Chapter 5:The Licker

A deafening crash resonated through the air.

Lin Yi leaped from the top of the high-rise building, landing heavily on the ground. His face was grave, his eyes betraying urgency and concern. The aftermath of the mental storm still echoed in his mind, but aside from a slight dizziness, he was largely unaffected.

The apocalyptic game had officially begun, which meant the countdown on An Jingtian's life had started. Lin Yi took a deep breath, trying to calm his racing heart. Time hung over him like a sword, and he had to leave the main city area quickly and find transportation. On foot alone, he would never make it to his destination in time.

By now, the entire city had become a playground for the undead. Conservative estimates put the number of zombies roaming the streets at several million. Even though Lin Yi had awakened to extraordinary abilities, facing such a massive horde of zombies would only lead to certain death. He clenched his fists tightly, his nails digging into his palms. The pain kept him focused.

. . . . .

In the suburbs of Linjiang, the eerie silence was suddenly shattered by the thunderous roar of an engine.

A blood-red Dongfeng heavy truck charged through the waves of zombies like a raging beast. Its wheels mercilessly crushed the rotting bodies, leaving behind a trail of mangled flesh. In the driver's cabin, Lin Yi gripped the steering wheel tightly, his eyes as hard as steel.

"Bang!"

Lin Yi kicked the door open forcefully, not hesitating to jump out despite the truck still moving at high speed. He rotated several times in the air, using the momentum to cushion his landing, and finally stood firmly on the ground. His extraordinary physique of 12 points easily absorbed this level of impact, as if he had merely jumped off a bed.

The out-of-control truck crashed directly into the residential compound wall, producing an earth-shattering boom. Thick smoke billowed from the deformed front of the vehicle, its black tire tracks intertwined with blood, painting an apocalyptic scene. The body of the truck was covered in gore and bits of flesh, with a zombie torso still mindlessly gnawing at the cold metal of the front bumper.

Lin Yi surveyed his surroundings; the sky had already darkened. After fighting his way out from the city center, he had driven at breakneck speed, finally reaching the area where An Jingtian was located. What should have been a three-hour drive had been forcibly shortened by more than half.

Without pausing to catch his breath, Lin Yi hurriedly pulled out his phone, staring at the dimly lit screen. Twenty-three minutes left... His tense heart relaxed slightly, but he knew the situation was still dire. The residential compound where An Jingtian was located was in the deepest part of this area. The roads were a complex maze, forcing him to proceed on foot.

Lin Yi made a quick mental calculation: with his enhanced physical abilities, running at full speed, he could reach his destination in fifteen minutes at most. "Hang in there, brother!" he silently urged, his eyes reflecting unwavering determination.

Smashing through an oncoming zombie with a single punch, Lin Yi began sprinting along the inner wall of the compound. The once peaceful and warm residential buildings had now become slaughterhouses. Agonizing screams occasionally echoed from within the buildings, the sealed security windows now the greatest obstacle to escape. Grotesque silhouettes of zombies flashed past half-open windows.

Fortunately, when the apocalypse broke out, most of the residents in the compound had not yet returned home. Otherwise, given the population density of this old urban area, Lin Yi would have found it impossible to move.

His movements were as agile as the wind, easily avoiding small groups of zombies. At full speed, he was like lightning, quickly approaching the entrance of the compound.

. . . . .

At the entrance of the compound, a heart-stopping scene was unfolding.

Beneath the security window of a fancy apartment on the sixth floor, a man dressed like a wealthy businessman hung precariously from the railing, his upper body bare. His obese figure swayed dangerously in the air, and it was a mystery how he had managed to climb onto the outer wall.

"Save me! Please!" The short, fat man shouted as soon as he saw Lin Yi appear like a savior. He forced an ugly smile, large beads of sweat dripping from the tip of his nose. He had been hanging from the window for a long time and was nearly exhausted.

Lin Yi ignored him, kicking aside a zombie in his path without even looking back.

"I have money! A hundred thousand! Save me!" The businessman grew desperate as he watched Lin Yi about to leave. Meanwhile, the security window in front of him was gradually deforming, a once-beautiful woman turned zombie frantically biting at the steel bars.

