"So god actually exists in this world?!"
After Zhou Qingfeng hit the enter key, his computer screen instantly turned into a spacetime vortex and pulled him inside. When he regained his footing, Zhou Qingfeng realized that he was standing on a quiet and peaceful street. The street signs and markers were all in English, yet oddly, for someone like him who was bad at English, he could understand the words he saw.
"200th street, Murdoch Avenue." Zhou Qingfeng looked around himself and asked, 'So this is New York? It doesn't look like it, though! Isn't New York a bustling metropolis? With traffic congestions and skyscrapers everywhere? The houses in front of me are only two to three-storey high. This looks just like any ordinary town."
The buildings around Zhou Qingfeng were not as ordinary as they appeared to be. The street was lined with villas, with almost one to two cars parked at each and every one of them. The time was about six to seven o'clock before dusk. If it was the opening of the Wasteland film, it had to be the month of August.
'Calm down, calm down. Let's take it easy since I'm already here!'
Zhou Qingfeng took a few deep breaths consecutively even though he still could not help but feel panicky. Anyone would have felt baffled after getting tossed into an unfamiliar environment for no reason at all.
He bit his lips to help himself stay awake. Zhou Qingfeng realized that there was a note in his hand. On the note, it read, "Young man, the following are transmigration benefits for you to live in the Wasteland. First of all, you're set to be equipped with Universal Language Proficiency. You can listen, speak, read, and write every mainstream language without a problem.
"Second of all, you're age has been reverted to when you were eighteen. I've granted you a strong and healthy body with unlimited potential. It will allow you to deal with all kinds of problems that will arise with ease.
"Finally, how this world develops is based on the plot of the film titled Wasteland. However, I hope you understand that the film isn't exactly the same as reality. Scenes that have or have not taken place in the film will change based on how you act in this world.
"Just a reminder for you, by the way, if you want to survive in this world that is doomed to be destroyed, you need to constantly enhance your abilities. There are many items in this world that you can use to strengthen yourself, so go and search for them."
After Zhou Qingfeng finished reading the note, it turned into a cloud of dazzling golden dust. It formed an extremely sophisticated looking signature—The Merciful God. Then, the golden dust broke down even further and dispersed with the wind.
Zhou Qingfeng smiled bitterly and thought in his heart, 'I think I've landed myself in massive trouble! This street may look peaceful, but once all the government institutions that serve to maintain social order disappear three days later, New York will instantly turn into a hellish city full of blood and violence.
'This is not considered the worst thing, though. Three months later when winter comes, the violence will intensify. In order to fight for living necessities, the citizens of the city will become extremely frenzied. In the end, the world will be destroyed by man-made nuclear, chemical, and biological weapons. When it comes to that, it will truly spell disaster.
'What should I do now? I need to run for my life immediately! Hiding in the most remote corner of the countryside would be my best bet to survive.
'Wait a minute, I need to gather some food and drinks or it'll be too tragic if I die of starvation on the road while I'm escaping.
'Wait wait a minute, food and drinks alone aren't enough! I need to get a car. Otherwise, how can I escape with just a pair of legs?
'Wait wait wait a minute, with food, drinks, and a car, I still need to carry a weapon with me. Thugs and scoundrels will run rampant in the unconstrained society. I'll be in deep trouble if I don't carry something to protect myself.
'Wait wait wait wait a minute. Even if I manage to gather all the resources, I'd still need a reliable partner! Even tigers need to sleep sometimes. How am I supposed to survive in this chaotic world alone? The unsolvable loneliness at night. Not to mention, I'll be ambushed before I manage to even walk more than half a mile away.
'Wait wait wait wait wait a minute. I'm here to change my destiny. I can't keep thinking about escaping all the time! Does it even make any sense if I just hide like a coward?'
There was suddenly a plethora of things racing through Zhou Qingfeng's mind. He thought it would be best if he could join a strong and order-oriented group. With that, his chances of surviving would be maximized, and the level of difficulty to survive would be pushed to its lowest. Just as Zhou Qingfeng was looking anxious and miserable, someone greeted him, "Hey Victor. Why are you daydreaming here?"
A beautiful girl could be seen carrying a huge paper bag while walking toward him. Judging by the food and daily necessities that were stuffed in the paper bag, she must have just made a trip to the supermarket.
Angelina Lawrence, nicknamed Angie, was a genius. She was fifteen years old, one point six seven meters tall and fifty-seven kilograms heavy. The color of her hair was that of a chestnut; her eyes blue.
