Chapter 2

With a thud, Wang Fusheng stepped on the ground, leaving cracks on the cement. His body shot forward like a cheetah.

Swish! A single slash of his hand, and even though the zombie, mutated by radiation and virus, was far stronger and more resilient than a normal human, it was enough to snap its neck with a crack, twisting it grotesquely.

The zombie, with only one eye left and blood dripping from its mouth, fell straight to the ground. Another zombie nearby, hearing the commotion, turned to look over.

Wang Fusheng, who had taken out one zombie with a single slash, leaped up. He clamped the neck of the turning zombie with his legs and performed a 360-degree spin in the air.

Crack! The zombie's neck, clamped by Wang Fusheng's legs, snapped, and its body flipped through the air, landing with a thud on the ground.

Wang Fusheng, spinning in the air, landed on his left foot, absorbing the force of his descent. His body crouched on the ground, and as his right foot and one hand touched the ground simultaneously, he used his left foot as a pivot to sweep the third zombie off its feet with his right leg.

As he swept the zombie to the ground, Wang Fusheng leaped up, and his left knee, bent, came down forcefully on the zombie's neck. Green blood spurted from the zombie's mouth, splattering onto Wang Fusheng's pants. He stood up expressionlessly, his eyes sparkling with excitement.

Although it seemed like a lot of actions, Wang Fusheng completed them in less than three seconds. All three zombies, stronger and more resilient than ordinary humans, were taken out without a single wasted move. Each offensive action prepared for the next, and no extra force was used. Wang Fusheng's mastery of combat had reached its peak.

At the headquarters of the Chinese "Fate" game operation, supercomputers flashed with data. All the staff were busy with the game's first operation, searching for potential errors and working with the game's AI to correct them.

"Any problems?" A middle-aged man with glasses, looking refined and scholarly, walked in and asked a staff member.

"Everything is normal. However, the game map is too large, and the number of players in some war ruins ranges from dozens to thousands, while the number of mutated creatures is less than 100. Some players, not assigned by category, end up in war ruins with only a few zombies, making survival more difficult."

"Ah, this issue was considered during the initial random setup. When a player dies, they lose a certain amount of points and respawn at a nearby resurrection point. For civilians, death does not require points, and they respawn randomly in other war ruins. If some ruins have too many mutated creatures, dying a few times and respawning randomly will help. Alternatively, if a player chooses to mutate after being bitten by a zombie and continues to kill zombies, they can advance to the rank of private and choose the mutant profession, which is a good option. These people are already outstanding, so the risks they face will bring significant rewards. At least they won't have to compete for monsters and can progress faster from low-level war ruins." The middle-aged man nodded and then looked at some other data before leaving.

Wang Fusheng swept through the war ruins like a whirlwind, demonstrating almost every form of combat. When the points on his electronic device reached 56, he finally stopped his killing spree, roaring to the sky to release the pent-up frustration of over a year. Panting, he sat on the ground, his rapidly beating heart gradually calming down.

Then, Wang Fusheng stood up and began to clean up the battlefield he had ravaged. If it weren't for the items dropped by the zombies and the electronic device that allowed communication and questions, he would have mistaken this for a real war ruin. The atmosphere, smell, scenery, and enemies were so similar to a real war ruin that it was as if they were carved from the same mold.

To avoid being bitten or scratched by zombies and becoming a mutant, Wang Fusheng chose to kill only ordinary zombies. The items dropped were simple: a pair of military boots, though one shoelace was missing; a small backpack made of canvas, which was usable; and some miscellaneous parts, such as a firing pin, spring, and magazine from an outdated gun, along with a few ordinary bullets, which could be used in a submachine gun.

"Really stingy. After all that killing, I only got this much. Not even a complete pistol, just these parts. At least they dropped bullets directly; otherwise, I would have cursed. Gun parts can be assembled, but assembling bullets is a technical skill. If done wrong, it could cause a chamber explosion or jam, making it worse to use."

Wang Fusheng pulled a wire from nearby, cut a piece with his teeth, and used it to carry the items. He put on the military green boots he had obtained. Seeing his speed increase from 87 to 91, he smiled.

However, his other attributes had decreased, especially his stamina and mental strength, which dropped to 81 and 82, respectively, and his overall combat ability decreased by 10 points. This was like a person becoming fatigued after intense combat. The system-generated base data adjusted according to the player's state.

