The end of the world is approaching, I'm handing myself over to the country.

The leading warrior lowered his gaze, looking at the hand that had grabbed him but slipped away helplessly. His face beneath the visor was so gloomy it could drip water.

He snorted coldly.

Such a precious medicine, you're going to give it to your dog?

How could she say that?!

Infections are occurring all over the country, but why haven't they gone viral online? It's because they've been dealt with promptly!

The life-saving medicine is now in extremely short supply.

It's not enough to save people, how could it be used on animals!

He raised his hand and pointed to the teddy bear that was still wagging its tail in place, seemingly unaware of what had happened.

"Get rid of it."

"Yes, Captain."

A soldier stepped forward and pulled a pistol from its leg holster. Teddy seemed to sense something was amiss, tucked its tail between its legs, and let out a whimper.

The captain stopped looking at the scene and turned to walk towards the armored vehicle.

His mind was filled with agitation.

They had already issued the highest-level stay-at-home order through all channels long ago.

I've emphasized it countless times in various ways: Don't go out, don't go out.

Fresh supplies are delivered to our doorstep daily by a dedicated person.

Let them stay at home in peace.

Why is this simple request so difficult to fulfill?

There are always some people who are self-righteous and think that rules are set for others.

I thought that since I was only gone for a short while, it wouldn't be such a coincidence that something bad would happen.

But as fate would have it, trouble struck as soon as they went out.

But when something happens to them, they don't blame themselves.

They would think it's someone else's problem.

Moreover, when they get into trouble, they demand that the whole world make way for them and satisfy all their unrealistic demands.

On what grounds?

If only these people were more obedient and stayed home quietly.

These field combat personnel don't have to deal with this kind of trivial matter every day.

Their mission is to eliminate the infected roaming the city and maintain the stability of the safe zone, not to babysit these unruly giant babies!

......

The events of that day were merely a trivial microcosm.

There are always some self-righteous people who don't listen and sneak out.

It was as if this unconventionality could prove their bravery.

In the following few days, videos of all sorts of rabid dogs and cats attacking humans appeared one after another on the internet.

In a video, a normally docile golden retriever suddenly went berserk and knocked its owner to the ground while the owner was feeding it.

The video abruptly ended with a bloody and mangled scene.

Another surveillance video shows a stray cat darting out from behind a trash can like a black shadow, leaping directly onto a passerby's neck and biting wildly.

But most of these people had one thing in common: they had all sneaked out of the house.

Panic is spreading.

All the survivors are discussing when this sudden virus will end.

Will they be able to return to their peaceful lives of the past?

In contrast to the strict controls in China, the internet outside the country has long been a true hell.

On the streets, zombies roamed freely, and scenes of various zombies chasing people were rampant.

Horror movies are playing out every day.

......

Until the seventh day.

It was as if an invisible hand had pressed the pause button on the Dragon Kingdom, and then suddenly pushed it in an unexpected direction.

The cause was a virtual reality game called "Wasteland Era".

This game was already incredibly popular in China before the disaster struck. After the disaster, the Chinese government even forced players who had secured a spot to play the game.

And it has been promoted on multiple platforms.

That afternoon, a scarlet system announcement popped up in front of all online players at the same time.

[Wasteland Era will undergo a version update in ten minutes. Update content: New Era.]

"What's going on? Forced update?"

"New Era? That name sounds a bit intimidating."

The game's world chat channel instantly exploded.

Countless players who were fighting monsters or trading in the safe zone were caught off guard by this sudden announcement.

Ten minutes later, the game screen went black on time and entered update mode.

This has never happened before.

In the past, updates were always announced in advance, and players were given enough time to log off.

In many cases, players don't even realize the game has been updated until it's already been released.

It's as if they're afraid of being discovered by the players.

But this forced update has an unusual feel to it.

Online, the survivors idly scrolled through their phones, waiting for the game to restart.

An hour later, the game login screen finally lit up.

Countless players couldn't wait to put on their devices and re-enter that familiar wasteland world.

However, when they entered the game, they found that the game content did not seem to have changed much.

"Is this all there is to the new era? All talk and no action."

"You fooled me; I thought a new map was coming out."

Just as everyone was discussing it, thinking it was just a routine maintenance, a brand new item quietly appeared in an inconspicuous corner of the remote shop.

【Pet Egg (Servant Class)】

This isn't really big news; many games have pet systems.

But what truly froze people's blood and drove the world into a frenzy was the new feature highlighted in gold lettering below the remote store.

[Items Cash Withdrawal]

In an instant, all the players who saw this line of text thought they were seeing things, or that the game company's programmers had written the wrong code.

Can virtual items be withdrawn to real-world value?

What kind of fantastical story is this?

However, when they clicked on the detailed description, every word felt like a heavy hammer blow to their hearts.

[Example of withdrawal instructions:]

[1. Withdrawal Items: Pet Egg (Servant Level) and its accompanying food (enough to grow the pet to maturity).]

2. Withdrawal Price: 10 Source Crystals (including pet egg and animal food).

[3. Withdrawal conditions: In addition to the product itself, an additional 200 spending points are required.]

[4. Earning Points: You will earn one point for every Source Crystal you spend in the game.]

silence.

A deathly silence.

After a brief silence came a volcanic eruption.

"Holy crap?! Really?!"

"Bringing pet eggs into the real world? What a joke!"

"200 spending points means I have to spend 200 Source Crystals in the game before I can withdraw them? Isn't that just a disguised spending threshold?"

"Hey upstairs, is this the time to discuss the threshold? The point is withdrawals! Withdrawals!"

In an instant, the entire Dragon Kingdom, all the survivors still playing "Wasteland Era," went crazy.

This news was so outrageous and subversive that 99% of people's first reaction was disbelief.

They felt this was just a gimmick created by a game company that was desperate for money in the post-apocalyptic world.

"It's definitely fake. It's so absurd, did they even consult Newton in his coffin?!"

"Exactly, how can virtual data possibly become physical matter? Do they think we're idiots?"

However, there are always some people who are not short of money, or rather, who dare to try.

After all, recent events have been outrageous enough, so even if they become even more outrageous, it doesn't seem so hard to accept.

Half an hour after the announcement was issued.

On the Wasteland forum, a player with the ID "Turkey Flavored Rice Crackers" posted a video thread.

The post title contains only one word.

Witness a Miracle