The Last 299 Days of Humanity

Surrounded by Chang Sheng and other high-ranking officials, Yu Qing entered the heart of Shengtian Group's headquarters—the central control room, shrouded in mystery and countless rumors.

This is the only channel through which all of Shengtian Group's administrative orders gain legal recognition, and also the only entry point for obtaining administrative resources and budgetary funds.

For nearly two centuries, legends about it have been passed down and embellished, to the point that it has long been deified, and no one dares to question or challenge it. In reality, however, it is merely a cold and ruthless supercomputing and control center.

Unfortunately, it was a system personally built by Yu Yunshan, and it bore the mark of his ruthlessness from beginning to end. Once the self-check found that someone had not completed the instruction output according to the procedure, the consequences ranged from permanently losing their job at Shengtian to encountering an inexplicable "accidental disaster".

Legend has it that seventy years ago, an employee deliberately toyed with the system. After three warnings, he not only refused to submit a report but even uploaded an image of a beautiful woman with her buttocks sticking out. Subsequently, his terminal suddenly exploded, and the employee was instantly torn to pieces.

When Yu Bu entered this place, he knew better than anyone how powerful this thing was. It was not only an extension of the old man's power, but also a manifestation of his morbid obsession with wealth and control—of course, it was also extremely efficient and reliable, a ruthless and powerful executor.

Once activated, this system has been impossible to shut down or replace for five hundred years. Countless destructive weapons in the sky, on the ground, and underwater are connected to it, and once it receives a specific command, or if it does not receive a command for seventy-two consecutive hours, it will initiate a frenzied retaliatory program.

Because of its terrifying power, the government at the time had to use national defense forces to protect it, lest it suffer even the slightest mishap.

The old man used this system to hold the world hostage. No one dared to say "no" to him. Later, laws were even enacted globally to prohibit any company from building a similar system.

At this moment, on the huge circular holographic screen, data flowed like a waterfall, silently proclaiming the smallest pulse of this business empire.

When Yu Qing stepped into the command area, the air seemed to freeze. All eyes were on him, waiting for him to complete the final step—binding biometric information to the highest administrative authority—a symbolic power transfer ceremony.

Yu Qing calmly raised his hand, facing the control system. The cool fluorescent light illuminated his seemingly composed profile. He stood motionless, a simulated auspicious cloud swirling around him, performing biometric authentication. The cloud changed from grayish-white to pink—authentication successful.

"Please read your activation command using lip reading, Your Excellency Chairman," the control system prompted in a soft female voice.

Yu Qing took a deep breath and silently read out the complex code his assistant had prepared beforehand. Throughout the entire process, he performed flawlessly, just like a true king about to assume absolute power.

However, the instant he finished inputting the command, he used the angle of his body to cover himself and very naturally and gently reached the index finger of his other hand towards an inconspicuous sensor area on the side of the reader.

His fingernails were coated with an "invisible key" provided by his assistant—supposedly capable of bypassing all conventional checks. This was the "backdoor" he truly trusted, ensuring his firm grip on power.

The instruction transmission is complete, and the key has been sent out silently.

I stopped, stood with my hands behind my back, waiting for the system's overwhelming response, for the notification that permissions were fully granted, and for the suppressed cheers of the elites behind me.

one second.

two seconds.

……

The expected system notification tone did not sound.

The data flowing on the circular screen seemed to pause slightly, then... everything returned to normal. Nothing changed.

There was no notification of unlocked new permissions, no grand animation welcoming the new user, nothing at all.

The control center seemed to have only let out a minor hiccup before continuing to operate at its original rhythm—just like all of Yu Qing's previous actions, which were nothing more than a pebble thrown into the deep sea, without causing the slightest ripple.

The control room was eerily silent. The air, which had been brimming with anticipation just moments before, had suddenly become as stiff as iron. The executives exchanged bewildered glances, their eyes filled with confusion and barely perceptible speculation.

System malfunction? Or... has it stopped working?

