Apocalypse: Resources consumed by women will be returned ten thousandfold.

--Translated by likesnovel--

Jiang Fan didn't close the dimensional gate immediately.

Instead, he remained inside the subspace dimension, using his perception field to observe the area outside the steel door.

Standing outside the door was the female ability user.

She had a tall, athletic figure, long well-proportioned legs, toned hips, and an unmistakable aura of strength and vitality.

Even so, Jiang Fan had no intention of bringing someone like her into his circle.

A woman this powerful was exactly the type of person he preferred to keep at a distance.

If she ever found an opportunity to launch a surprise attack, even he might suffer a setback.

There were plenty of women in the world.

There was no reason to take risks with someone this dangerous.

At that moment, Jiang Fan suddenly felt his stamina draining rapidly.

"So that's how it is..."

"Staying inside the subspace dimension consumes energy too."

Even with his current physique, the loss of energy was obvious.

If it were Tian Tian, whose physical condition was far weaker than his, she probably wouldn't be able to remain inside the subspace dimension for more than a few seconds.

Realizing this, Jiang Fan wasted no more time.

He located Yida Plaza on his map and opened another dimensional gate.

"If I remember correctly, there's a famous mattress store on the 3rd floor."

"There are more and more people living with us now."

"I should prepare enough beds."

...

Inside the armory, silence returned once again.

Zhang Zilin slammed her fist against the steel door several times.

But there wasn't a single response from inside.

She gritted her teeth in frustration.

"Are you listening in there?!"

"If you're really capable, then don't come out!"

"When I catch you, I won't let you off so easily!"

Several minutes later, Liu Gangfeng and Yang Jiawei arrived carrying flashlights.

Liu Gangfeng immediately asked,

"Did you catch him?"

Zhang Zilin's face darkened.

"He won't come out."

Yang Jiawei closed his eyes and listened carefully.

After a moment, he spoke hesitantly.

"I don't think anyone is inside anymore."

"I can't hear any human breathing."

Zhang Zilin frowned deeply.

"Impossible."

"I've been guarding this door the entire time."

"So how did he disappear?"

Liu Gangfeng carefully inspected the steel door.

Yet he found no signs of damage whatsoever.

Thoughtfully, he said,

"If he managed to get in..."

"Then he probably has a way to get out too."

"I suspect he's an ability user."

"His power is probably related to moving underground or passing through solid objects."

Zhang Zilin had reached the same conclusion.

Her expression became even more serious.

"If that's true..."

"Then he probably took the guns."

Bang!

Liu Gangfeng kicked the steel door hard.

The door barely moved.

Helplessly, he sighed.

"The target's intentions were obvious."

"He came specifically for the weapons."

A cold look appeared on Zhang Zilin's face.

"If he dares use those guns..."

"I'll find him and arrest him personally."

"Ordinary civilians are not allowed to possess firearms."

"That is one of the Dragon Kingdom's laws with absolutely no exceptions."

She had tremendous confidence in her own abilities.

In her eyes, the intruder's power was likely some kind of tunneling or underground movement ability.

That meant his direct combat strength probably wasn't particularly impressive.

Liu Gangfeng remained silent.

Arrest him?

How?

The guy could move through solid ground.

Even if they somehow captured him, where would they imprison him?

Who knew whether any prisons were still functioning?

Yang Jiawei glanced around nervously.

The mutated plants surrounding the building looked more terrifying every day.

The place made him feel increasingly unsafe.

"Leader..."

"Let's head back."

...

The dimensional gate Jiang Fan had opened hastily this time missed its intended destination slightly.

Instead of arriving inside Yida Plaza, the exit appeared directly above the building.

Looking down, he estimated there was about 5 meters between him and the rooftop below.

The roof was packed with large air-conditioning units and various mechanical equipment.

If Tian Tian had opened this gate, it would have been a complete waste.

She would have had no way to safely get down.

For Jiang Fan, however, it was only a minor inconvenience.

