【Congratulations, Blue Star Person, your planet has been selected as the Global Battlefield.】
【Time until the multiversal civilizations' Landing: 42 hours 17 minutes 56 seconds.】
【Time until the global talent awakening of Blue Star lifeforms: 2 hours 17 minutes 56 seconds.】
Lin Qun blinked once, but the three lines of text projected onto his retina didn't disappear, only the countdown changed from 56 seconds to 55 seconds.
Then he forced his way forward through the crowded mass of people.
And no matter which direction he moved his body or his gaze within the crowd, the text followed his field of vision.
The same text and countdown weren't only in Lin Qun's eyes—every single person on Blue Star could see this text, announcing to everyone that a huge change and disaster were imminent.
It was ten in the morning, yet the sunlight overhead was blocked by dark clouds, leaving the world somewhat dim.
The largest supermarket at the entrance of Dragon City Imperial Scenery Residential Area was packed with people, all rushing to stock up on supplies.
"Don't cut in line!"
"I have money! Give me supplies! Give me supplies!"
"Damn it, someone hit this line-cutting dog!"
A few people in the corner cursed and shoved each other in anger, and Lin Qun took the opportunity to shove his way forward, forcing himself all the way to the front. Even the busiest tourist spots during the most crowded holidays, as he remembered them, weren't as packed as this.
The supermarket owner had blocked the entrance with tables and chairs—whatever you wanted, you told him, and he'd fetch it. Customers who made it to the front just had to pay.
"I want a case of canned goods, three boxes of bread or biscuits, a case of mineral water, a case of milk, and for the rest, chocolate or other high-calorie food, just grab whatever you've got."
This was the limit of supplies Lin Qun could carry away; any more and there was no way he could push through the crowd with it all.
The goatee-bearded owner shook his head and said, "Canned goods and milk are sold out! I can only give you a box of bread and a box of mineral water. There are two bars of chocolate left—you can have them both! All together, that's twenty-two thousand. Take it or leave it."
Hearing that price, Lin Qun was stunned for a moment.
This little bit of stuff, twenty-two thousand?
Was this shopping or robbery?
Before he could recover, the people behind him had already started pushing.
"You up front, are you buying or not? If not, get out of the way!"
The owner said impatiently, "Are you buying or not? If not, hurry up and leave—plenty of people want to buy!"
Lin Qun glanced past the owner into the supermarket. It had taken him nearly an hour to shove his way to the front, and by now more than half the shelves inside were already empty.
"I'll take it. Wait, isn't that Bird River pickled mustard greens on that shelf? Give me a box of that too!"
"Add a box of pickled mustard greens, that's twenty-eight thousand."
A box of pickled mustard greens, five thousand?
Lin Qun never dreamed he'd buy pickled mustard greens this expensive, but he gritted his teeth and quickly transferred out his fixed deposit savings to pay the owner, then squeezed his way out of the crowd clutching his pitifully small haul.
The people behind him watched him with envy, and someone even tried to reach out and grab his chocolate. Lin Qun caught it in time and shot the person a glare. "Don't touch my stuff!"
Lin Qun's tone was sharp and stern, and the man flinched, quickly disappearing back into the crowd.
The Residential Community's Property Management staff hadn't come to work. Out on the city streets, there was no small amount of commotion, along with the sound of sirens.
Cars and people were everywhere.
On this workday, hardly anyone had gone to their jobs. Everyone had rushed straight to malls and pharmacies, desperately buying up every kind of supply they could.
This inexplicable countdown had first appeared at the forty-eight-hour mark, and nearly six hours had passed since then—panic had already begun to spread.
The authorities still hadn't made any official statement, only urging people to stay home as much as possible. But most people had rushed out to buy supplies anyway, and talk of the coming apocalypse had already exploded online. Fortunately, since the situation hadn't fully changed yet, order hadn't completely collapsed either.
Though the internet was already filled with despair, no one knew for certain whether things would really play out that way. So, aside from a small minority, most people still maintained at least a basic sense of order—after all, what if the apocalypse never came? Wouldn't that leave them looking like fools?
Struggling his way out of the crowd, Lin Qun heard an even bigger commotion break out behind him—it seemed the supermarket had sold out of everything.
Beside him, Lin Qun heard a pretty girl who had also managed to grab some supplies say, "That owner's gone crazy for money, valuing cash over his own life! With this much stock, if he doesn't keep some for himself and the Global Battlefield really opens, if the apocalypse really comes, money's going to be nothing but scrap paper!"
"Who knows, though? What if we're all wrong and this turns out to be some kind of joke—then he'll have made a fortune!"
Lin Qun hurried past.
The supermarket's supplies were sold out, and the eyes of the people around who had no supplies were starting to change color as they looked at those who did, growing hot and red with envy.
Not daring to linger and draw attention, Lin Qun quickened his pace, turned into the Residential Community, and made his way back to his small, less-than-thirty-square-meter home on the seventh floor of Building 5. Only after setting down what he carried and closing the door behind him did he feel himself finally able to breathe a sigh of relief.
There was still faint commotion coming from downstairs—it seemed people really had come to blows—and some were also shouting outside the doors of the few other supermarkets in the Residential Community.
But those supermarkets had their doors shut tight, with no intention of selling off their remaining stock.
Lin Qun put away his supplies. Combined with what he already had at home, his stock wasn't much—without any way to replenish it, it would last him two weeks at most.
