Monsters Tonight

After his best friend left.

Meng Chao leaned alone against the rooftop railing, watching the sunset.

The Otherworld's star was larger and more richly colored than Earth's sun.

Clouds billowed and rosy mists spread; the sky and city became a red ocean.

Standing in the heart of that red sea was a towering spire.

The alloy forged with Rare Metal from the Otherworld had greatly enhanced the building materials' ductility and compressive strength. The tower surpassed the limits of Earth Era skyscrapers, seeming to pierce the heavens and reach straight into the cosmos.

One glittering speck after another circled the tower, spiraling and flying like a swarm of bees entering and leaving a hive.

They were all Transcendents.

This magnificent structure that stood head and shoulders above all else was called the "Superhuman Tower," the headquarters of the Superhuman Association.

Around the Superhuman Tower, buildings resembling a fusion of pyramids and fortresses stood row upon row.

All of them were as solid as gravity dams, capable of withstanding the onslaught of the most powerful monsters.

Between the towering buildings, countless little black dots leaped across roofs and scaled walls.

They were all Ordinary Citizens just getting off work.

With resources scarce and space tight, Dragon City in this era had few private cars or taxis.

Ordinary Citizens were physically strong and nimble. Running long distances was not much slower than changing buses from stop to stop.

There was also the "Three-Dimensional Maneuver Gear," made according to bionic principles by imitating monster limbs.

When worn, it was highly elastic and could also jet out air. With a light leap, one could jump ten or twenty meters, and speeds of forty or fifty kilometers per hour were nothing remarkable.

In the distance, tamed Giant Sandworms wriggled forward, swallowing and spitting out rocks like Tunnel Boring Machines as they built Subway Line No. 12.

Farther away, at the city's edge, mist shrouded everything.

Like a gray wall that blotted out the sky and sun, it sealed off everything beyond it tightly.

In the past, Meng Chao had disliked the mist.

He felt it had sealed Dragon City away, preventing Earthlings from expanding outward and cutting down all before them.

He had not particularly liked the city before his eyes, either.

Dragon City's buildings were too dense, its streets too crowded, the pressure to cultivate too great. There were no real mountains or seas to be seen, and he had always felt stifled.

Like all teenagers, he had secretly read too many books and watched too many films about Earth.

His dreams were filled with that world of blue skies and white clouds, fresh air, tranquil beauty, and people free of all care.

Everything on Earth.

Mountains, oceans, farmland, great rivers, and flowing waterways.

Middle school students only needed two PE classes a week, yet could attend dozens of Chinese and math classes.

Adults only needed to work eight hours a day and five days a week to earn plenty of money, live in spacious homes, vacation often, and eat delicious dishes that were natural, green, pollution-free, and non-genetically modified.

It was beautiful as heaven.

Until, in nightmares, he had seen the true Otherworld after the mist dispersed.

He had seen the Superhuman Tower and the entire city reduced to ashes amid blooming Meteor Fire Rain.

Only then did Meng Chao realize how precious everything before him truly was.

His eyes gradually grew hot.

Earth was the homeland they could never return to.

Nightmares were tomorrow that had yet to arrive.

What lay before him was their only home.

Facing an unseen future and the looming crisis, he felt nervous, excited, impulsive, and somewhat lost.

Just then—

The "Wild Bull Technique" was spreading among Ordinary Citizens. Dragon City's overall combat power had increased. Contribution Points +1, +3, +2...

Strange Fire flashed before his eyes. The stream of Contribution Points left him startled and delighted.

"It's Fei Xiong, hosting the study group.

"It looks like even if I'm not personally teaching them, but it spreads indirectly, it still counts as my contribution.

"Although the Contribution Points are far fewer than for teaching them personally, grain upon grain of sand makes a tower. As more and more citizens grow stronger, I'll keep growing stronger too. We'll definitely survive in the Otherworld."

In an instant.

Meng Chao felt that his waist no longer ached, his legs no longer hurt, his memories had become clearer, and both his eyesight and hearing had improved slightly.

Even the bright red school badge on his chest had become more vivid.

His Contribution Points had risen to 39.

Making contributions feels so good! Meng Chao thought happily.

At that moment, the roar of propellers came from the sky.

Dozens of Armored Airships tore through the Sea of Clouds. Like a majestic fleet, they cleaved through the waves and dove down.

Aviation fuel was scarce, Crystal Engines were too cumbersome, and Dragon City was shrouded in mist, leaving both cruising altitude and range extremely limited. Supersonic fighter jets and the like had long since been sealed away in the Underground Armory.

Dragon City's aerial force now consisted mainly of Armored Airships: clumsy and slow, but possessing ferocious firepower.

Crystals shattered, Spiritual Energy surged wildly, and drove three rows of six propellers spinning at high speed.

The enormous amount of spirit energy released filled the massive gasbags, keeping these huge beasts afloat.

Some spirit energy leaked from gaps in the gasbags as well, releasing shrill hissing sounds that made the Armored Airships resemble steel gods and devils riding the clouds and mist.

