On the frozen surface of the lake, Logan struck the ice forcefully with a pickaxe.
About a meter below the ice, a frozen carp could faintly be seen.
Saliva involuntarily gathered in Logan's mouth as he made up his mind that this fish would be dinner for him and Zach tonight.
Zach was someone he had known for fourteen years and had been his partner in the post-apocalyptic world for eight years. He was, without a doubt, the person Logan trusted the most in his life.
This time, it was Logan's turn to search for food while Zach was responsible for keeping watch on the surroundings.
Suddenly, a barely perceptible sound was carried on the howling wind.
"Pop!"
Logan's pupils shrank abruptly.
The sound of a gunshot with a silencer!
A piercing pain shot through his back.
Logan fell to the ground, the pickaxe slipping from his grasp and flying three meters away.
What was going on? How could someone sneak up on him without Zach giving him a warning?!
He turned his head with difficulty and saw Zach standing beside his old enemy, Simon Clark, speaking to him with an ingratiating smile.
Through the wind, Logan could faintly hear words like "space," "not worthy," and "shelter."
At that moment, Logan's mind raced faster than ever before.
Zach had betrayed him!!
Blood was draining from Logan's body, and he was growing colder by the second.
But more unbearable than the physical pain and cold was the heartache of being betrayed by the person he trusted most!
The two of them walked toward Logan.
Simon Clark looked down at Logan with undisguised contempt in his eyes:
"Logan, you've fallen into my hands."
Logan clenched his teeth so hard that they bled, staring at Zach with unwavering hatred.
He had lost all feeling from the waist down, and it was all thanks to his "good brother" and "loyal partner"!
Zach avoided Logan's bloodshot eyes, his gaze shifting nervously as he said:
"Logan, don't blame me. I contributed to activating the space too, but you always treated it as your own. You refused to share it so we could all go to the shelter together.
We can join Simon and make your space serve him. You won't have to struggle to find supplies on your own anymore. I'm doing this for your own good. The world is getting more dangerous every day."
Logan had a family heirloom, an old bowl passed down from his father, which he carried with him even after the apocalypse.
One day, while Logan and Zach were searching for supplies, they accidentally dug up an ancient coin.
What they thought was just a useless trinket turned out to be a key. When Logan picked up the coin, it activated the bowl, granting him access to a personal space.
From that day on, Zach's attitude subtly changed.
Meanwhile, Logan continued to focus on how to ensure they both had enough to eat, completely unaware of Zach's shift in behavior.
Eight years.
Eight whole years!
Logan suddenly found it all laughable.
"You actually... hahaha, you betrayed me over this?! Hahahahaha!!"
Logan, his mouth full of blood, laughed maniacally.
Zach knew full well that Simon Clark was one of the people Logan hated most in the world!
They had supported each other for eight years, never abandoning one another, only to be divided by a space that had only been awakened for less than six months!
So this is what it means to be guilty for holding treasure!
After laughing, Logan closed his eyes tightly for a moment, then opened them again, speaking to Simon Clark with certainty:
"I can work for you, but Zach is useless to you now, isn't he?"
Zach's mouth opened slightly as realization dawned on him. A look of terror crossed his face as he turned to Simon Clark:
"Simon... you wouldn't..."
Logan twisted the knife:
"He'll tell you, and he'll tell others too. My space has nothing to do with him. The more people who know, the more likely it is to be exposed."
At this moment, Logan's eyes were bloodshot, with a terrifying depth in them.
He should have looked wretched, but the smile on his face sent chills down anyone's spine.
Zach looked at Logan, a flash of fear and malice in his eyes, as he forced a smile that was uglier than crying and said to Simon Clark:
"Simon, I was the one who told you about the space, wasn't I? I can help you keep an eye on Logan, make sure he doesn't do anything against you."
"Yes, you did well."
Simon Clark nodded in agreement.
The smile on Zach's face became more sincere.
"I'll remember your contribution forever."
Zach's pupils shrank, and his body trembled slightly. He wanted to say something more.
But Simon Clark had already placed his gun against Zach's head. He never intended to let Zach live.
"Pop!"
Red and white splattered from the back of Zach's head.
"Swish!"
In an instant, just as Simon Clark turned his gun and shot Zach in the head!
Logan used all his strength, propping himself up with one arm while the other gripped a sharp piece of ice, which he hurled fiercely at Simon Clark!
By some stroke of luck, Logan's throw struck Simon Clark squarely on the head.
Simon Clark's body fell onto the ice, his gun slipping from his hand and landing just a meter away from Logan.
Logan desperately crawled towards the gun—closer, closer.
The previous blow wasn't enough to be fatal. He had to kill Simon Clark, kill him!!
A surge of overwhelming hatred flashed in Logan's eyes.
He touched the gun.
A fleeting look of joy crossed his face.
"Pop!"
A sharp pain struck the back of Logan's head, and consciousness plunged into darkness.
…
"Beep beep beep beep!"
Logan abruptly sat up, gasping for air.
Wasn't he just dead? Was there a fourth person at the scene? Who was it?!
It was then that Logan realized his injuries had vanished.
And the warm temperature and soft bed around him were definitely not from the frozen apocalypse.
The ear-piercing beeping continued, and the dazed Logan spotted the phone by his bedside.
A phone?!
A phone that had been rendered useless at the start of the apocalypse?!
…
It took Logan a long time to calm down.
And to confirm that he had been reborn!
He had been reborn before the frozen apocalypse.
Before the frozen apocalypse began!
The current date was March 1, 2024, 7:30 AM.
At this time, he was only nineteen years old, a college freshman in the city.
He didn't live in the dormitory but stayed at home.
Logan stood on his bedroom balcony, feeling the cool morning breeze.
The March sun was warm as it used to be.
Looking down from the 28th-floor balcony, he could see the busy traffic on the road outside the neighborhood, which would soon turn into a gridlock.
But this peaceful and prosperous scene would soon be replaced by endless white snow, never to be seen again.
And the root cause was told the sun hanging high in the sky.
Logan raised his hand to shield his eyes, glancing at the sun, the very source of human life.
Humanity might never have imagined that if one day, something went wrong with the sun, what would happen to them?
But Logan knew. It would be a disaster—it would be the apocalypse for mankind!