Chen Bo felt like he was dying.
Exhausted to death.
He'd lost count of how many screwdrivers he'd used; the assembly line in front of him always had countless parts to assemble.
He'd been starving for days, his fingers were blistered, and blood trickled down the screwdriver handles.
But no one cared.
In this factory, workers were just machines.
Machines that couldn't stop.
"Get your act together!"
A shrill voice came from behind.
Chen Bo didn't need to turn around to know who it was—the factory owner, Wang Changgui, a fat man who had thrived in this bizarre and raging apocalypse.
*Crack!*
A whip lashed across the workstation next to him, and a skinny man screamed, his hands moving even faster.
"Stop dawdling, are you not going to eat?" Wang Changgui paced past the assembly line, cracking his whip idly. "Do you even know what's going on outside? Huh? The whole world is full of monsters! Our factory is the only safe haven for miles around!"
"I feed you, I shelter you, and you're not even grateful?"
Chen Bo said, head bowed, teeth grinding.
Grateful?
Ha.
A day earlier, he had followed a convoy of wandering vehicles through this dilapidated town.
The convoy was running low on supplies and needed someone to go into town to try their luck.
The superhuman had given several ordinary people a pill—one that could conceal their human presence for twelve hours without the monsters noticing.
Chen Bo was one of them.
The convoy needed supplies, and he also needed to prove that he hadn't just been a freeloader since joining the convoy.
Early in the morning, after entering the town, he cautiously searched several streets, but found very little.
Just as he was about to turn back, a middle-aged man approached him with a beaming smile: "New here? Want to survive? No problem, go work at Boss Wang's factory, food and lodging included, plus a salary."
Chen Bo didn't want to come, but the middle-aged man was followed by two burly men.
And so he was shoved into this hellish place.
The workers there said they had to work eighteen hours a day, ate only two meals of thin porridge, and lived in dormitories with twenty people in one room.
A slight mistake could result in a beating.
In this apocalyptic world, there was no law. Boss Wang, relying on his ability to protect surviving humans, exploited his workers to the extreme.
"Want a raise? If you won't do it, plenty of others will!"
Wang Changgui walked to the end of the assembly line, turned around, his fat face full of exasperation.
"Don't you look at yourselves? All these years, your wages haven't increased. Don't you even look at yourselves? Have you been working diligently?"
Chen Bo wanted to stab Wang Changgui's face to pieces with the screwdriver in his hand.
"Let me tell you," Wang Changgui raised his chin, "what a great opportunity this is! The whole world is short of supplies! As long as our factory can maintain stable production, and the survivor base comes to pick us up, you'll all be heroes! Then, you can have anything you want! Houses, cars, women..."
Wang Fugui got more and more excited as he spoke, spittle flying everywhere. He was just making
empty promises
. Chen Bo sneered inwardly.
But he was more concerned about something else: the twelve-hour deadline was fast approaching.
If he didn't leave now, he would
n't be able to leave at all. Once the red moon appeared at night, the supernatural beings roamed freely, especially in the city. Even those with the Sequence of Extraordinary Beings could only flee as far as possible.
Ordinary people?
They were utterly powerless against the supernatural beings, unable
to inflict any harm whatsoever. Only those with the Sequence of Extraordinary Beings, with their extraordinary powers and weapons, could harm the supernatural beings.
This factory was safe for now, but it certainly wouldn't last long.
The convoy leader, a prophet, said that the city was too conspicuous, a prime target for the supernatural beings.
It's said that there are very few safe cities left in the world; one after another, they've fallen.
Chen Bo's convoy was headed south to Guangzhou,
one of the few remaining cities in the country still under human control.
Chen Bo cautiously looked up at the factory gate.
It was a half-open metal roller shutter, revealing the dilapidated streets outside.
The streets were deserted, save for a few abandoned cars and piles of garbage.
It was about fifty meters away.
How many seconds would it take to run there?
Ten seconds?
Fifteen seconds?
He had at least twenty coworkers around him, plus Wang Changgui and his thugs…
Cold sweat beaded on Chen Bo's palms.
Just then,
"Hey, you!"
Wang Changgui suddenly pointed.
Chen Bo's heart skipped a beat.
"It's you! What are you looking at? Get back to work!"
A slap rang out, and Chen Bo groaned.
His back burned.
Chen Bo lowered his head, enduring the pain, and quickened his pace.
But his eyes kept scanning.
Scanning the half-open roller shutter.
Scanning the boxes of sealed supplies at the end of the assembly line.
There's food inside!
If we can manage to escape with the supplies...
Chen Bo licked his chapped lips.
The deadline was fast approaching.
He couldn't wait any longer.
He quietly moved closer to the end of the assembly line.
No one noticed him.
The eyes of his fellow workers were terrifyingly empty; they mechanically repeated the actions of their hands.
