Ascending to the Peak of Human Physique

Not long after, Lupo returned.

Clamped in his jaws was the limp body of a woman. No, not just a corpse—her eyes were pale, her limbs flailing. She had already turned into one of them, a zombie, snapping wildly as she struggled to bite him.

But Lupo had her by the neck, holding her just out of reach of everything. She couldn't even scratch him.

Lucas gave the wolf a nod. "Finish it."

CRACK.

A sickening crunch echoed as Lupo crushed the infected's skull with a single flex of his jaw. The twitching stopped.

The moment the kill was complete, Lupo shrank back into his cub form—fluffy, white, and no taller than a small cat. Tail wagging proudly, he trotted over to Lucas for praise.

"You little showoff," Lucas chuckled, pulling a lump of Mutated Fertilizer from his storage ring and tossing it to Lupo.

The wolf cub chomped it down happily. He had just eaten this morning, but his appetite was insatiable. The little guy truly was growing fast.

Then Lucas paused. "Huh? Where'd the woman go?"

He looked around—the woman in the low-cut top who'd been watching everything had vanished.

Smart girl. She'd run while she had the chance. At least she didn't stand around waiting for help like so many others did. Maybe the apocalypse had taught her something.

Lucas didn't bother chasing her. Instead, he turned to the fallen bodies.

Time to collect my winnings.

He went from corpse to corpse, activating his collection interface.

Ding! Congratulations, you have acquired:

Energy Crystals ×83

Purified Water ×23

Canned Luncheon Meat ×7

Storage Ring Shards ×97

Medical Supplies ×55

Strange-Looking Key ×1

Precision Longbow ×1

Arrows ×283

Mutated Fertilizer ×374

Clean Fabric ×152

Blueprint: Arrows ×1

Blueprint: Precision Longbow ×1

Blueprint: Basic Perimeter Wall ×1

Skill Book: Timber Harvesting ×1

Skill Book: Expert Climbing ×1

Skill Book: Master Tailoring ×1

Lucas's jaw dropped.

This was a jackpot.

"So many Energy Crystals... so many ring shards... and these blueprints?!"

They weren't just killers—they'd looted plenty of survivors before. That would explain the volume of ring fragments. Most zombies didn't carry those; only infected survivors did.

Ding! Storage Ring upgrade available. Proceed with upgrade?

"Upgrade. Now."

Lost: Storage Ring Shards ×100, Energy Crystals ×50

Your Storage Ring has upgraded to Level 3!

Capacity increased from 24 slots to 48 slots

Vehicle Compartment Unlocked (1 Slot): Allows storage of any vehicle, regardless of size

Next upgrade (Level 4) requires: Storage Ring Shards ×200, Energy Crystals ×100

Reminder: At Level 5, you will unlock Building Storage, allowing full building transport.

Lucas let out a sharp inhale.

"This thing is... a divine artifact."

Every upgrade doubled its storage capacity. Level 3 already had 48 slots—enough to stash nearly every survival necessity he could think of. And now he could carry a vehicle.

A car. A motorcycle. Even a small ATV.

The implications were huge. With a vehicle stored inside his ring, his escape options skyrocketed. Zombies might be fast, but they weren't outrunning a car.

And Level 5?

Store an entire base? A mobile stronghold?

Lucas could barely contain his excitement.

He immediately absorbed the three skill books:

Master Tailoring: Unlocks the ability to craft and refine clothes, shoes, and armor. As proficiency increases, crafted gear may gain rare traits and bonuses.

Expert Climbing: Grants advanced climbing ability. You can now scale buildings and cliffs that would be otherwise impossible.

Timber Harvesting: Allows efficient extraction of wood from trees and wooden objects.

Lucas then glanced at his current EXP progress.

Upgrade Progress: 87 / 100

He looked out toward the front gates of the residential block.

A dark tide of zombies pressed against the fence.

"Plenty of prey left to hunt."

He got to work.

For the next thirty minutes, he stayed near the outer wall. The zombies couldn't reach over, but their heads stuck just high enough to be visible.

Sitting ducks.

Lucas cut them down one by one, safely from behind the fence.

When he was done, the ground outside was littered with corpses.

Resources collected:

Energy Crystals ×28

Mutated Fertilizer ×230

Clean Fabric ×120

Bloodstained Keys ×8

Car Keys ×5

Sanitary Pads ×2

White Egret Brand Cigarettes ×32

Storage Ring Shards ×3

Lucas raised a brow at the loot.

"Sanitary pads? Cigarettes? These zombies were carrying all sorts of... colorful baggage."

He figured the ones carrying ring shards were probably former survivors, infected during the early outbreak.

Upgrade Progress: 115 / 100

Ding! Upgrade threshold reached. Proceed with advancement?

"Let's do it."

Power flooded through his body like a tidal wave.

Every muscle fiber tensed and surged with newfound strength. His senses sharpened—vision, hearing, even touch.

The world came into focus with startling clarity.

Ding! Congratulations! You have ascended to the rank: Peak Human Physique

Lucas opened his eyes.

He looked at the fence—chest-high, solid.

He pressed one hand against it and leapt.

His body soared over the wall effortlessly, not even brushing his shirt hem.

So light...

Then he glanced at the side of the apartment building.

Twelve meters tall.

He dashed forward, leapt—and launched up the flat, smooth wall, his momentum carrying him half the way.

As gravity took hold, he brushed the wall with his shoe, bleeding off speed before gently landing on both feet.

Not even a stumble.

Lucas blinked in disbelief.

"People used to die from falls like that…"

But now?

Now he had stepped beyond ordinary human limits.