Chapter 46: It’s Hard to Live in the Apocalypse
’It clearly mutated from a dog, so why are its claws so long!’
’Its mouth is injured, and now it’s learned to slash with its claws!’
’Where did it learn such a despicable feline tactic!’
The Mutant Dog’s frantic scratching had cost him nearly 10 more HP. He was now down to only [198] HP!
Freed from its restraint, the Mutant Dog rolled and sprang to its feet, eyeing Lin Fan predatorily, ready to pounce at any moment.
On one side of its body were three bloody holes from the spear. On the other were several cracks from the burst of sharp energy. Both sides were oozing a dark, brownish filth!
’It seems the Mutant Dog was also heavily wounded by my combo!’
But even so, its remaining HP was still more than five Lin Fans combined!
"Ah... This is hopeless..."
Although he said that, his expression showed no trace of despair. In fact, it was quite the opposite. The effects of the three potions were already tipping the scales of victory in his favor.
’The Swift Potion has 40 seconds left...’
’I have to press the attack!’
Lin Fan swung the spear with both hands, flinging the filth from its shaft.
Like an arrow loosed from its string, he once again shot straight toward the Mutant Dog!
He aimed his spear directly at the center of the Mutant Dog’s mouthparts, striving to pierce through them!
Goaded into a frenzy by his heavy blows, the Mutant Dog’s ferocity flared. Its mangled, three-lobed mouthparts gaped open, and with a roar at Lin Fan, it charged to meet him!
Just as man and beast were about to collide, the Mutant Dog suddenly leaped forward, meeting the tip of Lin Fan’s spear with the bone armor on its chest!
It all happened in an instant!
Lin Fan had no time to change direction. He could only continue pushing forward with all his might. The spear tip bent faintly under the immense force, but it still pierced into the bone armor!
The tip penetrated several inches before the shaft got stuck. The sharp energy it carried erupted violently, creating a web of cracks that actually stripped that section of armor away!
The spear tip, snagged on the bone plate, slid to the side, carving a deep gash across the rotten flesh of its chest and even sending a chunk of the adjacent bone armor flying!
[-269]!
’But I still didn’t hit a vital spot!’
The Mutant Dog seized the opportunity to get past the spear tip. Its three-lobed mouthparts gaped wide as it bit down on Lin Fan’s waist!
"HISS! UGH!"
[-69]!
It felt like countless red-hot steel nails were being driven into his waist!
The intense pain made Lin Fan suck in a sharp breath, which he immediately swallowed back down!
’This is no time to cry out in pain!’
Lin Fan clenched his jaw. Veins bulged on his head from the impact, and his already swollen muscles seemed to expand even further!
Having landed a successful blow, the Mutant Dog raised its head high, lifting Lin Fan’s entire body horizontally into the air!
It clamped down, intending to bite him in two!
Lin Fan grew vicious as well!
He shook the bone plate off his spear, adjusted the tip, and thrust it hard into the side of the dog’s chest where the armor had just been torn away!
Meeting no resistance, the spear plunged deep inside. The sharp energy erupted!
[-399]!
[389/2694]!
Numerous cracks burst forth from the Mutant Dog’s chest and side!
A gush of filthy blood surged up from deep within its esophagus. With a violent retch, the Mutant Dog flung Lin Fan aside!
Lin Fan endured the searing pain and scrambled up from the ground, his eyes fixed on the Mutant Dog’s health bar.
’I hit a vital spot this time, but it’s still not dead after that blow!’
’Looks like these monsters with thousands of HP can’t be one-shotted just by hitting a vital spot!’
At that moment, the Swift Potion wore off!
’But thankfully, the Hardening Potion still has a minute left!’
’Otherwise, even if I survived that, I’d probably be down to a sliver of health!’
Lin Fan reached back to touch his waist and brought his hand back, covered in dark red blood...
’I’m afraid it hit my internal organs.’
Even with the Hardening Potion still in effect, the bite had taken 69 HP!
[-1]
...
The wound was still bleeding. In just that short time, he had lost another point...
"..."
His clothes had already been stretched to their limit when he used the Strength Potion. Now, after that monster’s bite, the fabric around his waist was shredded into tattered strips.
A gust of wind blew past, sending a chill through him.
But for some reason, apart from the initial agony, Lin Fan couldn’t feel any pain now.
’It must be an effect of the Strength Potion or the Hardening Potion...’
’I might look pathetic, but this Mutant Dog isn’t in much better shape.’
