"One Hour Later: The Voting Phase Will Begin, and Guidance Information About Our National Forces Will Be Released."
The second round of the Apocalypse War was finally here!
Yi Bai froze. There had been so much happening at the gathering point recently that he'd almost forgotten about this event.
It wasn't just Yi Bai who was caught off guard—most survivors were stunned when they heard the sudden announcement. Only a small group of survivors, still struggling to get by, were thrilled, their voices buzzing with excitement in the chat channels.
"Damn! The second round of the Apocalypse War is finally here! Hurry up, this time, let's vote for a higher difficulty—I'm running low on supplies in my shelter!"
"I've been waiting for this day forever! Finally, my dream is coming true! Don't give me an F-level challenge again—F-level can't even keep me fed!"
"Brothers, please! You saw the first round's report, right? The military is strong—cannon fire, alien creatures being obliterated! It's epic! Please, up the difficulty a bit! I just want to survive!"
"Damn it, the first round was barely over, and I thought I'd made it, but the next thing I know, my neighbor got eaten by those damn flesh-eating bacteria! The weather is still burning hot! How are we supposed to live like this?"
The once quiet city chat channels suddenly came alive again.
For the past month, aside from the initial excitement and curiosity when the apocalypse began, most survivors had little interest in chatting. After truly experiencing the horror of the apocalypse, most survivors had lost their desire to talk. Even those who had once been more talkative had grown quiet after a few hard lessons—those who hadn't learned quickly were already gone.
The cruel rules of survival in the apocalypse had made people adapt. Even the city chat channels, which were once filled with information, requests for help, and trades, were now full of deceitful scammers and brutal thugs. In an environment without law and order, people became unrecognizable—human or monster, who could tell the difference anymore?
But now, with the announcement of the second round of the Apocalypse War, a sense of vitality returned to the city.
Yi Bai opened the city chat channel immediately, observing the situation carefully. He noticed the survivors' ambitions were rising.
Many were calling for a higher difficulty vote, hoping to secure more valuable rewards for their shelters. While some tried to reassure that a small adjustment in difficulty wouldn't be too tough on the military, Yi Bai could sense something had shifted in the survivors' mindset.
Less than a month ago, people had been more naïve. Even in the brutal early stages of the apocalypse, there had been a miraculous vote for an F-level challenge. But after the first round, after witnessing the terrifying consequences of their survival, most survivors had changed.
Some had grown cold and ruthless. Whether to protect themselves or simply out of a desire to vent their aggression, the shift in mentality was undeniable. The survivors' principles were slowly eroding, replaced by a self-preservation instinct that had become more brutal with time.
Yi Bai muttered to himself, "So this is how they plan to break us."
He now understood why the mysterious force had shown its hand so openly, revealing the "Dual Apocalypse World" system during the first round. It was a strategy—a calculated move that depended on humans gradually lowering their moral standards and sacrificing each other, eventually leading to infighting.
In the early rounds, like the first and second, some might still care for each other, sacrificing themselves for the greater good. But as the rounds progressed and the stakes grew higher, would humanity hold on to their values?
Yi Bai sighed. "These are things I can't change. At least, not yet."
He felt a sense of helplessness. He couldn't influence the actions of survivors across the entire country, let alone the entire city. But one thing was certain—lowering the difficulty of the vote would guarantee his own safety.
His interests were directly tied to the difficulty of the war.
As Yi Bai silently observed the chat and discussions, the hour passed in the blink of an eye.
"The Voting Phase Begins Now!"
"Before the voting phase, guidance information about the national Apocalypse War has been released."
A series of ten words appeared before the survivors across the nation.
"Level A: Apocalypse Strikes the Weak, Do Not Be Negligent."
Concise, and to the point. Everyone understood it clearly.
The hidden message was almost palpable: "Let's compromise, shall we?"
No more pushing for an S-level, but no more F-level either. It was a suggestion to be reasonable—take a step back, for the sake of the greater good.
S-level was too extreme, but Level A was probably manageable. Sure, there might be casualties, but it would also bring significant material rewards to the survivors, enough to help many who might otherwise perish in the second round of the apocalypse.
"This message is interesting," Yi Bai murmured to himself. "Perhaps the military in this world can see the number of survivors nationwide?"
"That would explain their urgency," he added, as he opened the daily survivor statistics.
"Current global shelter population: Over 4.2 billion."
"Current national shelter population: Over 600 million."
The numbers were updated every day, but Yi Bai hadn't checked them in a while. He had noticed that the rate of decline in survivors had slowed in the last stages of the first round, which suggested most survivors had adapted to the high temperatures and the worst of it was over.
However, comparing the current numbers to a month ago revealed a grim truth. The global population had been over 10 billion before the apocalypse, and more than 60% of humanity had perished in the first round alone!
"The second round just began today. Tomorrow's numbers will likely be worse," Yi Bai thought with a sigh.
With the terrifying threat of the flesh-eating bacteria, Yi Bai feared many shelters without proper defenses would be wiped out in the coming days.
The survival statistics gave him a chilling perspective. In a month, China had gone from over a billion people to just 600 million, and that number was still dropping. If they didn't increase the difficulty now, the country might be decimated before the end of the second round.
Yi Bai pondered, "So how should I vote this time?"
Before he could settle on an answer, a new prompt flashed on his screen.