It was already 5 PM. Since everyone was quite wasted last night, they decided to rest for a few hours.
Bai Shen proposed for them to stay here; there was no need to leave his mansion in their current state.
"But my aunt would probably be worried about me; I don't want her to be sad about this."
Fatty Jiang was currently staying with his aunt. His mother died while giving birth to him, and his dad took to the path of alcohol after their business plummeted.
A few years later, he killed himself because of the pressure, leaving the 13-year-old little Jiang to fend for himself. Luckily, his father's sister, who also received the family's help back then, took Fatty Jiang in.
She showered him with love as she slowly grew her business with the money received. Right now, she was one of the top 10 successful women in Shanghai.
"Why don't you let me speak up with Aunt Xiu? I'm sure she's going to let you stay for another night."
Not hesitating at all, Fatty Jiang took out his phone before dialing his aunt.
Bai Shen swiftly took the phone and got to the other side of the room. The three people were a bit surprised by this; they curiously glanced at him.
"Hello Aunt Xiu! It's Shen here. Can you please let Jiang stay at my house this night?"
"Mhm, don't worry; we have enough alcohol; there's no need to send even more over."
"Hahaha! For sure, we're going to have a blast!"
"You can pick him up tomorrow morning at 9 AM sharp!"
"Okay. Goodnight, Aunt!"
After coming back, Bai Shen was stunned to see three pairs of eyes trained on his body.
"What?" He asked while using a hand to cover his chest.
"...What? You ask me that? What just happened?" Fatty Jiang was speechless about his good brother's guts.
"Actually, Aunt Xiu was afraid that you're gay, since you only have me and Meixue as friends. She asked me to throw a party sometime and invite you over."
"She personally asked if we would like her to send a few more... drinks. Then say it was from you... Ahem."
Bai Shen felt bad for his best friend; he watched as Fatty Jiang's face became paler with every second that passed. The two girls forgot their earlier gazing contest and looked at each other before giggling.
Li Meixue didn't have any problem with staying over since her parents weren't in this world anymore.
Unlike Fatty Jiang, she didn't even have a relative to look after her. Since 16 years old, she was all alone.
Her inheritance, less than what Bai Shen had, was still enough for her to live ten lives. She was in the same situation as Bai Shen, a free spirit.
"Leaving these matters aside, I think it's time for me to tell them the truth."
Thinking so, Bai Shen mentally prepared himself to drop the bomb, one even bigger than him having a girlfriend.
"Okay then. Guys, please listen to me; I have something important to tell you."
Seeing that the three people looked at him, Bai Shen took a deep breath before telling them everything.
From his dreams since he was a kid to his System that appeared last month and about the new apocalyptic world that he saw.
"...And everything will begin tomorrow at 10 AM."
Silence. There was only silence around Bai Shen. When he looked around, Fatty Jiang and Meixue were both holding their stomachs with their hands, trying to contain their laughter that was about to burst out.
"Hahaha!"
"Pwahaha! Damn, man!"
Both Meixue and Fatty Jiang were tearing up; what Bai Shen just told them was so funny.
"That's a great story, Shen! I'm sure that if you write it down, it will be very successful!"
"Yeah! You should also add some funny characters like me and Meixue..."
They didn't believe him one bit.
Turning to glance at the only person in the room who didn't say anything, Bai Shen was surprised to see that Lin Ruoxi seemed to be lost in her thoughts.
"Do you believe me, Ruoxi?" He softly asked. If even his Ruoxi declared him as delusional, he didn't know what else to do other than waiting until morning to prove them wrong.
"I believe you..." Both Li Meixue and Fatty Jiang were stunned to hear what Lin Ruoxi just said. They couldn't imagine that he truly bought Bai Shen's fairytale.
"I had a few doubts about you since we met. I always wondered why someone like you, who had everything, would need to train with his sword inside a forest."
"When you killed those two wolves, it completely stunned me. No matter what, they are extremely dangerous predators.
How could someone who was training for 'fun' even be able to do what you did?"
"Also, when you came back and left your clothes for the washing machine, I stole a few glances at them; fully covered in blood, but you weren't wounded."
"Later, you didn't seem to be a maniac who only thought of killing animals, and you seem to be pondering a lot."
"The provisions you gathered, that room full of weapons, it was like you were preparing yourself for something."
"So if you ask me if I believe you, I can't be certain, to be honest. But until I see it with my own eyes, I'll try my best to believe you, fully."
"Anyway, you said that tomorrow at 10 AM, everything would begin, right? We'll know by then."
Saying so, Lin Ruoxi got up and walked toward Bai Shen; she affectionately caressed his face before kissing him.
"Thank you, Ruoxi..." Bai Shen was relieved, at least someone believed in him.
"Uhh, so that means we won't drink tonight?" Fatty Jiang's question came at the worst possible time.
-----
It was already 8:45 AM, the day when the apocalypse was supposed to happen. In fifteen minutes, Aunt Xiu would be here to take Fatty Jiang with her.
But since Bai Shen didn't want that to happen, he thought of a plan to keep her here until 10 AM.
"Shen," Li Meixue suddenly called his name. He saw her slowly approaching him.
"What you said to me last night after we kissed, about a possibility of us being together, you meant this?"
Li Meixue hesitated for a while as she whispered. After they kissed last night, Bai Shen told this to her before leaving the room.
"Yes." He looked straight into her eyes after saying this.
"Aunt Xiu is here!" Fatty Jiang's shout was heard, announcing his aunt's arrival to the others.
"What are you all doing here? Oh! There are girls too!" Aunt Xiu was a voluptuous woman in her late 30s.
Due to her skincare products being of high quality, she looked no different from a young woman. Her easy-going personality made her approachable.
"Aunt Xiu, this way, please! We have some snacks and food from last night!" Bai Shen quickly stepped forward and invited her.
Li Meixue was in the kitchen, busily preparing a plate with food and some snacks for Aunt Xiu.
Time quickly passed; the clock was 9:59 AM.
When it finally moved to 10 AM sharp, a voice was suddenly heard, announcing the changes that would take over the world like a storm.
"Congratulations, humans of Earth! Your planet was chosen to participate in the competition for Supremacy!"
"Every human will receive their own System that will guide you forward in this New Era!"
'Everything begins here...' Thought Bai Shen as he saw the shocked expressions on everyone's faces.