Chapter 1

Desolation, barrenness.

In the city, lush weeds sprouted from the hard concrete, and the ground was littered with bones.

Lin An dragged his heavy legs, struggling to run.

His lungs burned, and each breath tugged at his broken ribs, causing intense pain.

Behind him, a horde of growling zombies, their faces grotesque, pursued him relentlessly.

He dared not stop.

If he did, these reanimated dead would tear him apart, gnawing on his flesh.

As he got closer to the makeshift safe house, a glimmer of hope appeared on his originally desperate face.

"Bang, bang, bang!"

"Open the door! Open the door quickly!"

Lin An frantically pounded on the heavy iron door, with the zombies less than a hundred meters behind him.

The stench of decay filled his nostrils.

"I've brought the medicine! Open the door, Tang Wan!"

Inside the safe house were his fiancée's family of three.

"Whoosh."

The window slid open, but the iron door remained closed.

A single eye peered through the narrow iron window, full of concern.

Lin An recognized it; it was Tang Wan.

"Tang Wan! It's me! Open the door quickly!"

Lin An's voice was heart-wrenching, and the wound on his chest widened.

The fresh blood attracted the zombies, making them even more frenzied, and they suddenly sped up.

After hearing his voice,

The eye inside the iron window turned to look at the medicine in his hand.

This was the medicine Lin An had risked his life to find for Tang Wan's younger brother to reduce his fever.

"Lin An, I'll open the door for you right away."

The voice from inside was urgent, calming Lin An's panic.

Once inside, he would be safe.

On the edge of the city, where danger lurked everywhere, this handmade safe house was his only home.

"First, hand over the medicine, and I'll lower the iron bolt."

Lin An, feeling weak all over, hurriedly forced the medicine box through the iron window.

But a sense of unease lingered in his heart.

Why... not open the door directly?

The hand inside the iron window quickly snatched the medicine box but did not open the door.

"Tang Wan?!"

Lin An's voice, full of disbelief, echoed despairingly in the darkness.

His heart sank, and he felt a chill all over.

Why... still not opening the door?!

He could already hear the zombies' growls close by.

"Lin An, I see the wound on your chest."

Tang Wan's voice paused, no longer filled with concern, but extremely calm.

As if speaking to a stranger.

"You might be infected."

"I won't let you in."

Lin An felt as if he had fallen into an ice pit, and the zombies had already pounced on him.

His flesh was being torn.

"Also, I have something to tell you."

"The leader of the safe zone has agreed to let me in if I sleep with him."

"Of course, you have to die."

Inside, Tang Wan casually flicked her hair, as calm as when she used to chat with Lin An.

Lin An was incredulous, and her words hit him like a bolt from the blue.

The pain of his flesh being torn was overshadowed.

His voice was blood-curdling as he frantically questioned the person inside the window.

"Why, why are you betraying me?!"

His palms pressed against the door, leaving bloody handprints.

His eyes were bloodshot.

He could feel his intestines being pulled out, and a wave of extreme weakness washed over him.

Tang Wan's gaze inside the window was calm, with a hint of mockery.

"Just because you're a good-for-nothing."

"I don't want to starve and live in fear anymore."

"He is strong, an Awakened."

"And you, are just an ordinary person."

The zombies behind him fiercely tore at Lin An's head, and his spine was easily snapped.

The zombies' foul, sharp, and decaying fingers dug into his eye sockets.

"Daughter, why are you talking so much to this good-for-nothing?"

"Let him die far away, not at our doorstep."

Inside, the room was warm and lit.

Tang Wan's mother casually took the bloody medicine box and looked out the window coldly.

The three of them stood side by side until Lin An's body was completely devoured before they left with relief.

......

In Linqiang City, inside a brightly decorated wedding room.

"Lin An, why aren't you calling your comrades to borrow money? What are you standing there for?"

Speaking was Lin An's fiancée, Tang Wan.

Like a drowning person struggling,

Lin An suddenly woke up, gasping for breath.

The scene of his death overlapped with the person in front of him.

It was just a dream!?

His head ached, and he could still feel the pain of his flesh being torn.

The pain was real, as if it had just happened a second ago.

He quickly looked at his phone.

"November 9, 2032"

Lin An's expression was shocked, and his mouth was dry.

No... this wasn't a dream!

He had been reborn.

Back to three days before the apocalypse, the day he proposed to Tang Wan.

"Lin An, let me tell you."

"If you want to marry my daughter, the dowry must be increased by 200,000."

"Your younger brother Tang Tian is getting married soon. As her brother-in-law, you can't not contribute anything, right?"

Tang Wan's mother gave her younger son a look, signaling him to ask for money.

"Brother-in-law, aren't your comrades just discharged from the military?"

Tang Tian, sitting on the sofa with his legs crossed, looked impatient.

"I heard they get a lot of money when they're discharged. It's just borrowing some money. What's there to be embarrassed about?"

Tang Wan, seeing Lin An standing there, frowned.

She had thought that Lin An, a former soldier, was honest and had some money, making him a decent choice.

But now, Lin An was hesitating and couldn't come up with the money.

It made her feel embarrassed.

"Aren't you good friends with your comrades? What? You can't even borrow this much money?"

Tang Wan's mother, seeing Lin An's lack of response, huffed and raised her voice.

