Arrival

Lu Heng finished his underground exploration and used the metal ladder of an old manhole cover by the street to climb back to the surface. He avoided the scattered wandering corpses and bypassed the military's cordon, successfully returning to the Lakeside Shelter.

Stepping into the teleportation circle, he was instantly back inside the familiar stone Shelter. He immediately went to the window and looked out at the woodland.

The wind swept through the treetops, and large swaths of withered yellow leaves fell in a rustling sound, leaving a desolate carpet on the ground. The speed at which the surrounding Vegetation Withering was visible to the naked eye; the ecosystem was rapidly decaying. The pace of deterioration was accelerating, leaving no time to waste; all plans had to be moved forward.

Moreover, without the Blood-Devouring Vine forming a barrier around the perimeter, the Shelter's defenses are severely compromised. Lu Heng dared not relax his vigilance and took advantage of the night to thoroughly clean the camp. He went to the small pond in the courtyard, scooped up all the fish that had recently been raised and survived, cleaned them one by one, and threw them into the Cellar to prevent them from rotting when no one was on duty.

They then locked the heavy Shelter doors and densely laid out bear traps in the open area outside, layer upon layer, to build a second line of defense. Even if the outer fence was breached by the Aberrant, the enemies would inevitably trigger the traps before stepping through the door, making it difficult for them to break through directly.

After completing the external defenses, he went upstairs to check and seal all the window gaps, sealing off all vulnerable points that could be breached. He then organized and moved all the scattered supplies to a safe area. After thoroughly cleaning up, he moved all the processed fish into the Cellar for low-temperature storage to ensure sufficient food reserves for the future.

After finishing all the chores, Lu Heng washed off the sewer mud, blood, and putrid odor that covered his body, carefully cleaned himself, and changed into a set of dry and clean clothes.

He walked slowly into the Astrology Room.

The room's unique tranquility slowly unfolded, calming the mind and accelerating mental recovery. Lu Heng sat cross-legged, clearing his mind of distractions and quietly regulating his breathing. The mental fatigue from the day's continuous battles with the Aberrant and the large-scale release of his High-Temperature Talent gradually dissipated in this quiet space.

He took out the Rat King Bone Knife that was placed beside him.

The blade was covered with chips and nicks of varying depths, the edge was completely ruined, and it had lost all its sharpness. It could no longer withstand high-intensity close combat and could no longer be used as a primary weapon. Lu Heng ran his fingertips over the broken blade. He felt no regret, nor did he carelessly discard it. He simply placed it steadily against the wall by the bed and stored it away properly.

This knife helped him survive countless deadly battles; its value remains. Let it be reused as a sacrifice later.

From then on, Lu Heng officially changed his main weapon, and from then on, he would use the Deboning Knife in all close combat.

After his mind had completely calmed down, he no longer expended energy on sleep, but instead used meditation to peacefully pass the entire night.

The night passed in stillness, and as dawn broke, the cool gray light of morning streamed into the Shelter through the windowpanes.

Lu Heng opened his eyes precisely on time, his mind clear and his spiritual energy fully restored. He quickly put on his full set of combat gear, got up and summoned the Bone Demon to accompany him.

The Bone Demon stood by his side, its skeletal body cold and solemn, making it the most reliable path-clearing assistant at present.

Lu Heng secretly pondered the last Bone Demon Crafting Scroll he had left in his backpack.

The scroll was still intact, but to create a new Bone Demon, he needed special bone materials of suitable quality. At present, resources were scarce, and there were no suitable materials at all. The thought flashed through his mind, but he temporarily suppressed the idea and put the plan to create the Bone Demon on hold.

After a short rest and preparation, Lu Heng did not head directly to the sewage treatment plant outside the city.

There was a prior agreement to escort Song Yunzhong and his group to the Military District, and he needed to finalize the exact time to avoid conflicts and breaking his promise.

