Chapter 1

Blood was dripping.

A small pool of crimson blood was slowly forming on the ground. Wu Ming leaned against the concrete wall, trying to control his breathing to avoid making any other sounds. His left hand was firmly pressing on the wound in his abdomen. His three years of survival in the New World had taught him that applying pressure to the wound was the only way to stop the bleeding.

The wound was caused by a Blade Spider. Although Wu Ming was wearing armor made from the hide of a mutated rhinoceros, it clearly could not withstand the sharp front legs of the Blade Spider, which were sharp enough to pierce through tank armor.

The Blade Spider, officially classified as a Level 3 creature in the New World, was over three meters in size, weighed more than a ton, and had the strength to tear apart a tank. It had two pairs of sharp front legs of different lengths, making it extremely dangerous. There were even missions in the Awakened Guild for Blade Spiders, with generous rewards, but few people dared to take them. Given Wu Ming's current strength, he was clearly no match for such a high-level monster. And at this moment, the terrifying creature was searching the street outside, and it might find him soon.

Wu Ming could feel that this wound in his abdomen was too deep, almost piercing through and damaging his internal organs. No matter how hard he pressed, blood still seeped through his fingers. Even as an Awakened, with his body enhanced, he would die from such an injury.

Feeling his strength slowly draining away, Wu Ming snapped his fingers, and immediately a very ancient card album appeared in front of him.

The card album appeared out of nowhere, floating in the air, emitting a hazy glow. The cover was clearly made of real leather, with visible stitching, and there were also some extremely mysterious runes, representing some unknown power.

This was a 'Card Album,' a very common item in the New World, almost everyone had one. It could appear or disappear at the will of the Awakened. Wu Ming's card album was just an ordinary one, with only twelve card slots, meaning it could hold a maximum of twelve cards. In fact, at the moment, Wu Ming's card album contained fewer than twelve cards.

Cards were mysterious items that appeared in the New World. No one knew what kind of power formed these magical items, but in the New World, cards had become one of the most important things, even a survival necessity.

There were various types of cards, such as 'Food Cards' that provided the energy needed by the human body, 'Enhancement Cards' that strengthened the body, 'Ki Cards,' 'Weapon Cards,' and 'Creature Cards.' It could be said that the appearance of cards was crucial for human survival in the brutal, hell-like New World after the great disaster.

Unfortunately, Wu Ming was a very ordinary existence even among the Awakened in the New World, and he had no chance to obtain those precious cards. At the moment, his card album contained only two 'Food Cards' that could sustain a normal person for three days, one 'Weapon Card,' one 'Earth Ki Card,' and one extremely valuable 'Basic Healing Card.'

The Food Cards were self-explanatory; their basic food supply function was of no help in his current predicament. The Weapon Card, however, was a very significant item that Wu Ming had managed to obtain with great difficulty.

'Armor-Piercing Sword,' a Level 2 Weapon Card, Quality: Good (Green), could materialize and had the 'Armor-Piercing Sword Qi' ability, with considerable attack power.

However, in his current situation, this weapon was of no use. A Level 2 Weapon Card could not penetrate the shell of a Blade Spider. The heavily injured Wu Ming needed a 'Healing Card.' Although the price of this item was exorbitant in the camp, Wu Ming had managed to obtain one a few days ago, just in case he was seriously injured and needed to heal himself.

The blood continued to flow, rapidly draining Wu Ming's strength. Knowing he couldn't delay any longer, Wu Ming immediately took out the precious 'Basic Healing Card' and chose to use it.

"I hope it works!" Wu Ming thought to himself.

The Basic Healing Card could activate a mysterious force to heal general external injuries, and it was Wu Ming's only hope at the moment.

The card transformed into a glow and then merged into the injured area. Wu Ming immediately felt that the wound was less painful, as if a warm stream was flowing through it, indicating that the card was working.

However, before Wu Ming could catch his breath, he felt a tickle in his throat and suddenly vomited a mouthful of dirty blood.

"How could this be?" Wu Ming was shocked.

"Bad, the Blade Spider's attack was poisonous!" This was completely unexpected. The Basic Healing Card could not detoxify, especially from a Level 3 creature's poison. Being poisoned by a Level 3 creature was almost a death sentence. Due to the intense pain, Wu Ming had not realized he was poisoned.

One misstep, and everything was lost!

Wu Ming had no time to think about anything else. He collapsed on the ground, feeling the poison eroding his body. He was too late to feel fear, and memories of his past flashed through his mind.

Since the terrible disaster, the once peaceful and harmonious life had been completely shattered. People in this brutal 'New World' faced death almost every day. Wu Ming had seen people die more than once and had even thought about the possibility of his own death, but he never expected it to happen today.

"No, I won't accept it, I don't want to die like this!" Although he shouted in his heart, it was of no use. The spider's poison was extremely toxic, already destroying Wu Ming's internal organs. In just a moment, Wu Ming felt his body becoming lighter and his consciousness fading.