Under the heavy blow, just like the one that had nearly been split into four pieces before, most of the bone armor on this Mutant Dog had been blown off by the sharp energy that had erupted inside it. It now hung limply from its body, attached by only a few threads of flesh.
A huge gash had been blasted open in its chest, revealing the squirming flesh and tissue within...
However, his spear had been flung somewhere during that last thrust.
Lin Fan had no choice but to draw the dagger from his belt.
’Good thing this weapon sheath Su Qing made for me is sturdy. It might have even absorbed a lot of the damage from the Mutant Dog’s bite just now...’
But now, without the buff from the Swift Potion, the Mutant Dog was still faster than Lin Fan, despite its heavy injuries.
’If I want to kill it, this is the only way...’
He watched as the Mutant Dog, though on its last legs, lowered its body and leaped fiercely toward him.
Ignoring his injuries, Lin Fan threw himself into a roll, tumbling to the side.
Although his body dodged the fatal blow, his left arm was caught by a bony claw and ground against the pavement. Under the force of several hundred pounds, it was instantly twisted and broken in several places!
"Hiss..."
A wave of numbness spread through his left arm, but Lin Fan didn’t panic. He just turned his head toward the Mutant Dog and opened his mouth...
"SCREEE—!"
A sharp, explosive sound erupted from his mouth, followed by visible, almost tangible ripples that disturbed the air as they washed over the Mutant Dog!
Meanwhile, a thick, bloody foam instantly welled up in Lin Fan’s own throat. His vocal cords burned as if they had been violently scoured with sandpaper.
It was the [Scream Potion]—a last-ditch, desperate measure!
’The Mutant Dog must have auditory organs and a sense of balance. Hit suddenly by a sonic attack at such close range, even in an open area, it’s bound to be affected!’
Just as Lin Fan predicted, the Mutant Dog instantly dropped low and tensed its limbs, as if it were fiercely resisting something!
Seeing it had taken the bait, Lin Fan tightened his grip on his dagger, rolled to his feet, took a step forward, and threw himself onto the Mutant Dog’s back!
While it was still stunned by the sonic blast and unable to react, he mustered all his strength and plunged the dagger into the rotting flesh on the side of its chest!
The sharp energy erupted!
It was like puncturing a pustule filled with high-pressure gas.
The Mutant Dog’s massive body went rigid, and then countless black cracks exploded outward from the wound. There was no scream, only the dull thud of disintegrating flesh.
A torrential rain of blood mixed with bone fragments came SPLATTERING down, drenching Lin Fan and turning him into a crimson figure.
[-399]!
[0/2694]!
Large Armored Mutant Dog, killed!
...
Seeing the monster was finally and truly dead, Lin Fan fell onto his back, gasping for breath.
He felt cold all over. His waist and his arm felt tingly and numb, and he couldn’t muster any strength.
He looked at his own health: only [72/370] HP left...
And that was after gaining 35 HP from killing the Mutant Dog just now.
A wave of exhaustion washed over him, and he couldn’t help but wonder why he hadn’t run when he first saw those three health bars...
When he first faced those three Mutant Dogs, he probably still had a chance to escape.
Before today, Lin Fan would have definitely fled. Hesitating for even a second would have been an insult to his three hundred-something HP.
But today, he had seen that black mist—that black mist with [10,000] HP.
’I kept telling myself to run, to escape, but can I really get away?’
’I might escape this time, but what about the next?’
’When the day comes that I have to face that [10,000] HP monster, will I still be able to run?’
He stared at the bleak, gloomy sky, recalling the street he’d seen today, the storefronts burned to ruins, the cars smashed against the median barrier, the shadowy figures of a few zombies, and that black mist...
In that moment, Lin Fan had understood. In this world, there was nowhere to run...
After a moment, a few drops of rain hit his face. The huge raindrops pelted him, making it hard to keep his eyes open.
But then, the shuffling sound of footsteps approached from a distance. A pair of small, slender hands grabbed his shoulders and began dragging him under a roof...
"Sister Qing... What are you doing here...?"
Lin Fan asked in a daze, looking at the woman before him.
"Sister Qing?"
The woman’s face blurred. When he looked closely, it changed into another, dirt-streaked face with a patch of blood on the forehead.
"I’m not Sister Qing, I’m Zhaozhao..."
"Mister... are you even human...?"
"You’re incredible..."
"You’re basically a superman..."
"Oh my god, you killed such a terrifying monster..."
"How did you do it? Why are all your clothes torn? Do you have superpowers?"
"Ah! You’re bleeding so much..."
...