Roarrrr!!!
A frenzied, red-furred wolf-like beast lunged at Brandon, drool splattering through the air.
"Tsk, tsk… bad doggy." Brandon chortled as he landed a flaming uppercut, pulverizing the beast's head in a second before continuing his rampage ahead of everyone.
"Honestly, this isn't fair!" Helen lamented with a frown. "The Vice Principal is basically sending us to our deaths."
Baptized in fresh blood that wasn't his own, Jack frowned. "Not if we get stronger beforehand."
Uriel agreed, electric sparks dancing around his figure as he held a struggling mutant by the neck. "If we can at least get our stats to a hundred and arm ourselves with powerful artifacts from loot, I believe we have a chance."
Glancing back at the rest of the group as he crushed the mutant's neck to pulp, he added, "And it's not like we have much of a choice, do we?"
Everyone fell into reluctant silence.
Leaving the school seemed like a bad idea. Even if it wasn't, no one wanted to take chances.
According to the Vice Principal and other adults, a few staff had been sent out the gates previously for scouting…
The result?
They never came back.
Without a choice, they could only grow stronger before reaching the field where the seed was located.
Some even harbored hope that the situation might not be as grim as Seth believed. After all, he was just like them — new to this reality.
Meanwhile, Seth lingered at the rear, lost in thought, ignoring their resentful chatter.
But that didn't mean his guard was down.
His figure swayed left, evading a sharp lunge from a mutant. He pressed forward before the creature could regain momentum.
Crack!
In a flash, the monster's head twisted at an awkward angle. It didn't even screech before it died.
[Congratulations! You have slain a Shackled Mutated Creature!]
[You grow stronger…]
[+8 Strength]
[+5 Intelligence]
A revitalizing chill spread through his muscles, a tingle in his brain as if a dense fog was dissipating.
By this point, over the course of their journey to the field, his stats were already pushing sixty. The feeling of growth wasn't as jarring anymore.
He swiped to the Flash Sale interface…
[No Flash Sale available…]
He sighed in disappointment. He had hoped for something to boost his prowess before the confrontation.
No luck.
He picked up the orbiting loot from his kill.
[Acquired Common-grade gene skill: Hardened Claw.]
[Acquired Elite-grade weapon: Black Steel Long Sword.]
Finally… a weapon, he thought excitedly, summoning it without delay. He equipped the weapon.
So far, his luck hadn't been great. Most drops were common or elite-grade genes and essence crystal shards.
But now, Seth silently observed the cold obsidian steel blade in his grasp.
[Weapon: Black Steel Long Sword]
- Rank: Shackled
- Grade: Elite
- Effects: +10% chance of critical hit
- Skill: Fester
- Details: Once the blade tastes blood, the blood keeps coming.
His gene skill activated, pushing the weapon's effects to their threshold, making them stronger.
The blade hummed in resonance.
He swung in a beautiful arc, the tip ripping through an incoming mutant's abdomen smoothly.
The mutant wailed mournfully, staggering as blood pooled unnaturally beneath its feet.
Seeing the weapon's skill in action, Seth nodded, satisfied. Good. Now I can grind without worries.
This was what he had been waiting for — a good weapon.
He didn't dare use the Grim Emperor's Executioner legendary set. It would drain him dry before the main battle. Summoning even one piece, like the great blade, took a heavy toll on his essence.
His figure rushed forward, finally taking the initiative. He danced through the corrupted-filled path.
Wherever he passed, blood bloomed, followed by death — some fast, some excruciatingly slow.
The obsidian blade glinted in the light, flowing through the wind with ethereal grace.
This fluency in wielding, this deadly efficiency, was Seth's gene skill Weapon Resonance at work.
His innate understanding of all weapons, the ability to resonate and wield them to their fullest potential, was displayed brutally.
Even before the apocalypse, he had been known as the King of Arms.
It made him believe his lineage had influenced him long before the apocalypse began.
[You have killed…]
[You grow stronger…]
[You have killed…]
[You grow stronger…]
System notifications flowed like rain, whispering his victories.
The rest of the group watched his maddened spree as he overtook them, leaving dead corrupted in his wake.
Helen's eyes flashed in surprise. "Was he always this fierce?"
"Hehehe, that's my big bro! So cool! Wait for me!" Brandon laughed loudly, leaping forward, unwilling to be left behind.
Meanwhile, Roderick, who had been smug about Seth's lackluster performance, was suddenly flabbergasted.
His eyes flashed distastefully as he stared at Seth's sword. "The bastard probably got lucky. That weapon must be the cause… it might be Leader-class or higher."
Greed bloomed in his heart. I have to find a chance to get rid of him and take that weapon. Wielding such a high-grade item… he isn't worthy.
He had hated Seth for a long time.
This hatred stemmed from the fact that Seth, the "Extra" of Class A, a failure, sat in Class A… while he was stuck in B.
He knew he was better. His GPA was higher. His performance always dwarfed Seth's.
So why?
Why was Seth graded higher than him?!
He was unconvinced, resentful. Years of pent-up feelings twisted into obsession. He wanted to see Seth fall, no matter the cost.
Fortunately, the apocalypse gave him the tools to make it happen.
He stared at his system screen, focusing on a section.
[Gene Skill: Phantom Stealth (Leader grade)]
He tightened his grip on his short swords, lips stretching in devious glee.
"He won't see it coming."
---
Meanwhile, Seth had just broken out of the school building, his path littered with bleeding bodies of corrupted creatures.
But then—
Clang!
His strike rebounded off the scaled skin of a mutant with venomous green pupils.
Seth's pupils constricted. He moved backward swiftly, using the rebound force to narrowly avoid a deadly strike.
His shirt ripped as the creature's claws missed by inches.
Finally, Seth paid attention to his system screen.
[You have gotten close to the seed…]
[The Corruption Seed feels threatened…]
[Mini Zone Boss encountered!!]
Seth's expression grew grim — not because of his foe, but because of its company.
His eyes scanned them. Each monster prompted a new notification.
[Mini Zone Bos
s encountered!]
[Mini Zone Boss encountered!]
[Mini Zone Boss encountered!]
…
A chill crept down his spine as he stared at the mini-boss horde before him.