The whole weird world is waiting for me to go to heaven

Chapter 988 Instantaneous Journey (Part 3)

Old Zhang had lived a long time and experienced the events before and after the catastrophe, so much of what he said was based on his own experience.

Of course, it also contained some boasting and exaggeration after drinking, some wistful reminiscences of the past, and some hearsay that was hard to distinguish between truth and falsehood.

But for Liu Sheng and Qiao Yu, two outsiders who knew nothing about this place, this was already excellent popular science.

"So, this is Colony Planet 1444 under the Federal Empire. Originally, this planet was very rich and well-developed, and had even entered the interstellar age."

Liu Sheng recalled Old Zhang's drunken talk about "interstellar delivery" and his fragmented reminiscences of his glorious past, "I guess Old Zhang really did go to space and could deliver packages in the universe..."

"Until the bizarre outbreak, the power system failed, and technology regressed to its current state, interstellar delivery will eventually become a thing of the past."

Qiao Yu nodded: "That's right, it's the same in my hometown. After the strange outbreak, electricity became the most unreliable thing."

After comparing the information, the two concluded that the technological level here was roughly equivalent to that of the former colonies in the western hemisphere of Liu Sheng's home planet—but the difference was that her home planet was a copy, and they didn't know where the original was.

“Strangely,” Qiao Yu frowned, “the cold night here is only in its early stages; it hasn’t completely enveloped us yet.”

"This shows that the strange development was too fast. Before it had fully entered the Cold Night stage, it had already completely destroyed the world."

Liu Sheng's expression darkened.

"No wonder the public is so resentful of the Special Affairs Bureau. A group of people with so-called 'special abilities'—who are actually just a new kind of human being who has been corrupted—are unable to fight against these supernatural phenomena."

Qiao Yu added, "In Old Zhang's words, it's a complete waste of taxpayers' money."

"Perhaps it was because of this pressure, or because of orders from above, that the Special Bureau took a desperate gamble and actually used nuclear weapons to eliminate the supernatural." Liu Sheng's voice grew heavier as he spoke. "As a result, vast swathes of land were razed to the ground, and the humans who are still barely surviving on the surface are suffering greatly from the effects of the supernatural and nuclear radiation..."

As she spoke, she couldn't help but glance at the empty seat next to her, her eyes twitching slightly, revealing a look of reluctance.

If she founded the Special Affairs Bureau, she shouldn't have made such a mistake...

Perhaps, this unusual situation will occur regardless of whether you exist or not, which is why the "OOC monster" won't interfere.

The voice of "the world" resounded in her heart.

Or perhaps it's the same extraordinary situation, just with unknowable changes; there are too many timelines and too many variables.

Yes, you're right.

"In short, this is the main reason for the world's destruction," Qiao Yu said through gritted teeth. "Even the Federal Empire has abandoned this colony. Those who could leave have already left, so there are no spaceships left."

Liu Sheng nodded: "However, they can still use StarNet, perhaps because the StarNet signal originates from a relay station in deep space, rather than a ground base station."

"However, we don't know how far away this relay station is, which causes the latency to be extremely high. According to Old Zhang, it takes at least 24 hours to receive a message, and it can only be transmitted between people on the same planet."

"In addition, you can also go to forums, post blogs, watch videos and live streams, etc. But again, everything you can see is delayed. And it's all local content. Before, you could see content transmitted from other star systems, but now you can't see it at all."

“Even so, for humanity in the apocalypse… it’s enough.” Qiao Yu murmured, looking down. “At least we can still feel connected to each other and know that we are not alone.”

Liu Sheng patted her on the shoulder to comfort her.

"But in contrast, there are humans like you who survive and have a certain chance of awakening 'special abilities,' or in our knowledge system, they are called 'new humans.'"

"On the StarNet, there is now a lot of content about popular science and classification of this special ability, as well as training courses that teach people how to acquire special abilities."

"Because, to be honest, only a small number of people can actually gain abilities. Most of the superhumans are like Old Zhang, who only have physical enhancements and increased resistance."

“That’s why Old Zhang can continue working in the courier industry, which is now considered a high-income profession.” Liu Sheng shook his head and sighed. “According to him, many of his former colleagues can no longer travel on these eerie roads, or they’re already dead…”

“Including this road, now he’s the only one running it… Most of the people who transported supplies to Jiahe Village with him back then are no longer here.”

"Those with stronger and more special abilities will be selected for the Special Affairs Bureau. Although the income is good, they will face greater dangers because when people encounter danger, the Special Affairs Bureau is often the first to confront their fears."

