Survival in the Apocalypse: Max Level Drop Rate with Abundant Resources

Suddenly, a door appeared in front of him.

It was an ordinary door, made of wood, mottled, and even a bit worn. A faded curtain hung on the door frame, the kind commonly seen in old-style apartment buildings from the 1980s.

Shen Xi stood in front of the door, her brows slightly furrowed.

He had expected to see some eerie and terrifying entrance to an underground palace, or some ancient and mysterious rune array.

As a result, this is it?

"As expected, the trial has changed!"

He reached out and pushed open the door.

Behind the door was a room.

It was small, dilapidated, and familiar.

Yellowed newspapers were pasted on the wall, and cardboard boxes and miscellaneous items were piled up in the corner.

A wire bed was placed by the window, covered with sheets, and next to the pillow was a well-worn copy of "Apocalyptic Survival Guide".

Sunlight streamed through the dusty glass of the window, casting dappled shadows on the floor.

Shen Xi's pupils contracted slightly.

This is his room before his rebirth.

That place where he struggled for ten years in the apocalypse and hid for a long time.

"interesting."

Shen Xi stepped into the room, her gaze sweeping over every corner.

He pasted the newspapers on the wall to seal the gaps in the windows and prevent cold air from getting in.

The "Apocalyptic Survival Guide" on the bedside table was one he had found. Although he knew its contents by heart, he still habitually kept it by his pillow. In the corner, a cardboard box contained several bottles of mineral water and compressed biscuits, which were leftovers from his previous meals.

Everything was exactly the same as when he left.

But Shen Xi knew that all of this was fake.

Because the real room had long since vanished into the past with his rebirth.

"Is this the third trial?"

Shen Xi stood in the center of the room, her voice calm.

"Should I relive my tragic past life? Or should I relive those painful memories?"

No one answered him.

But the room started to change.

The newspapers on the wall slowly peeled away, revealing the mottled cement underneath. The "Apocalyptic Survival Guide" on the bedside table opened automatically, its pages rustling. A cardboard box in the corner suddenly tipped over, spilling its bottled water and biscuits all over the floor.

Then he heard footsteps.

Outside.

Someone is coming.

Shen Xi did not turn around.

He simply stared quietly out the window at the illusory sunlight.

The footsteps grew closer and clearer. The moment the door was pushed open, a strong stench of decay rushed in.

"Shen Xi...save me..."

A hoarse voice came from behind me.

Shen Xi turned around.

A woman was standing at the door.

She wore a floral dress, her hair was disheveled, and her face was covered in dirt and bloodstains. One of her arms was missing, and black blood was still seeping from the wound. Her eyes were cloudy and empty, but one could still vaguely make out what she once looked like.

Jiang Luqing.

Or rather, Jiang Luqing who turned into a rotting corpse.

"Shen Xi...why didn't you save me..." She stretched out her only remaining hand, staggering forward. "You said you would protect me...you said you would..."

Shen Xi stared at her, motionless.

Jiang Luqing continued walking forward, leaving a black, bloody footprint with each step. Her voice grew increasingly shrill and shrill.

"Why did you kill me... Why did you abandon me... You said you loved me..."

Shen Xi smiled.

"Are you done talking?"

He spoke, his voice flat.

Jiang Luqing was stunned.

"Now that you're finished," Shen Xi continued, "it's my turn to speak."

He took a step forward, stood in front of Jiang Luqing, and looked directly into her cloudy eyes.

"First, I did say I would protect you. But that was before you betrayed me."

"Secondly, I did kill you. But that was because you killed me first."

"third……"

Shen Xi paused, a self-deprecating smile appearing on her face.

"Love? I stopped believing in that stuff a long time ago."

He raised his hand and gently touched Jiang Luqing's forehead.

"You are nothing but an illusion created by the trial, a fake pieced together from my memories. The real Jiang Luqing died long ago by my axe."

So, stop acting here.

The moment their fingertips touched, Jiang Luqing's body began to shatter.

But there was no pain on her face, only a strange smile.

"You... really have no regrets?"

Shen Xi looked at her and uttered two words calmly:

"no."

Jiang Luqing shattered completely, turning into countless points of light and dissipating.

The room began to collapse as she disappeared. The walls crumbled, the ceiling cracked, and the floor caved in. Everything was crushed and peeled away piece by piece.

Shen Xi stood still, letting the fragments pass by him.

New illusions appeared.

He saw Gu Yungui, that cunning and treacherous rich kid. He stood at a distance, coldly watching Shen Xi, uttering various sarcastic remarks.

Shen Xi ignored him and walked right past him.

Gu Yungui vanished.

He saw Zhou Qiang, the guy who tried to ambush him in the rotting dormitory. He knelt on the ground, crying and begging Shen Xi for mercy.

Shen Xi didn't even glance at him and continued walking forward.

Zhou Qiang disappeared.

He saw countless faces, some familiar, some unfamiliar. Some were crying, some laughing, some cursing, some pleading. Each one was trying to touch him, each one was trying to make him stop.

But Shen Xi did not stop.

He simply walked on calmly, passing through one illusion after another, passing through one memory after another.

Those scenes that once tore his heart apart, those nightmares that once kept him awake at night, are now like roadside scenery—oblivious to them once they've been seen.

Because he knew that all of that was in the past.

He personally killed Gu Yungui, personally killed Jiang Luqing, personally destroyed the Lion Legion, and personally avenged the grudge from his previous life.

