The three of them waited in line for about half an hour, during which four or five more people arrived behind them.
"Hello! Welcome to the Dawn Tower, please present your Magnetic Card."
The person in charge of receiving them was a woman over thirty, and all these people were wearing uniform attire, appearing very organized and disciplined.
This made Wang Zhi puzzled as to why such a mysterious base existed underground.
As for the Magnetic Card she mentioned, it was the Black Card they held.
"Are the three of you together?"
The woman asked, glancing at the two people behind Wang Zhi.
"Yes."
"Hmm, you can form your own team, or you can individually choose to join other teams. Do you wish to create a team, or join one?"
Hearing the explanation, Wang Zhi turned back to look at the other two.
It was just as well he turned back; he saw one of them was boredly filing her nails, while the other was observing the surroundings, seemingly having heard nothing of what was said.
Wang Zhi knew that with the strength of these two, it wouldn't matter which team they joined, but he was different! He needed teammates; how could he let go of the two armed individuals by his side?
"Then let's create a team?" Wang Zhi tentatively said to the woman.
"Very well, please give me the Magnetic Cards of the two behind you."
"Old He, Sister Ying, give me your Magnetic Cards, I'll register for you all."
Afterward, Wang Zhi handed the two cards over to the reception woman.
"Please name your team," the woman asked again.
"Hmm... Since this place is called the Dawn Tower, how about we call ourselves Sunset Glow?" Wang Zhi turned back and asked the two of them.
"Fine," Old He replied indifferently.
"The name has quite a poetic feel to it. I didn't expect Little Brother to be such a cultured person," Ying said with a smile, casually ruffling his hair, indicating she had no objection to his decision.
"Okay, then our team shall be named Sunset Glow!"
"Alright, your team has been successfully created! If you have any further questions about this place, you can consult the intelligent robot in the dormitory." The woman finished speaking, returned the Magnetic Cards of the three of them, and opened the passage behind them.
Ultimately, the three were assigned quarters in Room 033, Area A, Second Floor. Following the signs, Wang Zhi found the elevator leading to the second floor.
After Wang Zhi dragged his luggage into the elevator, this time he could feel it descending. At the same time, he wondered if the floor numbering here meant that lower numbers were actually higher up?
Upon reaching the second floor, Area A was to the left, Area B was to the right, and ahead was a spacious training hall, which also contained a cafeteria and some vending machines.
At the same time, quite a few people were eating in the cafeteria, and there was no shortage of those exercising in the training hall. The various advanced facilities and equipment here undoubtedly provided an excellent environment for these individuals.
Following the guidance, the three quickly arrived at the room assigned to them.
The room wasn't large, about 50 square meters. With roughly a hundred rooms in the A and B sections, one could estimate that this second floor covered over ten thousand square meters when including the area of the main hall!
To construct such a complex so deep underground would require not only financial backing but also government support. This made it hard to imagine the massive power behind this Dawn Tower. Thinking of this, he began to feel admiration.
The overall environment of the room was quite good, featuring an independent bathroom and four separate beds, leading to the deduction that one team could accommodate four people.
Additionally, a display screen was mounted on the wall, which, barring any surprises, was likely the smart robot the receptionist mentioned.
Wang Zhi casually chose a middle bunk, placed his luggage down, and stepped forward to activate the display screen.
[Welcome to the Dawn Tower. I am your intelligent assistant, Ling Lingyao. You can report any issues to me.]
Ling Lingyao's electronic voice emanated from the screen.
"Ling Lingyao? What is this place for?" Ying asked first.
[This is the Dawn Tower, humanity's final sanctuary.]
"Huh? Humanity's final sanctuary? Are you suggesting the surface world will be destroyed?" Ying followed up with a hint of disdain.
[A global Cataclysm is imminent, and humans will become Flesh-and-Blood Corpses, but total extinction will be avoided.]
Gulp.... Wang Zhi swallowed hard. Weren't those Flesh-and-Blood Corpses referring to Zombies? As long as they weren't completely dead, those Zombies could irrationally attack living things, feeding on flesh and blood, and any wound inflicted by them would lead to Infection, eventually turning them into one of them....
"Ling Lingyao, why is the Cataclysm happening? When exactly is it?" Wang Zhi continued to ask.
[Insufficient authority to retrieve the main cause of the Cataclysm. Currently, to ensure everyone's safety, the Dawn Tower is in lockdown mode.]
"Lockdown mode? You mean entry only, no exit? That sounds like a pyramid scheme," Old He remarked.
"Ling Lingyao, how do we survive here?" Old He asked.
[The Dawn Tower currently has an independent survival chain; there is no need to worry about food, clothing, housing, or transportation, but Survival Points must be paid.]
"What are Survival Points?" Wang Zhi suddenly caught the scent of currency.
[Survival Points are the sole transactional currency within the Dawn Tower. Survival Points are paid or transferred via the Magnetic Cards you possess. As Captain, you can allocate and use the team's Survival Points.]
After hearing Ling Lingyao's explanation, Wang Zhi remembered that when they first created the team, he was automatically designated as the Captain!
"You two... have any objections?" Seeing that neither spoke, Wang Zhi turned and proactively asked.
Both of them shook their heads, indicating they had no objections. This left Wang Zhi somewhat bewildered. Were these two afraid he would embezzle the funds and run off?
"Aren't you afraid I'll screw you over?" Wang Zhi tested them.
"Pfft... If Captain were this old man, I'd certainly have an opinion, but since Captain is you, little brother... then I have no objections whatsoever," Ying scoffed.
"Neither of you wants to be Captain?" Wang Zhi asked again.
"Whether it's her or me, whoever becomes Captain, we'd object, so as for this Captain position, you might as well take it," Old He stated.
"Ah... is that so..."
"Yeah, at the very least, we can deal with you anytime," Old He casually explained to Wang Zhi.
"Ha... that's a bit too blunt," Wang Zhi managed a bitter smile.
"Hmph, I say, Old Man, listen to yourself. 'Deal with'? What if you frighten little brother?"
Hearing Old He intimidate Wang Zhi, Ying immediately stood up and pulled him over to sit beside the bed.
After they sat down leaning together, Ying draped an arm over his shoulder, looking distinctly protective.
"Don't worry, little brother, I won't let Old Man bully you. But, you need to treat Sister a bit better, okay..." Ying said with a strange lilt.
Wang Zhi nodded repeatedly. He watched as one of her arms held his shoulder, while her other hand produced a Dagger from somewhere, performing various flashy knife twirls right in front of him, looking as if she might stab him at any moment.
He could never have dreamed that he would end up sharing a room, even having such close contact, with two armed strangers.
"Um, Sister Ying, Old He, we've been running around all day. Let's grab something to eat first, ha ha..."
Wang Zhi forced a smile; everything had happened too suddenly, leaving him struggling to keep up.
To show good faith, however, he stood up, moved his luggage aside, and placed the food he had bought at the supermarket on the table, intending to treat them both to a large meal first.