Apocalypse Star House Hoarding

Chapter 302

Once certain patterns were figured out, the station tasks gradually became clearer.

Evidently, the various rewards they wanted this time—train tickets, hidden station clues, Easter egg fragments, spatial expansion, and so on—were all available in the redemption section.

Gold rewards were the best, followed by silver, while colorless rewards were relatively easy to exchange.

As for hidden rewards, they had not been activated yet and depended on luck.

Ya Tong had synchronized updates with the three of them. Unable to resist, Yu Zhenzhen tried redeeming a “colorless reward” and received a temporary ten-second extension to the gamification time limit.

Although, based on their hypothesis, this “gamification time limit” would increase as they survived more times in the devouring game, at this stage, gaining an extra ten seconds was still a decent reward.

However, compared to the rewards they truly desired, it was still far from sufficient.

In the end, the others decided to save their redemption opportunities for higher-tier rewards. As for whether the two small teams should meet up and act together, Lin Wu brought it up.

Acting together as a group of six would certainly be safer, but since the blue light’s coverage was limited and there wasn’t always more than one devouring creature appearing at a time, moving together would reduce the number of game results and redemption chances.

Therefore, his suggestion was to maintain the current three-person teams and operate separately. This way, each team would have sufficient supplies and attack-defense capabilities while also maximizing their game results and redemption opportunities in different areas. “Splitting up again?” Yu Zhenzhen actually wanted to stay in the treehouse with Yu Xi, but considering that Xing Min and Xi Yuan had no space and clearly needed Yu Xi more, she could only think about it wistfully.

In the following days, the two small teams moved daily, monitoring the city’s population distribution in real-time based on the program Xing Min had modified.

It was easy to discover that the blue light appeared based on population density. The authorities and high-level officials knew this, and the public had a rough idea, but ordinary citizens couldn’t monitor real-time population changes like Yu Xi and the others. Moreover, people’s movement was inherently uncontrollable, so even if the public was aware, they couldn’t do much to change it.

The authorities, however, decided to set up trap zones for a counterattack after several studies.

The first time, they deployed a large number of mechanical armed units in already-destroyed areas, hoping to trigger the blue light and use the robots to eliminate any devouring creatures that appeared.

If successful, they planned to establish permanent ambush zones with a large number of robots in certain areas to reduce the frequency of blue light covering populated districts.

But the plan failed. The robots didn’t attract the blue light at all. Instead, the blue light still covered human-dense areas, causing massive casualties once again.

The second time, the authorities were determined to fight back. They stationed personnel in specific areas. This time, the blue light came as expected, but what appeared within the zone were multiple devouring black holes—the most lethal kind.

The black holes had no physical form. Any attack thrown at them simply vanished into the bottomless darkness. That night, the military suffered a devastating loss.

After two consecutive failures, public confidence wavered. The order that had been forcefully maintained by the armed forces completely collapsed.

**

By the time the explosion occurred, Yu Xi’s group had already completed their blue light zone task for the night and was resting in an area that had been ravaged by devouring creatures.

Their location that night was in the mid-air district of Center 300, very close to Center 350, where the presidential office was located.

Center 350, also known as the Cloud City District, was the highest mid-air construction zone in the city and the true aristocratic area.

The district was home to numerous exquisite and luxurious architectural landscapes and observation towers—including glass corridors and suspended restaurants, which had once been popular landmarks among the public. However, the entire Center 350 area was now strictly sealed off, barring entry to ordinary citizens.

In addition to heavy security and defenses, the authorities had also replaced human personnel with large numbers of mechanical armed units in Center 350. This was done to control the population within the area and prevent the blue light from descending again.

Because of the lockdown and the presence of mechanical guards, the blue light had not reappeared in Center 350. Most of the district remained as splendid as it had been before the disaster. The few high-ranking officials, magnates, and aristocrats still residing there continued their lives as if the catastrophe had never happened.

Over the past ten days, Yu Xi and the others had traveled through various districts, staying in both mid-air and ground-level buildings. Everywhere they went, the city was in a state of desolation and decay.

The shadow of disaster loomed over everyone. Schools were closed, factories shut down, and many private businesses ceased operations. Only fully automated or entirely mechanized industries continued running at a minimal level.

While walking through the streets, they often saw people clashing in supermarkets due to the shortage of essential supplies.

