Under the cover of the deep night, Lin Chen stealthily infiltrated a quiet, upscale villa area on the outskirts of the university town in the eastern part of the city.
Moonlight poured down like liquid silver, flowing silently over the outlines of European-style pointed roofs and meticulously trimmed lawns.
The night wind swept by, rustling a few dried leaves with a faint, whispering sound.
His figure moved like a ghost blending into the darkness, his speed astonishing as he effortlessly avoided the sightlines of all surveillance cameras.
While swiftly advancing, he quietly and precisely assessed the houses along the way:
"That one still has lights on... someone's there. Eliminated."
"This yard is too small, and the fence is low."
"Tsk, the windowsill is piled with instant noodle containers and delivery bags... group renters. On the first day of the apocalypse, internal struggles over resources would wipe them out."
"This house... red underwear hanging next to Tai Chi workout clothes? Could this be some suspicious elderly health retreat?"
Infrared cameras, ground motion sensors, and the property's scheduled patrol electric vehicles were all useless before him.
His teleportation over a hundred meters was silent and seamless, leaving not even a blurry afterimage on the surveillance footage.
About an hour later, he stopped in an area of standalone villas by the lake.
The villa before him covered an estimated area of over one acre, with the building itself spanning five hundred square meters. It had three main floors plus a double-layered basement.
The light gray natural stone exterior walls appeared solid and imposing under the moonlight. Large floor-to-ceiling windows were equipped with smart shading systems, and the courtyard even had the outline of a dried-up swimming pool—the overall structure was sturdy and intact, exuding an air of understated grandeur.
Most importantly: the entire house was pitch black, with no trace of daily human habitation.
"This is the one," Lin Chen decided, a sharp glint flashing in his eyes.
With a slight thought—
"Swish!"
The next second, he stood in the center of the villa's spacious living room.
The luxurious crystal chandelier remained off, but the cool moonlight diffused through the floor-to-ceiling windows, illuminating the polished marble floor, high-quality leather sofas, the built-in temperature-controlled wine cabinet, and the fully equipped open kitchen...
The furniture was complete, the materials exquisite, yet everything was unnaturally clean and tidy—no takeout boxes, no casually placed slippers, no drying laundry, not even a single item inside the double-door refrigerator.
"Three floors above ground, two below... the first floor has a maid's room and guest rooms; the second floor has master and secondary bedroom suites; the third floor has a large terrace and a multi-functional media room; the basement includes a garage, storage rooms, a gym, and even an indoor temperature-controlled swimming pool?"
He inspected each floor, unable to suppress a low chuckle. "I wonder which big shot's 'secret base' this is. It's a real bargain for me now."
Even better, the entire house was clearly maintained regularly and meticulously, yet obviously not lived in long-term—a typical "wealthy backup property," perhaps reserved for occasional vacations or special purposes.
He quickly went upstairs and entered the master bedroom directly. With a thought, he retrieved a brand new set of high-quality Egyptian long-staple cotton bedding from the Creation Bead Space.
In the fifth year of the apocalypse in his previous life, he had slept beside piles of corpses, in leaky tin sheds, and even in foul-smelling Mutated Beast nests. Now, being able to lie on such a comfortable bed felt like the ultimate luxury from before the end of the world.
After neatly making the bed, he headed to the luxurious ensuite bathroom for a long, hot shower.
The warm water washed over his tense muscles and nerves. He closed his eyes, savoring this final moment of peace before the storm.
That night, he slept exceptionally soundly.
For the next three days, he fully transformed into a "doomsday fortress builder."
He started work at the crack of dawn, retrieving military-grade bulletproof composite steel plates, high-strength steel mesh, quick-setting concrete, and other materials from the Infinite Space.
He focused on reinforcing all doors, windows, and basement entrances, even re-welding and strengthening the heavy metal door leading to the underground garage.
On the roof, he installed multiple large water storage tanks, filled them with fresh water, and covered the outer layers with bulletproof steel plates to withstand the potential heavy pressure from the upcoming extreme weather.
The original decorative fences around the villa were replaced and welded into sturdy blast-proof steel plate walls.
In addition to defensive capabilities, thermal insulation was a key focus of the renovation, with various insulation materials and equipment constantly being applied.
The construction noise inevitably drew attention and dissatisfaction from neighboring villas.
Lin Chen simply took out a few bottles of top-tier French red wine or rare Jamaican Blue Mountain coffee beans from his space, casually "gifting" them to inquiring neighbors to easily resolve the conflicts.
After all, this villa was only an initial stronghold for him. Reinforcing it to this extent was sufficient to handle the initial chaos of the apocalypse.
When he got tired, he rested, and when he woke up, he continued working.
Undisturbed, the only sounds in his ears were the continuous rustling of leaves in the wind and the occasional distant barks of dogs—a remnant of the old peaceful days.
Time flew by in focused silence.
...
Day 30 of rebirth, September 14th, 9:00 AM.
The final 24 hours before the apocalypse arrived.
Lin Chen woke up early and prepared himself a lavish breakfast:
Eggs fried golden on both sides, sizzling fragrant bacon, perfectly toasted bread, paired with a cup of freshly brewed aromatic coffee—
All ingredients were top-tier imported goods "acquired at zero cost" from the United States.
"After this meal, by this time tomorrow, I might be staring at compressed biscuits and murky drinking water," he chuckled self-deprecatingly, his tone calm.
Just as he was clearing the dishes, his ears twitched slightly—
Footsteps! Extremely faint, yet exceptionally clear, coming from the gravel path in the villa's front yard, accompanied by the subtle metallic jingling of keys.
Lin Chen's eyes instantly turned cold as ice. Moving like lightning, he silently concealed himself behind the heavy front door.
"Click—"
A key precisely inserted into the lock and turned gently.
The door opened.
A tall, slender figure walked in.
She was dressed in a beige linen leisure suit, her long hair casually tied up, with a classic LV handbag slung over her shoulder. Her steps carried the poise of someone accustomed to a life of comfort.
The moment she stepped into the living room, before her eyes could adjust to the dim light, Lin Chen lunged like a predator that had been lying in wait!
His left hand clamped around her slender neck like an iron vise, while his right hand stifled the scream that was about to escape her lips. At the same time, his foot deftly hooked the heavy solid wood door behind him, slamming it shut with a resounding thud.
The woman froze for an instant, then began to struggle desperately. The sharp heel of her high-heeled shoe kicked viciously at his shin, and her elbow drove hard into his ribs—
Her reaction speed and counterattack force far exceeded that of an ordinary woman.
"Don't move!" Lin Chen whispered into her ear, his voice so low it seemed to seep with icy coldness. "One more move, and I'll snap your neck."
With the apocalypse approaching, he had long since cast aside all pointless compassion and moral constraints.