Chapter 2: First Recruitment
Twenty or thirty zombies had gathered in front of the small grocery store and the steps in front of the door were stained with blood.
Observing the gnawing movements of the zombies, Chris Lynn surmised that a survivors had sneaked into the store to collect supplies the previous night but was discovered and were fatally bitten by the zombies.
While Chris Lynn could handle lone zombies individually, he who still lacked the physical strength of his previous life, lacked the confidence in facing two of them simultaneously. Whether through scratches or bites, there was a high risk of getting infected with the zombie virus if the skin was breached.
Turning into a zombie wasn't the concern; rather, Chris feared about being devoured by zombies alive before undergoing the transformation. The mere thought sent shivers down his spine as it brought about the flashbacks of what he had experienced before perishing.
With zombies blocking the path ahead, Chris had to take a detour and navigate into another neighborhood. Despite encountering numerous zombies along the way, all of them were in groups but others lone zombies were notably absent.
Undeterred, Chris pressed on. Zombies primarily relied on instinct, resulting in many getting stuck and unable to move in certain locations. Among the ten zombies Chris kiled in last two days, at least six or seven were stuck in such situations.
Evading several waves of zombies, Chris successfully reached a school with name plate still hanging Little Angels middle School. The wide-open iron fence gates and a knocked aside electric gate hinted at the chaos that had unfolded. Zombies roamed inside and outside, some even wearing the school's uniforms.
Sighing, Chris picked up a broken brick, slammed it on an abandoned jeep, triggering a car sensor alarm that attracted nearby zombies. Seizing the opportunity, Chris quietly entered the school through the right-side door while the attracted zombies converged near the alarm.
Navigating through the now-empty entrance, Chris reached the ground floor of the teaching building. Gazing at the shaking zombies, he devised a strategy, attacking from both east and west and drawing them away from the school.
Entering the building, Chris quietly explored. Soon, he discovered an unlucky zombie in a first-floor classroom stuck between tables and chairs, unable to break free.
This trapped zombie was likely a victim from the initial outbreak, pushed and wedged into the classroom furniture during the chaotic escape of students.
Apart from this zombie, the classroom was devoid of others. Chris glanced around, gently pushed open the front door, and entered the room.
"Roar!"
The trapped zombie noticed Chris but could do little more than growl.
Feeling as though he had discovered what he needed, Chris approached the stuck zombie. As he drew nearer, he noticed a strange exclamation point glowing icon above its head.
Simultaneously, Chris raised his left hand.
In the palm of his hand, the "1" in the line "Number of zombies recruited: 1" began to glow faintly white, much like the exclamation mark floating above the zombie's head.
Chris Li placed the fire ax on the ground, clamped the long handle of the ax between his legs, and reached out to touch the glowing "1" in the palm of his left hand.
Upon Chris's touch, a light screen interface appeared.
\[Zombie: Michael\]
\[Level: Secondary\]
\[Status: Recruitable\]
\[Enhancement: Swift Zombie\]
At the bottom of this interface, an option presented itself:
\[Whether to recruit the secondary zombie Michael\]
\[Yes\] / \[No\]
Although Chris still didn't understand some of the information, but still he was able to grasped the general situation.
Apparently, the zombie in front of him was named Michael before turning into a zombie, and Chris could recruit him.
After reading it, Chris decisively reached out and clicked \[Yes\] on the light screen.
A ray of light flashed on the zombie, then disappeared. However, a crisp sound echoed in Chris's mind, akin to someone tapping a jade plate on his head.
Chris realized he had established a mysterious connection with the zombie in front of him, feeling some of its perceptions.
"Hungry, very hungry, want to eat flesh and blood..."
This was what Chris sensed, the random thoughts of the zombie named Michael.
Quickly abandoning his shared perception of Michael, Chris ordered the zombie through the mysterious link: Move the tables and chairs!
Excitedly, Chris observed as michael executed the orders he gave without any hesitation. Although the tables and chairs weren't tightly arranged, the zombies were clueless, and now, under Chris's command, zobie Michael could easily move them aside.
"So, this recruitment truly means making zombies my servants?" Chris suppressed his excitement, controlling Michael to leave the classroom.
Despite having a zombie subordinate, the school was crammed with zombies. Being Discoveed by them and being surrounded by those zombies would be tragic.
Chris multitasked, simultaneously controlling Micheal to lead and act as a guide for him.
Carefully traversing the lobby of the teaching building, they entered the campus corridor. Some of the zombies, earlier misled by Chris, had returned, and others from different directions were slowly converging.
Seeing this, Chris was immediately alarmed.
Had he come out a bit later, he might have been trapped by this hoard of zombies.
Thankfully, they made it out of the campus without danger. Chris took Micheal and sought refuge in a street-side bank.
Entering the bank triggered a zombie's roar, prompting Chris to instinctively prepare a defensive movement.
Before he could complete the action, Micheal, seemingly influenced by Chris's defensive thoughts, violently collided with the approaching zombie.
"Bang!"
The zombie was unexpectedly knocked by Micheal, sliding far away and struggling to stand.
Chris, regaining his senses, fueled by a mix of opportunism and lingering fear, picked up the fire ax and struck down violently on the fallen zombie.
Weekly Power Status
-- Power
Ranking 
-- Power
stone