The Cataclysm.
After the sudden onset of disaster, the earth was left in a shattered state, with species mutated, food scarce, and living conditions unbearable. An entire era was utterly destroyed, and civilization faded into nothingness.
...
Three hundred kilometers from the Ninth Special Zone, in an ungoverned area awaiting future development, a nameless street was home to a young man of twenty-three. He walked briskly, head bowed and his coat pulled tightly about him.
The street was dilapidated and foul, the underground sewage system long since rendered useless, and makeshift outdoor toilets emitted a noxious stench, connected to rows of decaying storefronts. The area was rarely illuminated, and occasionally one could see a group of people gathered, the majority women, with a few men scattered among them.
The young man walking swiftly, his gaze fixed ahead, was named Qin Yu. Standing at 1.82 meters, his build was robust. Recently unemployed, he was preparing to purchase a formal resident identity for the Ninth Special Zone to take the first step in his plan.
Once a handsome youth with sharp features and a sunlit smile, Qin Yu now appeared somewhat disheveled, his beard unshaven, hair slightly matted, his clothes stained with oil and grime. In the crowd, he was barely noticeable.
As he continued his brisk pace, Qin Yu glanced up at an intersection, intending to return home from the left.
"Young man, young man...!"
A crisp voice called out, and a woman, wearing a faded dress and a worn coat, lightly tugged at Qin Yu's sleeve.
Qin Yu paused, turning to look. "What is it?"
"Thirty bucks," the woman said, holding up three slender fingers, and glanced back at the dilapidated storefront behind her. "Let's go there."
"Heh, I can't afford it," Qin Yu laughed and took a step forward, continuing on his way.
"Wait." The woman reached out again, tugging at his sleeve. "Twenty-five, will twenty-five do?"
Qin Yu turned back to appraise her, pausing for a moment before shaking his head. "I don't have any money."
"Not interested in me? There's someone inside."
"I really don't have any money." Qin Yu shrugged his arm free. "Let go of me, I need to get home."
The woman bit her red lips, her small hand gripping him tightly. After a long silence, she whispered, "Two bowls of rice will do, but it has to be measured in my bowl."
Qin Yu furrowed his brows. "I told you, I have nothing. Go away!"
Still, the woman didn't release her hold. Her eyes glistened as she glanced back at a group of seven or eight-year-old children standing by the storefront. "…I have three children. If I don't make any money tonight, I won't be able to feed them. Young man, please, help me just this once. A bowl of rice, I'll kneel for you."
Qin Yu looked at her coldly. "How many years has the world been like this? In an environment like this, if you can't even feed them, why have children?"
The woman froze.
Qin Yu forcefully shook off her grip and continued walking.
After standing there for a moment, the woman quickly ran back to the storefront, panting as she said, "That man has it, I saw it. When I grabbed him, I saw what he had in his coat."
...
About half an hour later.
Qin Yu returned to a dilapidated six-story building. Climbing the old, dusty stairs, he entered his home on the fifth floor.
Only Qin Yu and his friend Xiao Zhuang lived in this building. Many of the outer walls had collapsed, and in the past, it would have been on the brink of demolition. But in this era, "home" simply meant where you lived—it had nothing to do with the conditions. Qin Yu chose this place because it lacked electricity and water, sparing him from the burden of high living expenses.
The interior was modest—one bed, two broken cupboards, no entertainment facilities, and a single worn-out military magazine from 2019.
After entering, Qin Yu removed his filthy coat and pulled out a worn canvas bag from under his arm. Carefully, he approached the bed, took a broken bowl, and began ladling out fragrant white rice. "Xiao Zhuang, is dinner ready?" he called.
"Not yet, I just got back," came the reply from within, and a young man of about the same age as Qin Yu stepped out. His skin was dark, and his features were tough.
"Clop, clop, clop!"
Just as Qin Yu was about to speak to Xiao Zhuang, a thunderous sound of footsteps echoed from below. He froze for a moment, quickly hiding the bag and bowl in the cupboard and stepping to the door, which was nothing more than a worn wooden plank.
In less than a few seconds, a group of children under ten, followed by several men and women, appeared in the stairwell.
The staircase was outdoors, cracked cement, rusted iron rails. With so many people rushing up, the building trembled with every step.
Qin Yu immediately raised his hand, shouting, "Don't... don't rush up like that, damn it, the stairs will collapse."
"Uncle, we're hungry."
"Uncle, I want to eat..."
"...!"
Each child held a small bowl, standing on the stairs, their eyes dirty as they looked up at Qin Yu.
"Uncle's hungry too. Did you eat dinner? If not, we can share," Qin Yu responded with a mischievous grin.
