Survival in the Apocalypse: Max Level Drop Rate with Abundant Resources

Chapter 36 Enslaving the Rotten Corpse

The ruins trembled, and rubble rolled down from all directions.

The enormous figure stood in the center of the ruins, its crimson eyes fixed on them.

Chen Ming.

The man who embraced the rotting corpse in the iron cage and perished together with it.

He turned into a rotting corpse.

Or, a level 8 leader.

Liu Xinghui stood frozen in place.

She stared at that familiar face, which was distorted and deformed, but she still recognized it.

"Chen...Chen Ming..."

Her voice trembled, and her eyes reddened.

Shen Xi stood beside her, gripping the Corrupted Bone Battle Axe tightly, his gaze fixed on the enormous figure.

52 points of Strength, 55 points of Constitution, Level 8 Boss.

Its attributes are extremely high, almost matching its own with all its bonuses.

A tough battle.

But he didn't act immediately; instead, he turned to look at Liu Xinghui.

she cried.

This woman, who hadn't shed a tear even when driven to the brink by the Gu family father and son, now had tears streaming down her face uncontrollably.

Shen Xi remained silent for a moment.

Then, he remembered something.

Slavery Contract

You can enslave one rotting monster of level no higher than yourself, making it a permanent servant.

He is currently level 8, and Chen Ming is also level 8.

Just right.

Shen Xi took a deep breath, stepped forward, and stood in front of Liu Xinghui.

"Stand behind me."

Liu Xinghui was stunned for a moment, and before he could react, Shen Xi had already walked towards the huge figure.

"roar……!!!"

Chen Ming let out a deafening roar, his massive body striding forward as he charged toward Shen Xi! Each step shook the ground, sending pebbles flying!

Shen Xi did not dodge.

He simply raised his hand, palm facing forward.

Golden light exploded from his palm!

[The Domination System has intervened!]

[Host detected using "Slave Contract"!]

[Target: Corpse Leader (Level 8)]

Is enslavement confirmed?

"Sure."

The golden light surged instantly, transforming into countless chains that shot out from Shen Xi's palm!

Those chains pierced through space and wrapped directly around Chen Ming's body!

"roar!!!"

Chen Ming let out a shrill roar, his massive body struggling wildly! His claws tore at the chains, but his strength was like an ant trying to shake a tree in the face of the golden light!

The chains tightened more and more, digging deep into his body!

Golden runes spread along the chains, gradually imprinting themselves on his bluish-gray skin!

[Enslavement progress: 10%...30%...50%...]

Chen Ming's struggles grew weaker and weaker.

The madness and violence in those scarlet eyes gradually faded, replaced by a sense of bewilderment.

[Enslavement progress: 70%...90%...]

Finally, when the last rune was imprinted on his brow...

[Enslavement complete!]

[Congratulations, host! You have successfully enslaved one Level 8 Corpse Boss!]

The golden chains vanished.

Chen Ming's massive body swayed, he knelt on one knee, and lowered his head.

Shen Xi stood in front of him, a faint golden light still lingering in her palm.

Behind him, Liu Xinghui stared in disbelief at the scene.

What did she see?

Chen Ming had originally transformed into a terrifying and powerful rotting corpse, but just like that... he knelt before Shen Xi?

[Dominion System Notification: Host's use of slavery contract detected. Forced intervention to modify game rules...]

[Editing complete!]

[The enslaved units are being digitized...]

[Please set game nicknames for the enslaved units!]

Shen Xi remained silent for a moment, glanced at the figure kneeling on the ground, and then at Liu Xinghui behind her, whose tears were still wet.

"Mingying".

[Nickname "Mingying" is available; digitization complete!]

[Generating player panel...]

A semi-transparent light screen unfolded in front of Shen Xi:

[Nickname: Mingying (in a enslaved state)]

Level: 8 (Experience: 0/1200)

[Strength: 42 (80% inherited from the host)]

[Spirit: 33 (Inherited from the host 80%)]

Agility: 40 (inherited from the host 80%)

[Physical Constitution: 41 (80% inherited from the host)]

Free attribute points: 0

Title: None

[Talent: Obsessive Guardian (Legendary, Passive): Awakened by an obsession. When the master is present, Mingying's all attributes increase by 30%, and all damage taken is reduced by 50%. If the master suffers a fatal attack, Chen Ming will teleport to the master's side to take the hit in their place. Cooldown: 24 hours.]

