Return

The ashes on the second floor were already completely cold.

Lu Heng stood still, his gaze shifting from the drifting dust, then turned and walked down the stairs.

He did not leave immediately.

Back on the first floor, Lu Heng's gaze swept across the floor, and his expression darkened slightly.

The skeleton of the Bone Demon lay scattered and broken in the area where it had fought the BOSS. Many of its bones were cracked and broken, and its parts were scattered all over the ground. It was unclear whether it was directly hit by the Shopkeeper's attack or caught in the aftershocks of the battle, but its entire body was completely destroyed and could never be restored.

Lu Heng stood silently in front of the broken skeleton for a few seconds.

The allies who had fought alongside him were now gone; in the apocalypse, this was a common occurrence. He felt little grief, only a faint heaviness settling in his heart.

He walked through the entire supermarket floor by floor, from the lobby and storage area to the refrigerated display area, the checkout lanes, and the staff quarters, his steps slow and his eyes scanning every corner.

Shelves were tilted, walls were cracked, and most of the ceiling had collapsed, with rubble and dust covering the floor. The areas that had once been distorted by strange forces had now returned to their original state as ruins—dilapidated, desolate, and lifeless.

But the remaining supplies were still on the shelves.

Canned goods, bottled water, compressed food, daily necessities... there were quite a few, some of which were not even past their expiration date, all in good condition and neatly stacked.

Lu Heng's gaze swept over the supplies one by one, but he didn't touch anything.

He crouched down, picked up a can of food, and turned it over to check the production date on the bottom.

The date is correct.

He put it back.

The problem isn't with the canned goods; it's with the supermarket itself.

Having witnessed the truth about the entire building, he could no longer trust anything there. The counterfeit drugs recorded in the ledgers, the poisons added to the food, the elaborate scams—everything came from this supermarket. The ledgers clearly showed how the Shopkeeper systematically contaminated the source of goods, how he tampered with the food, and how he substituted counterfeit drugs for real ones.

He wasn't sure if the supplies were clean.

So I didn't take anything.

Lu Heng walked to the book display area.

This area was in the far corner of the supermarket, with short shelves and a thick layer of dust. He squatted down and flipped through the remaining books one by one.

It's all the Shopkeeper's notebooks, ledger copies, and personal notes.

The densely packed handwriting recorded all sorts of shady things—sourcing channels, customer lists, timelines for disposing of wreckage, and periodic summaries of the collection of resentment. There wasn't a single practical knowledge book, a skills manual, a survival guide, or anything a normal person would keep on a bookshelf.

Lu Heng flipped through a few books and sighed with slight regret.

If there were any skill books or knowledge books, they would be extremely valuable to bring back to the Shelter. But there's nothing here—a person who devotes all their energy to doing evil will not leave themselves anything for the better.

He didn't waste any time.

Lu Heng carefully stored the numerous blank notebooks and usable pens into his Wristband Space. Paper and pens are scarce resources in the apocalypse, and blank notebooks can be used to record information, draw maps, and organize clues, so they shouldn't be wasted.

After putting away the last pen, he stood up and looked around.

The entire supermarket was as quiet as a tomb.

Sunlight streamed in through the broken roof and windows, illuminating the rubble and dust on the ground. The light was warm, but it couldn't penetrate the building's inherent chill.

Lu Heng took a lighter out of his pocket.

He stood in the center of the hall, his thumb resting on the lighter for a few seconds.

Too many people have died in this supermarket. His remains have been cremated, his bloodstains have been evaporated, but the building itself—every wall, every tile, every beam—bears witness to those crimes. It does not deserve to continue existing.

Click.

Flames shot up.

Lu Heng brought the flame closer to the nearest row of shelves. The dry wooden structure ignited instantly, and the flames spread along the shelves, licked the ceiling, and engulfed the walls.

He didn't stop.

