A Night of Desperation

“Aside from water, there’s also the constant disturbance from ghostly shadows. You’ll need to create an environment isolated by luminous stones. And for food, mushrooms, cockroaches, and lizards need to be produced steadily. In Hope City, there are even people farming and raising livestock—the difference in conditions is too vast,” Li Runshan shook his head.

“The difference is too vast,” echoed his daughter Aisena, who had appeared behind him at some point. She nodded along.

“So.” Yu Hong glanced at the girl before shifting his gaze back to Li Runshan.

“So you can only rely on those people who can’t stay in Hope City,” Li Runshan advised with a grin. “Start with them to build a small base. Once you secure water and food, then you can think about attracting skilled individuals to settle permanently.”

“That makes sense,” Yu Hong sighed.

“In a few days, there will be a group of refugees passing by nearby. They are using solar-powered vehicles that rely solely on solar charging, so they move slowly. Along the way, there will definitely be people who run out of food. This group is headed towards Tianyue, making stops along the way to trade for food. When they pass by, you can see if you can take in a few people.”

Yu Hong nodded but thought about the condition of his safe house. He shook his head internally. His safe house wasn’t equipped to house others—where would they stay? Would they share the cave with him? He had too many private things there to feel at ease.

For now, there was no way. The time wasn’t right yet. He had to move step by step. He hadn’t even achieved self-sufficiency—it was too early for that.

After talking with Li Runshan, Yu Hong left and visited Dr. Xu on his way back, only to find her underground shelter empty and silent.

He stood in front of the shelter door and knocked.

No response.

Lowering his hand, he sighed softly and turned to look around.

The area was silent, with only thick smoke rising from the still-burning distant fire.

The once-quiet forest was now bathed in red light. Even though it was nearing dusk, it looked as bright as noon.

Just as he was about to leave for his safe house—

Knock, knock, knock.

Suddenly, a knock came from inside Dr. Xu’s shelter.@@novelbin@@

“Who’s knocking?” A cautious, careful voice came from within—it was Dr. Xu.

Yu Hong glanced at the red value detector on his collar. The red value had spiked to over eighty.

He sighed internally and ignored the voice from inside. Turning, he walked away.

After a few steps, he returned, bent down, picked up a stone, and carved a line on the ground in front of the wooden door:

“The owner is gone. There’s something strange inside.”

With that done, he stood up again.

From the half-drawn white curtain over the shelter’s window, a woman in white stood silently.

The woman stared blankly at him through the window. Her eyes were vacant, and she stood still.

Her face was an exact replica of Dr. Xu’s, but her skin was unnaturally pale with a hint of decay, like peeling white walls.

Yu Hong gave her one last glance before quickly walking away.

*

*

*

Baihe City.

Inside an abandoned auditorium.

Rows of dark red seats with knitted covers filled the space.

Some seats had collapsed, others remained intact but were coated in dust.

The red seats fanned out in a semicircle around a rectangular stage at the front.

More than twenty people stood scattered across the auditorium—all soldiers of the United Army dressed in camouflage uniforms with helmets and tactical vests. 𝔯á𝐍O͍𝖇Еȿ

In front of them stood three sergeants in similar camouflage uniforms, distinguished by silver crescent pins on their shoulders.

The three sergeants—two men and one woman—held paper and pens, calling out names.

“Xu Zhengqiu.”

“Wang Xuan.”

“Zhang Jiawei.”

“Liu Yu.”

One by one, names were called, and the soldiers approached the respective sergeants, joining assigned squads.

As the names were called, the three squads gradually took shape, with more people joining each team.

The number of unassigned soldiers dwindled.

After about ten minutes—

“Ma Randong.”

“Xu Dawei.”

As time passed, the names were called more slowly.

Finally—

“Ding Chao.”

With that last name, the sergeants stopped calling.

But three soldiers—two women and one man—remained unassigned.

