The north wind howled over the crest of the hill.
It carried winter's chill.
A tiger-striped lizard crawled out from a heap of rocks, warily looking left and right.
At the same time, it extended its long, slender tongue, scenting the traces in the air around it.
Before the first snowfall, it needed to store enough nourishment to enter its burrow and hibernate.
But insects had nearly vanished lately, making foraging far more difficult.
Thud!
A sudden muffled sound startled the tiger-striped lizard, and instinctively, it darted back into the rock pile.
After a moment, sensing no danger, it cautiously poked its head back out.
Not far away, a large patch of grass had split apart and been thrown open.
A man emerged from underground!
Before the tiger-striped lizard could make out what he looked like, a streak of golden light shot toward it and pierced straight through its head.
It was a three-inch-long golden needle!
The needle then passed through a nearby rock, carving a long arc of light through the air.
Finally, it hovered at Wang Chen's side.
Having just emerged from the ground, Wang Chen gave a soft whistle.
The golden needle immediately flew into his right hand, circled his index finger once, and transformed into a ring.
Finished!
Wang Chen stroked the ring, his heart brimming with delight.
After nearly two months of construction, with repeated expansions and renovations, the "Doomsday Fortress" was finally declared complete. From now on, his safety would be greatly assured, and he could sleep soundly at night.
The place where Wang Chen stood now was the exit of the final—and longest—escape tunnel!
It had just been dug through.
Wang Chen had carefully selected this exit and measured it repeatedly to ensure it had not deviated from its intended direction.
The exit