Apocalypse: I Can See Health Bars
Chapter 33: Blackout

Chapter 33: Chapter 33: Blackout

With the increase in his Life Value, especially now that it was approaching two hundred, he could clearly feel his strength increasing as well.

The curtain rod from before now felt noticeably light and flimsy.

It wasn’t sturdy enough, nor was it heavy enough.

If his weapon were sturdy enough, like in the situation with that leader today, Lin Fan was confident he could bash a zombie’s skull in with a single blow!

But the current curtain rod was definitely no good; one hit and it would bend completely.

So even though Lin Fan’s strength had increased, he still tried to use thrusts for every attack, rarely striking directly.

Mulling it over, he rummaged through the few apartments in the building.

He found a few thick bone-cleavers, and even a hand axe, but he still came up empty-handed in his search for a real weapon.

After messing around until past eight, Lin Fan had no choice but to grab another curtain rod from the sixth floor as a spare.

He was about to head home to sleep when he noticed the exposed heating pipes on the landing of each stairwell.

He walked over and knocked hard on one with his knuckles. The steel pipe gave off a dull, solid echo.

’This thing looks really sturdy...’

He brought his angle grinder out into the hallway and cut off a section of the heating pipe.

The heating probably wouldn’t be turned on this winter anyway, so it was a good way to repurpose things.

The pipe had a diameter of about 4 centimeters and a wall thickness of nearly 4 millimeters. It was probably galvanized steel. Due to impurities in the heating water, the inner wall was coated with a lot of rust and scale, making it seem much thicker.

Lin Fan didn’t hesitate. He cut two 1.7-meter-long pieces from the building’s main inlet on the first floor and four 1-meter-long pieces from the hallway, for a total of six.

Then he used the angle grinder to carefully sharpen all of them into points, making them incredibly sharp.

When Lin Fan made his previous weapons, he hadn’t sharpened the spearheads this much. First, he wasn’t skilled enough back then and was afraid of stabbing himself. Second, the curtain rods were a bit thin, and making them too sharp would cause the edges to curl.

But with the heating pipes, he had no such worries. The nearly 4-millimeter-thick steel walls were almost impossible to dent or break.

’Forget stabbing zombies, if you dropped this thing point-down from the sixth floor, it could probably pierce a car...’

Lin Fan hefted the 1.7-meter spear. It weighed over a dozen pounds, nearly twice as much as his original spear.

This weight far exceeded that of a normal spear, and it was even heavier than some battle axes or warhammers.

For an ordinary person, a spear this heavy would be exercise equipment at best. They’d struggle just to keep it balanced, let alone swing it.

But Lin Fan’s strength was now far beyond that of a normal person. While he couldn’t punch a zombie’s head off, swinging this spear that weighed over a dozen pounds was no problem.

He also fashioned the curtain rod into two sharpened spears, one long and one short. They were indeed much lighter compared to the heating pipes, which made them perfect for Su Qing to use to get accustomed to a weapon.

Lin Fan carried the steel pipes back home and found that the main light in the living room was still off, with only a small night-light on.

Su Qing was exercising on a yoga mat, doing some kind of aerobic routine today.

’The ZZZT and SCREECH from me sawing the heating pipes must have already sent the zombies outside into a frenzy,’ Lin Fan thought. ’One little light wouldn’t make a difference.’

But on second thought, he decided against it.

After all, it wasn’t just zombies outside now; there might also be plenty of "neighbors" with ulterior motives.

Sound could only pinpoint a general direction, but a light could pinpoint the exact room.

Being targeted was not a good feeling.

"From now on, even if the zombies downstairs disperse, try not to turn on the lights at night..." Lin Fan instructed Su Qing.

He then handed her the spear he had prepared for her.

"Try it. How does it feel?"

This was the most suitable weapon Lin Fan could prepare for her. It was a bit lighter, but he had tested its lethality himself and could guarantee it was effective.

Su Qing took the spear and hefted it. The weight was just right.

It would be tiring to swing around, but thrusting with it would be no problem.

Lin Fan wrapped layers of medical adhesive tape around the part of the shaft that needed to be gripped to increase friction.

Su Qing copied Lin Fan, modifying her own spear.

After what happened today, Su Qing’s resolve to become stronger had solidified.

Lin Fan was right. It’s better to rely on yourself than on others. If you’re weak, you just have to train harder.

So she found a large stuffed animal from somewhere, placed it in a corner, and started practicing her thrusts with the spear in both hands.

After Lin Fan finished working on his own weapons, he helped Su Qing correct her form, then left her to it.

’When I get the chance, I’ll teach her about the zombies’ weak points. From the way she’s going, she has what it takes to become a "Hunter".’

After washing up, Lin Fan was about to go back to his room to sleep. He hesitated as he passed the living room and said to Su Qing:

"You should get to bed early, too. Make some extra food tomorrow morning. I might have to go out for a bit..."

"Huh?"

Hearing that Lin Fan was going out, Su Qing immediately put her spear aside and hurried over.

"You’re going out? How are you going to get out?" she said, pointing a finger out the window.

"Mm... Don’t worry, I have a plan."

Lin Fan smiled at Su Qing. "I’m just going out to lead them away. Having them constantly surrounding this place isn’t a viable solution..."

Having so many zombies gathered here might seem low-risk, but it created many potential problems.

In his building, the only uncleared apartments were 502, two on the second floor, and one on the first floor.

Among them, 102 and 502 were quiet, so they probably didn’t have any zombies. Both apartments on the second floor were making noise, so each likely had one zombie.

But the problem was that with all the zombies piled up downstairs, Lin Fan didn’t even dare to use his rope to get to the second floor.

If something went wrong or a Mutated Zombie appeared, wouldn’t he be a sitting duck hanging on the side of the building?

Besides, with so many zombies gathered together, if a Mutated Zombie or something similar appeared, he’d have a hard time dealing with them if they showed up in numbers.

And then there were the three people who escaped today. Who knew when they might come back.

People are like that; once they find a method that works, they tend to stick with it. If those bastards started luring zombies to Lin Fan’s building every few days to find food, who could stand that?

That’s why Lin Fan decided to go out tomorrow during the day to lure the zombies away.

He had originally planned to tell her tomorrow, fearing she would worry, but he couldn’t hold it in.

"..." Su Qing saw that Lin Fan had made up his mind and didn’t know what to say. She could only look at him pitifully. "Then you have to come back..."

"Heh... Of course I’ll come back. Where else would I go if I don’t come back?" Lin Fan was amused by her expression and joked with her.

"Then you have to come back early..." Su Qing continued, still looking pitiful.

"...Don’t worry, nothing will happen. I’ll be back early."

Lin Fan understood her unspoken words and said with certainty, "Get some rest. I’m going to bed."

With that, he waved to Su Qing and returned to his bedroom.

After all that work, Lin Fan was genuinely tired.

Now he had new weapons, and on top of that, two newly acquired zombie crystals. His abilities had gained a new dimension.

Besides, Lin Fan had a feeling that when his Life Value broke past two hundred, or even three hundred, his abilities would definitely reach a whole new level!

Ever since the internet went down, he had naturally kicked his phone habit.

Lin Fan lay in bed and drifted off to sleep before he knew it.

...

The next morning at 7:30, Lin Fan, who was wearing earplugs, was woken up by Su Qing’s knocking.

The moment he opened the door, Su Qing’s words instantly jolted him awake.

"Lin Fan, this is bad!"

"The power’s out!"