Death Train: SSS-level talent right from the start!

One hour later.

The blood moon rose into the night sky, its crimson light slanting down, making the entire corpse city even more eerie.

Jiang Ning and Zhu Peng staggered out of a small alley south of the central square.

Jiang Ning's down jacket was torn in several places, and his body was covered in black stains and dark red bloodstains, making it impossible to tell whether they belonged to the monster or himself.

Zhu Peng was in an even worse state; he had a deep claw mark on his left arm, the skin and flesh torn open, and the blood had already congealed.

His machete was nowhere to be found; he was now only holding a steel pipe he had picked up from the roadside, the pipe covered in black liquid.

"Brother Ning...wait...wait for me..."

Zhu Peng's voice was hoarse, and he was panting heavily. He squatted down, leaning against the wall, gasping for breath.

Jiang Ning stopped and looked back at him: "Are you still able to walk?"

"Yes...yes..."

Zhu Peng propped himself up on his knees, his right leg trembling slightly, but he gritted his teeth and stood up straight.

"Walk."

Jiang Ning turned and walked quickly toward the central square.

Zhu Peng, dragging his injured left arm, jogged after him.

The lizard-headed corpse still lay in the center of the square, its massive body resembling a huge gray stone in the mist.

Jiang Ning strode over, his gaze immediately locking onto the location next to the lizard-headed corpse, where the skill book, which was covered by a light shield, should be.

There was nothing there.

The light shield is gone.

The skill book is also missing.

All that remained was a small patch of flattened gravel next to the lizard-headed corpse, and a few drops of dried black liquid.

Jiang Ning stopped in her tracks.

He stood there, motionless, like a statue.

Zhu Peng caught up from behind, panting as he ran to the lizard-headed corpse. Looking down, his face instantly turned deathly pale.

"Where's the book...?"

His voice was trembling.

Jiang Ning remained silent.

He squatted down and reached out to touch the flattened gravel ground.

The gravel was still wet, and underneath it was the black, sticky liquid seeping from the lizard-headed corpse, which clung to his hands.

Jiang Ning stood up and scanned the square from all sides.

Nothing could be seen in the fog, only a grayish-white void and the blurry outlines of buildings in the distance.

"Brother Ning...could she be that woman who throws knives?"

Zhu Peng's voice was very low, with a cautious, tentative tone.

Jiang Ning did not answer.

He walked to the lizard-headed creature's head and looked down at the wounds embedded in the monster's forehead.

All three knives were gone, leaving only three deep cuts, from which black liquid was still slowly seeping.

"It wasn't her."

Jiang Ning's voice was low and calm, but it sent chills down one's spine.

Zhu Peng was stunned for a moment: "Then...who is that?"

Jiang Ning did not answer.

He turned around, his gaze sweeping over the buildings surrounding the square. Someone had been hiding in the shadows, calmly picking up the skill book that should have been his while he was being chased by monsters.

The veins on Jiang Ning's forehead bulged, wriggling like earthworms near her temples.

His fists clenched so tightly that his knuckles cracked.

"Brother Ning..."

Zhu Peng took half a step back, his Adam's apple bobbing up and down.

He had been following Jiang Ning ever since he got off the bus. He had seen Jiang Ning's decisiveness when killing monsters, his calmness when planning, and his composure when facing the lizard head, but he had never seen Jiang Ning like this before.

This expression isn't anger, it's rage.

Jiang Ning's Emperor Engine emitted a deep roar within his body, and a pale red halo flickered around his body, its light shimmering and shifting uncertainly, as if it were repeatedly teetering on the edge of losing control.

"Damn it, damn it, how dare they take my stuff!"

Jiang Ning punched the paving stone next to the lizard-headed corpse, sending shards of stone flying.

Zhu Peng was startled by the punch and took two steps back, almost tripping over the loose stones under his feet.

Jiang Ning squatted on the ground, his fist still embedded in the dent, his shoulders heaving violently, his breathing heavy like that of an enraged bull.

A pale red halo flickered around his body for about five seconds, then gradually stabilized and resumed its previous regular pulsation.

Jiang Ning pulled his fist out of the crater, stood up, and patted the pebbles and dust off his hands.

His expression had returned to calm, a kind of calm that sent chills down your spine.

"Brother Ning, what... what do we do?"

Zhu Peng's voice was very soft, so soft that it was almost blown away by the wind.

Jiang Ning didn't look at him, her gaze fixed on the direction of the tall buildings he had just suspected: "Whoever took my things will have to pay with their life."

Zhu Peng's throat bobbed again, and he nodded heavily.

Jiang Ning turned around and took one last look at the empty ground next to the lizard-headed corpse.

That skill book should have been his.

He set up this scheme, used precious props, found so many cannon fodder, personally went into battle to restrain the lizard head, and paid so much price, only to have it all benefit someone else.

The space cube has been used up.

The Gale Crossbow was given to Zhao Hai.

The skill book was picked up by someone.

He got nothing.

Jiang Ning took a deep breath, filling her lungs with the stench of decay and blood, and then slowly exhaled.

"Go, gather everyone together and take stock of the casualties."

As he spoke, he turned and walked out of the square.

"Okay, Brother Ning."

Zhu Peng dragged his injured left arm and followed, then used the system group chat to summon his A-level talent companions.

The two figures quickly disappeared into the gray-white mist.

……

at the same time

In the abandoned supermarket in the south of the city, Chen Ye and his five companions sat in a circle, with a flashlight placed upside down in the middle, casting interplay of light and shadow on each person's face with its dim yellow light.

The supermarket's roller shutters were down, and several shelves and metal cabinets were piled up at the entrance as temporary roadblocks. Although they couldn't stop hordes of monsters, they at least gave people a sense of security.

Qin Zhaoyang leaned against an empty shelf, holding the skill book in his hands, like a cat that had just stolen a fish, his expression somewhere between ecstasy and disbelief.

Wang Shuo squatted on the ground, the fire axe resting on his knees, his gaze occasionally glancing at the book in Qin Zhaoyang's hand before returning to it.

Li Zheng sat against the wall, a butcher knife lying across his lap, his eyes closed, but his eyelids kept trembling slightly, clearly he wasn't asleep.

Zhou Yating sat opposite Chen Ye, cross-legged, with her hands on her knees, her expression much calmer than before.

Chen Ye leaned against the wall next to the roller shutter door, with the cleaver within easy reach. His gaze was fixed on the beam of the flashlight, lost in thought.

An occasional roar could be heard outside the supermarket, from afar, as if drifting from the other side of the city, intermittent in the night wind.

"Brother Ye, you can have this skill book. My talent isn't suited to learning it, so it would be a waste for me to take it."

Qin Zhaoyang sat up from the shelf, held the skill book in both hands and presented it to Chen Ye as if presenting a treasure.