Jiangcheng Shelter, the Mist Descends (Trial 1) (continued)

During this period, the fog can cause harm to people, but it is not fatal.

However, as time goes by, the world barrier will completely collapse, and the entire world will be assimilated into the Mist World.

At that time, humans will no longer be able to walk on the ground.

Shen Xing ignored all of this and, as usual, stretched out his arm, preparing to summon the Hippogryph for transportation.

But then they suddenly realized that the Blue Star World had been partially assimilated and could no longer manifest military units to fight.

Let's drive there.

Qin Lang was aware of this situation and said, "The entrance to Jiangcheng's underground shelter is not far outside the city; it's a 40-minute drive at most."

Everyone nodded in agreement.

Then they went to the street outside the yard, where a silver Lexus was quietly parked in its parking space.

Qin Lang moved Shen Xing to the passenger seat and then put the wheelchair in the trunk.

The other three girls were sitting in the back row.

"Beep--"

As the car started, it quickly passed through the residential area and arrived on the streets of Jiangcheng.

Through the car window, Shen Xing saw the current scene of Jiangcheng.

At this moment, the sky was covered with countless cracks, like a shattered mirror, from which endless gray mist poured out.

On the ground, there were mutilated corpses everywhere.

There are monsters and humans.

The former prosperity of the entire Jiangcheng was gone; buildings were set ablaze and then collapsed with a roar.

The scene was truly one of carnage, a scene straight out of the apocalypse.

"Sigh..." Xu Jiayi sighed and said slowly, "So many people have died. This city has become a graveyard."

"Yes," Qin Lang said, gripping the steering wheel with a grave expression. "Although countries were prepared, the dramatic changes in the world have still resulted in numerous casualties."

"In just the last few days, the death toll worldwide has already surpassed 100 million."

"Fortunately, the fog didn't erupt all at once; the world barrier can hold out for a few more days."

"Otherwise, I estimate that less than half of the people would have survived."

Shen Xing felt a pang of heartache upon hearing that hundreds of millions of people had died.

He couldn't help but ask himself a question.

If I had participated in that competition, would the outcome have been different?

But clearly, nothing will change.

If Shen Xing can break through to the Master, there might still be a sliver of a chance.

But he failed; an injured Expert Rank fighter was simply no match for the many strong competitors in the arena.

However, it's hard to say for sure, after all, he still has so many powerful figures under his command.

Leina, Hellscream, Kratos... these three are already capable of fighting Grandmaster, even if they are of a higher level.

If Blue Star can add three Grandmaster combatants, there might be a chance to turn the tide.

But now the arena is over, everything has settled, and there's no point in thinking about it anymore.

"Well..."

Shen Xing sighed again.

The car continued to travel through streets filled with smoke and corpses, the city's ruins reflected in its windows.

Forty minutes later, they left the city and arrived at a basin outside.

Looking around, the area is surrounded by continuous mountains, and a large number of vehicles are parked in the open space.

People gradually got off the bus, dragging their luggage and following the crowd.

Below a mountain directly ahead, a huge iron gate appeared; that was the entrance to the underground shelter.

A fully armed army stood guard at the entrance, strictly maintaining order.

Residents lined up to enter the underground shelter, undergoing checks and identity verification at the entrance.

Shen Xing and the others followed in the crowd, waiting silently.

After two or three hours, it was finally their turn.

Qin Lang immediately stepped forward and handed over everyone's ID cards with a smile.

The shelter in Jiangcheng is naturally only accessible to people with Jiangcheng household registration.

People from other cities need to go through a strict approval process to enter.

However, this does not apply to Pioneer.

As long as you have the status of Pioneer, even if you are just a lord who is not quite Transcendent, you can enter any shelter in the entire country.

Because everyone knows that, as time goes by, the world's barriers will completely collapse.

Large numbers of monsters are rampaging through the mist, potentially threatening the safety of the shelter.

Therefore, these Pioneer with combat capabilities became highly sought-after by various shelters and were given priority in receiving them.

"Beep! Identity verified!"

With a clear announcement, their identities were quickly verified.

Just as everyone was about to enter, a young-looking officer in a captain's uniform stopped them.

"Are you Shen Xing?" He asked, holding his weapon, as he looked at the young man in the wheelchair.

