I Spread my Genes to Level Up in the Apocalypse

In the light of day, a fiery blaze rose across the area, nearly having the illusion of reaching the sky.

The screeching of a blurry figure of a giant spider echoed from within the flames, growing louder and louder.

"This is a little too loud," Ray muttered, frowning as he touched his ears and noticed red blood trickling out.

Even with his terrifying physique and vitality, the sound was affecting him—what would it do to others?

He observed as the undead level two spider continued to screech within the flames, still clinging to life.

"Interesting, a level two undead is never too simple," Ray mused, moving with lightning speed toward the flaming creature.

As Ray drew closer to the flaming undead spider, its eyes locked onto him.

In a swift and furious motion, the spider lashed out with one of its slender, flaming legs, aiming to impale him with its burning wrath.

Without a hint of hesitation, Ray's hand shot out, catching the spider's leg mid-strike.

The moment his skin made contact, a sizzling sound filled the air as the intense heat from the flames seared his flesh. A sharp pain shot through his hand but Ray stood tall like a mountain tightly gripping it.

The undead spider was furious as it retaliated with a swift strike from its other front leg, but Ray effortlessly caught it, his expression calm.

Now, with both of the spider's front legs securely in his grasp, the creature's full weight bore down on him.

The massive, burning form of the spider strained against Ray, its legs thrashing in a futile attempt to free itself.

The sheer weight of the undead spider would have crushed a normal man, but Ray stood firm.

"It is strong, but not strong enough," Ray muttered with a snicker, slowly raising his hands and lifting the spider's legs along with its body weight.

Under the horrified gaze of the spider's eight eyes, which gleamed with an eerie intelligence, Ray stretched his arms to their full extent, lifting the massive creature off the ground.

Then, with brutal force, he began to pull the legs apart, one to the left and one to the right.

"It's time for your legs to say goodbye," Ray sneered, stretching the limbs to their breaking point before ripping them off with a brutal yank.

The spider let out a blood-curdling screech as green blood spurted from its wounds. Ray didn't stop there; he casually tore off all eight of its legs in quick succession, swiftly decapitating it.

"It's time to end this," Ray muttered, a murderous glint in his eyes.

He was about to destroy the spider's head when a bullet suddenly whizzed through the air, striking the back of his head squarely.

"Hmm?" Ray murmured, touching the crushed bullet with a puzzled expression.

He turned to look behind him, his gaze as if piercing through every obstacle to find the source of the shot with a little tube peeking out from the window.

"Interesting."

A cruel smirk curled across his lips as he turned back, effortlessly decapitating the spider without any resistance.

"Wakey," Ray whispered in his mind, feeling a bit embarrassed at the thought of saying it aloud, still regretting his choice of words.

An eerie darkness swirled in and out of existence, and suddenly, a cat cloaked in shadow appeared, floating in the air.

"Kikyo, my mutation energy is not for you to waste as fuel," Ray's brows twitched in irritation.

"What do you mean, nya!?" Kikyo retorted, glaring at Ray with an indignant look. "When did I ever use your precious mutation energy?"

"You know exactly what I mean. How can you fly without using my mutation energy?" Ray immediately countered.

"Alright, fine, nya," Kikyo grumbled, her ears twitching in annoyance. "But why did you even summon me here, nya?"

Ray turned, pointing in the direction from which the sniper shot had come. "Go check over there."

Kikyo rolled her eyes. "That guy's just a weak human. Why do you need me to take care of him, nya?"

"Wait, you can sense him?" Ray asked, a hint of disbelief in his voice.

"No, I can sense the mutation energy. And he is very weak," Kikyo replied, shaking her head as if it were obvious.

"That doesn't necessarily determine strength, does it?" Ray grumbled, waving his hand dismissively. "Just go take care of him."

"And why can't you handle him yourself, nya?" Kikyo asked, narrowing her eyes.

"I've got some unfinished business," Ray replied, his tone leaving no room for argument.

"Fine, nya," Kikyo huffed, her tail flicking in annoyance as she floated away, her mood clearly sullen.

Ray watched her go, shaking his head with a wry smile before turning his attention back to the level two undead spider.

Binding the creature was relatively easy, especially given that while the spider was strong, it wasn't nearly as powerful as Kikyo—at most, it was comparable to Raven. There was a difference in strength among level two undead as well.

