Ten o'clock.
The summer sun was scorching at this hour.
Walking alone on this secondary highway, Zhou Zheng's forehead was dotted with sweat. Walking 15 kilometers was no easy task, and now Zhou Zheng regretted not going to the vehicle management office to get a car or even a motorcycle. Why did he insist on walking like this?
On the roadside, he occasionally saw the remnants of cars, rusted and weathered by wind and rain.
Zhou Zheng even saw a sports car crashed under a giant tree, its windows shattered, revealing some broken white bones. No matter how wealthy one was in life, in death, there was no one to collect the body, leaving them as wandering spirits.
He glanced at the car emblem, an Aston Martin with a shark face, but Zhou Zheng couldn't determine the model.
Shaking his head, Zhou Zheng merely lamented the loss of such a fine sports car before continuing on his way.
Similarly, at the 10-kilometer mark, there was a checkpoint.
Perhaps knowing about the competition between Zhou Zheng and Yan Boxun, the soldiers at the checkpoint did not stop Zhou Zheng from passing through, merely offering a kind warning about the dangers beyond.
After crossing the checkpoint, the road was littered with skeletons emitting a heavy stench. In the woods, the calls of mutant beasts echoed frequently, and massive mutant birds would appear in the sky, casting large shadows and creating a terrifying scene.
As he moved forward, four level 1 and 2 Toxic Corpses wandered the highway.
Zhou Zheng squinted his eyes, "Just the right opportunity to test my skills on these Toxic Corpses."
Drawing the steel dagger from his thigh, Zhou Zheng used the Rogue's stealthy steps to silently approach the Toxic Corpses. Relying on sound and smell to detect targets, the Toxic Corpses were unaware of Zhou Zheng's presence as he approached from upwind.
The Toxic Corpses shuffled along, and as Zhou Zheng got closer, he hid himself among the branches by the roadside.
"Now's the time."
Just as the Toxic Corpses were about to pass by, Zhou Zheng didn't hesitate to use his speed, dashing out from the branches.
The speed of the Rogue character made Zhou Zheng move like the wind.
"Dual Strike"
Activating the skill, the dagger emitted a faint glow and struck the neck of a Toxic Corpse from the side. The dagger pierced into the decaying flesh, and under the skill's effect, the wound mysteriously split open, causing additional damage within its body.
The Toxic Corpse's health bar was instantly emptied by the "Dual Strike."
Before the Toxic Corpse even fell, Zhou Zheng had already deftly moved behind another one, striking its back with a reverse grip of the dagger. The "Backstab" skill activated, killing the Toxic Corpse instantly without suspense. This chapter was copied from NovelPing without permission.
In battles with Toxic Corpses, precise micro-management was crucial; getting hit by them was almost equivalent to death.
The fight lasted only a minute and a half, and the four Toxic Corpses lay lifeless on the highway, their grotesque lives extinguished.
Zhou Zheng pulled out a piece of rag from his pocket to clean the dagger. He disdained checking these low-level Toxic Corpses for Star Crystals, as the chances were slim and it was rather disgusting.
The experience gained from the four Toxic Corpses was minimal.
After tidying up, Zhou Zheng continued on his way, and after half an hour, he finally reached a stretch of undulating forest.
The map was drawn from Siege City's exploration, with names not from the pre-apocalypse but from the New World. This area, once called Gourd Ridge, with dozens of villages scattered around, was now known as Shadow Wolf Ridge.
As he approached the ridge, he heard the faint howls of wolves echoing from the forest, sharp and piercing.
At the entrance to Shadow Wolf Ridge, a forked road branched off from the secondary highway.
At the fork, there were some makeshift wooden shelters, assembled from building materials salvaged from the village ruins.
Zhou Zheng thought he was early, but there were already a few figures moving around the shelters.
Several electric cars were parked in front of the shelters, with machine gun mounts welded on, the barrels pointing skyward without anyone manning them. In the New World, the roar of a car engine was like a beacon to mutant beasts and Toxic Corpses, akin to courting death. Thus, the silent electric cars became the best choice, with the only drawback being the difficulty of charging them. Unlike before, it now took several days to fully charge a car.
Zhou Zheng's appearance drew the attention of the people there.
"It's Young Master Zhou Zheng!"
Some warriors recognized Zhou Zheng and lowered their guard, exclaiming in surprise.