Wang Changgui was still making empty promises: "Once the base is built, I'll arrange the best housing for you! You have to believe me, following me, Wang Changgui, is absolutely the right choice!"
Chen Bo took another step.
Five meters.
Three meters.
One meter.
His hand touched a box.
It was heavy, filled with things.
Chen Bo took a deep breath—
then suddenly picked up the box and rushed towards the factory gate!
"A...human?" Wang Changgui paused for a moment, then roared furiously, "Grab him, grab him!"
As soon as he finished speaking, the factory suddenly fell silent.
The silence was as if the whole world had been paused.
Chen Bo didn't dare look back, he just ran desperately.
Strange sounds came from behind him.
Click, click, click...
like bones twisting, joints dislocating.
Then came a scream that sounded inhuman.
Chen Bo couldn't help but turn around—
he would never forget that scene.
The bodies of his coworkers were twisting and deforming, their arms elongating, their skin cracking to reveal grotesque flesh beneath, their mouths splitting open to their ears, revealing mouthfuls of sharp teeth.
Eyes.
All those eyes had turned blood red, staring intently at him.
Bizarre!
Everything was bizarre!
Everyone in this factory had been bizarre from the very beginning!
"Humans, those wretched humans... another piece of trash who doesn't want to work."
Wang Changgui's voice came from behind, but it no longer sounded human.
"Ah, I've split open..." His body swelled to three meters tall, his skin turned grayish-black, his head split in two, with long tentacles extending from the middle.
"Come back, work..."
Chen Bo was terrified. He had actually been in a bizarre den for twelve hours without knowing anything.
Had the bizarre become able to disguise themselves as humans, or had humans themselves become bizarre?
The group of coworkers behind him had completely lost their human form.
The skinny guy who was just working hard on the assembly line is now twisted like a pretzel, his neck turned 360 degrees.
He's smiling at him with the back of his head—and there's another mouth on the back of that head, full of sharp teeth that click and clack.
"Brother, don't run away, we still have to work overtime together. Only by working hard and earning money can we get married." The skinny guy's eerie voice sounded like it was being squeezed out of a broken bellows.
Chen Bo nearly dropped the box he was carrying.
Overtime?
Screw overtime!
All he wanted to do was run as fast as he could.
But his legs wouldn't obey him, as weak as two soaked noodles.
The roller shutter door was right in front of him, yet he just couldn't reach it no matter how hard he ran.
"Come back to work! If you don't work, what's the point of your life?" Wang Changgui's roar came from behind, tentacles writhing like snakes in the air from the cracked head. *
This book is first published online by 𝕥𝕨𝕜𝕒𝕟.𝕔𝕠𝕞.
* *Working is damn it!* A million curses raced through Chen Bo's mind.
He ran while looking back, noticing that although the group of monsters were chasing fiercely, they seemed…not that fast?
The skinny monster twisted its body like a pretzel, turning three times for every step it took, as if it had just woken up, its speed slower than a normal person walking.
Another thug was even more bizarre; his two legs had transformed into springs, bouncing and leaping high with each landing, his head slamming against the ceiling with a resounding thud.
"Work makes people happy, come back, work..." Wang Changgui's tentacles flared wildly, but his three-meter-tall frame was too bulky; running was like a moving mountain of flesh, each step shaking the ground, making him impossible to catch.
These monsters didn't seem very intelligent.
But just as this thought crossed Chen Bo's mind, Wang Changgui, whose head had split in two, suddenly extended his middle tentacle like a black whip, aiming straight for Chen Bo's back!
Chen Bo lunged to the side, the box crashing to the ground, its contents scattering everywhere—canned food, compressed biscuits, and bottled water.
But he didn't have time to pick them up.
The tentacle grazed his shoulder and struck the wall, tearing off a large chunk of plaster to reveal cracked red brick underneath.
If that had hit him…
Chen Bo didn't dare think about it, and got up to continue running.
Ten meters.
Eight meters.
Five meters.
The roller shutter door was right in front of him!
Three meters!
Two meters!
One meter!
Chen Bo leaped forward, his whole body lunging out—
then, he stopped.
Not that he wanted to stop.
Something had wrapped around his ankle.
Chen Bo turned his head and saw a tentacle tightly wrapped around his foot, the other end of the tentacle protruding from Wang Changgui's split head.
"Why don't you like working? People without jobs are meaningless to society, they have no reason to exist." Wang Changgui walked over step by step, his split head opening like two doors, revealing a dark, gaping throat inside. "Since you don't like working, then become part of me, let's be bosses together, hahahaha."
Chen Bo kicked desperately, but the tentacle was like an iron clamp, tightening its grip.
It's over.
This time it's really over.
He looked out the door in despair.
Outside was a dilapidated street, empty except for abandoned cars and piles of garbage.
"Hopeless humans," Wang Changgui approached, his three-meter-tall frame seemingly afraid of sunlight, avoiding the roller shutter. "Death is just the beginning, why are you so afraid of dying?"
