"Argh! It hurts! It hurts so much!" In that moment, Jiang Yi felt as if he could see the inside of his body, the meridians linking all his organs being torn apart and then violently reassembled by an overwhelming force!
Jiang Yi didn't want to die. But there was truly no other choice. Over the past week, every person who had been wounded by a zombie attack had met the same fate—death and transformation into a zombie. If Jiang Yi didn't do something, the same fate awaited him.
What he recalled, however, was a theory proposed by a biology professor: the reason ordinary people couldn't consume a corpse core was that they hadn't been drenched in the acidic rain like ability users had.
The professor also pointed out that both ability users and zombies shared the commonality of that rain. Perhaps that was why their genes were so similar, even identical.
So, Jiang Yi wondered, could it be that if an ordinary person first allowed the zombie virus to enter their body and then consumed a corpse core, they might not only rid themselves of the virus but possibly gain abilities as well?
It was just a theory—a theory that he could never test, as corpse cores were far too rare to conduct experiments.
This professor's unconventional theory had sparked quite a stir in the scientific community. However, just yesterday, while scavenging for supplies, the professor had tragically perished, never to return to the cafeteria.
It was precisely because of this that Jiang Yi, in his moment of desperation, swallowed the hidden corpse core without much thought about the consequences.
Even though he braced himself for the inevitable transformation into a zombie, he had not expected the process to be this painful! His agonized screams only seemed to drive the zombies outside into an even greater frenzy, the already shaky dorm door creaking with each violent thud.
Jiang Yi didn't care whether the zombies would break through the wooden door. His consciousness was flickering between wakefulness and delirium. His left arm, especially, felt as if the two open wounds had been branded with scorching hot iron. The pain was so intense he almost wanted to tear his arm off!
"Ahhh!" When the pain reached its peak, Jiang Yi's veins bulged, and he could even clearly see the blood rushing through his veins. With a final, desperate scream, his body finally gave in, but in the next moment, he laughed—a wild, unsettling laugh as his body was drenched in sweat.
However, despite feeling like he was on the edge of death and rebirth, Jiang Yi collapsed onto the floor, unable to stop himself from laughing, "Haha, I did it! I didn't die! I didn't become a zombie!"
At that moment, Jiang Yi felt a strange energy flowing through his newly reborn body, and the drained strength was gradually replenishing his weakened form.
With the zombies outside continuing their relentless pounding, Jiang Yi struggled to rise. Now wasn't the time to celebrate. If he couldn't deal with the external threat, even if he had truly succeeded in becoming an ability user, he'd still end up torn apart by the zombies.
But Jiang Yi didn't worry too much. After enduring the extreme pain of evolution, his mind was clear, and he now knew exactly how to use his new abilities.
"So, this is what it means to be an ability user? This is incredible!" Jiang Yi clenched his fist, feeling stronger than ever. Though still a bit fatigued, it felt as though he had returned to his healthiest state.
Yet, Jiang Yi knew this was just an illusion. His body hadn't truly strengthened. In fact, he felt quite different from the ability users he had seen in the cafeteria.
Frowning in confusion, Jiang Yi wondered, "Are they all hiding their abilities?"
Shaking his head, he didn't quite believe it. If others chose not to share the truth, then why had his girlfriend kept it from him? Was his ability just that different?
With that thought, Jiang Yi hesitated and pressed his left hand against the white wall in front of him. As he focused, a ten-inch light screen suddenly appeared on the wall, clear and sharp.
"Did it really appear?" Even though his mind was already familiar with the method of using his ability, Jiang Yi couldn't help but feel stunned by the sci-fi-like scene before him.
On the screen, clearly displayed, were the following stats: "Physique: 5, Spirit: 8, Strength: 4, Speed: 5, Defense: 3… Note: Highest survivor standard is 10."
Jiang Yi swallowed nervously. It was clear those five numbers represented his own stats.
Except for the slightly higher spirit, the other stats were somewhat embarrassing. Despite his handsome appearance, standing at a solid 180 cm, Jiang Yi had always been known for his slim and weak build. Since childhood, people had envied him for eating endlessly without gaining weight.
Who would have thought that the handsome Jiang Yi, from elementary school to university, had never passed a single sports test? Every year, the sports day had nothing to do with him. He couldn't even win once when arm wrestling with kids five or six years younger than him!
The only thing worth mentioning was his intelligence. Since childhood, he was the "other people's child" in the eyes of his neighbors. His gaokao (college entrance exam) results were extraordinary, and he earned the title of the city's top scorer. He was accepted into Long Province University of Engineering, with full tuition waived...
