Before he could think further, a zombie slammed into his face, blood gushing from his nose and his head ringing. A sharp pain shot through the back of his left hand, and the cleaver he was holding slipped from his grip, clattering to the floor—another zombie had sunk its teeth into his hand.
All of this happened in an instant. Ignoring the pain in his face and hand, Su Li raised his foot and kicked the zombie that had struck him square in the stomach, trying to shove it away. But the moment he lifted his leg, another zombie that had rushed in grabbed hold of it.
Realizing the danger, the zombie clutched his foot and yanked hard.
Su Li lost his balance, toppling backward and crashing onto the floor. He slammed into a sofa nearby with a loud bang.
The sofa rolled away from the impact and hit the wall.
Before Su Li could struggle to his feet, two zombies lunged at him, pinning him down. Their faces were twisted in grotesque expressions—one reached out and clamped its hands around his throat, while the other opened its mouth wide, lunging at his face as if crazed.
A chill ran down Su Li’s spine. He couldn’t breathe, and a wave of reluctance and despair surged through him.
All of this unfolded in the blink of an eye. From the moment he smashed the first zombie’s skull with his hammer to being tackled and pinned by three more, only two or three seconds had passed. As his throat was seized, he suddenly felt a heat on his forehead, and a surge of warmth flowed into his body.
Su Li understood—the first zombie he’d struck with the hammer, a blow that used all his strength and shattered its head, had finally released its spiritual source into his forehead. In an instant, his entire body felt like it was plunged into a furnace, and even the pain of being choked vanished.
A flood of information followed in his mind.
“Spiritual Source: 5/5” “Promotion Successful” “Level 1 Spiritual Source User” “Spiritual Source: 0/10” “Stomach or Lungs—choose one to strengthen.”
This information suddenly appeared in Su Li’s mind. His body burned with heat, and a new, powerful force surged within him. It was immense, and with a sudden effort, he rolled over, throwing off the two zombies pinning him down.
According to the information in his mind, he was now a Level 1 Spiritual Source User. The transformation was drastic—his strength had increased significantly.
Throwing off the two zombies, Su Li scrambled to his feet and let out a roar. He swung the hammer in his right hand, and with a dull thud, it struck another zombie that had just lunged at him.
Though it didn’t hit the zombie’s head, the immense force behind the hammer smashed into its chest, caving it in with a massive hole. Ribs snapped one after another, and the zombie was sent flying backward, blocking another one that was climbing in from the balcony.
Without bothering to pick up the cleaver on the floor, Su Li turned and sprinted toward the bedroom.
Even as a Level 1 Spiritual Source User with greatly enhanced strength and speed, being surrounded by a horde of zombies was still dangerous. He planned to retreat to the bedroom.
In one swift move, he dashed back into the bedroom and slammed the door shut, locking it tightly.
Only a second or two behind him, the zombies surged forward, pounding violently against the door.
Su Li pressed his body against the door, holding it shut as the zombies battered it from outside, while his mind processed the newly acquired information.
What caught his attention most was the line: “Stomach or Lungs—choose one to strengthen.”
Based on the prompt, he could choose to strengthen either his stomach or lungs.
But which one? Stomach governs digestion, lungs govern breathing. Su Li immediately recalled the agony of being choked and unable to breathe earlier. Without hesitation, he chose to strengthen his lungs.
Instantly, new information appeared in his mind.
“Lung Strengthening Initiated” “Skill Acquired: Strong Lungs Type 1”
Soon, Su Li felt a warmth spreading in his chest where his lungs were, accompanied by a strange sensation of them growing stronger. Then, more information flooded his mind, explaining the function of “Strong Lungs Type 1.”
His lung capacity had doubled. With one deep breath, he could hold it for at least three minutes.
The effect was so pronounced that Su Li was both surprised and thrilled. He thought of the city now submerged in water—enhanced lung capacity meant he could hold his breath longer underwater, improving his survival in that environment.
“Good thing I chose to strengthen the lungs. I wonder what I’d get if I chose the stomach—probably just double digestion. With food already scarce, digesting faster would only make me hungrier.”
As Su Li’s mind wandered, the pounding on the door grew louder. The wooden door couldn’t withstand it, cracks beginning to form, and the lock started to warp, about to give way.
He braced himself against the door, calculating carefully. Just as the lock was about to break completely, he suddenly dodged aside.
With a crash, the lock flew off, and the wooden door swung open at an angle. A zombie, unable to stop its momentum, stumbled inside.
Su Li had anticipated this. He sidestepped and swung his hammer down at the back of the zombie’s head.
Now a Level 1 Spiritual Source User, his strength had surged. This blow carried at least four or five hundred pounds of force. The moment the hammer touched the zombie’s skull, its head exploded like a burst watermelon—fragments of bone mixed with brain matter and blood splattering everywhere.
The headless zombie’s body crashed heavily onto the bedroom floor, and a white orb shot toward Su Li’s forehead. A new message appeared in his mind.
“Level 1 Spiritual Source User: Spiritual Source 1/10”
This told Su Li that to advance further from Level 1, he needed ten spiritual sources in total. He still had to kill nine more zombies.
A flicker of excitement stirred within him. What kind of ability would he gain if he broke through again?
After smashing that zombie’s head, Su Li stepped forward and blocked the doorway. Becoming a Level 1 Spiritual Source User wasn’t just about raw strength—it was a comprehensive evolution. His power, speed, reflexes, vision, hearing, and sensory perception had all improved.
The doorway was narrow, preventing all the zombies in the living room from rushing in at once. By holding the door, Su Li avoided being surrounded, now needing to face at most two zombies at a time.