Skill Card?
Leonard's eyes lit up, and he quickly pulled the card out.
Skill Card
Name: Double Kick
Level: 1
Attack: 8
Effect A: Rising kick to the enemy's head, with a 30% chance to stun for 3 seconds.
Effect B: Sweeping kick to the legs with a knockdown effect.
Stamina Cost: 3
Cooldown: 25 seconds
Restriction: None
Requirement: Strength > 8, Agility > 12
Description: Kick high or kick low. It's your call.
"Perfect! Just when I wanted to sleep, a pillow shows up. Now I can equip two skill cards."
Leonard immediately equipped the skill card.
With two skills to alternate between, his combat options increased significantly.
This new Double Kick skill even had bonus effects.
Kick high, and the enemy gets stunned.
Kick low, and they get knocked down.
He could choose based on the situation.
Leonard then looked at another item.
It was a pair of shoes!
They looked like sneakers, with three rows of metal studs on the sole. They were brand new, soles spotless.
Finding fresh shoes in a corpse fridge, only in games.
[Acquired Lv. 3 Equipment: Mars Runners]
Mars Runners
Level: 3
Type: Gear
Attribute: Physical / Fire
Attack: 7
Defense: 5
Durability: 28/28
Bonus: Agility +5
Effect: +20% damage to leg attacks. While running, the soles generate sparks. During that time, leg attacks deal an additional 2 fire damage.
Description: Run, brother, run.
Level 3 gear!
For Leonard right now, this was great.
He swapped his shoes immediately.
They paired perfectly with his new skill, boosting kick damage.
Plus, the +5 Agility made him faster and more agile.
Leonard jumped on the spot a couple of times. He felt lighter already.
"Three corpse fridges left. Better move fast."
Using the same method, Leonard opened the remaining fridges.
One was empty. The other two had zombies both taken down quickly.
He had now cleared the entire morgue alone!
"Phew, that was tiring."
Leonard exhaled deeply.
Suddenly, loudspeakers from all floors crackled to life. The announcement could be faintly heard even inside the morgue.
"I'm one step closer to success. The specimens have been optimized. Tonight's zombies will be even more active!"
It was that same voice again.
The boss behind the Night of Terror game!
Whenever this voice sounded, it meant nightfall was coming.
Sure enough.
A countdown appeared in the notification panel.
[Warning! Night is approaching. Countdown: 10…]
Nighttime where danger and opportunity coexist.
Just because this floor was cleared didn't mean the whole building was safe.
And the administrator could still spawn more zombies.
"Nothing to fear. I'll fight my way back."
Leonard stayed calm.
He wasn't the same as before.
Now Level 5.
Two skill cards.
Full gear. A UV flashlight in hand.
Even in a 1v2 situation, he was confident.
Leonard stepped out of the morgue and switched on the flashlight.
"Ugh… grrr..."
A low, guttural growl echoed nearby.
Zombies!
Leonard focused and aimed the flashlight.
A vent had been broken open.
A zombie crawled out halfway, body dangling.
Thud.
It dropped to the floor and struggled to rise.
The beam of the flashlight revealed its horrifying face, pale gray, smeared with blood. Hollow eyes. A mouth full of jagged teeth, with two particularly long fangs.
"Groar!"
The zombie raised its arms and charged at Leonard.
It was noticeably faster and more agile than last night's zombies.
They were evolving!
Leonard frowned and hit the UV switch.
The intense light hit the zombie, forcing it to cover its face and retreat two steps.
Leonard sprinted forward and launched a Heavy Kick.
Straight to the zombie's face.
BAM!
–46
The zombie staggered back, stunned.
That kick knocked it out cold.
Leonard aimed for the head and swung his Madman's Handsaw in a brutal flurry.
The sharp blade tore through its skull, sending blood and gore flying.
Three strikes later, the zombie's head was gone. It was dead.
Black blood pooled beneath it.
The fight had been smooth. Skills, tools, and gear working in sync.
Leonard even felt… thrilled.
Something inside him was awakening.
[Target killed. Gained 18 EXP. 210 EXP needed to level up.]
"Still need that much to level up? This is going to get harder."
Leonard crouched and checked the zombie's pockets, then continued on.
He used his flashlight to navigate the dark B1 level and reached the stairwell.
"Groar! Groar!"
Zombie noises were closing in and it wasn't just one.
Two zombies stumbled down the stairs.
When they saw Leonard, they suddenly sped up, racing down at full tilt.
Pressure mounted.
This was his first time facing two zombies at once.
And they were stronger than last night's.
Leonard gritted his teeth, eyes fierce.
He switched the flashlight into shield mode and braced.
His left hand gripped the saw, ready to strike.
They got closer.
Closer still.
The two zombies were about three steps apart.
Leonard raised his wooden shield and blocked the first one's claws. Then, he counterattacked.
Skill, Triple Strike!
Three swings of the saw.
Two struck the head. One missed.
It wasn't enough to finish it.
The second zombie lunged from the side, forcing Leonard to retreat.
He moved back while fighting, waiting for Heavy Kick to come off cooldown.
Once it was ready, he unleashed a swift sweeping kick, foot slicing through the air with visible force.
It hit hard.
Both zombies got swept to the ground!
Leonard rushed forward and stomped on the injured one.
The shoe soles had metal!
CRACK! CRACK! CRACK!
He stomped until the zombie's face caved in.
Only after earning EXP did he stop.
The other zombie had gotten up.
Now one-on-one, Leonard wasn't worried.
He used the shield to trade blows and aimed at the head.
CRACK! CRACK! CRACK!
Strike after strike, each blow landing on its skull until the zombie collapsed.
Leonard panted heavily.
Zombies down, stamina nearly drained.
Fortunately, during an earlier exploration, Leonard had found a bottle of "energy drink" that could restore strength when consumed.
He took out the "energy drink" and gulped down half the bottle.
Just then, a noise came from the stairs again!
Leonard grew alert and looked upward.
He saw a figure standing there.