Chapter 2: Bloodbath.

It's 7 a.m. on June 15 in S City.

Only three hours until the solar eclipse. Predictions suggest the eclipse will last three hours from beginning to peak and then end. However, the eclipse two thousand years ago lasted eight hours. No one knows what will happen or whether the person next to them will turn into a zombie and attack.

Based on the situation from the zombie pandemic two thousand years ago, Minister Wang already had a plan. During the eclipse, the transformation from human to zombie occurs. Regular people and power users won't change, but zombies will gradually stiffen, unable to move or speak. They'll growl at the peak of the eclipse. During this time, those nearby can notice and quickly isolate them or go to a prearranged area for power users and regular people. Regardless of the relationship, the priority is to run or kill the zombie, as there is no cure, and antibiotics are ineffective.

Two thousand years ago, the Wang family ancestor discovered a vaccine against the zombie mutation. Everyone has received it, but no one knows if it works. Therefore, preventative measures are crucial.

Hubert sighed deeply. He was the only one at the power user assembly point. The sky was blood-red as if signaling the end of the world.

Hubert alternated between sitting and lying down. Everything was prepared meticulously and thoroughly at the power user assembly point. He looked out the window at the sky. It was almost noon, but the sky was getting darker, and the blinding sun was dimming. The solar eclipse was starting. Soon, all light disappeared. Hubert took out a flashlight, unsure how long the eclipse would last or how many people would come afterward. But out of thirty-six billion people, only ten billion wouldn't become zombies, and only one billion were power users. Not to mention, those bitten by zombies would gradually turn into zombies. As Hubert pondered, a bright yellow light suddenly flashed in the sky. By the time he noticed it, it was close to the ground.

Not even ten counts had passed when an object, akin to a meteorite, plummeted heavily onto the ground. It wasn't close to where he was, but it triggered a significant tremor. The assembly area for the superpower users suffered considerable losses as a result. Even though he couldn't see it, he knew the barrier had been shattered, making this place unsuitable for dwelling. What exactly was that plummeting thing? It certainly wasn't a meteor shower with just one piece. But after it hit, it emitted an unbearably foul odor, causing Hubert's body to feel intensely uncomfortable until he eventually passed out.

He had no idea how long it took, but Hubert eventually awoke due to the roaring sounds outside. He stood up and looked through the window. The sky was brightly lit and scorching hot, and far away were dark, indistinct blobs. He tried to squint at them, and to his shock, the distant images suddenly magnified. It wasn't that they had become more extensive but that he had somehow developed far-sightedness, allowing him to see things hundreds of kilometers away. His hearing followed suit, as he could hear the distant sound of running water.

"What's going on? Why…"

While he was mumbling in confusion, the sound of Go*gle translation resonated in his ear, and simultaneously, a small screen that he had never seen before appeared before. The system rebooted, stating: "Hello, Master Hubert, I'm back. The apocalyptic virtual reality game has been fully launched, so please be ready to fight. First, withdraw your extended sight and hearing, then try to salvage anything useful from the devastated assembly area. This area, devastated by last night's meteorite, can't longer be a refuge."

“What… What will happen to the people who can’t find shelter?” Hubert curiously inquired.

“Of course, they’ll be torn apart by the zombies, then become zombies and continue hunting. Your mission as a superpower user is to save people and prevent the apocalypse.”

Hubert fell silent. He was the one who started this game, so he should be responsible for it, a deadly game that had been put into reality.

He tried to retract his sight and hearing. Last night’s falling object had obliterated the superpower assembly area, and he had no choice but to scavenge for valuable items and stuff them into his crowded space.

“Grr… Grr…”

Suddenly, a growling sound resonated. Bending over, Hubert saw a black cat under his feet, its red eyes threatening. It slowly approached, apparently intending to attack him. The mutation phase had just begun, so the cat was not as agile as usual. Hubert didn’t hesitate to kick it away, but whether it was a human or an animal, once it became a zombie, it would yearn for a living. Hence, the cat didn’t give up on Hubert and continued to pounce. Hubert quickly dodged, pulled out a knife from his space, and remorselessly stabbed the cat’s head, making it let out a few growls before it fell to the ground.

