Chapter 68 Safe?.


    As the skirmish unfolded, Shane and Gene seamlessly coordinated their movements, exploiting the vulnerabilities of the sher Zombies with strategic uracy. Despite the relentless onught of the sher Zombies, the duo''s harmonized actions allowed them to swiftly incapacitate the terrifying Zombies.


    Shane''s keen instincts, his swift reflexes, and Cloud''s assistance, helped him anticipate the erratic movements of the sher Zombies, enabling him to effectively neutralize their disorienting assaults. Apparently, since the sher Zombies were using their huge mouth in their stomach and their kind of long tongues, dealing with them was quite tricky.


    It was nothingpared to the normal Zombies they''d dealt with before!


    Luckily, as Shane continued to fight with his hatchet, he slowly got used to the way the Zombies would attack. One by one, the sher Zombies fell before Shane''s relentless strikes, their bodies hitting the ground with thuds that echoed through the field.


    He gradually defeated three sher Zombies! Theyy immobilized, their stomach mouths futilely gnashing at the dirt, effectively neutralized but not yet killed...


    Gene, meanwhile, faced the formidablest of the sher Zombies, its resilience was astounding even as its feet were severed!


    The sher Zombie managed to keep its bnce using its contorted flesh! It then lunged at Gene, its huge maw wide in a silent scream! It was aiming to mp down on Gene''s flesh with a hunger born of the virus that animated it!


    "Ugh… This is too tough!" Gene''s exmation cut through the noise of battle.


    He then wielded his de as he fought to keep the creature at bay!


    Shane, hearing Gene''s struggle, leapt into action.


    "Hang on, Gene!" he called out, dashing towards hispanion with hatchet raised. The sher Zombie turned its attention to Shane, sensing a new threat, but it was toote. Shane''s hatchet came down in a powerful arc, aimed at the creature''s flesh that was holding its flickering orb, the weak point he had identified during the fight.


    The hatchet cut deep, and the sher Zombie''s movements faltered. Gene seized the moment, thrusting his de into the creature''s exposed mouth with all his might. Thud!


    Thebined force of their attacks was too much for the zombie, and it copsed, joining its fallen brethren.


    It was still alive but as Shane severed the flickering orb on its body, the Zombie became vulnerable or stunned and could no longer fight back.


    As Shane was thinking of ending its life, he suddenly received a notification from the system.


    [ You have eliminated a sher Zombie. ] ''So it''s not just a simple weakness, they can be killed with that move…'' Shane muttered as he looked at the four other sher Zombies who were still struggling on the ground.


    Without wasting any more time, he used his hatchet to cut the other sher Zombie''s flickering orb.


    He made quick work of them, ensuring the zombies would not rise again. [ You have eliminated a sher Zombie. ] [ You have eliminated a sher Zombie. ] [ You have eliminated a sher Zombie. ] [ You have eliminated a sher Zombie. ] After that, he finally removed his sunsses as he could barely see while wearing them.


    Breathing heavily, Shane and Gene surveyed the aftermath of their victory. The early morning light cast long shadows over the defeated sher Zombies, their threat extinguished by their bravery and skill.


    ''I didn''t think it would be fun hunting Zombies…'' Gene mused as he realized that he was actually smiling while fighting against the Zombies. It seemed that battling was too ingrained in his blood and wanted more action!


    "Well done…" Shane said, pping Gene on the shoulder. "I''ll loot them all and head back. The others will be worried, so you can go ahead and check on them. Tell them about the sher Zombies so they will not fall victim." Shane said as he readied himself to loot the Zombies.


    Gene nodded at this as he returned to their shelter.


    Then, Shane started to loot the Zombie Corpses.


    [ Do you want to retrieve the loot? ] "Yes."


    [ You have earned 10 Experience Points. ] [ Loots obtained: 2 Item Upgrade Crystal, 2 Zombie Core, 500mL water, Unknown Meat ( Safe ) x1, 100mL sher Zombie Blood, 1 Spirit Enhancement Bottle, 1 Light Orb ]


    ''A safe unknown meat?'' Shane breath nervously after seeing what he had just looted. However, he knew that he could check thister.