Ray felt the mutation energy within his body surge, leaving him with a satisfied expression.

—

Mutation energy: 2689

—

"Not bad," Ray muttered to himself, noting that his mutation energy was nearing the 3,000 mark. However, he was uncertain about how best to invest it.

The only two A-class abilities he possessed were: Gene Synchronisation and Overlord of the Sky, but Ray wasn't sure if either would significantly increase his strength.

While thinking about this, Ray had already made his way to the mall center, right next to the undead spider.

He had initially found the undead spider in the parking lot, shrouded in deep darkness, and their fight had eventually led them outside. In truth, it was more like he had lured the spider out.

Regardless, Ray walked into the mall and picked up some random equipment.

"Hmm?"

He paused in place, his ears twitching as he caught the sound of ragged breathing.

Ray slowly followed the sound to a wall on his left.

"Inside here?" he muttered, confusion evident on his face. Then, he raised his fist and punched the wall.

Boom!

The wall crumbled instantly, revealing a hollow space inside.

"Interesting," Ray said, casually walking in with a curious smile on his face.

The moment Ray entered the hidden space, he was met with a sudden attack—a knife aimed directly at him.

With swift reflexes, he caught the attacker's wrist, feeling that it was almost entirely boneless and tender.

He slightly pinched, causing the woman to wince in pain and drop the weapon.

"Careful there, I don't have any negative intentions here," he said lightly, pushing her to the ground.

Finally, Ray got a clear look at her.

She was wearing a military vest and light combat armour, her face obscured by a mask.

Her eyes, however, were sharp and weary, watching Ray with fear.

"Chill, I won't hurt you, girl." Ray patted her head gently, speaking in a calm tone.

He then glanced around at the others in the room, who were huddled together, staring at him as if he were a monster.

"You must have some skills to keep all these weak chickens alive, especially with that undead spider around," Ray remarked casually as he stood up, surveying the group.

"Wait, undead spider?" Her body trembled.

"Yeah, what?" Ray looked at her with a confused expression. "I killed it."

"Did you really kill it?" she asked hoarsely, her eyes filled with tears.

"Umm?"

Ray rubbed the back of his head. "Yeah, I did."

The woman immediately started to cry and whine. "That monster killed my brother, father, and mother…"

Her sobs were intermittent, filled with sorrow and grief.

Ray didn't have any clue what was going on.

He really didn't care about them; if he wanted to spread his genes, he could do it in his own city as much as he wanted, and even if he wanted to take things to the extreme, he had two slaves as well…

But still, he handed her a shoulder to lean on as she cried.

After a while, her sobs finally subsided, and she looked at Ray with grateful eyes.

"Thank you for saving us. That monster spider always hunted us, taking one individual a day as if it were a ration of food, toying with us. If you hadn't saved us, we would likely be dead."

She prostrated on the ground, a humiliating gesture for someone of her pride, but in this apocalypse, where the strong dictate the rules, it was a small price to pay especially since Ray was their saviour.

Ray looked at her meaningfully, then shook his head before turning and walking away.

"Eh, please wait!" She hurriedly tried to follow Ray.

At that moment, she was pulled back by the others.

"This guy is dangerous, Sis Elsha. If you follow him, who knows what he might do."

"He's right, Sis Elsha. The undead spider is finally dead. We can live our lives freely now."

Elsha looked at the group of people and couldn't help but shake her head.

"How stupid can people be?" she grumbled in her heart.

Even without the spider, they would eventually run out of supplies. The food was already running thin because there were thirty people in the group.

Even though they occupied a huge mall, their supplies were depleting rapidly.

Soon, they would have to scavenge for resources and food. But where would they find it?

Although she was military-trained, she had never killed an undead before and would most likely die if she were surrounded by even two of them.

For a normal person, an undead was already a nightmare.

Their strength was similar to that of a normal human, and they fought without constraints and madness. Even a trained professional would find it difficult to handle them.

Elsha didn't speak to the others and hurriedly left the room in silence.

"Eh, she left."

"Let her go. With one less person, we might be able to survive longer."

"You're right."

The gazes of various people turned cold. When facing the threat of the undead spider, they had been the most united, but now that it was gone, the darker side of human nature emerged.

Without societal constraints, the true feelings of the people began to surface!