Chapter 13 - Chapter 13: The Ice Age Descends

Zhang Yi emptied the entire Walmart South China warehouse! Billions worth of goods had all entered his spatial dimension. Yet, he pretended to know nothing, immediately reporting the situation to Walmart's senior management. Soon, the news spread throughout Walmart's South China division. A large group of executives, shocked and alarmed, rushed to the scene and reported the case to the police. Zhang Yi wasn't worried about being exposed at all. After all, within just two hours, a warehouse with billions in goods completely vanished — such an event was far too unbelievable. Even if the police investigated with full force, they wouldn't find any evidence in a short amount of time. Still, he acted nervous and scared, fully cooperating with the police investigation. After a night of interrogation, Zhang Yi was released. The police, however, remained highly suspicious of the incident. They had checked the surveillance footage from inside and outside the warehouse. While the internal cameras had been turned off, it seemed impossible to steal millions of cubic meters of goods without leaving any trace. Yet, after reviewing the external surveillance, they found no signs of any vehicles passing by. This meant that the billions in goods had either disappeared into thin air, or… Walmart itself had orchestrated an inside job. Logically, the latter seemed far more plausible. After all, unless some supernatural event had occurred, there was no way to explain how such a massive amount of goods disappeared in just two hours. Although Zhang Yi and other regular employees raised some suspicion, the inexplicable nature of the disappearance overshadowed any focus on them. Zhang Yi was ordered to stay within Tianhai City for the time being and to cooperate with both the police and Walmart's internal investigation. He readily complied and was sent home. Back at his apartment, Zhang Yi peered out through the blinds. It was December 8th, only four days left until the Ice Age apocalypse arrived. For now, all he needed to do was stay home and wait — soon, his victory over life would come easily. With the billions worth of supplies in his spatial dimension, covering nearly every aspect of life, Zhang Yi felt incredibly secure. After the long night of investigations and preparing his alibi, he collapsed onto his bed, exhausted. ... He slept until the late afternoon. When he woke up and turned on the TV, the news was all about the theft at Walmart's South China warehouse. Given the staggering loss and the sheer strangeness of the incident, every major news outlet in the country was covering the story. "A whole warehouse emptied in just a few hours — it's got to be an inside job!" "It must have been done by someone high up at Walmart, trying to scam the insurance company." "Millions of cubic meters of goods — even with trucks, it would take all night to move it all!" Zhang Yi smiled. No one would know the truth until the apocalypse hit. In the following days, Zhang Yi stayed at home, not going anywhere. He knew the world didn't have much time left. For safety, he wouldn't leave his room until absolutely necessary. In the meantime, the police and Walmart's investigators called him in for questioning again. While they were suspicious of his behavior that night, with little time to investigate and no solid evidence, they couldn't arrest him. Some acquaintances texted Zhang Yi, asking about the inside scoop, but he easily brushed them off. Finally, December 12th arrived. At 2 a.m., a gamma-ray burst passed by Earth — it lasted only a moment, but the effects it left on the planet were devastating. Hours earlier, Zhang Yi had sealed his room, and his fireplace was already roaring. Soon, with the depletion of energy resources, air conditioning and heating systems would become useless. The only way to stay warm would be through primitive means. At 2 a.m., he sat on his sofa by the massive floor-to-ceiling window, holding a bottle of beer, staring intently at the sky. Suddenly, a white light appeared at the horizon, and though it was the middle of the night, the world brightened as if it were dusk. But this light lasted only two seconds before vanishing. Most people were asleep at this time and didn't notice the brief change. But Zhang Yi, fully aware of what it meant, felt a chill run down his spine. He took a large gulp of beer, the cool Budweiser calming his nerves. Tossing a few more high-quality logs into the fireplace, he settled back into his chair. He turned on the TV, casually watching while waiting for the world to change. Minutes later, snowflakes began to fall outside. At first, they were the size of fingernails, but within two minutes, they turned into thick, heavy flakes. The wind began to howl, and in an instant, the snowfall outside became terrifying! The whole city was suddenly engulfed in a blizzard. This was the power of nature. When it decided to change, there was no warning. Zhang Yi felt a bit tense. Even though he had meticulously prepared his safehouse, having lived through the Ice Age once before, he couldn't help but worry. Could this 8-million-yuan safehouse truly withstand the coming cold? But as the fire roared in the fireplace, the room quickly became incredibly warm — almost too hot. The indoor temperature had risen to 32.6°C. He glanced outside, where the blizzard had already covered the city in a thick layer of snow. Feeling more reassured, Zhang Yi relaxed a bit. But he didn't rush to sleep. He wanted to keep monitoring the situation. There would be plenty of time to rest later. Within half an hour, the balcony outside was buried under snow. Checking his phone, Zhang Yi saw that news of the sudden cold had spread across the internet. The web was filled with complaints, with people lamenting how the winter had arrived too early and how unprepared they were for the cold. "This crazy weather! It's already below -10°C!" "By tomorrow, the roads will be completely frozen. How are we supposed to get to work?" Some people, however, were happy. "With all this snow, I won't have to go to work tomorrow, haha!" Many in the south, where snow was rare, excitedly posted pictures of themselves playing in the snow, thrilled by the unusual weather. Zhang Yi shook his head. This was just the beginning. The snow would continue for three months, and the temperature would keep dropping. Soon, they wouldn't be in the mood to enjoy the snow anymore.