    It was still misty outside, and the cold was starting to get to him. With that in consideration, he looted the rest of the Zombies. [ You have earned 10 Experience Points. ] [ Loots obtained: 2 Item Upgrade Crystal, 2 Zombie Core, 500mL water, Unknown Meat ( Safe ) x1, 100mL sher Zombie Blood, 1 Spirit Enhancement Bottle, 1 Light Orb ]


    [ You have earned 10 Experience Points. ] [ Loots obtained: 2 Item Upgrade Crystal, 2 Zombie Core, 500mL water, Unknown Meat ( Safe ) x1, 100mL sher Zombie Blood, 1 Spirit Enhancement Bottle, 1 Light Orb ]


    [ You have earned 10 Experience Points. ] [ Loots obtained: 2 Item Upgrade Crystal, 2 Zombie Core, 500mL water, Unknown Meat ( Safe ) x1, 100mL sher Zombie Blood, 1 Spirit Enhancement Bottle, 1 Light Orb ]


    Just like that, Shane looted the four sher Zombies. This time, his attention turned to the oddlypetitive sher Zombie.


    [ Do you want to retrieve the loot? ] "Yes."


    [ You have earned 10 Experience Points. ] [ Loots obtained: 2 Item Upgrade Crystal, 2 Zombie Core, 500mL water, Unknown Meat ( Safe ) x2, 100mL sher Zombie Blood, 1 Spirit Enhancement Bottle, 1 Light Blue Orb ]


    ''Mhmm… So it''s still the same sher Zombie… but with better loot?'' Shane mused as he quickly saw the difference.


    Thest one gave Light Blue Orb instead of simply Light Orb, and the Unknown Meat doubled.


    Shane then opened his Inventory to see their descriptions.


    [ Inventory: Memory Sphere x21, Item Upgrade Crystals x69, Zombie Cores x175, 65L Water, Bread x55, Acid Pouch x13, Spirit Enhancement Bottle x210, Strength Enhancement Bottle x5, Agility Enhancement Bottle x5, Spitter Tongue x1, Sling Bag x2, Unknown Meat ( Safe ) x3, Light Orb x4, Light Blue Orb x1]


    ''Right… I should drink the other enhancement bottles as well.'' Shane thought, as he only recalled this after seeing them in the Inventory.


    However, he still checked the meat and the orbs.


    [ Light Orb: A luminous orb that emits a steady, soft light. It contains a modest amount of energy, potentially useful for enchanting or as a light source in dark environments. ] [ Light Blue Orb: An orb with a serene blue luminescence. It''s denser and contains a higher concentration of energy than the standard Light Orb, suggesting it could have significant applications in crafting or magical endeavors. ] ''A source of light… or for crafting, huh…'' Shane nodded after seeing the description. n/o/vel/b//in dot c//om


    [ Unknown Meat (Safe): A cut of meat from a sher Zombie, deemed safe for consumption. It''s nutritious and could serve as a valuable food source in the absence of traditional meat. ] "This… is disgusting…" Shane couldn''t help but express his honest thoughts about this meat. Although he wanted something different from their everyday meal, he never considered eating zombie meat. Just thought of eating it had already made him want to puke. The idea just sounded so absurd.


    However, he also knew that he could not waste any food in this Apocalypse. ''Whatever… It says here that it''s safe to eat, so as long as I don''t imagine what I''m eating, there shouldn''t be a problem. Right, I can''t tell the others about the source of this meat.'' Shane thought, as he knew, that telling them the source would just make them disgusted.


    Anyway, they won''t be turning into a zombie by eating this meat, so it should be fine to keep a secret or two from them.


    After some time, Shane finally stopped thinking about the Unknown Meat.


    Instead, he decided to focus his attention on the Enhancement Bottles. Among them were 5 Strength Enhancement Potions and 5 Agility Enhancement Potions, each promising to bolster his abilities in this Apocalypse.


    After taking a deep breath, Shane uncorked one of the Strength Enhancement Bottles. The liquid inside glowed with a faint, red pulsating light. He downed the potion in one swift gulp, feeling a surge of power coursing through his veins. Almost instantly, he felt slightly stronger…


    He didn''t continue drinking the other vials. Instead, he checked his current status panel to see how much points he obtained. [ Strength: 36 ] "A two-point increase? Not bad…" Shane softly nodded as he continued drinking all the other bottles.


    Next, he reached for an Agility Enhancement Bottle. Its contents shimmered like quicksilver, and as he drank it, a sensation of lightness washed over him.


    Simr to the Strength Enhancement, it also gave him two additional points in his Agility Stat. With a hint of excitement on his face, Shane drank the rest of the potions.


    ***


    As the sun rose higher, painting the sky with streaks of orange and pink, Shane returned to the church and saw that all hispanions were waiting for him. There was even a breakfast prepared already. It seemed that instead of worrying about them, Anna trusted their capabilities and decided to just prepare a meal to help them recover…


    Shane couldn''t help but smile after witnessing this.