Chapter 4

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Wu Ming had never felt time pass so quickly, and he was making the most of every second, preparing everything he could.

In the blink of an eye, seven days were about to pass. On September 10th at 3 PM, after taking a hot shower, Wu Ming sat on the sofa and turned on the TV, but he couldn't calm down.

Perhaps only he knew what terrifying events would occur in a few hours. Knowing this but being unable to prevent it was extremely agonizing, like a patient who knows they have a terminal illness but can do nothing but wait out their remaining days.

As a result, Wu Ming's hands kept trembling involuntarily.

Time slowly passed, and the TV continuously broadcast news about meteorite impacts and frequent violent incidents in various places. During the daytime, multiple regions had already been attacked by 'meteorites,' with many casualties. The news had already issued warnings advising citizens to stay at home and not go out.

At noon, Wu Ming called his colleague Li Xia, inviting her to his home. As one of his few friends in Yucheng, he naturally wanted to ensure her safety by having her stay at his place, a plan he had thought out long ago.

However, by 4:30 PM, Li Xia, who should have arrived earlier, still hadn't shown up. At that moment, Wu Ming's phone rang—it was Li Xia.

Thinking Li Xia had arrived, Wu Ming quickly answered the call. He had considered this for a long time; the house was sturdy, with protective window screens and a security door, and it was well-stocked with supplies, making survival here much more likely. However, Li Xia told Wu Ming an unexpected piece of news: she couldn't come.

"Sorry, Wu Ming, a neighbor suddenly fell ill, and her children aren't around. It's too chaotic outside, so I have to stay and take care of her. I'll visit you another day," Li Xia said apologetically on the other end of the line.

Wu Ming immediately became anxious. He knew Li Xia was kind-hearted, almost to a fault, but how could she stay there at this critical moment? Li Xia seemed very anxious and hung up right after speaking. When Wu Ming tried to call back, it showed as unreachable.

Wu Ming tried calling several more times, but it remained unreachable, and he knew something was wrong.

Looking at the time, it was almost 5 PM. According to Wu Ming's plan, it was best to stay at home until 9 PM, when the disaster would occur, and the elemental energy in the air would increase significantly. At that time, he could collect elemental energy without going out, and perhaps in half a month or a month, he could gather the 24 units of energy needed for awakening. Once awakened, everything would be fine, at least for now, as awakened individuals had a much higher survival rate than ordinary people.

However, Li Xia's absence disrupted his plan, leaving him in a dilemma. On one hand, he knew he could ignore Li Xia and follow his plan, waiting in this sturdy fortress for awakening and then acquiring various cards to improve his survival chances. But if he did that, Li Xia would likely lose contact again, as she had in his previous life, and she might die, as many did during the disaster.

On the other hand, a bold plan formed in Wu Ming's mind: to find Li Xia within the next few hours and bring her here. However, leaving would expose him to many dangers. What if he couldn't find her? What if he encountered unknown situations on the way? What if the cards activated prematurely? If he couldn't return in time, the consequences would be severe.

This plan was undoubtedly very risky.

"Come on, Wu Ming, she's not related to you, just a female colleague. Is it worth risking your life for her? The cards are about to activate, and if you can't return in time, the consequences will be dire. Li Xia lives over 20 kilometers away, and there are too many potential dangers on the way. Stay here and don't go. You're just an ordinary office worker; it's not worth the risk," a voice in Wu Ming's mind kept saying. Indeed, it was already getting dark outside, and going out at this time was unwise.

But another voice in Wu Ming's mind persisted.

"Wu Ming, you coward, there's still time. Although Li Xia isn't related to you, she has helped you a lot at work. In this city, she's your only friend. When you needed money, she lent it to you. When you were drunk, she ran several streets to find hot water to sober you up. She also cleaned your messy desk every day. Without Li Xia, you'd be alone in Yucheng. Now, are you willing to watch a friend die without doing anything? If you do, even if you awaken, you'll still be weak. In the new world, the weak cannot survive. You'll die, even if not now, eventually."

As these two voices clashed in his mind, Wu Ming suddenly remembered a detail. During a company-organized beach trip, he had seen Li Xia in a bikini. Of course, he wasn't thinking about her beautiful figure, but he vaguely remembered a small birthmark on her inner thigh.

Birthmarks are common, and Wu Ming hadn't paid much attention, but in the context of his three years of survival in the new world, it was different.

