Thud!
A heavy slam echoed in the padded wrestling room. Meng Dongdong was flipped cleanly over her shoulder by her female instructor, hitting the mat with a loud whump.
She gasped for breath, struggling to expel the carbon dioxide building up in her lungs. Her energy was almost completely drained.Oxygen-deprived. Dizzy. Nauseated.
All kinds of negative sensations surged through her body.
"I… can't… anymore…" she panted from the floor.
"In close-quarters combat," the instructor said gently, "what you need is explosive power in a split second—and precision in timing and angle.""Given the time constraint, you won't master many techniques. So per your father's request, we'll drill one move only. Master it, and it can save your life."
"I understand…" Meng nodded weakly.
"Good. Get up. I heard your opponent is also a newbie. Just drill this one move until it's muscle memory—you'll handle them easily."
Gritting her teeth, Meng Dongdong stood up again. She knew if she wanted to survive, she had to push through the pain.
She was also attending firearm training now.This time, when she entered the Dead Zone, she'd be ready to pull the trigger first.
The physical gap between men and women was real. If she wanted an edge—she'd make one.
"Ready?" the instructor stepped back two paces, setting the proper distance.
Meanwhile, outside the glass-paneled room, a gray-haired, slightly overweight middle-aged man watched the training session with warm eyes.
It was Meng Mingcheng, her father.
"Boss," a bald man approached him from behind, lowering his voice.
"What is it?" Meng Mingcheng asked without turning around.
"One of the targets—we got the info. But the other one's profile was redacted, and our team was firewalled. The hacker who blocked us… was stronger than our guy."
Meng's expression darkened.
"That confirms it. The water runs deep here."
"So, boss, what now?" the bald man asked.
"We don't have a better hacker, so let's move to Plan B: body armor, helmet, and energy supplements," Meng ordered.
"Already in progress. Should we consider a drone?" the bald man asked tentatively.
"Too technical. Winter can't handle it. Stick to firearms and hand-to-hand combat."
"Understood."
"Finish this job right, and I'll give you 10% of the club's stake," Meng added.
"Thank you, boss!" the bald man beamed.
Meng patted his shoulder. "You're my most trusted man. I won't let you down."
He knew the enemy might have armor too.And in this era where offense far outpaced defense, even decent bulletproof gear could barely stop the weakest pistol rounds.
At the Qingrun Flower Base.
Inside the greenhouse, white wisteria cascaded from metal trellises like soft curtains.
There were three rows in total. The rightmost one was entirely white wisteria.
Between the rows, narrow paths allowed people to walk through.
A young girl with twin ponytails led a black-haired young man—Li Chengyi—down the right-hand path.
She chatted away excitedly.
"If you're building a private garden, you'll need volume! Less than a hundred plants just won't look good. But over five hundred? That creates an internet-famous scene!"
Li didn't answer.Instead, he reached out and brushed a hanging cluster of white blossoms.
Hiss.
A cool surge rushed into his palm.
Flower Scale Armor Evolution: 2%… 3%… 5%… 7%…
One after another, data flooded his mind. The mark on his hand glowed brighter.
He continued his act—nodding, chatting—while stealthily absorbing flower energy.
By the time he reached the back rows, the upgrade speed skyrocketed.
"These are different, right?" he asked.
"Yes, these are over fifteen years old—more expensive, of course," the girl replied.
51%… 55%… 58%…
Older trees gave more energy.He realized: Forget planting—he needed to buy a flower base.
But for that, he needed money.
Eventually, they completed a full loop around the greenhouse. After touching nearly every flower, his evolution bar hit:
100%.
He had done it.Base evolution—complete.
Now only one thing remained: Evil Intent.
To finish the evolution, he needed to absorb hostile thoughts from someone—and convert them.
But how to tell if someone hated him?
He refused to buy any flowers, thanked the guide, and—with her about to cry—ran off empty-handed.
Two hours, not a single purchase…
Back in the city, he continued training at Hongjin Company.
His stamina, sprinting, marksmanship, and evasion skills had improved steadily.
Most importantly, he now recognized most handguns by sight—crucial intel in future encounters.
A month passed.
Then—a message from Sindra: they had found a real-world location that closely matched the Dead Zone Li had described.
Reconstructing real-world locations was the first step in escaping a Dead Zone for good.
Without delay, Li rushed to the office.
Knock knock.
Inside the glass-paneled office, Sindra was sipping green tea. Steam blurred his expression.
"Come in," he said without looking.
Click.Li stepped in, wearing sleek black training gear with a golden serpent logo.
"Is it confirmed?" he asked, trying to stay calm.
Sindra nodded. "I used every connection, spent a lot of cash, and we finally found a match."
He activated the familiar micro-projector.A photograph appeared on the wall.
It was a slanted shot of an underground parking garage—cold white lighting, striped lanes, black ceilings, red door frames.
Exactly the place.
"That's it! That's the place I entered!"
"Then we have a match," Sindra said. "It's called the Gelius Parking Lot."
"Gelius…?"
"Yes. But there's one problem."
Sindra sipped his tea slowly.
"This garage… was completely buried in an earthquake eighty years ago."
[🧠 Interactive Ending – Theory Time]Buried garage. Lost to time.But its echo became a Dead Zone...What do you think happened in the Gelius Lot?Drop your theory in the comments. 📝 And hit that library button to follow the truth! 🧩