Boom!

A dome instantly covered Aron, blocking the incoming attack.

He blinked in shock. Something had moved so fast it almost slipped past his defenses.

Glancing down, his eyes landed on the attacker, a zombie child, no more than seven or eight years old. Half the skin on its face was gone, chunks of raw flesh exposed across its body. It was revolting to look at, and yet Aron couldn't help but feel a painful twinge of pity in his chest.

The zombified child pressed its sharp nails against the dome, trying to pierce through.

Aron immediately dropped the barrier to counterattack. But before his strike could land, the zombie blurred out of sight and escaped.

(So fast.)

Aron's heart trembled. That attack speed wasn't normal. No, this zombie definitely had a speed-based talent.

He couldn't see it when it moved. The only time he could catch it was during an attack. Each time it lunged, Aron raised the dome. Each time he lowered it to retaliate, the zombie retreated. They became locked in a frustrating stalemate of block, counter, and escape that stretched on for minutes.

Boom!

The zombie's attack struck the dome once again, forcing it to a halt for the briefest moment. By now, most of Its skin had degraded even further during the prolonged battle, most of it now sloughed away, leaving a twitching husk.

Instead of feeling frustration, Aron's heartbeat quickened in excitement.

With its strength and the fact that it had lasted this long, the only conclusion was clear: the zombie's talent was most likely a passive speed talent. That realization made him unreasonably happy.

Still, there was a problem. He couldn't touch the zombie at all. His inspection skill without physical contact only revealed the name of its ability, [Death Speed], without further details.

Getting fed up, he switched tactics. Lightning surged from his fingers, weaving into a crackling web across the room. The trap discharged with a deafening snap, frying the child's body and devouring a staggering 450 mana.

The zombie staggered, its flesh blackened and charred, yet it didn't even flinch. Unbothered by pain, it resumed its relentless blitz.

(Immune to shock too? Seriously?!)

If he could cast the lightning web two more times, he was confident he'd win. But with only 650 mana left, that dream died quick.

Escape wasn't an option either, the creature would outpace him before he could even activate [Stealth].

For a reckless moment, Aron even considered dropping the dome entirely. If the zombie managed to hit him, he could claim its talent instantly.

He dismissed the thought at once.

"Yeah, no thanks. I like being alive."

Then, his eyes lit up.

(Wait… how could I forget?)

[10 EXP used. Sense (Active) has been claimed.]

[Sense – Extends awareness up to one mile in any direction. The farther the range, the higher the mana consumption.]

****

Without hesitation, Aron swapped out [Thunder Manipulation] for [Sense].

The moment he activated it, he adjusted the range to fifteen meters. His surroundings expanded in his mind like a camera feed, crystal clear. Focusing forward, where the zombie attacked from, he could finally see its minuscule movements as it darted around.

Grinning, Aron dropped the dome, raised his fist, and swung at empty air.

Boommm!

But instead of striking empty space, the zombie's head appeared right at the spot his fist landed. The blow smashed its skull it's head showered in gore towards the walls, killing it instantly.

Thud.

Its headless body slumped to the floor.

****

[Level 6 Sprinter Zombie killed. +1 EXP]

[Claimable Ability Detected: Death Speed]

****

Aron's mouth dropped open so wide you could fit an egg in it.

(You're telling me I've been struggling this hard… with a level six? A LEVEL SIX?)

"Shock" wasn't enough to describe how he felt.

Then came the emptiness. His mana had drained heavily despite reducing Sense to thirty meters for only a few seconds. At a brutal 50 mana per second, combined with his earlier use of the dome, his pool had already dropped from 650 to just 270.

He sighed bitterly. "Mana management… truly my final boss."

Still, he shoved aside his complaints. He could examine the talent later.

He scavenged the bodies, tossing them out the window, he was surprised to find that water still ran in the apartment. That could only mean one thing, someone was living here, supplying power to keep it running.

Unlike Zone C, which relied heavily on communal supply, Zone B houses were fitted with boreholes. As long as there was electricity, water was abundant. And with the city's power long gone, someone had to be maintaining it.

Aron cleaned up the parlor where the fight had taken place. The place was a room-and-parlor apartment, larger than his own in Zone C. Even the toilet was three times the size of his apartment.

Once he was done, he used the cushions to build a blockade at the door, adding a makeshift alarm to alert him if anything tried to enter.

He stripped off his dirty clothes and threw them away. Washing them wasn't worth the hassle when he could simply loot new ones whenever he wanted.

After a long, cold shower, he slipped into fresh clothes pilfered from the car stash. Then he headed to the kitchen, using the gas and utensils left behind by the old occupants.

A little rummaging later, he prepared hot noodles and devoured them happily. The fight just minutes ago had done nothing to dampen his appetite.

With a new bedsheet on the mattress, Aron locked the room, placing more items by the door as extra alarm measures.

Finally, he lay on the bed and summoned his status.

****

Host Info

Name: Aron

Level: 11

EXP: 132 / 200

Rank: Ascender

Lifespan: 172 years

Mana: 270 / 1700

Special Ability: Talent Bank

Sub-skills

Talent Inspection: Check Talent ability within 1 meter.

Talent Switch: On/Off.

Talent Socket: Able to keep 5 abilities active at a time.

Abilities

(Active)

Water Control: Control water at will. Mana consumption varies.

Stealth: Become undetectable by normal means. Consumes 2 mana/sec.

FortiSphere: A dome no force can bypass. Radius: 1 meter. Consumes 50 mana/sec.

Thunder Manipulation: Bend thunder at will. Mana scales with intensity and creativity.

Sense: Extend awareness up to one mile. Mana cost increases with range.

(Passive)

Danger Sense: Heightened instincts that alert the user to threats.

Immunity: Unaffected by viruses or mortal diseases.

(Internal)

[Claimable: Death Speed – 25 EXP]

Burst: Sacrifice 80% strength to unleash instant power for 2 seconds. Leaves user weakened for 5 hours.

****

Aron made a strange expression. He had expected a passive, but seeing it categorized as an internal ability made his heart bitter. He already knew he wasn't going to like what he saw.

Still, he claimed the talent.

****

[Death Speed – Increases movement speed twentyfold. Each second of use consumes one year of the user's lifespan.]

****

Aron froze. Then laughed bitterly.

"No wonder the zombie's skin peeled off every time it moved."

It was monstrous. Overpowered. Terrifying. And completely trash.

"Like having all the riches in the world… at the cost of your little brother. Yeah, no thanks."

He sighed. Just as he was about to close his status screen, another notification appeared.

****

[Detected: Two talents in all primary slots. Ability upgrade requirements met.]

[Upgraded.]

****

Aron blinked. His mood, which had been low, instantly lifted.

(Well… this might actually get interesting.)

...

..

.

Shameless Author:

I love y'all! ❤️ Sorry for the delay, this author was afflicted by the sin of sloth. 😩 Unlike Aron, I can't fight zombies for EXP, but your power stones, golden tickets, gifts, comments, and reviews revive my energy.

Who else thinks Aron's lifespan is doomed with Death Speed? 😂

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