Chapter 3

My idea was simple. I had this steel nameplate in my hand, thinking it would be super useful. It belonged to a dead Enhancer named Carter Moore, who was the Captain of the Guard. The nameplate had a skull on it with the symbol of Bloody Morgan. My plan was to slap this nameplate in the camp leader's face, throw in a few threats, and he'd be too scared to question it.

Grace and I started going through the stuff of the four dead guys. Watching Grace work so efficiently was kinda heartbreaking.

"Do we really need this?" I asked, my eyelid twitching as Grace used a knife to cut open a guy's underwear.

"Mr. Steele, you don't get it. This is good cotton fabric, perfect for bandages. Morgan's men are living large, they even have underwear."

"Is wearing underwear really that fancy?" I asked, wide-eyed and confused.

"Don't laugh at me. I've never worn cotton underwear in my life," Grace said, her cheeks turning red. I felt a bit awkward, my eyes drifting to her patchwork skirt, wondering what was underneath.

Grace tore the underwear into strips and stuffed them into her backpack. Well, whatever was floating your boat, Grace. I wasn't interested in those "cotton bandages."

We kept searching the backpacks. Each of the four guys had heavy military water bottles, weighing about 10 pounds each. In the apocalypse, water was like gold. Most sources were contaminated, so drinkable water was super precious and could even be used as currency. In our tribe, water could be traded for all sorts of survival supplies. It was a symbol of wealth.

As Grace packed up the water bottles, she stressed how important water was. "If we ration it, this water will get us out of the wilderness."

Then she let out a gasp. "Look at this! This is amazing."

I leaned over, curious, and saw Grace holding up a crystal. It wasn't just any crystal; it glowed faintly with a mysterious green light.

"What is this?" I asked, feeling a gentle aura around it, like a spring breeze.

"Zombie Crystal!" Grace's eyes sparkled as she explained. "This can turn ordinary people into Enhancers."

"How do you know?" I asked, puzzled. How did a girl living alone in a camp know about this high-end stuff?

Grace blushed again. "Actually, I'm an Enhancer too." Then she started taking off her skirt.

"Whoa, Grace, slow down! That's a bit fast for us!" I was taken aback.

It turned out I was overthinking. Grace was wearing underwear made of rabbit fur. I coughed to hide my embarrassment, though I had been a bit hopeful.

Grace didn't get what I was saying. She stood up and patted her strong, powerful thighs. Her long legs were slender and muscular, showing strength and elegance. Her hips had perfect curves, tight and elastic, like a sculpture, exuding confidence and charm.

Grace walked in front of me like a model, each step like a dance, drawing my gaze. Suddenly, she sped up, her explosive power like a professional sprinter. She was gone in an instant. No wonder those four guys couldn't catch her at first. Her speed was double that of a normal person. If she hadn't run out of energy, they wouldn't have caught her at all.

Soon, Grace ran back, her forehead covered in sweat. "How's my speed? All thanks to the Zombie Crystal. When I was a kid, my sister gave me one, and I evolved. Unfortunately, it only strengthened my legs, and I haven't seen another crystal since. Not every zombie has one," she explained.

"Mr. Steele, you should try it too. Maybe you can evolve further."

I grabbed the crystal, and suddenly, a thought hit me: 'Low-level Universe Crystal can be converted into 100 points of universal energy, and can upgrade and evolve beasts.' So, universal energy was a thing, and it existed in this form. With just a thought, the crystal in my hand vanished.

"Mr. Steele, where'd the crystal go?" Grace's eyes went wide, totally baffled by the disappearing act.

"Uh, yeah, that's another one of my superpowers. I can absorb energy crystals really fast," I said, trying to sound convincing. After all, I was already an Esper, so what was one more weird ability?

"Okay," Grace said, looking like she sort of got it.

'With this universal energy, can I unlock the second-level gene lock for my evolved beasts?' I wondered. I used 20 points of universal energy, and my Brazilian turtle, Jack, and the rainbow lizard started their second evolution.

Jack, the Brazilian turtle, evolved into a level 2 super species with an upgraded skill: Piercing level 2.

The rainbow lizard evolved into a level 2 super species with an upgraded skill: Concealment level 2.