"A million! I'll give you a million!" The businessman's face was contorted with terror. Waves of putrid stench wafted from the woman's mouth, making him dizzy. Those cherry-like lips he once adored had now become the source of death.

"Five million! I'm the owner of Linjiang Construction Group! If you save me, I'll make you the general manager!" Seeing Lin Yi getting further away, the businessman no longer cared about his wealth and screamed at the top of his lungs.

The Construction Group was renowned in Linjiang city, and he firmly believed no one could resist such temptation. However, Lin Yi didn't even bat an eye. In the apocalypse, banknotes were only fit for wiping one's behind.

As Lin Yi's figure was about to disappear, the businessman was thunderstruck, unable to believe what was happening. Five million plus a general manager position! How could anyone not be moved?

Anger, despair, and fear surged within the businessman's heart. He began to curse Lin Yi frantically, venting the terror in his heart. Little did he know, these curses would soon attract more unwelcome visitors...

. . . . .

As he passed through a section of road surprisingly free of zombies, Lin Yi suddenly halted, his expression grave.

In the distance, a massive creature, three meters tall and blood-red like a skinned frog, blocked the road. It was... a Licker!

Lin Yi drew a sharp breath. As a top predator among mutated zombies, Lickers possessed terrifying combat abilities. In his previous life, just one could easily destroy a small safe zone. They had no armor protection, but their constantly regenerating muscle tissue could withstand damage from most small-caliber firearms.

With incredible speed, immense strength, and astonishing flesh regeneration abilities, they could mold hard steel like putty. These monsters were truly the nightmare of all survivors.

Lin Yi carefully concealed himself, hiding behind a truck. Even though he had awakened, he was still only at level 0. Although his strength far exceeded human limits, there was still a considerable gap between him and this monster. Worse still, he was unarmed at the moment. If discovered, fighting empty-handed would put him at a severe disadvantage.

Should he take a detour? Lin Yi hesitated. He carefully held his breath, using a broken rearview mirror to observe the situation in the distance.

Each movement of the Licker straddling the road was like an earthquake. Its sharp claws, over two meters long, could easily pierce through sheet metal. Its double claws moved like afterimages, constantly pulling out humans hiding in vehicles. It seemed to be savoring them like delicious desserts, even devouring other zombies indiscriminately.

Lin Yi remained silent. No wonder there were no zombies on this road; they had all become food for this monster.

After several seconds, the Licker chewed on a pair of severed legs, its blood-red eyes greedily scanning the surroundings. It had cleared the entire road and was now looking for its next prey.

Just then, a faint "buzz" from a phone vibration broke the silence.

It was a voice message from An Jingtian.

Lin Yi's eyes sharpened instantly, and he carefully turned the volume to its lowest setting. With trembling fingers, he slid across the screen to play the message:

"Bzz... Brother Lin, this is An Xia, Jingtian's sister. My brother seems to be... dying...!"

"He's vomiting... bzz... so much blood."

"I don't know why... the way my brother looks at me..."

"It's like..."

"Bzz..."

"He wants to eat me."

The message, distorted by static, was somewhat unclear. It had been sent five minutes ago. Global communications had been severely disrupted after the apocalypse began and were expected to completely break down within three hours.

Lin Yi gripped his phone tightly, his knuckles turning white. His hands, which had remained steady even while fighting through mountains of corpses and seas of blood, now trembled slightly.

The deterioration of Jingtian's condition was far faster than expected. Perhaps in the next second, he would completely turn into a bloodthirsty monster.

There was no time to lose!

Lin Yi, who had originally planned to take a detour, suddenly straightened his body. No longer caring about the risk of exposing himself to the Licker's vision, he began to sprint!

"Now, I need a weapon!" Lin Yi roared internally, "Back to the security booth! There's a fire axe there!"

"Thud!"

"Thud!"

The ground trembled as the distant Licker seemed to sense something. On its grotesque face, two hole-like nostrils carefully sniffed the air.

Suddenly, the Licker's enormous body began to charge frantically. "Thud! Thud! Thud! Thud!" Cars along its path were overturned as if hit by a train. Its speed was terrifyingly fast; it had clearly locked onto the scent of its prey!

The distance between them rapidly decreased.

