Chapter 1: I Can Let You Live One More Second

20 hours before the apocalypse, 4 a.m., Labor Market.

Bai Cun Yuan quickly scanned his surroundings and moved forward. His clean and delicate appearance made it clear he wasn’t someone waiting for a job at this hour; he looked more like a boss with work to offer at home.

As soon as he entered the square, sharp-eyed job seekers surrounded him: “Boss, are you hiring?”

“I’m strong.”

“I can clean houses, I can do any work!”

Bai Cun Yuan shook his head, and the light in the eyes of the hopeful elderly men and women instantly dimmed. Disappointment dispersed the crowd.

“Don’t be fooled by his delicate looks; there’s no spirit in his eyes. He might be here to compete with us for jobs.”

“Let’s find the next one quickly. If we don’t hurry, all the bosses will have hired someone.”

The crowd came like a tide and dispersed like one.

Bai Cun Yuan looked at the crowd, feeling no waves in his heart. He walked to a small stall in the center of the square and bought two steamed cornbreads.

“Fifty cents for two!”

After paying, Bai Cun Yuan sat on the edge of the greenery and stuffed the cornbread into his mouth, chewing it dryly.

In his mind, the overwhelming tide of zombies engulfed him for the tenth time. Bai Cun Yuan once again saw Mu Lanyu using his body to shield him, tearing apart two twelfth-level zombies with sheer force.

The city defenses no longer existed, the high flags fluttered, and beneath them, he stood with Mu Lanyu in front of him. The city walls were densely packed with zombies, both on and below the walls. The zombies climbed the walls and piled on the ground, clawing and gnashing like pilgrims craving the flesh of the two people surrounded by high-level zombies on the wall.

Mu Lanyu was covered in blood, but he didn’t move aside or stop.

“Lanyu, Bai Di City is already a dead city.” Bai Cun Yuan, his abilities exhausted, blood seeping from the corners of his eyes, couldn’t even move his fingertips. He leaned against the flag and spoke, his voice hoarser than the zombies’ roars in front of him. He stated the current situation and facts without trembling or lamenting.

Mu Lanyu seemed not to hear, not retreating an inch. His clothes were torn, his back a bloody mess, yet he stood tall like a pine tree, the wind lifting his blood-stained, tattered sleeves and the flag behind Bai Cun Yuan.

“Humans can live one more second, I can let you live one more second.”

…

Bai Cun Yuan finished chewing the two cornbreads.

The densely packed heads in the square resembled the zombies of the apocalypse, but the lively self-introductions and the hustle of job-seeking made Bai Cun Yuan feel a bit of human vitality.

People struggled to survive. In the apocalypse, they sought survival, and in peace, they sought survival too.

No one knew that the apocalypse would descend in twenty hours, and the long apocalypse lasting over a decade would be an endless purgatory. Zombies would eventually besiege the city, and humanity would eventually be annihilated.

Even if reborn, Bai Cun Yuan felt that humanity’s outcome wouldn’t be much better.

In the apocalypse, humans turned against each other, leading to a number of human ability users far below that of high-level zombies.

Going through the apocalypse again to see these hypocritical humans meant nothing to Bai Cun Yuan.

Suddenly, Mu Lanyu’s words before his death echoed in his mind: “Humans can live one more second, I can let you live one more second.”

At least that fool’s wish came true. Not just one more second, he lived another lifetime.

Bai Cun Yuan brushed off the crumbs from his hands.

With the apocalypse approaching, humanity would eventually be wiped out by the zombie tide. To survive the apocalypse, there was only one way.

Kill zombies, recruit everyone who can kill zombies, and in the early stages, when zombies haven’t evolved yet, eliminate most of them to prevent them from evolving.

The first thing Bai Cun Yuan did upon waking up reborn was head to C City. Most of the high-level ability users in the later stages of the apocalypse came from C City, the most famous being Ren Ge, the Butcher King of N District, and Zhu Jian, the Pig Gang Leader of C District.

Mu Lanyu, who accompanied Bai Cun Yuan to his death, was also born in C City.

Mu Lanyu’s whereabouts were unclear, and time was of the essence before the apocalypse because Bai Cun Yuan wasn’t sure if he was the only one reborn. He needed to quickly recruit useful forces.

Ren Ge, the Butcher King of N District, was an orphan looking for work in C City’s labor market before the apocalypse. Bai Cun Yuan needed to find Ren Ge, who was a left-behind child in the mountains. After his grandparents passed away at an old age, he followed villagers to the city to work until the apocalypse began.

