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

At the end of the passage was a blinding white light.

Shen Xi narrowed her eyes and stepped out.

The next second, everything suddenly opened up before me.

Trial Stone Circle.

Three enormous stone pillars stood in a triangular formation on the open plain, each as thick as two people could hug, soaring into the clouds. The surfaces of the pillars were covered with ancient runes, which glowed faintly and seemed to flow slowly as if they were alive.

Between the stone pillars was a circular open space about 100 meters in diameter, paved with bluish-gray stone slabs, with withered wild grass growing in the cracks between the slabs. The open space was shrouded in thick fog, obscuring the view outside.

Shen Xi stood in the center of the stone formation and looked up at the three stone pillars.

In his previous life, he stood here, facing an endless stream of illusory corpses, killing them for a full thirty minutes.

At that time, he only had a little over thirty attribute points and didn't even have a decent weapon, so he could only rely on his fists to fight. He killed three hundred illusory corpses for a full thirty minutes, until finally he couldn't even lift his arms, and he was only able to keep going by sheer willpower.

Now...

Shen Xi clenched her fist, feeling the surging power within her body.

56 points of Strength, 56 points of Agility, 52 points of Constitution.

With his current attributes, he is confident that he can kill a thousand of those illusory corpses.

Just then...

[Buzz...!]

A tremendous sound exploded above the stone formation!

[The Second Trial: The Path of Life and Death, has officially begun!]

[Trial Description: Survive the illusory horde of zombies. Each illusion will simulate the attack methods of a real corpse, and their numbers increase over time. There is no upper limit, no end, until the trial ends.]

[Trial completion condition: None.]

Time limit: Unlimited.

[Kill Requirement: None.]

[Special Note: This time, there is no time limit, no quantity requirement. You just need to survive, and keep surviving. The horde of zombies will not stop, it never will. Whoever survives to the end wins.]

[Countdown: 3, 2, 1...]

[A horde of zombies has descended!]

Shen Xi's pupils suddenly contracted.

No time limit?

No quantity requirement?

The Domination System wasn't this bad before!

Will the zombie horde never stop?

What the hell is this trial?!

Work yourself to death?!

But there was no time for him to think about it.

Because the first illusory corpse has already emerged from the thick fog!

It was an ordinary, rotting corpse, moving slowly, its body bluish-gray, and black saliva dripping from its mouth. It staggered towards Shen Xi.

Shen Xi's eyes sharpened, she dodged to the side and punched it on the back of the head!

"Bang!"

The head of the illusory corpse exploded, turning into black smoke and dissipating.

[Defeat 1 Illusionary Corpse]

But the next second...

Five rotting corpses burst out simultaneously from the thick fog!

Shen Xi didn't hesitate and pounced on him!

One punch, one kill!

All five rotting corpses have been killed!

But before he could even catch his breath...

Ten!

Twenty!

Thirty!

……

More and more rotting corpses were emerging from the thick fog, and at an ever-increasing speed!

They charged in from all directions, some slow-moving, some incredibly fast, some enormous, some emaciated. Each one attacked in a different way: some with claws, some with teeth, some with their heads, and some with their bodies.

Shen Xi fought wildly among the horde of zombies, punching, kicking, elbowing, and kneeing!

His body is a weapon; every part of him is killing!

"Bang!"

One punch smashed the head of a rotting corpse!

"Snap!"

He kicked another rotting corpse in the neck and snapped it!

"Bang!"

The third one was knocked away by a shoulder bump!

"boom!"

Smash the fourth one with a headbutt!

But the number of rotting corpses has increased instead of decreased!

Fifty!

Eighty!

One hundred!

……

They were like endless waves, surging in one after another, completely engulfing Shen Xi!

Shen Xi had no idea how long she had been killing.

One minute?

Five minutes?

Ten minutes?

……

Time lost its meaning at this moment.

All he knows is to throw punches, kicks, dodge, and then throw punches again.

Every breath was accompanied by the howls of rotting corpses, and every turn brought new enemies. The stone slabs beneath his feet were covered in black blood, slippery and unsteady. The air was thick with a stench of decay, making his eyes sting.

But he didn't stop.

can't stop.

To stop is to die.

Another wave of zombies surged in.

This time, the carrion was clearly stronger than before. They moved faster, attacked more fiercely, and some even began to show simple coordination. One pounced from the front, two flanked from the sides, and another circled around to ambush from behind.