The group of monsters behind him roared excitedly.
The skinny man with the twisted hair drooled, the spring-loaded thugs bounced around, and several others, transformed into monsters, had their eyes glowing red.
Chen Bo tried to smash the tentacles on his feet with something, but to no avail.
He closed his eyes in despair.
Ordinary people, in the face of monsters, are lambs to the slaughter.
One second.
Two seconds.
Why is there still no movement?
Chen Bo opened one eye.
Then he froze.
It was as if the world had stopped.
Wang Changgui's tentacles were still wrapped around his feet, but the head split in two was motionless, and the monsters behind him remained in their various contorted postures, completely still.
Even the dust in the air seemed to have solidified.
A voice rang in his mind—
[Ding!] "Host detected that, with a mortal body, you have ventured alone into this eerie lair and survived for twelve hours without dying—a destiny bestowed upon you! Activating the strongest auxiliary system in the apocalypse!"
Chen Bo: "...Huh?" Is
this system crazy? If he knew this was an eerie lair, he'd be out of his mind to have entered.
Survived?
Not really, he relied on the concealment pills given to him by the superhumans in the convoy.
"Congratulations, host, on becoming the chosen one of this system! A newcomer gift pack is now given! Please choose!"
Two options appeared out of thin air in front of him, emitting a faint golden light.
Option 1: Sequence Awakening—Food God Series (The strongest auxiliary sequence in the apocalypse, bar none! Even a low-level sequence of 9 can condense superhuman plant seeds. Under the cultivation of the Food God's power, the plant can grow rapidly within a few days. Note: High-level sequences can materialize food!)
Option 2: Open an absolutely safe passage to escape this place, ignoring the eerie attacks!
After reading, Chen Bo remained silent for three seconds.
Then he burst out cursing, "Is there even a choice?"
"What's wrong with me? Tentacles are wrapped around my feet! A bunch of monsters are waiting to eat me! You want me to choose the God of Food sequence?"
"Even if I awakened the Death God sequence right now—Death God Sequence 9—I still couldn't beat these monsters! I have to run from one of my coworkers, let alone these thugs, and that terrifying Boss Wang!"
"Second, second, choose the second one! Absolutely safe passage! Now! Immediately! Right now!"
His words had barely left his lips when option two burst forth with a dazzling light.
[Selection successful! Absolutely safe passage opened!]
The next second, Chen Bo felt a lightness in his legs.
The tentacle that had been wrapped around him drooped limply.
A golden passage appeared before him, leading to sunlight, green trees, and… a public toilet?
But Chen Bo couldn't care less.
He picked up the box of supplies and scrambled into the passage.
A roar came from behind him.
Several-story buildings collapsed, turning to rubble.
Chen Bo was already several kilometers away.
He stumbled out of a public toilet, drenched in sweat, his legs as weak as noodles.
He looked back.
The toilet stood alone by the roadside, surrounded by wasteland, with the outline of a city visible in the distance.
No one was chasing him.
There was nothing strange.
Chen Bo plopped down on the steps of the public toilet entrance, clutching the box of supplies, panting heavily.
His legs were still trembling.
A den of monsters—even the superhumans in the convoy would be terrified at the sight of them.
"Huff...huff..."
He caught his breath for a while, then looked up at the sky.
The grey sun was already setting.
The crimson moon hadn't risen yet; it was safe for now.
But he knew this safety was only temporary.
Let alone ordinary people who had fallen behind, even superhumans who had fallen behind couldn't cross this world teeming with monsters to reach Wuyang City.
"I need to get back to the convoy quickly,"
Chen Bo muttered to himself, then opened the box and checked its contents.
Six cans of luncheon meat, eight packs of compressed biscuits, and three bottles of mineral water.
Not much, but enough for one person to eat for a long time in this world.
But there were still about two hundred people in the convoy; this amount of supplies wouldn't even be enough to fill a gap in their stomachs.
A pill made by a sequence superhuman that could conceal one's human presence for twelve hours was very precious.
This search for supplies was a losing proposition.
Supplies found by the convoy members needed to be handed over and managed and distributed by the steward.
After finishing a can of meat, a pack of compressed biscuits, and a bottle of mineral water, Chen Bo resealed the box, stood up, and was about to get his bearings when
the voice in his head rang again.
[Ding!
Host: Chen Bo
Age: 23
Current Status: Mortal
Growth Value: 0
Credit Assessment in progress…]
Chen Bo was stunned: "What's growth value?"
[System: Growth value is the host's survival time in the apocalypse, or the evaluation index gained from fighting monsters. Note: Maintaining breathing will naturally increase growth value by 240 points per day.]
Chen Bo: "…"
The longer he lives, the more growth value he gets?
But fighting monsters…
Mortals don't have superhuman strength; planes and cannons can't even harm monsters. How can he fight them?