"Lin An, if you can't come up with the money, this marriage is off."

"You have no sincerity. I thought you were decent, but you're just a stingy and poor guy."

Tang Wan's mother spoke sarcastically.

Her younger brother Tang Tian, not wanting to make things worse, quickly chimed in:

"Sis! Wasn't there a rich guy who used to pursue you?"

"Why don't you marry him instead?"

"Find that Mr. Wang. He's rich! He even asked me what kind of car I like!"

Amidst their incessant chatter, no one noticed the murderous intent in Lin An's lowered eyes.

In his previous life, he had hastily married Tang Wan to fulfill his mother's wish.

Though hasty, he had done everything he could,

Bought a car, bought a house, and paid the dowry in full.

He even had to borrow money from his comrades to make up the dowry.

But the day before the wedding, the apocalypse broke out.

With his military training, Lin An struggled to keep his fiancée's family alive.

Even on the last day, when he was being eaten alive, he was still fighting for the so-called family.

That door cut off his chance of survival and shattered his naive kindness and sense of righteousness.

The harsh ridicule pulled him back to reality.

"Poor guy, if you don't have money, don't pretend."

"My sister marrying you is a favor. There are plenty of guys who want to marry her!"

"Boom!"

Lin An kicked out with explosive force, his foot landing on Tang Tian's abdomen, sending him flying three meters away.

Tang Tian's face turned red, and he vomited bile, his body curling up like a shrimp in the corner.

He couldn't believe it.

Tang Wan, shocked at Lin An's retracted foot, felt a chill run down her spine.

It was the first time she saw Lin An hit someone, and she never expected the seemingly honest and decent Lin An to be so ruthless.

"Murder! Murder!"

Tang Wan's mother, regaining her senses, screamed loudly, slapping her thighs.

"You damn scoundrel, how dare you hit my son!"

"Poor guy, no money and hitting people! I'll sue you!"

"I'll call the police to arrest you! This marriage is off!"

"Shut up! Old hag!"

Lin An walked towards Tang Wan's mother, the sharp-tongued woman making him extremely agitated.

He remembered those cold eyes.

"Slap! Slap!"

One slap after another, he delivered a series of ear-piercing slaps.

It felt incredibly satisfying.

Lin An's strikes were merciless, and in no time, he had delivered over ten slaps.

Tang Wan's mother fainted after a few slaps, falling to the ground like a broom.

"Lin An, are you crazy!"

Tang Wan, wide-eyed, screamed in disbelief.

"Crazy?"

Lin An smiled cruelly, his murderous intent ignited.

He wanted these people to feel the pain of being torn apart.

To taste the pain and despair he felt before his death.

Lin An, without hesitation, crushed Tang Wan's mother's brittle leg bones and walked towards Tang Wan with a gaze like a knife.

"Lin An!"

"What are you going to do!?"

"What?"

Lin An, slightly bent, his voice icy and intimidating.

Tang Wan, sensing something, trembled and locked herself in the room.

"I've called the police!"

"The police are outside!"

Shivering, Tang Wan put her phone on speaker, and the police siren connected.

On the eve of the apocalypse, accidents were frequent.

The sound of police sirens and ambulances could be faintly heard outside.

Hearing the police siren connect,

Lin An stopped, standing still with a cold gaze, as if thinking.

He tilted his head, staring intently at the locked door.

The apocalypse was only three days away.

If he got entangled with them, it would waste a lot of time.

Wasting time meant wasting the opportunity of his rebirth.

It wasn't worth it.

These scoundrels weren't worth wasting his precious time.

So...

Three days!

Lin An smiled cruelly and slowly turned around.

Three days later, the apocalypse would begin.

He wanted to see how these three, who were like good-for-nothings, would survive in this post-apocalyptic world without his desperate protection.

He hoped they would still have that smug look on their faces when they were in the mouths of zombies.

Death and that door had completely changed Lin An in this life.

In this life, he would only care about the people he cherished.

He would no longer stubbornly adhere to his naive principles.

To be used by others!

He would become strong and survive in this cruel apocalypse.

Since he had decided to kill them in three days, Lin An wouldn't waste any more time.

He kicked open the thin iron door and walked out.

Tang Wan faintly heard the sound of him leaving.

As if regaining her senses, she began to curse loudly inside the room and called a few powerful bosses she knew.

It didn't matter.

If Tang Wan wanted to call for help to cause him trouble,

He wouldn't mind dealing with them on his way.

Lin An suppressed his hatred.

Pointless emotions would only affect his rationality.

In the coming days,

He not only needed to stockpile enough supplies before the apocalypse,

But also prepare for the awakening of his talent.

Three days later, the apocalypse would begin.

Zombie viruses would spread, monsters would emerge from other dimensions, and countless bizarre supernatural events would sweep the globe.

People would gain data panels like in a game.

A few lucky ones would gain supernatural powers at energy nodes, awakening their talents.

Reborn in this life, he was determined to take control of his destiny.

In this life, he would not allow himself to struggle as a weak and ordinary person.

Energy nodes would only appear briefly after the apocalypse began!

In his previous life, he was dragged down by Tang Wan's family and missed the chance to become an Awakened.

Now, he would change everything!

The first step to changing his fate.

"97 Fengming Road!"