The gap between rich and poor in this city was enormous. In this situation, those who lined up daily for limited rations were the lower-class citizens who had no food reserves at home.

With factories shut down, many of them fell into economic crisis. Their lives were already difficult, and their entire families depended on the daily rationed supplies to survive. In such circumstances, even a bottle of water or a piece of bread became crucial resources, and when conflicts broke out, people fought desperately.

The soldiers transporting supplies couldn’t manage all these disputes. Sometimes, impatient with the chaos, they used the most brutal methods to enforce order—arresting everyone involved in any commotion without distinguishing right from wrong.

The arrested individuals were often the main breadwinners of their families. Once taken away, they were forgotten by the authorities, leaving their families without support and sinking deeper into despair.

For the truly unfortunate, if they were imprisoned when the blue light covered their area, they wouldn’t even have a chance to escape. Meanwhile, their families, having lost their pillar of support, would also be unable to flee in time and ultimately be devoured by the invading creatures.

Having witnessed numerous clashes and chaos, when they arrived in Center 300 and looked up at the tranquil Center 350, the contrast was striking.

A mere fifty meters, just a dozen floors apart—not far at all. Yu Xi could even hear the soft strains of a piano drifting from one of the suspended restaurants above.

Often, they could see the wealthy residents of Center 350 standing behind their glass railings, gazing idly down at the city below.

These people were unable to leave Center 350 freely due to the lockdown. As life became increasingly dull for them, many even used various observation devices to watch the devouring creatures rampaging through the blue light zones at night.

Yu Xi could see all of this, and so could the other civilians in Center 300.

The nobles and wealthy individuals fifty meters above them didn’t even bother to hide their detached amusement as they watched from afar.

When Yu Xi looked up at the nobles, she had a subtle premonition. She just hadn’t expected it to come true so quickly.

The three-story treehouse was set in a small maple grove within a half-destroyed park. The surrounding plants concealed the glass treehouse. Whenever she found a suitable location, Yu Xi would set up the treehouse to make daily life as comfortable as possible.

After adapting to the mechanics of this station, she finally understood why the difficulty level here was only A. The devouring creatures were terrifying, but they only appeared for ten minutes at a time, and a given area would only be covered once per day. For travelers, even if their attack power wasn’t strong, as long as they had enough stamina and quick reflexes, they could survive just by running and avoiding danger for those ten minutes.

That night, the blue light appeared earlier than usual—right at dinnertime. The devouring creature that emerged was a massive gelatinous sphere. When it hit the ground, it would bounce, and anything smaller than itself, including people, would be completely enveloped and absorbed, making the sphere even larger.

Yu Xi’s awakening level had increased from “-3” to “1,” but her gamification time limit had only increased by thirty seconds, bringing it to a total of one minute.

This meant that out of the ten-minute blue light coverage, the three of them could only fight back for two minutes (counting both her time and Xing Min’s), while the remaining eight minutes would still be spent escaping and dodging.

Once the blue light disappeared, it meant that from that moment until sunset the next day, the area would be temporarily safe.

Yu Xi checked her phone and found that she had leveled up again.

Awakening Level: 2

Gamification Time Limit: 90 seconds

Game Results:

Devouring Black Hole (0)

Devouring Serpent (1)

Devouring Dinosaur (3)

Devouring UFO (2)

Devouring Sphere (2)

Devouring Insect (4) …

Redemptions Available:

Gold Reward (Available)

Silver Reward (Available)

Colorless Reward (Available)

Hidden Reward (Not Yet Activated)

She was in a good mood and put away the canned food she had originally planned for dinner. Instead, she took out a pot of beef bone soup that Ya Tong had prepared earlier and brought out an induction cooker, deciding to have hot pot for dinner.

Since it was just her and Xing Min eating—Xi Yuan couldn’t eat—the selection of dishes was based entirely on their preferences: a vegetable platter with spinach, baby bok choy, crown daisy, lettuce, oyster mushrooms, bamboo fungus, konjac noodles, and shiitake mushrooms, along with a pure meat platter featuring marbled beef, lamb slices, tripe, beef aorta, luncheon meat, and duck blood.

Additionally, she prepared a large bowl of spicy dipping sauce loaded with minced garlic, cilantro, and scallions. Since they were using a clear broth base, she found it too plain and needed stronger flavors for stimulation.

