The high-speed train’s air conditioning blew cold air against the back of Su Jiuli’s neck, while the smell of cheap perfume mixed with instant noodles from the middle-aged woman sitting beside her kept drifting into her nose.
For the eighteenth time, she opened her phone’s lock screen. There were still three hours and twelve minutes until she got home.
“Attention, passengers. The restroom in Carriage Seven is now available for use…”
The announcement was drowned out by a child’s piercing screams. Su Jiuli looked at her reflection in the window. The dark circles beneath her eyes made her look as though someone had punched her twice.
Three days ago, she’d slapped her resignation letter down on her director’s desk with such confidence. Now, staring at her bank balance, she was consumed by anxiety.
“Mom! I want to play with that big sister’s phone!”
A chubby little boy wearing a dinosaur onesie suddenly lunged toward the small table, his hand, covered in potato chip crumbs, reaching straight for the charging cable connected to Su Jiuli’s phone.
Before Su Jiuli could refuse, the boy’s mother squeezed over with a plastic bag in hand.
“Tongtong, be good. Don’t bother this auntie.”
“Waaaaah!”
The boy’s ear-splitting wail erupted. In the commotion, he accidentally knocked over a cup of instant noodle soup. Su Jiuli instinctively jumped up to avoid it, only to slam her lower back into a food cart with a loud crash.
“Ugh…”
A stabbing pain shot through her back.
Amid the chaos, someone stepped on her foot. Su Jiuli couldn’t help feeling utterly desperate.
How could anyone possibly be this unlucky?
She staggered into the restroom and locked the door. The moment the lock clicked into place, her consciousness suddenly began spinning like a washing machine. She clung tightly to the tissue holder to keep herself upright.
“Congratulations on awakening your spatial ability!” A cheerful, unfamiliar electronic voice suddenly rang out. “The spatial portal has been activated. The modern world is now connected to the apocalypse.”
“You have received a beginner’s gift pack containing one healing potion.”
Su Jiuli pinched her thigh hard enough to bring tears to her eyes. This wasn’t a dream!
Sitting aboard the rumbling old-fashioned green train, Su Jiuli closed her eyes as though dozing. In reality, her consciousness had already entered the space.
Strangely enough, ever since she awakened her spatial ability half an hour ago, bizarre scenes had been playing through her mind like a movie. Zombies besieging cities, humans fighting desperately for survival, desolate urban landscapes, and emaciated crowds…
Yet amid these surreal scenes, a blurry figure lingered in her mind like a ghost, refusing to disappear.
He fought zombies in life-or-death battles, desperately searching for supplies among the ruins of a city.
Who exactly was he?
Huo Yanzhi’s tactical gloves were already soaked with blood. The zombie dog’s fangs were less than a hand’s breadth from his throat. He felt around his waist and found the last half-bottle of medical alcohol, which he hurled at a package of self-heating food on a nearby shelf.
A deafening explosion sent a wave of scorching heat toward him. Taking advantage of the chaos, he rolled into the blind spot behind the checkout counter.
A searing pain shot through his right arm. Black blood was seeping from the tear in his protective suit where the zombie had bitten through.
His walkie-talkie crackled, and Li Hanyi’s hoarse voice came through.
“Huo, how are things on your end?”
“Huff…” Huo Yanzhi clenched his lips, struggling to remain conscious. “I’ve been bitten. There’s no saving me. Leave without me.”
He touched the cold gun at his waist. There was only one bullet left, and he had reserved it for himself.
Suddenly, the bite wound began burning as though it were on fire. His consciousness gradually blurred, and in his daze, he seemed to see a strange, glowing portal appear before him.
Su Jiuli suddenly sensed something unusual. As if guided by some mysterious force, she opened the spatial portal.
Huo Yanzhi felt an inexplicable force pulling him away. When he regained his senses, he found himself in a strange yet warm space.
Su Jiuli stared in astonishment at the man who had suddenly appeared before her.
Could this be the blurry figure she’d been seeing in her mind?
She quickly composed herself, examined Huo Yanzhi’s wound, and took out the healing potion from the beginner’s gift pack in her space to treat him.
After she injected him with the potion, it quickly began to take effect. His wound visibly healed at an astonishing speed, and his consciousness gradually returned.
Their eyes met, and a peculiar atmosphere filled the space. Meanwhile, the dangers of the apocalyptic world outside seemed to have a new chance of being overcome because of their unexpected encounter.
“You…”
But the moment Su Jiuli opened her mouth, the space suddenly twisted. Both of their consciousnesses were forcibly expelled from it.
Su Jiuli’s eyes flew open. She found herself back in her seat on the high-speed train, surrounded by the same noisy passengers as before, as though everything that had just happened had been nothing more than a dream.
Yet the lingering sensation of the potion on her hand told her that it had all been real.
“Are you there?” Su Jiuli asked in her mind.
“Yes.”
Huo Yanzhi’s reply brought a small wave of delight to Su Jiuli.
Grrrrrr…
An untimely rumbling sound broke the silence.
Pfft!
They both burst out laughing at the same time.
“Are you hungry?”
Huo Yanzhi’s ears turned red, and he looked a little embarrassed.
“Hungry.”
“Wait there.”
Su Jiuli went to the dining car, where she bought some snacks and water, several steamed meat buns, and half a roast duck. She pretended to put everything into her bag, but in reality, she’d already transferred the items into her space.
“Delivery!”
Huo Yanzhi took the food out of the space.
“Thank you.”
Looking at the plentiful food and clean drinking water, his eyes filled with excitement.
“Thank you.”
The man’s hoarse voice reached Su Jiuli’s ears, stirring an inexplicable attraction in her heart. She had always been particularly susceptible to men with captivating voices.
“Are you broke?”
“Money?” Huo Yanzhi seemed to find the question amusing.
“Is money still useful where you are?”
“Of course.”
Huo Yanzhi seemed to understand. The world on her side must still be peaceful.
“Where I am, it’s already the apocalypse. Here, money is far less practical than even an expired loaf of bread.”
“The apocalypse!”
Su Jiuli hadn’t expected the person on the other side of the portal to be living in an apocalyptic era.
Wait a minute. Money… gold!
Su Jiuli suddenly remembered the soaring gold prices that had dominated the trending searches over the past few days. Hadn’t the price already climbed to nearly a thousand?
She might have just stumbled upon an incredible business opportunity!
“How about making a deal?”
“A deal?”
“That’s right. I can provide you with food and water. In exchange, you can trade gold or anything else of value.”
“Agreed.”
Huo Yanzhi accepted without the slightest hesitation. After all, it was a deal that benefited both parties.
“Looking forward to working with you!”
“Looking forward to working with you!”