Chapter 167: Sorting Out  

It had been three peaceful days.

It was undoubtedly an enjoyable time for Luo Yuan and the rest of the survivors. They could finally get some sleep and not need to worry about the weather the next day or getting attacked by mutated beasts. Most importantly, they did not have to worry about losing their lives.

Jiaping City had been cleaned up and was temporarily safe. It would take ten to fifteen days for mutated beasts from other areas to come and conquer it.

The situation also allowed Luo Yuan some private time to think and sort out his abilities.

He was sitting cross-legged far from the team, in front of the subway station. He closed his eyes, and his black Zhanmadao was on the concrete floor right in front of him.

An invincible power surrounded the sword. Any ordinary human would feel it at first glance. Even some mutated flies nearby dared not come closer.

Suddenly, something amazing happened.

The Zhanmadao started to quiver. At first, Luo Yuan thought that he was hallucinating, but as time passed, it trembled more and more, producing a buzzing vibration. This was caused by the high-frequency vibration of the knife.

It kept quivering until Luo Yuan suddenly opened his eyes.

Then the buzzing sound stopped.

Luo Yuan stood up and pulled out the Zhanmadao. He looked at it carefully with joy in his eyes.

This was a phenomenon that he had only recently discovered. The more he used the knife, the better it performed. It felt like the knife was the extension of his body, a continuation of his blood. This was not just an illusion; it was happening.

No matter where the knife was, he could sense it. Even if he asked Huang Jiahui to hide it from him in a place far away, as far as four to five hundred meters, Luo Yuan would still be able to sense its presence.

Of course, Wang Shishi had a similar ability. Her telekinesis did not just afford her the ability to sense the Zhanmadao; she was also able to control the sword. However, Luo Yuan was ecstatic to be in control of such an ability. He was not like Wang Shishi, who possessed that power by nature, but an additional ability would at the very least help him survive in a cruel world.

Luo Yuan was guessing that it was related to his Will, and not his Intuition because he had been enhancing the Zhanmadao with his Will. It had even left a mark on the sword and created a link between the Zhanmadao and his body.

Even if one were holding two identical knives, they would still be able to tell which one was theirs when it was in their hand. Anything that they used frequently would bear a sense of familiarity.

The feeling was even clearer for someone like Luo Yuan, who was able to concentrate his Will and mark his belongings.

During that time, Luo Yuan had been sorting out his abilities. To some extent, he could not be considered a human being anymore. His strength and abilities were way beyond ordinary, his exceptional body performance showing that he had already evolved into a different species.

His lung capacity was seven to eight times larger than ordinary people’s. He could hold his breath for half an hour, and he could eat ten days’ worth of meals in one day. He was still able to maintain his stamina, even if he had not eaten in a few days. He could see a bird a kilometer away, and his nose was like a dog’s. He could smell a variety of subtle smells in the air and even sense the moist density of the air to predict the weather.

These were just the abilities brought by his physical attributes.

His Intelligence gave him high-speed computing power, his Intuition gave him a second viewing angle as well as dynamic tracking capabilities, and his Will could make all his wishes come true.

It might not sound as terrifying if these abilities were used individually. However, when they were all used at the same time, it was the greatest power of all. The key was handling and integrating these abilities to create the most efficient combination. In fact, Luo Yuan had felt uncoordinated since he’d left Hedong City. He had gotten all these capabilities through the system attribution in a short time, instead of earning them by training and practicing. As a result, they had not been used correctly. Also, he was tense all the time, so he had not gotten the chance to adapt to his new capabilities, which had caused inaccuracy when estimating the strength he needed to use during a battle. Fortunately, he had successfully survived all battles thanks to his luck and physical capabilities, but this had also made Luo Yuan treat this issue with seriousness.

He was just like a machine with the most advanced technology. Despite their advanced functions, machines still needed to be precise to carry out their tasks. They same theory also applied to humans.

If a man did not know how high he could jump, how fast he could run, or how strong he had to be to break his chopsticks, how could one expect him to excel at fighting? He was even more dangerous than someone who was not aware of their abilities.

In short, his lack of coordination was to blame.

What could he do about that, though? Only practice would help.