“Is it over? Why are three people left unassigned?” Xu Fei, one of the sergeants, frowned at his two peers. “I’m full on my end.”

“Same here,” another sergeant replied coldly.

The only female sergeant, Xue Ningning, sighed at the other two.

She understood the need for elite squads, but if the remaining three weren’t selected, they would have to form their own team.

A team without a leader entering the mission zone would be at significant risk if they encountered unfamiliar ghostly shadows or blood tide creatures.

Typically, leaders would try to distribute all soldiers to minimize these risks.

However—

Xue Ningning glanced at the profiles of the remaining three: Ou Li, Chen Qiaosheng, and Lin Yiyi.

Each had significant flaws despite being local elites in their own right.

“Captain Liu, what about the remaining three?” Xue Ningning asked the largest male sergeant.

“Let them form their own team,” he said without even looking at the three, leading his team out of the auditorium.

“Ou Yang,” Xue Ningning turned to the other sergeant.

“Ningning, don’t look at me. I’m responsible for my team’s safety. The new mutated shadow type will spread here in a few days, and blood tide levels are rising. More people doesn’t always mean safer, and you know that.” The sergeant shrugged and led his team away.

As they left, many soldiers cast knowing glances at the three unassigned individuals, making it clear they were seen as the weakest links.

Xue Ningning hesitated, her face troubled.

She raised her hand to signal her team to prepare to leave.

Halfway through giving the order, she saw the three’s anxious, hopeful expressions and softened.

“Forget it. You three, join my team,” she called.

The three stood at attention, voices loud and clear: “Yes, ma’am!”

Lin Yiyi, standing beside Ou Li, beamed. She had been nervous after being left out but now grabbed Ou Li’s hand excitedly. “We made it!”

“Alright, alright, I got it. Let go of me,” Ou Li said impatiently. She didn’t care which team she joined—she just wanted food and planned to run at the first sign of danger.

The third person, Chen Qiaosheng, looked pale but breathed a sigh of relief upon hearing the order.

Seeing their varied reactions, Xue Ningning shook her head.

One was selfish, one lacked intelligence and technical skills, and one was physically weak.

Each had strengths, but their weaknesses were glaring. She wasn’t sure if bringing them along was the right choice.

*

*

*

“How do I solve the water issue?”

The forest fire had subsided, and evening approached.

Yu Hong sat on a wooden bench in his safe house, deep in thought as he scribbled on a wooden board with charcoal.

“I’ve already adapted to this environment. If I move to a stream, I’ll have to start over, and I can’t move everything from here. It’ll take too long…”

He took a sip from his cup and set it down.

Staring at the water droplets clinging to the cup’s inner wall, he suddenly had an idea.

“What if I condense water from the air?”

The air was filled with moisture from evaporation.

“High humidity leads to mold and microbial growth. If I can extract water from the air, I can secure water and improve living conditions.”

The more he thought about it, the more feasible it seemed.

“But how do I get a dehumidifier?”

He decided to ask Li Runshan’s supply team. They could procure almost anything for a price—plus Li’s cut.

Fortunately, Yu Hong had plenty of loot: protective gear, knives, silver coins, and other supplies.

He remembered the car keys he found.

“Their cars should be mine too!” Excited, he planned to inspect the vehicles and order a dehumidifier the next day.

“Speaking of dehumidifiers, I’ll need more power…”

Without enough solar power, he needed a solution.

“Maybe I can turn a car into a mobile safe house,” Yu Hong thought. “That would solve the water issue and expand my exploration range.”

Strengthening a luminous stone, he began his daily training.

The next morning.

Yu Hong woke up early. Just as dawn broke, he put on his gear and went out to search for the car driven by Zhao Zhenghong’s group.

Amid the crunching sound of his footsteps, he moved at a steady pace through the freshly extinguished, charred woodland.

The temperature around him remained high. Despite it being the coldest time of morning, he still felt as if he were in the height of summer, his whole body burning hot.