Yu Qing's heart sank. Failure? Broken? Or was the key the assistant gave her wrong? Did she make a mistake when applying it to my nails? Or was it recognized by the system, but silently rejected because of some detail that wasn't right?
His mind raced, but his face remained calm, though a slight furrow in his brow betrayed just the right amount of "confusion."

Just as the silence was about to engulf everyone, Chang Sheng suddenly stepped forward.

His face still wore that usual, slightly humble smile, and his voice, clear and steady, pierced the deathly silence:

"Gentlemen, the full activation of the highest level of privileges involves the group's most core security protocols, which will require additional time to process. Furthermore, there will be some highly confidential initialization information that should not be disclosed and can only be known to me and the chairman."

He turned to the crowd and made an elegant yet undeniable gesture:

"To express our anticipation for the future glory of Shengtian under the Chairman's leadership, please wait outside. Let us prepare our applause and cheers—we will welcome the arrival of a truly new era for Shengtian with the most enthusiastic voices!"

Chang Sheng's words were watertight, explaining the current "stuttering" and giving it a rationale, while also cleverly providing everyone with a way out.

The crowd immediately smiled again, nodded in understanding, and whispered amongst themselves as they retreated one by one, as if the awkward interlude had never happened.

The heavy, soundproof door slowly closed, shutting out the faint cheers that were brewing outside.

Inside the door, only Yu Qing and Chang Sheng remained, along with the still-silent light screen displaying flowing data.

The air instantly shifted from public awkwardness to a private and tense silence. Chang Sheng's smile faded slightly, and his gaze towards Yu Qing became deep and unfathomable.

“Your Excellency Chairman,” his voice deepened, losing its previous smoothness and becoming more inquisitive, “it seems that the system integration… encountered some unexpected problems?”

Yu Qing did not answer immediately. He raised his head, his sharp gaze sweeping across the light screen before slowly returning to Chang Sheng's face.

Inside the control room, only the faint, silent glow of the data stream illuminated the silhouettes of the two men, each lost in their own thoughts.

Yu Qing spoke softly, "You know, if I can't take over smoothly, something terrible will happen at midnight on December 31st..." Chang Sheng shook his head, "Please don't doubt me. This secret is only between the two of us, and we can't let more people know now, otherwise it will cause panic. Allow me to ask a question... are you sure there were no omissions in the operation just now?"

Yu Qing said, “No. In fact, I have already obtained the highest level of access elsewhere using the same procedure—as you know. The administrative management system is just a command subsystem under the power structure. I don’t need it to ‘open permissions,’ I just need to log in.”

“What you say makes sense. Actually, what I originally understood was that as soon as you entered here, it would automatically take over, without any of those operations you just did. If that’s really the case… then the problem is serious. Someone has tampered with it.”

"To tell you the truth, the old man is too shrewd. He was worried that I would be controlled by others, so he claimed that I would take over automatically without having to do anything. In fact, the opposite is true. I had to complete all the procedures without missing a single step."

Yu Qing sighed and said, "To be honest, in the current situation, you seem to be the biggest beneficiary. I can no longer substantially give you any pointers. Do you have an explanation?"

Chang Sheng was sweating profusely with anxiety and hurriedly protested, "It really has nothing to do with me! To be honest, I've dreamed of replacing it for years, but I haven't dared to touch a single screw! We were even afraid of breaking it, so we built an additional parallel system..."

"Is it to bypass its control and create something else?"

“We didn’t intend to bypass it. We simply use a parallel system to perform substantive management operations while mirroring all processes back to it to reduce the damage or waste caused by its direct contact with people.”

Yu Qing sneered: "You should say that you've always wanted to avoid it, but you haven't been able to. There are some things you can't possibly mirror onto it—for example, you once tried to kill me."

Chang Sheng hurriedly defended himself: "I never intended to kill you, really. I did think of making you a vegetable... I am very ashamed of this, and I apologize to you again..."

“I understand that we don’t need to bring up the past. But what about now? How are you going to explain this to everyone? Can you clear your name?”

Chang Sheng sighed and said, "I really can't clear my name from outsiders. But as you know, doing this will only lead to mutual destruction in the end, and there will be no benefit for me."