Therefore, the past few days Luo Yuan had dedicated a lot of time every day to perform basic exercises, including a variety of high-intensity exercises and Zhanmadao practice. Other than that, what Luo Yuan had done the most was try tai-chi with the elders.

Huang Jiahui had taught him how to do it. Although it was just the basic form of tai-chi, which was harmless and just helped keep one fit and in good health, it was completely different in Luo Yuan’s case.

For him, mastering one was equivalent to mastering everything.

Luo Yuan was already an expert in using a knife, and the knife skill was an extended skill for boxing. So, as Luo Yuan improved his knife skill, his boxing skill improved along with it. Even though he had never trained in boxing before, when his knife skill reached the expert level, his boxing skill would be over ten points as well.

He became an expert at tai-chi within a very short period.

Just in three days of training, Luo Yuan had already mastered the essence of tai-chi. At the same time, his boxing skill had increased to 19 points, just one point away from being a professional. He now looked no different than someone who had been boxing for more than ten years.

He was not sure if this skill would help him in battle until he used it in a real fight. However, the slow movement of tai-chi was very useful in helping him coordinate and control his strength.

Suddenly, Luo Yuan frowned and shouted emotionally, "Who’s out there?"

There was a figure camouflaged by a vine crouching at a corner not far from the subway station. If it were not for Luo Yuan’s Intuition sensing their breathing, he wouldn’t have been aware of their presence.

The person did not move. They seemed hesitant, but after a while, they pushed the camouflage away and slowly stood up. The man’s body shook a bit, perhaps because of the poor blood circulation in his body after lying down for so long.

He walked step by step towards the station entrance, glancing at the pile of bones in front of it. Some were human bones while others belonged to mutated beasts. A few of them were still bloody and fresh. The dark subway station looked just like the cave of the devil.

There was nothing else he could do but make this last attempt.

He gritted his teeth and walked into the station.

Luo Yuan was shocked as he looked at the man. He was dressed in rags, covered in dirt and blood, and his hair was so filthy, it had bugs living inside it. Judging by his appearance, it was difficult to identify him.

Luo Yuan had met a lot of survivors, but none of them had been as dirty as this man.

Beggars looked cleaner than him.

Luo Yuan glanced at him, the man’s stance finally giving him a small clue. "Are you a soldier?” he asked. “Or did you use to be one? Why are you here?"

The man felt pressured by Luo Yuan. Despite being an expert at the knife skill, Luo Yuan was still not able to camouflage his power. It had hit the man head on.

His body shook a bit as he said, "Yes, I am a soldier, but I’ve been separated from my team. There are still a bunch of my mates out there half-dead. Our Commander was hoping that...,” he suddenly paused, not knowing how to address Luo Yuan. An idea popped in his mind as he continued, “He was hoping that Boss could save us and take us along."

"Save you? How many of you are there?" Luo Yuan asked as his heart beat fast.

"Thirteen, maybe less," the soldier answered.

"Less?" Luo Yuan asked curiously.

"Before we separated to look for survivors, there were fourteen of us." The soldier looked calm, but his voice trembled a little. One of his mates was gone forever.

Luo Yuan’s facial expression changed slightly. He suddenly recalled something and asked, “Where are you coming from?"

“Hedong City. We were separated when the mutation hit the city. There were hundreds of us in the team initially, but only a few of us are left now. Please help us... We are all soldiers. We’re good in battle, we won’t bring any trouble to you," said the soldier. Noticing that Luo Yuan was not responding to him, he suddenly kneeled down and bowed, his head hitting the floor hard.

"Bang... Bang... Bang...!"

Luo Yuan was shocked and immediately pulled the man up. His forehead was bloody, but the soldier still looked calm. Luo Yuan nodded and said, “I never said no. Please draw a map of the location for me on the ground.”

The soldier was very excited. He kept thanking Luo Yuan as he quickly took a stone and started to draw on the ground.

Luo Yuan looked at the map. It was only two or three kilometers away from the subway station. He asked a few more questions and then addressed the people behind him, who had already come over after watching the scene, "You stay here. I’m going with this man. I’ll be right back."

He gave Huang Jiahui and Wang Shishi a wink, and the women nodded to show their understanding.

Although the soldier did not seem to be lying, he still had to remain on alert and be extra careful around him.