The Apocalypse Shelter System

It has been exactly three days since the last incident, and Building No. 1 has become lively. During these three days, Di Ping did not rest. He thoroughly searched Building No. 2 and rescued five more families, totaling twenty-seven people. Afterward, he swept through the villa district, bringing back another thirteen individuals. The villa district had suffered the greatest losses in the upheaval. Of the thirty standalone villas and over a hundred townhouse units, these were the only survivors. The rest either had no inhabitants or had shattered windows and blood stains inside, suggesting attacks by mutated animals.

As of now, all the survivors from the entire community had gathered here, with Di Ping and his group included, leaving only fifty people in the whole district. The loss was catastrophic. This community had originally been home to over a thousand people, and now fewer than one-tenth remained. This highlights the immense difficulty of surviving in such an environment. During this period, Di Ping had also killed two mutated cats, five mutated rats, and one mutated dog.

It was impossible for all these people to stay in Di Ping's room, so he cleared the 7th and 8th floors of the building to accommodate them. The survivors no longer found it inconvenient to share rooms—on the contrary, they felt insecure with so few of them, so Di Ping organized those aged between 18 and 50 into shifts for patrols, ensuring everyone's safety. Cheng Chao, the overweight Chen Gang, and Old Luo led the patrol teams. Li Sheng's injury was not yet fully healed, so he was allowed to rest, though his recovery was quick, thanks to the doctor.

Among the people Di Ping rescued was Ye Lu, who, along with her two best friends, had a surprise: one of them was a doctor, a skilled surgeon named Ning Nan. Ning Nan was a returning PhD graduate and worked as a chief surgeon at a second hospital affiliated with a provincial medical university. She expertly treated Li Sheng's fractured sternum, which alleviated his pain significantly. The other friend, Liu Bingyu, had a soft and gentle voice, a name that Di Ping thought did not match her appearance. She was an elegant and charming woman, and it seemed strange for her to have such a name.

Liu Bingyu was not ordinary either—she was from the capital, and her family seemed quite influential. She also owned a company. This time, she had come out to relax and had stayed with Ye Lu, a former college classmate with whom she had a close relationship. Ye Lu now worked as a psychological counselor, specializing in adolescent mental health. Ning Nan had met Ye Lu at the hospital, and they had become fast friends. Thus, the three of them had gathered here due to their connection with Ye Lu.

The people Di Ping rescued were all overjoyed because, at last, they could eat well and sleep peacefully. Building No. 1 was filled with life, and it seemed as if this place brought satisfaction. Over the past few nights, the area had been unusually quiet. For some reason, even the rats no longer ventured into the district. Di Ping speculated that perhaps it was due to the large number of mutated animals he had killed recently—these creatures might be afraid now. Whether this was the case or not, he didn't care; it was better this way, he told himself.

That evening, something significant was about to happen. He had been waiting for this moment. After all the killings, he had finally gathered the necessary conditions for the manifestation of his castle. He was ready to begin manifesting the system's building. After so many days of effort, Di Ping could no longer contain his excitement. After dinner, he found an excuse and went downstairs, heading toward the back of the building.

He had already picked the location. These two small high-rise buildings were perfectly situated in the southern-central part of the community, close to the main gate. The villa district surrounded them on all sides. During his recent cleaning of the villa area, Di Ping had noticed a large villa there, which occupied almost two acres of land and had a small river next to it, encircling the villa. In front was a bridge wide enough for vehicles, and behind it was an arch bridge leading to a garden in a half-moon shape, perfectly enclosing the villa.

This villa had been specifically developed as a high-end property, priced at over two billion yuan, but it had remained unsold and vacant. The villa was fully furnished, ready for immediate occupancy. Di Ping planned to manifest the castle here. He didn't know how large the castle would be, but he thought two acres should be sufficient.

Standing on the flat ground in front of the villa, Di Ping looked around. The once beautiful grassland had become overgrown with waist-high wild grass, obscuring the villa. The aesthetic appeal was gone, replaced by a sense of desolation, as though the house had been abandoned for many years.

He calmed himself and, without further thought, silently commanded the manifestation of the castle.

"Beep... Castle cannot bind to existing structures. Please confirm whether to manifest here."

"Confirm."

Di Ping, excited, hurriedly confirmed. He hadn't expected the castle to need direct manifestation and that it couldn't bind to existing buildings. However, he didn't care at this point—he just wanted to manifest it.

"Beep... Manifestation starting, 1%... 2%... 99%... 100%."

Suddenly, Di Ping saw a disturbance in the sky above the villa. It was as if the sky had folded, and radiant colors flashed like the aurora borealis, beautiful beyond words. The whole sky became filled with electric flashes, with lightning snakes streaking across the sky, like the apocalypse itself.

The entire city instantly transformed from stillness to chaos. Countless mutated beasts howled, their sounds rising and falling, shaking the heavens. But within this cacophony, there was a sense of fear, as though some great terror was descending. The humans hiding in the city were all frightened, unable to understand what had provoked the mutated animals.

"Boom..."

Suddenly, Di Ping felt a heaviness in his chest as a deep, thunderous sound echoed in the sky. Then, as if the heavens were collapsing, a purple vortex appeared out of nowhere. It spun faster and faster, growing larger until it formed a one-meter-wide black hole in the sky.

The black hole was as dark as ink, and a chilling energy emanated from it, as if a terrifying monster resided within. It sent shivers down Di Ping's spine, and he could not bear to look directly at it.

In his astonished gaze, the black hole suddenly quivered, and a black dot shot out of it. The dot expanded rapidly, and before long, a Western-style castle appeared in the sky, like a mirage amidst the energy rainbow. The castle began to descend, and with each inch it sank, it grew larger. Below, the villa was being crushed into particles, disappearing into nothingness.

