Chapter 6: Beauty is a Distraction

Chen Xiao told himself he was just relieved to find someone alive—a living roadmap was exactly what he needed…
Jiangbei University of the Arts was a graveyard. The only things moving were the New Humans, swarming like insects.
Cutting a path through them had taken real effort.
His Evolution Value ticked past 200. It had been a productive trip.
“W-Who the hell are you?” Zhang Ming stammered, the terrifying pressure rolling off the stranger making it hard to speak.
“Do you know the library? Which way has the least people?” Chen Xiao asked flatly.
Li Li looked confused: “Least people?”
Chen Xiao nodded toward the distant New Humans: “Those are the least.”
Zhang Ming caught on and answered seriously:
“There’s a small door west of the cafeteria hall, for library staff. But without a key, it’s impossible to get in.”
“Got it, thanks.”
“No problem, bro—wait, can I just ask…”
Caw! Caw! Caw!
A crisp crow rang out. Zhang Ming and Tang Shiyang gave Li Li a puzzled look—hadn’t she just crowed?
Quickly, they realized the sound wasn’t hers.
It came from behind the guy. The trio finally noticed:
A blood-smeared head lolled out of the sack slung over his back.
“Aaaaaah!”
Li Li turned pale, the absurd scene reminding her of a twisted sideshow attraction—a head in a jar.
Chen Xiao asked politely: “Still need to ask?”
Zhang Ming waved his hands nervously: “N-No, no need.”
He was terrified the lunatic might stuff him into a sack too.
Li Li, though—she was even more terrified. After all, her talent was also [Dawn]!
She trembled uncontrollably, backing away.
“Are you not from our school? Did you come in after the disaster?”
A girl’s voice rang out, catching Chen Xiao’s attention.
Chen Xiao turned—and saw a girl who made his nose tingle.
She wore a bright red bodycon skirt, the tight cut showcasing her perfect curves.
Crystal-clear little leather shoes tapped the floor; long hair cascaded like a waterfall over her shoulders, contrasting with the red dress to make her skin look snow-white.
Damn, her voice is… so white…
He snickered to himself, drooling internally.
Chen Xiao noticed her skirt was short.
Since she kept pulling it down, the neckline had dipped too low—revealing a flash of snow-white skin and a deep valley.
Before he knew it, blood rushed to his head.
It felt like a little sapling was shooting up fast!
“Oh shit, the [Propagation] talent’s screwing me over!”
He cursed inwardly. Wasn’t it supposed to be an intermittent urge?
Why’d his body go haywire the second he saw a hot girl!
Who could handle this!
Zhang Ming saw Chen Xiao’s hungry stare, stiffened, and stepped forward with his bull hoof raised:
“Bro, we’re not pushovers. Think it through—there’s three of us.”
Chen Xiao chuckled awkwardly and addressed Tang Shiyang:
“Where you’re from doesn’t matter. More people will flood in here. Good luck.”
The trio knew exactly who “more people” referred to—their faces fell.
Chen Xiao steadied his breath, but the heat below persisted.
According to the talent description:
The [Propagation] phase lasts a full day!
This was torture!
Should he… take care of it himself?
He shook his head—he didn’t want to miss the rewards from this SSSS-rank talent.
He’d cross that bridge when he came to it.
Leaving the trio, Chen Xiao followed the wall to the spot Zhang Ming mentioned.
West of the cafeteria stood a heavy iron door.
It was locked tight—no key, no entry.
Boom!
Chen Xiao blew the door open with a single kick and strode in.
This path to the library was safe—except it was pitch-black.
Not a glimmer of light.
Luckily, Chen Xiao had the SSS-rank [Dragon Breath] talent, letting him sense danger in advance.
Up ahead, faint energy signatures lingered in the library.
Probably some stray New Humans.
Or maybe even aware New Humans.
Gently pushing the library door open, Chen Xiao poked his head in.
By the dim blood-moon light, he saw scattered New Humans running amok.
Books and textbooks were soaked in blood, strewn everywhere. Corpses littered the floor.
Outside the school, Chen Xiao had spotted a dim glow near the library.
At dawn, almost all lights had gone out.
In this world of dark blood, that glow stood out—surely hiding something.
This had to be the “evolution opportunity.”
Chen Xiao cleared New Humans one by one as he climbed the stairs to the top floor.
Three abnormal energy signatures waited there.
In the light, everything was clear:
A platform-like area held three New Humans.
Unlike others—ragged and hideous—these three stood stiffly, unmoving. Creepy.
The moment Chen Xiao arrived, they all turned to stare.
Hehehehe.
Hehehehe.
Their laughter was chilling—mouths agape, fixed on Chen Xiao.
“This is bullshit!” Chen Xiao, annoyed by the laughter, kicked one.
Unexpectedly, the New Human dodged with lightning speed.
Hehehehe.
“Oh? Not bad.”
Chen Xiao was surprised—on day one of the apocalypse, New Humans had evolved this far.
No wonder a few New Humans were always OP; their speed was freakish.
Hehehehe.
Bang!
This time, Chen Xiao held nothing back, unleashing his top speed.
He didn’t hold back on strength either—he meant business.
Boom!
[Evolution Value +9]
The cackling New Human exploded into a mist of blood and gore, not even leaving a corpse.
The blood splattered so fine it looked like molecules, with no new puddles forming.
The remaining two New Humans, brainless, kept laughing with gaping mouths.
The scene was absurdly horrifying.
In the next instant, the two pounced simultaneously.
Blinding speed!
A sneak attack!
But Chen Xiao didn’t fall for it, dodging flawlessly with two sidesteps.
He reached into his clothes, drew the blood-red iron cone, and caved in their skulls.
[Evolution Value +7]
[Evolution Value +7]
After dispatching the three, Chen Xiao approached the light.
There was light… and only light.
He reached out to touch it—his mind reacted instantly.
[Evolution Opportunity: 4816/5000]
Clearly, those three fools had been guarding this for someone else.
They must’ve been waiting for a fourth New Human to gather enough to activate the evolution opportunity!