Chapter 1
“Jiulin, are you daydreaming? What are you thinking? Share it with me,” someone suddenly spoke in Qin Jiulin’s ear. He was still a bit bewildered. Wasn’t this familiar voice with a hint of a smile Xia Liansheng’s? What was going on?
Even though he had died, he could still hear this person’s voice? Did he really love this person so much? Loved him enough to have his heart cut out by his own hands, to be killed by him, and yet still carry him in his heart?
However, as his vision gradually cleared, he sensed that something was amiss.
At this moment, Qin Jiulin was starting to regain his composure. He looked at the person who had approached him, blinked his confused eyes, and if he hadn’t been aware of the chaotic environment around him, he might have reached out to snap the person’s neck right then and there.
He instinctively suppressed the killing intent in his heart, fortunately without being detected by the other person.
Seeing him staring, Xia Liansheng smiled and said, with an endearing expression, “What’s wrong? Are you stunned by me? Let’s go, the movie is about to start. It’s the third installment you’ve been eagerly waiting for…”
Only then did Qin Jiulin notice their surroundings. They were in a cinema, seated in the outdoor rest area. On the table in front of them were the popcorn and two cups of cola they had purchased earlier, along with two movie tickets that were both familiar and unfamiliar.
This was probably the last movie he had watched in his previous life, and they hadn’t even finished it. Because halfway through, among the people watching the same movie, two individuals instantly transformed into semi-beastmen, their eyes turning red, and began attacking the audience.
Biting with their teeth, slashing with their claws—overall, it was the most gruesome form of slaughter. Qin Jiulin remembered being so frightened that he couldn’t react. If it hadn’t been for Xia Liansheng dragging him away, he might have been killed inside the cinema.
Of course, he could have also escaped with the others, but at that time, he didn’t think about it much. He simply felt that Xia Liansheng had disregarded his own safety to save his life.
However, upon reflection, it wasn’t quite like that. The movie was incredibly popular, so when they were scrambling for tickets, they could only secure two seats on the edge. The positions weren’t great, but they were close to the exit.
Even without Xia Liansheng’s assistance, Qin Jiulin would have had enough time to regain his senses amidst the chaos caused by others and flee. After all, those two semi-beastmen were diagonally positioned from them, the farthest away.
How could Qin Jiulin not have had the opportunity to escape when they were attacking others?
Xia Liansheng noticed that Qin Jiulin had remained silent, and he felt that something was off. “What’s wrong? Are you feeling unwell? Shall we skip the movie and go to the hospital?”
Qin Jiulin nodded, then shook his head. “Let’s not watch the movie. I did feel a bit uncomfortable. We could come back in a few days when there would be fewer people. There was no rush anyway.”
Xia Liansheng replied, “No problem, let’s wait a few days before coming back. Are you sure you are alright? Should we still go to the hospital?”
Qin Jiulin replied, “I’m just a little tired and want to go back to sleep. Can you drive me home?”
Since it was Xia Liansheng who had invited him out, Qin Jiulin didn’t drive. Xia Liansheng was the one who drove them there.
Qin Jiulin lived alone in his own place, without the habit of living with others. He silently calculated the time. The duration of the movie was about two hours, and the previous life’s catastrophe had occurred around halfway through the movie, so it would have been approximately an hour and a half later.
By the time Xia Liansheng dropped him off at home, it would have taken around forty minutes. And he was certain that after dropping him off, Xia Liansheng wouldn’t have gone straight home but would have instead gone to meet his own beloved younger brother, Qin Jiuzhen.
Qin Jiulin fastened his seatbelt in the car and leaned back in the seat, looking a bit tired. He closed his eyes as if resting.
Xia Liansheng considerately remained silent and even slowed down the driving speed. Due to traffic congestion, by the time they had arrived at Qin Jiulin’s home, an hour had already passed.
In the past, Qin Jiulin would have been silently moved by his thoughtfulness, but now… sorry, his limit was to resist the urge to kill this cunning and scheming bastard.
Xia Liansheng said, “Jiulin, we’ve arrived at your home. Let me walk you in.”
Qin Jiulin rubbed his eyes and replied, “It’s fine, I’ll go in by myself. It’s already late, and you should hurry back and rest. Isn’t there a meeting at the company early tomorrow morning?”
Xia Liansheng sighed and said, “Yes, you’re right. You take care of yourself. If you feel really uncomfortable, make sure to call me, alright?”
Qin Jiulin assured him, “No problem, don’t worry. I will definitely call you.”
Standing outside the villa’s iron gate, Xia Liansheng waved to him and watched as he drove away. Once the car’s figure disappeared from sight, Qin Jiulin suppressed all the expressions on his face.
Turning around, he looked at his house. He had bought a villa in a high-end suburban community because he preferred the natural environment and disliked being disturbed or bothered by others.
Due to the expensive housing prices and the distance from the city center, as well as the fact that the community had just been completed less than six months ago, very few people had bought houses here.
Even Qin Jiulin had only moved into his house last month after completing the decoration. The reason was simple: he wanted to have his own private space.
In Qin’s family, there were parents, grandparents, great-grandparents, and even a younger brother, making a total of eight people. It was indeed a lively household.
But all that liveliness belonged to them, and he had nothing to do with it.
The reason was simple. When he was born, his family was going through a difficult period, facing constant hardships. It was only after his mother became pregnant with his younger brother that the situation improved. Since then, it was like they had struck gold, and the Qin family’s wealth and status had been on the rise. They had become a well-known and prestigious family in the capital city.
His younger brother’s nicknames at home were “Little Lucky Star,” “Little God of Wealth,” and “Little Cutie.” In contrast, his own nickname at home was the opposite. Although he wouldn’t starve in that household, his access to basic resources was limited.
For example, clothing, food, shelter, and transportation—once these needs were met, his elders wouldn’t care about anything else. They didn’t care about his academic performance or his daily life. It could be said that he had been taken care of by nannies since childhood.
But even those nannies were just doing their jobs for the money. They only did what was required of them, not going beyond their duties or saying anything unnecessary. This led him to develop a reserved and aloof personality, unwilling to speak or engage in excessive communication with others.
Once he discovered his ability to earn money, he started quietly and desperately accumulating wealth. When he had earned enough, he used about ninety percent of his savings to buy this villa and moved out of that cold, emotionless home.
However, what he never could have expected was that just one month after moving out, he would encounter such a terrifying event—a situation where, according to statistics from his previous life, approximately half of the world’s population will exhibit signs of animalistic transformation tonight.
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