A week passed in the summer heat and the peaceful rhythm of everyday life.
Lin Yi's body, which had originally been merely "healthy and exercised regularly," was quietly changing.
Time, beneath the disguise of an ordinary, almost trivial routine and careful preparation, was silently and steadily sliding toward the moment destined to overturn everything.
His bone density had quietly increased, providing firmer support. His neural response speed had improved considerably, and his five senses had grown sharper.
Within his well-proportioned frame, his muscles had become more defined and fluid, concealing a restrained explosive power.
If his physique had once been that of a high school student who loved sports, now he could rival a professional athlete.
On the outside, he was still that bright, handsome young man. But within, he was like fine steel, repeatedly hammered to remove its impurities, waiting only to be sharpened and taste blood.
The curtain was about to rise on this grand drama, with life as its wager and the world as its stage.
[Saturday, July 24, 2027], the day that had been designated the first day of the New Era in his previous life.
The morning sunlight carried a hint of heat as it filtered through a gap in the curtains and spilled into the room.
Lin Yi opened his eyes. There was no trace of sleepiness in them, only the stillness of an icy lake.
"Xiaoyi, hurry up and get up! Today's your big day!"
His mother, Zhou Jinghua, called from outside the door, her voice full of cheerful bustle.
"Coming, Mom."
Lin Yi answered in an even voice, then quickly got up, got dressed, and washed up.
The young man in the mirror still had a slightly youthful face. He looked at himself and subtly adjusted the curve of his lips, making his smile look like one befitting an eighteen-year-old.
On the LED display at the entrance to Fujin Hall in Hongfu Tower, a festive red banner was already lit up: "Warm Congratulations to Lin Yi on His Admission to His First-Choice University!"
It was just past eleven when people began arriving one after another.
"Xiaoyi! Congratulations, congratulations!"
His uncle, Zhou Jianjun, a burly, broad-faced middle-aged man with a resolute expression, gave Lin Yi a hearty slap on the shoulder. The retired soldier's hands were certainly not gentle.
"My, this child just gets more handsome and spirited every year!" His aunt, elegantly dressed and smiling warmly, took Lin Yi's hand and praised him.
His cousin Zhou Jieyu, a lanky boy who had just started middle school, excitedly circled Lin Yi. "Brother Yi, you're awesome!"
His cousin Zhou Mengmeng, an elementary school student with her hair in pigtails, tilted her little face up and asked enviously, "Big Brother, when you go to college, does that mean you don't have to study anymore?"
As he looked at the genuine smile on his uncle's resolute face, a scene from his previous life suddenly flashed through Lin Yi's mind:
The thick stench of blood mingled with rot in a narrow stairwell. His uncle swung a fire axe with a badly chipped blade, roaring as he shielded Lin Yi and his cousin behind him. The axe whooshed down with a heavy thud, chopping precisely into the neck of the Corrosive Abyss Wolf lunging at Lin Yi!
But his uncle hadn't been quick enough to dodge. The beast counterattacked and tore off half his ear, blood staining one side of his face.
"That's not how it works. You have to study even harder in college..." Lin Yi didn't say much more. He just ruffled his cousin's hair. When he saw her face fall, he laughed. "Uncle, Auntie, go on in and have a seat."
"Sure, sure. You go ahead and get busy," his uncle said with a smile and a nod.
His uncle's family had barely gone in when an exaggerated voice cut in behind them.
"Well, look at you, Xiaoyi! You've really made something of yourself, huh? Qingteng University. You've brought honor to the Lin Family. Maybe your uncle here will have to rely on you to look after him one day."
Lin Yi looked up. It was his uncle, Lin Ruiheng, arriving with his aunt, Liu Mei, and cousin, Lin Ran.
His uncle wore a forced smile and kept a subtle distance. His aunt tugged at his sleeve with a slightly awkward look.
His cousin Lin Ran followed behind them uneasily, his gaze darting away as he greeted Lin Yi with a quiet, "Brother Yi."
Looking at the family before him, Lin Yi felt conflicted.
He knew better than anyone that it was this very uncle—the one whose family had a few grievances with his own, and who always spoke with a hint of sarcasm—who, six months after the apocalypse descended and order collapsed, had landed a job managing supplies at the large Rock shelter through a stroke of luck.
