Chapter 1: The First Day Before the Apocalypse — A Dream? Or Rebirth?…

“No!”

Qiao Qiao woke up drenched in sweat and instantly sat up in bed.

“Was it a dream?”

She looked around. An ordinary single hotel room, nothing unusual. For a moment, she couldn’t tell whether it was a dream or reality.

She had just had an unusually vivid dream.

Most of it was forgotten, but she remembered the world ending, with all kinds of natural disasters occurring one after another.

On the third day of the heavy rain, she lost contact with her parents. The next news she received was from the hospital morgue.

Apparently, they had gotten into trouble while searching for her. They left behind only a phone that had long been turned off. When turned on, there was a failed text message inside.

“Qiao Qiao, live well.”

From then on, she struggled to survive alone in the apocalypse.

Three years into the apocalypse, she took on a mission rated S for danger. During the mission, she perished together with the enemy—it was her own choice to die.

Suddenly, a transparent screen appeared before her eyes.

【Congratulations, host, for binding with the Doomsday Card Drawing System】

【You have received a Newbie Gift Pack】

【Would you like to draw a card?】

Qiao Qiao’s face turned pale as paper.

The Doomsday Card Drawing System only appeared in the second year of the apocalypse. Its presence now proved that it wasn’t a dream — it was reality.

Qiao Qiao was stunned, and it took her a long time to come back to her senses.

The apocalypse is really coming, and her parents died because of her…

Since heaven has given her another chance, she is determined to stop the tragedy from happening and ensure her parents live well during the apocalypse.

The system consists of five parts: the card drawing page, personal information, system backpack, trading mall, and chat channels.

The personal information section displays the host’s information, visible only to herself.

The original backpack has only 10 slots, each slot can hold ten items of the same type. Using backpack expansion cards can increase the size. There are a total of 99 slots, each holding 99 items.

The trading mall allows buying and selling with others, and the system guarantees fairness and justice.

The chat channels are divided into city-wide, nationwide, and world-wide sections.

The card drawing page is the most important, allowing draws of N, R, SR, and SSR grade cards.

Every day at midnight, you get one card draw chance, unused chances can accumulate.

The card pool contains 95% N-level cards, SR and SSR have no guaranteed drop, but every 100 draws guarantee at least one R-level card.

This probability was later officially confirmed.

The system sends missions irregularly, sometimes granting card draw chances as rewards. Unfortunately, the number of missions is limited, and they are very dangerous.

Qiao Qiao clicked on personal information and claimed the newbie gift pack.

【Congratulations! You have received an R-level card: Solar Panel】

Qiao Qiao had encountered this item in her dream. When used, it can generate 10 kilowatt-hours of electricity in 10 hours, enough to cover the daily consumption of a family of three.

Newbie gift packs usually contain only N-level cards, she hadn’t expected such good luck to directly get such a practical item.

Ordinary solar panels cannot withstand extreme heat or cold, only system-issued ones can.

Qiao Qiao clicked on the card drawing page, in the center it displayed: 【Would you like to draw a card?】

Below were two options: 【Draw once】 and 【Draw ten times】.

At the bottom was a line of small text: 【Remaining draw attempts: 37】

Qiao Qiao’s pupils trembled in surprise—that was the exact number of draws she had left when she died in the dream.

She quickly opened the system backpack. There were a total of 99 slots, and currently 70 of them were lit up—but unfortunately, all of them were empty.

“Looks like the system has been reborn too.”

Qiao Qiao closed the system and opened her phone.

Pinned at the top of WeChat was the family group chat: “The Qiao Family Compound.”

“Baby, did you sign the job contract yet?” her mother, Qiao Huizhou, had sent the message an hour ago.

“She’s probably still sleeping. I think the signing is tomorrow, right?” her father, Qiao Xinghe, guessed after waiting a long time without a reply.

“I’m not signing the contract anymore. I don’t want to live alone in another city. I’ve decided to come home and look for a job!” Qiao Qiao replied.

Before, her parents had always hoped she would stay in her hometown, but she had been determined to fight for a future in the big city.

Now that the apocalypse was approaching, of course she wanted to be with her parents. Even if it still ended in death, she wouldn’t regret it.

