Lu Zhang stepped out of the makeshift command center, the heavy wooden door clicking shut behind him. The morning air was crisp, carrying the faint smell of woodsmoke, tilled dirt, and boiling meat.
Behind him, rapid steps announced Elena's presence. Her blonde hair tied back neatly and her clothes cleaned of the city's grime, she was the picture of elegance.
"Dajian's team is scheduled to return before noon," Elena reported smoothly, walking half a step behind him to maintain a respectful distance. "Arthur's group will take over the eastern patrol after lunch."
Lu Zhang tuned her out, giving a vague nod without breaking his stride.
"Deal with it," he said simply.
"Of course," Elena smiled warmly, bowing her head slightly as she stopped following him, having once again successfully asserted her authority over daily operations.
Lu Zhang walked through the village square, his eyes sweeping over the bustling settlement.
In just a short span of time, the pristine, untouched village had been entirely transformed into a fortified survivor camp. The traditional houses closest to the center had been converted into densely packed shelters, housing multiple people in each of them. Clotheslines strung between wooden posts fluttered with washed garments. The arable land was being carefully managed by the older survivors, who were desperately trying to cultivate the existing crops to supplement their dwindling food supply.
It was a picture of human resilience. A small remainder of mankind amidst the apocalypse.
Yet, as Lu Zhang walked among them, the bustling activity seemed to quiet down in his immediate vicinity.
People stopped their conversations. They lowered their heads respectfully, but their eyes held a deep, instinctual wariness. The civilians instinctively stepped back, clearing a wide path for him, giving him a large amount of space.
A group of able-bodied men and women jogged past him in a tight formation, carrying sharpened iron pipes, crude spears, and scavenged machetes.
[Human Lv 5]
[Human Lv 6]
[Human Lv 5]
Lu Zhang inspected them briefly as they headed toward the armory. This was the backbone of the settlement's newly formed militia.
Under the coordination of the core group, the able-bodied survivors had been organized into dedicated hunting teams. The operations were led primarily by Cai Dajian and Arthur, and occasionally by Su Yao when her overwhelming firepower was required.
Their task was simple and repetitive. They were to clear out the weak, lingering monsters near the outer edges of the scale's influence, harvest basic resources, and rescue any stragglers making their way toward the safe zone.
Right on cue, a commotion near the southern path caught Lu Zhang's attention.
Cai Dajian's hunting team was returning from their morning sweep. They were escorting a group of seven ragged, bloodied survivors they had pulled from the ruined highway.
The newcomers looked like walking corpses. Their clothes were torn to shreds, their faces gaunt from starvation, and their hands clutched broken pieces of wood in a death grip.
As the new survivors crossed into the village and saw the intact houses, the running water, and the complete lack of roaming monsters, the relief was profound.
Two of the men dropped their weapons, falling to their knees as they wept loudly into the dirt. A mother clutched her young child, sobbing uncontrollably as a camp medic rushed over with a canteen of clean water.
Lu Zhang just ignored them after a brief mental acknowledgment of their existence.
He had completely separated himself from the group's operations, combat or otherwise. He no longer hunted alongside Dajian and Su Yao, or concerned himself with the protection of the survivors.
He now exclusively hunted monsters above Level 10.
Lu Zhang turned away from the crowd, leaving the populated center of the village and walking toward the outer limits of the dragon scale's influence.
The defense perimeter came into view. It was built entirely from scavenged scraps. Torn corrugated metal from overturned cars, sharpened wooden stakes, heavy chains, and jagged pieces of iron dragged from the factory had been lashed together to form a crude barricade.
It was not actually meant to stop a determined, high-level horde. It was far too fragile for that. Instead, it served as a physical demarcation of the iridescent scale's invisible aura.
Lu Zhang glanced up at the reinforced rooftops of the nearest structures. Survivors sat there in shifts, armed only with binoculars scavenged from the city, alongside hastily drawn maps. They meticulously noted down the types, numbers, and movement patterns of any monsters appearing daily at the edge of the aura.
It was a tedious, terrifying job, watching the nightmares pace back and forth in the distance, but it provided crucial intelligence for the hunting teams.
The physical patrolling of the perimeter gates was handled by whichever hunting group was currently off active monster-clearing duty.
Today, it was Arthur's squad holding the line.
The gruff former soldier stood near the main scrap-metal gate, a heavy assault rifle slung over his shoulder. He watched Lu Zhang approach, his posture immediately stiffening with respect. The men under his command quickly stepped aside, pulling the heavy, rusted barricade open to clear a path.
"Heading out?" Arthur asked, his voice rough.
"Yeah," Lu Zhang replied coolly.
"We spotted a Level 11 Razorback Wolf prowling near the outer stakes this morning," Arthur warned, pointing toward a dense cluster of ruined suburban homes in the far distance. "It didn't cross the inner line, but it was actively testing the pressure. It looks hungry."
"Noted."
Lu Zhang stepped through the gap in the scrap wall, his boots leaving the soft dirt of the village and crunching against the broken asphalt of the outside world.
"Good hunting," Arthur called out, raising a hand in a brief wave.
Lu Zhang simply raised a hand, waving them off.
He stepped past the inner boundary, and the physical shift was instantaneous. The faint, comforting hum of the dragon scale completely faded from his senses. The air immediately grew heavier, thick with the metallic scent of fresh blood and the distant, echoing roars of the ruined city.
The familiar suppression vanished, replaced by the chaotic hum of the apocalypse.
Lu Zhang closed his eyes, inhaling the scent of the earth. The detachment he had felt while walking through the bustling village melted away entirely. It was replaced by the cold, familiar, and comforting thrill of killing.
He opened his eyes, the azure glow of [Empty Fang] flickering to life at his fingertips, casting a cold light against the ruined road.
'Don't look back.'
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
[Name: Lu Zhang]
[Level: 12]
[Strength: 38]
[Speed: 73]
[Intelligence: 40]
[Endurance: 39]
[Stat Points: 30]
[Mana: 400/400]
[Skills: Inspect lv 7, Empty Fang Lv 8, Sky Walk Lv 2, Mandate Lv 1, Devour Lv 6]
[New Fact discovered!]
[Madness is the only way forward...]