The children's eyes were pure, their minds simple, but the adults behind them had long discarded any semblance of decency. A burly man, with a shaved head, stepped forward and shouted, "Hand over the food. If not, you won't leave."
"I don't have food," Qin Yu waved his hand. "Really, I don't. We're all starving in this ungoverned zone. It's not easy for any of us. If I had food, I wouldn't just promise, I'd actually give you some..."
"Stop talking, I saw the food hidden in your coat," the burly man yelled. "Hurry up, give it to us, just a little. We won't take much, just half."
"I don't have any," Qin Yu shook his head.
"Go into his room," the burly man barked.
"Uncle, I want food."
"Give me food."
"...!"
The crowd surged forward, the staircase groaning under the weight, seeming to threaten to collapse at any moment.
Qin Yu stared at the mass of people, his eyes reddening. He raised his leg, pulling a knife from his dirty pants and pointing it at the crowd. "Damn it, do you think I'm a lone wolf? Who the hell is afraid of death around here? I have food. If you don't back off, I'll break this knife and give it to you."
The crowd hesitated briefly, and the burly man coldly shouted, "The children are in front. You might as well stab them all first."
"Fuck..." Qin Yu was momentarily speechless.
"Go inside, take the food," the burly man shouted again.
As his words rang out, the crowd rushed forward, and the children immediately closed in on Qin Yu, tugging at him and crying, "Uncle, give me food."
"Uncle, I haven't eaten in days."
"Everyone, get the hell away!"
Qin Yu, holding the knife, helplessly shouted, "I swear, I'll stab you if you don't move!"
Inside, Xiao Zhuang saw the commotion and quickly stepped forward to stop Qin Yu, shouting to the crowd, "Calm down, we can talk this out."
The children, driven by hunger, were fearless, clinging to Qin Yu, while the adults pushed through the gaps, squeezing forward.
Qin Yu, with his muscular frame, took a step forward and blocked the door, glaring and shouting, "I only live for myself. Don't push me!"
The crowd pressed forward, ignoring his words.
Qin Yu was being pulled by the smaller children toward the door, unable to truly stab them. He struggled, preparing to face the approaching adults.
"Uncle, just give me a bowl of rice..."
"Get lost!"
A child, about ten years old, tugged at Qin Yu. As Qin Yu forcefully pulled away, the child stumbled into the crowd, losing his balance and falling through the gap in the iron railing.
"Ah!"
The child's terrified scream echoed, lingering in the air.
"Boom!"
The sound of the body hitting the ground below echoed through the building.
Qin Yu and Xiao Zhuang stood frozen, gasping as they looked toward the railing, unsure of what to do.
The crowd fell silent, the staircase steady once more.
"The child, the child fell down," Xiao Zhuang shouted urgently.
Several dozen people turned to look, their expressions blank. After a brief pause, they turned back without a word. The child's mother, frozen for a moment, then screamed and rushed down the stairs.
Qin Yu stood stunned.
"Food."
"If we don't get food, we won't let him go."
"Steal from him."
"...!"
Shouts filled the air, relentless and forceful. No one bothered to check on the child who had fallen but continued to surge toward the door.
Xiao Zhuang stood at the entrance, eyes wide as he stared at the approaching crowd. He knew that if he didn't give in, things could escalate into a life-or-death situation. So, licking his lips, he finally shouted, "Alright, you win. I'll give it to you."
Qin Yu immediately grabbed Xiao Zhuang's arm, whispering fiercely, "We can't give them anything. Not a single grain."
Xiao Zhuang stared at the crowd outside, his eyes wide. "The food has already been seen. If we don't give them a taste, they'll never leave."
"You give them a taste, and it'll be even worse," Qin Yu responded sternly. "Better to fight to the death than give in."
"Bullshit!" Xiao Zhuang disagreed. "You're the only one with a gun. But there are so many of them. Do you really think you can control them? If you can't, we'll be robbed. Can't you see how desperate they are?"
"Just listen to me. I'll go get the gun."
"Xiao Yu, don't you see? Even after the child fell, they're still here. They've lost all reason…" Xiao Zhuang wrenched his arm free and whispered, "We've had enough to eat, and the money's been exchanged. Giving them a bowl of rice won't cost us much. I don't want to gamble with my life. The food is mine too, and I have the right to decide how to use it."
Qin Yu fell silent at these words.
Xiao Zhuang stood firm, glaring at the burly man at the head of the group. "The ungoverned zone has its own way of survival. Take the rice, but stop making trouble. Get lost."
"If we're not starving, we'll leave," the burly man nodded.
Xiao Zhuang, hearing this, withdrew and returned to the room, returning with a large bowl of rice. He placed it on the ground with a loud clink. "Now go."
The dozens of people eyed the rice greedily, but none stepped forward to take it.
