Night of the Apocalypse

The two young men who had trained before, even after successfully launching a sneak attack, were easily and decisively eliminated like children.

This filled Shen Qiu with a strong sense of crisis. He took a few deep breaths to calm his rising emotions.

He made up his mind: in the future, without absolute certainty, he would never take the initiative to confront mechanical weapons. It would be wise to lay low and stay safe.

Shen Qiu continued to observe secretly, planning to check on the two dead men after the cleaning robot left to see if he could find anything useful.

Unfortunately, things did not go as hoped. After the cleaning robot finished its kill, it did not leave. Instead, three more cleaning robots appeared in the distance.

Seeing this, Shen Qiu immediately sensed danger. These cleaning robots were likely going to conduct a thorough sweep of the area. Thinking of this, he quickly got up and prepared to exit the building through the back door.

Inside a derelict residential building in the Steel Ruin City, Cheng Ning and Tang Kexin pushed open a slightly ajar door and entered.

The dirty, chaotic room made Cheng Ning feel anxious, revealing a look of disgust and nausea on his face.

In contrast, Tang Kexin showed no change in expression. She squatted down and rummaged through the items in the room.

Cheng Ning, bracing himself, pulled open several drawers, and a foul odor immediately assaulted his senses.

Ugh~

Cheng Ning turned his head and began to retch.

Tang Kexin glanced at Cheng Ning out of the corner of her eye but continued her silent search.

After retching a few times, Cheng Ning managed to compose himself and forced himself to keep searching.

Unfortunately, he still found nothing of value. Instead, images of people being shot and their cries kept surfacing in his mind.

His face grew increasingly pale, and his heart filled with immense panic. In that moment, he felt like he might not live much longer.

At this moment, his gaze fell on Tang Kexin, who was searching through the room, admiring her delicate face and alluring figure.

Cheng Ning’s heart began to race, a mix of fear of death and desire swirling in his mind. He swallowed hard, his eyes revealing a sinister glint.

So, Cheng Ning quietly walked to the door.

Click~*

He closed the door and locked it.

Tang Kexin heard the sound and turned to look at Cheng Ning, who was closing the door. She stopped rummaging and slowly stood up.

Her fair complexion showed an unusual expression, and she asked softly,

“Cheng Ning, why did you close the door?”

Cheng Ning didn’t answer her question; instead, he wore an evil smile and said to her,
“Kexin, you know I like you. We’re in this hellish place, and at any moment, we could lose our lives. We’re at such a good age and haven’t done anything yet; wouldn’t it be a shame? So why don’t you just obediently give in to me?”

“Don’t come any closer.”

Tang Kexin instinctively took a step back.

“Don’t be afraid~”

Cheng Ning’s expression grew even more excited as he continued to approach her.

—

Red Alliance, City of Dark Stars.

Fourth Ring, Shangri-La Street.

At this moment, three young guard soldiers were surrounded by a crowd of people.

“Everyone, don’t panic. Come one by one to register; everyone can register.”

“Can we not panic? My kid is only twelve!”

“My old man is in very poor health. If anything happens to him, how am I supposed to live?”

Just then, from the shadows in the corner, a middle-aged man in guard attire stumbled out. He looked disoriented, mumbling to himself.

“Dead, dead people.”

The people passing by were startled by the man’s expression and his mumblings, quickly retreating.

“Wait, someone actually died?”

The three young guard soldiers in charge of the registration noticed the commotion and turned to look.

Upon seeing the middle-aged man, their expressions changed slightly, and they rushed through the crowd towards him.

They quickly helped the man, asking,

“Brother, are you okay?”

“Dead!”

“Calm down!”

“I-I saw dead people. They’re dead.”

The middle-aged man regained his composure and said to the soldiers supporting him.

The soldiers were taken aback and immediately asked,

“Where are the dead? Your mental state doesn’t seem normal. Even if there are dead people, you shouldn’t be this scared, right?”

“Dead! Dead! I saw dead people come back to life! They’re everywhere!”

The man shouted in extreme fear.

The soldiers exchanged worried glances, feeling a little unsettled.

“Could he have gone insane?”

“Let’s not think too much about it. We need to take him back and report to the higher-ups.”

“Got it.”

—

Saint’s Hall.

Long Yan, the Speaker, and others sat quietly, waiting for the latest news.

At that moment, a holographic image popped up, displaying a bald major in a blue military uniform.

He saluted Long Yan and the various representatives.

“Chairman Long Yan, esteemed representatives, we have the latest news: the first missing person has been found.”

“Really? That’s great!”

“Quick, tell us what happened!”

The representatives present erupted in excitement, all eager to ask questions.

“Silence!”

Long Yan said in a deep voice.

The hall fell silent once more. Long Yan looked at the bald major in front of him and spoke,

“Major Zhou Guang, please explain the specifics.”

“I’m not sure how to report this. The missing person is from the 74th Defense Bureau of the City of Dark Stars. His name is Wu Rui. He’s currently a bit mentally unstable and keeps repeating that he saw dead people come back to life.”

Zhou Guang reported succinctly.

“How did he come back?”

Long Yan asked, his expression shifting.

“He couldn’t explain it clearly. He said he was fleeing for his life in a panic, and suddenly everything around him became a blur, and then he was back. Additionally, we found that the location where he went missing and where he reappeared are not the same, with a discrepancy of about four kilometers. The most important thing is that we discovered green bloodstains of unknown composition on the soles of Wu Rui’s shoes,” Zhou Guang explained gravely.

The representatives began whispering among themselves. Long Yan then stood up and said,
“Let’s go take a look!”

“Understood!”

The representatives all stood up.

—

On the other side, Shen Qiu was moving through the ruins of the residential area, holding his breath.

Every time he reached a winding corner, Shen Qiu was exceptionally cautious, trying to make as little noise as possible as he slowly crept forward.

He wanted to avoid running headlong into monsters or enemies.

However, no matter how careful he was, Shen Qiu couldn’t guarantee that he could avoid danger 100%, making each turn feel like opening a deadly blind box.

The entire residential area was eerily quiet, and this silence created a tremendous psychological pressure, filling him with fear.

Time slowly passed.

Not sure how long he had been exploring, Shen Qiu delved deeper into the ruined residential area.

He stopped and surveyed his surroundings; everywhere he looked were dilapidated houses, but not a single building piqued his interest for exploration.

At that moment, Shen Qiu suddenly noticed a tall building on a nearby street. It was estimated to be over 100 meters high, around 30 stories tall. The exterior was made of high-quality glass curtain walls, and a tattered logo was hanging from the top.