The white fluorescent light on the ceiling flickered with a low hum, casting a sterile glare over the long table. The atmosphere was heavy.
Van Thieu stood straight at the head of the table, his outer gear replaced by a standard military uniform. Facing him were over a dozen individuals: combat commanders, patrol leaders, researchers, and a middle-aged man with graying hair wearing a green cap—the steady-eyed Ly Hong Quan.
"During our patrol expansion mission near Park No. 3, our team discovered an anomaly," Van Thieu said, his voice calm but clear.
He paused for a beat.
"Zombies... eating zombies."
A few low whispers immediately broke out in the room.
A man in tactical gear leaned back, frowning. "You mean cannibalistic behavior?"
"It's more than just behavior," Van Thieu shook his head. "Those creatures were significantly stronger. Their speed, power, and reflexes far exceed those of common zombies."
Ly Hong Quan placed his hands on the table, his eyes narrowing slightly. "Are you certain?"
"Positive," Van Thieu replied instantly. "Our formation was nearly breached in the tunnel. If not for our vanguard suppressing it, the consequences would have been unpredictable."
A tactical analyst at the table tapped his finger lightly. "If that's the case, we can no longer simply call them all 'zombies'." He looked around the room and continued slowly, "We need a classification system. Otherwise, our frontline teams will die due to miscalculating their targets."
The room fell silent. Van Thieu reached into his pocket and pulled out a small metal box. He opened the lid. Inside were several deep crimson crystals, uneven in size and rough-surfaced, with a faint light flowing within them.
"We extracted these from their bodies."
A scientist in a white lab coat, the head of biological mutation research, stood up abruptly. He hurried over, leaning close to the box, his eyes practically glued to the red crystals.
"These aren't ordinary energy shards..." he muttered. "The structure is crude, yet irrationally stable."
He reached out, hesitating for a second mid-air before carefully picking one up. The moment the crystal touched his hand, the red light inside flickered. He took a deep breath. "This looks like a byproduct of forced evolution."
Ly Hong Quan stood up, his voice deep and echoing. "This means the zombies aren't just existing."
"They are evolving."
No one countered him. Only the steady hum of the air conditioner remained as a creeping chill spread through the room.
"You said you haven't named them yet?" Ly Hong Quan asked Van Thieu.
"No, sir," Van Thieu replied. "We only know they are stronger than common zombies, but they show no clear signs of morphological mutation yet."
Ly Hong Quan pondered for a moment. "Then, for now, classify them as Mid-tier. No official name yet, but from this day forward, every team going out must treat this type as a high-priority threat."
The scientist clenched the crystal in his hand, his voice low with excitement. "If these crystals can be absorbed..." He looked up, his eyes bright. "Then it won't just be the zombies getting stronger."
In a small room, the ceiling light was only halfway dimmed, casting a pale yellow glow over the cold cement floor.
Thuong Sinh sat cross-legged on the bed, back straight, hands resting before his abdomen. His breathing was steady. The Essence inside his body circulated according to the path of the Source Breath Cultivation, lap after lap, without a hint of chaos.
The Essence flowed through his meridians like water in a river—no ripples, no blockages, but no surge either. He tried to guide the Essence to strike the final point in his body—the blurry boundary between the Late Stage of Body Tempering and the next level.
There was no vibration, only an invisible wall.
Thuong Sinh opened his eyes.
[ Thuong Sinh ]
[ Cultivation ]: 499/500
[ Realm ]: Body Tempering (Late Stage)
[ Combat Skills ]: Blade Wind (Minor Accomplishment), Phantom Steps (Entry Level)
[ Accumulated Points ]: 231
Thuong Sinh exhaled slowly, neither frustrated nor rushed. He had felt this for days; the problem wasn't the cultivation method or the Essence.
Something was missing. A "key."
Just then, the sound of patrolling soldiers passing by outside reached his window, their voices drifting in.
"I heard the new ones they found are way stronger." "Yeah, red crystals dropped out of them too."
Thuong Sinh paused. Crystals.
A dangerous thought flickered in his mind but was quickly extinguished. He couldn't gamble on those things to help him break through. They were crystallized from zombies; there was no guarantee that absorbing them wouldn't turn him into one of them.
Suddenly, another thought crossed his mind. If not the crystals, what about something similar that could be absorbed?
He quickly opened the System Shop, his gaze landing on the Pill section. He scrolled slowly, fearing he might miss a single word. Finally, a line of text caught his eye.
Thuong Sinh frowned slightly.
[ Pill · Essence Condensation Pill ]
[ Grade ]: Mortal Rank - Top Grade
[ Effect ]: Condenses Essence, breaks through bottleneck barriers.
[ Usage Limit ]: Only effective when cultivation reaches Peak Body Tempering Late Stage.
