Night of the Apocalypse

At that moment, everything in front of Shen Qiu and Tang Kexin began to blur and shift.
Shen Qiu and Tang Kexin were overjoyed and suddenly accelerated into the afterimages.

At this time, three rockets fell straight down.

Boom!

A massive explosion erupted instantly.

Shen Qiu and Tang Kexin’s vision was instantly engulfed in white.

They instinctively raised their hands to shield their eyes; the blinding light made it impossible for them to open their eyes.

Suddenly, a screeching sound of sudden braking and honking echoed around them.

Screech!

In the next second, a black SUV came to a stop less than 30 centimeters away from them.

Before Shen Qiu and Tang Kexin could react, a middle-aged man leaned out of the window after pressing the hazard lights, yelling at them.

“Damn it! Are you crazy? Running into the middle of the road to seek death? If you don’t want to live, don’t come out and harm others! This is such bad luck!”

Shen Qiu looked around in confusion, realizing that he and Tang Kexin had somehow ended up on an elevated bridge.

He recognized this elevated bridge; it was the one on the eighth ring of the Sky City.

“I’m sorry, I’m sorry! My boyfriend is in a bad mood, he’s drunk and acting crazy; he insisted on running up here, and I couldn’t stop him in time. It’s my fault,”

Tang Kexin quickly bowed pitifully to the driver and sincerely apologized.

Hearing Tang Kexin’s soft apology, the man’s anger subsided a bit, and he responded.

“This time, you’re lucky; I braked in time. Otherwise, you’d be in big trouble. Alright, it’s dangerous here. Hurry up and take your boyfriend and go. People are on edge right now, so don’t run around causing trouble.”

“Okay, okay, we’re sorry! We’ll leave right now.”

Tang Kexin kept apologizing as she pulled Shen Qiu towards the edge of the elevated bridge.

“Kids these days! Their ability to cope is so weak; they act like they want to die over the slightest setback. It’s a shame, such cute girls,” the man muttered as he watched them leave, restarting his car and driving off.

Shen Qiu and Tang Kexin walked along the edge of the elevated bridge, remaining silent as they pulled out their phones and turned them on.

Buzz!

Both phones vibrated simultaneously.

Shen Qiu checked his messages, and notifications popped up continuously.

“Emergency Notice: Due to recent instability in public security and frequent conflict incidents, the Red Alliance has issued a special order. All administrative districts are to enter a state of martial law. Residents are advised not to stay outside for extended periods unless absolutely necessary.”

“Emergency Notice: To address the increasingly unstable situation, the Red Alliance has signed a special administrative order recalling all reserve members and veterans. Recruitment points will be established at various street corners, and we hope for your participation.”

“Emergency Notice: Due to climate-related natural disasters, there has been a fluctuation in prices. Everyone is advised not to panic; the Red Alliance will adjust and resolve the fluctuations as soon as possible.”

“Mr. Shen Qiu, this is Zhao Anyuan, the director of the Sacred Sound Welfare Institute in Sky City. Due to the recent surge in prices, the welfare institute has been severely impacted, and many children are not getting enough to eat. If you could spare anything, I would be immensely grateful.”

Shen Qiu frowned at the last message.

The Sacred Sound Welfare Institute is the largest welfare organization in Sky City and the place where he grew up.

He hadn’t expected the welfare institute to be affected, and it seemed the situation was dire, or they wouldn’t have sent a message to the orphans like him.

Just as Shen Qiu fell into thought, Tang Kexin’s phone rang.

Tang Kexin answered the call and began talking to the person on the other end.

“I’m fine, Mom.”

“Hmm.”

“Yeah, I understand.”

“I’m on the Jiuhuan North Elevated Bridge, heading toward the emergency exit. I’ll be off the bridge soon.”

“Hmm.”

After a brief conversation, Tang Kexin hung up the phone.

Shen Qiu said to her in a low voice, “It’s safe now. Once we get off the emergency exit, we’ll part ways.”

“Someone will come to pick me up soon. Aren’t you coming with me? I can give you a ride; the situation is pretty chaotic right now.”

Tang Kexin said softly.

“No, thanks.”

Shen Qiu directly refused; he didn’t want to have any involvement with Tang Kexin.

“Alright, but I have some updates. Do you want to hear them?”

Tang Kexin smiled at Shen Qiu.

Shen Qiu didn’t respond verbally, which was considered tacit approval.

Tang Kexin didn’t hold back and said to Shen Qiu, “The Red Alliance is under martial law, and there are patrols everywhere. If they weren’t afraid of causing panic, they would have imposed a curfew by now. Also, when you go back, if anyone asks questions, you mustn’t tell the truth or report anything. Recently, the Red Alliance established a new department called KPI. Anyone who goes missing and returns will be taken away. Some of those taken away are released, some are put under surveillance, and some…”

At this point, Tang Kexin suddenly paused.

This caused Shen Qiu to frown.

Then Tang Kexin said seriously, “Some have been executed. My mother couldn’t explain the exact reasons, but she has already asked my father to cover up my disappearance. You’d better be mentally prepared; there will definitely be someone coming to investigate you.”

“Thanks for the warning; I understand.”

After Shen Qiu listened, he fell silent. A few minutes later, he spoke up.

Tang Kexin just smiled and didn’t say anything more.

Soon, the two of them came down from the elevated bridge through the emergency exit. Shen Qiu waved to Tang Kexin and then walked away without looking back.

He then rented a shared bike and leisurely rode forward.

Tang Kexin stood in place, watching Shen Qiu’s departing figure, her smile growing even brighter.

On the brightly lit street, Shen Qiu rode his bike ahead. It was just past seven in the evening, usually the busiest time of night.

However, the streets appeared quite deserted, with only a few people moving about. Each of them looked hurried, walking quickly.

Moreover, there were a large number of patrolling guards along the way, and the main road entrances were guarded by fully armed soldiers and armored vehicles.

The entire city gave off a feeling of an impending storm.

Shen Qiu rode his bike, trying to avoid the main roads, cycling along the side roads toward home.

After more than two hours, Shen Qiu arrived at the entrance of the Xiangyuan Community, where he parked the shared bike.

At that moment, two guards at the entrance noticed Shen Qiu and walked over.

“Hello, sir!”

Shen Qiu’s heart skipped a beat as he looked up.

The one speaking to him was a girl in her twenties, with bangs and a youthful face, dressed in a blue uniform—clearly a newcomer. Her partner was a middle-aged man with a face full of stubble, bushy eyebrows, and big eyes.

“What’s the matter?”

Shen Qiu replied calmly.