When Xia Chu saw Lin Qi's getup, she couldn't help but let out a snort of laughter.
He looked just like a punk on a souped-up scooter.
The electric vehicle wasn't as tall as a motorcycle, so Xia Chu easily settled onto the back seat.
"Hold on tight."
Lin Qi gave the command, and the collection robot moved, placing a large bag of Crimson Crystals on the footboard before climbing up to Xia Chu's waist.
Xia Chu's body stiffened slightly. Just as she was about to ask, the collection robot's spider legs began to merge, clamping onto her waist like a caliper.
It bound Xia Chu and Lin Qi tightly together.
"This vehicle is fast. This is to hold you in place, just think of it as a seatbelt," Lin Qi explained simply.
He had had too little time to modify the electric vehicle. Lin Qi could only guarantee its speed and structural integrity; it hadn't undergone any safety testing at all.
However, as an L-level Researcher, Lin Qi's expert eye told him the modified electric vehicle's handling was acceptable. There shouldn't be too many unexpected problems.
The only risk was the tires.
Lin Qi didn't have any good way to modify the rubber tires in such a short time.
He would just have to be careful while riding and avoid putting too much pressure on them.
Lin Qi's standards weren't high—it only needed to last for ten kilometers, just a few minutes.
Xia Chu's face flushed slightly, her voice faint. "Mm."
Her voice sounded a little strange, but Lin Qi paid it no mind.
He gently twisted the throttle, trying to avoid making the tires spin too fast initially.
But the acceleration was still powerful. This "Electric Vehicle No. 10" was designed with an illegally high speed of over 60 km/h, and its tires had decent grip.
With a WHOOSH, it shot a long way forward.
Xia Chu's eyes went wide, startled for a moment. She then quickly hid her head behind Lin Qi's back to keep the wind from stinging her eyes.
His Exoskeleton didn't have a driving skill chip, but Lin Qi was confident in his ability to ride an electric vehicle. He didn't need the Intelligent Brain's assistance at all.
In what felt like the blink of an eye to Xia Chu, they had already reached the intersection.
Cars were strewn haphazardly across the road, blocking the main thoroughfare completely. The non-motorized vehicle lane, however, still had room to pass.
Inside the cars on the road and along the sides of the street, there were large numbers of Zombies.
'The danger level of the Zombies has increased, but they still don't have M-Class combat power. That giant Zombie must have been an isolated case.'
Under the scope of his Spiritual Vision, Lin Qi assessed the Zombies' strength.
'Thankfully, it's not a widespread phenomenon. Otherwise, even I would be under considerable pressure.'
The electric vehicle didn't make much noise, so it wouldn't attract the attention of Zombies over a wide area.
But the Zombies wandering on the sidewalk would still be drawn to them.
The Zombies seemed to have some obsession with the blood of the living; they would chase madly upon sensing a living creature.
'They've gotten faster, too. Their stamina is average, but their explosive burst of speed completely surpasses that of a normal human. I fear the survival prospects for ordinary survivors are grim.'
'But if they listened to the broadcast's advice and stockpiled a few Crimson Crystal Stones beforehand, absorbing four or five at most, their physical conditioning would be enough for self-preservation.'
Did many people listen to the advice?
Obviously not.
Only a minority would even think to use a radio to get news in the apocalypse.
Otherwise, given the initial ratio of humans to Zombies, the doomsday wouldn't have seemed like such a huge problem.
What truly brought about this crisis for humanity was that crimson moon hanging high in the sky.
"Hold on, it's going to get a bit bumpy up ahead."
Lin Qi gripped the vehicle's handlebar with one hand.
His other hand, however, grasped the Short-Handled Tang Blade.
They were already very close to Modu University, and the Zombies on the street were becoming denser.
Given the population of Modu University, the Zombies would only be more numerous and densely packed once they entered the campus.
Considering the population size...
...it was possible that something similar to that giant Zombie had also emerged there.
