In the apocalypse, I hoarded goods and handed over my storage space to the government.

Time: The red rain arrives on the fourth day, at 03:00 AM.

Kunlun No. 1 Base, core strategic command hall.

Even with the fresh air system running at maximum power, it still couldn't completely remove the strong mixture of tobacco, coffee, and anxious sweat.

On the huge holographic map, the green dots that originally represented safety are now surrounded by the vast expanse of deep red outside.

"How long has the commander been asleep?"

Su Ran stood in front of the command console, holding a cup of strong tea that had gone cold, her gaze fixed on an inconspicuous corner of the screen.

"I just fell asleep less than twenty minutes ago."

Li Guodong rubbed his bloodshot eyes, his voice hoarse as if he had swallowed a handful of sand.

"The old man had been working non-stop for twenty hours. His heart rate just alarmed, and the military doctor had to give him a sedative and carry him away."

"Um."

Su Ran nodded, her eyes unwavering. "Let him sleep. What he sees next will shorten his lifespan."

Li Guodong's hand, which was about to light a cigarette, paused. His keen professional instincts made his back tense instantly: "What do you mean? What are you going to do?"

"It's not that I'm going to do anything, it's that someone is going to help me verify that cruel truth."

Su Ran raised her hand and gently tapped her fingertip on a coordinate on the holographic map.

"Beep, beep, beep!"

There was no warning whatsoever.

The green indicator light, which originally represented "safety," suddenly turned into a glaring scarlet in the lower right corner of the screen!

That's shelter number 034, located in Hengyang, a medium-sized shelter in central China.

Capacity: 80,000.

"What's going on?!"

Li Guodong's teacup trembled, and scalding tea spilled onto the back of his hand, but he was completely unaware.

The screen instantly switched to the internal surveillance footage of Shelter No. 034.

D-sector living quarters.

The once orderly dormitory has now become a living hell.

"Ah!! Help! That's my child! Don't shoot! Please!"

"Monster! It's a monster! It's biting people! Old Zhang has been bitten!"

"Don't push! The door won't open! Let us out!"

The surveillance footage shook violently, and blood splattered onto the lens like ink.

Through the bloodstains, you can see a little girl, about seven or eight years old, wearing pink pajamas, clinging to her mother's neck.

No, not lying down.

It is gnawing on something.

The girl's jawbone had split open all the way to her earlobe, revealing two rows of sharp, shark-like teeth. Each tear brought up large chunks of flesh and blood.

After the initial scream, the mother's body began to convulse violently, and a deathly aura spread across her face at a visible speed.

Just ten seconds.

The mother stopped struggling, suddenly rolled over, and bit the arm of the father who was trying to pull the girl away.

"How the hell is this possible?!"

A general in charge of biochemical monitoring stood up in alarm. "They underwent three full-body disinfection procedures before being put into storage! Even their hair was tested! Where did the virus come from?!"

The technician's fingers flew across the screen, rewinding the footage to three minutes earlier.

In the corner, the little girl hid under the covers and quietly pulled open a corner of her schoolbag.

A hamster the size of a palm popped out.

The once adorable pet now had bloodshot eyes, two bone spurs growing from its back, and it bit the girl's finger.

"pet……"

Li Guodong's pupils constricted sharply. "Haven't we been repeatedly warned against bringing any live animals into the shelter? What's the security checkpoint doing?!"

"human nature."

Su Ran coldly uttered two words, "There are always people who think they are an exception, who think that the little cutie hidden in the backpack won't be a big deal."

On the screen, the tragedy continues to escalate.

"Report! A zombie horde has broken out in Sector D of Shelter 034! The infection rate is extremely fast! More than thirty people have already mutated!"

"The D-sector command requests instructions! There are 600 civilians on site! They are all elderly, weak, women, and children! The civilians are attempting to break through the isolation gate and escape to Sector C!"

"We...we can't bring ourselves to do it!"

Over the communications channel came the agonizing cry of the frontline commander, No. 034: "Commander! This is Wang Weimin, No. 034! Requesting backup! Can we only isolate the infected? Those are children! And pregnant women! How can I order the shooting?!"

The command center was in chaos.

Everyone instinctively looked towards the head of the table.

The old man is still resting.

"Wake up the commander!"

A lieutenant general gritted his teeth, "Such a big matter must be decided by the commander!"

"No! The commander's body can't take it!" Li Guodong blocked the way.

"What do we do then? That's 80,000 people! Once Sector D falls, the entire 034 is finished!"

The sounds of arguing, alarms, and cries filled the air.

Chaos spread like a plague.

"Have you had enough of arguing?"

A cold voice abruptly cut into the boiling pot.

Su Ran sat in the deputy commander's chair in the corner, then stood up.

"Wang Weimin."

Su Ran took the microphone, her voice eerily calm, "I am Su Ran. I am now taking command of Shelter 034."

The sound was transmitted instantly via communication to Shelter 034, thousands of miles away.

"Advisor Su...?"

Wang Weimin on the other end was clearly taken aback. "Please advise! When will the medical team arrive...?"