So, Jiang Yi had no reason to doubt the accuracy of the data in front of him. Left hand pressed against the wall, right hand tapping the screen, and the text on the screen shifted and changed: "Would you like to consume your own attributes to materialize a soul weapon? Note: This choice is unique and cannot be changed!"
Jiang Yi paused for a moment but didn't hesitate too much before selecting "Yes." Although he didn't fully understand the meaning of the words, he was in an ordinary girl's dormitory, defenseless. He had no other choice.
As soon as he confirmed his choice, he felt a sharp pain in his temple. Before his eyes, a black light suddenly appeared! The sensation of pain inside his body intensified, and the light in front of him gradually turned from an illusion to something real...
"Ah! It hurts!" The pain was different from before. It felt like peeling layers of skin. It wasn't unbearable, but it carried an undeniable sense of helplessness.
This feeling spread rapidly throughout his body. What terrified Jiang Yi even more was that as the black light in front of him grew more solid, the strength and spirit he had just regained were quickly retreating. Even his already nearsighted vision blurred even more!
Enduring the headache, Jiang Yi looked at the light screen on the wall and was horrified to see his physical attributes, spirit, and strength rapidly declining by the second!
With an overwhelming sense of weakness, he found himself unable to even sit up, leaning against the wall as the object in front of him, now fully materialized, fell onto his body...
A bitter smile spread across Jiang Yi's face. He truly regretted his hasty decision. Had he known it would be like this, he definitely wouldn't have chosen "Yes"! He didn't expect that the materialization would consume his own attributes!
At this moment, Jiang Yi felt like he was being pressed down by an invisible force, trying to get up but unable to control his body... Leaning against the wall, gritting his teeth, he reached for the weapon that nearly killed him!
It turned out that the weapon materialized from his attributes was a sword—a pitch-black Tang knife! The scabbard was made of black wood, the guard dark silver, and the hilt was intricately wrapped in an unknown leather, beautifully woven around the entire handle!
What truly confused Jiang Yi was that the leather around the hilt didn't end there; instead, it continued to wind into a cord more than a meter long, hanging down beneath the handle. At the very end of the cord dangled a metal skull the size of an infant's palm...
"Crash!" Before Jiang Yi could examine this strange knife, the wooden door next to him suddenly exploded. The thin wood panel on the door couldn't withstand the zombie's blows, and a hole was smashed in the middle. A decayed arm stretched through, scratching frantically in the air!
Jiang Yi was shocked, and almost instinctively, he exerted all his strength to draw the black knife...
Since he had originally held the scabbard with his right hand, when he gripped the hilt with his left, an unprecedented feeling of fit surged into his body. As the black knife came out of the scabbard, Jiang Yi swung it with all his might toward the arm!
The extreme loss of strength forced him to fight desperately, but as soon as he drew the knife, Jiang Yi's heart sank. He clearly felt that, despite using all his strength, this strike didn't carry much power!
"Plop!" The black, foul-smelling blood splattered onto the ground, and the gleaming black knife lodged into the arm. Even though the black blade was extremely sharp, without sufficient power, Jiang Yi couldn't cut through the bone and the knife got stuck in it!
The owner of the arm, now under attack, tried to retract it, but the black knife was wedged into the door, preventing the arm from withdrawing. In a frenzy, it struggled several times, and to Jiang Yi's horror, the arm was forcibly snapped off, tearing from the body, leaving the black knife still lodged in it. The knife fell to the floor, but Jiang Yi, too weak to move properly, grabbed it and scrambled backward, sliding a short distance...
"Roar!" As he backed away from the hole, a grotesque, decayed head forcefully pushed through the widening gap. The once long black hair was now a mess, with a layer of scalp scraped off by the hole! Its pale eyes were filled with dark blood veins.
The zombie's head, clearly seeing Jiang Yi, opened its sharp, black teeth, snapping them together with force. The scene was horrifying! But Jiang Yi wasn't a rookie at facing zombies. Although alarmed, he wasn't afraid! To him, a zombie stuck in the door was no different from a piece of meat on a platter.
Exerting all his strength, he lifted the black knife, pressing the handle with his body, and lunged forward, plunging the sharp blade directly into the zombie's eye! The sudden weakness almost made him collide with the rotting female zombie...
As he was about to crash into it, a surge of power flowed through his body, and his blurry vision cleared slightly. Without time to think, using this sudden burst of strength, he rolled to the side, finally managing to keep his "purity" intact!