Shen Xi dodged the frontal attack by sidestepping, kicked the rotting corpse on the left away, smashed the right side of its head with his right fist, then turned around sharply and slammed his elbow into the face of the rotting corpse behind him!

"Bang!"

All four were wiped out.

But eight more rushed up.

Shen Xi took a deep breath and went to meet him!

He stopped playing defensively and started attacking!

He weaves through hordes of corpses, darts among the claws and fangs, every punch aimed at vital points, every strike striving to be fatal!

His speed was astonishing; his figure was elusive, like a ghost weaving through the horde of corpses. The claws and teeth of the rotting corpses grazed his body, always missing him by a hair's breadth.

This is the movement technique he has practiced for ten years.

It's not the kind of graceful footwork, but an instinctive reaction gained from countless brushes with death, through near-death experiences.

He knew how to maneuver in the smallest of spaces, how to use the bodies of rotting corpses as cover, and how to find a glimmer of hope in a seemingly hopeless situation.

The horde of zombies is still surging in.

Two hundred.

Three hundred.

Five hundred.

……

Shen Xi had no idea how many she had killed.

His fists were numb, his arms ached, and his legs were starting to give way. Every breath felt like swallowing a knife, his lungs burning with pain. His vision began to blur, the screams around him faded into the distance, and the whole world seemed shrouded in mist.

But he's still killing.

One punch.

Two punches.

Three punches.

……

Each punch was repeated mechanically, as if the body had developed muscle memory.

Another wave of zombies surged in.

Shen Xi rushed forward, smashing the first one's head with a punch, breaking the second one's neck with a kick, dodging the third one's attack, smashing the fourth one's face with an elbow strike, then bending down to avoid the fifth one's claw attack, sweeping his leg to trip the sixth one, and crushing its chest cavity with his knee...

But just then...

A rotting corpse suddenly charged from the side at an astonishing speed!

Shen Xi didn't have time to dodge and could only barely turn to the side!

"laugh!"

The sharp claws sliced ​​across his ribs, tearing three bloody gashes!

Blood spurted out!

Shen Xi grunted and smashed the head of the rotting corpse with a backhand punch!

But the intense pain from his wound slowed his movements by half a beat.

In that half-beat of time,

Three more rotting corpses pounced on them!

One bit his left arm!

One of them grabbed his right leg!

A creature lunged at his throat!

Shen Xi's eyes flashed with anger, and he suddenly exerted force with his right arm, slamming his elbow hard into the head of the rotting corpse that was biting his left arm!

"Snap!"

Its head was shattered, but it refused to let go, even in death!

Shen Xi ignored it, used his right leg to drag the rotting corpse that was clinging to his right leg, and at the same time used his left hand to protect his throat and block the third rotting corpse from biting him!

"Bang!"

He smashed the third corpse away with a single punch!

But the one that was holding his right leg was still there!

Shen Xi raised her right leg and slammed it hard into the ground!

"Bang!"

"Bang!"

"Bang!"

One! Two! Three!

The rotting corpse finally opened its mouth, but the next second, Shen Xi's foot had already crushed its head!

He looked down at his left arm.

The dead, rotting carcass was still biting her arm, its teeth deeply embedded in the flesh. Shen Xi gritted her teeth, grabbed its head with her right hand, and yanked it sharply!

"Rip!"

A huge chunk, skin and all, was torn off!

Blood gushed out like a fountain!

"ah……!"

Shen Xi gasped in pain, but had no time to treat her wound.

Because even more rotting corpses have rushed up!

He could only grit his teeth and continue fighting!

Blood is flowing.

My strength is waning.

Consciousness is fading.

But the horde of zombies did not stop.

It never stopped.

Shen Xi had no idea how long she had been killing.

It might be an hour, it might be three hours, it might be longer.

At this moment, time completely lost its meaning.

All he knows is kill, kill, kill.

When you can't lift your arms anymore, use your elbows to strike; if your elbows can't strike, use your knees; if your knees can't strike, use your head; if you can't even use your head, use your teeth.

He struggled frantically amidst the horde of corpses, like a trapped beast.

Every breath was laced with blood, every blink required an immense effort. Vision was already blurred; he could only rely on instinct to pinpoint the enemy's location. The roars around him seemed distant and ethereal, as if separated by a layer of water.

But his body was still moving.

Instinct is still there.