The castle was far larger than Di Ping had imagined. Not only did it occupy the space of the villa, but it also claimed the land of dozens of surrounding villas. The area was much larger than Di Ping had expected. Originally, he thought two acres would be sufficient, but the reality was far more expansive. He continued to retreat, eventually reaching the bridge, finally outside the castle's reach. He hadn't anticipated that the castle would occupy the entire villa district and garden behind the community. Di Ping didn't calculate precisely, but it was likely over ten acres of land.

The castle continued to descend, and though it seemed slow, it happened incredibly quickly. Within ten seconds, all the buildings within the castle's range had vanished. An ancient Western-style castle now stood before Di Ping, its radiance disappearing in an instant. The sky returned to calm, the night deep and quiet, as though nothing had happened.

The smoke cleared, revealing the true form of the castle. Only then did Di Ping feel the immense grandeur of the castle, which deeply shocked him.

Standing on the bridge, Di Ping gazed at the castle from thirty meters away. The once waist-high grass had been transformed into a flat lawn, neatly trimmed. The castle stood like a giant beast, exuding a terrifying aura, resembling a dragon coiling and a tiger crouching.

The outer wall of the castle was tall, with battlements resembling ancient city walls. Surrounding the castle were five watchtowers with pointed roofs, each about twenty meters tall. These watchtowers had small windows, seemingly for shooting and observation. Each watchtower occupied about forty to fifty square meters. At the center of the castle, near the back, was a large tower, about thirty to forty meters tall, with a footprint easily exceeding one hundred square meters.

Di Ping looked at the castle, admiring it more and more, and could no longer resist stepping toward it.

"Great Master, your loyal servant, Castle Steward Barton, welcomes you back!"

As Di Ping approached the castle's door, it opened with a loud creak, revealing an elderly man in a butler's uniform. The man had a Western face, plump build, and a warm smile. He bowed respectfully to Di Ping.

"Butler?"

Di Ping, puzzled, looked at the elderly man with golden curly hair, a high nose, and blue eyes, and asked.

"Yes, Master. I am your castle butler, here to serve you and manage the castle."

Butler Barton replied, his voice filled with reverence.

"How did you end up in the castle?"

Di Ping was curious about how Barton had appeared. Was he created by the system?

"Master, I exist solely for you, and I've always been here waiting for your arrival."

Butler Barton bowed even lower.

"You don't know how you got here, do you?"

Di Ping asked, still somewhat unconvinced.

"Yes, Master. My memory begins with waiting in the castle for your arrival. My mission is to serve you, and your every command is my highest order."

Barton bowed again, his face filled with sincere devotion, as if Di Ping were a god.

"Alright."

Di Ping, slightly speechless, realized that Barton truly didn't know anything about where he came from. It seemed that the powerful system had somehow brought him here. But at this moment, Di Ping wasn't concerned about the mystery. As long as the system hadn't harmed him, he would continue to trust it.

"Take me on a tour."

Di Ping put aside his doubts and looked at the respectful Barton.

"Yes, Master!"

Barton bowed and gestured for Di Ping to enter the castle. Di Ping didn't hesitate. He had long wanted to see what his castle was like.

Entering the gate, Di Ping was immediately struck by the sheer size and sturdiness of the steel doors. They were about ten meters tall, five or six meters wide, and a foot thick—impressively heavy. Inside the door, there were two small guardhouses, likely where the gatekeepers would have stayed. After passing the guardhouses, Di Ping entered the castle, and he was astonished by what he saw.

The entrance led into a vast hall, with two wide corridors on either side. The hall was brightly lit, and Di Ping could see through the doorway. He quickly stepped inside, and his eyes widened at the decorations. The hall was no less than a thousand square meters, with a high, arched glass ceiling. Through the glass, the stars could be seen, making it feel as if one were in a sea of stars. A massive crystal chandelier hung from the ceiling, its hundreds of lights illuminating the hall, reflecting off the clean marble floors and creating a brilliantly bright atmosphere.

Around the hall were finely carved Roman stone columns, supporting the glass dome and forming a wide circular corridor around the hall. In the center was a raised platform, about thirty or forty square meters in size, resembling a stage for conferences.

This hall could easily accommodate a thousand people, making it perfect for meetings or events.

At the far end of the hall was a doorway leading outside, where the dim light barely illuminated a small garden with various flowers and trees.

"Barton, what's in front of us?"

Di Ping didn't step forward but turned to ask Barton, who had been quietly following him.

"Master, ahead is a small garden, and beyond that is your Lord's Tower. Would you like to see it?"

Barton bowed and gestured toward the area.

"Wait a moment. Where do the two corridors lead?"

Di Ping thought for a moment and declined Barton's suggestion, instead asking about the two wide corridors leading from the hall.

"Master, the left corridor leads to the accommodation building, and the right one leads to the function building."

Barton pointed to each hallway, explaining.

"Let's go to the accommodation building first."

After glancing at the two corridors, Di Ping decided to visit the accommodation building first.

Upon entering, Di Ping was delighted—more so than he had expected. The accommodation building had three floors. The first floor contained over three hundred rooms, each about ten square meters in size with simple decorations. It could comfortably accommodate four or five people in each room, and with the entire floor, more than a thousand people could be accommodated.

The second floor was even better. Each room was about twenty square meters and included a bathroom. The rooms were more decoratively pleasing, making it suitable for a family of two or three. However, the rooms were fewer, with only around a hundred.

The third floor exceeded Di Ping's expectations. Each room there was about forty to fifty square meters with two bedrooms, a living room, and a small kitchen. Families could cook and live independently, and Di Ping found it incredibly appealing.

However, the rooms on the third floor were even fewer, with only about fifty. Di Ping reflected on it for a moment, already formulating his plans in his mind.