In his memory, the shape of the birthmark on Li Xia's inner thigh was very unique, resembling a crescent moon. In the new world, Wu Ming had seen a similar pattern on the wrist of a powerful individual, who was also an awakened person, much stronger than Wu Ming. At the time, Wu Ming, who hadn't yet awakened, was among a group of refugees and saw the powerful individual carefully take away a boy with the same crescent moon birthmark on his neck, as if he had found a treasure.

This mark was undoubtedly very unusual.

Since being reborn, Wu Ming had been busy preparing and only now remembered this detail. No one knew what the mark meant, and neither did Wu Ming, but he knew it gave him a very good reason to rescue Li Xia.

Perhaps it was just an excuse, as Wu Ming's memory of the beach was vague, and it might have been just a stain of sand. But that didn't matter because Wu Ming had already made his decision.

He decided to find Li Xia, as there was still time. After absorbing nearly five units of elemental energy over the past few days, Wu Ming's physical condition was nearly twice that of a normal adult, so he could handle unexpected situations.

In his previous life, Wu Ming had wanted to find out what the mysterious crescent moon mark meant, and he couldn't let this opportunity pass.

With this in mind, Wu Ming immediately took action. He first sent a text message to Li Xia, telling her he would come to find her and asking her to stay at home and not go anywhere. Since he couldn't call, he could only hope the text would reach her. He then found a backpack, packed the scale armor he had bought, along with several bottles of mineral water and some cookies. He also wrapped a sharpened Tang knife in a cloth and carried it on his back, along with the elemental energy collector, and then left his home.

There had been several protests and violent conflicts in the city today, as citizens wanted to know the truth and were very afraid, but they didn't know that the authorities were equally afraid.

Because the situation outside was completely chaotic, most citizens had chosen to stay at home since the morning, making the streets empty and desolate, with only the occasional police car rushing by.

Yucheng was a large city, divided into the new and old districts. Wu Ming was currently in the new district, which was spacious and modern, while Li Xia lived in the old district. It would take about an hour to get there by subway.

With over three hours left before the cards activated, there was theoretically plenty of time for a round trip. Wu Ming quickly walked to the nearest subway station.

Just then, a series of gunshots rang out in the distance, sounding a bit like firecrackers, but Wu Ming, with his three years of survival experience in the new world, immediately recognized them as gunshots.

Judging by the sound, the gunshots came from about 500 meters away, but he didn't know what had happened there. This was the first time gunshots had been heard in the city.

Wu Ming quickened his pace and finally reached a nearby subway station. Along the way, he saw a group of young men breaking into a store with iron bars and bricks, looting the place. Such incidents were not uncommon at this stage.

However, when Wu Ming arrived at the subway station, he was stunned. The electronic screen showed that the subway was out of service, and the entrance was blocked by iron gates, making it impossible to enter.

"Damn!" Wu Ming cursed. If he couldn't take the subway, how could he get to the old district?

There was no need to ask; with the chaos, the buses had likely stopped as well. He hadn't seen a single bus along the way, and even private cars were rare, most of them in a hurry.

With the public transportation system out of service, getting to the old district would be difficult. Wu Ming, who had no money to buy a car, had to find another way.

Walking was clearly not a good idea, as the 20-kilometer journey would take too much time. However, Wu Ming soon noticed several locked bicycles by the roadside. Looking around and seeing no one, he decided to take one.

A few minutes later, riding a stolen mountain bike, Wu Ming headed for the old district.

The journey was uneventful, but it took over an hour to reach Li Xia's neighborhood. By then, it was already dark, and Wu Ming checked his watch; it was 7:15 PM. He rushed upstairs and knocked on Li Xia's door.

Although time was tight, finding Li Xia and bringing her back was still possible. However, after knocking for three minutes, even pounding, there was no response from inside.

Perhaps the noise from his knocking was too loud, as the door next door opened slightly, revealing a bearded man.

"Who are you knocking for? Who are you looking for?"

This was clearly Li Xia's neighbor. When Wu Ming asked, the man replied, "Oh, you're looking for Li Xia? The neighbor, Mrs. Wang, had a heart attack, and Li Xia took her to the hospital."

"To the hospital? Which one?" Wu Ming asked urgently.

"I don't know!" The bearded man closed the door, leaving Wu Ming stunned in the hallway.