Ellie's music box
Status: Active
Monster Members: 1
Inventory: 1
Unlocked Achievement: [First Summoning]
Acquired Item: [Ellie's Music Box]
Note: The music box is Ellie's beloved toy, not easily damaged. When the button is turned, music plays, and Ellie will dance gracefully to the music. Each time Ellie is summoned, a life must be sacrificed as a reward, or else she will feed on the summoner.
[This is a monster with a good overall evaluation and considerable potential for growth. It is recommended for cultivation.]
"Every time I summon her, I have to offer up sustenance? Otherwise, she'll feed on the summoner?" The corner of Fan Li's mouth twitched slightly as he looked at the music box on the bedside, feeling a mix of emotions.
Shortly after the appearance of the monster named Ellie, her figure began to gradually blur until she completely disappeared, leaving behind a music box in her place.
It wasn't until then that Fan Li saw the front face of the doll on the music box, resembling Ellie, wearing a cute princess dress, but with a gaping mouth and sharp teeth embedded around it.
Based on the information provided in his mind, Fan Li understood that this music box was the medium for summoning Ellie. Just like an ordinary music box, all it took was to turn the button, make the doll jump, and Ellie would appear in front of him. However, as the cost of summoning, he needed to offer up a life as payment!
In addition, next to the music box was a black book with countless speckles, identical to the monster manual in Fan Li's consciousness.
It was unexpected that this book materialized, and it was right in front of him!
Touching the book felt strange; it was more like the skin of some creature than an inanimate object, as it had warmth and some subtle, lifelike undulations, similar to the state of a human chest breathing.
Fan Li opened the book, finding a picture of the music box on the first page, with a girl standing with her back to the viewer in the bottom left corner. At first glance, an ordinary person might wonder how someone could wear such a cute dress, with a face that couldn't be too different. However, only Fan Li knew how horrifying that face truly was.
Though the monster appeared to be a seven or eight-year-old girl from behind, her appearance was terrifying.
Fan Li had no doubt about how sharp her teeth were; spiral teeth clustered together like a meat grinder in motion. If an adult were bitten by her, they wouldn't last long before being turned into a pile of mush!
Fan Li had gradually become accustomed to all of this, but then again, even if he didn't accept it, what could he do?
Even with the windows tightly closed, there was still a faint scent of blood coming in. Aside from the noisy outside, the hallway occasionally echoed with non-human roars. Just a while ago, his door was violently pounded on a few times. Fan Li was clear that the body that had fallen in front of his door had completed its transformation into a member of the undead.
Who would have thought that the strict yet compassionate teacher from the past would also become a hideous, roaring zombie after death? Perhaps sensing the breath of life emanating from the room, it began relentlessly banging on the door, as if cracking open a chestnut to devour the fruit inside!
The patience of the undead was not good; upon finding it couldn't knock down the door, it would run off somewhere else!
Survival is the instinct of all living beings.
Humans may choose death in extreme circumstances, but judging from Fan Li's current situation, it hadn't deteriorated to the point of resorting to "suicide" to escape this world. Moreover, compared to those mutated or ordinary people hiding in corners anxiously, Fan Li strangely possessed a monster summoning manual and the ability to summon a little monster covered in teeth.
In this dangerous post-apocalyptic world, Fan Li held a trump card for survival.
However, when it came to summoning Ellie, Fan Li dared not try it rashly. After all, there was only one living being in this room, and the cost of summoning her was a life. If he couldn't afford the payment, the consequences would be unimaginable.
Furthermore, Fan Li doubted what exactly the payment referred to: was it simply a human, an ordinary creature, or could even a zombie suffice? He had no idea about any of this, so his rationality told him not to turn the button on the music box until he was certain.
Confirming his thoughts, Fan Li opened the refrigerator, took out a piece of loose bread, and then stood by the window, carefully pulling back a small section of the curtain.
"Fear resistance allows Fan Li to calmly eat while witnessing the hellish scene. He bites into the cold bread without questioning its taste, his eyes fixed firmly on the window outside, resembling a statue, immersed in tranquility.
Time hasn't stopped the zombies; instead, they gather like ants, roaring and howling towards the surrounding buildings.
The streets have already transformed, once a prosperous scene now covered in blood. Countless cars are jammed together, blocking normal passage.
Outside, there are no sounds of car engines anymore. The entire city seems to have stopped spinning at this moment. Apart from the merciless zombies, there's not a single living person in sight.
Fan Li silently observes everything before him. The moon outside is setting, tainted with a bloody hue under this brutal virus outbreak, turning into a blood moon!
He doesn't finish the entire bread because he's unsure how many days he'll need to stay in this environment. In such extreme conditions, he needs to store as much food as possible for emergencies.
By now, the TV station has lost signal completely. The promised rescue hours ago hasn't arrived. Fan Li is unsure if it's due to bad road conditions or if the rescue team encountered unimaginable attacks, leading to the rescue being abandoned.
Nevertheless, Fan Li believes it's necessary to wait in this room because deep down, he still hopes for the arrival of the rescue team.
During this time, he needs to secure his front door, store more water, and carefully ration every bite of food.
Of course, before completing these tasks, Fan Li has one very important thing to note.
Standing outside the window, looking down at the hideous, flesh-strewn zombies below, Fan Li sighed deeply.
Before waiting for others to rescue him, Fan Li needs to pay attention to one thing—staying alive… and staying alive well!"
After writing down those three characters, Fan Li hesitated for a moment, then put down the brush in his hand.
It was already the third day since doomsday arrived. Not only had the television lost its signal, but even the radio had completely gone silent. In the morning, the power supply, which used to illuminate the town, had also become useless. This town, not particularly wealthy but quite convenient, had turned into a city of death.
