Little Monkey stared at Zhao Yin with undisguised excitement, shamelessly buttering him up. "I knew Master wouldn't let me work for nothing!"

Zhao Yin pulled out the bone-cleaver he'd just stored away, raised it high, and brought it crashing down against a chunk of fallen concrete.

Little Monkey was still puzzling over what his master was doing when-clang!-the already-cracked blade snapped clean off the handle.

Zhao Yin gripped the meter-and-a-half length of threaded steel and tossed it to Little Monkey. "Here. Your new weapon."

Little Monkey hopped up and down in delight. The pig-slaughtering knife Master had rewarded him with earlier had gone dull ages ago, and after that last fight, it was completely useless.

He snatched the steel rod from Zhao Yin's hand and gave it a few experimental swings, his dark eyes brimming with gratitude. "Thank you, Master! You're too good to me!"

Zhao Yin left the monkey to its excitement and retrieved the female zombie's head from where he'd been sitting on it.

The thing still wasn't fully dead. Its teeth kept snapping at empty air with wet, clicking sounds-this close to evolving to F-Rank, and it still clung to some semblance of animation.

Zhao Yin booted the head over to Little Monkey's feet. "Test the power. Smash it."

Little Monkey had been itching to try out his new weapon anyway. He raised the steel rod high and brought it down hard.

Splat!

The female zombie's skull burst like a watermelon, spraying brain matter across the ground.

Zhao Yin stepped forward and fished two crystals out of the mess.

One was slightly larger than a peanut, white as mutton-fat jade-the female zombie's Corpse Crystal. Just a hair's breadth from true F-Rank quality.

The other was, of course, a Star Crystal. Zhao Yin's favorite.

He considered the Corpse Crystal for a moment but didn't absorb it immediately. Instead, his gaze drifted to Little Monkey, who was meticulously wiping brain matter off his new steel rod.

The monkey's movements were almost reverent-treating the weapon with the same tender care Zhao Yin used to lavish on his little girlfriends before the apocalypse.

For Zhao Yin to evolve to E-Rank himself, he still needed close to a hundred F-Rank Corpse Crystals.

But this single crystal, given to Little Monkey, might be enough to push him from unranked straight to F-Rank.

Even without a rank, Little Monkey's physical attributes already matched an F-Rank Evolver. If he actually evolved? He could probably go toe-to-toe with an E-Rank zombie.

Increasing Little Monkey's strength was the same as increasing his own.

"Little Monkey." Zhao Yin's voice cut through the monkey's careful polishing. "I told you-work hard, and I'll reward you well. Here. Take this."

He tossed the Corpse Crystal over.

Little Monkey had watched Zhao Yin absorb these before. He had a vague understanding that they could boost one's power.

And this one came from a zombie on the verge of evolving to F-Rank. He never expected Master to just... give it to him.

First a weapon, now a Corpse Crystal?

Little Monkey's eyes welled with tears. He pressed his palms together and bowed deeply to Zhao Yin.

"Don't absorb it yet. I'll build you a shelter first."

Zhao Yin got to work, using his Spatial Ring to collect chunks of concrete. Within moments, he'd constructed a rough "grave mound" around the spot.

He grabbed Little Monkey by the scruff of the neck, tossed him inside, and sealed the entrance.

This way, even if there was some noise, it wouldn't attract nearby zombies.

With that handled, Zhao Yin turned his attention to the Star Crystal. He gripped it tight and squeezed.

Crack.

The raw strength of an F-Rank Evolver crushed the crystal instantly. A sphere of white light bloomed in his palm.

When the glow faded, a green pill sat in his hand.

[Talent Pill: Rank B. Effect: Amplifies and strengthens one innate talent.]

Zhao Yin's heart lurched. B-Rank?

He'd taken a Talent Pill in his previous life. Without hesitation, he popped it into his mouth. A clean, sweet taste spread across his tongue and slid down his throat.

The next instant, his mind went crystal clear. An indescribable understanding flooded through him.

[Human Male. Ability Awakener. F-Rank Evolver. Evolution Progress: 0.39/100. Strength 15, Agility 17, Stamina 13, Spirit 24. Talent: B-Rank Shooting. Life Countdown: 29,923 days.]

The Talent Pill had amplified his Shooting talent.

Every human was born with various latent talents-some strong, some weak.

Now, Zhao Yin felt it instinctively: whether it was a firearm or a crossbow, he could handle it with expert precision. He could outshoot any professional athlete from before the apocalypse by miles.

The urge to get his hands on a ranged weapon hit him immediately.

Unfortunately, pulling a ranged weapon from a Star Crystal wasn't realistic yet. He'd have to acquire one the old-fashioned way.

