Luo Xiyun

Chen Xu sat by the river for over an hour, his eyes growing sore. The five fishing floats on the water hadn't budged at all—not a single fish, not even a tiny shrimp in sight.

"It seems the fish in the river have disappeared, just like the other animals."

He felt a bit disappointed. He'd hoped to catch a few fish and enjoy some fresh meat. But as expected, this path led nowhere.

After a month here, he'd noticed many unreasonable things about this world.

For instance, all living animals had vanished—big ones like dogs, small ones like cats, chickens, ducks, geese, fish, shrimp, even rats... none were to be found.

Whether in supermarkets, markets, pet stores, aquariums, or even the zoo, he couldn't find a single living creature.

So far, the only living things he'd encountered were mosquitoes and flies.

Clearly, these animals had vanished into thin air, just like the other humans.

The second unreasonable thing: the roads were littered with phones, wallets, bags, and such—things left behind after humans disappeared. But he'd never seen any clothes.

That meant the clothes had vanished along with them.

Why would clothes disappear while phones and wallets remained? A moment's thought revealed the strangeness of this world.

Chen Xu figured this was deliberately set up this way, a reminder that this was a dream, so he wouldn't completely lose himself in it.

He checked the time—almost five o'clock. He packed up his gear, got in the car, and headed toward the Main Camp.

He hadn't driven far when he passed an intersection and habitually glanced to the right. It was an area he hadn't explored yet.

He vaguely remembered there being a subway entrance around here.

Suddenly, he caught sight of a few unusual vehicles out of the corner of his eye and instinctively hit the brakes.

They were several black SUVs, with "Special Police" printed in white paint on their bodies.

In this past month, he'd mostly focused on renovating his living space and hadn't explored much, so this was the first time he'd seen cars like this.

These Special Police vehicles parked here—he wondered if they'd been on duty.

Curious, he got out, walked over, and peered through the black-tinted window. His eyes lit up—there were indeed guns inside.

He tried the door handle. Locked.

From his backpack, he pulled out a glass cutter, scored the window a few times, easily broke a hole, reached in, and successfully opened the door. He took the guns out.

From the three vehicles, he found nine handguns, nine rifles, and plenty of ammunition.

He was thrilled. Few men didn't love playing with guns, but he'd never had access before. Now he could finally indulge.

He found an empty duffel bag, stuffed the guns and ammo inside, planning to study them thoroughly when he got back.

Just as he zipped the bag shut, he heard a loud crash behind him.

He jolted and spun around.

After a month in this silent world, an unexpected noise hit him with an indescribable shock.

He saw a black Hummer on the opposite road, having plowed into several cars, its hood smoking.

Squeak—

An overturned orange car slowly tipped onto its side, emitting a teeth-grating screech of twisting metal.

Chen Xu suddenly dropped what he was holding and charged recklessly toward the black Hummer.

He didn't know where this car had come from, but if it could move, there had to be someone inside.

In this empty world, he'd survived a month, waiting every day for the person who should have appeared long ago to finally show up. And he'd waited an entire month.

He'd always thought he could endure loneliness, but now he realized he was wrong.

Humans were social creatures. When the whole world was down to just one person, it was far harder to bear than he'd imagined.

Daytime was fine, but when night fell and everything outside was pitch black, that loneliness and isolation were impossible to shake. At times like that, he desperately wished for someone to talk to.

To find Luo Xiyun, he'd tried many methods—set off fireworks, used high-powered spotlights, broadcast radio signals. But she never appeared.

A month in, he'd given up hope. He guessed she'd left this city. The world was so vast—where could he even look? Thank goodness, just when he'd lost hope, she finally showed up.

At that moment, Chen Xu was ecstatic.

A few dozen meters—he sprinted it in one go.

The Hummer's front end was crumpled. Through the shattered windshield, he could see inside: a woman slumped motionless over the steering wheel, only the back of her head visible.

Chen Xu's heart sank. Please don't be dead.

"Are you okay? Hey—hey—"

He shouted while yanking at the door. It didn't budge. Locked.

The woman inside stirred at the sound.

Seeing her react, Chen Xu's heart leaped with joy. "Don't move. I'll get you out right now."

With that, he ran back.

The Hummer's windows were sealed tight. He'd tried before—car windows were tough, and without the right tool, they were hard to break.

He dashed back to his truck in a few strides, grabbed a box from under the passenger seat, pulled out a glass cutter, and sprinted back.

He used a glass cutter to break the window of the passenger seat, pulled the door open, and half-carried, half-dragged the woman out of the car.

It was her!

When Chen Xu carried her out, her head drooped down—it was Luo Xiyun.

Her forehead was covered in a shocking amount of blood. He quickly moved to the roadside, set her down, and began checking her injuries.

Her eyes were tightly shut; she had completely fallen into unconsciousness. Chen Xu did a brief examination—the only wound on her entire body was on her forehead.

He wasn't a doctor, so he didn't know how badly she was hurt. Still, her breathing was steady, and her body temperature and heartbeat were fairly normal, which put him slightly at ease.

Confirming she wasn't in immediate danger, Chen Xu carried her to the car and brought her back to Main Camp.

Along the way, he drove very slowly, afraid that too much jostling might worsen her injuries.

Back at Main Camp, Chen Xu carried Luo Xiyun to his own room, laid her on his bed, used a clean towel to wipe the blood and grime from her face, then cleaned the wound, disinfected it, and wrapped it in bandages.

"I hope you get better soon."

Chen Xu thought to himself. After all that work, his stomach began to growl. He checked the time—it was already past seven. He glanced at Luo Xiyun lying on the bed, then gently closed the door.