If he really had to face a monster head-on, even the weakest one, he wouldn't last a second.
[Ding!
Credit assessment complete. The host has never had any overdue loan records, and his personal credit limit is excellent, meeting the system's lending conditions!
Current loanable amount: 20,000 growth value points!]
Chen Bo was stunned: "Can I borrow money?" [
In the current world, money is worthless, but growth value is the system's hard currency, which can be used to upgrade items, exchange for sequence fruits, exchange for cultivation techniques, etc... The daily interest rate is 0.05%, the repayment period is flexible, and installment payments are supported—]
Hearing the news about sequence fruits, Chen Bo's breathing became rapid.
The leader of the wandering caravan had said that 99% of Sequence Extraordinaries awaken naturally.
Those awakened through potions account for a tiny fraction, with a low success rate and a high mortality rate—reportedly a nine-out-of-ten chance of death.
"Loan! 20,000, full loan!" Chen Bo hurriedly ordered the system.
[Ding!
Loan successful! 20,000 growth points credited!
Host's current status: Mortal
Current growth points: 20,000 (available), Debt: 20,000.]
"Sequence Fruits, what's the success rate of awakening a sequence?" Taking a deep breath, Chen Bo asked in a trembling voice.
With the arrival of the strange, ordinary people lived lives worse than animals, constantly hungry and living in fear.
Death, for those with low resilience, was a relief.
Without awakening a sequence, it was uncertain whether Chen Bo could even reach Guangzhou alive.
[100% success rate]
Chen Bo was overjoyed: "What kind of Sequence Fruits are available?"
[Unable to choose an awakening sequence, random awakening.] Chen
Bo's face darkened. If he awakened an auxiliary sequence, how would he earn growth points by doing construction and support work? By living longer?
For example, the Heavenly Craftsmanship Sequence and the Plant Sequence belong to logistics sequences, which are considered weaklings among superhumans. They are only slightly stronger than ordinary people when facing monsters, and they don't die as quickly.
"How many growth points does it cost to exchange for a Sequence Fruit?" Chen Bo asked.
[50,000 growth points]
Chen Bo: "..." Damn
it.
"Pay back the loan, pay back the loan, pay it back now, I won't borrow anymore!" Chen Bo was furious.
He borrowed 20,000, with a daily interest rate of 0.05%, and the daily interest was 1,000 points. His daily natural growth points were only 240.
What kind of chosen one was he, burdened with a mountain of debt every day, poorer than a poor person.
[Exchange for the first Sequence Fruit at a 30% discount, costing 15,000 growth points.]
Really?
Chen Bo's anger turned to joy.
"Exchange for a Sequence Fruit!" He chose to exchange without hesitation, afraid that the system would change its mind. If he
didn't take a gamble, he would die on the road before even seeing the shadow of Five Rams City. "I'll take
the gamble. At least there's a chance.
If I awaken a powerful sequence—a Death God sequence, a Sword Immortal sequence, a War God sequence… I can take down any monster with a single strike, greatly increasing my chances of safely reaching Guangzhou."
[Exchange for Sequence Fruit immediately?]
"Exchange!"
[Exchange successful! Consumed 15,000 growth points, obtained Sequence Fruit x1!]
[Remaining available growth points: 5,000]
The next second, a fruit appeared out of thin air in Chen Bo's hand.
He looked down at it, stunned for three seconds.
It was a… strawberry.
Yes, a strawberry.
Bright red, with green leaves on top, covered in tiny seeds, emitting a faint sweet fragrance.
Exactly the same strawberry he bought at the fruit shop before the apocalypse, only much larger, about the size of an egg.
Chen Bo took a deep breath and popped the strawberry into his mouth.
The moment he bit into it, a burst of sweet juice exploded in his mouth—
honestly, it was quite delicious.
More delicious than anything he had eaten since the apocalypse.
He was probably too hungry, so Chen Bo swallowed it down in two or three bites.
Then—
nothing happened.
Chen Bo waited three seconds, then five seconds, but still nothing happened.
"Hey, system? Did you send me a fake one—"
Before he could finish speaking, a violent burning sensation exploded from his stomach!
"Holy shit!"
Chen Bo felt like he'd been electrocuted, his back arching like a shrimp, his hands clutching his stomach tightly.
The burning sensation started in his stomach and spread wildly through his blood vessels, as if someone had poured molten iron into his veins, every inch of his skin burning.
He wanted to scream, but no sound came out.
His throat felt like it was blocked by something, he could only make a "hoarse" sound.
Then came the pain.
Not ordinary pain, but the kind of pain that drilled into the bones, as if something was breaking through the soil inside his body, trying to tear him apart from the inside.
Chen Bo's vision began to blur, everything in front of him was spinning.
He felt like he was falling, yet also floating upwards, unable to distinguish east from west, north from south, or whether he was standing or lying down.
