"No matter what their number is, it's safest to kill them outright..."
Lin Bei exhaled slowly.
Gripping the kitchen knife tightly, he finally felt a sliver of security.
"As long as I don't kill the targeted person, the elimination mechanism won't be triggered."
[System prompt: Player Lucas died, number 5]
[Relevant target information has been updated. Please check your objectives.]
"So... the kill target can change."
Lin Bei dismissed the notification and focused back on the scene before him.
The interior of the house came into sharp clarity.
A man crouched on the ground.
His shirt was so filthy its original color was impossible to guess.
Guziguzi——
He held Lucas in his arms, burying his head.
Facing the open door, only half his blood-smeared face was visible, devouring flesh like a starving beast.
It was only then that he seemed to remember—someone else was in the room.
He stopped.
He turned.
The other half of his face came into view—
His skull had split and grown in two directions.
Where the two mouths met, a twisted line ran through.
Eyes jutted unnaturally from each side of his split head.
They locked onto Lin Bei and turned in unison, unnatural and alien.
[Monster in Forbidden Zone: Advanced Threat Level]
Lin Bei offered a kind, chilling smile.
"Are you hungry?"
Both halves of the monster's face froze—before resuming their grotesque feast.
[System prompt: Player Lin Bei helped relieve the pain of the person in the room and completed a hidden task]
[Reward: Mutated Radiation Factor x10]
[...I didn't want to eat people, but my instincts betrayed me... Thank you. You are a good person.]
[Item Name: Mutated Radiation Factor x10]
[Type: Consumable]
[Quality: Excellent]
[Attack Power: Unknown]
[Attribute: None]
[Note: In a world ravaged by a zombie virus, mutated radiation factors naturally appear in restricted zones. But not everyone exposed evolves like Alice. Only the chosen survive the mutation. Some results... are catastrophic.]
The players watching the livestream were still in shock.
"He killed Lucas—just like that?!"
"According to system logic... he didn't violate anything. He's smart. Brutally smart."
"He even completed the hidden mission in the process. What the hell?"
"That monster's pain was real... Ending it was helping, in a way."
"Lin Bei is... terrifyingly good at this."
As the live feed continued, more viewers flooded in.
[507,891 viewers are watching Supernova Player Lin Bei's livestream. 426,314 have sent gifts, earning him 426,314 points.]
[Player Lin Bei is now ranked #2 in current dungeon popularity.]
In Lin Bei's hand, the system manifested the reward:
Ten small capsules—glowing faintly—the Mutated Radiation Factor.
"So, this might evolve people..."
He studied the capsules carefully but didn't consume them.
"It's unclear what the success rate is."
In the room behind him, the sounds of chewing continued.
The monster had moved on to biting off Lucas's fingers.
Suddenly—
"Is anyone there?"
A cautious voice echoed from outside the building.
Silence followed.
The voice tried again, louder.
"Hello?! Anyone inside? Can someone help me?!"
The three NPCs on the first floor gave no reply.
Lin Bei, standing by a second-floor window, glanced down.
In the dark, near a white Darla car, a thin man stood nervously.
He didn't step closer.
He only peered anxiously inside the building.
[Risk assessment based on host strength...]
[Restricted Area ???: No danger]
Lin Bei looked away.
He turned to leave—but hesitated.
Then he walked back to the monster still feeding.
Lifting his kitchen knife—
[Restricted Area Monster (Corpse): No danger]
"Leaving you alive feels... uneasy."
On the first floor, he encountered the three NPCs.
They were whispering intensely by the door, voices heated.
As Lin Bei approached, the red-haired teen waved frantically.
"Jason! Come quick! Help me stop these idiots before they run out!"
Apparently, the red-haired boy had completely forgotten why Lin Bei had gone upstairs—or why Lucas had disappeared.
Inside, Lin Bei discovered the argument had escalated.
Everyone's face was red; veins bulged at their temples.
They were on the verge of a physical fight.
The red-haired boy gripped his hair.
"I TOLD YOU—we have to stay indoors after dark in the restricted area! That guy outside... he's just standing there. At night. That's not normal!"
One of the male NPCs snapped back, pointing an angry finger.
"He's speaking our language! He's asking for help! Stop hiding behind excuses, you coward!"
Before he could finish, he grabbed the arm of the woman beside him and stormed toward the front door.
"Is anyone there?"
The pair froze in their tracks.
The red-haired boy turned pale.
—The voice came from inside the gate.
BOOM. BOOM. BOOM!
The little author is coming in.
[To Be Continued...]
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