“Damn it! Why won’t these zombies leave us alone!”
On a highway about two kilometers from the hotel, a car moved slowly, with a horde of zombies trailing behind. They surged toward the vehicle, some even stretching their hands through the windows, only to recoil after being burned by fireballs thrown from inside…
“Drive faster!” a young man in the passenger seat shouted at the driver. “My damn powers are almost drained!”
The driver, also visibly anxious, yelled back, “I want to, but how can I speed up when all these zombies are in front?”
“Step on it! Run them over!”
“Run over all these zombies? Do you think this is a tank?”
“Enough with the nonsense! Are you scared?”
“Me? You try driving then!”
“I…”
“Enough, now’s not the time to argue. Let’s lose these zombies first,” a voice from the backseat interrupted.
The two immediately turned around, surprised: “Yu-ge, you’re awake? How’s your body?”
“My powers have recovered a bit.” The Yu-ge they referred to, Jiang Chengyu, looked out the window. The sun had already set, leaving only dim residual light. It wouldn’t be long before complete darkness fell.
The apocalypse had crippled the power grid. Zombies were more active at night, and turning on headlights would attract even more. Driving in the dark was dangerous, and their powers were almost depleted.
Jiang Chengyu said, “Let’s shake off these zombies first, then find a place to rest.”
“Got it!” the two shouted in unison.
“He Qing, focus on driving. Yang Fan and I will clear a path ahead. When the chance comes, you rush through!”
“Okay!” “Got it, Yu-ge!”
With that, the two used their powers. Yang Fan, a level-2 fire-type, and Jiang Chengyu, a level-3 lightning-type, worked together. Soon, a large group of zombies in front fell.
Seeing the opportunity, He Qing pressed the gas to the floor and sped forward.
Breathing a sigh of relief at the zombies still chasing behind, they realized they had finally broken free. If they had been surrounded and their powers drained, death would have been inevitable.
“Yu-ge, there’s a building ahead with its lights on!” He Qing exclaimed, looking ahead.
Indeed, a two-story building appeared by the roadside, its sign reading “Dawnlight Hotel.”
The main doors were wide open, and the interior was brightly lit. It looked just like a pre-apocalypse hotel.
“Unbelievable… a hotel still running? And electricity?” Yang Fan muttered to himself.
Jiang Chengyu looked around. This was the undeveloped outskirts of S City, mostly farmland with few buildings. The only safe place to rest seemed to be this hotel. Driving further would take another two hours to reach the city, and who knew what they’d encounter—possibly more zombies…
After discussing, they decided to check out Dawnlight Hotel. If it was truly a hotel, they could rest; if it was a trap, at least it was humans—not the zombies behind them.
Chen Xi was eating dinner from a self-heating hotpot when she heard the sound of a car outside.
Looking out, she saw an SUV entering through the hotel gate and stopping in the courtyard. Three young men, appearing in their twenties, got out. They quickly closed the gate to keep zombies out and then approached Chen Xi.
The leader, slightly older, wore a black T-shirt, his muscular arms exuding strength and a sense of calm. The other two: one had a crew cut, wearing a black T-shirt and light brown pants, scanning the area; the other wore glasses, a white T-shirt, and light blue pants—slimmer and looking scholarly.
“Wow, this really is a hotel,” Yang Fan exclaimed, looking around in amazement.
“That’s right. If you want to stay, here’s the price list. If you want anything else, it’s on the shelves, prices labeled.” Chen Xi peeked out from the front desk while eating.
“What? There’s someone here?” Yang Fan was startled.
They noticed the young girl at the front desk. Her skin was fair and clean, showing no signs of apocalypse hardships.
The men were wary. It had been a month since the apocalypse, and tricksters sometimes used innocent-looking girls to lure people.
Chen Xi noticed their expressions and couldn’t help but smile. She wasn’t worried—her system would immediately eject anyone trying to harm her.
“Do you want to stay? The price list is here. Let me know once you decide.”
She then resumed eating.
Jiang Chengyu and his companions exchanged glances.
“Yu-ge, it really does seem like a proper hotel,” He Qing said, finally speaking, glancing at the price list.
Yang Fan followed his gaze: “Single rooms: 8 Lv.1 Crystal Cores, Double rooms: 15 Lv.1 Crystal Cores…”
Clear pricing eased their minds. They were used to trading Crystal Cores at their base—single rooms cost 500 cores per month. Compared to that, this was reasonable, even cheap.
“Can we check the rooms?” Jiang Chengyu asked.
Chen Xi swallowed her bite: “Sure, wait a moment. I’ll finish eating and show you.”
“You can also browse what you might want to buy,” she added, pointing to the shelves.
The men were shocked. It had been a month into the apocalypse; food was scarce, and many fought over it. Seeing it neatly displayed for sale was astonishing.
“Wow, food! Instant noodles, biscuits, bread, self-heating hotpot… I want one hotpot! Actually, I want all of them!” Yang Fan shouted in excitement, finally daring to indulge.
Hotpot was 5 cores, instant noodles 2, bread and biscuits 1, purified water 1—so cheap!
They bought a pile of food and drinks, totaling 50 cores.
After finishing, Chen Xi took them upstairs. They were surprised to find electricity and hot water! They booked one double room and one single room.
“The rooms have electric kettles. Tap water is purified and ready to boil. Showers and washing machines on the first floor are free for residents,” Chen Xi instructed.
After completing check-in, Chen Xi returned to her room to rest, leaving them exploring the hotel facilities.
Lying in bed, Chen Xi checked the system: today’s revenue totaled 73 Lv.1 Crystal Cores. Not bad—covered the basic expenses.
Tomorrow, she would continue.
Meanwhile, in a commercial building in downtown S City:
Huo Yan suddenly opened his eyes. Darkness surrounded him, and he faintly heard zombies banging on doors outside.
After assessing his situation, he murmured to himself: He had been reborn…