Chapter 3: The Afterglow of the Setting Sun

After about half an hour, it was finally Wang Zhi’s group’s turn.

“Hello! Welcome to the Liwei Tower. Please show your magnetic cards.”

The person in charge of the reception was a woman in her thirties, and all the staff were wearing identical uniforms. This made it hard for Wang Zhi to imagine that such a luxurious base existed 200 meters underground.

The “magnetic card” she mentioned was the black card Wang Zhi was holding. He handed the card over.

“Are the three of you together?” The woman asked, looking at the two people behind Wang Zhi.

“Yes.”

“Hmm, you can either form your own team or join another existing one. Would you like to create one or join?” The receptionist replied politely.

Wang Zhi turned around to glance at the other two. One was casually fixing his nails out of boredom, while the other was observing their surroundings. Wang Zhi knew that their strength wasn’t an issue; it wouldn’t matter if they joined another team. But for him, he needed teammates. How could he let these two armed bodyguards slip away?

“We’ll create our own team!” Wang Zhi said to the receptionist.

“Alright, please hand over the magnetic cards of the two people behind you,” the woman replied.

Wang Zhi then turned to the others, “Lao He, Ying Jie, give me your cards so I can register you.”

He then passed the two cards to the receptionist. He also took note of the ID numbers on the back of their cards. Lao He’s ID was 5707, and Ying’s was 3350, a bit ahead of Lao He’s.

“Please choose a name for your team,” the receptionist’s voice came again.

“Since this place is called Liwei Tower, how about naming it Afterglow of the Setting Sun?” Wang Zhi turned back to ask the others.

“Good,” Lao He replied briefly.

“Nice, a very poetic name. I didn’t know you were such a cultured person, little brother.” Ying said with a smile, reaching out to ruffle Wang Zhi’s hair.

Wang Zhi could only helplessly sigh. Why did this strange woman always want to touch his hair?

“Then our team will be called Afterglow of the Setting Sun!” Wang Zhi declared.

“Alright, your team has been successfully created! If you have any questions, you can consult the smart robot in your room,” the woman said as she handed back their magnetic cards.

The trio was assigned to Room 033 on the 2nd floor, Area A. Following the directions, Wang Zhi quickly found the elevator to the second floor.

Once inside, Wang Zhi swiped his magnetic card and pressed the button for the second floor.

This time, Wang Zhi could feel that the elevator was moving down. Could it be that the higher floors were actually lower levels? Was the numbering system reversed here?

Exiting the elevator, to the left was Area A, to the right was Area B, and ahead was a large training hall that included a cafeteria and a supermarket. People were eating in the cafeteria, and various training equipment filled the hall, with many people using them. The advanced equipment and facilities provided a great environment for training.

Following the signs, the three quickly found their room.

The room wasn’t big—about 50 square meters. With about 100 rooms in each of Area A and Area B, and the large training hall in the middle, it could be estimated that the two floors together covered over 10,000 square meters! To have such a large facility deep underground required an immense amount of financial resources.

Wang Zhi couldn’t help but admire the person who had built this place.

The room was decently equipped, with an independent bathroom and four beds. It could be inferred that a team could have up to four members.

On the wall, there was a display screen. The smart robot the receptionist mentioned was probably this display screen. After unpacking, Wang Zhi turned it on.

“Welcome to Liwei Tower. I am your smart assistant Lingling Yao. If you have any questions, feel free to ask me.”

“Lingling Yao, what is this place?” Ying asked first.

“This is Liwei Tower, the underground ark, humanity’s last refuge.”

“What? Underground ark? Last refuge? Will the surface be destroyed?” Ying continued, asking more questions.

“Destruction is not certain, but a great disaster will occur. Humanity will eventually become mindless zombies, walking corpses,” Lingling Yao replied.

Wang Zhi swallowed. He understood the concept of zombies—once infected, a person would become a zombie, feeding on flesh and blood without any rational thought.

“Lingling Yao, why will this great disaster happen? When will it occur?” Wang Zhi asked next.

“Insufficient permission to access the cause of the disaster. The disaster could occur at any time, but it is most likely to happen by November. Therefore, to ensure everyone’s safety, Liwei Tower is currently in lockdown mode,” Lingling Yao explained.

Lockdown mode? Does that mean no one can leave? This feels a bit like a pyramid scheme…

“Lingling Yao, how will we survive here in the future?” Lao He asked.

“Liwei Tower currently has its own supply chain. Food, clothing, shelter, and transportation are all guaranteed. However, tools, weapons, and food must be purchased using survival points,” Lingling Yao explained.

“What are survival points?” Wang Zhi asked.

“Survival points are the only currency in Liwei Tower. They can be earned or spent using your magnetic card. Each person’s survival points will be stored on their personal magnetic card, while the survival points of the team will be stored on the captain’s card. The captain is responsible for distributing them.”

Wang Zhi remembered that when he created the team earlier, he was automatically set as the captain. Now he understood—the captain controlled the team’s resources. This made him feel that his decision to form a team was very wise.

But then he wondered—did the other two really agree to let someone else hold the wealth? What if he decided to abscond with it?

“Don’t you have any objections?” Wang Zhi turned to ask the others.

Both of them shook their heads, signaling that they had no problem with it.

This made Wang Zhi even more confused.

“You’re not afraid I’ll scam you?” he asked, testing them.

“Haha, if the captain were Lao He, I might have some objections. But since it’s you, little brother, I have no issues,” Ying laughed.

“Why? Don’t you want to be the captain yourself?” Wang Zhi asked, confused.

“Whoever becomes captain, the other person will object. So you’re the best choice. At least we both can control you, so don’t worry about us being scammed,” Lao He explained.

Hearing this, Wang Zhi finally understood—he was just a puppet emperor.

“Hmm, Lao He, you’re too much. What do you mean by ‘control’? What if you scare my little brother?” Ying immediately dragged Wang Zhi over to the bed, sitting close beside him, one arm around his shoulder, looking like she was trying to protect him.

“Little brother, don’t worry. I won’t let Lao He bully you. But you’d better treat me well, okay?” Ying said, her other hand twirling a dagger as she played with it in a threatening way.

Wang Zhi couldn’t believe that he was in such a close situation with two armed individuals, and that they were even being affectionate with him.

“Alright, Ying Jie, Lao He, we’ve worked all day. Let’s eat something.” Wang Zhi said, opening his luggage and taking out the food he bought from the supermarket earlier, placing it on the table.