NOVEL WEB Chapter 2: The Home Is Gone
Chapter 2: The Home Is Gone
About half a month ago.
Wu Heng obtained an ancient bronze key.
As long as he inserted the key into any door, opening it would lead to a passage to another world.
This reminded Wu Heng of the novels he had read, where the protagonist traveled between different worlds using their willpower.
The only difference was that he was a bit behind, needing a key to manually open the door.
But it didn’t matter; as long as he could cross over, the method was irrelevant.
The starting point in the other world was a remote village.
It was poor, underdeveloped, and the villagers were very xenophobic.
Wu Heng then found a passing caravan and, after a half-month journey, arrived at the nearest town, Blackstone Town.
Just when he was about to use the key to trade items between the two worlds and achieve financial freedom...
The world completely changed.
The modern world he knew vanished, and all he saw were hordes of wandering zombies, with banging sounds coming from doors in the corridors.
Wu Heng was stunned.
He had just spent half a month on the road and was ready to start making a fortune.
But his home was gone.
Looking at the city he lived in turning into this, a sense of unspeakable gloom enveloped his heart.
He didn’t know the cause of these events.
But he could imagine that if the zombie outbreak had happened while he was traveling in the other world, he might have become one of the zombies too.
They say electricity can be stored, and even if power generation stops, it can last for a few months, but here the power was out, and the water wasn’t safe to drink.
Fortunately, there was Blackstone Town, which could provide for his basic needs.
Drawing the curtains tightly again, Wu Heng picked up the prepared weapon and walked out of the bedroom.
There weren’t many items in the living room; most of the things had been taken to Blackstone Town to exchange for money.
And in the current situation, they were basically useless.
In the corner stood a skeletal warrior, bones stark white.
This was a zombie hanging outside the window in an iron basket, which Wu Heng killed and then attempted to summon when he returned last time.
Thus, he gained an undead summon.
【Skeleton Warrior】
【Level: 1 (0/100)】
【Attributes: Constitution 10, Strength 12, Agility 8.】
【Trait: Hollow Skeleton】
The Raise Skeleton skill has two forms of summoning.
One is summoning from the original corpse, where the summoned creature's form and attributes are greatly influenced by its original body.
In other words, the stronger the corpse was in life, the stronger the skeleton summoned.
The other is summoning by gathering a sufficient quantity of scattered bones.
By collecting enough fragments, it’s also possible to summon skeletal units.
"Take this!" Wu Heng handed the iron sword in his hand to it.
Clatter!
The sound of bones rubbing together echoed as the skeleton warrior, in standby mode, raised its stiff arm to grasp the sword handed over.
It held the sword, waiting for the next command.
Wu Heng also picked up a short spear and tried swinging it a few times.
After thinking for a moment, he found a pot lid in the kitchen, wrapped it around his arm, and used it as a shield.
With the final preparations made...
He went to the front door and pressed his ear against it.
He could faintly hear the soft sound of footsteps and the shuffle of something dragging on the ground.
From the sound, it seemed there weren't many zombies in the stairwell; if there were only one or two, it should be manageable.
As long as he could kill one, the number of skeleton warriors would increase.
Even if there was danger, as long as he didn't get infected, he could retreat.
The advantage was his, and the problem was minimal.
After making up his mind, he didn’t hesitate any longer.
He ordered the skeleton warrior to move to the doorway, took a deep breath, and then opened the door directly.
As the door slowly opened, a stronger, more unbearable stench hit him.
His throat itched, and he almost coughed instinctively.
But he held it back for fear of attracting zombies.
With the door fully open, he could see the blood-stained, scratched walls of the corridor, and the dark red, muddy floor; the scene was as horrifying as a horror movie.
Luckily, there were no zombies right at the door.
"Go out!" Wu Heng ordered in a low voice.
The skeleton warrior, carrying the iron sword, obeyed and walked out. Wu Heng followed, leaving the door slightly ajar.
As soon as he stepped out, he saw a zombie at the stairwell corner below. Hearing the noise, it turned its head and looked up.
Its hair was matted with blood scabs, its skin was grayish-white, crisscrossed with dark veins, its mouth wide open, with black, jagged teeth.
It was the old lady from the second floor; Wu Heng recognized her.
She had previously mentioned setting him up with someone.
Looks like that won’t happen now.
The sudden appearance of a person and a skeleton made the zombie hesitate for a moment.
Then it let out an angry roar and charged up the stairs.
"Kill it!" Wu Heng, feeling tense, decisively ordered.
He had to face the zombie; this was the first step to continue moving forward.