As they evolved, my own attributes got a boost. Strength 10.5. Speed 8.8. Stamina 10. Spirit 16. My total lifespan hit 260 years! Skills: Piercing level 2, Concealment level 2. And all this only cost me 20 points of universal energy, leaving me with 80 points. Plus, I got new attributes like stamina and speed.

"What is that!" Grace shouted. I followed her gaze and saw a 'big dog' with seven-colored stripes all over its body, a snake-like tongue, and horns on its head. It looked super creepy.

I was stunned. Could this be my rainbow lizard? I didn't expect it to evolve into something like this—not scary, but definitely chunkier. Grace was already lunging at it with a knife, her strong thighs kicking hard.

"Don't kill it! It's my new pet, the animal I tamed!"

"What?"

Luckily, I stopped her in time, or the rainbow lizard would have ended up as Grace's next piece of jerky.

The rainbow lizard seemed to sense the danger, too, and quickly burrowed into my backpack. Its long tail, sticking out, started blending in with the backpack, matching its color.

Grace looked at it in amazement, then pointed behind me, speechless.

The ground shook with heavy footsteps, like a pile driver. I turned around and couldn't believe my eyes. "Jack?"

The huge creature in front of me was about 6.5 feet tall, nearly 100 square feet in size, taking up as much space as a whole room. Its four legs were like sturdy pillars, solid and stable. This was the Brazilian turtle I evolved.

Jack gently rubbed his head against my arm. Its shell was as heavy as steel armor; I bet even an AK47 couldn't penetrate it. The sharp spikes on its shell glinted coldly. If something hit it, it would definitely be shredded.

"Mr. Steele, Jack looks so majestic!" Grace was as happy as a kid, climbing up the shell in a few steps. Maybe Jack liked her too because it retracted all its spikes as soon as Grace climbed up, making its shell flat so she could roll around on it."I'm gonna build a big house on top of it and throw a party on its shell. Jack, your shell isn't afraid of fire, right? I want to set off fireworks on it."

Jack responded with a deep sound, whether it was helpless or just going along with Grace's antics.

I stroked my chin, thinking that building a house on Jack wouldn't be a bad idea. Standing at 6 feet tall, Jack could sense any movement within 330 feet, making him the perfect "mobile fortress" for home and travel. Both Grace and I thought it was a great idea, and poor Jack could only let out a low growl, powerless to protest.

That evening, we made our way back to the camp.

"Mr. Steele, do you need me to come with you to see the leader?" Grace asked, looking a bit worried.

"Nah, it's fine. Besides seeing the leader, I've got some other stuff to handle." I patted Grace's head, signaling her to start dismantling the shack. The wood here would be perfect for building a small house on Jack.

Soon, I slipped into the night. The best way to intimidate was through fear. If I threw Captain Bloody Morgan's nameplate in the leader's face, he'd probably freak out and might even evacuate the camp overnight. In the chaos, we could grab more water supplies to ensure we wouldn't run dry on our journey.

I quickly made my way to the center of the camp, where there was a real wooden house, two stories high and covering thousands of square feet. Using the rainbow lizard's Concealment skill, I vanished in less than twenty seconds, climbing into the room through a window and hiding in a dark corner.

The big house was brightly lit, with shadows flickering on the wooden walls. Camp leader Gordon Harris was holding a woman, scantily dressed and soaked, her body fully revealed after being drenched.

Gordon's eyes were glued to her chest, his big hand groping inside her clothes. The woman's eyes were dull, her face expressionless, like she had long lost all feeling. In stark contrast, Gordon's subordinates were tapping their glasses, leering with lewd smiles, and cheering to bring the banquet to a climax. Beside them were several women, shivering in the laughter.

I furrowed my brow, anger flickering inside me. The woman was only twenty, her eyes already devoid of light, hopeless about life. Was this what women in the apocalypse had become? Either food for mutated monsters or playthings for bastards.

What made me even angrier was the extravagant banquet before me, with beef on the table, not the hard-to-swallow lizard meat. Each person also had a small plate of lush green vegetables. I hadn't seen such tender greens since coming to this world.

One of Gordon's subordinates followed suit, splashing water on the woman next to him, the lewd laughter growing louder. Every drop of water outside was precious, the people in the camp could only get half a cup of water a day to barely survive, and yet these people were using water for pleasure. It was despicable.

