Chapter 1 The Empty City

Xing City suffered an even more devastating attack than Nan City. Over seventy percent of the city's buildings were reduced to rubble, and its power, medical, and security systems completely collapsed. Due to the immense difficulty of rebuilding, Xing City was not designated as a shelter; instead, its surviving residents were relocated.

In other words, it had become a ghost town.

This desolate city was now inhabited only by mutated beasts, tearing through the ruins and devouring the human remains buried within...

Although the Yanhuang people traditionally believed in burial for peace, in this apocalyptic era, mere survival was a struggle for the living. No one had the spare energy to collect all the corpses.

The upper echelons had already sent people to search Xing City once, but not all the deeply buried or difficult-to-excavate remains were recovered.

The resources and energy required to dig out a corpse buried deep in the rubble could be used to build a new residence in a shelter in another city.

The living were more important than the dead.

Li Tianran pressed down on the accelerator, the SUV's engine roaring to life as it sped along the damaged road that wasn't completely blocked.

But at that moment, a dull gunshot rang out.

Li Tianran and Ding Lu's expressions both tightened.

Gunfire in this dead city was never a good sign!

"Boss, should we check it out?" Ding Lu asked.

Li Tianran was silent for a moment, then floored the accelerator, saying calmly, "It's none of our business, let's go!"

Ding Lu looked out the window at the sky, muttering, "The world's so chaotic these days, you run into unexpected events all the time… I hope trouble doesn't find us, I just want to go back to sleep."

Hearing this, Li Tianran's heart sank, and he hesitated to speak.

Ding Lu raised his eyebrows, noticing Li Tianran's strange expression, and asked, "Boss, did I say something wrong?"

Li Tianran took a deep breath and asked, "Do you know the saying, 'don't tempt fate'?"

"?" Ding Lu was taken aback.

"In TV dramas, a soldier who tells his girlfriend he'll definitely come back alive to marry her is guaranteed to die! A Jianghu figure who says he'll quit after this job and enjoy life is sure to fail this time!" Li Tianran said with a hint of helplessness, "Just like you just said, hoping trouble doesn't find us… then trouble is definitely going to find us."

"Isn't that just superstition?" Ding Lu said awkwardly.

"Want to make a bet?" Li Tianran said with a smile.

"..." Ding Lu hesitated.

Li Tianran's gaze suddenly focused on the end of the road a few hundred meters away, and then he said regretfully, "Looks like there won't be a chance to bet."

...

A woman.

A woman in a blue trench coat, covered in blood.

She was tall and beautiful, with a head of short, neat, black hair and a heroic spirit between her brows. If she were wearing a neat business suit, she would undoubtedly be a strong, career-woman type!

But she was in an extremely disheveled state, her clothes stained with dirt and blood, and the ends of her hair were singed.

She looked as if she had just barely survived a major battle!

She staggered, but her path was straight, heading directly towards the SUV.

Ding Lu's mouth gradually widened.

Li Tianran sighed.

Sometimes fate is something you can't help but believe in!

As if an invisible hand was controlling your destiny, even if you desperately wanted to stay away from trouble, it would still come and缠着缠着you.

Soon, a dozen men in black coats, armed with assault rifles, chased after her from the end of the road.

The woman was very agile. With a few dodges, she widened the distance between them and jumped towards the SUV with a clear purpose.

The distance between them was getting closer and closer. In the next second, the woman would be able to grab the luggage rack on top of the SUV!

Li Tianran glanced at the fork in the road beside him, turned the steering wheel sharply, and the heavy vehicle swerved violently, heading in another direction.

Bang!

The woman didn't expect the SUV to suddenly turn. Her hand brushed past the luggage rack, and her body slammed heavily against the car door, bouncing back. She rolled several times on the ground, and got up, covered in dust, watching the departing SUV in disbelief, cursing, "Am I that scary? You're running so fast, are you afraid of crashing and dying?"

Seeing the SUV heading in another direction, the woman gritted her teeth and struggled to her feet.

But at that moment, a piercing sound of tearing through the air rang out!

The woman felt a surge of fear and rolled to the side. A black shadow brushed past the corner of her clothes in an instant.

It was an RPG rocket!

Boom!

The departing SUV was hit with precision. The entire vehicle was overturned. As a shower of gravel and dust fell, the SUV lay on its side at the end of the road, unable to move...

The woman was stunned, then patted her chest and said, "That was close! Good thing I didn't get on that car! Otherwise, I wouldn't have escaped!"

Crack!

Crack!

The sound of gun bolts being drawn back and hurried footsteps grew closer. A dozen red laser beams landed on the woman's brow and heart.

"P-35, if you dare move another step, we'll cripple you… and feed you to the King!" A threatening voice rang out, accompanied by a hail of bullets. The bullets all landed half a meter away from the woman, peppering the ground with holes and sending gravel flying, causing the woman to scream!

"I'm not running! I surrender!" The woman trembled, raising her hands.

Thump, thump, thump!

Four burly men strode over. Their attire was strange, wearing matching bulletproof combat uniforms and helmets, and even wearing dark goggles in the dim light.

Although it was impossible to tell which faction they belonged to, they were definitely not Yanhuang military police!

Because they lacked the steely resolve of soldiers, and only possessed the violent aura of bandits!

Clang!

Heavy chains locked the woman's hands and feet.

"Damn it! You cost us over twenty combatants. If you weren't still useful, I'd let you experience what it's like to have your ass ripped open!" The burly man, wearing a camouflage helmet, cursed crudely, and then roughly pulled a black woolen balaclava over the woman's head.

"This is a dead city, even the Yanhuang military police have evacuated." The leader glanced at the overturned SUV in the distance and asked coldly, "Who were those people in the car?"

"..." The men exchanged glances, shrugged their shoulders, indicating they knew nothing.

"Forget it, no matter who they are, they can only blame their bad luck!" The leader completely disregarded the SUV, and turned his head to say, "Anyway, if they ran into us, they were going to be silenced."

Hearing these words, the woman's exposed white skin broke out in goosebumps.

Clearly, she was afraid.

"Take her away," the leader waved his hand and said loudly.

Just then, a loud sound of tearing metal rang out!

To everyone's astonishment, the SUV's door was kicked off from the inside with brute force, and a man and a young man jumped out, covered in dust and looking very disheveled.

"Phew…" Li Tianran brushed the dust off his body, and then calmly looked at Ding Lu and asked:

"Now do you know how serious the consequences of tempting fate can be, right?"