He jumped out of the dimensional gate and landed steadily on top of one of the air-conditioning units.

Then he expanded his perception field.

A few seconds later, surprise appeared on his face.

Inside Yida Plaza, there were hundreds of survivors hiding.

"Why are they all gathered here?"

"There's barely any food left in this place."

Jiang Fan was puzzled.

People were scattered throughout various stores.

Every one of them was curled up in corners, hiding as if they were afraid of something.

Suddenly, his vigilance increased.

He carefully scanned the entire plaza again with his perception field.

Yet he still couldn't find anything unusual.

And yet...

His instincts were screaming that something was wrong.

There was no way hundreds of people would gather here without a reason.

Jiang Fan began to hesitate.

Should he leave immediately?

Just as he was considering it, a new lifeform entered his perception range.

It was an orange cat.

But its size was comparable to a large SUV.

The energy radiating from its body shone like a miniature sun.

Its presence was several times brighter than Jiang Fan's own energy signature.

Jiang Fan's expression immediately turned serious.

This was the strongest mutated beast he had encountered so far.

It was even stronger than the mutated frog at the Financial Center.

If Jiang Fan's combat power were rated as 1, then this giant orange cat would be at least 5.

Compared to it, the lazy husky back at home wasn't even qualified to be mentioned in the same breath.

That stupid dog became lazier every day.

It ate more and more, and its belly was already starting to sag.

A complete embarrassment among mutated beasts.

As for the giant crimson birds that had attacked the transport aircraft before, they had been outside his perception range.

He couldn't accurately judge their strength.

At that moment, the giant orange cat casually strolled into the main hall on the 1st floor.

It sat down.

Lazily licked one paw.

Then wandered deeper into Yida Plaza.

Suddenly—

It swung one of its claws toward a distant corner of the building.

Slash!

"AAAAAHHHHH!"

A young woman was violently dragged out from her hiding place as though she were nothing more than a toy...!

The young woman screamed in terror.

Struggling through the pain, she desperately tried to get back on her feet and run.

But before she could get far—

Smack!

The giant orange cat's paw lashed across her back again.

Her body tumbled across the floor 7 to 8 times before finally coming to a pitiful stop.

The orange cat happily bounded after her.

Then it crouched beside her.

Its large round eyes sparkled with curiosity.

Like a house cat playing with a mouse.

Gritting her teeth against the pain, the woman lay completely still.

She hoped that pretending to be dead would help her escape.

Unfortunately, the cat wasn't satisfied.

Whoosh!

A massive claw lifted her into the air.

At the same time, a deep gash was torn across her chest.

Fresh blood poured from the wound.

"AAAAHHHHHH!"

The woman screamed in agony.

Then she desperately crawled away.

The moment she moved, the orange cat became excited again.

It leisurely followed behind her.

It wasn't in a hurry to kill its prey.

Instead, it toyed with her as though she were its favorite plaything.

Whenever she tried to crawl into a corner, it would casually swat her back out.

Whenever she pretended to be dead, it would poke her with a claw until she moved again.

Then the game would continue.

Several minutes later, the woman finally died.

Her body lay motionless on the floor.

The orange cat nudged her several times with its paw.

When it realized there would be no further reaction, it lost interest.

Then it dragged another unfortunate survivor from a hiding place.

Played with them until they died.

Then found another.

And another.

And another.

...

After torturing 7 or 8 survivors and satisfying itself, the giant orange cat finally strolled out through the main entrance of Yida Plaza.

Completely unhurried.

...

Jiang Fan waited until the cat had completely left his perception range.

Only then did he phase upward through the floor and emerge on the 5th floor.

Originally, he had planned to leave immediately.

But then he discovered someone.

Song Siyin.

His ex-girlfriend.

Even from a distance, Jiang Fan recognized her instantly.

After dating for so long, he was familiar with every detail of her figure.

The orange cat was indeed stronger than the mutated frog.

Yet strangely enough, Jiang Fan considered it less dangerous.

