Published: January 31, 2025
The sound of thuds behind her left Mo Ye feeling apprehensive as she escaped. Mo Ye was the female officer currently crawling out of the ventilation duct alongside Ye Zhongming. The large hole she had escaped from was now covered with wooden boards and debris.
She glanced at the man leading the way, her expression complicated. Mo Ye felt a sense of confusion. The world had changed; though she was reluctant to admit it, it was a fact. People's hearts had also changed, and while she did not want to acknowledge it, she had just experienced betrayal.
Born into a military family, Mo Ye had spent her childhood training and studying. Just after graduating from the police academy and starting her job, she found herself in the apocalypse, unsure of what to do. She wanted to save people, and she had tried, but the results were unsatisfactory. If it weren't for the man crawling in front of her, she might have already died.
Returning to the police station was not an option; it had been overtaken by man-eating monsters. Home? Her parents were in a classified department, and as their daughter, she didn't even know where they were now. She was all alone at home; what was the point of going back? What should she do now?
Mo Ye’s mind was a jumble, unsure of her direction.
Confusion, fear, oppression, dread, numbness—these were the mental states many encountered at the beginning of the apocalypse. Many couldn't bear it and resorted to suicide, becoming those monstrous flesh-eaters or food for those monsters.
These emotions could not last long, as soon humanity would face survival issues. Food and water would soon become top priorities. But that was not all; there were also waves of corpses, beast tides, monsters, mutated beings... even dangers from fellow humans lurking everywhere.
In the end, everything boiled down to survival.
Mo Ye was already experiencing these emotions, but she had never gone through it like this before.
After crawling out of the duct into a cramped restroom on the first floor, Mo Ye saw a large yellow dog standing there, wagging its tail at the man.
Brushing off dust from her clothes, she felt uneasy in the darkness. Even though she came from a SWAT background, she couldn't shake off a woman's instinctive fear of the dark, and the feeling of insecurity made her instinctively hug her shoulders.
“Why did you save me?”
She vaguely saw the man find a corner to sit down, and the yellow dog obediently lay beside him, resting its big head on the man's leg.
Mo Ye didn’t quite understand; she couldn't comprehend why this dog, which clearly had some abnormalities and was extremely vicious—having even killed someone—would be so affectionate towards this man.
Ye Zhongming rubbed the dog's big head, feeling its warmth, and said softly, “Cooperation.”
Mo Ye was taken aback; this answer was unexpected.
Ye Zhongming knew the female officer would be surprised, but he was speaking the truth.
Earlier, after escaping from the bathroom on the second floor, he quickly found a corner to activate the Secret Realm Key. However, to his surprise, the notification he received indicated that he should prepare for dangers that might emerge when opening the Secret Realm.
Ye Zhongming was not reckless enough to directly choose to open the Secret Realm; instead, he opted to temporarily give up.
He was unsure of facing the potential dangers that might arise within the Secret Realm because the legends surrounding it in the apocalypse were too mysterious. Not to mention that Ye Zhongming was currently only a one-star evolver; even if he possessed the abilities of a six-star evolver from his previous life, he still wouldn't be confident. After all, he knew nothing about the Secret Realm. Who knew what was inside? What if there were a level seven or level eight mutated zombie, or a group of perverse mutants? Ye Zhongming could truly be doomed before he began.
So a question now lay before him: if he wanted to open the Secret Realm and survive to obtain its benefits, he needed to enhance his strength as quickly as possible.