Chapter Sixteen: Raising the Dead

I led Fourth Master across the desolate rubble, heading toward the street where the Noise Reduction Armored Vehicle was stationed. What a thrill—after four months in the Wasted Era, I had never felt so at ease as I did today. Oddly enough, I hadn’t run into that vanished Nightmare Fiend.

“Wow…”

Because many of the undead had been lured away earlier, the streets around here held only a smattering of stragglers, causing me little trouble. Still, the sounds grated on my nerves.

As I moved forward, alert yet relaxed, an unusual noise came from the street to my left—the sound of human footsteps!

What’s going on? Could it be someone from the armored vehicle coming down? That shouldn’t be—the city still has survivors?

I tensed, bringing Fourth Master close as we crept along the wall, cautiously peering into the depths of the street.

Damn! What was I thinking? It’s pitch black—how am I supposed to see anything? But, hadn’t I just earned some gene points? Time to use them!

I hurriedly summoned the Level One Gene Interface. The six options at this level were all basic bodily enhancements, but they were practical.

Without hesitation, I selected vision enhancement.

“Visual Function Advanced Upgrade: consumes 1000 gene points.”

“Vision upgraded… 1000 gene points deducted.”

Without pause, I upgraded the remaining five abilities to intermediate, costing another 500 points.

“Gene point tally… 1750 points remaining.”

I tried to enhance vision again, curious about further changes, when a prompt sounded in my mind.

“Reminder: Vision cannot be further enhanced by gene points. Maximum reached.”

What? No more upgrades via gene points? Does that mean I can advance further by other means?

“Hearing Function Advanced Upgrade: consumes 1000 gene points.”

“Hearing upgraded… 1000 gene points deducted.”

“Gene point tally… 750 points remaining.”

Wait, did I forget something important? Damn this sudden disturbance! Oh no!

I’d forgotten that gene upgrades cause irreversible pain during enhancement—here I was, out in the street, practically serving myself up to the undead!

A stabbing pain shot through my eyes, ears, nose, hands, feet, heart, and lungs—leaving me nearly breathless.

Stumbling, I pushed open a door at the corner—a shop, by the looks of it. No time to be picky; I ducked inside to hide!

Fourth Master, sensing my distress, followed and curled up obediently at my side.

Once inside, I finally relaxed a bit, unable to bear the pain in my eyes any longer. I squeezed them shut, shivering as the agony coursed through me.

I could only hope there was nothing strange lurking in this shop; in my current state, I’d be hard-pressed to fight back!

Damn it! Breaking before building anew—what a joke! This so-called advancement demanded suffering first.

Especially after upgrading hearing twice in a row, my ears rang as if my eardrums might rupture.

“Huff… huff…”

Me: “…”

If I ever get the chance, I swear I’ll find Murphy’s Law itself—tear it up and swallow every last piece!

“Whine… whine…”

Fourth Master whimpered low at my feet, as if trying to scare off the undead predator that had found its chance to hunt me.

The predator’s sounds grew closer—I could sense it closing in. Judging by its movements, it wasn’t a third-level undead; otherwise, it would have rushed over to pin me down already!

“Fourth Master! Get out of here, quick!”

Fighting through the pain, I raised my Tang saber defensively before me, unable to open my eyes but ready to strike by instinct alone.

Still, I couldn’t bear to let this loyal dog—who’d already shared skin and blood with me—die here. Instinctively, I shouted at him.

“Pant… pant…”

Fourth Master nuzzled my pant leg affectionately, clearly moved by my concern.

Strangely, though, the low growls of the undead faded away. Was I imagining things? No—Fourth Master had just been whining moments ago.

I stayed tense, standing firm with my saber in a barricading stance in front of Fourth Master.

After a few minutes, the pain finally subsided. I snapped open my eyes to scan the room.

No sign of the undead—nothing, as if it had never been there. The shop was empty, military supplies still hanging unsold on the walls.

Military supplies? I could see them so clearly?

I rubbed my eyes and examined the surroundings again. The darkness was now filled with color in my vision—I could even make out the style and design of the clothes.

But everything was tinted green, as if I were using night vision goggles. Unfortunately, my range of clear sight was less than twenty meters.

So, while my night vision had improved tremendously, it was limited in distance.

I glanced at my shabby black tank top and cropped jeans, lost in thought…

A few minutes later.

When I reemerged at the shop’s entrance, I was clad in a camouflage suit and cut-resistant gloves—halfway to being fully armed.

I believed this gear was nearly as good as the scavengers’ tactical uniforms. Camouflage, at least, felt familiar to me.

Fourth Master drooled at my side. For some reason, since leaving the shop, he’d been slobbering non-stop, licking his lips at every turn.

Strange things happen every year, but a weird dog like this is rare indeed.

Now the darkness could no longer hinder my sight; even without light, I could survive in the Wasted Era.

Sure enough, after upgrading bodily abilities to the advanced level, the change was dramatic—even my hearing had improved.

In open spaces, I could clearly hear anything within a set range. If I wanted, even whispers couldn’t escape my ears.

Thinking back to those footsteps, my reason told me not to pay them any mind. All I needed now was to return quietly to the Noise Reduction Armored Vehicle.

No, now was not the time for impulsiveness. Sometimes, discretion is the better part of valor.

Confident though I was in my skills, anything could happen in this Wasted Era—even Napoleon had his Waterloo.

I kicked the dazed Fourth Master, and together we hurried toward the armored vehicle.

“Thud… thud…”

Suddenly, I glanced back at the left-hand street. Nearly ten minutes had passed since I’d ducked into the shop, yet the footsteps continued?

“Hmm…”

I frowned, hesitating before taking a step to the left. Sure, Napoleon had Waterloo, but I—Old Cao—was bold and capable.

“Hmm…”

Fourth Master suddenly clamped down on my pant leg and yanked me back. I glanced at him, but didn’t let curiosity get the better of me—I sprinted even faster toward the vehicle.

After I left, a voice finally sounded from an upstairs window on that street: “That dog is a real handful… What a pity about my experimental subject.”

“Experimental subject?” I ran, replaying the words I’d picked up with my enhanced hearing, shocked.

Whatever the case, that person could be up to no good. As for the so-called experimental subject—if I wasn’t mistaken, it had to be that synthetic undead!

Someone’s raising undead? Damn it!