Chapter Twenty: Titan

Neither close nor distant.

Fan Li gladly accepted the evaluation given by the Monster Handbook. It seemed that a friendliness score of fifty was just entry-level intimacy. The greatest benefit, however, was that he no longer needed to worry about being devoured by his “allies” while alone; even if he failed to feed them the first time, making up for it the second time would suffice.

What if he failed to feed them twice in a row?

Of course, this thought was nothing more than idle speculation. Having witnessed Ellie’s strength, Fan Li would never be foolish enough to risk his life for such a joke.

Ellie was even more formidable than he had imagined.

Perhaps, when he first summoned Ellie, she hadn’t used her full power, so her presence hadn’t been overwhelming. But when facing the burly zombie, the monster that appeared behind Ellie was bizarre, shadowy, and indescribable.

Perhaps...

Ellie’s appearance was merely a disguise; maybe that monster was her true form, or perhaps it was just one of her abilities—a helper summoned from an unknown, shadowy rift.

Regardless, for Fan Li, this wasn’t bad news. After all, the stronger Ellie was, the safer his own survival became.

If there was bad news… it was the emergence of mutant types. The burly zombie, only slightly weaker than Ellie, had shown mostly a ravenous instinct in the earlier battle, using only seventy or eighty percent of its physical strength.

What worried Fan Li even more was: were there many zombies like this in the outside world?

Seven days in, not only were humans adapting to the apocalypse, but zombies seemed to be undergoing inexplicable changes as well.

Fan Li opened his notebook, turned to a fresh page, and wrote a single sentence: “Mutant Type—Titan”

Titan—that was the name Fan Li gave it.

Just as a species can mutate into different forms due to environment and climate, Fan Li sensed that mutant zombies like the burly one might not retain a single appearance.

No!

Not just possible—certain!

In the future, he would encounter various zombies. Before that, Fan Li needed to record detailed information about them, which would aid him in combat and identifying their weaknesses.

Titan—a legend from the mythology of a certain nation, born mighty and powerful, true giants. It was said their bodies would expand with rage, and the burly zombie had done precisely that.

When Fan Li first saw it, it stood just two meters tall. But after encountering Ellie as food, its form mutated to two and a half meters, muscles like stone, standing like an immovable mountain.

Titan was an apt descriptor.

Fan Li continued his record:

[Titan]

[Zombie]

[Devastating destructive power. Can transform in specific environments, increasing body hardness and attack strength. Ordinary walls offer little resistance.]

[Weakness: Mutation focuses on strength; speed is reduced, though catching up to an adult male is no issue. To escape, seek a vehicle nearby or hide in a confined space.]

[Without heavy weapons, it is advisable to flee if encountered alone. Danger level is on par with monsters!]

Fan Li paused, resting his hand beneath his chin, lost in thought.

The appearance of Titan had shattered Fan Li’s previous understanding of zombies. He’d always thought of them as bloodthirsty, ravenous creatures—beasts.

But beasts are not invincible. City dwellers may fear large beasts, but in certain grasslands, indigenous people with weapons fashioned from trees and stones dare to hunt them for food.

Compared to urbanites, these natives, hardened by harsh environments, treated beasts as prey, hunting them in groups or even alone.

Zombies were like beasts; once their abilities were understood, killing them was difficult but within reach.

Titan was different. Its brute strength was like the legendary iron body, and given its reinforced muscles and bones, ordinary bullets might not even inflict lethal harm—barely scratching the surface.

Without Ellie’s help and the Muramasa demon blade in hand, Fan Li would have stood no chance against it—not now, at least.

Creatures like Titan could no longer be called beasts; they were monsters born of evil, like Ellie.

Impervious to blades and bullets, resistant to fire and water, and capable of undergoing secondary mutations in moments of rage or excitement, becoming even more violent and terrifying.

If Fan Li thought, after a few days in the apocalypse, that he had accepted this shadowy new world, Titan’s emergence dealt him a harsh blow.

He closed his eyes, pinched the bridge of his nose, feeling a mild headache. Who would have expected that, in an already cruel world, such powerful predators would appear?

It was like entering a game as a novice, only to accidentally select the hell difficulty mode—hopeless and miserable, making one wish they could delete their character and start anew.

But Fan Li knew well that this game was called “Reality.” There was indeed a delete option, but only once; if he deleted his character, the screen would instantly go black, never to log in again.

So, if he didn’t want the screen to go black, he could only grit his teeth and keep playing.

Fan Li pondered further.

Killing an ordinary zombie for the first time always granted a trait reward, but this time, the Monster Handbook remained silent.

Apparently, kills made by pets didn’t count; to gain trait rewards, he had to do it himself.

However...

For Fan Li, creatures like Titan were to be observed from a distance, not trifled with. If he got too close, who knew who would play with whom...

“Hiss, hiss...”

After Titan died, the zombies that had been lurking in the corners emerged once more, now more agitated, hissing and howling incessantly.

Fan Li glanced at his watch, muttering in confusion, “It’s not even night yet—why are they making such a racket?”

Curious, he drew back the curtains. The rain outside showed no sign of stopping, still pouring relentlessly. Amidst the downpour, the zombies below were clustered together, fighting amongst themselves.

Though zombies were bloodthirsty, their aggression was usually directed at humans. Fan Li had never seen them battle each other—perhaps they were venting their humiliation after encountering Titan?

“No, that’s not it!”

Looking closer, Fan Li’s expression grew serious. The zombies weren’t brawling across the streets, but gathering in a specific area.

“They seem to be fighting over Titan’s corpse?!”