Everyone in Siege City knew about the competition between Zhou Zheng and Yan Boxun. However, these warriors never expected Zhou Zheng to set his sights on Shadow Wolf Ridge, home to third-tier mutant beasts, challenging even for a third-stage warrior.
Arriving at the large shelter, a temporary resting spot for the warriors, Zhou Zheng greeted the dozen or so warriors there. Despite their warnings, he declined their goodwill with a faint smile and headed up the path to Shadow Wolf Ridge.
This area was a favored hunting ground for warriors, so they had cleared some leaves and shrubs along the path, leading to the edge of the wolf ridge. Venturing deeper into Shadow Wolf Ridge was a risk few warriors dared to take.
Shadow Wolves were pack mutant beasts, and the complex mountain environment increased their danger.
In this area, traces on the wild grass and leaves indicated frequent battles between warriors and Shadow Wolves. Some leaves bore dark brown bloodstains, whether from warriors or Shadow Wolves was unknown.
Occasionally, a putrid smell wafted through, mostly from Shadow Wolf carcasses. After taking the Star Crystals and wolf pelts, warriors usually discarded the wolf meat. Zhou Zheng had tasted it before; after mutation, it became tougher and tasted awful. Unless starving, no one would willingly eat Shadow Wolf meat.
Entering the forest, Zhou Zheng felt as if he had returned to a familiar environment.
Drawing the dagger from the sheath on his thigh, Zhou Zheng plunged into the forest, utilizing the Rogue's traits to hide in the shadows of the trees, searching for traces of Shadow Wolves. Get faster updates on novelping.com.
Following the frequent howls of the Shadow Wolves, finding them wasn't difficult.
Under the shade of several giant trees, three Shadow Wolves were foraging, occasionally flipping and biting at a curled-up pangolin. The Shadow Wolves weren't very large, slightly bigger than a local dog, with white-gray fur and a bushy tail. Their bite force was astonishing, and their speed could be described as ghostly.
The forest, combined with the Shadow Wolves' swift movements, was their greatest asset in dominating the vast mountain range.
Zhou Zheng subtly moved his dagger, slicing off a branch, then flicked it away. The branch flew over the leaves, landing in the soil with a "snap," scattering some dirt onto the leaves, creating a "rustling" sound.
The noise caught the attention of the three Shadow Wolves, who lifted their heads, warily scanning their surroundings.
One of the Shadow Wolves moved about a meter outward.
As the three Shadow Wolves spread out, Zhou Zheng's body, hidden in the tree's shadow, suddenly moved, reaching the Shadow Wolf in the blink of an eye. The sudden change was too much, and the Shadow Wolf could only instinctively step back.
"Dual Strike"
The head was the weak point for both Toxic Corpses and mutant beasts. Zhou Zheng's dagger precisely pierced the Shadow Wolf's forehead.
The first strike, dealing 100% damage, cracked the Shadow Wolf's head open, and the forced second strike carved several wounds into its body.
With a pitiful howl, the Shadow Wolf's health bar dropped by half.
Before the Shadow Wolf could react, Zhou Zheng had already moved past it, appearing behind it. The "Backstab" skill activated without hesitation, tearing several wounds into the Shadow Wolf's back, causing its limbs to weaken and collapse to the ground, struggling madly in pain.
Shadow Wolves were similar to the wild wolves in Firmament Continent, and Zhou Zheng had extensive experience dealing with them. The combination of two skills, perfectly executed, allowed him to kill the Shadow Wolf instantly with the Rogue's high agility, high attack, and high critical strike.
With the two skills on cooldown, Zhou Zheng still charged at the remaining two Shadow Wolves with his dagger.
Facing three Shadow Wolves, Zhou Zheng dared not be overconfident, but against two, he was confident of retreating unscathed.
Using the Rogue's elusive steps, Zhou Zheng's body twisted in an incredible way, dodging the Shadow Wolves' lightning-fast claws. Perhaps reality differed from the game, as Zhou Zheng paid the price of having his clothes torn before he managed to take down the two Shadow Wolves.
The dagger's normal attacks were a testament to Zhou Zheng's strength, only taking a small chunk out of the Shadow Wolves' health bars with each hit. Only by hitting weak points would more health be lost.
"If I had mastered Instant Step, I wouldn't be in such a sorry state, right?"
But Zhou Zheng knew that even without the Instant Step skill, as long as he continued to fight like this, he would eventually make it so the Shadow Wolves couldn't even touch his clothes.
Practice makes perfect, an eternal truth.
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