Night of the Apocalypse

As the flashlights lit up, Anke operated the professional camera to begin shooting. After a few test shots, the results looked quite good.

“Very nice. Let’s start the official shoot. Action director, come guide the poses,” Anke said with satisfaction.

“Got it!”

At that moment, a long-haired man with an artsy vibe stepped forward to instruct Shen Qiu and Tang Kexin on their poses.

“Mr. Shen, you can sit on the motorcycle facing the camera, with your feet suspended and your fingers interlaced. Miss Tang Kexin, you’ll stand beside Mr. Shen.”

“Like this?” Tang Kexin asked cooperatively.

“Yes, that’s right. Your expression could be a bit softer to create a contrast with Mr. Shen’s cold demeanor, enhancing the aesthetic.”

Click, click…
The shoot continued in an orderly manner.

Thanks to Tang Kexin’s approachable attitude and the fact that Shen Qiu didn’t need to show his face—only follow the pose directions—the session went very smoothly.

After more than three hours, the close-up shots were completed.

“That’s a wrap. Great job! Miss Tang and Mr. Shen, you can take a break now. Once the setup on the road is finished, we’ll move on to shooting the beautiful wide-angle videos and photos,” Director Anke announced with a smile.

After hearing this, Shen Qiu immediately left the platform.

Tang Kexin was about to follow him when a female assistant hurried over and said to her, “Kexin, the fan support group is really excited and they’ve been waiting for half a day. You might need to take a few photos with them.”

“Of course, that’s something I should do,” Tang Kexin replied.

Tang Kexin glanced at Shen Qiu’s distant figure and replied gently.

On the other side, Shen Qiu walked to the rest area below and found an empty chair to sit down.

He leisurely looked around; by the riverbank, there were quite a few staff members and fans playing in the water. On the road side, numerous crew members were busy setting up torches for staging on both sides of the highway.

Shen Qiu slightly turned his neck to relieve the stiffness.

Time passed slowly.

As dusk approached, Sun Shu hurried over to him and spoke.

“Mr. Shen!”

“Are we about to start filming?” Shen Qiu asked as he stood up.

“No, Mr. Shen. This is your completion certificate; it’s already signed. You can wrap up now.”

Sun Shu promptly handed Shen Qiu a completion certificate.

Shen Qiu took the certificate with a puzzled expression and asked,

“Isn’t there still a scene for distant riding filming?”

He was quite interested in this part, especially since he could test drive the new motorcycle.

“Uh, you don’t need to worry about that distant shoot. Just don’t ask too many questions; your work is already done, and you can leave early.”

“Don’t you worry about getting found out?”

“That’s not something you need to concern yourself with. Professional fans might recognize you from the close-ups, but they won’t be able to see you in the distant shots. Plus, getting off early is good for you. I have other matters to attend to, so I’ll be leaving!”

After finishing his sentence, Sun Shu didn’t wait for a response and left on his own.

Shen Qiu sat in the resting chair, lightly tapping his fingers on the armrest as he thought for a few seconds before getting up and heading toward the preparation area.

Soon, Shen Qiu arrived at the preparation area, which was bustling with activity.

The supporting motorcycle riders had all changed into matching black knight suits.

At the center, a young man with golden-dyed hair and an arrogant expression was impatiently talking to Sun Shu.

“Have you sorted it out?”

“It’s done, Mr. Cheng Ning. We’ve gotten rid of that guy. You’ll be responsible for carrying Miss Kexin during the shoot. The director has also agreed to design some intimate actions, like having Miss Kexin wrap her arms around you and rest her cheek against your back.”

Sun Shu was carefully attending to him.

“Good, well done. You won’t miss out on the benefits later.”

Cheng Ning showed an excited expression upon hearing this.

Shen Qiu, hearing this, turned to look again at Tang Kexin, who was chatting and laughing with fans. His gaze finally landed on Cheng Ning, and a hint of strangeness appeared in his expression as he shook his head slightly.

Then, Shen Qiu turned and left the preparation area. However, he did not exit the shooting site; instead, he walked toward the observation area by the road, leisurely finding a chair to sit down and watch quietly.

He wanted to see the performance of the new bike before leaving.

Before long, everything was ready.

Cheng Ning put on his helmet and actively walked toward Tang Kexin.

Seeing the black knight approaching, Tang Kexin broke into a radiant smile. However, when Cheng Ning got closer, she immediately sensed a subtle difference, and a strange light flickered in her bright eyes.

At that moment, Director Anke hurried over, grinning as he said, “Everyone is here; let’s get started!”

Tang Kexin turned to Director Anke and asked softly, “Director, are you sure everything is ready? There are no issues?”

Hearing Tang Kexin’s words, Anke felt an inexplicable chill in his heart, but he still smiled and replied, “Of course everything is ready. There won’t be any problems; we’ll aim to get it all done in one go.”

“Since everything is ready, why didn’t you tell me about the sudden change in personnel?” Tang Kexin asked Cheng Ning.