“The selection isn’t much, but it’s just the two of us, so it’ll do.”

Xing Min: …

Yu Xi’s definition of “not much” always left Xing Min speechless.

The two of them sat on opposite sides of the bar counter and started their steaming hot pot meal. Not far from them, Xi Yuan sat with a sorrowful expression—at least, as sorrowful as his face could look—oiling his joints.

Halfway through their meal, Yu Zhenzhen called them on video. Yu Xi opened the 3D holographic screen and put it on speaker mode. Yu Zhenzhen’s cheerful face immediately appeared in midair.

“I redeemed another gold reward today! I got a clue for the hidden station!”

Even though they had agreed to hold off on redeeming rewards to accumulate enough for a potential breakthrough that might activate the hidden reward, Yu Zhenzhen was the most impatient of the group.

Every time she saw the words “redeemable” appear on her phone, she would cash it in immediately. However, thanks to her impatience, the others had been able to get a general understanding of what different levels of rewards contained.

Train tickets and station clues were classified as gold rewards. Silver rewards sometimes included useful skills or weapons, while colorless rewards were mostly food, water, and medicine, though occasionally, they provided skill enhancements.

“The station clue points to the highest place in the city. That should be the Cloud City District, right? You guys are in Center 300 today, right? We can meet up with you tomorrow!”

“Yeah, we’re in Center 300. The blue light just disappeared. If you’re coming tomorrow, we’ll stay put. But do you have enough clues? Center 350 is huge.”

“There’s an image. It looks like we need to solve a puzzle based on it. I’ll take a picture and send it to the team chat—wait, are you guys eating hot pot?”

“Yeah…”

“What a coincidence! The three of us are also eating hot pot today! Hey, why isn’t Xi Yuan eating? Why does he look so pitiful sitting alone?”

Xi Yuan glanced at Yu Zhenzhen’s smirking expression in the 3D holographic video, clearly not interested in engaging.

“Don’t tease him. His joints have been stiff these past couple of days. If you upset him, he might lock up completely, and even a whole bottle of oil won’t be enough to fix it,” Yu Xi said, barely holding back her laughter.

Xi Yuan: …

Yu Zhenzhen burst into laughter before happily hanging up the call.

Just as they were finishing their hot pot dinner, an explosion rang out.

It was close—so close that the entire ground trembled slightly, and even inside the treehouse, they could feel the vibrations.

The explosion had occurred just outside the blue light zone that had been covered earlier. It was at the site of the shuttle station, one of the restricted locations in Center 300 that ordinary citizens were prohibited from entering.

Since the shuttle stations in Center 300 provided direct access to Center 350, they served as the last barrier between Center 350 and the other areas. Because of this, the military had sealed off the stations more than ten days ago and placed them under strict surveillance.

Yu Xi and her group had come to Center 300 today because the crowd in this area had grown significantly. At first, they assumed people had gathered for supplies, but now it seemed there was another reason behind their presence.

That night, at least fifty percent of the civilians in the mid-air zone of Center 300 participated in the riot. This was not a spontaneous or disorganized uprising but a carefully planned and coordinated operation.

The civilians first set up an ambush, securing control over the police near the shuttle stations. Then, using force, they took over two of the stations. Following that, a powerful electromagnetic pulse surged upward, affecting not only Center 300 but also Center 350.

In an instant, all the mechanical units were disabled, freezing into an inactive state. Even Xi Yuan, inside the treehouse, was affected.

Although his body had been transformed into that of a machine, he was still fundamentally a living person, retaining full cognitive abilities. However, his entire body was now completely unresponsive, entirely locked up and unable to move.

Outside the treehouse, under the night sky, chaos engulfed the city. Shouts echoed from every direction as waves of people surged toward the shuttle stations from other areas of Center 300. Their goal in seizing the stations was to open a passage to Center 350.

The nobles and wealthy elites who had continued their leisurely lives in Cloud City had finally ignited public fury.

Xi Yuan’s mechanical body presented a problem; he needed to be taken to a specialized mechanical shop to find tools to attempt a reboot. Yu Xi put away the treehouse and, together with Xing Min, found a manually operated cart that was still intact. Using the navigation function of the “Life Assistance Device,” they began searching for a mechanical shop.