If a player was well-fed and in the best condition, their peak data would be at its best. If they were exhausted after a battle, all attributes would decrease. If any attribute reached 0, the player would die.

The system also seemed to have a hidden setting to scan the player's brain waves and judge the potential they could unleash in critical moments. However, the exact nature of this potential was unclear, as it was not mentioned in the game data and was set as a top secret by the game company.

When Wang Fusheng noticed his decreased attributes, he suddenly realized that his base attributes did not include defense. This differed from some games and real-world assessments he was familiar with. However, after some thought, he understood. This was a modern war game, and wearing bulletproof vests, hiding in mechs, or using other equipment might provide defense. As for the human body's natural defense, it was meaningless against bullets or bayonets. Even if you had well-developed chest muscles, they wouldn't protect your neck. Even if they had some effect, they would be useless in such combat. Therefore, the human body's natural defense was difficult to define and was not included.

Wang Fusheng then checked his mission panel, which now had only one mission: Survival.

Survival: Survive in the war ruins. Surviving for one hour earns 10 points, with a maximum of 100 points.

This setting was clearly designed for players with no combat ability, allowing them to hide and survive for 10 hours to earn 100 points and advance to the rank of private. For players who could kill zombies, this mission was also a good bonus.

"I want to exchange for water and food." After finishing everything and relieving his inner suppression, Wang Fusheng did not continue to kill zombies but prepared to exchange for water and food.

All players started as civilians, and to advance to the rank of private, they needed 100 points. Wang Fusheng had already killed 56 zombies, which was a significant number. However, "Fate" did not have silver coins, gold coins, or federal currency. The only currency was points, which served as both experience and money. Points were used not only for advancing in rank but also for buying equipment, learning skills, acquiring materials, renting shops, and more. Therefore, if a player left with only 100 points, their life outside would be miserable.

Some might ask, wouldn't going to higher-level dungeons and killing stronger monsters earn more points, making leveling up the best strategy? However, this view was held by gaming novices. Leveling up did allow entry to higher-level dungeons, increased base attributes, and provided better equipment and points, but it required a foundation. What foundation? The qualification to obtain these things. Level was just the ticket to enter higher-level dungeons, but strength was the foundation for obtaining what you wanted. Entering higher-level dungeons without the strength to kill the monsters inside was futile.

In the game, players with excellent equipment and maxed-out skills often defeated those with only high levels but no equipment or skills. Therefore, according to some game data, to be ready for combat after leaving, a player should store around 500 points to advance from civilian to private. This meant storing about 400 points after the 100 needed for the rank. This would allow them to choose their profession, learn skills, and buy weapons and equipment suitable for a private, giving them a chance to progress through higher-level dungeons. This was especially important in the early stages of the game.

When everyone started with nothing, except for those with incredible luck who could kill monsters and obtain enough items, others had to exchange for essential equipment from the system. Even those with good luck needed points to learn skills, so storing 100 points and rushing out was not a good idea unless they had a strong player to help them level up and obtain equipment. Otherwise, they would not survive outside.

Therefore, this setting in "Fate" frustrated players but was also a highlight of the game. The single-minded strategy of leveling up by killing monsters was too monotonous. Instead, the need to plan and use points wisely made the game more interesting. Different players made different choices, leading to various combinations and making the game more diverse and colorful.

Ding! The system has confirmed your location and will perform an airdrop within 30 minutes. Due to weather conditions, the error range is approximately 1 kilometer.

"An error range of 1 kilometer is a bit too large, isn't it?" Wang Fusheng frowned, shaking his head in dissatisfaction. However, compared to the enemy's survival in the past with no assistance, this was much better, so he only complained casually.

After exchanging for water and food, Wang Fusheng did not engage in further combat. Although his base attributes had only slightly decreased due to the fatigue from the fight, he was already feeling hungry after the intense activity. Hunger was a significant feature in "Fate," as it could quickly drain a player's basic combat ability, making them weak, just like in real life.

Although Wang Fusheng still had plenty of energy, preserving his current strength before obtaining food to alleviate hunger was a small trick for survival in a dangerous area. You couldn't predict future dangers, so it was best to minimize your consumption when you had no food.