Old Zhu and his two colleagues led the zombies to the entrance of the driving school building as usual.
The three of them, with great tacit agreement, passed through the debris piled up at the stairwell, then quickly dragged the debris to try and block the passage.
Bent over, they didn't notice a pair of slender, strong hands reaching out above their heads, steadily holding a plastic basin full of vegetable oil.
The hands pushed forward with force, and the liquid in the basin poured down, drenching the people in the stairwell.
"What is that?"
"Where did the fire come from?"
"Oh no, it's oil!"
"Ah, it hurts!"
They no longer cared about the stairwell that wasn't fully blocked, scrambling like ants thrown into a hot pot, jumping around and rolling on the ground.
The more chaotic it became, the more ineffective their efforts were.
The debris blocking the stairwell was originally an assortment of tables, chairs, and benches dragged from various places, mostly wooden, and covered in a lot of oil, making them ignite instantly.
As one person tried to extinguish the flames on his body, he accidentally missed a step, tumbled down the stairs, and this impact completely opened the unblocked passage in the stairwell, creating a "broad path" for the approaching zombies.
Zombies moved stiffly, and climbing stairs was much harder for them than for humans, but with the blood meal ahead, they would crawl forward even if they fell.
Seeing that the first person who fell had already landed in the zombie horde, and the other two were also unfortunately grabbed by their ankles and dragged down, Lin Chen and his two companions, carrying basins of oil, went down to face the zombies and splashed it out with force.
The screaming people understood everything, but the intense pain in their bodies had already rendered them speechless.
Lin Chen cast Burning Hands, and the explosive flames quickly spread through the zombie horde.
[You killed Zombie x1, gained Kill Experience x1, Copper Coin x3]
[You killed Player Zhu Anping, gained Kill Experience x1, Copper Coin x45]
[You killed Player Li Jun, gained Kill Experience x1, Copper Coin x45]
[You killed Player Zhao Zhongxing, gained Kill Experience x1, Copper Coin x45] ...
A series of messages appeared. Lin Chen checked his adventure log while waiting for the fire to subside.
Killing people, like killing zombies, granted experience and Copper Coins; the experience values were similar, but the Copper Coins were much more.
Lin Chen estimated that the drop should be all the Copper Coins on the player's body. It seemed these three had also killed quite a few zombies, and without a camp, they had nowhere to spend money, so it all went to Lin Chen.
After the fire subsided, the few zombies that were in the back row and less affected by the fire stepped over their fallen comrades' bodies and approached Lin Chen and his companions.
"Wait until the zombies climb up a bit more, then I'll bind them, and then you two can act," Lin Chen said to Zheng Jing and Nie Ying.
The two nodded knowingly, clutching their weapons. They already knew that killing zombies would grant them "abilities."
Having endured humiliation, they had quickly become strong. To protect themselves in the apocalypse, they had to awaken their "abilities."
There were no plants or soil in the stairwell, so Lin Chen's Entangle was a bit weaker. Fortunately, there were only three zombies left, and the stairs hindered their movement, so he successfully controlled them.
"Quick!"
As soon as Lin Chen finished speaking, Nie Ying and Zheng Jing rushed forward, one for each. Lin Chen directly smashed the last one with a hoe.
"Don't rush to look at the player handbook yet. After zombies die, they drop Copper Coins. The two you killed, their drops belong to you."
Saying that, Lin Chen went down to search for the dropped Copper Coins. He already knew from his adventure log that this haul was significant, a total of 167 coins.
Adding the 40 Copper Coins obtained on the way, it just right made 2 Silver Coins and 7 Copper Coins. His money pouch became lighter, but his money increased.
The lounge on the third floor was a nightmarish place for Nie Ying and his companion, so they chose the second-floor cafeteria as their resting spot for the night.
Just like with Dong Xiaogang before, after briefly explaining some precautions, Lin Chen let them choose for themselves.
Saving people wasn't because he was particularly kind, but simply for his own happiness, and because he had the capacity, it wasn't a big deal.
It was just a convenient act, and he gained experience and Copper Coins, so why not?
He didn't expect anything in return, so after saving people, he didn't offer any extra kindness.
So, in Nie Ying and Zheng Jing's eyes, Lin Chen, who had saved them earlier, was a warm-hearted, kind, intelligent, and strong guy. But after killing the zombies, he became much quieter. After a few brief reminders, he didn't talk much, and the sense of distance between them increased significantly.
Actually, Lin Chen had always been like this. He saved people for his own happiness, naturally in his preferred way. He wasn't curious about other people's affairs, nor did he want to talk much about his own. What could strangers who don't understand each other talk about when sitting together?
Fortunately, Nie Ying and Zheng Jing were adults. They just thought Lin Chen was a bit reclusive, and because of their gratitude, they viewed him through a filter, so they didn't feel uncomfortable.
After reading the attribute descriptions, the two unhesitatingly stated their attributes, seeking his advice.
Nie Ying's advantageous attributes were Agility and Constitution, with Agility at 12 and Constitution at 11.
Zheng Jing's advantageous attribute was Perception, at 12 points.
Lin Chen briefly explained the abilities and characteristics of each profession to them, though he didn't know much himself.
Finally, Nie Ying chose Rogue based on his advantageous attributes, and Zheng Jing chose Druid between Priest and Druid, which was actually influenced by Lin Chen.
Lin Chen understood Druids the most deeply, so his explanation was the most comprehensive. For the Priest profession, Lin Chen still only knew there was a 0-level healing Spell, which he learned from Liu Luoluo. Liu Luoluo hadn't learned more, so Lin Chen naturally didn't know what it was like.
Between knowledge and ability, there was still a great distance. The two who had chosen their professions were immersed in a sea of knowledge.
Lin Chen was also like this; he was currently learning Clean Spell.
Before, he could boil water to clean himself at the camp, but now that he was out and about, he didn't have that luxury. This 0-level cantrip came in handy.
Having already learned several 1st-level Spells, learning a 0-level cantrip was naturally no problem, and he even learned it much faster.
Zheng Jing's first Spell was Light, but before he could even produce a tiny bit of Light, Lin Chen was already able to cast Clean Spell stably.
He even practiced on the two of them, helping them clean off the dust and grime from their bodies, making them much more comfortable.
"Sigh, I'm starting to doubt my abilities. Why is there no reaction at all?"
Zheng Jing said dejectedly. Nie Ying was already running around the room familiarizing himself with his abilities, while he had no change at all.
"My first Spell also took a long time to learn. Take it slow; going from 0 to 1 is always the hardest," Lin Chen comforted him. "Also, there are few plants in the town, and the Nature aura is much thinner than in the forest. This might also affect your ability to communicate with Nature's power. Why don't you try to Summon Animal Companion first? Learning skills is usually easier."
Zheng Jing nodded. Who wouldn't want to try magical powers? Since he couldn't learn Spells for a while, summoning an Animal Companion was also good.
Yuan Gun Gun had already been petted by the two boys. Who doesn't love a national treasure?
Zheng Jing also wanted a fluffy little fellow, but he didn't want a helpless cub. He didn't even have the confidence to protect himself, let alone an Animal Companion, so he hoped his Animal Companion would have some combat power, able to protect itself and him.
The creature that appeared in the summoning circle was much more imposing than Yuan Gun Gun: an adult gray wolf.