Bai Cun Yuan stood up, and after taking a few steps, he was surrounded by a group of people. At the front was a skinny child, half a head shorter than Bai Cun Yuan. With a buzz cut and wolf-like eyes, he looked somewhat familiar.

“Boss, I can do any work…” The child hadn’t finished speaking when someone behind him pushed him aside. The one who pushed him was a middle-aged man, not tall but sturdy, clearly someone who did manual labor.

“Boss, he’s obviously underage, not as strong as me!” The middle-aged man pushed the skinny child eager for work aside, pointing at himself with a full face of smiles. He raised his hands high, fully displaying his dusty upper body and arms, trying to show the boss that he was a seasoned worker.

The skinny child was pushed and fell to the ground.

The middle-aged man, eager to introduce himself, didn’t expect the child to fall. He glanced at the child, hesitated, and seemed to want to help him up, but just for a moment, he turned back to Bai Cun Yuan with a smile, his will to survive and earn money overcoming his inherent kindness: “Boss, look at him, he can’t even stand steady, hire me!”

“Boss, are you hiring… uh.”

The child’s youthful voice turned into a suppressed cry of pain as his hand scraped the ground, his plea for work drowned out by the middle-aged man’s voice.

Bai Cun Yuan looked down at the child who had bumped into him from above.

The child had fallen hard, half his body covered in dust.

The boy’s thin back was pressed against the gray ground, dust clinging to his hair—this pitiful sight gradually overlapped with the fearsome Butcher Ren Ge of the apocalypse.

The crowd fell silent for a second because of Ren Ge’s fall, then became noisy again, no one caring about Ren Ge on the ground:

“Boss, are you hiring?”

“Hire me!”

“I can do anything, I’m quick at work.”

“I can carry a 200-pound marble slab, no problem!”

…

Bai Cun Yuan ignored the others and stood in front of the boy on the ground: “What’s your name?”

“Ren Ge, my name is Ren Ge.” The boy looked up at Bai Cun Yuan from the ground: “I’m nineteen, quick and nimble.”

Nineteen… and so short.

Ren Ge wasn’t very tall.

Buzz cut, wolf-like eyes, and a long black mole at the corner of his right eye.

Bai Cun Yuan looked carefully twice, it was indeed Ren Ge.

Ren Ge was much shorter than in the previous life, but those fierce wolf eyes, once they stared at you, you’d never forget.

A good candidate for a thug.

Recruiting Ren Ge would give Bai Cun Yuan the sharpest knife in the apocalypse.

With zombies rampant, Bai Cun Yuan didn’t plan to solve problems with his own hands, too tiring.

He wanted to gather some top ability users under his command.

Bai Cun Yuan’s lips curled slightly.

“His hands aren’t clean!”

The middle-aged man who pushed Ren Ge saw that Bai Cun Yuan, this pretty boy, seemed to want to hire the kid on the ground out of pity, and stepped forward to tell Bai Cun Yuan.

“Listen to me! Hiring is about finding someone to work, this kid loves to act pitiful and steal from bosses. Hire me, hire me!” His attitude was very friendly and eager.

Rough with the weak, eager with the strong.

Bai Cun Yuan chuckled softly, noncommittal.

Of course, he knew Ren Ge’s hands weren’t clean; this little fool had just said so in his self-introduction.

“I’m quick and nimble.”

Who introduces themselves by saying their hands are clean? The future Butcher King seemed like a little fool who would voluntarily confess before the apocalypse.

Bai Cun Yuan didn’t expose Ren Ge, extending a hand to the boy on the ground:

“Alright, Ren Ge, I’ll hire you.”

A fair hand reached out to Ren Ge, who awkwardly rubbed the dust and blood from his hands, not daring to look at Bai Cun Yuan.

His gaze lingered on Bai Cun Yuan’s waist for a moment.

The middle-aged man, seeing the rare hiring opportunity going to this scrawny kid, looked displeased:

“Don’t be ungrateful, he was caught stealing yesterday, hire me, you’ll regret hiring him!”

Bai Cun Yuan ignored him.

The middle-aged man frowned: “You young people are so shallow, fake kindness, why hire him? Don’t come crying to your mom when you get robbed.”

Before he could finish the word “mom,” Ren Ge, who was about to take Bai Cun Yuan’s hand to stand up, swiftly reached into Bai Cun Yuan’s pocket.