What regrets does he still have?

No more.

There are none left.

The illusions continued, but Shen Xi no longer cared.

He began to observe the trial space itself.

It's amazing.

Everything here is made up of memories. His memories—the people he's met, the events he's experienced, the scenes he's witnessed. The trial simply extracts them and projects them back before him.

But Shen Xi discovered that these illusions had one thing in common...

They all remain in the past.

No illusion is about the future.

Since the future has not yet occurred, the trial cannot be extracted.

"Interesting," Shen Xi murmured. "So the essence of this trial is to make people confront their past?"

"But the past is the past. No matter how you face it, it won't change anything."

He raised his head and looked ahead.

There, there is a light.

It was faint, but it stood out starkly in the endless darkness.

Shen Xi stepped towards the light.

The illusions around him grew more numerous and denser. They reached out, trying to grab him, trying to stop him. But the moment their hands touched Shen Xi, they shattered and vanished.

Shen Xi did not turn back, nor did she stop; she simply walked resolutely toward the light.

Getting closer.

It's getting brighter and brighter.

Finally, he stepped into the light.

The next second, all the illusions vanished.

Shen Xi found herself standing in a void.

All around was endless white, with no up or down, no left or right, no front or back.

He was all alone.

There was another voice.

"What did you see?"

The voice came from somewhere, ancient and distant.

Shen Xi was silent for a moment, then said softly, "Some old dreams."

"An old dream?" The voice seemed somewhat surprised. "Just an old dream?"

"Otherwise what?"

The voice fell silent.

After a long silence, it sounded again: "Do you know how many people have collapsed and wept at this juncture? How many have been swallowed up by their past? How many have lost themselves in endless regret?"

"I know," Shen Xi nodded. "But so what?"

"Don't you regret it?"

No regrets.

Aren't you disappointed?

No regrets.

"Don't you hate it?"

Shen Xi smiled.

"Hate? Of course I hated. But that was in the past, not now."

The voice fell silent again.

This time, there was a very long silence.

So long that Shen Xi thought it would never speak again.

Then, it suddenly laughed.

In that laughter, there was relief, a sense of calm, and a hint of something more complex.

"An interesting little guy."

"Do you know what this third trial is called?"

Shen Xi thought for a moment: "The Way of the True Self."

"Yes, the path to true self," the voice said slowly. "Then do you know what true self is?"

Shen Xi did not answer.

The voice continued, "The true self is one who is not bound by the past, nor confused by the future, but lives in the present and faces one's true nature."

"Most people live in the shadow of the past. They regret what they have done, lament the people they have lost, and hate those who have hurt them. These obsessions entangle them, preventing them from ever seeing their true selves."

"And you..."

The voice paused, then carried a hint of admiration.

"You were able to walk through all the illusions so calmly, and face the past so openly. Those obsessions that could have driven someone to the brink of collapse were, in your eyes, truly just 'old dreams'."

"How did you do that?"

Shen Xi thought for a moment:

"Perhaps, it's because I died once."

The voice froze.

Shen Xi continued, "In the past, I did have many regrets, much remorse, and much resentment. But what is more important than living?"

"After understanding all this, the first thing I did was to make up for those regrets and settle those hatreds."

"Jiang Luqing, I killed her. Gu Yungui, I killed him. Gu Zhengxiong, I killed him. I've taken back everything that was owed to me with my own hands."

He paused, a faint smile playing on his lips.

"So now, I have no regrets."

"What's past is past, there's no need to dwell on it."

After listening to that voice, he remained silent for a long time.

Then, it let out a long sigh.

"I see... I see..."

"No wonder you passed this test so easily. It's not because you're hard-hearted, but because you've personally put an end to all your obsessions."

"Okay, okay, okay."

The three "good" characters, each one heavier than the last.

Suddenly, a blood-red mark appeared in the void.

It slowly floated in front of Shen Xi and hovered in mid-air.

【Title: Blood Berserker - Trial Mark (Part 3)】

[Type: Special Item - Legacy]

[Quality: Legendary]

[Effect: Collect all three Trial Marks to unlock the true inheritance core of the Blood Berserker]

[Note: You have passed the third trial with your calm and serene demeanor. Only by collecting all three can you be qualified to touch the true inheritance.]

Shen Xi reached out and grasped the mark.

The moment it touched my hand and felt warm, all three marks resonated simultaneously.

They trembled slightly, and crimson light spilled from between their fingers, intertwining and merging together.

But it stopped halfway through the fusion process.

It seems like there's just one last step left.

Shen Xi knew that he needed to activate it himself.

But it stopped halfway through the fusion process.

It seems like there's just one last step left.

Shen Xi knew that he needed to activate it himself.

He carefully put away the three marks, raised his head, and looked into the depths of the void.

"Is the trial over?"

The voice paused for a moment, then slowly said:

"it's over."

"Congratulations, you have passed the third trial."

"You know what? You're the first person to walk so easily."

Shen Xi smiled but didn't reply.

In the void, a golden light descended from the sky, enveloping his entire body.

[Congratulations to the player for passing the third trial: The Path of True Self!]

[Trial Rating: S-Rank (Perfect)]

You walked calmly through endless illusions; those obsessions that could have driven one to despair were nothing more than a distant dream to you. Your peace, your composure, your lack of regret—these conquered this trial.