Shelter!

Dawn was approaching.

At the end of the desolate abandoned highway, two points of light drew nearer from afar.

Before long, two dazzling headlights illuminated the road as the wheels rolled over the asphalt, bringing them ever closer to the Human Base.

Four enormous iron towers, each dozens of meters tall, stood around the shelter.

When Lin Ye entered their range, a massive searchlight atop one of the towers immediately shone down over the vehicle.

"License plate Yu A7007C. It's Mr. Lin Ye!"

The light flickered, and Lin Ye used light signals to confirm his identity once more.

Rumble!!!

The massive alloy-forged gate slowly opened outward from within.

Thud, thud, thud!!!

The sound of Combat Boots striking the ground rang out as an eighteen-man squad dressed in black Combat Suits rushed out of the shelter and formed two rows.

The squad leader at the front beamed when he saw the exceptionally handsome young man in the driver's seat, then gave Lin Ye a standard military salute.

"Welcome back, Mr. Lin Ye!"

"Welcome back, Mr. Lin Ye!" x17.

"Mm." Lin Ye nodded in response.

Under the nearly fanatical, reverent gazes of the crowd, Lin Ye drove through the steel walls bristling with artillery and entered Shelter No. 057.

This was not Lin Ye's first time visiting a shelter.

After his parents were gone, Lin Ye had entered many shelters.

He had also personally witnessed those shelters turn into ruins amid Beast Tides, with countless civilians, soldiers, and Martial Artists perishing within...

Shelter No. 057.

As an advanced shelter under Shan City's South Bank Fortress, its safety rating had always been high.

It had originally been a prosperous town, barely over a hundred kilometers from Shan City's main urban district.

But after the sudden Cataclysm, the land had been devastated, mutated monster species had emerged everywhere, and humanity's living conditions had become exceedingly harsh.

Human civilization and order had teetered on the verge of collapse beneath one crisis after another.

This once wealthy and bustling town had likewise suffered repeated trampling and ravaging by monster herds.

Fortunately, Great Xia's military had acted in time, reclaiming this vital location before a large-scale Beast Tide arrived and establishing a shelter here.

Later, it joined forces with the South Bank and North Bank Fortresses to defend Shan City's peace.

Yet Shan City's unique terrain had shaped its living environment, making it impossible for the city to have the decent capacity ratio found in other plains regions.

Lin Ye drove along the crude but tidy streets. On either side stood rows of hastily built prefab houses, while some people even lived in tents.

It looked exactly like the aftermath of the earthquakes and mudslides Lin Ye had encountered in his previous life.

But the situation Great Xia, and indeed the entire world, faced now was countless times worse than any natural disaster.

Rows upon rows of prefab houses and tents stretched together.

Lights were scarce throughout the area. Only scattered candlelight and the glow of burning firewood could be seen.

Electricity was extremely expensive during the Cataclysm Era. The defensive systems of shelters, fortresses, and main cities all relied on electrical energy.

As the number of shelters and fortresses increased, the nation's demand for electricity grew immense.

At that moment, heads poked out from windows and doorways, cautiously watching Lin Ye and sizing up the man entering the shelter.

"It's the Martial Artist big brother!!"

"It's Brother Lin Ye!"

No one knew who shouted first, but the entire shelter immediately erupted.

"Brother Lin Ye!!"

"Big Brother Lin Ye!!"

"Big brother!"

One childish cry after another rang out.

Then groups of children ranging from three to twelve years old ran out of their rooms and toward the off-road vehicle.

After opening the door and getting out, Lin Ye looked at the young children, his eyes deep and somber.

"Brother Lin Ye, can you tell us stories about the Wilderness Area this time?"

"Yeah, what's happened to our hometown now?"

Suddenly, Lin Ye felt someone gently tug at the corner of his clothes.

He lowered his head slightly and found two little girls, only three or four years old, standing before him.

They wore little dresses washed nearly white, their round black eyes wide as they asked in childish voices, "Brother Lin Ye, when can we go home?"

Hearing that question, Lin Ye's heart tightened slightly, and he did not answer directly.

He took out a piece of compressed biscuit from his pocket, bent down, and handed it to the girls. "Your hometown is sick. The soldier uncles and Martial Artist uncles are treating it... When you grow up obediently, you can go back."

"I wish I could grow up faster!!" The little girl's voice was soft and timid, but when she looked at Lin Ye, her eyes shone with hope.

Lin Ye shook his head and smiled. "It's better not to grow up."

"Big brother, do you believe that when I wake up tomorrow, I'll be this tall!"

One of the children stood on tiptoe and raised a hand high above their head.

Lin Ye smiled but said nothing.

Another child raised both hands and hopped. "I can grow this tall too!"

"Little girl... grow up slowly. Don't rush. Sooner or later, all of you will grow this tall."

Lin Ye walked over to the children, raised a hand to indicate a height at his forehead, then lowered his head and said gently, "By then, all the monsters will have been wiped out, and you'll be able to go home!"

He raised his head.

Looking at the innocent children before him, endless emotion welled up in his heart.

This... was probably the meaning behind frontline soldiers and Martial Artists risking their lives to fight monsters to the death!

At that moment, Lin Ye recalled something a marshal from his previous life had once said—

'Born into this era, sacrifice is a price we must pay. If we don't pay it, then our sons will. Our grandsons will.'

"Mm!" The children surrounding him nodded with all their strength.

Without further thought, Lin Ye called over several adults.

They carried several large chunks of Soldier-class Monster flesh from the vehicle, and he instructed them to give the children something extra to eat.

Seeing the children's envious faces, Lin Ye's expression grew somewhat complicated.

The suddenly descended virus had caused species to mutate, giving rise to terrifying monsters that battered and destroyed the existing social order.

Children who should have been playing freely and studying happily at school.

Had instead been forced to remain in shelters like refugees, worrying all day long.

Under the threat of the mutated virus and terrifying monster hordes, the original social order had nearly collapsed...

Education, commerce, entertainment, and culture had all suffered devastating blows under the impact of the Beast Tides.

Aside from a few major cities such as Capital City that had yet to be ravaged by Beast Tides, Great Xia's other cities all faced the threat of monsters.

At that moment, roughly a hundred meters above the shelter.

A flock of enormous avian monsters sped over from the distance.

Each possessed a huge body more than ten meters long, resembling small fighter jets as they charged straight toward the shelter.

Sizzle, sizzle!!

However, just as they drew near, blue arcs of electricity suddenly erupted.

Bolts of electricity reaching one hundred thousand volts flashed and burst forth.

Crackle, crackle!!

In an instant, all the avian monsters trying to rush into the shelter burst into flames.

For a moment, fire scattered in every direction.

The avian monsters were all electrocuted until charred outside and cooked within, turning into charcoal as they fell straight down.

Lin Ye silently took it all in without saying anything.

Shelters and fortresses in the Cataclysm Era were already humanity's final refuge.

If even the shelters and fortresses were breached, humanity would lose all hope completely...

After soothing the children's emotions.

Lin Ye continued driving toward the military Command Center building.