering everyone inside.
More infected were converging on their location. While a dozen were manageable, dealing with dozens—or even hundreds—could prove problematic.
Zhu Jiu himself wasn't afraid, but he had to consider the safety of Ruan Qingyan, Zhang Xinyu, and the injured Fatty.
As they moved, Zhang Xinyu turned to his teacher and reassured him, "Mr. Wang, Big Brother Zhu Jiu is a good man. Follow us!"
Hearing his student's words, Mr. Wang quickly followed, glancing at the corpses of the infected on the way. His eyes were filled with awe.
After awakening his abilities, he had thought himself strong. But Zhu Jiu's display of power had shown him what true strength looked like.
One strike.
A dozen infected.
Absolute dominance.
Once inside a vacant classroom, Zhu Jiu locked the door and barricaded it with desks and chairs. He exhaled deeply, finally taking a moment to rest.
Meanwhile, Zhang Xinyu panted as he turned to Mr. Wang. "Sir, why were you out there fighting those monsters alone? Where's the rest of our class?"
Mr. Wang's face darkened, and after a long pause, he let out a heavy sigh.
"They scattered."
"We were in class when a few students suddenly turned into those monsters and started attacking everyone."
"Everyone panicked and ran, only to find more of these creatures outside."
His voice was tinged with sorrow. "In just moments, the entire teaching building was bathed in blood. Corpses and monsters were everywhere. People were running for their lives."
"Later, a few of us awakened abilities and managed to fight back, killing many of them. We eventually secured one building, giving us a small safe zone."
"There are currently 152 students and 8 teachers sheltering there."
Mr. Wang's words hung heavy in the air.
This building had once been filled with thousands of students, their chatter echoing through the halls. Now, only a fraction remained.
Too many lives had been lost.
"How many Evolvers do you have?" Zhu Jiu asked, frowning.
"Evolvers?" Mr. Wang seemed confused, then realized Zhu Jiu meant those with abilities.
"There were nine of us, but two died in battle. So now, there are… eight."
"Uh…" Zhang Xinyu interjected awkwardly, "Mr. Wang, it should be seven. Nine minus two equals seven."
Turning to Zhu Jiu, he added, "Big Brother Zhu, Mr. Wang teaches language. Math has never been his strong suit..."
The group couldn't help but chuckle.
Fatty burst out laughing. "Mr. Wang, you're seriously one of a kind. That's some epic specialization!"
The tense atmosphere lightened considerably.
Suddenly, Mr. Wang slapped his forehead, his expression turning serious.
"Damn it—I completely forgot something important!"