Countless chaotic images flashed through his mind—
images from before the apocalypse, images from after the apocalypse, images from his childhood, images he couldn't even remember seeing.
These images spun like a revolving lantern, making him dizzy.
Just when he felt he was about to be torn apart—
everything stopped abruptly.
The burning sensation disappeared.
The pain disappeared.
The dizziness disappeared.
Chen Bo lay sprawled on the muddy ground in front of the public restroom, soaked to the bone, as if he had just been pulled from the water.
He gasped for breath, his heart pounding as if it would burst from his chest.
"...Is...it over?"
[Sequence Awakening Complete. Congratulations to the host for awakening the Demon God Sequence.]
Chen Bo was stunned for a moment.
"Demon God Sequence?"
He had never heard of this sequence.
After the apocalypse, information about sequence superhumans circulated among various survivor groups. Common sequences included the Heavenly Craftsman Sequence, Agriculture Sequence, Boxing King Sequence, and Fighting Master Sequence.
Rare ones included the Death God Sequence, Sword Immortal Sequence, War God Sequence, Prophet Sequence, and Healing Sequence.
But the Demon God Sequence?
He had never heard of it.
"What kind of sequence is this? How strong is it? Can I fight?" Chen Bo asked a series of questions.
[The Demon God Sequence is an extremely rare hidden sequence, and its awakening is unique. This sequence is known for its powerful combat strength and growth potential, but each advancement requires paying a corresponding "price."]
[Current Sequence Level: Sequence 9 (Seed of Demon God)]
[Acquired Abilities: Demon God Body (Passive) - Significantly improved physical attributes, enhanced recovery ability, and some resistance to low-level strange auras.] [
This awakening has come at a price: the host has lost one of the most important yet most useless traits of humanity.]
Chen Bo fell into deep thought after hearing this.
"Most important yet most useless"?
That sounded contradictory.
How could something important be useless? And how could something useless be important?
He quickly checked himself.
His hands and feet were still there, his head was intact, and his memories were still there. He remembered his name, the convoy, and Wang Changgui's face, split in two.
What about his feelings?
He thought about his family and friends from before the apocalypse.
His memories were still there, but that… feeling?
He couldn't quite put his finger on it.
It was as if nothing was missing, yet something was missing.
Chen Bo was completely baffled.
"System, what exactly am I missing?"
[System Prompt: This information requires the host to explore it independently.
Hint—The lost trait has no negative impact on the host's survival; it may even make life easier in the apocalypse.
However, at certain specific moments, the host may realize what they have lost.]
Chen Bo: "…"
This was as good as saying nothing at all.
Oh well, never mind.
Anyway, he'd awakened, and it was a viable sequence—that was enough.
Chen Bo stood up and stretched.
It was definitely different.
Before, his legs were as weak as noodles, but now, standing here, he could clearly feel a surge of power within his body.
He bent down and lifted the supply box with one hand—before, it was difficult to even lift, but now it felt as light as a box of tissues.
"Not bad, not bad," Chen Bo nodded in satisfaction, "This Demon God sequence is something else."
He tried running a few more steps, and his speed was much faster than before, and he wasn't even out of breath.
With this physical condition, if he encountered another monster like Wang Changgui, he might not be able to beat him, but at least he could escape.
However, Chen Bo didn't plan to go back for revenge.
What a joke! That was a monster's lair; he was only a Sequence 9. Going back would be like offering himself up as food.
Survival, developing stealthily, was the first rule of survival in the apocalypse.
Chen Bo carried the box and walked along the road.
After a few steps, he suddenly stopped.
"Wait, I'm a superhuman now, should I go back to the caravan?"
The caravan is crowded and messy, supplies are scarce, and apart from a few superhumans, the two hundred or so ordinary people are just a burden. Why bring these burdens along?
They should be killed!
Now that I have a system and have awakened my sequence, wouldn't it be better to travel alone?
Chen Bo stood at the crossroads, hesitating for three seconds.
Then he looked around.
On both sides of the road was an endless wilderness, with a few lonely abandoned houses in the distance, and further away, a dark forest.
The wind blew, carrying an indescribable, fishy stench.
The road surface was cracked, and withered yellow weeds grew in the cracks.
A van was parked by the roadside, its door open, the inside dark, and he didn't know if anything was hidden inside.
Chen Bo stared at the van for five seconds, feeling like something was moving inside.
Then he decisively turned around, picked up the box, and walked towards the caravan's camp.
Travel alone?
Forget it.
He is indeed a superhuman now, but just a lowly Sequence 9.
In this apocalyptic world teeming with monsters, even high-level superhumans dare not act recklessly.
He, a newly awakened newbie, is going to travel hundreds of kilometers alone to Guangzhou?
What's the difference between that and delivering takeout?
He's practically delivering himself to the monsters' doorstep, with free shipping.
