That night, very few of them truly slept.
They lay in their rooms, staring at ceilings they had known for over a year.
The mountain wind howled softly outside.
And for the first time since the apocalypse began, fear felt… organized.
Not chaotic.
Not panicked.
Purposeful.
If there was one thing every child of the Gu family thought about before sleep claimed them, it was this:
Their father could have chosen wealth.
He could have chosen status.
He could have chosen safety through compromise.
But he chose them.
He chose uncertainty. Isolation. War with the unknown.
For them.
And once that settled into their bones, resistance dissolved.
No one wanted to be dissected in a laboratory.
No one wanted to become a case study in "genetic potential."
Better the forest.
Better the beasts.
Better to carve their own future.
By morning, something invisible had shifted.
When Gu Yunchen walked into breakfast, no one argued.
No one questioned.
They simply nodded.
We are going.
The very next day, Gu Yunchen gathered all Earth ability users.
"Bring mapping tools," he ordered.
They climbed the outer slopes of the mountain.
Gu Mian walked beside him.
The capital stretched in the distance — hazy, deceptively calm.
Gu Yunchen planted a steel rod into the soil.
"We do not dismantle the mansion," he said. "We uproot it."
The Earth ability users exchanged looks.
One asked carefully, "You mean… move the foundation?"
"Yes."
Not just the buildings.
The entire structural base.
The underground reinforcement grid.
The energy channels.
Everything.
Gu Ruisheng crouched, pressing his palm against the ground. Soil rippled outward in a wave.
"We dig from here," he said. "Forty meters radius."
Gu Yunchen nodded.
"Mark load-bearing zones. Preserve integrity. We move it as one piece."
The scale of it was absurd.
But so were they
That afternoon, another decision was made.
"We stop cultivating mental force," Gu Yunchen declared.
The room blinked.
Gu Yan frowned. "Stop? But we're—"
"We shift entirely to Spiritual Qi."
Murmurs.
Mental force had been their primary cultivation path for months. It was familiar. Stable. Powerful.
But Gu Mian understood immediately.
Spiritual Qi was purer.
Less traceable.
More adaptable.
"Our mental force levels are high," Gu Yunchen continued. "Spiritual Qi is underdeveloped. If we are to survive in the NCF, we need balance."
Gu Shao nodded slowly. "Dual cultivation."
"Yes."
Their Spiritual Qi was barely level one, some not even that.
Embarrassing compared to their combat strength.
"Then we raise it," Gu Ruolan said simply.
And so they did.
Furniture was cleared from the main living hall.
Couches pushed aside.
Tables removed.
Seventy people now occupied the mansion — Gu Mian's team included.
Seventy.
They sat in a massive circle.
Cross-legged.
Eyes closed.
Hands resting on knees.
Gu Mian guided the rhythm.
"Inhale. Pull from the earth."
"Exhale. Refine."
The air itself began to vibrate.
Seventy streams of Spiritual Qi circulated, slowly syncing into a unified current.
At first, it was chaotic.
Different breathing rhythms.
Different tempos.
But within days, harmony formed.
A massive invisible vortex spiraled above the mansion every night.
Those sensitive to energy could feel it from miles away.
But none dared approach.
During the day—
Excavation.
Combat.
Preparation.
At night—
Cultivation.
It became routine.
It became discipline.
Within two weeks, several broke through to Spiritual Qi level two.
By the end of the month—
The stronger members neared level three.
Their foundations grew terrifyingly stable.
They were becoming something rare:
True dual cultivators
Papa Gu had another rule.
"No one grows soft."
Every day, five hours minimum.
Zombie clearing.
Level one zombies were now everywhere.
Every single one carried a crystal core.
Evolution had accelerated.
The apocalypse was entering a new phase.
Gu Mian stood atop the outer wall one afternoon, watching her siblings fight.
Level one zombies moved faster.
Stronger.
More coordinated.
Level two zombies appeared more frequently.
She did not interfere.
Even when a level two brute charged toward a younger sibling—
She watched.
The sibling dodged.
Countered.
Crushed its skull.
Growth required pressure.
And still—
She refused to let anyone break through to level six.
Not yet.
Foundations first
Every evening, after combat, a large basin was placed in the courtyard.
Filled with spring water.