[ Price ]: 200 Accumulated Points
[ Description ]: A fundamental pill in cultivation, helping the practitioner step over the first threshold of the path.
Thuong Sinh stared at the words "Peak Body Tempering Late Stage." At 499/500, he was exactly one step away. He suddenly understood.
It wasn't a lack of Essence or an issue with the technique; he lacked the trigger. He knew he had reached the bottleneck long ago. Every time he practiced, his meridians felt engorged, hitting that invisible wall. The feeling was familiar.
Peak Late Stage wasn't just a number; it wasn't a state that could be forced. It was a moment where the body and the will to survive had to be pushed to the absolute limit to step through on their own.
Without a strong enough impact, the door wouldn't open. Thuong Sinh looked at the Essence Condensation Pill one more time, then slowly withdrew his gaze. Swallowing it now would be like pounding on a locked door with a hammer. The hammer might break, but the door would remain shut.
"Not yet time."
He closed the shop and leaned against the wall, his breathing slowing. Images of the past few days flashed through his mind: the zombies that were no longer slow, the ones that grew strong by eating their own, and the red crystals falling from their corpses.
Thuong Sinh opened his eyes, his gaze as sharp as a blade.
"If I need a push, then I will find it myself."
The next morning. A temporary meeting room on the third floor of the Command Center.
Ly Hong Quan sat at the head of a long wooden table covered in marked maps, his expression more solemn than usual. The door opened, and Thuong Sinh, dressed in standard military fatigues, walked in. Ly Hong Quan looked up, slightly surprised. He had told the guards to let Thuong Sinh in if he had urgent business, but he hadn't expected to see him so soon.
"Something the matter?"
"I am requesting a mission."
Thuong Sinh spoke bluntly. Two officers and a researcher in the room looked up at him.
Ly Hong Quan didn't answer immediately. "Every team going out now must have a clear objective. Speak."
Thuong Sinh paused, then said slowly, "I want to go out and fight."
An officer frowned. "Fight? You think the training in here isn't enough?"
Another officer shot him a dissatisfied look. "Are you looking down on the current training system?"
The atmosphere grew tense. Thuong Sinh didn't dodge their gazes. "No. The training in the safe zone is very good. I have never denied that. But it no longer helps me progress."
An officer let out a cold laugh. "And how can you guarantee that?"
Thuong Sinh looked directly at him. "Because here, everything is within limits. No matter how it's simulated, there is always someone outside ready to pull me out."
"So what?" the officer snapped.
"So the body holds back," Thuong Sinh replied. "When you know there is a way out, your reflexes don't go all the way. Neither does your will. But out there..." His gaze darkened. "There is no ceiling, no end time, and no one to order a stop. If I am a beat slow, I die."
The room fell silent.
"I'm not saying training is useless. It's just that for me, right now, it has served its purpose. I need an environment with no retreat. That is why I am asking to go out."
Ly Hong Quan leaned back, tapping his fingers on the table. His aged but sharp eyes scanned Thuong Sinh from head to toe. He wasn't evaluating strength; he was evaluating a choice.
"Do you know what you're asking for?" Ly Hong Quan asked, his voice heavy. "Requesting an independent mission—no support, no formation. Going out now, the probability of death is too high."
Thuong Sinh didn't flinch. "I know."
"And you're still asking?"
"Still asking."
Ly Hong Quan stared at him for a few more seconds, then chuckled softly. It wasn't a mocking laugh; it was the laugh of someone who had seen too many people step beyond the boundaries of safety.
"I've met many like you. Some return. Some do not. The only difference is the reason. You aren't asking for glory, resources, or out of pride. You're asking because you feel it isn't enough."
Ly Hong Quan turned to the researcher. "Which area is currently not fully mapped?"
The researcher fumbled with his maps. "The southwest sector. Zombie density fluctuates irregularly, and scouting signals are frequently lost. The cause is unknown."
"Give him the coordinates."
The map was pushed to the center of the table. Ly Hong Quan looked at Thuong Sinh one last time. "This isn't an extermination mission, nor long-term scouting. Three days. If you're alive, return. If you find anything, report it. There is no rescue."
Thuong Sinh nodded without hesitation. "Understood."
Ly Hong Quan reached into his drawer, pulled out a gray metal tag, and tossed it over. "A passage tag for the safe zone gates. You are permitted free movement within the designated area."
Thuong Sinh gripped the tag, bowed his head without another word, and left the room.
The door closed. The researcher spoke softly, "Do you really trust him?"
Ly Hong Quan looked at the map, his eyes deep. "No. But I believe there are people who can only move forward when there is no way back." He whispered, almost to himself, "And that kind of person... if they don't die, they become very dangerous."