Besides, there's a prophet superhuman in the convoy who can foresee danger and avoid it in advance.
Furthermore, if monsters attack, even if he can't defeat them, he doesn't need to run too fast; just faster than an ordinary person is enough.
After walking for about fifteen minutes, an abandoned residential area appeared ahead.
Chen Bo stopped and cautiously observed.
The residential area wasn't large, with about seven or eight five- or six-story buildings, their exterior walls mottled, and their windows dark and empty, like countless eyes staring at him.
Chen Bo stared at the dark, empty apartment buildings for a few seconds.
The wind howled through the gaps between the buildings, sounding like someone crying, or perhaps laughing.
Then—
"Come in, come have some fun..."
a voice drifted over.
Soft and gentle, as if speaking through a blanket.
Chen Bo stopped in his tracks.
"It's not safe outside...come in and hide..."
The voice came again, this time clearer, a woman's voice, gentle, with a kind of heartwarming concern.
"I'll make you some noodles...hot...come in and have a bite..."
Chen Bo looked down at the box in his arms—it contained canned luncheon meat and compressed biscuits, all cold.
Hot noodles?
He swallowed, as if he could smell the aroma.
Since the apocalypse, he hadn't had a proper meal in a long time.
Supplies in the convoy were extremely scarce; they ate dry rations, and even cooking some thin porridge was considered a treat.
"Come in...the noodles won't taste good if they get cold..."
Chen Bo took a step forward.
Then he stopped.
He looked up and carefully examined the buildings.
The dark windows resembled empty eye sockets.
There was no light.
No smoke.
No sign of any living person.
Before the apocalypse, wouldn't there be condensation on the windows and a fragrant aroma wafting through the hallways when someone cooked noodles?
In this desolate wilderness, seven or eight abandoned buildings, a woman cooking noodles inside?
Was she feeding ghosts?
"Come in...why don't you come in..."
The voice drew closer, as if right next to his ear.
Chen Bo shivered.
"No, no," he shook his head, taking two steps back while clutching the box, "I'm not hungry, really not hungry, you keep it for yourself." "
Come in...it's getting dark outside..."
The voice became urgent, as if genuinely worried about him.
Chen Bo looked up at the sky.
The gray sun was almost touching the horizon, and an ominous dark red tinged the sky.
The red moon was about to rise.
"I'm really not going in," Chen Bo quickened his pace, shouting as he walked, "You eat the noodles yourself, eat them while they're hot, they're bad for your stomach if they get cold!"
With that, he ran along the road without looking back.
The voice behind him was still chasing him, growing farther and farther away, more and more indistinct—
"Don't go... I'll give you an extra sausage, two eggs..."
The rest of the words were swallowed by the wind.
Chen Bo ran more than two hundred meters before slowing down and glancing back.
The residential buildings stood quietly in the twilight, their windows dark and empty.
It was as if nothing had happened.
Chen Bo wiped the sweat from his brow.
In this world, even the supernatural has learned to scam.
He didn't dare delay any longer, carrying the box and jogging.
The convoy camp was set up in an abandoned parking lot outside the city, about three or four miles away.
Chen Bo's physical condition was now much better than the average person, so running wasn't too strenuous, but he didn't dare run too fast—it was getting dark, and who knew what might be hiding on the road.
The scenery on both sides of the road grew increasingly blurry as dusk surged in like a tide.
Chen Bo ran while keeping an eye on the red moon on the horizon.
That damned moon had already peeked out, like a blood-red eye, slowly climbing higher.
When the red moon was fully up, the eeriness would become even more active and ferocious.
At that time, not only would a Sequence 9 nobody like him not dare to wander around outside, but even Sequence 7 and Sequence 6 superhumans wouldn't dare to wander around.
Three miles.
Two miles.
One mile.
Chen Bo saw the outline of the parking lot in the distance—a dozen or so dilapidated cars arranged in a circle, with several tents pitched in the middle and a few campfires that were about to go out.
The convoy had arrived.
He quickened his pace and rushed into the parking lot.
"Who's there?"
A man guarding the entrance raised a flashlight, the beam shining on Chen Bo's face.
"It's me, Chen Bo." Chen Bo squinted, shielding his eyes from the light.
The flashlight flickered twice, and the man saw Chen Bo's face clearly, then looked behind him.
"Just you alone?"
"Yes."
"Where are the others?"
Chen Bo hesitated for a moment: "I don't know..."
They haven't returned yet, so they're gone.
The man paused for a moment, then stepped aside.
Chen Bo carried the box into the camp.
There weren't many people in the camp; most were in their tents or vehicles, conserving their energy.
Only a few burly men on guard patrolled the edge of the camp.
A few people sat around the campfire, talking quietly.
Everyone looked up when Chen Bo entered.
"Hey, isn't this Chen Bo?"
a shrill voice came from beside the campfire.