He walked around the lobby, setting a fire at each key point. The flames quickly merged, spreading upwards along the stairs, engulfing the ruins and ashes on the second floor, devouring the ledgers and records, and consuming the last traces of the supermarket.

Lu Heng exited through the gate and stood on the open ground outside the ruins.

Behind him, the entire supermarket was engulfed in flames. Thick smoke billowed into the sky, and the flames cast a dark red glow on the ruined building frame. A wave of heat hit him, making his clothes flutter in the wind.

He watched quietly.

The entire building was burned down as a tribute to all the innocent victims who died tragically there.

The flames burned ever brighter, and the building structure began to crack under the strain. Lu Heng retreated to a more secluded spot and sat down on a pile of rubble.

He leaned against the stone wall and began to review the battle.

The results are complicated.

The bad side is clear— the Geothermal Talisman is completely destroyed. It was his core trump card that had brought him to the brink of death several times, and it's gone forever. After several near-death experiences, his body and mind were exhausted to the limit, and his limbs still felt sore and swollen from the muscle tears.

The positive side is equally clear: defeating regional bosses unlocks Shelter construction permissions, Talent evolve, a large amount of boss-level loot is obtained, and four strangely left-behind treasure chests are also acquired.

There are gains and losses; the advantages and disadvantages are mixed.

It's neither a gain nor a loss.

But at least he made it out alive.

The fire behind them gradually died down, the building frame collapsed with a roar, and dust filled the air.

Lu Heng stood up and dusted himself off.

There is nothing left to linger here.

He turned and stepped across the World Light Curtain.

With a flash of light, the ruins, flames, and thick smoke vanished. In their place came the familiar scent of the stone cave—dry, calm, and with the unique coolness of rocks.

Shelter.

Lu Heng returned to his Stone Cave Fortress, without sorting through the spoils, checking the construction panel, or even glancing at the supplies piled up in his Wristband.

He was too tired.

The exhaustion that seeped from the very marrow of his bones could not be relieved by meditation. His mental energy was almost depleted, his muscles were trembling slightly, and even the fingers holding the knife were stiff.

Lu Heng walked into his Modified Exclusive Bedroom.

He took the photo out of the Wristband— [The Villain’s Family Portrait].

The photo lay quietly in my palm, sunlight streaming through the cracks in the cave ceiling and illuminating the image. The young Shopkeeper was gently embraced by his mother, while his father stood stiffly to one side, the cut and pasted marks rough and deliberate.

Lu Heng placed the photo on the bedroom table.

On the Appraisal Panel, the area enhancement effect has been quietly activated—within a bedroom-sized area centered on the photo, the recovery speed of physical strength and mental energy is doubled.

He didn't have the extra energy to appreciate the effect.

Lu Heng walked to the bedside, and without even taking off his boots, he collapsed straight down.

The moment my head hit the bed, my consciousness sank into darkness.

Deep hibernation.

Lu Heng was awakened by the sound of his own breathing.

He opened his eyes, stared at the rough rock wall at the top of the cave for a few seconds, and then slowly realized where he was.

My body is very light.

It wasn't the kind of lightness that comes from weakness, but rather the ease of being completely restored after being overdrawn. The soreness in my limbs disappeared, my muscles stopped trembling, and my mental energy felt like a pool that had been refilled, clear and full.

The double recovery effect really works.

Lu Heng sat up, stretched his neck, and his joints made a crisp cracking sound.

He glanced at the family photo on the table, then at the Wristband.

The spoils haven't been sorted yet.

Lu Heng opened the Wristband Space and took out all the Nightmare Chest he had obtained from this dungeon, arranging them neatly on the stone table in front of him.

Four.

There were a total of five eerie entities in the entire supermarket area. The Butcher's one had already been activated. The remaining four— the Cashier, the Bulk Goods Clerk, the General Merchandise Clerk, and the area boss Shopkeeper —were all destroyed in this battle, each dropping a Nightmare Chest.