“That’s great. Even if you can’t find a suitable job, it’s okay. Mom can support you,” Qiao Huizhou replied instantly.

“Dad can support you too.”

No doubt, they’d been keeping an eye on their phones the whole time.

“Mm-hmm.”

Qiao Qiao’s eyes instantly turned red. Being loved by both her parents—it felt so good.

She took a deep breath. She knew time was tight, and she had to act fast. She quickly got out of bed and began packing her things. She needed to go home, reunite with her parents, and prepare for the coming apocalypse.

She opened her phone and checked the weather forecast.

Today was June 20, and there were only 10 days left until the end of the world.

In ten days, gray fog would appear—the first disaster of the apocalypse.

At first, many people didn’t take it seriously and didn’t wear masks. Those people almost all ended up contracting a disease called lung melt, which had no cure. They could only watch helplessly as their lungs dissolved into bloody fluid and vanished—a process that was excruciatingly painful.

In the dream, if Qiao Qiao hadn’t had a mild UV allergy and the habit of keeping masks on hand, she probably would’ve fallen victim to it too.

The unusual gray fog weather only strengthened her resolve.

Qiao Qiao booked the earliest flight she could find. On the way to the airport, she sent a message to the HR representative of the company she was originally supposed to sign a contract with the next day, expressing her apologies.

After that, she began making plans. She needed to stockpile large amounts of food, water, and other survival essentials. Since she had no idea how long the apocalypse would last, if possible, she wished she could prepare enough supplies for three people to last 100 years.

At the same time, she would also make use of the Doomsday Card Drawing System to maximize the chances of survival for herself and her family.

Qiao Qiao opened the Doomsday Card Drawing System. She decided to do a ten-pull, hoping to draw some useful cards.

She closed her eyes, silently wishing to draw items that could help her family.

【Would you like to draw a card?】

Qiao Qiao selected 【Draw Ten Times】.

As the draw began, white light filled the entire screen, with a few streaks of blue light mixed in.

Qiao Qiao watched the results nervously—

White, white, white, white, white, white, blue, white, blue, white.

【Congratulations! You received N-level card: 1kg of beef ×1】

【Congratulations! You received N-level card: 5kg of rice ×1】

【Congratulations! You received N-level card: 1kg of pork ×1】

【Congratulations! You received N-level card: 5kg lemon-scented cat litter ×1】

【Congratulations! You received N-level card: 2kg of millet ×1】

【Congratulations! You received N-level card: 12-pack of tissue paper ×1】

【Congratulations! You received N-level card: 12 rolls of toilet paper ×1】

【Congratulations! You received N-level card: 3 pairs of incontinence pants ×1】

【Congratulations! You received R-level card: gas mask ×1】

【Congratulations! You received R-level card: small flowerpot ×1】

“Wow!” Qiao Qiao didn’t expect to draw two R-level cards in one ten-pull. She hadn’t been this lucky before.

With the system-issued gas mask, she could safely get through the gray fog disaster.

One card showed a flowerpot image.

【R-level Small Flowerpot: Can plant ordinary seeds, 1% chance of plant mutation, maturation time 10–30 days】

“With this, I can ease the pressure on vegetables to some extent. No matter what happens, at least we won’t starve.”

If unused, the card remains in its card form. Qiao Qiao put it into her system backpack.

On the plane, Qiao Qiao began searching online. She found a survival forum where many people shared material lists for surviving the apocalypse.

She made a new list based on her own needs.

It mainly included food and water, medical supplies, survival tools, daily necessities, seasonal clothing, weapons and gear, fuel cells, and essential books.

As time passed, Qiao Qiao felt an unprecedented sense of urgency.

She knew she had to prepare thoroughly before the apocalypse arrived.

With a heavy heart, Qiao Qiao’s plane landed.

“Qiao Qiao!”

As soon as she exited the airport, she saw her parents waiting at the arrival gate.

Tears immediately welled up. She dropped her suitcase and rushed over.

“Dad! Mom!”

“Oh dear, what’s wrong? Did something upset you? Tell Mom!”

“You’ve lost weight, don’t go to other cities anymore. You can’t get used to the food and your stomach hurts. Home is better. Dad will cook for you.”

