Iron Rain Base

"Good morning, dear compatriots.

"Today, Iron Rain Base remains safe and joyful.

"When you open your eyes, you can see the shattered sky and the scarlet sun. You can also see the walls and gates of Iron Rain Base still standing tall, our fortress cannons always ready to fire, our nuclear bombs properly maintained, and, above all, our great leader, Sequence Forty-Three Li Peipei, safely returned from the Ash Zone to continue protecting the people.

"Today marks the four hundredth day of the Ash Zone calendar.

"Four hundred days ago, the Shattered Ash Zone opened, and the world entered its final days! But as terrifying as the alien races and monsters were, humanity remained resilient. We established strongholds and relied on the strength of the Ash Zone Walkers to tenaciously protect the fragile flame of civilization.

"May the human race endure forever, and may civilization endure forever!

"This is Iron Rain Base Radio. Up next, the morning news..."

The voice coming from the television left Xia Lin utterly bewildered.

But clearly, he had been bewildered too soon... because something even more bewildering was still to come...

"Name?! I'm talking to you! Hey!!"

"Huh?" It took Xia Lin three seconds to come to his senses and look at the middle-aged man in a suit in front of him.

A glance from the corner of his eye was enough to take in his surroundings.

It was a room resembling an office, simply furnished with a desk, two chairs, and two people sitting in them.

One was Xia Lin, and the other was the man in the suit.

The man frowned at Xia Lin's vacant expression.

"Phew! Name!" he repeated more forcefully.

"Xia Lin."

Xia Lin answered obediently.

Both he, before transmigrating, and the original owner of this body were named Xia Lin.

Hearing Xia Lin give a normal answer, the man in the suit looked considerably less displeased.

He picked up his pen and wrote, the tip scratching across the paper.

"Sex, male?"

"Yes."

"Age."

"Twenty-three."

"All right."

The man stopped writing, prompting Xia Lin to raise an eyebrow.

The questioning was a little too cursory... then again, having only just arrived, Xia Lin really had no idea what was going on here.

The memories of the two souls had yet to finish merging, making it difficult for Xia Lin to draw on the original owner's memories.

The man in the suit put down his pen, picked up another sheet of paper from the desk, and read it aloud like a heartless recitation machine.

"Xia Lin, male, twenty-three years old, joined Iron Rain Base three months ago.

"According to your own account, both your parents died after the catastrophe. You now have no parents, no wife or children, and are all alone.

"After joining Iron Rain Base, you were assigned to work as a general laborer at the No. 3 Steel Mill. Because of your excellent performance, the mill selected you as an outstanding worker, and during this round of conscription, you volunteered to enter the Ash Zone and become an Ash Zone Walker.

"Is that right?"

No, that's not right!

I don't want to go to the Ash Zone! I don't want to become an Ash Zone Walker!!

I don't want to risk my life fighting monsters!! I don't, I don't, I don't!!

The original owner's memories began to seethe in Xia Lin's mind.

He screamed and resisted.

Scene after scene flashed rapidly through Xia Lin's mind.

His former home was shrouded in gray fog, his parents were torn apart by monsters, and he traveled a thousand miles with a large group of people to reach Iron Rain Base.

He worked diligently, but he offended the foreman, who bore a grudge against him.

During the monthly conscription, the steel mill was assigned four compulsory conscription slots, and he was one of those chosen.

"Is that right?"

The man in the suit asked again, staring intently at Xia Lin.

By now, Xia Lin's forehead was drenched in cold sweat.

The man's words had stirred the original owner's memories, allowing Xia Lin to recall more.

The key was this Ash Zone.

Four hundred days ago, the Shattered Ash Zone opened, and entrances to Ash Zones rose from the ground, indestructible.

Ten days after an Ash Zone entrance appeared, monsters, alien races, and anomalous phenomena would burst forth from it and destroy everything in the old world.

The old order was overturned in a short time.

Fortunately, in those desperate straits, humanity found a way to deal with the Ash Zones.

They could take the initiative to enter and conquer an Ash Zone, clearing it within ten days to close the entrance and stop the disaster at its source.

Those who entered the Ash Zones were collectively known as Ash Zone Walkers!

Ash Zone Walkers possessed powers beyond ordinary people's imagination and naturally enjoyed enormous privileges.

It seemed like a good thing, but the mortality rate of ninety-five percent made everyone extremely reluctant to become an Ash Zone Walker. The original owner was clearly one of them.

It was also possible that the sight of his parents' horrific deaths had left too deep an impression on him, leaving him without the courage to face the Ash Zone and the monsters within...

And the present Xia Lin... didn't want to go either.

"I..."

Xia Lin suppressed the discomfort in his head and had just managed a single word when the door was suddenly pushed open.

The man in the suit was facing the door and immediately saw who had entered.

He rose in surprise, then his face broke into a fawning smile.

"Lord Yue, what brings you here?"

A rather pleasant female voice came from the doorway.

"Why haven't you finished choosing people yet? Sister Peipei is getting impatient, so she sent me to hurry you along."

The man in the suit beamed. "We're almost done, almost done."

The woman sounded impatient. "You people are far too inefficient. All you had to do was pick six pieces of cannon fodder, and you still had to drag your feet going through procedures. Forget it, I'll do it myself."

Xia Lin sensed someone looking at him from behind.

"He'll be the first."

Before Xia Lin could turn around, he suddenly felt a chill rise in his heart.

Then he couldn't move.

It was as if he had suddenly entered a vegetative state. Xia Lin couldn't feel his hands or feet, but his five senses remained sharp.

He stood up against his will and turned around with a numb expression to look at the owner of the pleasant voice behind him.

It was a young, beautiful face, but one full of arrogance.

Who are you?

What are you trying to do?

What did you do to me?

Xia Lin panicked a little, but all these questions were trapped in his chest, impossible to voice.

He walked mechanically, step by step, to the woman's side and stood still, like a loyal guard.

The man in the suit paid it no mind and simply kept apologizing.

"I'm sorry, Lord Yue. I was too slow and nearly held up your important business."

"I'll reflect on my mistakes, I will!"

The woman called Lord Yue merely snorted, turned, and left the room, with Xia Lin close behind.

He followed the woman numbly.

Along the way, she picked five unlucky people at random. After they formed an unlucky dream team with Xia Lin, the group of seven arrived on the building's eighth floor.

The ornate solid-wood doors were pushed open, revealing three women and one man.

The most eye-catching was undoubtedly the woman seated in the place of honor.

She was the same age as Xia Lin and had an exceptionally beautiful face, but her eyes held a murderous glint, giving her a valiant air.

The original owner's memories stirred again, letting Xia Lin know who she was.

The highest authority and the strongest person in Iron Rain Base: Human Sequence Forty-Three, Li Peipei.