"The problem is that due to communication delays, regional blockades, and route disruptions, the Special Bureau is actually unable to arrive in time. In cases like Jiahe Village, people are usually sent to clean up only after someone reports the incident—often a deliveryman.

“But what’s the use? The person is gone…” Qiao Yu said in a low voice.

“That’s right.” Liu Sheng shook his head. “Now the Special Affairs Bureau doesn’t do such thankless work anymore, so it’s become what Old Zhang calls ‘eating for nothing’.”

……

When Old Zhang slowly woke up to the artificial seafood smell, he opened his eyes and saw Liu Sheng and Qiao Yu slurping instant noodles, the steam rising in front of them.

The moment he moved, his head felt like it had been hit by a hammer because of the hangover, but his stomach rumbled loudly, expressing its most honest need.

Liu Sheng and Qiao Yu immediately looked over upon hearing the sound.

"I just heated up a pot of water. You can make yourself a bowl of instant noodles for breakfast," Liu Sheng chuckled, pointing to the stove.

"Ah, that's great! When I was young, a bowl of instant noodles after a hangover was so comforting!"

Old Zhang quickly grabbed the boiling kettle, made himself a bowl of shrimp and fish cake noodles, and took out his phone to watch some videos to pass the time.

At this moment, Liu Sheng asked, "Old man, are you going back to the city later?"

"Yes, I have to report this to the Special Affairs Bureau—oh, right, you can handle that, I don't need to do it this time! But I also have to go back to the company to report the losses. What bad luck, this month's bonus is gone."

"Then can we go back with you on our way?"

"Of course, I couldn't be happier!"

With two experts from the "Special Bureau" traveling with him, he wasn't afraid of anything suddenly appearing along the way.

But before he could finish speaking, he couldn't help but probe, "Don't you two have a mission to complete?"

After all, as mentioned yesterday, the Special Affairs Bureau basically doesn't deploy unless there's a specific reason, and when they do, it's only because there are strange entities to eliminate.

"When dealing with matters handled by the Special Bureau, there's no need to ask too many questions," Liu Sheng said, adopting a mysterious expression.

"Yes Yes Yes."

Old Zhang nodded repeatedly.

I don't know what they think in private.

But Liu Sheng, with her sharp ears, vaguely heard Old Zhang, who was organizing supplies outside, muttering to himself:
"As expected, they're putting on airs and acting all mysterious. I didn't expect them to have picked up this bad habit at such a young age. The Special Affairs Bureau is hopeless."

The village had been cleaned up, so Old Zhang was naturally rummaging through every house for supplies without any scruples. If his three-wheeled vehicle hadn't been too small and had to leave room for the two experts, he would have wanted to empty the entire village.

After huffing and puffing for half a day, the three-wheeled vehicle was practically piled with sweat, creating a small mountain on top. Old Zhang wiped the sweat from his brow and said sheepishly:

"Sigh, it's a waste to leave these things here. We might as well take them back and sell them. That way, we can recycle resources and help the living."

“Of course, you’re right.” Liu Sheng said, gently squeezing her drooping hand as if to comfort her.

Old Zhang immediately noticed the movement, as if he clenched his fist, and a cold sweat broke out on his forehead. He hurriedly smiled ingratiatingly and said, "Don't worry, we'll split the profits 20/80. I'll take 20%, and the two of you will take 80% in total."

He was very considerate, and to make sure that Liu Sheng and Qiao Yu didn't have enough to go around, he specially gave them an extra 10%.

Old Zhang really knows how to handle people. Liu Sheng didn't refuse.

Compared to Old Zhang, who had struggled his whole life, she and Qiao Yu were penniless here and needed some start-up capital. Otherwise, they would have trouble with food, clothing, shelter, and transportation once they arrived in the city.

The two even changed out of their Tang Dynasty clothes and into thermal underwear and windbreakers they found in the house, and put their original clothes into their storage bags.

Remembering that Old Zhang had said the clothes weren't cheap, I thought I could try selling them in the city to make some money.

Although their storage bags contained many array plates, talismans, magical artifacts, and high-level materials, they were unsure whether this world, which only understood "special abilities," could recognize their value.

And it wouldn't be good if it attracted the attention of "OOC monsters".

Therefore, we still need to be cautious when making a move.

……

At noon, the three left Jiahe Village.

Liu Sheng and Qiao Yu squeezed into a mountain of supplies, with a three-wheeled vehicle pulling a cart, also piled high with goods.