Then he remembered something. In his previous life, he'd overheard someone mention a shooting range right here in Guangzhou City. The owner had kept a sniper rifle in his office before he died.

An M82A1. The so-called king of sniper rifles. Effective range of two kilometers. Its rounds could punch through an armored vehicle at a thousand meters, tear straight through reinforced structures.

With his current Shooting talent, Zhao Yin could handle it easily.

BOOM!

The "grave mound" behind him suddenly shuddered. A fist the size of a cooking pot punched through, sending a chunk of concrete flying. Then a massive figure slowly crawled out.

Two meters tall. Covered in golden fur. Muscles coiled like gnarled tree roots. A single arm as thick as Zhao Yin's waist.

Zhao Yin instinctively activated True Sight.

[Adolescent Macaque: F-Rank Mutant Beast. Strength 28, Agility 36, Stamina 24, Spirit 9. Bloodline Talents: Gigantification, Frenzy.]

Just as he'd hoped. Little Monkey had successfully evolved to F-Rank.

Except for Spirit, every single attribute was nearly double Zhao Yin's own.

Even with mental preparation, facing this hulking creature made Zhao Yin's heart skip.

Little Monkey could now fully Gigantify. Even if Zhao Yin used every piece of equipment he owned, he might not be able to take him in a fight.

"Huff! Huff!"

Little Monkey shook himself vigorously, sending dust and grit spraying everywhere-including all over Zhao Yin.

SMAP!

Zhao Yin jumped up and smacked the monkey across the head. "Getting cocky? Just evolved and you already don't respect me?"

The monkey immediately shrank back to his normal size, instinctively covering his head with both hands. His mental voice was pitiful. "Sorry, Master! It's just... it was so dark in there. I... I got scared."

So he'd let himself out.

Zhao Yin crooked a finger. Little Monkey scurried over immediately, pressing his palms together and bowing repeatedly, desperate to make amends.

Zhao Yin studied the monkey's restored form. Compared to before the evolution, he looked noticeably bigger overall.

"Come on. We're going to kill zombies. Time to test your new abilities."

"Master, I'm hungry again." Little Monkey tugged at Zhao Yin's pant leg.

Zhao Yin considered it. The monkey really hadn't eaten much today.

Ideally, Mutant Beasts should eat Mutant Beast meat. But since the apocalypse began, Little Monkey was the only Mutant Beast Zhao Yin had encountered.

Not that it would have mattered. Even if he'd found others, Zhao Yin wouldn't have fed the meat to Little Monkey. He'd just have one more Contract Beast in his collection.

He checked the supplies in his Spatial Ring. Food was running low.

He pulled out the most spoiled bread-six pieces total-and tossed them all to Little Monkey.

Watching the monkey wolf them down, Zhao Yin took out a compressed biscuit for himself and washed it down with mineral water.

Once both man and monkey had eaten their fill, they set off again on the path of slaughter. Destination: the shooting range from Zhao Yin's memories.

In the apocalypse, survival meant endless killing.

Supplies and strength. Always the core.

They traveled in fits and starts, time slipping away unnoticed.

...

"Song Xiaojian! Go lure those zombies away. Once they're gone, your sister and I can get inside safely!"

Outside the half-collapsed shooting range, Wang Quan crouched behind a waist-high slab of concrete, barking orders at the young man beside him.

"Brother Wang, you ate all the food!" Song Xiaodao's voice cracked with desperation. "My brother hasn't eaten in days. He almost died killing that zombie just now. He can't-"

Wang Quan cut her off, his tone ice-cold. "I ate that food because I needed to heal. Besides, I'm the one who gave it to you in the first place. My body still hasn't recovered. If Song Xiaojian won't go, what-you want to do it instead?"

Song Xiaodao opened her mouth to argue, but Song Xiaojian raised a hand to stop her.

He lifted his gaze to meet Wang Quan's eyes. "Brother Wang. You're the one who brought Xiaodao and me into that office. We've always been grateful. You say the food was yours to give-fine, I won't argue. But I really can't run anymore. If I die out here, who's going to do your legwork?"

"All I know," Wang Quan said flatly, "is that if nobody lures those zombies away, all three of us starve to death right here."

His left hand crept toward his back.

"Let's try somewhere else." Song Xiaojian's face was ashen, his lips cracked and bleeding. His voice came out thin and weak. "Please, Brother Wang. I'm begging you."

"Somewhere else?" Wang Quan's laugh was harsh. "There are zombies everywhere! We've been searching for hours. This is the only place that hasn't completely collapsed!"

His hand whipped out from behind his back-a dagger.

In one swift motion, he pressed the blade against Song Xiaodao's throat.

"You don't go? I kill your sister."