Shen Xing nodded. "It's me."

Upon hearing his admission, the officer's expression turned cold. "Then you can go back."

Everyone was taken aback upon hearing this.

"Why?" Xu Jiayi asked.

"No reason," the officer replied casually. "Cowards aren't welcome here. I'm afraid this guy will run away with his men again if a fight breaks out later."

Upon hearing this, anger immediately surged on everyone's faces!

"Who are you calling a coward?!" Qin Lang questioned in a deep voice. "Director Zhang Yu has already publicly stated on television that he was merely unconscious!"

"Exactly, you have no right to criticize him!" Xu Jiayi chimed in, "Shen Xing's contributions to Jiangcheng and Blue Star are greater than all of yours combined!"

Yu Feifei and Xia Wanyin clenched their fists, looking extremely angry.

"Hmph!" the officer scoffed. "If he's not a coward, why did all the other ranked powerhouses from Blue Star participate in the Myriad Worlds Arena, but he wasn't?"

"Don't say he was unconscious; that's just an excuse he made up because he was afraid to play!"

"We all know he's just an Expert Rank lord; even if he went up there, it wouldn't change anything."

"But his weakness isn't his fault; his cowardice is!"

"You!" Qin Lang clenched his fist, ready to go up and have a good argument with him.

Shen Xing grabbed his sleeve and said calmly, "Stop talking, let's go."

"If we're not welcome here, then let's go somewhere else."

Even if nobody welcomes us, we still have somewhere to go.

He still had plenty of lanterns and the Mysterious Lotus Lantern in his backpack, enough to keep him going in the mist for a long time.

Although Qin Lang was still very angry, looking at Shen Xing's determined eyes, he finally gave up arguing.

"Hmph! Let's go!"

He was furious and, pushing his wheelchair, prepared to leave with everyone.

"Wait a minute."

A voice came from behind.

Everyone turned to look and saw a middle-aged man in an officer's uniform walking towards them.

He glanced indifferently at the young sergeant and said in a deep voice, "According to regulations, all Pioneer in Jiangcheng have priority access to the shelter."

"Even if Shen Xing hadn't gone to the Myriad Worlds Arena, he still made a huge contribution to the entire Blue Star."

"We cannot negate all his past efforts because of one incident."

The young sergeant bowed his head and replied, "Yes, sir!"

After reprimanding him, the middle-aged officer turned to Qin Lang and the others. "I apologize, my subordinate acted somewhat impulsively."

"I will punish him according to the rules later. Now, please go inside."

Upon hearing this, the four people stood there somewhat bewildered, then looked at the man in the wheelchair.

A thoughtful look appeared in Shen Xing's eyes. After looking around for a moment, he made a decision.

"Go in," he said, waving his hand.

Next, they received two room number plates and then entered the underground shelter entrance.

Follow the pedestrians through the long passage, continuing deeper underground.

After walking about two or three kilometers, the view suddenly opened up.

At this moment, a huge underground space appeared before everyone.

Looking around, rows of metal houses are arranged in a circular structure, resembling a concentration camp during wartime.

These included temporary shops, medical clinics, supply warehouses, and several halls marked 'wartime concentration area'.

In the central area, a Bonfire was burning brightly, enveloped by a transparent protective shield.

This is a special device created by the Heavenly Star Nation through reverse research on the Bonfire of the Mist World; it has the ability to dispel the mist.

However, the lighting range and fire intensity are far inferior to the original, and it consumes a large number of Soul Stone every moment.

But when the world is swallowed by mist, this Bonfire becomes the lifeblood of the entire Jiangcheng.

"Our room numbers are 136 and 137 in District D," Qin Lang said, glancing at the number plates. "Let's go, District D is across the square."

After saying that, the four of them crossed the narrow street and headed to the other side.

Along the way, you could smell a foul stench from time to time, and all kinds of household garbage were piled up in the corners of the streets.

In the low-ceilinged room, figures huddled on small wooden beds, their eyes glazed and expressions blank.

The entire underground shelter was shrouded in a dark and oppressive atmosphere.

"Are we... going to live here?" Yu Feifei looked around, her expression somewhat unnatural.

The others also frowned slightly; the conditions here were far worse than they had imagined.

For them, who were used to living in apartment complexes and villas, it felt like falling into hell all at once.