In his last moments, Wu Ming seemed to see a light fall, and then he fell into complete darkness.

...

In September, although the heat had slightly subsided, it had not completely disappeared, and the weather was still somewhat stifling. However, the coolness of the early morning and evening was refreshing.

Yucheng, as a modern metropolis, was already bustling before dawn. Office workers got up early, dressed neatly, and headed to high-rise office buildings. Although the work in these office buildings seemed prestigious on the surface, only they knew the hardships.

At Huatian Technology Company, Li Xia, responsible for the front desk, arrived early in her small heels. When she opened the door, she saw that a desk lamp was still on in the R&D department, and there was still a lingering smell of smoke in the room.

Li Xia wrinkled her nose, knowing that someone must have worked overtime all night. In today's competitive society, working overtime was extremely common.

Li Xia, who was used to such a common occurrence, walked over and peeked in, seeing someone sleeping soundly on the desk, occasionally snoring.

Li Xia smiled faintly, seemingly familiar with the person. She looked at her wristwatch, which was almost eight o'clock. After some thought, she decided not to wake the person and instead tidied up the desk.

Gradually, colleagues began to arrive, greeting each other, clocking in, and turning on their computers.

Li Xia looked up at the seat and saw that the person was still sleeping. She decided to wake them up, knowing that the company's technical manager, Manager Xiang, was strict and would be furious if he found an employee sleeping on the job, even if it was due to overtime.

At that moment, the person who had been lying down finally stirred and slowly woke up. Li Xia walked over and said, "Wu Ming, did you work overtime again last night? When Manager Xiang comes, ask for leave. Otherwise, your body won't be able to handle it if you don't rest well!"

Hearing the voice, Wu Ming had no idea where he was. At that moment, he felt as if his head was about to explode, dizzy and groggy, as if he hadn't slept for days and then slept for several hours.

Gradually, the dizziness in his head subsided, and Wu Ming regained his ability to think. Immediately, he remembered that he was supposed to be dead.

The scenes before he fainted were still vivid in his mind. He had entered the ruins to find supplies to exchange for necessities and had unfortunately encountered a Level 5 Blade Spider. Although he wasn't killed on the spot, he was poisoned by the spider.

Logically, he should be dead now, so why was he still alive?

He moved his limbs and felt extremely tired and heavy, as if his body was in the same condition as before he was Awakened. Looking around, Wu Ming was stunned.

Where was this place?

It looked familiar, but Wu Ming couldn't react in the short time.

At this moment, Li Xia's voice came again, "Hey, Wu Ming, didn't you hear me? Working overtime and staying up late is like slow suicide. When Manager Xiang comes, you should ask for leave and go back to rest. Work is important, but it's not worth ruining your health."

Hearing the voice and seeing the familiar scene, Wu Ming's mind buzzed, and he finally remembered.

Wasn't this the company where he used to work?

The familiar office, the familiar setup, and the old computer with hidden 'Japanese action' movies in an unknown folder all confirmed this.

Swallowing unconsciously, Wu Ming wondered what was going on.

Seeing Wu Ming in a daze, Li Xia spoke again, which finally brought Wu Ming back to his senses.

"Li Xia, you're Li Xia!" Wu Ming looked at Li Xia, who was a colleague before the disaster and had a good relationship with him. After the disaster, they lost contact. For Wu Ming, an orphan with no parents, Li Xia was one of his few friends in Yucheng.

Staring at Li Xia, Wu Ming looked for at least three minutes until a blush appeared on her face, wondering what was wrong with Wu Ming today.

At this moment, Wu Ming noticed the calendar in the bottom right corner of the computer screen, which clearly read September 3, 2014.

Wu Ming was stunned. Wasn't this seven days before the disaster?

Memories slowly surfaced in his mind, and Wu Ming finally remembered that three years ago, he indeed worked at this company until the disaster.

Could it be that he had returned to three years ago?

This was truly unbelievable. Wu Ming pinched his face, thinking this couldn't be a dream.

So, what was happening? Was the New World three years later real, or was it just a nightmare?

However, Wu Ming soon realized it was not a dream.

"Everyone, come and look! Big news, a meteorite fell in a U.S. city last night, smashing through a building and reportedly killing dozens of people. This is big news!" a colleague shouted.

"That's nothing. There were meteorite falls in over a dozen countries last night. Even in our country, two cities were hit by meteorites. Do you think this could be a sign of the end of the world?" another colleague, who had found more news, added.

Hearing this, Wu Ming suddenly remembered a detail. He smiled apologetically at Li Xia and then sat down to open the web page and search for news. Seeing Wu Ming return to normal, Li Xia stuck out her tongue and went back to her work.

Wu Ming stared at the computer, opening web pages one by one to check the news. The more he read, the more his face turned grim.