Countdown Day 13, 9:00 AM
Top floor of Yun Ding Tian Gong Building 1.
Because all the floor-to-ceiling windows had already been violently removed, the wind from hundreds of meters in the air poured in without any obstruction. It howled like a ghost, whipping Lin Qi’s high ponytail into chaos.
But Lin Qi stood right at the edge of the wind, not even blinking. Her gaze was locked tightly on several heavy-duty hoisting cranes slowly rising outside.
“Boss Lin, the main event is here!”
Old Ghost walked up beside her, bracing against the wind and pointing at the huge custom crates hanging beneath the cranes. He shouted at the top of his lungs, his voice filled with uncontrollable excitement.
“To get these ‘glass panels’ up here, I used every heavy lifting machine I could borrow from the entire underground circuit!”
“Open the crates!”
At his command, several mercenaries with safety ropes quickly stepped forward and pried open the wooden packaging with crowbars.
The moment the crates fell away completely, even the seasoned mercenaries froze for half a second.
This was not ordinary glass—and not anything close to any bulletproof glass they had ever seen.
Each panel was an outrageous 12 centimeters thick.
Its surface was not transparent, but instead a deep, dark silver-black that seemed to swallow light. Under the harsh summer sun, it didn’t reflect at all—like a shard of darkness cut from the depths of space.
“Boss Lin, aerospace-grade one-way composite bulletproof glass. Top-tier stuff that you can’t even get domestically,” Old Ghost said, stroking the cold edge of the glass like it was a priceless beauty.
“The outer layer is sapphire-grade anti-penetration coating. The middle has five layers of polycarbonate and one layer of aerospace aerogel. The inner layer is explosion- and shatter-resistant resin.”
He grew more and more excited.
“It’s not just bulletproof—the aerogel layer provides perfect thermal insulation. Even if it’s a thousand degrees outside or minus eighty degrees liquid nitrogen, the inside temperature won’t change at all. And it’s one-way transparent. From the inside, it’s like watching ultra-clear TV. From the outside, it’s just a dead black wall.”
A flash of extreme satisfaction crossed Lin Qi’s eyes.
Bulletproof, thermal stable, one-way visibility.
Every single feature perfectly hit her survival pain points for extreme cold and heat apocalypse scenarios. This was exactly what she needed—absolute safety while she coldly observed the outside world.
“Enough talk. Install it,” she ordered coldly.
“Hydraulic arms! Everyone stay sharp! Each panel weighs a ton—if you chip even a corner, you can’t afford it even if you sell yourselves!” Old Ghost roared.
Dozens of mercenaries immediately operated the suction lift systems.
“Rumble… click!”
The first massive glass panel was precisely embedded into the reinforced window frame. Structural adhesive and steel rivets sealed it firmly.
Then came the second… the third…
As more panels were installed, the howling wind inside the apartment gradually faded.
When the final piece locked into place with a heavy metallic click—
The entire 1,200-square-meter penthouse fell into absolute silence.
The wind, the faint traffic noise of the city—everything was brutally cut off, like someone had pressed a mute button on reality itself. It was so quiet you could hear a pin drop.
“Haa…”
Lin Qi exhaled slowly, finally feeling her ears cleared.
She walked up to the enormous glass wall.
Through the 12-centimeter-thick glass, the city skyline was crystal clear without distortion. Blue skies, distant skyscrapers—all perfectly visible.
But she wasn’t admiring the view.
Her “firepower deficiency anxiety” required real, physical confirmation.
“Old Ghost,” she said, turning her head. “You said it can block bullets. But I don’t trust claims until I see them. In a doomsday fortress, I don’t allow even a single false specification.”
Old Ghost grinned.
“I knew you’d want proof.”
He gestured.
A man dragged in a heavy military-green metal case. Inside was an industrial-grade pneumatic nail gun and a half-meter-long tungsten steel armor-piercing nail.
“This thing is used in the Middle East to test armored vehicle plates,” Old Ghost said, lifting it. “Its impact is equivalent to a 12.7mm anti-materiel sniper rifle at close range. It can punch through 3cm of hardened steel in one shot.”
“Watch closely.”
He pressed the muzzle against a spare glass edge sample.
Lin Qi folded her arms, eyes unblinking.
BOOM—!!
A thunderous blast echoed through the room.
The tungsten nail shot forward with violent force—
Then—
CLANG!
Sparks exploded.
And then reality defied expectation.
The nail snapped in half instantly upon impact.
The glass?
Only a shallow white dent—less than half a millimeter deep.
No cracks. No penetration. Not even the inner resin layer was damaged.
“Hiss—”
The mercenaries inhaled sharply.
This level of defense was insane.
“Good.”
Lin Qi’s eyes lit up with madness. She grabbed an 80-pound demolition hammer from a nearby man.
“Boss Lin?! What are you doing?!” Old Ghost shouted.
She didn’t answer.
She swung the hammer with all her strength.
CRASH!!!
A deafening impact.
The hammer rebounded violently upward, completely unable to damage the glass.
Her hand went numb from the shock.
But she smiled.
A twisted, ecstatic smile.
“Hahahaha…”
She threw the hammer aside and laughed wildly.
Stable. Completely stable.
This 12cm aerospace-grade one-way bulletproof glass, combined with the reinforced concrete walls and the 3.5-ton bank vault door—
This fortress was now an iron monster that not even death could knock on.
Even if people outside fired machine guns for a full day, she could sit inside and calmly watch.
She placed her hand on the glass.
From outside, the building looked like a silent black tomb floating above the city.
Inside, sunlight still filled the room.
At that moment—
Ding!
A system notification exploded in her mind like thunder.
[Detection: Fortress physical defense matrix significantly upgraded!]
[Requirement 2: Windows withstand sustained anti-materiel sniper fire — COMPLETED!]
[Physical defense rating significantly increased! Lv1 progress: 75%!]
[System notice: External armor layer complete. Fortress now capable of resisting conventional weapons, C4 explosions, and extreme climate conditions.]
[Final requirement: Independent energy system (high-end generator units + 100,000-ton fuel reserve). Activate energy loop to unlock “Absolute Defense Line.”]
Lin Qi’s expression slowly calmed.
75%.
The shell was complete.
The heart.
She turned to Old Ghost.
“You did well with the armor. Now it’s time to install the heart.”
Old Ghost wiped his sweat and grinned.
“Ten military-grade silent diesel generator sets are already in the underground machine room. We’re doing final wiring.”
Then he hesitated.
“But Boss Lin… those things are fuel monsters. Full load consumes tons of diesel per day. Your storage space won’t last long.”
Lin Qi calmly sipped cold coffee.
“That’s not your concern.”
Ten tons?
She sneered inwardly.
Old Ghost didn’t know her real trump card.
She had already quietly secured a bankrupt refinery in the industrial zone—
100,000 tons of specially treated low-temperature diesel.
Tonight, she would absorb it all into her spatial storage and silently fill the underground tanks.
Her energy empire would be complete.
No matter how cold or hot the apocalypse became—
Her fortress would never go dark.
She stood up, putting on a black tactical coat.
“Speed up the work. Finish wiring by tomorrow sunset.”
She stepped toward the elevator.
“Countdown: 13 days left. Time is running out.”
For the world outside as well.