Huang Tang finally managed to break free from the crowd of women and glanced out the window.

The water's surface remained calm, with the moonlight casting a cold glow.

But he knew, no one could tell how many monsters were lurking beneath the water.

"There might be another attack tonight," he said. "I'll keep watch, you all should get some sleep."

"I'll stay with you!"

Several people spoke up at once.

"No need," Huang Tang shook his head. "Too many people might draw attention. You all rest well; we have to enter Any Door tomorrow."

He walked to the window, turning his back to the others, gripping the hammer in his hand tightly.

Cai Lin looked at his broad back, her emotions a tangled mess.

She had seen the scene just now clearly.

When that merfolk charged in, she thought she was going to die.

Then Huang Tang rushed forward.

With a broken hammer, he had brutally smashed the monster to death.

At that moment, she suddenly understood something.

In this apocalypse, this man was the only one they could rely on.

She thought of her Hehuan System.

If... if it really had to come to that...

She bit her lip, not daring to think further.

The night was long.

Huang Tang kept watch all night, and there were no further attacks.

Perhaps the water was temporarily safe after the merfolk was killed.

Or maybe they were just lucky.

As dawn broke, he opened the World Channel.

This time, he was stunned.

[Current Online Users: 8,472,361,549]

[Yesterday's Online Users: 9,521,438,762]

Huang Tang quickly did the math in his head.

Ten million.

A whole ten million fewer people.

Which meant, on the first day of the survival game, ten million players had logged off!

Permanently logged off!

He shared this number with the women.

Everyone fell silent.

"Ten million people..." Bai Tao murmured, "just like that... dead?"

"Some were drowned by floods, some eaten by monsters," Huang Tang said. "Some didn't even manage to upgrade their thatched huts."

Fear washed over everyone like a tide.

"Huang Tang..." Su Qing grabbed his arm, her voice trembling, "Are we... are we going to die?"

The others also looked at him.

In their eyes, there was fear, hope, and dependence.

Huang Tang was silent for a few seconds.

Then he smiled.

"No," he said, his voice not loud but incredibly firm, "I'll make sure each of you survives."

No one spoke.

But several people's eyes turned red.

Jiang Jing'an was the first to rush over, hugging his waist.

Then the second, the third...

Huang Tang was surrounded by twenty-four women, unable to move.

Find the original at "pawread dot com".

He sighed and gently patted the head of the one closest to him.

Outside the window, the floodwaters rose a bit more.

There were still two meters to the foundation of the second-floor wooden house.

A new day began.

The first thing Huang Tang did was open the system panel.

[Daily Card Draw: Remaining Attempts 1]

He took a deep breath.

Yesterday's Good Luck Comes was already extraordinary; what could he draw today?

"God bless, give me something awesome!"

He silently prayed.

The roulette spun rapidly, golden light flashing.

[Congratulations, you've drawn: Author's Note!]

[Card Level: SSS-level Concept Card]

[Effect: After use, you can modify any rule of the current map. The rule must be logical and can only take effect once.]

[Modification scope includes but is not limited to: time, space, biological behavior, physical laws, etc. For example: dinosaurs here cannot eat meat...]

[Note: The rule modification will last until this Any Door closes or the player leaves the current map. Please carefully formulate rules to avoid logical conflicts.]

Huang Tang was stunned.

Modify rules?

This was... a god-like ability?

"What kind of name is 'Author's Note,' but the effect is too extraordinary!"

He was in a daze when Jiang Jing'an leaned over, "Huang Tang, what did you draw?"

Huang Tang snapped back to reality and glanced at her, "A... very powerful card."

"How powerful?"

"The kind that can turn zombies into little lambs."

Jiang Jing'an's eyes lit up, "Really?"

Huang Tang didn't answer, because a familiar mechanical voice sounded in his ear:

[Any Door is now open]

[Current Connected World: Zombie City]

[Exploration Time Limit: 8 hours]

[Note: This world has been completely overrun by zombies. Players, please proceed with caution. Zombies are extremely sensitive to sound and smell, and their activity increases at night.]

[Good luck.]

In the center of the wooden house, a new portal of light slowly appeared.

This time, the portal glowed with a strange dark red, as if soaked in blood.

"Zombie City?" Bai Tao's voice trembled, "Is it... the kind full of zombies?"

"Like in the movies," Cai Lin added, her face also looking grim.

Huang Tang stood up and looked at the twenty-four women.

"This time is even more dangerous, choose three people to go in with me. Who's going?"

Jiang Jing'an was the first to raise her hand, "Me!"

She walked straight to Huang Tang's side, naturally hugging his arm, "Wherever Huang Tang goes, I go."

To say she wasn't afraid of zombies would be a lie.

But she was determined to cling to Huang Tang!

Huang Tang was used to her antics and didn't shake her off, looking at the others.

"I'll go too."

Su Qing stepped forward.

She had held back all night, and today she had to take the initiative.

She couldn't let Jiang Jing'an stay with Huang Tang all the time.

Zombies... shouldn't be that scary, right...

Huang Tang glanced at her and nodded, "Alright."

Then he looked at the remaining people.

No one spoke.

Everyone kept their heads down, pretending to study the wood grain on the floor.

The terror of last night's merfolk was still fresh in their minds.

Zombie City? It sounded ten times scarier than the merfolk.

"No one else?" Huang Tang asked.

Silence.

"I'll go."

A cool voice spoke up.

Cai Lin stepped forward, her face expressionless, "I'm the CEO, it's my responsibility to protect the employees."

That reason again.

Huang Tang smiled, "Alright, just the four of us, the rest of you guard the house."

With that, he led the three women towards Any Door.

Su Qing walked on his right, unable to resist glancing back at Jiang Jing'an.

The woman was hugging Huang Tang's arm tightly.

She gritted her teeth and looked away.

Through Any Door.

A stench of decay hit them.

The four appeared at the corner of a street.

Behind them was the portal, and in front of them was a city completely fallen.

Skyscrapers stood in rows, but the glass was shattered, the outer walls mottled, and traces of fire were everywhere.

The streets were filled with abandoned cars, some crashed together, others burned to just frames.

And on the streets, there were countless figures.

Staggering, swaying, wandering aimlessly.

Grayish skin, tattered clothes, hollow eyes, some missing limbs, others dragging intestines on the ground.

Zombies!

At least a hundred of them, just thirty meters ahead.