Time flew by, and soon it was 8 p.m. The temperature hadn't dropped with the fall of night. Instead, the oppressive heat intensified, adding an extra 10 degrees that made each breath feel like inhaling fire. Yi Bai, already irritable from the sweltering heat, distracted himself by scrolling through trade listings and checking the local chat, trying to kill time.
Then, something outside the window caught his attention. "Is someone out there?" Yi Bai murmured to himself. He quickly moved toward the window, lifting the curtain just enough to peek out. In the dimly lit street, a group of people emerged from the apartment complex where he lived, carrying candle holders and makeshift torches.
"Hurry up, stop dawdling! It's way too hot out here!"
"Li-ge, are we really going to find food? It's even hotter outside than in here! My throat feels like it's on fire."
"We've got no choice but to try. If we don't go, we'll starve. This damn heat… I can't believe it's not cooling down at all tonight!"
Yi Bai recognized the voices of several men in work clothes, loudly complaining as they walked. From his vantage point, he saw open windows on the various floors of the building, with curious eyes watching the group.
"Li-ge?" Yi Bai thought. Isn't that the guy who knocked on my door earlier today? He recognized the group but didn't know much about them. Yi Bai wasn't particularly close to his neighbors, preferring to keep to himself and focus on his work.
"Damn, I'm thirsty. I remember there are a few shops down this street. Let's check them out."
"We've got the tools, right? We don't want to come back empty-handed like last night."
"Li-ge, we've got everything. By the way, can we trade some of this for ice water later? I heard it's really good."
"Ice water? Hah, it's too expensive, not worth it. We'll just grab some regular water."
As the men chatted, Yi Bai noticed that many of them were armed with improvised weapons—rebar, kitchen knives, and even homemade bows and arrows.
"Damn, in this heat, the real danger isn't the temperature—it's other people." Yi Bai muttered under his breath, growing alert. "They're going to raid the shops, aren't they?" The extreme heat had created a dangerous shift in the environment, but it hadn't erased humanity's darker instincts. People were still the greatest threat to each other. With cities in chaos and resources dwindling, it didn't take much for survival instincts to take over. The less people adhered to old rules, the more they thrived.
It wasn't long before Yi Bai heard the sharp, horrified cries of a woman:
"Mercy! Mercy... Ahhh!"
"Help! What have you done to my husband?!"
"Murder! Someone help, they're killing him!"
The chilling screams shattered the night air, followed by the desperate cries of a man and woman, mingled with the wailing of children. The tension in the air was palpable, and Yi Bai could sense that every neighbor, though unseen, was quietly focused on the direction of the chaos.
An hour later, Li-ge and his group returned, carrying bags of supplies, their voices loud and carefree as they chatted and laughed.
"Bro, why didn't you let me have a go at that woman? She was looking pretty good."
"Are you stupid? We need to conserve our energy. In this heat, you want to risk dehydration? You're lucky to be alive after that."
"Too bad, I only got to touch her, but man, the feeling was amazing, haha!"
"Alright, now we've got food! Let's make a few more trips tonight. Don't let anyone else grab it."
As they spoke, Yi Bai noticed that several of the men were stained with fresh blood. Their weapons were still marked with red smears.
"These guys are definitely dangerous." Yi Bai thought, his eyes narrowing as he silently congratulated himself for not opening the door earlier. If he had, they would have definitely raided his freezer. "This group seems to have quickly adapted to the new world's rules. If I let them keep growing unchecked, sooner or later, they'll come for me."
The realization hit him hard: while these men hadn't broken into his apartment yet, it was only a matter of time. Once people threw away their moral boundaries, there was no telling what they were capable of. It was highly likely they would start breaking into apartments to loot supplies.
"I need to strengthen the defenses of my shelter. I need to be prepared." Yi Bai muttered to himself. He pulled the curtain shut and sat in the darkness, contemplating his next move.
He quickly reopened the trade platform, listing four bottles of ice water for trade—marking them specifically for any self-defense tools that could fortify his shelter. Whether weapons, equipment, or anything else to enhance security, Yi Bai was willing to trade. He even added, "If the price isn't fair, feel free to leave a message and negotiate." As long as the items were useful, he was ready to trade multiple bottles of ice water. After all, by tomorrow afternoon, the freezer would automatically produce another ten bottles, making the trade essentially risk-free.
"Ice Water Guy's back! A new batch of ice water has appeared! Four bottles all at once! This has to be the same guy!"
"I'll check the listings… Wow, Ice Water Guy is thinking ahead, looking for defensive tools. This guy knows what's up."
"Ice Water Guy isn't struggling for food or drink anymore; he's thinking about protecting his shelter. With that, he's set for the end of the world."
"Dammit, I'm dying of thirst here, and Ice Water Guy is already thinking about fortifying his shelter."
In the chat, people were commenting on the new ice water listings, but many were still desperately calling for help or claiming they were the ones who could save others.
The initial novelty of the apocalypse had worn off by the second night. The end of the world was no longer an abstract idea—it had become an ugly, terrifying reality. Resources were becoming scarcer by the hour, the heat was unbearable, and people had to face the grim truth: this was global catastrophe, and it was real. The scarcity made Yi Bai's ice water especially valuable, and his new listings caught the attention of many surviving shelters. Responses flooded in, and Yi Bai sifted through them carefully, looking for what he truly needed.
After about an hour, he selected a set of small composite crossbows, 30 professional steel arrows, and the necessary maintenance tools and spare parts. A weapon that, in peaceful times, would have been heavily regulated, but now was just another survival tool. He completed the exchange, trading three bottles of ice water for the crossbow, and used the last bottle to trade for a heat-resistant suit.
"These guys are too stingy; they're all so shrewd. Ice water is precious, but it can only buy so much." Yi Bai exhaled deeply, feeling slightly more secure now that he had a weapon. He glanced over at the tightly secured door and placed the crossbow next to his pillow, making sure it was within reach in case anything happened during the night. He donned the heat-resistant suit, though it didn't do much to ease the stifling heat.
"Now I've got food, water, and a weapon. What I really need now are medical supplies." Yi Bai lay down on his bed, thinking through his survival plan. "Tomorrow's ice water—hopefully I can trade it for some medicine, maybe something like Huoxiang Zhengqi Shui." He paused, considering what might be coming next. "I wonder what the reward will be tomorrow. Now that I've got the basics, will it be more food and water, or something new?"
As Yi Bai pondered these thoughts, he drifted into a restless sleep.
"Bang!!"
"Ah! Don't come any closer, I'll call the police!"
"Help! Someone! They're killing him!"
The piercing scream of a woman jolted Yi Bai awake. He quickly sprang from the bed, grabbed the crossbow, and cautiously eyed the door. It was still intact, and there was no one else in the room. After a quick check, Yi Bai looked up at the ceiling. This was an old building with poor soundproofing, and he could hear the sounds of fighting from above—shouting men, the woman's screams, and the crash of furniture being thrown around.
"What are you doing? Are you trying to kill someone?"
"Don't come closer! I have a weapon… Ahh!"
Another man's scream echoed, likely from someone trying to intervene. Yi Bai's eyes narrowed as he listened, his thoughts racing. "Is that Li-ge's group?" Based on everything that had happened in the last two days, only Li-ge's group seemed to have the kind of combat capability that could create this kind of chaos. But whether it was them or not, Yi Bai knew one thing for certain: someone in this building had begun searching for resources. The worst-case scenario of the apocalypse was unfolding—people were losing their sense of order and turning violent.