The next day, early morning. The blood-red dawn barely pierced through the clouds, casting a strange, eerie light over the dead city.
Ruan Ning was fully armed once again, standing outside the apartment building.
Unlike before, her heart now brimmed with a new kind of anticipation and eagerness. Her palm still seemed to carry the faint cool sensation from condensing water droplets last night, and the water-like flowing energy within her body was quietly dormant, waiting to be summoned.
Her goal today was clear: leave the residential area, find lone zombies, and practice combat with her newly awakened water ability!
The zombies inside the neighborhood had been cleared out, so she needed a wider and more dangerous “training ground.”
Cautiously passing through the rusty gate of the community, the street outside was even more dilapidated and desolate than inside.
Abandoned vehicles blocked the roads; shattered glass and debris were everywhere. Walls were stained with dried blood and suspicious scratch marks. A heavy stench of decay hung in the air, occasionally interrupted by faint, muffled growls from afar, adding a chilling atmosphere.
Ruan Ning moved quickly like a ghost, sticking close to the wall, her senses at full alert, searching for a suitable target.
Soon, at the corner by a convenience store, she spotted a zombie gnawing on something. Its back was to her, dressed in a tattered sanitation worker’s uniform, moving sluggishly.
“You’re the one.”
Ruan Ning took a deep breath. Instead of rushing forward for close combat as usual, she stopped and hid behind the wreckage of an abandoned bus. Concentrating, she summoned the water energy inside her.
The energy flowed along specific channels to her right hand. She raised her palm, aiming at the sanitation worker zombie about ten meters away.
At first, the energy circulation was a bit rough, and controlling the ability was nowhere near as smooth as swinging her machete. She tried to recall the feeling from last night in the space, focusing her mind sharply—
Buzz…
In front of her palm, moisture in the air rapidly gathered, producing a faint humming. A roughly fist-sized, slightly cloudy water ball quickly formed, its surface constantly rippling and unstable.
“Go!”
Ruan Ning shouted inwardly, pushing the water ball with her mind.
The water ball wobbled as it flew forward, not very fast, and its trajectory was somewhat erratic.
Splat!
The water ball finally hit the zombie’s back with a dull thud. Water splashed everywhere, soaking a large patch of its sanitation worker uniform.
The effect… was nearly nothing.
The zombie only staggered forward a step from the impact, stopping its gnawing in confusion. It sluggishly turned around, its cloudy eyes immediately locking onto Ruan Ning’s hiding spot. It let out a disturbed snarl and staggered toward her.
“The power’s too weak, and the control isn’t precise enough,” Ruan Ning judged instantly but didn’t feel discouraged. It was the first real combat after all, perfection wasn’t expected.
Her eyes cooled as she stared at the approaching zombie. She didn’t choose to retreat but actively met it head-on.
When the distance closed to about five meters, Ruan Ning raised her hand again.
This time, she changed tactics. Instead of condensing a whole water ball, she concentrated the energy at her fingertips, attempting to shape it.
Whoosh—
A water arrow, slightly thicker than a chopstick and about half a foot long, shot out suddenly! It was more than twice as fast as the water ball before, carrying a sharp, fierce aura!
Pew!
The water arrow precisely hit the zombie’s face, piercing through its rotting nose and deep into its skull!
The zombie’s forward motion froze abruptly, its roar cut off. It wobbled, the cloudy light in its eyes quickly dimming before it collapsed with a “plop.” Dark red blood mixed with water trickled from the hole in its nose.
Success!
Ruan Ning caught her breath, feeling that nearly one-third of her water energy had been consumed, but excitement gleamed in her eyes.
Though the power was still far less than her machete’s chop, and the water arrow’s penetration was limited, this was definitely a ranged attack! Moreover, she successfully completed the whole process from condensation to shaping and accurate shooting!
She walked to the zombie’s body and carefully examined the wound caused by the water arrow. The penetration was indeed insufficient; if facing harder bones or stronger zombies, it probably wouldn’t be a one-hit kill.
“Need it denser, faster, and with stronger penetration!” Ruan Ning summarized from the experience. “Or develop other forms of attack.”
She didn’t waste time, skillfully searching the brain for crystal cores with her dagger—unfortunately still none—and then continued exploring.
For the next few hours, Ruan Ning roamed the ruined streets, specifically looking for lone zombies as targets.
She repeatedly tried compressing water balls to increase their density and impact force. When hitting zombies, they caused noticeable dents and could even break fragile bones.
She practiced the speed and accuracy of the water arrow, aiming from the torso to fragile spots like eyes and mouths.
She even tried condensing a small puddle of water under the zombie’s feet. Though it only made them slip slightly and couldn’t cause effective obstruction, it was a rudimentary form of crowd control.
Each time she used her ability, her understanding of energy flow deepened, and her control over water elements grew more refined. She could feel that through continuous practice, exhaustion, and recovery, the water energy inside her became livelier and more condensed, with a subtly faster recovery rate.
As the sun set (appearing even stranger under the blood-red sky), Ruan Ning had successfully killed seven or eight zombies using her ability. Her energy had been depleted several times and replenished through rest and small amounts of spirit spring water.
Though tired, she was mentally exhilarated.
Standing in the middle of an empty street, watching the water vapor swirling like a gentle fish at her fingertips, a confident smile curved her lips.
Water ability, level 1, just beginning to glimpse the door.
But this was only the start. She believed that as long as she kept developing and practicing along her chosen path, one day her water would no longer be a synonym for weakness, but a destructive torrent that would make all enemies tremble!