“Dad, what kind of look is that? I haven’t lost weight—I’ve actually gained two pounds.” Qiao Qiao laughed and wiped her tears.

“Gaining weight is good! What do you want for dinner? Dad will make it for you.”

“I want to eat spicy boiled fish, sweet and sour crispy pork, sautéed three vegetables, and egg cake!”

“Alright! Whatever my precious girl wants, Dad will make it!”

“You spoil her too much.”

“She’s my only darling—if I don’t spoil her, who will?”

—

“Xiao Qiao! Big sis is back—did you miss me?!” As soon as the door opened, a calico cat darted out of the house and pounced on Qiao Qiao.

Its fur was a mix of black, yellow, and white, with a golden tail swishing back and forth.

“Meow~”

“Oh my, whose cat is this that’s so cute? Oh right, it’s mine!” Qiao Qiao buried her face into the cat’s fur, took a few deep sniffs, and her voice instinctively turned soft and squeaky.

The calico didn’t resist at all, letting her pet and cuddle it freely.

After dinner, Qiao Qiao thought long and hard. In the end, she decided to tell her parents the truth.

“What’s wrong?” Dad and Mom Qiao were watching TV when they saw their daughter walk over and sit down by the coffee table.

“Dad, Mom, I have something to tell you. You need to be mentally prepared.” Qiao Qiao looked very serious.

“Okay, go ahead.”

“The end of the world is coming!”

“……”

The couple looked at each other, unsure of what to say.

“Sweetheart… are you maybe under a lot of pressure lately? I heard gap years are popular abroad these days. Maybe you should take a year off too?”

“Oh, just shut up.” Mom Qiao couldn’t help but smack him on the back before turning to look at Qiao Qiao.

“I know it sounds like a joke, but it’s really going to happen.” Qiao Qiao took out her phone and handed it to them.

【Volcano in XX country about to erupt — residents are evacuating】

【7.9 magnitude earthquake hits XX country — casualties unknown】

【Once-in-a-century tsunami strikes XX country — multiple flights suspended】

—

“This is a warning given by Blue Star, but unfortunately no one has realized it,” Qiao Qiao said as she told them about her dream.

“Qiao Qiao, Mom knows you. You wouldn’t joke about something like this. You must have suffered a lot going through the apocalypse alone all those years.”

“Mom…” Qiao Qiao got up and hugged Qiao Huizhou tightly.

“I also have proof.” She pulled out the R-level flowerpot card and crushed it with force.

A flowerpot, about 10 cm in diameter and 10 cm deep, appeared in her arms—though it was unfortunately empty.

“This is—!”

Qiao Dad and Qiao Mom stared in shock at the magical scene and finally believed what their daughter had said.

“Excluding today, we have nine days until the apocalypse begins. We need to start preparing as soon as possible.” Qiao Xinghe quickly began making a plan and took the preparation checklist that Qiao Qiao had already made.

“There’s over 8 million yuan in the family account. Tomorrow I’ll contact an agent to sell that school district apartment downtown at a low price. We can recover at least 2 million from it,” Qiao Xinghe said. Seeing the guilty look on his wife and daughter’s faces, he quickly added:

“Don’t worry. Families who can afford to buy homes outright for their kids’ education aren’t short on money.”

Qiao Huizhou finally felt a little more at ease.

The three of them decided on their responsibilities:

Qiao Xinghe owned a large supermarket and had dedicated suppliers, so he would handle purchasing food, water, fruits, vegetables, and daily necessities.

Qiao Huizhou would take her annual leave and head to medical and clothing suppliers in the suburbs to buy large quantities of medicine and clothes.

Qiao Qiao was in charge of buying supplies for their cat, seeds, and overseeing home renovations.

Qiao Xinghe added, “I know someone with connections—he runs a private gas station. I can get fuel too. It’s just a shame that time is too tight, or we could’ve gathered supplies from abroad.”

“We’ll try to get as much as we can first. Didn’t Qiao Qiao say that everyone will get a card-drawing system a year later? Things will be easier then.”

“Mm-hmm! Leave it to me. I’ll protect both of you,” Qiao Qiao said seriously, earning smiles from her parents.

“Good.”