“I’m sorry. I didn’t want it to be this way either!”

Hubert has always been fond of cats, but in the current state of the world, it has become a survival of the fittest. He couldn’t trust even humans, let alone an irrational animal. Now, if Hubert doesn’t kill the cat, it will kill him.

Just as he was about to leave, the cat on the ground suddenly emitted a circle of white light. The ethereal beauty of this white light startled Hubert, compelling him to reach out and touch it. When his hand made contact, the light shrunk and slipped into his fingertip, leaving a mild throbbing sensation.

“What on earth?” Hubert wondered.

Soon enough, he had his answer. His fingernails suddenly elongated by about ten centimeters, resembling cat claws. It dawned on him: killing a mutated creature and claiming its white light gave him the creature’s abilities.

This phenomenon was not recorded in the ancient apocalypse book two thousand years ago. Could it be due to the fallen meteorite?

Hubert struggled to retract his claws, still unfamiliar with this new change to his body. Controlling the nails would take some time. Suddenly, he felt hot, and sweat started to bead on his face. Looking up, he saw an additional sun in the sky. The apocalypse was not as simple as it was two thousand years ago. How was he going to save the world? Would the ancestors of the Wang family guide him?

He pulled out a giant baseball bat from his spatial bag. The knife he had earlier was too short, and he might encounter more agile zombies. According to the ancient book, zombies take about three to four days to adapt fully, so they are weak initially. Even ordinary people without supernatural powers could handle them. But would those ordinary people, terrified as they were, be capable of fighting the zombies? The phenomenal assembly area had been destroyed, and the civilians of S city had no idea where to seek refuge. Hubert sighed. Would his father, Theodore, and the others be okay? Could any of them have turned into zombies? The apocalypse was so different this time that these thoughts occurred to him. The more he thought about it, the more fear he felt.

Hubert wandered with his baseball bat. The supernatural assembly area was destroyed by the meteorite last night. What about the civilians? He decided to visit the meteorite’s landing site to assess the situation.

After all, the transformation stage was beginning, and he believed he could handle it.

He enhanced his vision, and the meteorite landed in the center of S city. It was a pretty selected place to land, and the city center was crowded. The number of people who turned into zombies would not be small. What if the zombies inhaled the scent from last night just like him? Would they also undergo a significant change, gaining some extraordinary powers? He was pondering if it was risky to go there.

Hubert suddenly remembered he had yet to visit the Wang family. He first needed to check on his father, Theodore, and the rest before anything else! His home was not profoundly situated in the city center. Hubert employed his farsightedness to locate his home’s direction, the streets filled with a fair share of zombies, albeit moving at a snail’s pace.

He walked to the garage, picked a specialized military vehicle, and drove off. It had steel armor. Bullets could hardly penetrate it, let alone zombies. Hubert never imagined having to drive one day, having always had chauffeurs. Rare were the occasions he took out a supercar for a spin.

Hubert was heading towards the Wang family’s residence. Leaving the assembly area, he came across a few scattered, freshly transformed zombies. Their faces were pale and hollow, limbs skinny, and the flesh seemed sucked into the bones, a sight genuinely horrific. But this was nothing. The photos he saw in the 2000-year-old zombie exhibition were much more terrifying, a scenery that induced nausea.

His journey was unimpeded. The zombies, though they could hear the engine’s hum, couldn’t keep up. However, he was surprised to find a traffic jam when he entered the city limits.

“These people, always so foolish!” he exclaimed.

His father had clearly ordered everyone to stay home and, if they found themselves uninfected after the eclipse, to head to the assembly area. Yet, at the eclipse, they had gone out for a drive. He wondered what they had turned into by now.