However, the surrounding area had just been ravaged by the blue light. The buildings were in ruins, and after searching two different shops, they found that both had been destroyed by devouring spheres, leaving not even a single spare part.

Xing Min glanced toward the shuttle station. “We’ll have to go through there and look for a mechanical shop further away.”

Yu Xi nodded. That area hadn’t been covered by the blue light. As long as they could reach the shop, they would find the tools they needed.

The problem was that the riot zone between them and their destination was in utter chaos. The military forces that had responded were now engaged in combat with the civilians, gunfire and explosions rang out continuously, and flames flickered everywhere. People were collapsing left and right, including many innocent bystanders who hadn’t even been part of the riot.

Many of these civilians had originally just been waiting in line at a supermarket for their limited rations, only to be caught in the violence, now trapped inside stores with no way in or out.

Some tried to flee, but stray bullets from the military struck them down—some fatally. These mistaken killings only fueled public outrage. Seeing their friends and family members gunned down, even those who had no intention of rioting were driven by rage to join the resistance.

Cries and screams filled the air. How were they supposed to get across such a chaotic battlefield?

From his spot on the cart, Xi Yuan, still frozen, managed to make a faint sound from his locked-up joints. Yu Xi glanced down at him and saw a flicker of red light in his electronic eyes—was that concern?

“Don’t worry,” she reassured him. “With my strength, I can carry you across with one hand. And with Xing Min here, stray bullets won’t hit us.”

Pushing the cart, the two quickly approached the chaos.

Xing Min turned back to Yu Xi and held out his hand. “There are too many people. Hold onto me so we don’t get separated.”

Yu Xi reached out, and Xing Min clasped her hand firmly.

From the cart, Xi Yuan silently stared at their interlocked fingers hovering above his head: …

Xing Min activated a pale golden barrier, and they took only a few steps before Yu Xi suddenly stopped. “That person…”

“What is it?” Xing Min followed her gaze toward the riot. In the midst of the crowd, they spotted a familiar figure—a young girl with an old, pitch-black axe slung across her back. She was quietly withdrawing from the frontlines of the riot, as if she had accomplished something and was now leaving on her own.

It was Meng Sha, the girl from the train.

She must have sensed Yu Xi’s gaze because she suddenly halted and turned her head, her sharp eyes cutting through the chaos to lock onto Yu Xi’s position with pinpoint accuracy.

Despite the distance and the chaos between them, she had detected Yu Xi’s gaze and found her almost immediately—a testament to her keen awareness, which was on par with Yu Xi’s.

For a brief moment, the two locked eyes.

Then, Meng Sha’s lips curled into a bright, knowing smile. Without hesitation, she turned and disappeared into the crowd.

Yu Xi frowned slightly, sensing a deeper meaning behind that smile.

“Let’s go,” Xing Min said, giving her fingers a reassuring squeeze.

She nodded and was about to step forward when suddenly, the entire area was engulfed in a violet-blue light.

The light started from the chaotic shuttle station, spreading outward at incredible speed like a massive curtain being pulled apart. It rapidly expanded, covering all nearby buildings and people, stretching toward both ends of Center 300 and rising upward.

It extended all the way to Center 350, completely enveloping both the lower and upper mid-air districts.

This included even the area that had only recently suffered a blue light invasion.

If Yu Xi had been standing farther away at that moment, she would have noticed that all the other blue light zones across the city—regardless of whether their ten-minute countdowns had ended or not—suddenly vanished at once.

It was as if every blue light source had been drawn to this location, layering upon each other in a thick, overlapping shroud.

Perhaps because of the excessive number of layers, the usual blue glow had transformed into this distinct violet-blue color.

Multiple massive holographic countdown timers appeared in the air, all displaying the same time: 30 seconds.

They were distributed throughout different areas to ensure that everyone could see them clearly.

At the same time, every traveler who was unlucky enough to be caught inside the violet-blue light received an identical notification on their phones.

Notification: Regional Alliance Upgrade Game has been activated. Hidden reward has been activated.

Upgrade Battle Countdown: 30 minutes.

Yu Xi looked at her phone. However, she had no time to feel excited about the hidden reward being activated.

A full thirty minutes of the Regional Alliance Upgrade Game?

What was about to appear here?