Four hundred years ago, the Broken Ember Zone descended.

  It brought with it the extraordinary system of Ember Walkers.

  But it also brought unstoppable destruction.

  Countless Ember Portals opened across the planet—in the sky, the deep sea, underground caves, on the surface. They were everywhere and nowhere, difficult to find.

  Once an Ember Portal opened, if it wasn’t cleared within ten days, it would transform into an abnormal disaster that affected reality before closing.

  It is rumored that the World Government’s resistance lasted only 56 days before it dissolved, and each region was left to fend for itself.

  At this moment, Xia Lin stood in the east of the world, in Pearl City, once one of the most prosperous cities of the old world.

  He climbed the stairs to the roof of a building.

  In the fierce wind, Xia Lin stood on the uppermost floor of a CBD skyscraper and slowly narrowed his eyes.

  The shattered city came into view.

  Within his field of vision, nearly a hundred large and small black holes spun—the entrances to unsealed and unclosed Ember Zones.

  The city was split into irregular chunks.

  Some areas erupted with lava, some were barren, some were snow-covered, and some were pitch black.

  In the sky above, a giant floating city cast a massive shadow on the ground.

  S-class Disaster: Mechanical Sky City.

  In the distance, an unknown roar echoed through the city, its source a mystery.

  Even further away, in the suburbs, a towering black-and-red tree stood proudly, exuding an ominous aura.

  S-class Disaster: Demon Tree Paradise.

  Suddenly, the sound of a dragon’s roar blasted through the air.

  Countless black dots appeared in the distance, growing larger as they approached.

  They were a swarm of over a thousand three-clawed pterodactyls, each over ten meters long.

  SS-class Disaster: Nest of Calamity Dragons.

  These dragon soldiers had flown thousands of miles, their target clear: the Mechanical Sky City.

  As the dragon’s roar sounded, the Sky City’s automatic defense system activated.

  Lasers and missiles of all colors erupted like a storm, filling the sky with flames.

  Disasters also had conflicts with each other, fighting and even destroying one another.

  The law of the universe was that the weak were prey to the strong.

  And humans struggled to survive amidst endless disasters.

  They were weak.

  But fortunately, their weakness meant they didn’t attract targeted attacks from powerful disasters.

  Xia Lin suddenly understood the meaning of the system prompt:

  “Life without a powerful backer is not easy, whether in the Ember Zone or in reality.”

  He recalled the structure of the Tieyu Base in his mind.

  The base was massive, sheltering an area spanning hundreds of miles.

  Such a large target would almost certainly attract the attention of powerful disasters. Yet, in the memories of the original owner of the body, the base had never faced a life-or-death crisis. He had also never heard of any disasters above Level A actively attacking the Tieyu Base.

  After pondering this, Xia Lin wasn’t afraid at all.

  The Tieyu Base had backing?

  Most likely.

  But if Li Peipei’s backers were so strong, how could she only be Level 5? Only Sequence 43?

  How could she have fallen to a newbie like him?

  No longer paying attention to the battle of disasters above, Xia Lin walked down the stairs and cautiously headed north.

  That was the direction of the Tieyu Base.

  ...

  Three days later.

  A truck rumbled along a broken road.

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  On its side were the words “Qing Guang Logistics, Speedy Delivery” in bold characters.

  This was a transport vehicle from Qing Guang Logistics.

  It was heavily armed, with machine guns mounted and protective decks covering its body.

  Rather than a truck, it looked more like a tank.

  Inside the vehicle sat two men and a woman.

  They wore the special combat uniforms of Qing Guang Logistics and carried large-caliber rifles.

  One drove while the other two kept watch, always alert to their surroundings.

  After the arrival of the Ember Zone, long journeys had become a luxury.

  Countless disasters of varying levels had become the protagonists of this world, and humans could only struggle to survive in the cracks.

  However, the flow of supplies between bases couldn’t be interrupted. Weaker bases couldn’t produce all categories of supplies, so logistics companies emerged in the new era.

  These days, anyone daring to operate in logistics was undoubtedly capable.

