Chapter Sixty-Nine: Adapting to Change

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Watching Yang Shuo leave, first brimming with joy and then slumping with dejection as he opened the door, Fan Li did not hurry to rest. Instead, he took out his oil pen and notebook, writing down line after line of notes.

[Fear Resistance Enhancement], [Night Vision], [Intimidation], [Resistant Skin]

Current Monsters: Ellie, The Butcher.

Common zombie, zombie hound, bound horror.

Advanced forms: Wailer, Vomiter, Mist, zombie hound;

Complete monsters: Titan, Nightmare.

The Mist was a zombie torn to shreds by the Butcher; because it could create a small area of visual obstruction, Fan Li gave it a simple, descriptive name.

After he finished, Fan Li drew a circle around the words “zombie hound,” “Mist,” and “Nightmare”—these were the names of the creatures sealed within his bestiary.

Unconsciously, aside from common zombies, Fan Li had already encountered quite a few advanced zombies. Yet he had to admit, without Ellie’s assistance, any one of these advanced forms might have been fatal to him.

Thinking it over, he found himself missing Ellie a little. The sealed relic could not be used, but his own life was more important. Nightmare was a complete form and much more versatile; as for the zombie hound and Mist which he had just sealed, he could feed one as an offering—after all, Ellie showed no signs of awakening even now.

Fan Li rested his chin in his hand, scrutinizing his notes.

In the end, he selected the especially grotesque zombie hound—not because the Mist was more appealing, but because he thought that after consuming the zombie hound’s seal and gaining a quadrupedal ability, it might be a bit too bizarre.

He opened his Monster Compendium to the page depicting the zombie hound: inside a black cage, a rotting canine was posed mid-howl, its cloudy, crazed eyes fixed on Fan Li, making provocative gestures.

"Truly ugly."

Fan Li commented, pressed his finger to its head, and declared, "Feed to Ellie!"

At his words, the ferocious zombie hound’s face contorted with madness. Its body twisted at unnatural angles, as if crushed by an invisible giant hand, and at last, in utter despair, it burst apart, dissolving into a dense blood mist!

The blood mist seeped from the Monster Compendium; the drifting haze gathered together, like a crimson serpent, and slithered onto Ellie’s page.

“Creak... creak...”

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The music box set aside began to turn, though instead of its usual light and cheerful tune, it now sounded as if rusted, slightly jarring to the ear.

Whether it was an illusion or not, the will within the music box seemed reluctant to play, but forced by the allure of the blood mist, it reluctantly, begrudgingly, and almost vividly turned a few times.

Still angry?

Compared to the Butcher, hailed in the compendium as the Executioner of Darkness, Ellie was certainly closer to Fan Li—not just because she was the first monster he summoned, but also because of her evident desire for communication.

One ought not expect monsters to possess true intelligence, but compared to the Butcher’s coldness and the ever-present threat of decapitation by his massive cleaver, Fan Li and Ellie had moved past their initial awkwardness. At the very least, he could now command her without worrying she’d bite his head off in the night.

The blood mist aided in healing wounds. The reason for Ellie’s current reluctance most likely traced back to the day she fought desperately to kill Nightmare, only for her hard-earned meal to vanish in an instant.

So... perhaps her physical wounds had long since healed. Her absence was simply a protest, a silent expression of dissatisfaction.

She was blaming him for not guarding her meal?

Indeed, women have always been unreasonable beings—even a monster with a female visage was no exception.

Creak!

With a tooth-aching scrape, the music box played its final note. The room swiftly grew ominous; Fan Li sensed it and turned, catching sight of a frail, helpless figure behind him.

Ellie stood with her head bowed, no longer baring her chilling teeth as before. In this state, she looked like nothing more than a lost child seeking help—her skin pale, her hair falling to her shoulders, radiating vulnerability.

Though he’d already killed more zombies than he could count, Fan Li still lacked the courage to lift her chin and offer an embrace.

To an ordinary person, she was just a little girl. But Fan Li knew her appearance was but a disguise, like a vengeful spirit dressed as a doll, her form filled with boundless resentment. If disturbed, all that hatred for life would be unleashed.

September was drawing to a close. The sound of the night wind brushing against the glass, in such a tense atmosphere, became eerily strange.

Ellie refused to speak, or even to lift her head.

Fan Li rubbed his brow, understanding somewhat. He’d spent countless nights grinding for loot, only to have his hard-won prize snatched by another player at the last moment—the frustration was soul-crushing.

But compensation was out of the question; Fan Li had no such plans for now. If the opportunity arose, he’d offer her some delicacies in the future, as interest.

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"End the summoning!"

Fan Li murmured, and Ellie’s form began to fade, like worms writhing and crawling apart, until she vanished without a trace.

Picking up his pen, Fan Li turned to Ellie’s record page and wrote:

"Mentally immature, kills by instinct, more childlike in temperament; gets angry over food, but favor can be increased by offerings. Summary: Can use more delicacies to foster goodwill, making her easier to control and command."

Compared to his initial fear and dread upon summoning Ellie, Fan Li had now fully adapted to this little monster’s presence.

People change according to their environment.

Even a white lotus, placed in filth, will eventually rot—no matter how radiant its petals, the roots will blacken and decay.

Within a month, Fan Li had accepted the apocalypse, the existence of zombies, and the sense of security granted by the Monster Compendium.

Be it his unique traits, Ellie, or the Butcher, these were his trump cards for surviving this unknown world.

With his current strength, Fan Li could easily scavenge the surrounding shops. Yang Shuo was right: everything nearby was enough for several people to live safely for a year or more.

But it wasn’t just humans who adapted to the apocalypse. Compared to the still-fragile bodies and lost order of mankind, zombies had evolved into advanced forms—and even more terrifying existences—driven by their environment and the unknown.

Compared to food, power was the true key to survival!

"Zhongshan Hospital."

Lying on his bed, Fan Li murmured. According to Liu Hao, it was a place haunted by an extraordinarily terrifying entity. Yet for Fan Li, it represented a higher value in kill points, and a new page for his compendium.

"I must find a way to claim it…"

His strained nerves finally found a moment’s respite in his little den. As the shrill howls of zombies echoed from the streets outside, Fan Li’s consciousness relaxed, and he drifted into sleep...