Wen Yu crouched low, desperately afraid of being discovered by the monster below that he was all too familiar with.
Even though this monster didn't quite match the size of Simba as he remembered.
But the identical body proportions and trademark skill—Flame Flow—instantly stirred up the deepest fears hidden in Wen Yu's heart.
If Wen Yu's post-apocalyptic year of memories were to be written into a book, Simba would be the protagonist.
At least within Mudanjiang City, he was unquestionably the protagonist.
This occurred half a year after the apocalypse, when all of Mudanjiang City was trembling non-stop in the demon plague under the Blood Moon.
Wen Yu was fortunate enough to witness this lion known as Simba with his own eyes.
In his full form, he was a monstrous creature five stories tall. A barrage of Flame Flow spewed continuously from his mouth, engulfing and obliterating everything in its path. Coupled with the agility and terrifying strength of a feline creature, the overwhelming demon plague was forced to retreat.
It was undeniable that Simba was the overlord of the entire Mudanjiang City, as the only Level 5 mutant creature. Only God knows how it found enough food to evolve to such a state. His unparalleled power made every creature that opposed him tremble.
Wen Yu witnessed with his own eyes how, amidst the demon plague, Simba led countless mutant creatures, charging headfirst into the huge Demon Group alone. With his individual strength, he brutally killed three Level Five Demon Fiends, and then, a huge Magma Sea devoured nearly half of the demonic tide.
Thus, the entire Mudanjiang City fell into a fear ruled by Simba.
Mutant beasts? They served as henchmen and food.
Professionists? They were merely desserts after meals.
Demon Fiends? Simba's lair was right at the entrance of a Demon Realm's Gate. No Demon Fiend from within that specific Demon Realm's Gate could escape Simba's den.
Wen Yu should have realized this. Mudanjiang City had only one zoo, and Simba was here.
But the vast difference from his past life made Wen Yu selectively forget this fact.
Even now, when he saw the lion once again, Wen Yu did not have the courage to confront it.
If Wen Yu remembered this fact, he would never dare to approach Riverside Park.
"I see, so the lion is here. Then everything makes sense."
Right now, the food below was far too abundant for Simba.
The lazy lion would not abandon the food at its mouth to trouble Wen Yu. This was evident from Simba's choice of lair in his previous life—right in front of the Demon Realm's Gate.
Therefore, Wen Yu hiding upstairs presented a much smaller risk.
Wen Yu gradually calmed down and understood the cause and effect of being able to enter the treasure land in his previous life.
Simba burst out from the park and then engaged in a massive fight with the zombies outside—specifically, a massacre.
With the pathetic power of a Level 1 zombie, it couldn't even scratch Simba's skin. Simba just needed to open his mouth to bite and eat them, and the next one would be automatically delivered to his mouth.
As for the zombies, given their Level 1 intelligence, they could only see that just one bite of Simba's flesh would allow them to evolve.
The temptation right in front of them made the zombies lose their sanity, even though they didn't have any to begin with.
Then the countless roars of the zombies attracted more zombies near the park.
So, Simba, while nibbling on his snacks, haphazardly looked for more delicious food.
The zombie horde in the entire park was distracted by Simba. Inadvertently, a way out was opened for the yet-to-be-opened treasure land.
This was the opportunity that Wen Yu wanted.
Wen Yu sat quietly, listening to the sounds outside. The countless footsteps and roars of zombies, and the sounds of bones breaking echoed in his ears.
Occasionally, a giant red flash illuminated most of the sky.
That was Simba's Flame Flow, his usual method of cleaning up the pests, also signaling that Simba was getting a bit agitated.
Then came the enormous roar and the sound of collapsing buildings.
Wen Yu incessantly prayed that Simba wouldn't go crazy and hit the building where he was.
Fortunately, as the sound gradually faded until it was barely audible, the building where Wen Yu was remained intact.
Only then did Wen Yu dare to slowly stick his head out of the window.
The massive disturbances outside had subsided, and the enormous horde of corpses had been scattered. The remaining zombies either lost their ability to move or hadn't evolved and couldn't keep up with Simba's walking pace. Left without a target, they quietly waited there.
Seeing that the gate to Riverside Park was open to him and the hordes of corpses that trapped him were crippled, Wen Yu had no intention of entering the park ahead of time.
As everyone knows, a lion's territoriality is very strong, and mutant lions also inherit this quality.
In his previous life, Simba demarcated the whole of Mudanjiang City as his Territory, resulting in the relentless hunting of all powerful foreign creatures by Simba.
At present, Wen Yu didn't know if Simba had designated Riverside Park as his Territory. What if Simba had just left its lair, merely out for a snack?
What if Simba just went out for a stroll after eating?
If Simba came back, then the fate of Wen Yu, who had entered the park, would be self-explanatory.
The whole Riverside Park had become a Dragon Pool Tiger Den.
Although Wen Yu knew that in his previous life, someone had entered this treasure land.
But to gamble his life on whether a lion would return home, Wen Yu thought it was foolish.
After waiting another hour, Wen Yu saw that the firelight he could originally see was now barely visible.
Wen Yu's heart, which had been shattered by Simba earlier, also began to stir.
"I don't dare to go into Riverside Park, but... I can deal with these disabled zombies below. These are points! Besides, Simba is so big; if he comes back, I should be able to react, right?"
Wen Yu felt restless.
Simply put, this was a hopeful mentality. If you die, you can't blame others, and if you manage to luck out, it's your fate.
Wen Yu was just an ordinary person, with at most an extra year of post-apocalyptic survival experience.
Seeing points all over the ground, if Wen Yu didn't pick them up, he would feel he had wronged Heaven for giving him this chance at rebirth.
After calculating Simba's route again, Wen Yu quietly comforted himself, "I'll just kill a few, then I'll leave. Forget about the treasure land."
Running downstairs quickly with his weapon, Wen Yu didn't dare to enter his combat stance. In case something happened, this could be life-saving.
Moreover, the zombies below didn't require Wen Yu to exert much effort.
With each swing of the knife, he earned a few points.
As for this kind of easy point farming, Wen Yu could only think, "Why not more of this?"
"10 points, 15, 23... Huh, you're weak, only giving 5 points."
Wen Yu grew more and more vigorous as he killed; it was much more exhilarating than at the police station. At the police station, he still needed to defend his face, but now, not only was there no danger, but the points were also much higher than from the zombie horde at the police station.
Seeing his points exceed the 500 mark and sprint towards 1,000, Wen Yu got excited.
"Just a little longer, just a little longer! If I reach 1,000, I'll advance right away. I definitely won't delay!"
He had already cleared half a street. As Wen Yu's points rushed past the 1,000 mark, he gritted his teeth hard.
"Clearing only half doesn't quite fit my style. I'll kill a little more. Simba still hasn't come back, right?"
Seeing his points had reached 1,300, Wen Yu looked at the few remaining zombies in front of him.
"Anyway, it's already come to this. Even if I kill them all, Simba won't necessarily come back. Fortune favors the bold; I'm betting on it!"
Wen Yu's eyes had turned red; this was the frightful gambler's spirit.
The huge temptation made Wen Yu feel like he was hooked and simply couldn't stop.