"Sixty years ago, after the plague swept across the Earth, everything changed. Evolution took a terrifying leap, and humanity fell from its throne as the dominant species."
"Countless mutated creatures emerged, possessing terrifying destructive power. Mammoths the size of mountains, wolves that could spit frost and ice, and other legendary creatures. Against these top-tier evolved beasts, even humanity's trump card—nuclear weapons—was powerless."
"In order to survive, humanity had no choice but to abandon vast portions of their land and build towering walls to protect themselves."
"With the help of the raw stones, humanity discovered how to absorb cosmic energy and awakened a special group of people—the awakened. These individuals developed unique abilities, and those who became stronger could even battle against these legendary mutated beasts. It was thanks to them that humanity was able to maintain its final embers of hope, allowing us to continue living behind the walls."
"Year 60 of the Wasteland Era."
The teacher's voice was deep and forceful as he relayed this blood-soaked history, his words heavy with the weight of the past. The setting sun cast long shadows across the blackboard, reflecting the melancholy glow on the tattered textbooks. The students sat in silence, each furiously scribbling notes, absorbed in the past, imagining their futures as awakened ones.
For these young people, the dream of becoming an awakened one was more than just an ambition—it was their ticket to a better life. A month from now would be Awakening Day, when all children around the age of 18 would undergo a test to awaken the latent power within them. The lucky ones would awaken successfully and be celebrated as "guardians of humanity," the pride of their families and communities.
But the student sitting in the back row, Gu Chen, was not as excited as his classmates. His gaze wandered through the window, staring at the desolate horizon. Becoming an awakened one no longer seemed like an option for him.
He had long understood that in this world, awakening wasn't something everyone could attain. The gap between the rich and the poor was deepened by the raw energy. The wealthy could afford raw stones and absorb vast amounts of energy, while those from poor families, like Gu Chen, had no access to them. Awakening had become a privilege of the elite, and the likelihood of someone like him becoming awakened was almost nonexistent.
Furthermore, he couldn't afford the tuition fees, and even if he could, the school wouldn't allow him to bring his sister to stay in the dorms. All he wanted was to escape the violent, crime-ridden slums and live a better life with his sister, but that seemed like a distant dream.
The clock on the wall ticked slowly, dragging on the minutes and hours. Gu Chen's mind wandered as the teacher continued speaking: "If two of you in this class become awakened, I'll be happy enough to dream about it. But don't be too optimistic—being an awakened one isn't all glorious. Besides fighting the beasts in the wild, you must also be wary of becoming infected."
"Who can tell me what an infected person is?"
A student raised their hand.
"After the plague, everyone who survived was infected by a mutated virus. Once someone becomes an awakened one, if they push themselves too hard and lose control, the virus takes over their brain, and they become a monster, feasting on human flesh," the teacher explained, his voice tinged with a warning.
Gu Chen packed up his books, silently slipping out of his seat. He walked to the back corner of the room, where the trash bin stood. Inside, a few small broken white stones lay discarded. Gu Chen bent down, carefully picking them up, and wrapped them in a piece of paper before putting them into his bag.
These raw stones, which the teacher had just mentioned, were tools that helped people absorb raw energy. The more raw energy one had, the higher the chances of awakening. Rich students carried these stones around with them, absorbing the energy and increasing their chances of awakening. But Gu Chen couldn't afford them, so he had to scavenge the discarded stones left behind by others, hoping to absorb whatever little energy remained in them.
The sun was setting as Gu Chen left the school, the warm glow of twilight casting long shadows across the worn streets. The city inside the walls was bustling and prosperous, but for people like him, who lived on the fringes, it was nothing but a distant dream. He walked to a small, inconspicuous gate along the city wall and slipped outside.
Beyond the walls lay the wilds, a place of danger and chaos, but not far from the gates, the slums had sprung up. It was still a harsh place to live, but at least it provided some shelter from the elements and the beasts outside.
As Gu Chen walked along the familiar path, he looked up at an abandoned courtyard not far away. This was once his home. Three years ago, his father, an awakened one, had disappeared during an expedition. His entire team was mysteriously killed. After an investigation that yielded no answers, his father was branded a traitor, and the deaths of his teammates were blamed on him.
The authorities confiscated all their property, and Gu Chen and his younger sister, Mu Xiaowan, were cast out. He was only 15, and Xiaowan was 10. That year, they were left with nothing but the ruins of their once prosperous life.
He walked slowly, his thoughts heavy, until he came to a stop. In front of him, the entire slum was surrounded by a crowd of people and several armored officers, shields raised. Something was happening. His heart skipped a beat, and he pushed forward through the crowd.
"Quarantine Zone?" Gu Chen read the sign posted nearby.
"The infected have entered the zone. No one can leave until we capture them," a stern voice announced.
Infected?
Gu Chen's heart tightened, and his eyes scanned the crowd. Behind the iron gate, the people inside were pressing against it, shouting and pleading.
"Let us out! We're not infected! We don't want to die!" one man cried.
"I'm not infected, I swear! Please, let my child out!" a woman begged.
The slum, with its thousands of residents, was in chaos. The fear of the infected was palpable, for everyone knew how dangerous they were. Other slums had seen outbreaks of infection before, and hundreds of people had been devoured by the infected.
Gu Chen's gaze swept over the crowd, then froze as it landed on a girl in the distance. She was wearing a thin, ragged cloth, with her long braids hanging down her back. She was small, frail, and her eyes were vacant as she grasped the gate, staring out with a confused expression.
In that moment, Gu Chen felt a deep pang of recognition. She looked just like he had, years ago.
"Let us out! Please, I'm not infected! My child is innocent!" a woman screamed.
Gu Chen gritted his teeth and pushed through the crowd, making his way toward the gate. He knew he had to do something. Not just for his sister, but for the girl who reminded him of his own lost innocence.