Liu Sheng deliberately left a small gap beside her, using her hand to protect herself from being bumped by the towering bundles on either side.

Old Zhang was clearly happy.

Instead of playing that repetitive advertisement over and over again, the loudspeaker played a festive song, humming off-key to highlight his "bumper harvest."

However, the lively melody mixed with the cold wind of the desolate wilderness only made the surroundings seem more desolate and lonely.

This incongruous joy lasted for a while.

Until a row of nails lay across the road ahead.

Without Liu Sheng needing to remind him, Old Zhang quickly stopped the car.

It seemed like I had expected this all along, and I don't know how many times I've encountered this before.

"Why are they stopping me here today? Usually it's in the north section..." he muttered to himself.

"Who?" Liu Sheng asked.

"Shh—" Old Zhang whispered, "Don't speak, don't move, hide well. This is... a holdout."

"Holdout residents?"

"You haven't heard of it?" Old Zhang asked in surprise.

"Hey, we're not from this area."

"Anyway, this guy is ridiculously strong and hates the Special Affairs Bureau... Even senior investigators who come here never come back. We'd better not mess with him."

The implication was that Old Zhang didn't think Liu Sheng and Qiao Yu could handle this unseen "holdout," and that their appearance would only provoke the other party and make things worse.

Liu Sheng readily agreed: "Understood."

At this moment, Old Zhang coughed lightly, turned off the music, and shouted at the top of his lungs, "Alright, stop with the nonsense, how much do you want?"

Accompanied by the crunching sound of footsteps on gravel, a person wearing a metal skull mask emerged from behind the rocks, his eyes hidden behind sunglasses, a wicked smile playing on his lips.

"Hey, Lao Zhang, no wonder you're so happy, it turns out you've had a bumper harvest!"

Old Zhang gripped the handlebars tightly, without replying.

The other party then said, "I'm not greedy. Just leave the rest of the goods in the back of the truck."

"Isn't this...too much?"

"It's not much, just a third. Isn't this just our...little unspoken understanding?"

Old Zhang gritted his teeth and said, "This is something I moved here with great difficulty. There are still some in Jiahe Village, but no one's there anymore. You can go and move it..."

“Unlike you, I don’t have a three-wheeled vehicle blessed by Wanfo Temple. I can’t carry much, so you might as well deliver it to my door. Isn’t that your job as a courier?”

"Everyone else pays for shipping! What's this compared to what you've done!"

"We've known each other for a long time," the man said with a wicked smile.

"My... my wife is still lying in bed, waiting for money for medical treatment..." Old Zhang said in a low voice.

"Hehe, who doesn't need medical treatment? I'm also waiting for money for surgery! If you don't want to give me the goods, you can exchange them for money, just like we agreed before."

"But I really... I can only give you 30% at most..."

"Thirty percent? Do you take me for a beggar?"

The man immediately lost his patience, ripped off his sunglasses, and stared with a pair of eyes without eyelids, their snow-white eyeballs pierced with iron nails, looking both terrifying and ferocious.

"I was only being patient with you because you're older, but you're still trying to argue with me... Are you tired of living?!"

The nails on the ground suddenly stood up, like a giant metal net rushing towards Old Zhang.

It got tangled in the wheels, then climbed one by one onto the seat, and was about to climb onto Old Zhang's windbreaker.

Old Zhang trembled all over and opened his mouth to beg for mercy.

result--

Whoosh!
A golden light shot out and flew towards the holdout household.

Caught off guard, the holdout raised his hand and conjured a dense shield of nails. However, the golden light was incredibly sharp, piercing straight through the shield and stabbing fiercely towards his door.

He rolled to the side, awkwardly avoiding the danger.

When he looked up again, his face was filled with a ferocious expression.

Oops!

Old Zhang felt a chill in his heart.

"Well, Old Zhang, you've brought a surprise this time..." The holdout looked at Liu Sheng and Qiao Yu, who had emerged from behind the pile of packages, and sneered, "Judging from their arrogant expressions, they must be from the Special Affairs Bureau, right?"

"I just happened to run into..." Old Zhang quickly distanced himself, "We don't know each other..."

"is it?"

"Heh, it doesn't matter anyway. I don't even know how many leaders of the Special Affairs Bureau I've killed. Just two young girls..."

He licked his lips, his eyes filled with malice. "Old Zhang, don't worry, once I've dealt with them, it'll be your turn!"

Amidst a cold laugh, a large mass of scrap metal soared into the air, transforming into a torrent of metal like a sudden storm, roaring towards Liu Sheng and Qiao Yu!
(End of this chapter)