"Sweep the place? Boss, you can't be serious, right?"

Fan Bing was dumbfounded. This was an entire town they were talking about. How could they possibly sweep it clean? Did the zombies not deserve any respect?

Renault opened the trunk of the car and began pulling out boxes of weapons and ammunition. After taking a quick glance at Fan Bing, he asked calmly, "Is there a problem?"

Fan Bing’s eyes lit up as he saw the arsenal in the back of the Range Rover. His confidence immediately surged, and he quickly stood at attention, offering a mock salute.

"Haoyu, what do you think?" Renault turned to Guo Haoyu, noticing that his mood had stabilized somewhat during the drive.

Guo Haoyu, gripping his firefighter's axe, looked at Renault, his eyes dark with resolve, and shouted, "Kill!"

The killing intent in his eyes flared up once again, causing Fan Bing to shudder. **This guy’s got some serious rage.**

Renault nodded in approval. After taking out a portion of the weapons and ammo from the car, he addressed the group, "This town can provide everything we need for survival. With the mountains surrounding it, we can take over this place and turn it into a base of operations."

The group nodded, though some seemed only half-aware of the grand plans Renault had in mind.

Renault's eyes gleamed with ambition. This time, he wasn't aiming small. Having been given a second chance at life, he wasn’t going to settle for mediocrity—he was aiming for the top.

"Let’s go! We’ll take that supermarket first. If we’re lucky, we’ll have a proper meal tonight!"

With that, Renault led the charge towards the supermarket at the center of town, with Guo Haoyu and Fan Bing hot on his heels.

"Seriously, why don’t they wait for me?"

Alice, casually strapping two sleek pistols to her waist and hanging a "grenade" necklace around her neck, followed along at her own pace.

---

Baoqu Town was a strategically important location, nestled among the mountains and historically serving as both a military fortress and a vital transportation hub, connecting two provinces. Despite being called a town, Baoqu was economically comparable to small counties, with a population of around 200,000 people before the apocalypse.

At the center of the town, Renault and the others managed to lure the zombies out of the supermarket, where they could more easily eliminate them. Over the course of the afternoon, even Fan Bing, the most timid of the group, managed to kill thirty zombies with Renault’s guidance and a handgun.

By the time the supermarket was cleared, Renault had reached level 9, just shy of reaching level 10. Most of the zombies inside hadn't evolved yet, and those that had were swiftly dispatched by Renault.

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Renault collected five evolution crystals after killing several bronze-level zombies in the process. At this point, most survivors didn’t know what these crystals were for, so they often discarded them. Renault, however, knew their value.

He distributed the crystals among the group, giving one to each person, while keeping the fifth in reserve in case anyone needed it later.

"So, we just eat this little thing and we’ll evolve? Gain superpowers?" Fan Bing asked, eyeing the crystal in his hand with anticipation. In his mind, swallowing this crystal would let him shoot ice spikes like Alice.

Renault shook his head and clarified, "Everyone’s evolution is different. It's down to luck."

"Luck?" Fan Bing scratched his head, not entirely satisfied with the answer. After a moment of hesitation, he swallowed the evolution crystal.

The crystal melted in his mouth, surprisingly pleasant in taste.

Meanwhile, Guo Haoyu was still holding his crystal, hesitating. His eyes were wide, fixed on the small, glowing stone in his palm.

"Don’t worry," Renault reassured him, patting him on the shoulder. "There are no side effects. Do you want to get stronger? Do you want to survive in this world?"

Renault understood Haoyu’s hesitation; after all, he had felt the same doubt when he first encountered evolution crystals. Swallowing something unknown was a daunting choice, but he knew now that this was the key to strength in the new world.

Guo Haoyu didn’t crave power for its own sake. But **survival**—that was something he couldn’t ignore. The will to survive trumped everything.

With survival at stake, he would not hesitate to swing his axe, cutting down any zombie that stood in his way. Determined, Haoyu’s eyes glowed with resolve as he swallowed the crystal.

"And why do I have to eat another one?" Alice asked, casually munching on a bag of chips as she observed the others.

"The first one awakened your ability, and this second one will make you even stronger," Renault explained as he ruffled Alice’s hair.

Alice hesitated for a moment, then finally popped the crystal into her mouth.

Seeing everyone consume their crystals, Renault smiled in satisfaction and swallowed his own.

**Ding! Congratulations, Host! You have gained 10 experience points!**

**Ding! Host has reached level 10. Would you like to advance?**

Renault blinked in surprise. The crystal had converted directly into experience points? Had he wasted the other crystals by handing them out?

He glanced at his comrades, who were deep in the process of absorbing the evolution energy. **No**, he thought. He needed them by his side. Together, they would forge the future.

This was Renault’s starting point, his path to the top. And his comrades—Haoyu, Alice, Fan Bing—were his assets, crucial to his rise.

**Evolution...** Renault hesitated, but then chose to proceed. He was curious: would his second chance at life change his evolution somehow?

As Renault slipped into a deep meditative state, a vision of a towering mountain appeared before him. Endless stone steps stretched into the clouds.

Around him, the air was filled with the howls of zombies, from lowly iron-level creatures to the terrifying deep abyss-tier monsters.

His heart tightened with tension. There was no turning back now.

Step by step, he ascended the mountain. Time blurred. Seasons passed—spring, summer, autumn, winter—until at last, Renault reached the summit.

At the peak stood a massive ancient totem, glowing fiercely with primordial energy.

"Ah!" Renault gasped as he jolted awake, back in reality. His body was drenched in cold sweat.

"Renault! You’re awake!" Alice exclaimed, her face lighting up with relief, though dark circles under her eyes revealed she hadn’t slept.

Renault quickly glanced at the window. The sun was high in the sky. "How long was I out?" he asked.

"About a day. After you took the crystal last night, you passed out," Alice said.

**A whole day?** Renault stood up quickly, putting on his jacket. "Where are the others?"

"Haoyu and Fan Bing woke up earlier and started practicing their new abilities outside."

Renault sighed with a half-smile. "Those two…"

With Alice following close behind, Renault headed out of the supermarket to see what his comrades had become.