Then, their conversation caught my attention.

"Leader, are we really going to evacuate? We can give those lowlifes less water, we can last a few months without a problem."

"Yeah, wasting such precious water on those people, and we don't need to water the garden every day, losing a few plants won't matter."

Gordon sneered, pushed the woman beside him away, waved his hand for all the maids to leave, and sat up straight like a lion, coldly scanning his subordinates. "These vegetables are almost all for me to enjoy, are you jealous? And those lowlifes outside, if we don't give them water, they'll die of thirst. But when it really comes to that, someone might lead a rebellion against me, right?"

"How impatient!" Gordon slammed the table, coldly saying, "Tell you the truth, the water in the underground well is enough for ten days at most. If we don't leave, we'll all die of thirst."

His subordinates all hung their heads at his words, one murmuring softly, "But it's so hard to find a new water source."

"Why not move to the prison camp? They will definitely take us in," someone suggested.

"Yes, I think the prison camp is a good place to go. Joining their hunting team isn't a bad idea," another echoed.

Gordon coldly refused, "No way, I will never go to the prison camp." From being the leader of a camp of three hundred people to just a head of the guard? No chance. Plus, the leader of the prison camp was the former warden, and when Gordon escaped during the apocalypse, he killed the warden's nephew. He had never told anyone about that.

"Then where can we go?"

"I don't want to die of thirst."

"If we can't find a water source, I'll take people to the prison camp."

Several subordinates ignored Gordon's feelings and started shouting.

Gordon narrowed his eyes, a hint of fierce killing intent in them. Then, he smiled. "We're all in this together. Do you think I'd leave you hanging? Don't worry, I've sent someone to find a water source. If there's no result in five days, we'll go to the prison camp."

"Okay, we'll wait another five days." The men sneered, finished their drinks, grabbed some food, and left.

In the dark corner, I watched all this unfold. I hadn't expected the camp's water source to dry up. But there were still vegetables in the garden, which surprised me. I stroked my chin, a wicked smile forming. 'People can't live on lizard meat alone; without vegetables, we'd get weak.'

At that moment, Gordon called out loudly, "Damn it, Mark Thompson, get in here."

"Coming." A very ordinary young man walked in, looking nervous, and deliberately closed the door. "Boss, I... I didn't see any of Morgan Moore's subordinates."

"Impossible! I personally discussed matters with Morgan. He couldn't not be interested!" Gordon suddenly stood up, glaring at Mark with a murderous look. Mark lowered his head, afraid to meet Gordon's eyes. "You really didn't see them?"

"Boss, I swear to God, if I lied to you, I'd be bitten by zombies, eaten by beasts, and..."

"Enough, shut up. Could something have delayed them?" Gordon furrowed his brow. Then he stared at Mark, instructing, "You go back to that place tomorrow, tell them the plan has been moved up, and act immediately."

"Yes, sir," Mark replied respectfully. Just as he was about to leave, he suddenly showed a fawning smile and said to Gordon, "Boss, I heard there's a woman in our camp named Grace. She's still a virgin, very beautiful. Are you interested?"

"Who is Grace?" Gordon couldn't recall such a woman. The most beautiful women in the camp were all kept by him.

"It's the woman who wears a tattered robe every day. She's deliberately hiding her identity," Mark replied.

"Go and bring her here. If she's really as you say, I will reward you."

Mark instantly perked up at the words, rubbing his hands together as he exited the room.

As the door closed, Gordon slammed his fist on the table. "A bunch of damn bastards. Without me, you would have died long ago. Now you dare to threaten me. You think you can break free from my control? In that case, you might all go to hell. I was thinking of having you all join Captain Bloody Morgan's guard, but now, I can give up on these people. When Morgan's people come in, you will die, and all your children will be Morgan's food."

After muttering to himself, Gordon walked to a cabinet and took out what was inside. There were ropes, whips, collars with metal spikes, and a wooden handle with a round head. Then he took off his clothes, revealing his round belly, holding a whip in one hand and a candle in the other, completely turning into a perverted maniac.

"It's been a long time since I've trained a virgin. That Grace dares to hide her identity, I will make her suffer later."

Gordon didn't notice a large hand quietly reaching towards his neck in the dark corner next to the cabinet.