Lin Yi could feel the blood-tinged wind at his back, but he had no time to worry about it. At this moment, only one thought occupied his mind: a weapon! He must get a weapon as quickly as possible!

"Boom!"

Lin Yi reached the booth entrance in one stride, kicking open the locked iron door with brute force.

At that moment, the Licker's menacing figure was already frighteningly close...

The iron door fell with a thunderous crash. Lin Yi rushed into the security booth like a whirlwind, his eyes quickly scanning the surroundings. In the corner, he finally saw the fire axe, its red head gleaming faintly in the darkness, as if calling out to him.

Just as Lin Yi reached for the axe, the entire security booth shook violently, as if hit by an earthquake. The Licker's massive body had collided with the outer wall of the booth, the sound of metal deforming unbearably shrill.

"Damn it!" Lin Yi cursed under his breath, grabbing the fire axe. He knew that this flimsy security booth couldn't withstand the Licker's attack.

Sure enough, in the next second, the entire roof of the booth was torn off. The Licker's grotesque face appeared overhead, foul-smelling saliva dripping from between its fangs.

Lin Yi didn't dare hesitate for a moment. He gripped the fire axe tightly, every muscle in his body tensed, ready for a life-or-death battle.

"Come on, monster!" he growled, his eyes flashing with determination.

The Licker roared and extended its claws, aiming straight for Lin Yi's throat. Its speed was astonishing; an ordinary person would have no chance of dodging. But Lin Yi was no ordinary person; his reaction speed far exceeded human limits.

Leaning back slightly, Lin Yi barely avoided this lethal strike. He could feel the cold touch of the claws brushing past his cheek, missing by mere millimeters.

Seizing this fleeting opportunity, Lin Yi swung the fire axe, aiming for the Licker's arm.

"Swish!"

The sound of the axe blade cutting into flesh was chilling. Blood splattered as the Licker let out a piercing howl. Its tough muscle tissue seemed as fragile as tofu under the sharp axe blade.

But Lin Yi knew this was far from enough. The Licker's powerful regenerative abilities meant that ordinary damage was not fatal. He had to find its weak point and deliver a killing blow!

The Licker was enraged, its attacks becoming even more ferocious. Its claws came like a storm, forcing Lin Yi to focus all his attention on dodging. Each swing of the axe had to be precise; a single mistake could mean instant death.

In the heat of battle, Lin Yi's clothes were soon soaked in blood - both the Licker's and his own. Even with his extraordinary physique of 12 points, he couldn't completely avoid the Licker's attacks. He had sustained multiple injuries, but he gritted his teeth and continued fighting through the pain.

As time ticked by, Lin Yi felt his strength rapidly depleting. He knew he couldn't go on like this. He had to end this quickly!

At that moment, the Licker launched another fierce attack. Its enormous body leaped into the air, descending upon Lin Yi like a mountain of flesh and blood.

In this critical moment, a glint flashed in Lin Yi's eyes. He noticed the nose-like organ on top of the Licker's head, where the muscle tissue appeared significantly softer than other parts.

"Now!"

Lin Yi shouted, gripping the fire axe with both hands, concentrating all his strength into a single point. Instead of retreating, he charged towards the Licker.

In a split second, the axe blade precisely pierced the Licker's "nose".

"Squelch!"

Blood gushed out like a fountain, and the Licker let out an ear-splitting scream. Its massive body convulsed violently, as if experiencing unimaginable pain.

Lin Yi clenched his jaw, his hands tightly gripping the axe handle, putting his entire body weight behind it. The blade sank deeper and deeper, until it was buried in the Licker's skull.

Finally, the Licker's struggles gradually weakened, and it crashed to the ground, moving no more.

Lin Yi panted heavily, his entire body trembling. He struggled to pull the fire axe from the Licker's corpse, blood flowing down the blade.

"Huff... huff..." Lin Yi leaned against the wall, trying to calm his rapid breathing. He knew he had just survived a life-and-death battle. If not for that moment of inspiration, it might have been him lying on the ground.

But now was not the time to relax. Lin Yi forced himself to stand straight, his gaze fixed determinedly in the direction where An Jingtian was located.

"Hang in there, brother. I'm coming."