Under the dim light of the sky, various abandoned cars littered a street in the outskirts of the city.
A dozen or so zombies, dressed in tattered clothes, aimlessly wandered around the street. Their black and rotting flesh dripped with pale green saliva from their mouths, and their eyes, which were slightly protruding and emitting a faint red glow, looked particularly creepy.
On the sloping hillside on the left side of the street, Thorne tried to curl his tall body into a ball among a cluster of weeds, using his left hand to lean against the ground and holding a spring steel knife that was nearly fifty centimeters long in his right hand.
His eyes quietly gazed down at the street below, and a look of anxiety gradually appeared on his face. Since morning, Thorne had been hiding on this slope for almost three hours, but he still hadn't seen any lone zombies.
"Hasn't even one zombie strayed alone in half a day? Will I have to go hungry tonight?"
Glancing down at his empty pockets, Thorne felt frustrated: it had been nearly a year since the end of the world, and most healthy survivors had evolved into stronger beings, capable of fighting against zombies and beasts. Why couldn't he evolve, despite being tall at 1.8 meters and physically strong?
Now, going out to hunt and find survival materials, no one wanted to associate with him, fearing that he would drag down the team.
In the new world after the end of the world, even a common zombie could be difficult to handle if it wasn't an evolved being. Zombies didn't know fear or fatigue, and they were naturally vicious and incredibly strong.
Evolved beings, on the other hand, were different. A first-level evolved being could exert a force equivalent to a thousand catties, and their reaction speed was higher than that of ordinary people. They could easily handle five or fewer common zombies without any problem.
In a situation where most survivors had evolved, Thorne, who could only barely handle a single common zombie, became a burden, and no one was willing to take him along on "monster hunting."
In the new world, with the collapse of order, to survive better, there was no second path to follow except for strength. And strength included both personal strength and the backing of a powerful force.
Unfortunately, Thorne lacked both. As a newcomer to the small city of Weiyang before the end of the world, he had no connections here. His two closest colleagues from work had already perished at the beginning of the end of the world.
If it weren't for his naturally strong physique, occasionally allowing him to hunt down stray zombies and beasts (all mutated creatures except zombies were called beasts by survivors), Thorne wouldn't have survived for nearly a year in the new world.
Due to his superior physical condition compared to most people, he fell behind the crowd, unable to advance to at least a first-level evolved being within a year. In the settlement of survivors, Thorne was regarded as a "useless man."
At this moment, Thorne's pockets were empty. If he couldn't hunt down a zombie or find some survival materials, he would have to go hungry tonight. Without food to fill his empty stomach, his combat effectiveness would surely decrease, and weakened combat effectiveness would make it harder to obtain survival materials. It was a vicious cycle that could endanger his life if not resolved.
Another half hour passed slowly, and Thorne's legs, which had been curled up, began to feel numb, and his expression grew more anxious.
Just then, among the dozen or so zombies on the street, seven or eight separated from the group and slowly drifted deeper into the street, leaving only three zombies circling around several abandoned cars.
"An opportunity!" A hint of excitement flashed across Thorne's clear features as he tightly gripped the spring steel knife in his hand, his eyes fixed on the street below, ready to leap down the slope and harvest these stray zombies.
However, the timing wasn't perfect. The distance between the three zombies was still too close, and if he jumped down recklessly, he might be surrounded by the three zombies, leading to his death. He couldn't afford to be careless.
After patiently waiting for another ten minutes, finally, one zombie separated from the other two by twenty to thirty meters and approached Thorne's hiding spot on the slope. At such close range, Thorne could clearly see the exposed skin of the zombie, with its dark red veins and two sharp canine teeth protruding from its mouth.
With a deep breath, Thorne suddenly leaped up, his powerful legs propelling him forward, and his steel knife raised high. With a gust of wind, he charged towards the approaching zombie.
As soon as Thorne leapt up, the zombie sensed the movement and stopped moving, raising its head to stare at Thorne, whose blood-red eyes glared with ferocity and hunger.
"Puff," a dull sound echoed as the zombie, caught off guard, was struck by Thorne's knife on its right shoulder. Black-red viscous blood flowed from the wound, and the entire right arm was severed, losing half of its combat effectiveness instantly.
The zombie roared in anger, its left arm lashing out like lightning, five sharp claws streaking through the air with incredible speed.
Taking advantage of the impact of his jump and slash, Thorne rolled to the ground, dodging the zombie's counterattack. With a swift motion, he slashed the zombie's right leg, severing the tendons and rendering it immobile.
"Bang," the zombie, struggling to regain balance, fell to the ground. Its left claw scratched the cement floor, the sound of scraping making Thorne's teeth clench.
Taking advantage of the zombie's distraction, Thorne quickly struck again, severing the zombie's left shoulder and decapitating it.
From the moment Thorne leaped down to the end of the battle, it took only five to six seconds, though brief, it was incredibly thrilling. If Thorne hadn't had extensive combat experience, it would have been impossible to kill the zombie so decisively.
Climbing back up, Thorne leaned against a discarded Nissan SUV, tightly gripping his knife, and glanced at the other end of the street. Sure enough, the commotion had alerted the other two zombies.
Upon discovering Thorne, the two zombies immediately changed their sluggish movements, taking large strides and swinging their black arms, charging towards Thorne at a speed comparable to that of normal humans.
In the new world after the end of the world, these zombies were not like those portrayed in movies. Although they moved slowly and stiffly when wandering around, once they spotted prey, they moved with the agility of normal humans, and their strength far exceeded that of ordinary people. Moreover, zombies lacked pain sensation, were fearless, and possessed immense strength, making them difficult for non-evolved beings to handle.
Thorne's heart tightened, realizing that he had been careless. Facing a fight against two zombies, although victory was possible, he couldn't afford any injuries. Once injured, he would be infected with zombie virus and turn into a new zombie!
But what choice did Thorne have under the current circumstances? There was no way to escape; he had to fight!