The instincts he developed during the decade-long apocalypse allowed him to continue fighting even when his consciousness was blurred.

Another rotting corpse lunged at them.

Shen Xi instinctively turned to the side and punched it in the head.

The fist struck the target, and the rotting corpse turned into black smoke and dissipated.

But the next second, two more rushed up.

Shen Xi dodged the first attack, but was knocked off balance by the second one.

He staggered backward, barely managing to regain his balance, only to find that even more rotting corpses had surrounded him.

Ten.

Twenty.

Thirty.

They surrounded him in the center, densely packed and layered.

Shen Xi stood in the middle of the horde of corpses, panting heavily.

Blood streamed down his forehead, blurring his vision. He blinked, trying to make out the enemies around him, but could only see blurry shadows.

He is tired.

I'm really tired.

Since his rebirth, he has been fighting desperately and relentlessly, with almost no real rest.

Kill Gu Yungui, kill the Lion Legion, kill the Corpse Mine Owner, kill the Corpse Hounds, kill the Cold Storage Master... one battle after another, one enemy after another.

Now, they must fight amidst an endless horde of zombies.

He didn't know how much longer he could hold on.

He might fall down in the next second.

Perhaps the trial will never end.

In his daze...

Suddenly, everything around them froze.

The rotting corpses that lunged at him, the gaping maws, and the waving claws all froze in mid-air.

It's like a frozen painting.

Shen Xi stood there, stunned, panting heavily.

next second...

All the illusory corpses vanished simultaneously, turning into countless plumes of black smoke that disappeared into the air.

The stone circle became empty and silent again.

Shen Xi stood alone in the center, covered in blood and wounds.

He raised his head blankly and looked at the three stone pillars.

The runes on the stone pillar were glowing intensely, and those lights converged into a beam that descended from the sky, enveloping his entire body.

A warm current flowed in.

The wound healed, physical strength was restored, and spirits were lifted.

In just a few seconds, he was back to his peak condition.

But Shen Xi stood still, not moving for a long time.

He looked down at his hands, which were still trembling slightly.

It wasn't out of fear, but rather an instinctive reaction to overexertion.

He recalled the battle just now, the endless horde of zombies, and how he had repeatedly pushed himself to the limit yet still persevered...

Suddenly, he smiled.

That smile was tired yet satisfied.

"So... this is the way of life and death."

he murmured.

It's not about holding out for thirty minutes, nor is it about killing three hundred.

Instead, they rose again and again from endless despair.

Until you really can't stand anymore.

[Congratulations to the challenger for passing the second trial: The Path of Life and Death!]

[Battle Rating: S-Rank (Perfect)]

[You endured six hours and thirty-seven minutes amidst the endless horde of phantom zombies, slaying a total of 3847 phantom zombies. Countless times you teetered on the brink of collapse, countless times you rose again. Your will has passed the trial.]

Shen Xi was stunned when she heard that number.

Three thousand eight hundred and forty-seven?

He killed more than three thousand rotting corpses?

No wonder you're so tired.

He took a deep breath and looked down at his feet.

On the stone slab, a blood-red mark appeared at some point, exactly the same as the first one.

He bent down and picked it up.

【Title: Blood Berserker - Trial Mark (II)】

[Type: Special Item - Legacy]

[Quality: Legendary]

[Effect: Collect all three Trial Marks to unlock the true inheritance core of the Blood Berserker]

[Note: You have passed the second trial. This is a token left to you by the stone formation. Only one more token is needed for you to access the true inheritance.]

Shen Xi carefully put away the mark and looked up at the thick fog outside the stone formation.

There, a passageway is faintly visible, leading to the deeper part of the underground palace of the main hall.

The third trial.

The Way of the True Self.

[Challenger's condition has been restored to optimal!]

Prepare for the third trial: The Path of the True Self!

[Trial Location: Main Hall Underground Palace]

[Trial Instructions: Confront your inner self and rediscover your true self. There lie your deepest fears, your greatest regrets, and the truths you least want to face. Overcome them, and you will find your true self.]

[Countdown: You will be teleported to the main hall dungeon in 60 seconds. Please prepare!]

Shen Xi took a deep breath and stepped towards the passage.

Behind him, the runes of the Trial Stone Array slowly dimmed and fell silent.

Ahead, a faint light flickered in the darkness.

Within that light were his memories of his past life, the scenes he least wanted to face, and the truth he had been running away from.

The Way of the True Self.

he came.