  They had their own armed groups, special forces teams of Ember Walkers, and founders who were at least Level 4 Ember Walkers with superhuman strength.

  The level of the logistics security team also varied depending on the cargo being transported.

  The three people in the truck were all Ember Walkers, but their levels weren’t high—one Level 2 and two Level 1. This meant the cargo they were transporting likely wasn’t critical.

  “Stop!”

  The captain’s voice suddenly rang out, and Wang Ye slammed on the brakes. The tires left black marks on the ground as the truck skidded to a halt.

  The three in the truck looked in the same direction.

  A hundred meters ahead, a ragged figure sat on the highway guardrail, swinging his legs and wearing a hearty smile.

  “Hey! Hey! Hey!”

  He waved enthusiastically, then jumped off the guardrail and ran toward the truck at a moderate pace.

  He stopped in front of the truck, took a deep breath, and said excitedly:

  “I can finally see someone. This wilderness is really not a place for humans.”

  “By the way, my name is Xia Lin. Handsome guys and beautiful girls, can you give me a ride?”

  Wang Ye rolled his eyes.

  The word “idiot” almost escaped his lips.

  In the wilderness, the people you met weren’t necessarily human. Kindness here only brought trouble. Keeping your distance was the way to survive.

  Asking for a free ride? Did this guy know the rules?

  Wang Ye didn’t bother to complain or even respond.

  He started the engine, ready to continue, but suddenly felt the captain’s hand on his thigh.

  The captain scratched out two words:

  “Fat sheep.”

  “Come on up, brother! We’re all fellow travelers out here. Helping each other is the way to go!”

  “Giving you a ride is no big deal. Come on, buddy, sit in the back.”

  Wang Ye laughed heartily, and the other two in the truck beamed as if they had met walking gold coins—no, long-lost relatives.

  Xia Lin’s smile widened.

  He climbed into the back seat and sat next to the woman. As the vehicle started, Xia Lin’s smile didn’t waver as he said:

  “This wilderness is really scary. I’ve been wandering for three days, and it’s been miserable.”

  “Zombies and monsters have been bothering me day and night. Yesterday, a female ghost even climbed into my bed in the middle of the night, scaring the hell out of me.”

  “You want her to sleep in a bridge hole? She’s not picky, but don’t tell her that. She actually looks quite good.”

  “By the way, buddy, where are you guys headed?”

  Captain Li Qing, the only Level 2 in the car, spoke slowly.

  “Guhua Base.”

  Xia Lin nodded. “Oh, I know the Guhua Base. It’s the closest base to the Tieyu Base. Oh, I forgot to mention—I’m from the Tieyu Base.”

  Li Qing and Wang Ye exchanged a glance.

  Then Xia Lin spoke again.

  “Just now, my friend said something that really struck a chord with me.”

  “We’re all fellow countrymen when we’re away from home.”

  “Since we’re all fellow countrymen, does that mean we’re on the same side?”

  Wang Ye and Li Qing laughed.

  “Of course.”

  Xia Lin said, “Since we’re all in the same gang, we must be considered to be in the same camp, right?”

  Wang Ye and Li Qing nodded. “Yes, yes, we must be.”

  Xia Lin fell into thought.

  “But what do you call our camp?”

  Wang Ye replied with a smile while tapping the steering wheel.

  “Why do we need a name? We’re all human. Since we’re all human, we naturally belong to the human camp.”

  Xia Lin suddenly understood.

  “You’re right, buddy!”

  “So, if I kill someone, does that count as betraying my camp?”

  As soon as the words “kill someone” were uttered, the atmosphere in the car tensed.

  Li Qing frowned, about to speak, but Xia Lin interrupted him.

  “How big a bounty has the Tieyu Base put on me?”

  “Geez, being out here without any disguise skills is a problem...”

  “Click.”

  Xia Lin acted first, lightning-fast, snapping the neck of the woman next to him.

  At the same time, two rays of light burst from his fingertips and merged into the bodies of Wang Ye and Li Qing.