frightfiction Chapter 3 Ready to go
Chapter 3 Ready to go
Li Chenglong made his way home, it was already evening. Last time, he had to run to scale the wall, but this time he simply pushed off and jumped. While surprised by his own ability, Li Chenglong also realized that although level-one zombies couldn't climb the wall of his courtyard house, level-two and three zombies were a different story. He began planning to leave Qing'an Town and head to Jinghai City to join the Jinghai military unit. After all, it seemed that the army, under its commander, was carrying out its missions in a relatively organized manner. Li Chenglong jumped down from the wall and found the house completely dark. A chill ran down his spine, and he drew his dagger and crept inside. Just as he entered, he felt someone rushing towards him from behind the door. However, Li Chenglong quickly sheathed his dagger and instead slapped the shadowy figure twice on the buttocks. It was Li Xue. "Brother, I was wrong, please let me go," Li Xue said, giggling. Li Chenglong let go of his sister and said, "Why aren't the lights on so late?" Li Xue pressed the switch and said, "The power went out at noon. I saw online at noon that someone said the power plant had been attacked and the people there are probably all gone. Look, someone even filmed a video with a drone."
Li Chenglong took his sister's phone and opened a video someone had taken. The video showed a power plant billowing thick smoke, with occasional minor explosions. There were about a hundred zombies, including two large ones that were clearly high-level zombies. Among the zombies were even two that looked like Komodo dragons, but were seven or eight meters long – those were probably the alien beasts they were talking about. Li Chenglong put down his phone and said, "The internet might go down at any time. Let's eat quickly. I'll give you a present after we eat." Li Xue was very happy to hear about the present and said, "Luckily, we still have gas at home. I just cooked an eggplant, stir-fried some chili and pork, and steamed some rice." The siblings quickly finished their meal, and then Li Chenglong took a candle from the house, lit it, and said to his sister, "The situation is very bad. Even if we don't starve to death here, we'll be trapped to death. Moreover, after I went out today, I found that the zombies have begun to evolve and mutate. This place can't protect us at all. So tonight, let's pack our things. Don't take too much stuff, it will be inconvenient for our evacuation. Take as much high-calorie food as possible to stave off hunger, and just bring some water. We'll set off in an hour." Li Xue nodded, "Okay, I'll do whatever you say, brother." Then the two siblings went back to their respective rooms to pack their things.
Half an hour later, two backpacks, one large and one small, were placed on the living room table. Li Chenglong said mysteriously to his sister, "Look," as he spoke, he concentrated on his hands, and instantly two dazzling white lights surrounded them. Li Xue's eyes widened, her mouth slightly agape: "What is this?" Li Chenglong relaxed his concentration, and the white light slowly disappeared as he said, "According to national research, although most people and animals infected by the virus will turn into zombies or zombie beasts, there is also a very small probability that they will awaken superpowers and become superhumans or awakened beings." Li Xue exclaimed in surprise, "Isn't this a plot from a novel? It actually happens in reality." Li Chenglong didn't say much more, and took out the cyan crystal from his pocket. The crystal was still flashing with a faint cyan light in the dim room. Li Xue pointed at the crystal and said, "Is this the crystal core from the novel? This kind of thing has appeared too?" Li Chenglong said seriously to his sister, "Xia Country's research on crystals has just begun, but according to a woman who contacted me, crystals of different colors besides white can awaken different abilities in people. However, this is an accidental discovery, and there hasn't been much research yet, so its safety is unknown. Also, that woman told me a secret: level one ability users can resist the virus from ordinary zombies. So I'm now in a dilemma. On one hand, I want you to awaken and become an ability user, because I'm only one person. Although I will definitely fight to the death to protect my beloved sister, I'm afraid of the worst-case scenario—I'm afraid you'll be infected by the zombie virus and become one of those terrifying walking corpses. On the other hand, very few of these crystals have been discovered yet, and there aren't many case studies. If it fails, I don't know what will happen. So I want to give you the choice; you decide for yourself."
Li Xue took the crystal that shimmered with a blue light, examined it carefully for a while, and then, seemingly having made up her mind, said, "I want to use it, brother. Listen to me, our family has been in the military since Grandpa's time, and Dad sacrificed himself for his beloved post. So, firstly, I don't want to be a burden to you as an ordinary person, and secondly, I don't want to lose you. And I also want to prove myself. Since Dad's sacrifice and Mom's death from illness, you've always taken care of me. I want to show you that I've grown up and am no longer the little girl who can only follow you around. Brother, just tell me, how do I use this crystal?" Seeing his sister's determination, Li Chenglong went over and patted Li Xue's head, saying, "According to that woman, you just need to take it." Without saying a word, Li Xue immediately rinsed the crystal with water and swallowed it directly. "Brother, if it fails and I turn into a zombie, kill me!" Then she rushed into her bedroom and locked the door.