Hubert got out of his vehicle. All the cars in front were occupied. Or rather, the humans who had been transformed couldn’t get out. The transformation process takes three or four days, during which zombies are very slow and haven’t fully controlled their bodies, so they aren’t agile. Probably in a few days, these zombies wouldn’t have any obstacles escaping.

Crash!

A sudden loud noise from behind Hubert made him quickly turn around. How did he not notice earlier? It was a tall, muscular man kicking a zombie into a nearby car.

The man was fighting barehanded, his initially neat western suit now torn to shreds. His shirt was stained, and his trousers ripped open to his thighs, almost exposing his underwear. It seemed he had fought quite a few zombies.

“Hey, over there!” Hubert called out.

The man turned at his call, leaving Hubert momentarily stupefied. The man had a high cheekbone, narrowed eyes, a tall nose, and a smile playing on his lips. His facial features combined created an exquisite beauty. Add to that a towering stature and muscular build, and he was naturally built to deal with zombies!

Hubert sneakily wiped away a droplet of drool from his lip, and he wanted such a firm companion.

“You’re not supposed to fight zombies like that!” Hubert said.

“And how am I supposed to?” The man responded with a stern tone, kicking another approaching zombie under a car.

Hubert pulled a hammer from his storage space, tossed it to the man, and pointed at his head.

“Hit them here.”

The man complied, wielding the hammer to smash into the head of the zombie with a mighty blow, splitting its skull in two. The newly formed zombie’s brain was still soft, and the dense, bloody mess was repulsively disturbing. Hubert couldn’t help but vomit profusely.

Being at an early stage, the zombie hadn’t formed a brain stone yet, so that nothing could be harvested. The man walked over to Hubert, still holding the hammer.

“Thanks. Here you go.”

“No need, you keep it.”

Hubert wouldn’t be able to comfortably carry around a meter-long hammer without the assistance of a spatial pouch.

“It’s dangerous out there, full of zombies. Where are you headed?”

“I need to get to the Wang residence.”

“Weren’t all citizens directed by the Wang family to assemble at the superpowers hub after the eclipse ended? What good would it do going there now?”

“The hub is destroyed.”

“Destroyed?”

The man appeared flustered, understandably so. The haven they relied on was now gone.

“The meteorite that fell last night obliterated the hub. I need to go home, and I don’t know if my father made it out.”

“Your father?”

“Sorry, I forgot to mention. I’m Hubert Wang, third son of Minister Edward Wang.”

The man fell silent for a moment before speaking up.

“So, you’re the one who dreamt of the apocalypse. Despite being prepared, the unexpected meteorite disrupted everything.”

“Yes, I never anticipated it would turn out like this.”

“Then let’s go together. We can provide mutual support. I’m Jacob Tremblay, and I used to run a security training company.”

A security guard, no wonder he was so strong. Hubert gave Jacob’s biceps a couple more glances. He would surely be great against zombies.

“Great, having a security guard for protection is better than nothing.”

Hubert winked, which momentarily stunned Jacob. Indeed, youth was invigorating.

Hubert and Jacob ventured further into downtown S City. While many zombies were wandering about, they saw no everyday citizens. Thanks to Jacob, Hubert didn’t have to exert any effort in dealing with the fresh zombies. A single hammer was enough for Jacob to smash their skulls effectively. But now, Jacob was covered in blackened blood and squishy zombie brain matter.

Seeing this made Hubert vomit all the contents of his stomach. Even the bile seemed eager to escape. He thought it best to wait until the zombies fully evolved, with their brains shrinking and hardening, to avoid such gruesome splatters.

Unable to bear the sight any longer, Hubert pulled Jacob into a men’s clothing store as they passed.

“Change your clothes first, and I can’t bear the sight anymore!”

“I didn’t expect a Minister’s son to be so squeamish.”

“But I didn’t train in the military like my older brothers! I’ve never seen such a bloodbath before, alright?”

“Alright, alright.”