Fan Li had been waiting for rescue, but it hadn't come. Reluctantly, he had to accept the fact that the town had descended into paralysis.
There was no order on the streets, only the wails and roars of the zombies. Compared to daytime, they seemed more excited at night. Fan Li glanced at his watch; it was 3:00 a.m.
"It's time."
After a sigh, a continuous, high-pitched roar echoed from outside the window.
After three days of observation, Fan Li noticed that at this time, the zombies in the wild would start roaring like madmen, a frenzy that lasted from five to ten minutes.
In the dead of night, in the pitch-black room, outside stood numerous grotesque and terrifying zombies. Meanwhile, ear-piercing screams echoed in every corner. If it weren't for these three days of experience, Fan Li might have thought he had truly descended into hell.
Compared to nighttime, the zombies were much quieter during the day. Therefore, lacking a variety of entertainment, Fan Li spent most of his time exercising and sleeping.
Fan Li didn't want to die, so he needed to maintain some basic physical fitness. Fortunately, he used to enjoy sports and would often play basketball with friends on weekends, so his physical condition was much better than that of his peers.
Besides exercising daily, the longest thing Fan Li did was sleep. The zombie-infested streets would generate ear-piercing noises late at night. Compared to nighttime, daytime was undoubtedly better for replenishing energy.
"There isn't much food left." Fan Li opened the refrigerator, staring at the remaining piece of bread, a ham, and half a bag of pickled vegetables, furrowing his brows slightly.
After the power went out, the refrigerator had become useless. Fan Li still stuffed food into it out of habit from before doomsday.
The hope of rescue was fading fast.
Fan Li had initially planned to patiently wait for the rescue team to arrive, but now, it had been exactly three days since doomsday erupted, and in those three days, not a single living soul had been seen on the streets, let alone any signs of rescue.
To survive, Fan Li could only rely on himself!
Food was running out, and although the power was cut off, the water supply was still intact. However, even with a sufficient water supply, relying on fat alone could only sustain him for five to seven days. But water supply only guaranteed survival, not the restoration of strength!
Once hungry for a period of time, physical strength would decline, and then, there would truly be no hope!
This couldn't go on any longer!
Fan Li clenched his fist tightly.
Even if he saved the remaining food, it would only last for two days. Once that time was exceeded, his strength would gradually decline.
Blame it on his solitary lifestyle. In the past, he mostly ate fast food or some convenient foods. Things like rice and flour were not stockpiled at home!
There were plenty of supermarkets outside, even a convenience store in the neighboring community. But now, the outside world was too dangerous. If he rashly ventured out and got surrounded, even with "Ellie," he feared he wouldn't be able to fend off multiple attackers. At that time, he wouldn't be able to resist and would be eaten alive.
After all, in this room, there was only Fan Li with a life. He didn't dare to easily turn the music box, and naturally couldn't know Ellie's true strength.
The outside was not an option.
However, this apartment building could be considered!
Choosing the lesser of two evils.
"Compared to the chaotic environment outside, this residential building can be used. Even if there are zombies, there definitely won't be as many as outside. As long as I'm brave enough, maybe I can collect some food I need!"
Fan Li no longer hesitated, taking a fierce bite out of the bread from the refrigerator.
Regardless, he had to give it a try!
With his plan determined, Fan Li suddenly found his resolve. All the confusion, helplessness, and doubt that plagued him before were cast aside.
It wasn't until this moment that Fan Li truly entered a state of calm.
Compared to the streets outside, the residential building undoubtedly offered more safety. And compared to exploring other corridors, individual rooms undoubtedly provided more security!
This building had one staircase for two households. After the neighbors made their fortune and moved out, the houses were left with only some abandoned items. Even if he broke in, he wouldn't find suitable food. As for upstairs, apart from the deceased teacher couple, there was only one household, a manga enthusiast, who had a decent financial situation and rarely stayed there, only displaying some models and figurines.
"The downstairs neighbors are an elderly couple. Since the old lady is bedridden, the old man takes care of her alone. They usually keep to themselves, only leaving the house temporarily when their children take them back home."
Fan Li closed the window tightly, then began pounding on the floor with forceful blows. The thudding sound echoed incessantly. As long as someone wasn't completely deaf, they could hear the noise, but there was no response from downstairs.
"Could it be… that the old couple both left when the apocalypse broke out?"
"Compared to himself, the elderly undoubtedly had the habit of stocking up on supplies. If he could search their home, perhaps he could find the food he needed!"
However, the neighbors had tightly closed their door. Breaking open a gate in an old residential area wasn't difficult, but the challenge lay in whether he would attract potential enemies while prying it open.
After much consideration, Fan Li narrowed down his target to just the deceased teacher's family. Fan Li vividly remembered the scene that day: the man in panic, the woman in an apron looking ferocious and irrational. In such a situation, it was very likely that their door hadn't been closed.
The charge of breaking and entering was no small matter. In peacetime, even if Fan Li were given ten times his courage, he wouldn't dare intrude into someone's home without their consent.
But now, it was the apocalypse, order had collapsed, and the law was draped in darkness. The so-called orderliness had vanished in the face of despair.
Putting aside legality, for Fan Li, the most important thing now was to survive!
Fan Li now had a compelling reason to search for food.
Waiting for rescue was already a slim chance. While he still had strength, even if he encountered zombies, he might still have the power to deal with them. But if he went hungry for a few more days, his physical functions would continue to decline, and that would be true despair!
"There happened to be a hammer for renovation at home."
"I… perhaps I can…"
"I'll use it as a weapon for self-defense first…"