Night of the Apocalypse

When Shen Qiu shook his head, the overlapping blurry world became clear.

He found himself standing on the rooftop terrace, and at a glance, he could see through the swirling mist towering spires, magnificent glass churches, and Gothic buildings adorned with various sculptures.

A cool breeze swept past.

Shen Qiu immediately felt a chill under him; the split hem of his bathrobe allowed the cold wind to seep in.

He looked down at the nightgown he was wearing and the slippers on his feet, feeling completely speechless.

“Ugh, this is really driving me crazy. I can even get overlapped in my own home. It seems I’ll have to flip my schedule upside down in the future. Even if I really want to rest at night, I’ll have to wear clothes and shoes and hold onto my gear!”

Of course, he complained, but Shen Qiu quickly adjusted his mindset.

The top priority now was to understand the current situation and ensure his safety. Who knows where he had been overlapped to this time?

Not to mention anything else, just from the buildings faintly visible in the mist, it was obvious that this place was not the same world he had overlapped into last time.

Shen Qiu took a deep breath and immediately broke into a violent cough.

The air was thick with a pungent mist, reminiscent of stale industrial waste. This feeling made Shen Qiu think of a well-known city within the Blue Alliance called Fog City, where the air was quite similar.

Shen Qiu turned his head to look at the rooftop terrace and soon spotted a tightly shut iron pull door.

If nothing unexpected had happened, this door should lead downstairs into the building beneath his feet.

Shen Qiu adjusted his backpack, drew out the mechanical blade, and used the bathrobe belt to secure the sheath to his left hip. He then walked to the edge of the terrace and looked down.

He found that the building beneath him was three stories high, located on the edge of a main street, with buildings of various styles on both sides and across the street.

Rows of kerosene street lamps lined both sides of the street, and what was most unsettling was that those lamps were still lit, emitting a dim yellow glow that illuminated the darkened ground.

Upon closer inspection of the street surface, he could see some torn clothing and remnants of limbs.

All signs indicated that Shen Qiu was not the first person to visit this place. It was likely that some unfortunate soul had been overlapped here before him, and this place did not seem as quiet and safe as it appeared on the surface.

“Whew~”

Shen Qiu let out a long breath and then turned to stand in front of the iron pull door, testing it with a tug.

Accompanied by a sharp scraping sound, the iron door creaked open.

Looking inside, the stairway was completely dark. Shen Qiu cautiously stepped in and quietly stood on the dark staircase, allowing his eyes to gradually adapt to the darkness so he could faintly see the stairs before carefully descending.

The stairs were even narrower than he had imagined and were made of wood. Due to the passage of time, each step produced a creaking sound as he went down.

If there were any enemies inside the building, they would almost certainly hear these noises.

Thus, Shen Qiu stayed on high alert, gripping the mechanical blade tightly and preparing himself for a potential confrontation at any moment.

However, when Shen Qiu reached the third floor, he did not see any enemies; everything was eerily quiet.

Upon closer inspection, he found two rooms on the third floor, along with a large living room. The walls of the living room were adorned with moldy oil paintings.

The paintings depicted various landscapes and intricate patterns of fine objects.

Shen Qiu held his breath and approached the nearest room, gently pushing open the partially closed door.

What met his eyes was a dimly lit study.

Shen Qiu scanned the room thoroughly, confirming there were no hidden enemies, and then disregarded it, moving toward the other room.

He needed to ensure that this building was safe before conducting a detailed search.

Soon, Shen Qiu arrived at the doorway of the second room, which was also slightly ajar.

He gently pushed it open and found the inside empty, containing only some accumulated clutter.

Shen Qiu then stealthily made his way to the second floor. There, he found two rooms and a living room.

However, compared to the third floor, the décor here was even better, with a table and chairs arranged in the living room.

Shen Qiu walked directly to the first room. He gently opened the door and peered through the gap, where a redwood coffin came into view.

Shen Qiu’s heart jumped into his throat. He carefully observed the room; it was a spacious master bedroom that appeared to belong to a woman. Aside from the coffin in the center, there was a wardrobe nearby, and next to the window stood a dusty vanity.

The vanity was adorned with several exquisite jewelry boxes and some strange cosmetics.

What sent chills down Shen Qiu’s spine was that a black kerosene lamp was lit in the center of the vanity.

The lamp illuminated the entire room.

Shen Qiu cautiously approached the coffin. It looked quite exquisite, with intricate patterns etched on its surface.

Looking at the coffin, images of vampires from movies and television flashed through Shen Qiu’s mind.

He couldn’t help but feel curious: could there really be a vampire lying inside? Did such creatures actually exist in the world?

With this doubt in mind, Shen Qiu took a deep breath, reached out with his left hand, and pressed down on the coffin lid, slowly pushing it open.

Suddenly, a woman came into view—her hair was styled up, and she wore a red gemstone necklace along with a vintage long dress.

The woman looked like a dried corpse; her entire face was sunken in, and her eyes were tightly shut.

Her hands were crossed over her chest, and at a glance, she resembled a sleeping beauty.

Shen Qiu’s eyelids twitched incessantly; he was not foolish enough to think this was merely a lifeless body.

Without hesitation, he raised his mechanical knife and aimed it at the sleeping woman’s heart.

Click!

The entire mechanical blade pierced through with a resounding sound!

Instantly, black blood began to seep out, and the woman, who had kept her eyes closed, suddenly opened her penetrating eyes, her withered right hand struggling to lift.

Shen Qiu swiftly twisted the mechanical blade, thoroughly shredding her heart.

The woman’s body jerked, and her raised hand fell lifelessly, instantly devoid of life.

Shen Qiu immediately withdrew the mechanical blade and left the room, heading toward the second room. Although he didn’t understand why these creatures were hiding and sleeping in coffins, it was a good opportunity to eliminate them. He needed to clear the area first.

Soon, Shen Qiu pushed open the door to the second room and found another, slightly smaller coffin inside.

He stepped forward and opened the coffin lid, revealing a girl holding a moldy doll.

Shen Qiu showed no hesitation; he quickly stabbed the knife into the girl’s heart, ending her life.

Afterward, he searched the first floor thoroughly, confirming there were no other coffins before returning to the second floor.

He first went back to the corpse of the noblewoman, extending his hand to search her, but only found some jewelry.

Shen Qiu glanced at it before tossing it aside.

Next, he opened the wardrobe, which was filled with moldy and old women’s clothing.

Shen Qiu frowned at the sight. He had hoped to find some decent clothes to replace his pajamas for easier movement, but it seemed that wouldn’t be possible.

Now, he could only look for other items to see if there was anything useful.