Medicine, at least, was well-stocked—that was because Lin Qun had gone to buy medicine before heading out for supplies, which was also why he'd been delayed in getting to the supermarket.
Still, Lin Qun figured that even if the supermarket had had plenty more supplies, he wouldn't have been able to afford much more anyway.
He then sat down on the sofa, rubbing his head, feeling a bit gloomy.
He was a Transmigrator, having only arrived in this world a few days ago.
This world, called Blue Star, had a geographic structure almost identical to the Earth Lin Qun was familiar with, except this world didn't have many separate nations—after the Second World War ended, the entire globe had unified into a Federation system.
The person he had transmigrated into was twenty-seven years old, living alone in Modu, the most bustling city of the Federal Huaxia Region. His parents had died young, and he had barely any relatives or friends. Through his own effort, he'd managed to buy a small home of just over thirty square meters in the Dragon City Imperial Scenery Residential Area in Modu. He hadn't done exceptionally well for himself, but it was clear he'd been a fairly decent person...
Thinking back on all this, Lin Qun felt an indescribable feeling well up in his chest.
He'd only just accepted his new identity and new life these past two days, thinking he'd simply be living in a different world—but who could have imagined that this world would turn out to be in a situation like this?
He had no idea why he had transmigrated in the first place, let alone any way to predict what would happen next.
Everything within his power, he had already done. All that was left now was to wait.
Wait... In two hours, all seven billion people across Blue Star would awaken their talents!
He opened his phone and scrolled through various WeChat groups and major platforms, partly to see if he could find any useful information, and partly just to pass the time. Every kind of information and speculation had already exploded online. The Federal government still hadn't made any clear statement, only reminding everyone not to engage in illegal activity and to stay home as much as possible.
Beyond that, there was an endless stream of so-called "experts" debunking one rumor after another.
Large numbers of police and staff filled the streets, doing everything they could to maintain order.
Just as the countdown reached the 40-hour mark, the bottom row of the three lines of text in his eyes suddenly vanished. Then more text began printing itself onto his retina, appearing row by row, disappearing row by row.
The same thing was happening in the eyes of every single person on the planet.
For a moment, the entire chaotic world, the entire information-saturated network, fell silent, as everyone stared fixedly at the changes unfolding before their own eyes.
Everyone understood—this information likely concerned their very lives!
【The Global Battlefield is about to open. As Natives of Blue Star, you are also participants in the war, and will be granted the opportunity to awaken a talent.】
【Every Blue Star Person will unlock an Attribute panel, which can be summoned by voice command and projected directly onto your retina.】
【Each of you will also receive one Awakened Talent, based on your own characteristics and related attributes.】
【Awakened Talents are random. Talents are divided into seven levels: F, E, D, C, B, A, S. F is the weakest, S is the highest.】
【May your gods protect you!】
Once this text ended, the network, which had just gone quiet, exploded once more in an instant.
"So it really is the Global Battlefield, a Civilization War! Civilizations from other worlds are coming, the apocalypse is coming!"
"Whether our Awakened Talent is strong or weak will determine whether we survive the coming global war!"
"God, based on our own characteristics and related attributes—someone like me who can't even carry a bag of rice, won't my awakened talent be the worst one out there?"
At that moment, the Federal government finally released a statement, and the information spread like wildfire across every major platform.
"All citizens of the Federation, please remain in a safe location and prepare for your Talent Awakening. Our civilization is about to undergo a tremendous change. The Federation will do everything in its power to protect every one of you. We ask that you remain calm, cooperate actively, and avoid rash actions. Please trust the Federal government—everything is still within our control..."
Lin Qun no longer had time to read what came after.
Because inside his mind, there was suddenly a boom, as if a thunderclap had exploded, and a sharp, blinding pain shot through his head for an instant.
Before his eyes, an entirely new line of text refreshed into view.
【Congratulations, you have successfully awakened your talent. Your Personal Panel is being generated.】
Immediately after, a panel suddenly appeared before his eyes.
【Name: Lin Qun.】
【Level: 1（0/100）】
【Strength: 7】
【Agility: 6】
【Physique: 7】
【Energy: 12】
【Prompt: The standard value for ordinary people in all of the above data is 10.】
【Talent: Card Draw Bonus Ability.】
【Type: Transmigrator Talent · Unique】
【Talent Ability Rating: Super S-Class.】
【Talent Ability Level: First Order.】
【Description: Upon detection, you have been identified as an individual from another world and civilization, and the sole participant of that civilization in this war. You will receive a Special bonus, allowing you to obtain technological weapons, physical Supplies, Fantasy Skills, and Attribute Bonuses from your world of origin through the form of card draws!】
【Remaining Card Draw Attempts: 1.】
His identity as a Transmigrator had actually been detected.
And more than that, he'd been recognized as the sole participant sent to Blue Star from the world he had transmigrated from. His Awakened Talent had even received a Special bonus, rated as Super S-Class—a tier not even mentioned among the seven talent levels named earlier!
A top-tier talent!
Fantasy Skills from all kinds of movies and anime, supplies from another world, technological weapons—all of it was possible to draw!
If it weren't for the Transmigrator Talent bonus, given his own attributes, almost entirely below the baseline, he'd probably have awakened the worst possible F-Class Skill instead...
Lin Qun took a deep breath. He knew his Base Attributes were nothing to rely on—if he wanted to survive in this world, he'd have to depend on this Super S-Class ability of his!
……
……
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