The sudden appearance of the original host's older brother gave Xie Lingruo a clearer direction for her first mission: taking care of her family. According to the original client's request, her current top priority was to treat her family as the most important thing in her life.
So Xie Lingruo had to do everything she could to ensure the safety of Papa Xie and Xie Lingfeng.Still, she was a bit worried—what if the two of them couldn't survive the first wave of the apocalypse mutations?
After thinking about it, she shook her head. That was unlikely. After all, both of them were in excellent shape: her father always maintained his health and fitness, and her brother was an active soldier.
At the same time, Xie Lingfeng saw his silly little sister walking toward him and quickly stepped up to ruffle her soft hair. In a gentle voice, he said,"Sorry, I was out on a mission and couldn't make it for our little princess's birthday. But I brought you a gift."
As he spoke, he took out a necklace he'd made from spent bullet casings.Xie Lingruo loved it the moment she saw it.
She casually waved her hand and said with a smile, "It's fine. Work comes first. But… you're not heading back to the unit right away this time, are you?"
"No, the unit gave us extended leave. I'll be home for five days."
Xie Lingruo secretly let out a deep sigh of relief. She'd been afraid he'd leave right after dinner like usual.
Why was she so concerned? Because according to the original storyline, at 6:00 a.m. the next morning, several lab test subjects would escape, causing a viral outbreak. That day would mark the official beginning of the apocalypse—later generations would call it Year One of the Apocalypse.
It was now 8 p.m., and she had just had dinner with her family.She had her own plans for the night: take advantage of the final peaceful hours and collect more supplies from her family's supermarket warehouses.
During their inspection earlier, she'd already stored all the supermarket keys in her space, specifically for this night's operation.After all, it was her family's stuff—why not take it?
At around 10 p.m., Xie Lingruo quietly slipped out of the house and made her way to one of the supermarkets.All the stores were closed by the time she arrived.
The supermarkets wouldn't open until 9 a.m. the next day, and by then, no one would be able to show up for work anymore. That's why Xie Lingruo chose to act tonight.
She unlocked the door and stepped into the store like a hungry rat falling into a rice jar.She first destroyed the surveillance cameras, then proceeded to collect frozen goods, fresh produce, and fruit into her space. She left the rest untouched.
Her space was already packed with supplies, and she figured she should leave something behind for others. As long as her own needs were secured, she could afford to show some compassion.
Why take the perishables? Because the apocalypse would soon cut off power, and only by going with her would these frozen goods retain any value.
The real bulk of the inventory was in the warehouse, of course. Unfortunately, her space was already two-fifths full, and not much room remained. So she only took half the stock from each warehouse. Only when she saw items she especially liked did she take the whole batch.
On her way back, she passed a pharmacy. Using a hydraulic cutter she'd bought earlier, she broke the lock, entered the shop, and took half the medicine.
She didn't want people in the future, after going through great hardship, to only find an empty pharmacy.
She was not like the original female lead, who, after obtaining a space, adopted the policy: "If I see it, I take it—no exceptions."
But Xie Lingruo was different. She still thought about others.If a person becomes too selfish, are they still even human? Otherwise, what's the difference between them and a machine?
By the time she finished, it was already 4 a.m.. She was driving her van home when she noticed a tipped-over fuel tanker on the roadside, with a twitching driver lying nearby.
Curiosity got the better of her. She turned on her headlights to take a closer look.
To her horror, the man on the ground had a dark, bluish face, and his mouth was making a horrible growling noise. Even with crippled limbs, he was crawling fiercely toward her.
Terrified at the sight, Xie Lingruo's heart nearly jumped out of her chest.But when she thought about the fuel truck, she forced herself to stay calm.
She quickly used her spiritual ability to store the abandoned fuel truck into her space.Thankfully, her space allowed for mental retrieval—otherwise, she would've had to leave it behind.
Once that was done, she didn't dare linger another second and sped away.
As she drove, her mind replayed what she'd just witnessed.The apocalypse had already begun—quietly and ahead of schedule.
This served as a stern wake-up call for Xie Lingruo:She couldn't rely entirely on the original host's memories anymore.