One by one, crystal cores were dropped inside.
They hissed faintly as the viral residue dissolved.
The water shimmered silver.
Children watched in fascination.
Xu Qian monitored contamination levels.
When purified, the cores were distributed evenly.
No favoritism.
No hoarding.
Power grew steadily.
Disciplined.
Measured.
Suddenly, a Wristwatch Innovation
The idea came from frustration.
Arguments broke out one afternoon.
"I killed more than you."
"No, you stole my target."
"Your count is inflated."
Gu Xing, whose ability was "Order," frowned thoughtfully.
"What if we quantify it?"
Li Qiao's eyes lit up.
Gu Taner leaned forward.
Within three days, prototypes were built.
Small wristwatch-like devices.
Forged with gold.
Because they had discovered something critical—
Gold conducted mental force.
Not electricity.
Not Qi.
Mental force.
When inscribed with Gu Xing's Order matrices, the gold frame stabilized spell structures.
Li Qiao integrated a simple counter mechanism.
When a zombie was killed by the wearer, residual mental imprint was detected and logged.
Each watch required a power source.
Gu Mian supplied refined jade.
A single watch-head sized jade battery could last three years.
When one dimmed, they could replace it themselves.
The first day they distributed the watches—
Competition exploded.
Kill counts became public.
Rankings emerged.
Morale skyrocketed.
Efficiency increased.
Even Papa Gu wore one.
Though no one dared compare numbers with him.
The realization about gold's properties changed everything.
If gold conducted mental force—
It could be used in weapon matrices.
Barrier anchors.
Energy amplification.
And trade.
Gu Yunchen called a meeting.
"We go public."
Several blinked.
"With what?"
"Exchange."
Gu Mian smiled faintly.
"Supplies for jade and gold."
The capital had assumed the Gu family had retreated fully into isolation.
Now—
They would re-emerge.
Temporarily.
Three warehouses were opened.
Food. Medicine. Tools. Pre-apocalypse luxury goods. Weapons.
Word spread like wildfire.
"The Gu family is trading!"
"For jade and gold!"
"At premium rates!"
At first, people were suspicious.
Then they saw the goods.
Quality.
Quantity.
Fair exchange.
Lines formed.
Long.
Endless.
People carried bags of gold jewelry.
Bars pulled from abandoned vaults.
Heirloom jade.
Decorative stones.
Everything.
And left with bulging supply sacks.
The capital buzzed.
"They must be desperate."
"They're hoarding currency."
"Gold is useless now."
"Jade is decorative."
How wrong they were.
Inside the mansion, gold piled up like mountains.
Jade stacked in crates.
Gu Mian refined jade constantly.
Her space expanded quietly.
They also targeted abandoned banks.
Vaults were cracked open.
Gold reserves emptied.
Entire armored trucks of bullion vanished.
Speculation ran rampant.
"Are they building something?"
"Are they preparing to flee?"
No one knew.
And those who suspected—
Had no proof.
Deep within the capital, a report crossed a metal desk.
"Subject: Gu Family Activity."
The officer frowned.
"They're trading for gold?"
"Yes."
"And jade."
"Strange."
"Surveillance?"
"Limited. They remain within perimeter."
"Continue observation."
No action was taken.
They believed time was on their side.
They believed the Gu family was stationary.
They were wrong
After a month—
Three warehouses emptied.
Gold reserves secured.
Jade reserves secured.
Foundations fully excavated.
Earth ability users stood exhausted but proud.
The mansion now rested in Gu Mian's space.
Gu Yunchen gathered everyone.
"It's time."
They announced publicly—
"No more exchange."
Lines still formed the next morning.
People arrived carrying more gold.
More jade.
More hope for supplies.
But when they reached the exchange square—
It was empty.
No guards.
No staff.
No tables.
Confusion spread.
Someone climbed higher up the mountain path.
Then froze.
The entire mansion—
Was gone.
Not destroyed.
Not burned.
Gone.
In its place—
A massive crater.
Perfectly circular.
Dozens of meters deep.
The mountain looked as if a giant hand had scooped its heart out.
Shock rippled through the capital.
"They fled!"
"When?"
"How?!"
"Where?!"
The Institute received emergency updates.
"What do you mean the structure vanished?"
"Satellite footage?"
"Interference detected last night."