The Armored Airships lowered loudspeakers and announced to the entire city:

"Attention, all citizens. According to the latest news from the Municipal Meteorological Bureau, mist will strike tonight, and monsters will break into the urban district.

"The monsters are predicted to appear mainly around the Northern Steel Plant.

"The Survival Committee has issued Order No. 93 of New Era Year 55, ordering Dragon Steel Group to immediately enter Level One Combat Readiness. Nine Sands District and Riverfront District shall enter Level Two Combat Readiness, and all other areas shall enter Level Three Combat Readiness. All citizens, please strictly obey regulations, remain vigilant, and prepare to resist the enemy.

"Always remember: we are Earth's Expeditionary Force. Earth stands with us. Dragon City will prevail!"

The weather forecast was an order.

At once, whether on campus or beyond it, in streets or alleys, students, workers, and white-collar employees all quickened their pace.

"Monsters are attacking the city tonight?" Meng Chao's heart tightened.

He hurriedly swung his backpack onto his shoulders, took three steps as two, and rushed downstairs like a whirlwind. Leaving the school gates, he headed for the bus stop.

Three-Dimensional Maneuver Gear was too fast and jumped too high, making accidents easy. Both buying and wearing it required certification.

Meng Chao was still two months away from eighteen and was not qualified to take the Three-Dimensional Transit License exam, so he could only obediently take the bus.

With monsters attacking, the city's operational efficiency instantly improved considerably, and the bus arrived soon enough.

Buses of this era were likewise powered by Spiritual Energy, carrying a massive Crystal Engine on their backs like a hunchback, which was why they were also called "Turtle Cars."

They also puffed out spirit energy with a whooo-whoo, like ancient steam trains pulling into a station.

The buses used the lowest-grade crystals as fuel. Rich in impurities and incompletely reacted, the spirit energy they emitted smelled of garlic and stung the eyes.

The passengers at the platform all began coughing.

"Old Dad, Old Mom, Little Sister!"

Meng Chao rubbed his eyes and impatiently squeezed onto the bus.

Tianfu Garden was a public rental housing complex commonly seen throughout the old city.

The Monster War had lasted thirty years, and countless buildings that had crossed over from Earth had been destroyed.

Modeling them after wartime fortresses, the Survival Committee had constructed large numbers of impregnable new residences.

Defense was the highest priority; comfort came second as a tradeoff.

The main apartment type in Tianfu Garden was a sixty-square-meter two-bedroom, one-living-room unit. It sounded passable, but residential and office buildings these days had to reserve large amounts of space for machine guns, anti-aircraft gun positions, and shelters.

The walls were also three times as thick as before, and every wall was load-bearing.

Thus, the shared area had reached more than double that of the Earth Era.

The usable area was at most thirty square meters, and every room was as small as a sparrow cage.

For the needs of protecting the city and exploring the Otherworld, the Survival Committee encouraged childbirth. As the population exploded, the complex's facilities aged and illegal additions sprang up one after another, making the environment even worse.

Wastewater flowed everywhere, foul odors filled the air, and long-neglected pipes leaked, their spirit energy squeaking and hissing like a hundred steam whistles had been installed.

The residents were reluctant to buy high-grade crystals for household fuel and used cheap stuff on the same tier as bus fuel. It contained too many impurities and smelled too strong, leaving the entire complex steeped in multicolored spirit energy all day long, like a street of barbecue stalls.

Added to that, the armor on the residential buildings' outer walls had been corroded into a mottled mess by monster acid, making the place seem even more chaotic and bizarre.

The residents here wanted to move out of Tianfu Garden every moment of every day.

Whenever adults had nothing better to do, they loved lecturing their children: "Why aren't you cultivating properly? You spend all day memorizing Tang and Song poetry—what use is that crap? When will you get into an Undergraduate Program, become a Transcendent, and live in a commercial housing complex with a hundred and twenty square meters? Then our family's ancestral graves back on Earth will be smoking blue smoke!"

Yet as Meng Chao stood at the entrance to the Vegetable Market by the complex, he felt no resentment at all—only warm memories.

"Finally, I'm home!"

From within the Vegetable Market, he heard voices that were both dear and familiar:

"Sand Snail Meat! Sand Snail Meat just hauled from the river! Look, it's still biting!"

"Fresh Sword Halberd Demon Pig Liver! Feed it to your child when you get home, and they'll score a hundred on every test and punch monsters to death with every fist! Second Uncle, aren't you getting a piece?"

"Why is Ironclad Rhinoceros Beef still so expensive today? Little Four, don't you try fooling your auntie. The news said the army just wiped out an Ironclad Rhinoceros nest and brought down at least several thousand tons of beef. It ought to be cheaper no matter what!"

"Jade Fruit! Jade Fruit newly cultivated by the Gene Farm! Even tastier than Earth's honey peaches—juicy in every bite, sweet in every bite! If it isn't ripe and sweet, you don't pay!"

Bustling crowds, the warmth of everyday life.

Meng Chao smiled.

Greedily, he inhaled the fragrance wafting from the cooked-food stall, then passed through the Vegetable Market and entered Tianfu Garden.