In the film, she was the daughter of the family of three. She was lively, enthusiastic, energetic, and had a great sense of curiosity for everything. She attended a public high school and always excelled in her studies. She was an outstanding student who could stand on her feet independently-a true role model for students in the United States!
Restricted by her family's financial condition, Angie could not shop, travel, and spend like other girls from upper-class society. Hence, she focused on making all kinds of weird equipment which ended up helping her father solve many problems during the upheaval.
"Hello! Good evening, Angie," Zhou Qingfeng greeted her in reply. However, he did not know what to say after that. He simply asked, "Uh… Why are you calling me Victor? Is that my name?"
After hearing Zhou Qingfeng's question, Angie smiled and her huge, beautiful eyes turned into two crescents at once. She let out a hearty laugh, making her come off as even more amiable. "Of course I know your name, Victor, we've known each other for so many years."
"Really? We've known each other for that long! So my name is Victor now." Zhou Qingfeng scratched his head, thinking that it was possible he had a separate identity there. He laughed awkwardly and said, "I'm sorry, I was a bit confused earlier. To put it more precisely, I lost my way. I can't find my house."
Ha ha ha… Angie began to laugh even louder now. She could hardly contain her laughter. Behind her, a gentle and graceful woman walked up to them. Similarly, she greeted Zhou Qingfeng and said, "Hello… What are you and Angie talking about, Victor? My baby is overjoyed."
Rachel Connor had changed her surname to Lawrence after she got married. She was thirty-two years old, one point seventy-five meters tall, sixty-two kilograms heavy, had blond hair, blue eyes, and F-cup sized breasts. She was the wife and mother of the Lawrence family as well as a devout Catholic.
This wife and mother was a dedicated housewife. She had great culinary skills and loved gardening. She had a gentle but strong character. However, if she ever got angry, she would blast her enemy's head with a shotgun. She had rescued her husband from the enemy's encirclement several times.
"Hello, Madam Lawrence." Zhou Qingfeng felt like he was getting to know the main characters in the film. "I…"
Zhou Qingfeng did not know how to explain the ridiculous state he was in. It was simply too embarrassing. However, the wife and mother chuckled gently and said, "You can call me Rachel. Madam Lawrence would make me seem too old."
"He he he…" Zhou Qingfeng laughed at himself.
Angie, however, rubbed salt in Zhou Qingfeng's wound and shouted, "Mummy, Victor said that he's lost. Gosh, I can't believe that he actually said he's lost."
"Really? How could someone lose their way in front of their own house?" Rachel Connor stared at Zhou Qingfeng. She was filled with delight, and a teasing smile was displayed on her lips as though she was watching a performance.
'In front of my house?' Zhou Qingfeng looked around him, but he really had no clue where his house was. His confused demeanor looked pretty silly, cracking both the mother and daughter up.
"What's going on? I could hear your laughter from afar. To be honest, I was so knackered that I felt like my head was swelling up. After hearing your laughter, though, it makes me really happy." A voice was heard coming from the intersection. The Lawrence family's male protagonist had finally appeared.
David Lawrence, the hero who saved the world. He was brimming with masculinity. He was a handsome middle-aged man too. In the perfect ending of the film, he had managed to beat the odds and save many lives.
He was going to turn thirty-seven years old that year. David Lawrence was one point eighty-seven in height and played the forward position for his college rugby team. He got Rachel Connor pregnant on their first date, back then, she was still in high school. He once served in the 75th Ranger Regiment of the US Army. In the film, his motto was to advance courageously and never cower.
Well, he was the heroic figure that Hollywood blockbusters were used to creating.
At the time at hand, David was an insurance broker with an annual income of no more than sixty thousand US dollars. Moreover, he was the only source of income for his family, and he barely earned enough to feed his family in New York which was an expensive city to live in. He was a skilled military man and had a few guns with plenty of ammunition at home.
When the riot first broke out in the film, this guy shot and killed a gangster who had tried to rob him without any mercy. It was precisely because of him that the Lawrence family was able to survive the cataclysm in the first three months. In front of him, Zhou Qingfeng felt like he was a loser. Indeed, the mission to save the world was not something that just about anyone could do.
Now that all three of the main characters in the family had appeared, the wheel of history began to turn slowly. However, there was bitterness in Zhou Qingfeng's heart. He thought to himself, 'New York will become hell on earth in three days. It's fine if the wheel of history has started turning but please don't crush me to death!'