But when he found out that Lin Yi's family was struggling to survive in another, smaller shelter, living in dire straits, his uncle had taken a risk and asked a supply escort team to bring them emergency food and medicine. He had also sent word that he would help them secure a place to live in Rock.
It was moving to Rock later, and putting his parents' safety concerns to rest, that had allowed Lin Yi to set out on his own expeditions without worry.
"Uncle, Auntie, you're here! Please, come in!"
Lin Yi's smile didn't change. He acted as if he hadn't caught the sarcasm and greeted them warmly, his gaze passing over Lin Ran. "Ranran's here too. Go on in and have a seat."
After he had welcomed his uncle's family, his classmates, whom he had specifically invited, arrived.
The class monitor, Zhou Yuxuan, was tall and composed. He offered Lin Yi a gift box with a sincere smile.
"Congratulations, Lin Yi."
"You're too kind, class monitor. Please, come on in."
Lin Yi's voice remained as steady as ever. Only he knew that his fingers had tightened around the gift box for just a moment.
After the apocalypse, when he next received news about his class monitor, it was only a single obituary:
"While covering the evacuation of South Lake shelter's residents, the shelter's entire guard force was killed in action, from Captain Zhou Yuxuan down."
"Brother Yi, you've got to have a good drink today!"
His best friend Chen Yu slung an arm around Lin Yi's shoulder. His tall, beautiful girlfriend, Su Xiao, stood beside him.
Su Xiao's lovely eyes held a touch of lazy amusement. She raised an eyebrow at Lin Yi in greeting.
Lin Yi laughed and punched Chen Yu. "Don't even think about getting me drunk!"
He looked at his best friend and his girlfriend, thinking to himself:
Well... there aren't any particularly special memories of those two. They were out on a date when the apocalypse began, and the first wave took them both. They did die together, at least.
"Lin Yi... congratulations."
The class beauty, Ye Qingyu, spoke softly. A faint blush colored her fair cheeks as she handed Lin Yi an elegantly wrapped gift. Her gaze lingered on his face for just an instant before darting away.
"Thank you."
Lin Yi took the gift. His fingertips accidentally brushed against hers, cool to the touch.
Ye Qingyu... Sigh. Never mind...
Lin Yi sighed inwardly.
Ye Qingyu hadn't been a particularly good student, and she happened to sit in front of him. She often turned around to ask him questions, so some busybodies had started teasing them about it. At the time, Lin Yi had been entirely focused on studying and hadn't bothered to pay them any mind. He hadn't expected Ye Qingyu to neither confirm nor deny it. Before long, rumors had spread that they were a couple.
Later... Ye Qingyu died.
The scene from that time rose unbidden in Lin Yi's mind.
A piercing alarm echoed through the dim corridors of the shelter.
A water bottle had rolled into a corner, and packets of compressed biscuits lay scattered across the floor. Ye Qingyu lay in a pool of blood, clutching a bag of food she hadn't had the chance to deliver...
As a distant relative of someone in the shelter's management, she had been assigned to the logistics team, where the food rations were slightly more generous. She had been saving the food for herself in secret.
She hadn't even managed to cry out properly before a Stealth Shadow Blade Beast ambushed her and took her life.
There were things she had never said, even to her dying breath.
Lin Yi's smile showed no sign of faltering. If anything, it grew warmer. "Ye Qingyu, thank you for the gift. Please, come in and have a seat."
More relatives and friends kept arriving over the next while.
Lin Yi played the part of a young man swept up in genuine joy, wearing just the right excited smile as he warmly welcomed every guest inside.
His father, Lin Ruiming, beamed as he greeted familiar coworkers and older relatives.
His mother, Zhou Jinghua, bustled about with several female relatives who had arrived early, checking on the banquet preparations. Her face was alight with undisguised pride and joy.
He looked at his parents' busy, contented figures, then casually swept his gaze over each familiar, vibrant face...
These people, scattered or gone in his previous life, were now gathered so vividly in this small banquet hall. Their laughter and congratulations blended into a warm, lively sea of sound.
He fell silent for a moment, then put on a joyful smile once more.
Time slipped quietly by amid all the lively chatter and warm greetings.
Before you continue