Night of the Apocalypse

Shen Qiu had a nagging feeling that something had happened, but he had no evidence to support it. With this in mind, he sat down and turned on his computer.

He quickly logged into the Haiyin platform, where posts were constantly being refreshed. Most people were discussing whether the disappearance of the scarlet skull symbol and the sudden extreme weather were connected.

Many posts speculated about this potential link:

– “Do you guys think it’s a coincidence? The countdown just ended, and now we’re seeing this extreme weather everywhere?”

– “The odds of it being a coincidence are too low. The weather forecast for my area said it would be sunny, and then out of nowhere, it’s thunderstorming. Way too creepy!”

– “I agree, it’s freaky. If this thunderstorm keeps up without stopping, we’re in big trouble!”

– “Don’t scare me like that! I’m not good with this stuff!”

Shen Qiu quickly skimmed through the posts, hoping to find some useful information. When he clicked on a particularly popular post, he couldn’t help but twitch his lips.

Someone had taken a picture of the thunderstorm, photoshopped themselves floating in the sky, and added a caption.

“Fellow cultivators, how about we practice immortality together?”

Shen Qiu couldn’t help but shake his head at how relaxed some people were. He dismissed the post and continued browsing. However, when he opened the next one, his eyes narrowed.

The post’s author had uploaded a photo, and upon closer inspection, a large, strange black shadow appeared in the sky at the moment lightning struck. The poster added a note: “I accidentally captured this. That shadow gives me chills. Can anyone figure out what kind of creature it is?”

Shen Qiu carefully examined the shadow and tried zooming in, but the photo was taken from too far away and was very blurry. The more he zoomed in, the more it pixelated, making detailed observation impossible.

Despite this, the shadow left Shen Qiu with an eerie feeling. He stared at it for a while but couldn’t figure anything out, so he decided to read the comments.

The post had already accumulated over 9999+ responses.

“Confirmed, this is definitely photoshopped! And not even a good job. I could do better!”

“Exactly, have some decency.”

Shen Qiu skimmed through the comment section, noticing that most people didn’t believe the photo, thinking it was photoshopped. After pondering for a moment, he didn’t leave any comments. Instead, he quietly saved the photo, closed his computer, and stood up.

He opened a box, took out 30,000 Alliance Coins, and left the bedroom, heading into another room.

Click.
As the light flickered on, an array of professional gear came into view.

The walls were lined with two high-strength compound bows, and wooden racks held professional wingsuits, a Black Knight suit, snow mountain skiing gear, wilderness survival equipment, and more.

All this equipment had been accumulated by Shen Qiu over the years, each item being incredibly expensive.

He quickly stripped off his clothes, put on the Black Knight outfit, donned his helmet, and grabbed a waterproof bag and tarp.

Before long, Shen Qiu appeared in the underground garage and walked toward a corner. From a distance, he could see a sleek, black, powerful motorcycle, exuding a sense of raw, violent beauty, parked there.

This black shadow motorcycle was the prize Shen Qiu received for winning the Grim Reaper Racing Championship. It is the only one of its kind in the world, with exceptionally powerful performance.

Shen Qiu hopped onto the black shadow, and his eyes instantly showed a subtle change.

Vroom vroom.
With a low rumble, Shen Qiu revved up the black shadow and charged toward the exit.

The torrential rain poured down on him, but Shen Qiu didn’t care at all; the genuine Black Knight suit he was wearing was designed to be waterproof.

Of course, Shen Qiu wasn’t out in the middle of the night just to race.

He sensed that something was gradually amiss, and just to be safe, he decided to go out and stock up on some essential supplies.

As for why he wasn’t driving a car, it was because Shen Qiu hadn’t bought one; his finances had always been tight.

If it weren’t for the advertisement Huang Lang had landed for him, he might not even have enough money to make purchases.

On the wide street, Shen Qiu sped past on his motorcycle, splashing water everywhere.

Due to the heavy rain, there were hardly any cars on the street, let alone pedestrians.

In the dark of night, Shen Qiu rode his motorcycle like a ghost, speeding past intersections at an incredibly fast pace. He was still holding back his urge to accelerate; otherwise, he would have gone even faster.

Raindrops as large as beans constantly fell on Shen Qiu.

For some reason, Shen Qiu felt a strange warmth rising in his body, and his eyes began to sting.

He slightly shook his head and blinked, trying to alleviate this inexplicable discomfort.

Just as he blinked, his heart suddenly skipped a beat when he saw a blurry black shadow appear on the road ahead.

An indescribable feeling surged through Shen Qiu’s mind.

He abruptly slammed on the brakes, swiftly steering the motorcycle to a halt.

The harsh sound of friction instantly echoed through the silent night.

Once Shen Qiu came to a stop, he looked up at the road ahead, only to find it completely empty, with nothing in sight.

His expression shifted repeatedly, and the stinging in his eyes intensified.

“An illusion?”

“Is my mind becoming increasingly unstable?”

“Or does it really exist?”

After murmuring to himself for a moment, Shen Qiu twisted the throttle again and continued driving his motorcycle forward.

Moments later, Shen Qiu drove his motorcycle to the largest 24-hour pharmacy in the 7th Ring Central District.

There were quite a few vehicles parked outside.

After parking his motorcycle, Shen Qiu took off his helmet, pushed open the door, and walked into the pharmacy.

Ding-dong~

“Welcome!”

Accompanied by a stiff electronic voice of welcome.

The owner at the counter looked up at Shen Qiu as he entered, then continued to lower his head and watch a movie.

Shen Qiu headed toward the medicine shelves. He first walked to the area where antibiotics were stored and quickly grabbed a box of multibacterial antibiotics. Then he headed toward the first aid section.

Along the way, Shen Qiu noticed several other shoppers.

The types of medications they were purchasing were similar to his, and their actions were quick and efficient.

If there were no surprises, their thoughts were likely the same as Shen Qiu’s.

Shen Qiu glanced at them briefly before continuing to select emergency medications, without any interaction throughout the process.

A few minutes later, Shen Qiu approached the counter with a pile of medications.

“Checkout.”

“I have to say, you guys are out buying so many medications in the middle of the night. Are you worried something’s going to happen?”

The owner said with a smile.

“Better safe than sorry; after all, things have been too unusual.”

Shen Qiu replied straightforwardly.

“It is indeed quite unusual. You must have read too many novels, right? In thousands of years of history, there hasn’t been an apocalypse, haha! It’s just a little computer virus, along with some thunderstorms. Besides, if anything happens, the higher-ups will handle it.”

The owner said optimistically.