Jiang Lingyue’s broadcast hit like a deep-sea bomb, sending shockwaves across the silent wasteland.
Dawn Base, Command Center.
Commander Chen Guohua listened to the broadcast in silence for a long moment, but his bloodshot eyes were swirling with inner turmoil.
Apocalypse Safe House Hotel!
The name was not unfamiliar to him.
Some time ago, the team of the S-class Thunder-element user Lu Xiao had returned in disarray, bringing news related to this hotel.
It was said that the hotel had a mysterious barrier that even Lu Xiao’s full-strength attack could not break.
And there was a mysterious woman who could conjure food from thin air, and even wield a power more terrifying than lightning enough to completely subdue Lu Xiao himself.
At the time, Chen Guohua had dismissed it as an exaggerated rumor.
What did S-class experts mean? They were humanity’s top-tier combat force against the apocalypse. How could a woman possibly control one so easily?
But now, this hotel had actively broadcasted across the entire city.
The technology and energy behind that alone exceeded his imagination.
“Commander, could… this be a trap?”
His adjutant asked anxiously, “Like some psychic abilities user setting up a trick, trying to lure all survivors in and wipe them out?”
“Doesn’t seem like it.” Chen Guohua shook his head, pressing his finger heavily on the hotel’s location on the map.
“Lu Xiao’s teammates may be reckless, but they never lie. And listen to the broadcast the rules are clear and logical. This isn’t something a psychic could fabricate.”
His gaze grew deadly serious.
“Absolute safety… sufficient food…”
He muttered to himself, “If this is all real, then this hotel could change the entire balance of the apocalypse.”
“So we…”
“Send people!” Chen Guohua decided without hesitation. “Immediately organize an elite reconnaissance team. Stay at a safe distance, just observe from the perimeter! I want to know exactly what this hotel is and whether its recruitment is for real!”
At the same time, across the city, countless survivors heard the apocalyptic broadcast through old radios and walkie-talkies.
In a dark underground air-raid shelter, a ragged middle-aged man held a frail little girl in his arms. Listening to the broadcast, his murky eyes slowly brightened.
“Daddy… I’m hungry…” the girl whispered weakly.
The man’s hands trembled as he took out the last half-black, unidentifiable cookie from his pocket and handed it to her.
“Xiao Ya, eat a little more. When we finish, Daddy will take you to a… place like heaven.”
This man was Li Ming.
Over five years, he had gone from an ordinary office worker to a survivor struggling at the bottom of the apocalypse. He had lost everything, and his only belief was to protect this little girl, about the same age as his daughter, whom he had found on the road.
But now, he was close to giving up.
Food was gone, and the outside world was growing ever more dangerous.
He had even prepared to die of hunger with Xiao Ya.
Yet this broadcast was like a ray of divine light thrown into the abyss, giving him hope again.
“Absolute safety… sufficient food…”
Li Ming repeated the words over and over, tears streaming uncontrollably.
He didn’t know if it was a trap. He only knew this was his only chance to survive with Xiao Ya.
“Li, you really trust it?”
A young, strong man with a scar across his face sneered beside him. “These days, what kind of heaven is there? It’s all lies!”
This man was Zhao Feng, a D-class Enhancement-type abilities user and the muscle of this temporary squad.
“But… what if it’s real?” Li Ming looked at him pleadingly. “Zhao Feng, we have nowhere to retreat! Better to take a chance than just die here!”
Zhao Feng was silent.
He knew Li Ming was telling the truth.
Their squad of ordinary people and one low-level abilities user was already out of resources.
“The broadcast says they only recruit abilities users,” Zhao Feng frowned. “Li, you’re a normal human, and Xiao Ya…”
“Then we’ll just have to try!”
Li Ming stood up sharply, his eyes blazing with determination. “Even if I can’t get in, I’ll make sure you and Xiao Ya do! As long as you survive, my life is worth it!”
Seeing Li Ming’s all-in resolve, Zhao Feng’s heart was moved.
He remembered when he first awakened his abilities he would do anything to protect his family.
He drew a deep breath, stood up, and brushed the dust off.
“Fine! Li, I’ll go crazy with you!”
“To hell with traps! I want to see what this so-called heaven really looks like!”
Inside the hotel.
Jiang Lingyue watched the surveillance screens, seeing the dots moving from all corners of the city toward the hotel, and smiled with satisfaction.
The fish had started biting.
“Gu Han, Lu Xiao,” she turned to the two behind her.
“From now on, you two are my hotel security.”
“Security?” Lu Xiao’s brow furrowed into a knot. “You want me, an S-class powerhouse, to guard the front door?”
“What, got a problem?” Jiang Lingyue glanced at him.
“…No,” Lu Xiao immediately relented.
Under the roof, one must bow.
“Good.” Jiang Lingyue nodded. “People will be coming soon. My rule is simple whoever wants to enter my hotel must follow my rules.”
“What rules?” Gu Han asked.
“Simple.” Jiang Lingyue snapped her fingers. A huge light screen appeared in front of the hotel, displaying the first rule she had just set.
Entry Mission: Clear all zombies within 100 meters of the hotel’s front street.
Mission Requirement: Teamwork, no time limit.
Mission Reward: Hotel residency qualification.
“If you want to eat, you have to work for it,” Jiang Lingyue said, watching the approaching light dot on the screen, a smile tugging at her lips.
“My hotel doesn’t harbor freeloaders.”