[Skill: Resentment Burst (Legendary, Active): Unleashes inner resentment, entering a burst state. All attributes +50%, attack speed +50%, movement speed +50%, lasting 60 seconds. Cooldown: 24 hours. Side effect: After completion, the user is weakened, all attributes -50%, lasting 1 hour.]

[Equipment: None]

[Special Note: This unit cannot benefit from the "Dominion System" bonuses, and has no gold, reputation, or quest features. Monster drop rates have been restored to normal levels. Leveling up can only be achieved by gaining experience from defeating monsters.]

Shen Xi's pupils contracted slightly.

Legendary talent? Legendary skill?

In his previous life, he played for ten years and still hadn't seen many legendary characters.

In this life, I actually saw it in the servant I had just subdued?

【Obsessive Protection】—Can take a fatal attack in your place.

[Rage Burst] - All attributes +50%, attack speed and movement speed +50%.

"What the hell is this divine servant?"

"This is the kind of performance a Dominator System should have!"

Shen Xi took a deep breath, suppressing her shock, and turned to look at Liu Xinghui.

She stared at Chen Ming kneeling on the ground, tears welling up again.

"Does he...do he still remember me?"

Shen Xi remained silent for a moment, then walked up to Chen Ming.

"Raise your head."

At this moment, Chen Ming's body had shrunk, but he was still a two-meter-tall man with bronze skin. He slowly raised his head.

Those eyes were no longer the blood-red madness of before, but a deep, dark black, somewhat resembling the eyes of the ghost child. Yet, they remained empty, devoid of any emotion.

Shen Xi looked at him and slowly asked, "Do you still remember her?"

He pointed at Liu Xinghui.

Chen Ming turned his head and looked at the woman.

A faint ripple suddenly flickered in his empty eyes.

He opened his mouth, and a hoarse sound came from his throat:

"Lord Liu... the city lord..."

Liu Xinghui was startled.

She rushed to Chen Ming, knelt down, and cupped his ashen face in her trembling hands.

"Chen Ming... Chen Ming, do you still recognize me? Do you remember me?"

Chen Ming looked at her, and the slight fluctuation in his empty eyes gradually subsided until there was no movement at all.

Liu Xinghui's tears flowed uncontrollably.

She hugged Chen Ming tightly.

"I'm sorry... I'm so sorry... I failed to protect you..."

Chen Ming did not move.

He simply knelt there, letting her hug him.

No longer did those deep, dark eyes show any emotion.

Shen Xi stood aside, silently watching this scene.

He did not disturb them.

After a long while, Liu Xinghui finally let go, stood up, and wiped away his tears.

She looked at Shen Xi, her voice hoarse, and said, "Thank you."

Shen Xi shook her head.

Just then...

The entire ruins trembled violently once again!

"This isn't over yet!" Shen Xi thought there were still rotting corpses left to be eliminated, and felt somewhat helpless.

[System Announcement: The area boss "Corpse Secretary (Level 8 Boss)" has disappeared! The Corpse Ruins are about to collapse completely!]

[System Announcement: The Avengers Mode "Ruins of Corpses" has ended prematurely due to unforeseen circumstances! All surviving players will be forcibly teleported back to the real world in 60 seconds!]

[Countdown: 60, 59, 58...]

Shen Xi raised an eyebrow slightly.

Another early ending?

He recalled the scene in the corpse dormitory, where the little girl had caused the entire instance to collapse prematurely.

"We're going out now." He looked at Liu Xinghui. "Get ready."

Liu Xinghui nodded, then looked at Chen Ming.

Chen Ming remained kneeling on the ground, his deep eyes fixed on her.

"You...come with us," Liu Xinghui said softly.

"Don't worry, he'll have to leave whether he wants to or not," Shen Xi comforted him. With the intervention of the Dominator System, Chen Ming's panel has now changed from a corpse to a player, and he will definitely be teleported out.

[Countdown: 30, 29, 28...]

Shen Xi took one last look at the ruins.

In two days and two nights, they killed Gu Zhengxiong and his son, recruited Chen Ming, and even transformed Liu Xinghui from a level 0 novice into a level 5 mage.

The harvest was good.

【10, 9, 8...】

Golden light descended from the sky, enveloping the three of them.

A feeling of weightlessness washes over you.

The next second, everything returned to calm.

……

[We are issuing a global announcement due to the early completion of the Avengers Mode "Ruins of the Corpses"!]

The Avengers Mode "Ruins of Corpses" event has ended!

