The dorm room fell silent.
Blood continued to drip slowly onto the floor.
Lin Ye stood still, letting his body adjust to the changes brought by the System. The warmth inside him had not faded. It settled deep into his muscles, making them feel tighter, more responsive.
He clenched his fist.
There was strength.
But not enough.
He lowered his gaze toward the corpse.
Zhang Wei lay motionless. The pale eyes had gone dim. Whatever remained of him was gone completely.
A brief memory surfaced.
Late-night conversations.
Shared jokes.
Small, meaningless moments.
Lin Ye looked away.
"In this world, memory has no value."
He crouched down and quickly checked the body.
Nothing useful.
No items.
No drops.
He stood up again, already expecting this result.
"Normal zombies don't always drop anything. Especially at the start."
He stepped back and focused his mind.
The system interface appeared again.
[Name: Lin Ye][Level: 1][Class: None][Title: None]
[EXP: 2 / 100]
Strength: 11Agility: 12Vitality: 10Spirit: 13Endurance: 10
Lin Ye's eyes paused on the experience bar.
"Only two points…"
He had killed one zombie.
And gained only 2 EXP.
"To reach level two, I need one hundred."
That meant at least fifty zombies.
At minimum.
And that was assuming no interruptions, no injuries, no risks.
Lin Ye's expression grew slightly serious.
"So they adjusted the difficulty."
In his previous life, early leveling had been slightly faster.
Now it was clearly harsher.
Which meant one thing.
"More people will die before they can grow."
The gap between the weak and the strong would widen even faster.
He closed the interface.
"This is better for me."
The harder it was for others to grow, the more valuable his experience became.
He turned toward the broken door.
The hallway beyond was quiet.
Too quiet.
Lin Ye stepped forward slowly.
The fire axe remained steady in his hand.
Each step was controlled.
Careful.
The moment he entered the corridor, he heard it.
Dragging footsteps.
He stopped instantly.
Listened.
Two separate rhythms.
Two zombies.
Coming from the far end.
Lin Ye did not retreat.
Instead, he adjusted his grip.
"Two targets. Good."
The figures appeared soon after.
Two students.
Their heads tilted unnaturally.
Eyes pale.
Bodies stiff.
They noticed him immediately.
Low growls echoed in the hallway.
They began moving toward him.
Slow.
But direct.
Lin Ye stepped forward instead.
The distance closed quickly.
Three meters.
Two.
One.
He moved.
The axe swung horizontally.
The first zombie's skull split open.
Before it hit the ground, Lin Ye shifted his weight.
The second zombie lunged clumsily.
He stepped aside and brought the axe down.
A clean vertical strike.
The body collapsed instantly.
Silence.
Lin Ye stood still for a moment.
Then the system voice echoed again.
[You have killed a Level 1 Zombie][EXP +2]
[You have killed a Level 1 Zombie][EXP +2]
A faint warmth flowed through his body.
Small.
Almost negligible.
He opened his status again.
[EXP: 6 / 100]
Lin Ye frowned slightly.
"Too slow."
Even with perfect efficiency, this pace was not enough.
"At this rate, I'll still be level one after clearing this entire floor."
He needed something more.
Stronger enemies.
Or special opportunities.
Just then, a scream echoed from below.
"Help! Someone help me!"
A female voice.
Panicked.
Desperate.
Lin Ye walked toward the stairwell and looked down.
At the entrance level, a girl had fallen.
Three zombies were closing in on her.
She tried to crawl away, but her leg was clearly injured.
She would not escape.
Lin Ye watched for a brief second.
Calculated distance.
Timing.
Risk.
Then he moved.
Fast.
Down the stairs.
Each step was controlled, but efficient.
By the time he reached the bottom, one zombie was already within arm's reach of the girl.
It lunged.
Lin Ye arrived.
The axe came down instantly.
The zombie dropped.
The other two turned toward him.
Too slow.
Two clean strikes.
Both fell.
The girl lay frozen on the ground.
Her face was pale.
Her breathing uneven.
She looked up at Lin Ye as if she could not understand what had just happened.
"You… saved me…"
Lin Ye did not answer immediately.
He checked the surroundings first.
No additional threats.
Only then did the system voice sound again.
[You have killed a Level 1 Zombie][EXP +2]
[You have killed a Level 1 Zombie][EXP +2]
[You have killed a Level 1 Zombie][EXP +2]
He opened his status.
[EXP: 12 / 100]
Lin Ye stared at the number for a moment.
"Six zombies. Twelve EXP."
The ratio was consistent.
But still slow.
Very slow.
He closed the interface.
The girl's voice trembled.
"Can… can you help me up?"
Lin Ye glanced at her leg.
Sprained.
Painful, but not fatal.
She could survive.
If she stayed calm.
He stepped back slightly.
"You can move."
The girl froze.
"You're leaving?"
Lin Ye looked at her calmly.
"If you want to live, stay quiet and stay hidden."
He paused briefly.
"Noise attracts them."
Then he turned and walked away.
No hesitation.
No extra words.
The girl stared at his back, unable to speak.
Lin Ye stepped out of the building.
The moment he crossed the entrance, the full scene of the apocalypse unfolded before him.
Bodies.
Blood.
Scattered belongings.
Zombies wandering across the campus.
Some chased survivors.
Others moved aimlessly.
The sky remained clear.
Bright.
Peaceful.
As if nothing had changed.
Lin Ye tightened his grip on the axe.
His eyes moved constantly.
Observing.
Calculating.
Every movement.
Every sound.
"This is only the beginning."
He stepped forward.
Into the open.
Into danger.
"This time…"
His voice was low.
"I won't waste a single moment."
Leveling was harder.
Resources were limited.
Survival was uncertain.
But to Lin Ye, this only meant one thing.
He needed to get ahead faster.
Much faster.
Because once the stronger monsters appeared…
Level one players would not even have the right to survive.