The skeleton warrior immediately raised its sword and met the attack.
The zombie charged fiercely, while the skeleton warrior, standing above, took advantage of its height and slashed down with the iron sword.
Squelch~!
The sound of the blade sinking into flesh echoed as the sword chopped heavily into the zombie’s shoulder.
The zombie, feeling no pain, staggered under the force, tripping on the steps, and slid right between the skeleton’s legs.
It flailed its arms, attempting to bite at Wu Heng’s groin.
The attack aimed at his manhood scared him into quickly backing away.
After putting some distance between them, he looked down at his lower body, relieved to find he hadn’t been hit.
The zombie, now beneath the skeleton, continued to roar and struggle.
Squelch!
The skeleton warrior’s second thrust drove the iron sword through the zombie's body.
Wu Heng, holding the short spear, aimed at the eye socket and stabbed.
Thud!
The zombie flailed its arms, causing the spear to miss and hit its forehead instead.
The skin split, but the spear didn’t pierce the skull. The zombie started struggling even more violently, almost knocking the skeleton over.
The skeleton and zombie tangled together, rolling down the stairs.
Wu Heng gripped the spear, ready to assist the skeleton in finishing it off.
Suddenly, the sound of hurried footsteps came from above. Another zombie, covered in rotting flesh, rushed down.
Upon seeing Wu Heng, it leaped down the stairs, pouncing toward him.
Damn!
A tense sense of crisis surged in his heart.
Wu Heng didn’t have time to analyze any strategy; he raised the shield on his left arm and braced himself for impact.
With a bang, the zombie collided with him mid-air, splattering black blood in all directions.
Wu Heng staggered back and slammed into the wall behind him.
The zombie tumbled down the stairs. Gritting his teeth, Wu Heng got up and stabbed the falling zombie with the iron spear. The rotting body was surprisingly resilient.
Stabbing it felt like piercing through tough leather.
Several thrusts later, he hadn’t inflicted any fatal wounds on the zombie.
The zombie quickly got up again, launching another attack. Wu Heng used the shield to block and stabbed the short spear into its chest and abdomen.
This is tricky!
If he got scratched or bitten, he would be done for.
Glancing at the slightly open door behind him, he considered retreating when a notification appeared in his ear.
【Gained Experience +10.】
【Summoned Unit - Skeleton Warrior Gained Experience +5.】
Out of the corner of his eye, he saw...
The battle at the stairwell corner had ended. The skeleton warrior, using its weapon’s advantage, had smashed the zombie's head and killed it.
"Come up and kill this target."
The skeleton warrior quickly walked up, positioning itself in front of Wu Heng, and swung the iron sword at the zombie again.
The skeleton and zombie fought similarly, with little in the way of defense.
They just aimed for each other’s bodies.
All their moves were attacks.
All the actions were purely offensive.
Shaking off the zombie, Wu Heng quickly retreated to the stairwell corner and cast 'Raise Skeleton' on the recently killed zombie.
Necromantic magic enveloped the corpse.
The zombie’s flesh melted like hot wax, and a human skeleton stood up on its hands.
"Go, attack." Wu Heng pointed to the battle happening upstairs.
The newly risen skeleton warrior, receiving the command, rushed up barehanded.
Wu Heng then shook his arm to ease the pain from the earlier collision.
The pot lid he was using as a shield was now bent and deformed, but it had thankfully blocked the zombie’s attack at a crucial moment.
Zombies aren’t particularly powerful in terms of attack.
The most troublesome part is the toxins in their bodies.
If you get bitten or scratched, you could die a rather unfair death.
The battle above continued.
The two skeletons cornered the zombie, one wielding a sword, the other using its fists, raining blows down like a storm.
Black blood and chunks of flesh splattered everywhere.
Finally, amidst the zombie’s enraged roars and struggles, it was stabbed through the neck with a sword. Its body stopped resisting and slumped down.
【Gained Experience +10.】
【Summoned Unit - Skeleton Warrior Gained Experience +5.】
Experience increased again.
Just like in the games he used to play.
This was why he chose to be a Necromancer.
Blackstone Town didn’t allow him to experiment with magic or summon undead creatures.
But he had this world.
He could fully rely on the zombies in this world to level up and accumulate power.
Once he had enough power, the restrictions on Necromancers in Blackstone Town would naturally be resolved.
He used Raise Skeleton.
Clatter~!
Flesh fell away, and the third skeleton warrior stood up again.
Before he could do anything, two more zombies slowly walked up from downstairs.
They looked up simultaneously, staring upwards.
"Attack!"