As he pondered, the Advanced Swordsmanship chip activated.
The Short-Handled Tang Blade became a deadly flourish in Lin Qi's hands.
'As a Wizard, my main method of attack is close-quarters combat. That seems perfectly reasonable,' Lin Qi thought to himself.
On the Extraordinary Side, Lin Qi hadn't mastered many long-range attack methods.
He had only just grasped the second Ability of a Tier One Wizard, and it had yet to become an effective combat tool.
'This is a good chance for some live practice, a perfect opportunity to familiarize myself with the Ability.'
Within the range of his Spiritual Vision, the blood from the Zombies Lin Qi had sliced open began to quietly coalesce.
His Blood Manipulation Ability activated, its control range almost identical to that of his Spiritual Vision.
The blood quietly condensed into the shape of blades, harvesting Zombies like flying knives in concert with his Short-Handled Tang Blade.
He cut a path for several hundred meters.
Lin Qi realized something was wrong.
'I'm a Wizard, so why is my head filled with the combat tactics of a Prosthetic Implanter?'
'Why does Blood Manipulation have to be condensed into blades?'
His thinking shifted.
While he continued to slash at Zombies with his Short-Handled Tang Blade, farther down the road, Zombies' heads suddenly began to explode for no apparent reason.
A head, naturally, contains blood.
'While Spiritual Vision is active, I can control all the blood within its range, even the blood inside the Zombies.'
'But if I turn off Spiritual Vision, I can only control blood on a body's surface. In other words, there can't be any obstruction between the blood and me.'
A sudden realization dawned on him.
There was a synergy between "Spiritual Vision" and "Blood Manipulation."
'My combat power... seems a little off, doesn't it?'
'It's one thing in this Doomsday World, but if I were in the Cyber World and controlled the blood inside someone's body... not even an A-Class Implanter, or even an S-Class Implanter, could withstand that, right?'
'No, that's not right. People with over 95% prosthetic conversion don't have blood in their bodies. I'm not invincible yet.'
The Cyber World was full of madmen, after all. There were people whose total remaining organic tissue wouldn't be enough to fill a single dumpling.
But now wasn't the time to be thinking about the Cyber World. The number of Zombies ahead was surging.
Lin Qi was splattered with filth, and even Xia Chu, hiding behind him, couldn't avoid ending up in a sorry state.
Fortunately, "Electric Vehicle No. 10" was fast enough. With Lin Qi in his "one-man mounted army" mode, the Club Activity Building was just ahead!
Lin Qi had carved a bloody path, but hundreds of Zombies were still chasing madly behind the electric vehicle.
They were about to reach the Club Activity Building.
The collection robot's spider legs suddenly loosened. Lin Qi turned his body slightly, wrapping one arm around Xia Chu.
Immediately after, the electric vehicle slid sideways as Lin Qi, holding Xia Chu, leaped off and broke into a high-speed run, powered by his L-Class Exoskeleton.
They were still more than ten meters from the Club Activity Building.
The leg Exoskeleton began to charge up.
It relied not just on mechanical strength, but also on high-energy pulses.
Lin Qi's expression was calm, but Xia Chu, in his arms, felt a powerful G-force.
"So high..."
Xia Chu murmured subconsciously.
The next second, Lin Qi landed steadily, having jumped all the way to the fourth floor of the Club Activity Building.
Down below, the mindless Zombies didn't rush into the building. Instead, having lost their target, they were left in a state of aimless confusion.
Looking back down, next to "Electric Vehicle No. 10," the collection robot—which had been released beforehand—was cleaning up the mess.
The Crimson Crystal Stones that had been wrapped in a bedsheet were scattered all over the ground, and the sheet itself was torn to shreds.
The collection robot immediately went over to the bedsheet.
Its camera swiveled left and right, as if it were confused.
Then, it raised a spider leg, from which a long needle emerged. A thin thread, condensed from liquid spider silk, was attached to the end of the needle.