The mutated frog could launch long-range attacks with its tongue from beyond his perception range.

Against that, he had almost no defense.

The orange cat was different.

It was only dangerous if it could get close enough to attack directly.

And even if that happened, Jiang Fan still had multiple ways to escape.

He could phase through the ground.

Or open a gate into the subspace dimension.

Either way, the cat wouldn't be able to do much to him.

This experience taught him something important.

Sometimes, the right ability mattered more than raw power.

...

Jiang Fan quickly searched the 5th floor.

There were almost no stores here.

Only the Yida Cinema occupied the entire level.

The building was engulfed in darkness.

The survivors hiding in various corners heard his footsteps.

But none of them dared to reveal themselves.

Jiang Fan didn't waste time.

He moved down to the 4th floor.

This floor had once been the restaurant section.

But every scrap of food had long since been scavenged away.

Then he phased through the floor to the 3rd level.

Heading directly toward Song Siyin's location.

It didn't take long before he arrived.

Jiang Fan pulled out a flashlight and shined it into the room.

Song Siyin and Song Yuanfan were lying on the floor.

Having spent so much time in darkness, they could barely open their eyes when the bright beam suddenly hit them.

Song Yuanfan immediately sat up.

Shielding his eyes with one hand, he shouted cautiously,

"Who's there?!"

"What do you want?!"

Song Siyin also struggled into a sitting position.

Her eyes narrowed painfully against the light.

She could only make out the silhouette of a man standing behind the beam.

His face remained hidden.

There were 2 other survivors in the room.

Both were men.

They stared at Jiang Fan with suspicion and wariness.

In times like these, who would openly walk around carrying a flashlight?

Wasn't he afraid of that monster cat?

In another corner of the room lay the bodies of a man and a woman.

The corpses had already begun to rot and emit a foul smell.

Jiang Fan looked at Song Siyin.

The woman before him was a far cry from the person he remembered.

Her hair was messy.

Her complexion was pale and sickly.

Her lips were cracked and dry.

There was no trace left of the attractive woman he once considered a solid 7 out of 10.

A thought crossed his mind.

"How did I ever fall for someone like this?"

Then he stepped into the room.

The moment he entered, a powerful stench assaulted his nose.

Clearly, the people inside had been relieving themselves right there in the room.

Jiang Fan frowned in disgust.

Then he spoke coldly.

"Song Siyin."

"You're still alive?"

"That's surprising."

Song Siyin froze.

Then her face lit up with joy.

"Jiang Fan?!"

"It really is you!"

"Hurry!"

"Give me food!"

"I'm starving!"

Jiang Fan laughed mockingly.

"Food?"

"And why exactly should I give any to you?"

He switched the flashlight into camping-lantern mode and placed it on a table.

Warm light filled the room.

For the first time, everyone could clearly see Jiang Fan.

His complexion was healthy.

His skin was clean.

His hair was neatly maintained.

His clothes were spotless.

He didn't look like someone surviving in a post-apocalyptic world at all.

Instead, he looked like a young man casually visiting a shopping mall on a weekend.

The 2 male survivors' eyes widened.

A man like this...

Definitely had food.

The two exchanged silent glances.

Greed flashed in their eyes.

At the same time, their hands slowly moved toward the knives hidden behind them.

Meanwhile, Song Siyin burst into tears of relief.

"I'm saved!"

"I'm finally saved!"

"Jiang Fan!"

"Why did it take you so long to come?!"

"Do you know how long I've been starving?"

"Hurry and give me food!"

"And get me out of here right now!"

Song Yuanfan also grabbed Jiang Fan's sleeve and shouted arrogantly,

"Hurry up!"

"Get me some water!"

"I'm dying of thirst!"

"What are you standing there for?!"

"Move!"

Boom!

A heavy impact echoed through the room.

Without the slightest hesitation, Jiang Fan raised his leg and drove a brutal kick straight into Song Yuanfan's stomach.