The undead have descended upon the world? I possess a sword that can cleave the heavens once more!

The black mist ahead surged and retreated to both sides as if it were a living thing.

The man's outline became clearer and clearer until it was fully revealed to Wu You.

Wearing a sports t-shirt and shorts, and with the ordinary appearance of a middle-aged man—exactly the same as when Wu You had met him in the hallway before. But this time, Wu You saw his face clearly.

There is no distortion.

The facial features were neatly placed in their proper positions; the eyes were eyes, the nose was a nose, and the mouth was a mouth, unlike the previous zombie species whose facial features were misplaced, with crooked eyes and slanted noses.

Only two things are wrong: the mouth and the eyes.

When it opened its mouth, what was revealed were not human teeth—but sharp, triangular teeth that were as white as those of the previous zombie species.

And eyes.

Their eyes were pure black, without pupils or whites, like two obsidian stones embedded in their sockets, so deep that the bottom could not be seen.

Wu You gripped the wooden sword tightly, his knuckles turning white.

The monster tilted its head and looked him over, then suddenly let out an "Oh," and a half-smile appeared on its lips.

No wonder.

Its voice was lazy, like it was chatting.

"Yesterday, one of my infected entities suddenly lost contact without me noticing any excessive energy." It paused, its pure black eyes fixed on Wu You. "You were probably the one who did it, weren't you?"

Infected body.

Several images flashed through Wu You's mind—the monster Li Wei had become, the thing that called him brother in the alley, and the relief that flashed in its eyes as it finally dissipated.

It can turn people into zombies.

It's not that they parasitize each other or that people turn into zombies on their own, but rather that they are "infected" by it.

Wu You remained silent.

He just stared intently at the monster in front of him, frantically processing information in his mind.

Allocable experience points: 71.

All of it was injected into the basic sword techniques.

Allocable experience points: 71 → 0

Basic Swordsmanship (Beginner) (0/50) → Basic Swordsmanship (Slightly Advanced) (21/100)

boom--

Countless pieces of information flooded into my mind like a tidal wave.

It's no longer that fragmented feeling; it's a complete and systematic sword technique.

Every angle of the sword, every step, every breath was etched into his bones, as if he had practiced with the sword for another ten or twenty years, turning all the basic movements into instinct.

At the same time, another line of text on the Sword Codex interface popped up.

Level: 0 → Level: 1

Wu You realized that his level was increased by improving his swordsmanship.

Immediately afterwards, the cold energy inside my body seemed to be ignited, and it surged violently.

More cool energy surged from all parts of the body, flowing and circulating through the meridians. It washed over the muscles, bones, and fascia, strengthening every inch of the body.

The fatigue from the battle with those seven corpses vanished, replaced by more abundant strength, sharper senses, and faster reaction speed.

Wu You clenched his fist.

stronger.

But before he could fully adapt to his drastically increased physical abilities and the extra sword skills, the monster in front of him suddenly frowned.

That action was so human-like: its brows were slightly furrowed and the corners of its mouth were turned down, as if it had smelled something it didn't like.

"Those black dogs really have a keen sense of smell."

It sighed, its tone filled with obvious regret.

"Sigh, I was hoping to savor this delicious treat properly." It looked at Wu You, its pure black eyes revealing no emotion. "Now I can only swallow it whole."

He paused for a moment.

"What a disappointment."

The moment he finished speaking, Wu You's hair stood on end.

The next moment, the monster's neck moved.

Like a stretched rubber band, it suddenly extends from the shoulder, not by lowering the head, not by turning the head, but by stretching the entire neck and head forward, becoming longer and thinner, like a twisted snake crawling out of the body.

The whole process took less than a second.

The head instantly loomed close to Wu You, so close that Wu You could see his own reflection in its pure black eyes.

Then the mouth opened.

More than 180 degrees.

His upper and lower jaws were dislocated as if they were dislocated, and his mouth was torn from the corner to his ear, revealing a dense array of sharp triangular teeth. His mouth was now big enough to fit the head of an adult—no, big enough to fit Wu You's entire upper body.

It's going to swallow him whole!

Wu You had no time to hesitate.

The body reacts faster than the brain.

A sword that blocks the door!

The three sword moves that come with the basic swordsmanship minor mastery are: straight thrust sword, top-splitting sword, and door-blocking sword.

Among them, the Gate-Blocking Sword is the only defensive sword move, specifically designed to block frontal attacks.

Wu You took a half step back, gripped his sword with both hands, and held it horizontally in front of him. The wooden sword blocked the gaping maw between him and the gaping maw.

All the coolness in his body surged out in an instant, adhering entirely to the sword.

The old wooden sword, with its peeling paint and mottled patterns, now faintly gleamed.

next moment.

click-

A muffled thud.

It bit down with its gaping maw.

Those triangular, gleaming white teeth bit down hard on the wooden sword, sinking directly into the blade. The creaking sound from the wood was so piercing it made your teeth ache, as if it were about to shatter at any moment.

But it didn't break in the end.

The sharp teeth got stuck in the wood.

That mouth couldn't bite down an inch further.

They stopped them!

Wu You gripped the sword hilt with both hands, his tiger's mouth trembling from the impact, but he held on tightly.

A hint of surprise flashed in the monster's pure black eyes.

whoosh-

The neck retracted, like a stretched rubber band suddenly unwinding, and the head instantly shrank back onto the body, returning to a normal human form.

It stood there, touched its chin, and looked at the wooden sword in Wu You's hand.

"Interesting," it said. "An ordinary martial artist couldn't withstand this..."

He hadn't finished speaking.

Its brow furrowed again, even more tightly than before.

"They came really fast."

It glanced at Wu You, its dark eyes revealing no emotion.

But Wu You knew that it had already remembered him, and this matter was not over yet.

Then it disappeared.

It vanished from the spot as if it had never existed.

The surrounding black mist began to recede. It dispersed like the receding tide, growing fainter and thinner until it finally disappeared completely.

Wu You, panting heavily, looked up.

Still in the stairwell, the walls were mottled, the handrails were covered with little GG stickers, the motion-activated lights were broken, and cigarette butts were scattered on the floor.

He returned to the present world.

Everything that just happened felt like a dream, but the wooden sword in my hand still had deep teeth marks and was almost broken, the tremors in my hand still lingered, and most of the coolness in my body had been used up.

Wu You stood there, panting heavily, his mind racing.

What was that "black-skinned dog" that the monster was talking about?

Judging from its disgusted tone and its hasty escape, it must have been a force opposing it.

Moreover, the opponent has a strong individual, a method to track it, and the strength to contend with it.

The person who could force that monster to abandon its food and run away was definitely no ordinary person.

Would you like to make contact?

Wu You gripped the wooden sword tightly, his mind racing as he weighed his options.

The fact that the other party was able to discover the monster's existence so quickly means they must have a method for searching for it.

Joining them will definitely give you more opportunities to interact with zombies and gain experience points faster.

But how do I explain my own strength?

The monster claimed to be a "martial artist" and said, "An ordinary martial artist can't withstand this bite."

But Wu You knew that he was neither a martial artist nor an ability user; he had become stronger entirely through the Sword Manual.

The Sword Manual is his deepest secret.

If those people discover that he, an ordinary person with no energy fluctuations, has suddenly gained combat power in a short period of time, how will they investigate him? What will they find out?

Wu You remained silent for a few seconds.

It's not the right time yet.

With that thought in mind, he no longer hesitated, turned around, went downstairs, and left quickly.