Li Chenglong didn't know how he got through the past half hour. He only heard his younger sister's frequent cries of pain, but even more so, her groans as she tried to suppress the agony. "Don't worry, based on my observation, my sister will be alright." At this moment, a little boy's voice suddenly came from Li Chenglong's mind. "Who are you?" Li Chenglong asked. The little boy's voice rang out again, "I am your awakened superpower. Close your eyes and concentrate, and you will see me." Upon hearing this, Li Chenglong concentrated and found a small dragon swimming in his mental sea. Suddenly, the small dragon transformed into the appearance of a child with two small horns on his head and wearing a red robe. The child said, "My name is Long Ling. Our spirit bodies are a unique ability possessed only by Awakened Ones, completely different from ordinary superhumans." Li Chenglong asked, "What's the difference between Awakened Ones and superhumans? What abilities do you spirit bodies have, and what can you do?" Long Ling thought for a moment and said, "Superhumans only become stronger in one area. For example, some are incredibly fast, some have immense strength, some have increased defense, and some higher-level superhumans can breathe fire and water, etc. But Awakened Ones are completely different. Awakened Ones first awaken their spirit bodies and open their spiritual sea. The spiritual sea stores energy gained from killing zombies, zombie beasts, or other things. Moreover, compared to superhumans, Awakened Ones experience growth in all aspects of their physical attributes, and..." "We possess all sorts of special abilities, you'll learn about them later. We spirits can not only help our masters absorb spiritual energy, but also guide their further awakening. And once you've awakened to a certain stage, we can even materialize to further assist you in battle. For example, after I grew up, I could transform into a five-clawed golden dragon; I could kill a whole bunch of zombies and zombie beasts with a single swipe of my claw." Li Chenglong thought for a moment and then asked, "Then why didn't you appear this morning, and only now?" The dragon spirit rolled its eyes and said, "To awaken a spirit, one must first be an Awakener, and then personally kill one hundred zombies—both are indispensable. Then, after a few hours, we will awaken." Just as Li Chenglong was about to ask something else, Li Xue's door opened.
As soon as Li Xue opened her door, Li Chenglong rushed over to check on his sister. Li Xue's hair was soaked with sweat, and her clothes were a little disheveled, but she looked quite well. "Li Xue, how are you feeling?" Li Xue shook her head and said, "I'm fine, in fact, I feel quite good." Li Chenglong immediately helped his sister sit on the sofa and handed her a bottle of water. He asked Long Ling in his mind, "Can you tell if my sister is an Awakened or a Superpowered being?" Long Ling said, "She's definitely an Awakened, because we spirits have a slight connection. And look at the pattern on her arm; that's proof of being an Awakened. Didn't you have a dragon pattern back then?" Li Chenglong turned around and lifted his shirt to look at his stomach, only to find that the pattern on his stomach was gone. "Why is my pattern gone?" Long Ling said, "That pattern is like an activation button for Awakening. Once awakened, the pattern disappears, and whatever the pattern is, that's what the spirit becomes." Li Chenglong went over and carefully examined Li Xue's arm, discovering that the pattern was actually a mermaid. Li Xue had just finished drinking water when she noticed her brother staring at her arm. "What are you doing? Is there something on my arm?" she asked. Suddenly, she noticed a mermaid pattern on her arm and exclaimed in surprise, "Brother, what is this?" Li Chenglong then told Li Xue everything about the spirit. Li Xue's mouth opened slightly as she marveled at the sight.
Seeing that his sister had recovered, Li Chenglong said, "Originally, you needed to kill zombies to awaken your powers, so we should wait before leaving. But I'm afraid things might get complicated if we wait too long. A large horde of zombies might come, and we won't be able to handle it. Besides, the people at the Jinghai base will only stay for a few days; we need to go and regroup. But don't worry, even if you haven't fully awakened, your abilities are already far superior to ordinary people." Li Xue nodded and said, "Then let's leave in a bit. Let me take a shower and change my clothes, and we'll set off immediately." She then went to get busy, while Li Chenglong consulted with Long Ling about how to use the power of the Sea of Spirit and how to upgrade to a higher level of awakening. Half an hour later, Li Xue came out of the bathroom. Li Chenglong noticed that his sister's beautiful long hair had now been cut into a short bob. "How was it? I was afraid of the hassle, so I cut it," Li Xue said with a smile. Li Chenglong praised Li Xue for being clever. Five minutes later, the two, dressed neatly, left the house. Li Xue looked back at the home she had lived in for almost a year, and said to Li Chenglong with a touch of sadness, "Brother, will we come back?" Li Chenglong patted his sister on the back and said, "Of course we will." Then the two walked out onto the street.