The burly man stood silent for a few seconds, then pulled a cloth bag from his waist and poured the rice into it in one swift motion.
"Get lost!" Xiao Zhuang waved them away impatiently.
The crowd remained motionless at the door. The burly man, his forehead glistening with sweat, tied the bag of rice to his waist, not immediately leaving.
"I told you to leave. Don't you understand?" Xiao Zhuang gritted his teeth and shouted again.
A moment of silence passed, then someone from the crowd yelled, "Damn it, he gave us one bowl of rice, but there's still a whole bag!"
"Give us more. There's too many of us, this won't be enough."
"Give us rice."
"Otherwise, let's just take it by force. What's the point of talking?"
"...!"
Shouts and curses filled the six-story building once more. This time, someone from the crowd secretly pulled out a weapon, glaring at Xiao Zhuang with cold eyes, their faces devoid of gratitude...
The burly man opened his hand and spoke in a low voice, "You saw it too. These people are starving mad. I can't control them. If you give me the bag of rice, we'll take half and leave."
"You bastards..." Xiao Zhuang snapped, pulling a knife from his coat.
"What, you want to fight?" one of the crowd sneered.
"Are you afraid of me? We're starving to death, what's there to fear?"
"...!"
The crowd was unafraid of Xiao Zhuang. They surged forward, following the burly man into the house.
Xiao Zhuang froze, unsure of what to do. He wanted to fight, but he didn't have the confidence to deal with these desperate people. If he didn't fight, his belongings would surely be taken.
"Crunch, crunch!"
At that moment, Qin Yu pulled a large-caliber revolver, about twenty centimeters long, from the cupboard. Without hesitation, he loaded a bullet into the chamber.
Upon seeing the gun, the crowd instinctively stopped.
Qin Yu, his face expressionless, pulled the entire sack of rice from the cupboard and tossed it onto the floor. "The food's right here. Anyone who wants it, come and get it."
The crowd was silent.
"Who do you think you're scaring?" the burly man sneered, his eyes bloodshot. "If we don't eat, we'll die. You really think we're afraid of a broken gun?"
Qin Yu tilted his head, staring at him. "The food's right here. If you can reach it, take it. Come up and get it."
The burly man hesitated for half a second before shouting, "There are so many of us, and just one gun. I don't believe he can kill all of us."
He took a step forward, reaching for the rice bag.
"Bang!"
The shot rang out, the revolver's hammer clicking back.
The burly man flew backward a meter, blood spilling onto the floor as a large hole appeared in his chest.
Qin Yu, holding the gun with his right hand, said with no emotion, "You may starve in a few days, but if anyone reaches for the food first, I'll kill them with one shot."
The crowd froze, exchanging silent glances.
"I have two bullets left. Are you taking it or not?" Qin Yu suddenly yelled.
The crowd backed away two steps.
Qin Yu stepped forward, bending down to grab the rice bag tied to the burly man's waist. "Xiao Zhuang, take the things. We're leaving."
Xiao Zhuang immediately rushed back into the room.
Qin Yu, gun in hand, shouted, "Form two lines, clear the way."
The crowd remained motionless.
Qin Yu raised the gun and pointed it at the nearest person, shouting, "Will you move or not?"
The person hesitated for half a second, then immediately stepped aside. The rest of the crowd followed suit, clearing the path downstairs.
Five minutes later, Qin Yu reached the bottom of the building. He saw the mother, her arms clutching the injured child, wailing uncontrollably.
Qin Yu stood silently for a few seconds, then tossed the rice bag he had given the burly man to her. "They'll be down soon. Hide the food."
The mother froze, then quickly grabbed the bag, replying, "Thank you, thank you! I'll bow to you. With food, we won't starve to death..."
Qin Yu, with Xiao Zhuang by his side, quickly disappeared into the night.
...
At around three in the morning, in the vast Gobi Desert, Qin Yu handed out the rice to Xiao Zhuang. "I've taken your stuff. We'll part ways here."
Xiao Zhuang, confused, asked, "Is it really necessary? Was it just because we disagreed earlier? I don't even have..."
Qin Yu interrupted him with a wave of his hand. "Xiao Zhuang, if people aren't on the same path, don't try to make it work. It'll only harm you and me. I'm heading to the Ninth District... take care of yourself."
With that, Qin Yu turned without a second glance, heading toward his first stop in his new life—the Ninth Special Zone.
...
In a military camp on the left side of the ungoverned zone, a tall black man flashed a wide grin and asked fluently in Chinese, "Did you hear the gunshots inside? Want to check it out?"
"Check out what? They fight over food and die every day here. They even ambush the army's trucks. Who the hell are we to care...?" A lazy old man, puffing on a cheap cigarette, answered from his bed.