"Whether we can clear our name or not is secondary. The real problem is that we don't know where the problem lies, who tampered with it, or whether there will be any follow-up."

“It must have been done by the people from Shengdi! Only they…” Chang Sheng said bitterly.

"Are you so sure? I don't think so. Take this attack on me, for example, was it also the work of people from Shengdi?"

"That's not true. Our people didn't detect any unusual activity from them. Moreover, the weapons those people were using were manufactured by Shengtian more than a hundred years ago!"

"So, this means there's a third force that wants to take action against us. I just came from the First Paradise not long ago, and I have no grudges against anyone. Is it really necessary for me to make such a big fuss? This can only mean that they're after Sheng Tian."

"Is that so? But who could it be... who could it be..."

Yu Qing interrupted, "Blindly speculating is pointless. Let's think about what to do next. Sigh, it seems we can only deceive everyone for now."

"Deceive? How can I deceive?"

"To prevent the heir from being coerced, the old man pre-installed a second set of procedures. But once it is activated, the system will indeed allow me to take over, but it will also immediately awaken all dormant weapons and logic bombs."

Then, no one in the company's administrative systems will be able to stop them. At that point, whether I'm alive or dead, they will automatically launch an attack. Unless... I personally go to that place and perform the cancellation operation again.

"The old man's former residence?"

Chang Sheng was unaware of the existence of the "Ultimate Office," so Yu Qing responded, "Since you already know, I won't say any more."

Chang Sheng muttered to himself, "No wonder... how could Yu Guiyi have died there..."

Yu Qing was startled: "You even know about Yu Guiyi?"

"Please don't misunderstand, I didn't know this person before. It was after you executed him that his father frantically searched for him in Manqiong Mountain, saying he had disappeared, which is how we found out about this. I admire... you handled it beautifully."

"Let's get back to the present. Our fates are now intertwined. Do you think we should activate the second procedure?"

“I think so. But you must go to Qiongshan as soon as possible to put those things back into hibernation.”

In fact, the second program is more complex than the first, and it also requires Yu Qing to perform a pushing motion with both hands. Because this program is compressed into a special node and has never been opened, the possibility of it being tampered with is zero.

After Yu Qing initiated the second set of procedures as required, the system quickly gained control and disguised itself as the first set of procedures to continue executing all the original instructions.

A holographic image of a successful takeover immediately appeared in the air, followed by a giant image of Yu Yunshan reading the authorization letter in a deep, authoritative voice. Chang Sheng immediately opened the control room door, inviting everyone to witness this moment.

The waiting crowd outside erupted in thunderous cheers and applause. Every senior executive of the group was filled with excitement and relief, exchanging excited and admiring glances, as if they had just crossed a historic threshold together.

The holographic image of Yu Yunshan seemed to have descended to earth, with piercing eyes and a resounding voice. Every syllable echoed in everyone's heart, arousing their awe of the old authority and their expectation for the new order.

Chang Sheng was the first to bow, his voice loud and sincere: "Congratulations to Chairman Yu Qing on officially taking over Shengtian!" This was like a command, and more people bowed to congratulate him, their voices converging into a wave of loyalty.

Colorful holographic ribbons and the logo symbolizing Shengtian Group intertwined and bloomed in the air, enveloping the originally cold technical space in a warm atmosphere.

Yu Qing stood in the center of the light, his expression still calm, yet a raised hand conveyed an air of complete control and authority. However, a slight tension and unease lingered within him.
People crowded around him, vying to shake his hand and offer their congratulations, as if at that moment they had truly witnessed the arrival of a new era.

People are always tired of the same old routine and fantasize that everything will be fresh when they wake up tomorrow morning, even though often it's just a change in appearance but nothing has actually changed.

Beyond this jubilation, in the sky, on land, and deep in the ocean, various destructive tools of different types, dormant for nearly two hundred years, are slowly emerging from their slumber into a terrifying state of readiness.

On that still-calmly operating light screen, data continued to flow silently, as if nothing had changed, yet everything had already subtly shifted. (End of Chapter)