Chen Bo looked over and saw a tall, thin man named Liu Qiang, one of the veterans in the convoy.
Before the apocalypse, he was supposedly a small-time contractor. He had been working in the convoy for a few months, and because he had some connections with the Order Keepers, he often bullied the newcomers.
Two other men sat next to Liu Qiang, a short, fat man and a bald man, both his henchmen.
"Six people went out this morning, and only one came back?" Liu Qiang looked Chen Bo up and down, his gaze landing on the box in his arms. "You only brought back this little bit of stuff?"
Chen Bo ignored him and carried the box toward the supply tents.
"Hey, I'm talking to you, didn't you hear me?" Liu Qiang stood up and blocked his way. "Do you know how precious a pill that conceals one's aura is? That was something Miss Shen painstakingly refined! Do you know how much mental energy and supernatural power a support-sequence superhuman consumes to refine just one pill?"
Miss Shen's name was Shen Ruoxue, a support-sequence superhuman in the convoy, a Xuan Nu (Mystic Maiden) sequence.
Xuan Nu could heal simple wounds and ailments, buff combat-sequence superhumans, and refine pills with supernatural power—like those pills that conceal one's human aura.
These pills were strategic resources in the apocalypse; entering and leaving cities and traversing strange areas depended entirely on them for survival.
"Six people, six pills, and you're the only one who came back?" Liu Qiang's voice grew louder and louder. "You still have the nerve to come back with this worthless stuff? I think you're just a coward who ran away, weren't you? Were those five people killed because of you?"
Liu Qiang's voice grew louder and louder, alarming everyone in the camp, who all poked their heads out of their tents.
Chen Bo stopped and turned around.
He looked at Liu Qiang, expressionless.
"Are you done?"
Liu Qiang felt a little uncomfortable under his gaze, but relying on the number of people, he still stubbornly said, "What, did I say something wrong? Six people went out, and only you came back, and you only brought this little bit of supplies. What are you if not a piece of trash? A piece of trash who wasted a pill!"
"That's right," the short, fat follower chimed in, "It's so hard for Miss Shen to refine a pill. It's such a waste to give it to a piece of trash like you."
The bald follower also stood up, and the three of them fanned out from behind him.
Chen Bo put the box on the ground.
"I'll ask you one more time," Chen Bo's voice was calm, eerily calm, "Are you done?"
"So what if I'm done?" Liu Qiang scoffed. "You still want to fight? Let me tell you, in this convoy, you're the newcomer—"
Before he could finish, Chen Bo kicked out.
The kick was swift and powerful, striking Liu Qiang squarely in the chest.
Liu Qiang was thrown like a man hit by a truck, his feet leaving the ground, flying three or four meters before crashing heavily to the ground, sliding a short distance and knocking over a pile of debris.
Chen Bo felt incredibly satisfied!
[At this point, I hope readers remember our domain name: Taiwan Novel Network, 𝒕𝒘𝒌𝒂𝒏.𝒄𝒐𝒎 Super Reliable]
Killing him would be even more satisfying!
But he knew he couldn't; the other man didn't deserve to die, and the superhumans in the convoy wouldn't allow it.
"Cough...cough cough..." Liu Qiang lay on the ground, clutching his chest, his face flushed red, almost choking on his breath.
The short, fat man and the bald man were stunned for a moment, then flew into a rage.
"You dare to lay a hand on me?"
"You're asking for death!"
The two pounced on him from the left and right. The short,
fat man threw a punch from the side,
while the bald man reached for Chen Bo's collar. Chen Bo dodged to the side, the short, fat man's fist grazing his shoulder and missing.
Chen Bo grabbed the short, fat man's wrist and twisted it downwards—
"Ah—!"
The short, fat man screamed, his entire arm twisted at an unnatural angle, his knees buckling and he knelt down.
Before the bald man's hand could even touch Chen Bo's collar, Chen Bo slapped him across the face with a backhand. With
a crisp "smack," the bald man's head snapped to one side, a bloody tooth flying from his mouth, he spun around on the spot, and then collapsed to the ground.
Three seconds.
All three of them were sprawled on the ground.
The camp fell silent instantly.
Those who had peeked out to watch the commotion stared wide-eyed, their mouths agape in an "O" shape.
Liu Qiang, lying on the ground, finally caught his breath. Looking up, he saw Chen Bo approaching and scrambled backward in fear, stammering, "You...you stay away! Do you know who I work for? I'm with Brother Zhao—"
"Brother Zhao?" Chen Bo walked up to him, looking down at him. "Which Brother Zhao?"
"Captain Zhao...Captain Zhao! Captain Zhao of the Order!" Liu Qiang shouted, his
voice trembling with fear. "If you dare hit me, Captain Zhao won't let you get away with it!" Just then, a series of hurried footsteps came from deep within the camp.
"What's going on?"