"There is no medical team."

Su Ran interrupted him, her tone as if she were reading a death sentence.

"On my command: immediately lower all airtight isolation gates in Zone D and physically sever all ventilation ducts between this area and the main living area."

"Order the supervisory team stationed in Zone D to proceed without screening or warning."

Su Ran paused for a second, her gaze sweeping over the shocked faces in the hall before finally settling on the crowd on the screen who were still crying and begging for help.

"Use flamethrowers for comprehensive, indiscriminate cleaning."

Wang Weimin's voice suddenly became shrill, "Advisor Su, are you crazy?! That's over six hundred lives! Half of them are women and children! You want me to set them on fire and burn them to death?!"

In the command hall, all the generals and staff officers looked at Su Ran in horror.

That's too ruthless.

Those are living, breathing people, not just data!

Li Guodong rushed forward and grabbed Su Ran's shoulder, veins bulging on the back of his hand: "Su Ran! We can't do this! We can isolate them first! As long as we find out who's infected..."

"It's too late."

Su Ran flung Li Guodong's hand away and pointed at the countdown on the screen.

"Four minutes and eighteen seconds have passed since the first infection. The number of infected people has spread from 1 to 156."

"At this rate of mutation, there's simply no time for physical isolation. Mass infections are only a matter of time."

Su Ran turned around, her gaze sharp as a knife, staring intently into Li Guodong's eyes. Her voice, though not loud, was deafening.

"Director Li, are you willing to sacrifice the remaining 79,000 people for the sake of these 600 potentially infected 'innocent' individuals?"

Li Guodong froze.

This is an unsolvable trolley problem.

On one side are six hundred precious lives, and on the other is the survival of the entire shelter.

But in the end times, there is no perfect solution.

"Wang Weimin, I won't say it a second time."

Su Ran picked up the microphone again, her tone chilling, "If you can't bring yourself to do it, I'll immediately remotely lock down Sector D and initiate a self-destruct sequence. Then it won't just be Sector D that dies; you'll also face a military court."

"Execute the command!"

A loud shout echoed through the communication network to Shelter 034, thousands of miles away.

There was a deathly silence on the other end of the communication line.

Then came a desperate scream, followed by the sound of something heavy slamming against the wall.

"Supervisory team... listen to my command..."

Wang Weimin's voice seemed to age ten years in an instant, filled with endless trembling and sobs.

"Seal off the gates."

"Flame bombers...ready."

On the screen, the heavy alloy gate crashed down, completely shutting out the heart-wrenching cries, the roars of zombies, and the countless bloody hands pounding on the bulletproof glass from Sector D.

Those who hadn't been infected yet were desperately pounding on the glass, their mouths still forming the words "Help!" and "Let me out!"

But what responded to them was several long, orange-red fire dragons.

"call!"

The intense heat instantly engulfed everything.

The screams became sharp and distorted, eventually fading into silence, leaving only the crackling sounds of burning fat.

The command center was deathly silent.

Everyone lowered their heads, unable to bear watching the cruel scene any longer.

Several young female staff officers even covered their mouths and rushed out of the hall.

This is a massacre.

Slaughter for survival.

"Report……"

The communicator's voice was barely audible: "Shelter D, Unit 034...cleared. Vital signs...zero. Fire under control, ventilation ducts shut off, main living area...safe."

Su Ran put down the microphone.

His hands were steady, without the slightest tremor.

"This is the end times."

Su Ran turned around and looked at the officers whose eyes were darting around and whose faces were pale.

"Stop with your cheap sympathy."

"From today onward, this kind of thing will become the norm. If we don't learn to remove hidden dangers like we would surgically remove a tumor, the remaining 1.2 billion people of Great Xia will not survive this winter."

Li Guodong slumped into a chair, pulled a cigarette from his pocket, and couldn't light it no matter how hard he tried.

He looked at Su Ran with an extremely complex expression.

Fear, unfamiliarity, yet tinged with an undeniable sense of... relief.

"Click".

The blast door behind me opened.

The commander, wearing a military overcoat, walked in.

His face was still pale, but his eyes were clear, indicating that he had been awake for some time.

The air in the hall froze instantly.

Everyone is waiting for a thunderous outburst.

After all, while he was sleeping, Su Ran overstepped his authority and ordered the burning of six hundred civilians.

The commander slowly walked to the command platform, glanced at the D area on the screen that had been burned to a crisp, and then glanced at Su Ran, who had no expression on her face.

long silence.

The old man stretched out his thin but strong hands and patted Su Ran on the shoulder.

"Well done."

There are only three words.

It was like a mountain, pressing down on Li Guodong and the others, making it hard for them to breathe.

The leader turned around, his back to the crowd, and looked at the huge holographic map.

No one could see his expression; they could only hear his aged yet resolute voice echoing through the hall.

"Wang Weimin, who gave the order to open fire, will receive a major demerit."

"Then...inform the entire army."

"This is the first lesson of the 'Law of Silence'."

"In chaotic times, severe punishments are necessary. Once you've started, there's no turning back."