He led the Bone Demon through the city ruins once more, easily arriving at Song Yunzhong's Shelter, and knocked on the door to meet him.

After meeting, Lu Heng didn't exchange any pleasantries and went straight to the point, asking about their departure time.

After a moment of contemplation, Song Yunzhong truthfully informed him that they would depart early the day after tomorrow. The Shelter's supplies, the children's accommodations, and basic protective equipment all needed to be properly organized, and a one- or two-day buffer period was essential.

Lu Heng nodded in confirmation, his tone decisive. "Okay, I'll come pick you up the day after tomorrow morning and take you to the Military District."

Having finalized all the agreements, without further conversation, Lu Heng turned and left, not lingering any longer.

With the side quests now settled, the focus shifts entirely back to the main quest: finding the city's overall sewer network map and tracing the source of the underground blood energy and the mysterious force controlling it.

The city had long since fallen; there were no maps, no road signs, and no inhabitants. All directions could only be determined by the approximate locations described by Song Yunzhong the previous night. With this vague sense of direction, Lu Heng identified the west side of the city and proceeded steadily forward.

He walked straight ahead, silently assessing the size of the city in his mind.

The journey from the outskirts of the town across the entire city to the sewage treatment plant on the western outskirts is about twenty kilometers. In the past, a vehicle could take only a few minutes to reach the destination, but in this post-apocalyptic wasteland, all transportation systems are paralyzed, leaving only one's own two feet to rely on. The long journey is time-consuming and exhausting.

Fortunately, the Bone Demon was there to clear the way, saving them most of the trouble.

The main zombie horde in the city had already gathered to besiege the Military District, and the large number of Aberrant on the city's main roads had long been cleared out. What remained along the way were only a few scattered, rotting Zombie and a few stray mutant Zombie dogs, which posed no threat.

Whenever any Aberrant dared to block its path, the Bone Demon would immediately eliminate it with swift and decisive action, then devour the corpses to strengthen itself, without Lu Heng needing to lift a finger.

They made steady progress, clearing away all minor obstacles, and traversed the twenty-kilometer wasteland road step by step.

As the view faded, the outlines of abandoned factory buildings gradually came into view, with dilapidated walls and twisted, rusted iron gates—this was our destination: the city's sewage treatment plant.

The factory area was deathly silent, devoid of any living creatures, and the entire area was shrouded in desolation and decay.

Lu Heng stopped at the edge of the factory area, looked up and surveyed the entire abandoned factory area, with the Bone Demon standing silently beside him.

Without further probing, his eyes were calm as he made up his mind to violently infiltrate the factory with the Bone Demon and search for the core archives containing the master plan of the city's underground drainage network.

As soon as he entered, Lu Heng was stunned by the sight before him.

Several giant beast carcasses were scattered on the ground.

The bodies of five or six wolves lay scattered on the ground, along with the carcasses of monkeys and even the enormous remains of lions and tigers.

Lu Heng's gaze swept over the corpses scattered on the ground, and a sense of doubt arose in his heart.

Could it be that someone slaughtered all the exotic animals in the zoo here?

A sense of unease crept in.

The presence of so many large, ferocious animal carcasses piled up inside the sewage treatment plant could not have occurred naturally.

He frowned slightly, secretly wary, wondering if this was a trap.

Lu Heng crouched down, carefully scanning the corpses of the giant beasts scattered on the ground, and then looked around at the ground.

There were no signs of a fierce fight, no broken walls, and no bloodstains splattered everywhere.

These ferocious beasts seemed to have been attacked suddenly while they were resting, and they all died before they could fight back.

With a thought, he mobilized his Mental Energy and extended his perception deep into the factory area.

His mental energy swept across the surroundings, but he did not detect any emotional fluctuations from living beings, nor any hidden malice.

Lu Heng relaxed his guard slightly, but the doubts in his heart still lingered.

He raised his hand to signal the Bone Demon to follow, then strode forward and walked straight into the factory area.