Seven or eight burly men ran over. Leading them was a robust middle-aged man with a dragon tattooed across his shoulder, carrying an iron pipe.
This was the Captain Zhao Liu Qiang had mentioned—Zhao Gang, the head of the Order in the convoy, and one of the most powerful people in the convoy besides the superhumans.
Zhao Gang himself wasn't a superhuman, but he commanded over a dozen Order members, all strong, ordinary people, responsible for maintaining order in the convoy, distributing supplies, and handling disputes.
In the eyes of ordinary people, Zhao Gang was someone they couldn't afford to mess with.
"Brother Zhao! Brother Zhao, save me!" Liu Qiang, as if seeing a savior, scrambled over, "This Chen Bo, he's gone mad! He started beating people as soon as he got back! Look at the three of us, look what he's done to us!"
Zhao Gang looked at the short, fat man and the bald man lying on the ground, then at Chen Bo standing to the side, his face darkening.
"Chen Bo, right?" Zhao Gang slung the iron pipe over his shoulder, "New here? Don't you know the rules?"
Chen Bo looked at him without speaking.
"There are rules in the convoy, no fighting. If there's any conflict, come to the Order Keepers to resolve it." Zhao Gang tilted his head, "You beat people up, what do you say about this?"
"They started it first." Chen Bo said calmly.
"Started it?" Zhao Gang scoffed, "You think you can beat people up just because you started it? Are you an Order Keeper or am I?"
The seven or eight burly men behind him took a step forward, revealing their weapons—iron pipes, wooden sticks, and a machete that looked like it came from somewhere.
"I'll give you two choices," Zhao Gang held up two fingers. "First, kneel down and apologize to Liu Qiang, and this matter will be over. Second—"
He didn't finish, but the meaning was clear.
Chen Bo looked at the seven or eight burly men, then at Zhao Gang.
Then he smiled.
"I choose the third."
Zhao Gang was stunned: "What third—"
Chen Bo moved.
He took a step forward and rushed directly in front of Zhao Gang.
Zhao Gang reacted quickly, swinging the iron pipe to smash it.
But Chen Bo was too fast; before the iron pipe even hit the ground, Chen Bo's fist had already slammed into Zhao Gang's stomach.
"Ugh—!"
Zhao Gang's eyes bulged, and he curled up like a shrimp. The iron pipe slipped from his hand and fell to the ground with a crisp clang.
The burly men behind him finally reacted and rushed forward in a swarm.
Chen Bo dodged a wooden stick that came crashing down, grabbed the man's arm, and slammed him to the ground with an over-the-shoulder throw, the sound of bones hitting the ground dull thud.
Another burly man charged at him wielding a machete. Chen Bo didn't retreat but advanced, striking the blade with his palm. The machete veered off course, grazing the man's shoulder and missing its mark.
He followed up with an elbow strike, hitting the man squarely in the temple. The man's eyes rolled back, and he immediately passed out.
The remaining men were dumbfounded.
Although they outnumbered him, they were all ordinary people, relying solely on their superior numbers.
Now, encountering an awakened superhuman was a completely different matter.
Chen Bo didn't stop, one punch after another, clean and efficient.
In less than ten seconds, all eight burly men were sprawled on the ground, some clutching their stomachs, others clutching their legs, their groans echoing across the room.
Zhao Gang barely managed to stand, his face deathly pale, his eyes filled with horror as he looked at Chen Bo: "You...you're not an ordinary person...you've awakened?!"
The camp fell completely silent.
Everyone looked at Chen Bo with a complex mix of emotions—shock, envy, and awe.
In the apocalypse, there was an insurmountable chasm between superhumans and ordinary people.
Chen Bo didn't answer Zhao Gang's question. He bent down to pick up the box on the ground, dusted it off, and continued walking towards the supply tents.
Just then, the curtain of a tent deep within the camp was lifted.
Several people emerged.
Leading them was a middle-aged man with thick eyebrows and large eyes, wearing a faded camouflage uniform, a pistol—a superhuman pistol—on his waist.
He was the convoy leader—Li Wei.
Before the apocalypse, he was a retired soldier who later awakened the Prophet Sequence and became a superhuman.
Although not a combat sequence, the Prophet Sequence's abilities were extremely valuable in the apocalypse—the ability to foresee danger and avoid it in advance.
The convoy was able to escape south all the way here entirely thanks to his abilities.
Behind Li Wei were three other people.
One was an elderly man with gray hair, named Uncle Sun, a superhuman of the agricultural sequence, responsible for cultivating edible plants.
Another was a woman in her thirties, with short hair and a cold expression, named Fang Lin, a superhuman of the boxing sequence, and the most capable fighter in the convoy.
The third was a young woman who looked like a college student, with a ponytail, delicate features, and wearing a light blue hoodie; she was none other than Shen Ruoxue, of the support sequence.
The four of them walked up to Chen Bo.