Night of the Apocalypse

As time passed and the night grew deeper, the once lively night market gradually became quieter.

At the stall where Shen Qiu was, people were slowly dispersing, leaving behind tables in disarray. Zhang Li silently began to clean up.

At that moment, the proprietress came out from the store, took a look around, and seeing that most people had left, she said to Zhang Li, “Zhang Li, there’s only one table left, so it’s up to you now. Remember to collect the money. After the guests leave, tidy up the place, and then you can close up and leave.”

“Got it,” Zhang Li quickly replied.

Once the proprietress finished her instructions, she left.

At the stall, Huang Lang squinted his eyes and cheerfully said to Shen Qiu, “To be honest, I really don’t understand. You have such strong abilities. If you were willing to package yourself properly, you would have been famous by now! But you just refuse to, and I feel sorry for you.”

“I joined the club because of my hobbies and interests, not for fame,” Shen Qiu replied coldly.

Of course, the real reason behind it was something Shen Qiu would never reveal; it remained buried deep in his heart.

“Hey~ why do you have to be like this? You can go against anything, just don’t go against money!” Huang Lang earnestly advised Shen Qiu.

Shen Qiu sipped his beer without responding to Huang Lang, his expression somewhat melancholic.

Suddenly, a strong wind swept through the night market out of nowhere, causing the empty cans and bottles thrown on the street to roll about chaotically.

Some dust on the ground was lifted, and the entire night market descended into a state of chaos.

“Damn, why is it suddenly so windy? My clothes! What the hell!” Huang Lang’s face turned pale.

Shen Qiu looked up at the night sky above; he noticed that what had once been a twinkling starry sky had suddenly turned dark and gloomy.

“It might rain soon.”

“Impossible, today’s weather forecast predicted clear skies.”

“Let’s not talk about that. Let’s move the table inside the store and drink there.”

“Okay!”

Huang Lang stood up and helped move the table inside.

11:55 PM.

Red Alliance – First Administrative District – City of Deep Stars.

Tall skyscrapers stood erect, with winding elevated tracks suspended in the air, illuminated by colorful, flashing lights. As the main city of the Red Alliance’s highest administrative district, the entire city showcased the pinnacle of the Alliance’s technology, with a level of prosperity that other administrative districts could not compare to.

At the center of the City of Deep Stars stood a dome-shaped metal conference building covering thousands of acres. The surface of the building was intricately engraved with various lifelike patterns and textures, heavily guarded on the outside, with a sentry every ten steps.

Inside this conference building was a solemn meeting hall known as the Hall of Sacred Words.

The entire hall was laid out in a T-shape, with the main podium at the front occupied by nine figures. Among them, eight were seated vice-presidents wearing white striped robes and faceless white mechanical masks, sitting upright with an air of solemnity.

In the central seat of the main podium sat a man with graying temples, dressed in a bright red robe and wearing a white faceless mechanical mask. He rested his chin on his crossed hands, gazing deeply at those below.

On the T-shaped seating below the main podium, members were wearing light red striped robes, all of whom also wore white faceless mechanical masks.

The entire Hall of Sacred Words was very quiet, as if no one was communicating.

However, that was not the case. The attending members, through the white faceless mechanical masks they wore, experienced a reality that was drastically different from the visible conference hall.

They could see a holographic projection of a planet, its surface surrounded by satellites.

By reaching out to touch the holographic planet, the members could monitor the conditions of the entire Red Alliance and parts of the world.

At that moment, one of the members activated a directional voice communication and spoke to the member next to him.

“Ah~ It’s so hard to hope for a few peaceful days.”

“You’re already in this position, so don’t expect to live an easy life, unless you retire and enjoy your old age.”

“I wish I could, but unfortunately, the younger generation isn’t reliable!”

“True enough.”

“Forget it, let’s not talk about that anymore. There are less than five minutes left until the countdown ends.”

“Yeah, let’s stay alert; trouble is probably coming.”

“How are the preparations below?”

“There shouldn’t be any problems. All key weapons have been switched to manual mode. At the same time, all critical facilities have been assigned dedicated guard teams for protection.”

“That’s good.”

As the countdown approached zero, many of the attending members became tense, and the conference hall was exceptionally quiet; they could hear each other’s breathing.

Everyone was on edge, fixated on the countdown.

30!
29!

At the moment the countdown reached zero, the crimson skull logo and the countdown vanished.

Accompanying this was the holographic projection of the planet in their eyes, with all the surrounding satellites disappearing as well.

One by one, prompt boxes popped up.

“Error code 291: Lost connection signal.”

The numerous members felt their hearts skip a beat, and some of the seated members even instinctively stood up.

However, after a few seconds of silence, everyone anxiously looked around, and finally, someone spoke up.

“Trouble has come; the satellites are offline.”

At that moment, a terrifying rumble of thunder suddenly erupted from the sky, accompanied by flashes of lightning.

The pitch-black sky was momentarily illuminated.

The attending members were taken aback.
“Something’s wrong. Why did it suddenly thunder? There wasn’t a thunderstorm weather warning today, right?”

“No, I remember very clearly that it was a sunny day, and there was no rain forecast for the next seven days.”

At that moment, a holographic image frame popped up, displaying a major in military uniform saluting and reporting to the members.

“This is the Red Alliance’s Supreme Information Communication Bureau. Due to an emergency, all satellites have lost contact, communication is compromised, and the network has also been affected.”

The members present began to discuss in hushed voices.

“With all satellites offline, aren’t we just blind?”

“They’ve taken out our eyes; what do they want to do?”

“This is a bit troublesome.”

While everyone was discussing anxiously, Long Yan, the president of the council sitting at the top, spoke in a deep voice.

“Everyone, quiet down. Apart from the satellites going offline, has there been any other issues with the equipment?”

“No! All other equipment is functioning normally!”

“Very good. Since there are no problems with the other equipment, let’s not panic too much. Immediately instruct the technicians to troubleshoot the issues and report any progress as soon as possible.”

“Understood!”

The major officer responded immediately.

“Also, notify the communications department to activate all base stations in the area, including backups, to ensure communication remains smooth in the main area.”

Long Yan added steadily.

“Got it!”

The major officer saluted and then cut off communication.

At this moment, another holographic image frame appeared, showing a sprightly official in his fifties, who reported to Long Yan and the others.

“Chairman, distinguished members, there have been abnormal weather conditions across the Red Alliance. The meteorological bureau has issued an extreme thunderstorm weather warning to all regions. They have also communicated via a dedicated closed-loop system to alert the major districts to prepare for emergencies, especially highlighting the second and fifth administrative districts near the coast, as these areas may face severe weather conditions, including high-intensity typhoons.”