September 15, 2025, sunny.
Wang Zhi sat before his laptop at home, typing code others couldn't decipher.
A moment later, he stretched his arms.
"Mission accomplished!"
He had spent months researching a way to crack a car's electronic key, and the project was finally complete!
With this software, he could bypass the vehicle's electronic key and start the car. Though it was shady work, making money was all that mattered.
Wang Zhi stood up and pulled open the living room curtains. Having been confined inside for so long, the sudden sunlight outside stung his eyes.
"This software will surely sell for a fortune on the Dark Web; I can finally take a proper vacation," Wang Zhi gazed out at the scenery, dreaming.
Ding dong ~ Ding dong ~
The doorbell!
Wang Zhi turned his head toward the front door in surprise.
This doorbell hadn't rung once since he moved in, and the sudden sound made him uneasy.
"Who is it?" Wang Zhi asked tentatively.
"Hello, delivery."
The voice of a delivery man came from outside the door.
"Delivery? That must be a mistake; I haven't ordered anything."
Wang Zhi frowned. He never shopped online, relying instead on his technical skills to avoid leaving any digital privacy traces. Why, then, was a delivery suddenly arriving at his home?
"Sir, it is correct; this is the address."
"Fine, just leave it by the door then."
Suspecting the person's identity, Wang Zhi prioritized safety and had the delivery man place the package outside the door.
Afterward, he watched through the peephole until the delivery man had gone before finally opening the door with relief.
After bringing the package inside, shaking it confirmed something was indeed inside.
Opening the small box revealed a Black Card. Wang Zhi picked it up, observing the metal material—details unknown. The card featured a pattern resembling a spinning top, which was intricately designed. Furthermore, on the back, there was a sequence of numbers: "6911."
"ID 6911?"
He murmured the ID printed on the Black Card.
While contemplating this, he noticed an envelope tucked into the bottom of the delivery box.
He pulled out the envelope and opened it to find a piece of parchment.
The text written on the parchment read: "The end is near; please proceed with the card."
The address coordinates listed were also a string of numbers, which he quickly deciphered as latitude and longitude.
Wang Zhi let out a bitter laugh upon reading it, wondering who was playing such a silly prank. He promptly tossed the card and the parchment aside.
Right now, he was more concerned with whether his software could sell well on the Dark Web so he could earn some money and live a carefree life.
Just as Wang Zhi sat back down at his computer and was browsing idly, he suddenly recalled purchasing a membership package called Dawn Tower on the Dark Web a year ago.
The project description stated: When darkness descends, the Dawn Tower will become that final glimmer of light.
Price: 0.1 dollars.
Excellent value for money; he had impulsively placed the order.
But the truly terrifying thought was that at the time, the transaction had succeeded, yet he hadn't filled in any information. So how did this thing arrive uninvited?
When he recalled it and searched again for the product named Dawn Tower, he could no longer find any trace of it.
For a moment, Wang Zhi was stunned; this unexpected Black Card had disrupted his plans.
However, since he was already planning to go on vacation, a trip wouldn't hurt. Thinking this, Wang Zhi picked up the parchment from earlier and jotted down the latitude and longitude coordinates.
Afterwards, he got up and went to the bathroom to wash his messy hair. Looking at himself in the mirror, he shook his head; he was only 25, but because he had been working on R&D to the point of forgetting to eat or sleep, he looked like a thirty-something uncle.
After spending a full half hour tidying up his appearance to his satisfaction, Wang Zhi began packing his belongings into large and small bags.
Computer, Cell Phone, clothes, wallet, and that most crucial item, the Black Card.
As for food, since he had been cooped up at home for several days without going out, he had completely depleted his supplies and planned to just find a random mall to buy some once he arrived nearby.
It was already 9 AM. Wang Zhi hailed a taxi and went to the airport, where he processed a ticket to his destination at the service desk.
The plane landed at 1 PM. Wang Zhi stepped off, looking at the unfamiliar city, the unfamiliar people—it felt like traveling, like an adventure, or perhaps like wandering aimlessly.
Since it was the apocalypse, and adhering to the mindset of better safe than sorry, Wang Zhi first found a large supermarket and purchased a large quantity of food: self-heating meals, compressed biscuits, chocolate, beef jerky, bottled water, and so on.
Because there was so much stuff, he also bought two rolling suitcases specifically to hold the food.
Emerging from the supermarket, he was now pulling a suitcase with both his left and right hands, and still had a travel bag slung over his back.
Perhaps in the eyes of outsiders he looked insane, but he knew exactly what he was doing; even if some other unexpected event occurred, this food would definitely be enough for him to survive for quite some time.
Wang Zhi checked the map, locked onto the specific location—it seemed to be Zhengjian Park—and hailed another taxi.
After getting in, the driver immediately asked, "Say, young man, where are you off to with all these bags and parcels?"
"To... go camping."
Wang Zhi did not tell anyone his true intentions, because even he himself found it hard to believe; if he tried to persuade others, they would only think he was crazy.
Upon reaching the destination and unloading their luggage, Wang Zhi looked across the road at the park. It was already 3 PM, and groups of elderly people were playing their favorite musical instruments.
Wang Zhi noticed nothing unusual; this was just an ordinary park. Could it really be a prank?
Just as Wang Zhi was hesitating, he spotted a man dragging a suitcase, just like himself. The man appeared to be over thirty, wearing a black hat, looking around as if searching for something, which stood in stark contrast to everyone else.
He seemed to understand something and moved forward.
"Brother, are you perhaps looking for this?"
Wang Zhi asked, holding up the Black Card.
The man in the black hat turned and sized Wang Zhi up for a moment.
"You believe this too?" the man in the black hat replied flatly.
Hearing this, Wang Zhi already had his answer: "Ha, since I have nothing else to do, I'll treat it as a vacation. My name is Wang Zhi. What should I call you, Brother?"
"Just call me Old He," Old He replied simply.
Wang Zhi observed the man's physique; even in casual attire, it couldn't hide his muscles. This made Wang Zhi sense that the man possessed extremely strong explosive power and an intangible sharpness about him. He could even quickly determine that Old He had undergone systematic military training.
"Then, Brother He, have you found anything?" Wang Zhi asked, looking at the unremarkable park.
"Nothing yet. Let's walk further inside," Old He said casually, showing no apparent concern about Wang Zhi's appearance.
The park was situated on a small hill, undulating up and down, and Wang Zhi, who usually lacked exercise, was already drenched in sweat under the weight of his heavy luggage.
"Let's rest for a bit," Wang Zhi gasped, walking behind.
Old He turned back for a look, realizing Wang Zhi was not in good shape, and sat down on the lawn.
"Hey, Brother He, how did you get hold of this Black Card?" Wang Zhi asked, sitting to the side.
Old He glanced sideways at Wang Zhi but didn't reply, clearly not wanting to say much.
After resting for a while, the two stood up again to search.
It was already 5 PM.
They were still searching this vast park for the so-called 'Dawn Tower'.
It was strange; there were no tower-like structures in the park at all. They had even searched every ruined temple they found, but still no sign of the Dawn Tower.
"Where haven't we looked?" Old He asked, turning back at this point.
Wang Zhi looked at the map; they had searched everywhere possible. Could it be buried underground?
Wait!
Underground?
Wang Zhi's eyes lit up, and he spoke, "Old He, there's one place we haven't checked."
"Where?"
"The Air Raid Shelter!"
"The Air Raid Shelter? I think there is one Air Raid Shelter. Let's go!" Saying this, the two quickly walked towards the only Air Raid Shelter in the park!