Seeing that Tang Kexin recognized him, Cheng Ning didn’t hide anything and said to her,

“Kexin, I’m just worried about you. I really can’t feel at ease with that reckless professional player taking you for a ride. My driving skills are excellent; I can take you myself, and the effects from the long-distance shots will be much better.”

“Thank you, but I don’t think it’s necessary.”

“Kexin, listen to me.”

Not far away, Shen Qiu sat on a chair, casually scrolling through the Haiyin platform on his phone while waiting for the shooting to begin.

At that moment, a notification suddenly popped up on Shen Qiu’s phone.
“NCS positioning signal restored.”

He glanced at it and dismissed the notification. It seemed that the efficiency of the Red Alliance was quite good; the satellite signal was gradually recovering.

At this time, Shen Qiu’s phone displayed the time as exactly 18:00.

Suddenly, the previously bright sky darkened.

Nearby, a few logistics staff members passing by began to discuss in confusion.

“Why did the sky suddenly darken? It was fine just a moment ago. Is it going to rain again?”

Shen Qiu heard their discussion and was slightly taken aback. He immediately looked up at the sky; if it was really going to rain, he would have to consider leaving first.

However, Shen Qiu didn’t see any dark clouds in the sky; it just appeared to have darkened quite a bit.

Meanwhile, a security captain responsible for the safety on site walked to the riverbank and shouted at some staff members and fans playing by the canal.

“The sky is getting dark; don’t stay by the riverbank. It’s not safe!”

“Okay!”

The people on the bank waved at the security captain and began to leave, chatting and laughing among themselves.

As they were leaving, a terrifying figure slowly swept across the canal.

Over in the viewing area, more and more people gathered, all looking puzzled and chatting.

“How long until we start filming? The sky is getting darker. If it’s too dark, the shooting effect won’t be good.”

“Don’t worry, the props team has prepared torches.”

“Wait a minute, Xiuzhen, am I seeing things? Why are there two moons in the sky?”

At this moment, a girl in work clothes pointed at the sky in shock.

“No way! Xianghui, don’t talk nonsense; there’s only one moon!”

Xiuzhen looked up at the sky and complained.

After hearing this, Shen Qiu instinctively looked up, and a crescent moon appeared in his sight; he didn’t see two moons.

Just then, he felt a sudden sharp pain in his eyes. He closed them and shook his head.

When he opened his eyes again, it seemed as if the world around him was filled with double images; the moon in the sky appeared split in two.

Everything around him began to blur and grow hazy.

“Am I losing my mind?”

Shen Qiu shook his head vigorously, trying to wake himself up.

However, this didn’t help at all. Instead, he experienced an incredibly strange sight; in his daze, it felt as if he saw a series of crumbling steel buildings.

At this moment, Xiuzhen, who was still searching for the second moon, snapped back to reality and suddenly realized that Xianghui was missing, so she began looking around.

“Xianghui? Where are you? Where did you run off to? Xianghui!”

At the same time, anxious shouts came from a distance.

“Miss Kexin!”

“Mr. Cheng Ning!”

“Where did you all go?”

“What happened to Director Anke?”

“Are you deaf? Miss Kexin is missing! Hurry up and find her!”

“Yes!”

In an instant, the entire shooting scene descended into chaos.

After searching for a long time, Director Anke and the others still couldn’t find any trace of Tang Kexin and Cheng Ning.

And worst of all, terrified staff members ran up to Director Anke, saying,

“Director, something’s wrong! It seems like a lot of people are missing. What should we do now?”

“You’re asking me? Who should I ask? Hurry up and call the police!”

Director Anke directly sat down on the ground, his face reflecting utter despair.

On the other side, when Shen Qiu shook his head, the blurry world before him gradually came into focus.

In an instant, Shen Qiu found himself stiffly sitting on a decaying garbage can. He looked down at his feet, which were on a hardened metal surface, with weeds growing in the cracks.

As Shen Qiu slowly raised his head to look around, he saw sturdy, rugged steel buildings standing tall, some of which had collapsed.

The air was thick with a pungent, fishy odor that was quite unpleasant.

Nearby, several filming staff members and enthusiastic fans were also gazing around in astonishment, muttering in confusion to themselves.

“What is this place?”

“Aren’t we by the riverbank?”

“This architectural style is so unique!”

“Is this real or fake? It can’t be a hologram, right?”

Boom!
Just as everyone was in a state of confusion, a thunderous explosion and terrifying roar suddenly erupted from a distance.

Shen Qiu’s nerves tensed up, every hair on his body stood on end, and goosebumps broke out all over him.

“What the hell is this place? Anke! Anke!”

At this moment, Cheng Ning, who was with Tang Kexin, shouted in frustration.

Unfortunately, no one responded to him.

Meanwhile, the woman named Xianghui curiously touched a collapsed steel statue next to her.

Bang!
In an instant, Xianghui’s head exploded like a watermelon, a mixture of white and red matter splattering onto the people nearby.

“Ah~”

The terrified screams instantly echoed throughout the entire area.