The middle-aged man revealed Ren Ge’s intention, and Ren Ge, fearing the clean fat fish would get suspicious, acted first.

Bai Cun Yuan had already noticed Ren Ge’s gaze on his pocket.

Training a dog, if the dog doesn’t make mistakes, how do you train it?

“I told you!” The middle-aged man stepped forward to stop Ren Ge, planning to show off in front of this clean little boss to earn gratitude, but was unexpectedly knocked aside by Ren Ge.

The boy, like a wild little beast, used all his strength in that collision, nimbly darting into the crowd.

The middle-aged man, furious, didn’t chase Ren Ge, but turned to scold Bai Cun Yuan: “What did I say?”

His voice abruptly stopped.

The steel pipe kicked over by the wall had somehow ended up in Bai Cun Yuan’s hand, the delicate boy’s doe eyes a lifeless black.

The steel pipe spun half a turn in his slender fingers, shooting out like a spear.

That speed could kill!

The middle-aged man’s face turned pale, unable to believe the delicate person before him could have such swift reaction speed and strength, nor that he could be so ruthless as to throw a steel pipe at someone.

This was simply inhuman strength!

“Get out of the way!”

Ren Ge weaved through the crowd, the middle-aged man worried about the chaos, shouted.

The steel pipe, with a gust of wind, pierced through the crowd, embedding in Ren Ge’s hoodie, instantly locking his collar and pulling him to the ground with inertia.

A dull pain spread from his back, making Ren Ge’s vision go black, even his gaze became clearer.

Through the physiological mist in his eyes, he saw the “victim” in a white down jacket leisurely stretching his neck, the pure white jacket spotless, not even swaying.

The middle-aged man’s mouth formed an O.

The stolen cash scattered like a goddess scattering flowers, gently falling on and around Ren Ge.

The onlookers instinctively backed away, no one daring to pick up the ill-gotten gains.

Bai Cun Yuan stepped forward, pulling out the steel pipe, stepping on Ren Ge’s hoodie.

“Robbing me?”

The clear voice, like a violin string being plucked, carried a chill colder than the winter.

After speaking, Bai Cun Yuan nodded to the surrounding onlookers, his doe eyes curving into a polite smile:

“Sorry, I’m catching a thief.”

His clean, delicate face appeared almost transparent under the dim streetlight, his pretty doe eyes smiling like flowers blooming in spring.

The surrounding job seekers waved back, the crowd gradually dispersing.

Only a few stayed to watch the commotion, the rest busy finding work.

The cold of the concrete seeped into his spine, Ren Ge lay on the ground, looking up at the expressionless Bai Cun Yuan, fear engulfing him.

Ren Ge had read novels where thieves were beaten half to death and left by the roadside, especially by such clean, wealthy people, who were often indifferent.

He used his waist and abdomen to spring up, his collar suddenly choking his throat, his head hitting the ground with a teeth-gritting thud.

After hitting his head twice, Ren Ge saw stars, his vision clearing to see Bai Cun Yuan’s smile fading in the cold wind, his pupils a lifeless black in the backlight.

Cold and fear wrapped around Ren Ge.

“If I throw it again, I can’t guarantee it’ll hit the hood.”

The steel pipe, reflecting cold light under the streetlamp, spun in Bai Cun Yuan’s hand, brushing past Ren Ge’s nose, making his hair stand on end.

Not guaranteeing hitting the hood… if that steel pipe missed and pierced his head.

Ren Ge didn’t dare imagine, shivering.

Bai Cun Yuan finally released his foot from Ren Ge’s hoodie, coldly ordering:

“Pick up all the money.”

Ren Ge turned over, crawling on the ground, picking up the scattered money one by one.

Three minutes later, a pair of dusty hands held a stack of cash above his head, Ren Ge half-kneeling, not daring to look up or stand.

Bai Cun Yuan didn’t take it.

Ren Ge then looked up at him, then at the money in his hands, retracting his hands to wipe the dusty money on his chest before holding it up again.

Bai Cun Yuan finally took the money, counting: “Two bills short.”

“Short? Someone must have picked them up!” Ren Ge quickly looked around, his wolf eyes fierce.

The crowd had long dispersed, the few remaining people hearing Bai Cun Yuan say two bills were missing, quickly pretended to be busy and left.

Ren Ge knelt on the ground, helpless, gritting his teeth: “I didn’t rob it, I didn’t hide it either.”

Bai Cun Yuan sneered: “Did they pick it from my pocket?”