◇Nothing's Ever Easy◇

The truck was still moving...fast.

Yet Lu Xing hit the pavement, rolled, and then got up. He showed no injuries as he dusted off the dirt. His body sturdier since becoming a level 5.

A hand stuck out, and flipped him off from the driver side of the truck as it drove off.

"Jackass." Lu Xing let out as he looked around.

The spot he had been dropped at was just about four blocks away from the actual mall...it was the closest they had dared come to it for the dropoff. All around them was the ruins of buildings from the quakes, and the plague of the undead. People were screaming in places and gun shots were heard in others. The group had taken the easiest path, avoiding everything they could. As agreed, Wu Xinyi would be going back to the highway where he would hideout with the others...

Away from the zombies and...possible survivors.

'In my prior life...this shopping mall was still intact...' Lu Xing reassured himself as he began to shadowstep, 'but it had been an extremely dangerous area...'

He felt a chill as he thought of the sort of monstrous zombies that had occupied the mall.

'Hopefully its to early in the game for that.' Lu Xing had started listening in to his surroundings as he went hurriedly to his destination.

☆☆☆

Reaching the last block on his way to the mall...

Lu Xing came upon a sight he could barely believe with his own eyes...human remains. Many human remains. Not simple human remains, these victims had been attacked and killed by acid.

Some had had their skulls cracked and brains strewn about.

'Not Green Queen's...mutant's...no.. hmm.. zombie's then?' Lu Xing paused to take a closer look, 'This isn't looking good...'

He took his right hand to his right ear and pressed his thumb against the push back(the pointy end on a earring), hard enough to draw blood. The earrings gem lit up and a marking of a blue flame appeared wrapped around on Lu Xing's thumb, stopping at his wrist.

'I may not have the time or luxury of doing this inside...better to get it out of the way.' Lu Xing frowned, he had hoped to get to the Baby Depot without any trouble.

Now with all of this evidence before him, he knew the mall didn't hold the average zombie...

'But it's barely the first night...none of this makes sense...' He pondered trying to figure out how the zombies could possibly be higher leveled so soon.

Leveling was a long tedious process, not something easily done overnight.

To Lu Xing, from his prior life, only 13 levels were known to exist. This applied to all things capable of leveling. Including, items. Even the Ice Cat had caught him off guard... This...to him, nothing in this alternate timeline seemed to be making sense.

His frown deepened with a disturbing thought having come to him...

What if...the zombie's were also being rebirthed here?

What if they were leveling up faster by smashing people's heads open, and devouring the unnurtured cores within them..?

'If that was the case...' Lu Xing began to move again, "Then I may be screwed."

Now a quick trip for baby essentials...would probably turn life threatening. He picked up his pace, hoping that he could just quickly enter the place, grab the things and leave. Shadowstep was a technique used by only a few Mutant Humans with an affinity for Darkness...

The darker the night was, the stronger Lu Xing's abilities were...yet once the sun came up..

'It'll be many hours before daybreak,' Lu Xing calculated as he closed in on an entrance into the building, 'should be enough for me to get in and out..that's only if that thing doesn't spot me.'

"Nothing's ever easy." Lu Xing muttered as he hoped the thing hadn't gone into the mall.

(Rule #13 Apocalypse Guide: Never head in the direction of a bloody scene. More than likely, you will meet a horrible end.)

The closer he got, the more he saw of the carnage, and obvious acid markings.

'Shit.' Lu Xing thought at the sight to the main entrance.

The doors had been melted down.

This part of the mall had obviously been breached. Lu Xing got inside, though a drop of acid had managed to fall onto his shoulder. Gritting his teeth, he entered the first stall he could. It was a donut shop, once inside, he took care of the wound rather awkwardly as it was his right shoulder. The acid was continuously attempting to claim the surrounding flesh.

His blue flames handled it, and the flesh returned to normal.

Now he took the chance to listen to his surroundings. Breathing ever so slowly, he calmed the sound of his heart in an attempt to map out where survivors...and possible zombies would be. After making mental notes, he finally got up, and went out of the shop.

Once out, he found himself in the food court. All the shops surrounding him having to do with food...including one that took up an entire corner. This one caught his attention, the outside had blood splattered and more acid markings...

'A Luckin Coffee place...' Lu Xing thought as he got closer, the shop had doors on both outer walls.

Two different exits...

'The group that was here earlier must've thought they'd be able to trick the zombie into entering and possibly even slow it down...' Lu Xing mused, he stared at the acid that had devoured the walls.

Then went into the shop.

First thing he saw was the disfigured body of a woman...then more blood splattered...

'This is...pretty bad.' Lu Xing thought disgusted.

He walked up and took a glance behind the counter.

The sound had barely been audible, but with his heightened senses, Lu Xing had heard the silent weeping of a young boy.