[Number of players participating: 5]

[Surviving players: 2]

Mortality rate: 60%

[Special Announcement: Congratulations to the Chinese player "Taichu" for completing the Avengers Mode for the first time! A special reward has been awarded!]

The world channel instantly became lively.

However, compared to the frenzy surrounding the "King of Newcomers" and "Most Outstanding Player in Hundreds" awards, the reaction this time was noticeably subdued.

After all, too few people participated in the Avengers mode, and most people didn't even understand what this mode was.

World Channel

"Tai Chu again? Is this big shot just here to spam the announcements?"

"Out of 5 people, 2 survived, so the mortality rate is 60%, which is not bad."

"Hey upstairs, what do you know? That's the Primordial God! He could kill a hundred of them all by himself!"

"Exactly! The Primordial God is awesome!"

"..."

But what really caused a stir was the regional channel.

[Regional Channel - China]

"Holy crap!!! Look at the rankings for Avengers Mode!"

"I checked! I checked! The names of Xiong Shi, Gu Yunfei, and Liu Gang are gone!"

"What does 'gone' mean?"

"He's dead! What else could it mean!"

"So... the Lions and their people were enemies of the Primordial Beginning?"

"Nonsense! What else? It's Avengers mode! They must have a grudge to go in there!"

"I heard that the lion is the commander of the Starshine City Military Region..."

"So what if he's a military region commander? If he messes with the First God, he'll still chop him down!"

"The First God is too powerful! He took down four of them all by himself?"

"No, there are three. Look, the one called 'Starshine' is still alive."

"Who is Xinghui? Is she a woman?"

"I don't know... but to be on the same team as the First God, he must be a top player!"

"I'm so envious! I want to team up with the First God too!"

"Wake up, you can't even beat a rotting corpse..."

"..."

Shen Xi opened her eyes.

Familiar streets, familiar night.

Starshine City, City Lord's Mansion.

He is back.

Beside him, Liu Xinghui stood not far away, a hint of confusion on his face. Next to him, Chen Ming stood silently.

Shen Xi opened the panel and took a look.

[Player: Primordial Beginning (King of Newcomers)]

Level: 8 (Experience: 678/1200)

【Strength: 53】

【Spirit: 49】

[Agility: 51]

[Physical Fitness: 58]

Free attribute points: 30

[Reputation: 11100]

Gold Coins: 11100

[Skills: Whirlwind Triple Slash (Silver), Bloodlust Berserk (Silver), Bloodlust Charge (Bronze)]

[Equipment: Corrupted Bone Battle Axe (Silver), Mine Owner's Bone Blade (Silver), Bone Blade Dual Blades (Silver), Storm Cloak (Silver), Bone Concealment Hat (Bronze)]

[Item: Ghost Child's Rag Doll (Silver)]

[Servant: Mingying (Level 8 Boss Corpse)]

Storage space: 20 cubic meters

[Dominator Bonus: Heavenly Evolution Drop Rate]

[Standard Bonus: Slave Contract]

The rewards for Revenge Mode haven't been fully distributed yet.

[System notification: Congratulations to player "Primordial" for completing the Avengers Mode "Ruins of Corpses"!]

[Completion Rating: S-Rank (Perfect Completion)]

[Rewards being distributed...]

Experience +200, Free Attribute Points +5, Gold +500, Reputation +500

Current Level: 8 (Experience: 878/1200)

Free attribute points: 35

Shen Xi nodded slightly.

878 experience points, still more than 300 away from level 9.

Okay.

He turned off the panel and turned to look at Liu Xinghui.

She was staring at Chen Ming with a complicated expression.

"Is this how he'll be from now on?"

Shen Xi nodded: "Don't worry, he will always stay with me."

Liu Xinghui was silent for a moment, then said softly, "Could I... speak to him alone for a few minutes?"

"It's no use. He can't hear anything right now," Shen Xi said. There was something he didn't say: perhaps, in the future, when Chen Ming reaches the level of the Corpse King, he will have the opportunity to communicate normally with people.

Liu Xinghui's tears fell again, but he didn't hold back.

"Thank you anyway."

Shen Xi shook her head: "Mutual benefit."

Liu Xinghui looked at him and suddenly smiled.

That smile was captivating.

"What are your plans for the future?"

Shen Xi looked into the distance.

The outline of Starshine City was faintly visible in the night.

Gu Zhengxiong is dead, the Lion Legion is destroyed, but his journey has just begun.

This city will soon face a new period of chaos.

"Let's find a place to rest first," he said casually. "We'll talk about it tomorrow..."

Liu Xinghui nodded and walked to his side.