At the far end of the horizon, a deafening roar echoed through the air.
The majority of the monsters that had flooded Midtown had already surged towards the pilgrimage road. The once bustling streets now lay in ruins, rarely inhabited by wandering spirits. The sky above remained ominous and dark, akin to a descent into hell once the safety of a light source was abandoned.
Perched on the edge of a fruit store, Xia Chuwei squinted her eyes, gazing upwards at the heavens.
The thunderous sound emanated from the direction of Yuncheng Store, where the sinister rifts in the sky grew increasingly luminous, casting a thick, unending veil of blood over the entire Midtown.
Survivors huddled around vehicles in small groups, their weariness palpable. The military distributed rations, but their faces bore a desolate expression. Out of over 700 individuals, only a hundred managed to escape alive, seeking refuge in the shelter of buses. The wounded were few, but the tragic ordeal had left them bereft of loved ones and friends. The fleeting tranquility offered no solace for the bleak future that awaited them.
However, Xia Chuwei's attention was drawn to an unfamiliar figure.
This person, who went by the name Qiao Zheng, persistently demanded to see Mr. Su but had been unsuccessful thus far. He even managed to track down Xia Chuwei. Yet, before any conversation could take place, Qiao Zheng was swiftly intercepted by the bald boss and his group, treating him as if he were a dangerous beast.
Witnessing this scene, Xia Chuwei couldn't help but cast a glance into the abyss-like darkness within the fruit store.
Su Chen was inside.
In a room on the second floor of the fruit store, designed to function as both a bedroom and an office, Su Chen resided. He had explicitly instructed not to be disturbed, hence why the door remained closed.
With his enhanced vision, Su Chen could clearly perceive the room's contents even in the absence of illumination, relying on the faint glow seeping in from outside. He settled into a corner and reached for the sizeable and weighty object known as the "crack," intending to infuse it with a trace of black energy.
After an extended period of magical experimentation and refinement, Su Chen had gradually discerned certain principles and techniques, consolidating his experiences in the realm of reality.
For magical modifications, all he needed to do was inject a small amount of black energy to gauge the requisite number of energy units necessary to complete the process.
That was precisely what Su Chen was engaged in at that moment—a swift estimation.
To fully transform this rocket launcher, a minimum of twelve energy units would be required. Its superior materials and substantial size, while not overly complex in structure, rendered it a formidable firearm, demanding a more substantial energy input.
After a brief moment of hesitation, Su Chen decided to set the rocket launcher aside for now.
His energy reserves were dwindling, and with the monsters converging on the Cloud City store, hunting them down had become increasingly challenging. The seventeen energy units in his possession needed to be strategically utilized in crucial areas.
One such priority was the repair of his battle armor.
The damage inflicted upon the dark armor was distinct in nature. The diamond-shaped fragments, the smallest units of the armor, had disintegrated to ensure that the overall structure remained intact. As long as he had energy units, he could reassemble the fragments into a complete dark armor.
However, the repair process proved more time-consuming than Su Chen had anticipated. It took him a full hour and the consumption of thirteen energy units to restore his battered suit. The extensive drain on his energy reserves left Su Chen's initial excitement waning, replaced by a sudden wave of exhaustion.
Having pushed himself tirelessly for more than ten consecutive hours, constructing his armor in haste, the battle had taken its toll on his weary body.
Even Su Chen, like anyone else, had his limits.
Weighing his options, Su Chen decided to allocate half an hour for rest. He lay down on the bed within the room, closing his eyes in an attempt to recuperate. Although he didn't truly fall asleep, the thunderous noise reverberating from afar made it difficult to find solace.
Thankfully, his strengthened physique allowed him to rejuvenate within this brief respite.
At this moment, he had four energy units remaining in his possession.
Contemplating his next move, Su Chen resolved to experiment with a magical modification on a power bank.
This had been a long-standing plan of his—to create an energy storage device "external" to his body. Such a device would enable him to surpass the current limitation of storing only 30 energy units within his body, alleviating the present conundrum of being resource-deprived.
Based on his previous experiences with magical modifications, the last items that showed potential for "energy storage" effects were batteries and power banks.
During his time at the Yuncheng store, Su Chen had attempted to modify an AA battery, but the outcome proved rather exaggerated. Instead of becoming the energy unit storage device he had envisioned, the AA battery transformed into something resembling a small electromagnetic bomb. In the process, Su Chen inadvertently froze a collection of small flashlights that Xia Chuwei had gathered, leaving her unaware that he was the culprit responsible for their malfunction. She had attributed their failure to some unknown contamination.
Back then, Su Chen had been preoccupied with crafting his battle attire under the Cloud City store, and the need for energy storage devices had remained at the theoretical stage. He had failed to recognize their critical importance at the time.
But now, the situation had drastically changed. Witnessing the alarming rate at which his suit devoured energy units, Su Chen had to acknowledge the urgent necessity of creating an energy storage device.
Furthermore, he had a gut feeling that the monstrous creatures were converging on the "altar" within the Cloud City store. While they were temporarily safe, the military had yet to take any decisive action against the impending ritual. If the monsters successfully completed their sacrificial ceremony, even greater horrors and transformations would likely follow. When he acquired energy units, Su Chen needed to optimize his battle armor, mend magical "cracks," and replenish grenades. Time and energy must be conserved. This was the opportune moment to undertake the task.
With these thoughts in mind, Su Chen seized the chance to retrieve the power bank he had "acquired" from the supermarket, which he had previously stolen in preparation for his research on energy storage devices. The advantage of living in a post-apocalyptic world was that one no longer needed to pay for goods in a supermarket, and there was no fear of others snatching away everything.
The first item he extracted was a small black power bank with a capacity of over one hundred and eight thousand milliamperes. Taking a deep breath, he carefully infused a single energy unit into it.
He had chosen this particular power bank for its compact size and plastic casing. It fit snugly in the palm of a girl's hand and required only about one and a half energy units—a quantity Su Chen could afford given their scarcity.
The process of magical modification progressed swiftly this time. In less than 15 minutes, the power bank underwent its transformation. Its palm-sized exterior remained virtually unchanged, but it felt lighter in Su Chen's grip. Taking another deep breath, he couldn't help but experience a mix of nervousness and anticipation. The memories of childhood exams and the emotions associated with them resurfaced, amplifying his current state.
Without delay, Su Chen cautiously began to channel a small amount of energy into the power bank.
Change was imminent!