Final Civilization

Chapter 1: Infinite

"First, from now on, every word you say can be a lie."

"Second, your mission is to save human civilization; your actions require no explanation to the outside world."

"Third, beware of the Wallfacers."

...

The old-fashioned ceiling fan spun lazily overhead. The hum of its motor mixed with the ringing in his ears, stretching into a drawn-out roar. Han Ming pressed his knuckles against his temples. The voice from the dream faded from near to far and then quickly subsided.

"You're saying the world is about to end, you've been chosen as a Wallfacer to save humanity, strange events have started happening around you, you can achieve immortality, and you can command all the wealth in the world?"

Inside the police station's reporting hall, the officer on duty spoke in a dull tone. After listening to Han Ming's account, he asked with a half-smile.

"Yes."

"Wallfacers, Wallbreakers... those seem to be from the sci-fi novel *The Three-Body Problem*. Are you sure you're not just overthinking things?"

"No.""May I ask about your... mental state?"

"Perfectly normal."

"Then could you describe in detail how you were chosen as a Wallfacer and what specific strange events you've encountered?"

"For example..." Han Ming lifted his head, looked at the officer whose pupils suddenly constricted, and said, "According to police station management regulations, a person filing a report needs to fill out a report form and present identification. But in the four minutes since I entered, I haven't seen a second officer. I haven't filled out any forms. Furthermore, a regular desk officer generally wouldn't carry a loaded firearm, and certainly shouldn't be pointing a gun at someone filing a report. Aren't these situations strange enough?"

A pitch-black gun barrel trembled slightly in front of his brow. In Han Ming's line of sight, the unfamiliar officer on duty stared at him with hollow eyes, a strange, twisted smile stretching his lips.

Han Ming's tone was calm, but sweat dripped down his jaw. His heart pounded like a war drum in his chest, thumping louder and louder until it became deafening!

Then, a hoarse whisper sounded.

"Goodbye, Wallfacer!"

Bang!

The gunshot roared. The ringing in his ears abruptly ceased. Han Ming jolted upright in bed, the howling of wind and rain now audible in his ears.

Even though it was a dream, a faint, elusive smell of gunpowder seemed to linger in his nostrils, sending shivers down his spine.

He looked out the window. The night sky was a sheet of gray, with a steady drizzle falling. Affected by a new tropical cyclone, it had been raining for weeks, shrouding the entire city in a damp, stuffy atmosphere.

In the room, the quiet moonlight spread across the floor like white gauze. The wall clock ticked with heavy steps, its rhythm seeming to synchronize with his heartbeat.

Han Ming took out his phone and opened his banking app. The balance field was now completely occupied by a dense string of nines.

「999999999999」

This endless string of numbers was like some colossal joke that had appeared in his account just yesterday.

Han Ming had even wondered, if it weren't for the code limitations of the app system, whether this string of numbers might go on forever, like pi.

Sigh...

Lying back down on the bed, Han Ming stared blankly at the ceiling, all sleepiness gone.

He simply closed his eyes and began reciting softly, "According to Article 985 of the Civil Code, unjust enrichment must be returned in full, and compensation for losses may be required. If one intentionally conceals or refuses to return it, and the amount is large, one may face civil litigation. If the circumstances are serious enough to constitute the crime of misappropriation, criminal liability must be borne!"

"With this much money, forget criminal charges, it could probably qualify as a war crime."

Han Ming rubbed his head. "Seems the amount is so huge it made me dream about being executed by the police..."

After the massive wealth appeared in his bank account, Han Ming's first reaction wasn't joy. He clearly knew this situation wasn't a windfall; on the contrary, if not handled properly, it could become a huge problem.

Generally speaking, there are three possibilities for such a situation.

A bank system malfunction. A mistaken transfer. Fraud.But such an amount clearly couldn't be the latter two possibilities. Transferring such a massive sum would require special approval at the provincial or even central bank level, plus oversight from institutions like banking regulators and anti-money laundering units. Moreover, Han Ming's account was just an ordinary personal one.

So, based on Han Ming's analysis, only a system malfunction made any sense.

Typically, the bank would react immediately to such a problem. But now, over 24 hours had passed, which vaguely made Han Ming feel uneasy.

The most bizarre part was the scenes from his dream—the Wallfacers, Wallbreakers, the end of the world, including the dialogue with the police officer. It felt like another version of himself was speaking, making Han Ming feel incredibly surreal.

Gurgle...

Han Ming made himself a cup of tea and walked to the window. He looked out at the hazy nightscape of Jinghai City under the drizzle and turned off his phone screen, which displayed the trillion-yuan fortune.

"Looks like I need to go to the bank tomorrow. An amount this big might even make the news..."

...

As soon as Han Ming entered the bank's main door, a somewhat portly security guard smiled at him.

"Sir, what business are you here for?"

"Personal account matters."

"Please take a number over here."

"Thank you."

The brightly lit bank hall was filled with a pleasant scent of air freshener. Quite a few people were already sitting, waiting for their turn. Han Ming found a seat in a corner and had already prepared his explanation.

For example, if asked why he waited a day to come to the bank, he would say he hadn't received any SMS notification about the transfer and only discovered the issue last night. He had tried calling the bank immediately, but there was no customer service at night. So he took a screenshot of his account and came to the bank first thing the next morning.

As a lawyer, Han Ming's thinking was crystal clear. His phone had the screenshot and proof of his call to the bank last night. Combined with the fact that not a single cent of the balance had been touched, his story was watertight.

His only concern was getting entangled in some troublesome inquiries or becoming a social media sensation. After all, a bank making such a colossal error would be enough fodder for online gossip.

"Please, number A15, to counter number 3."

Han Ming calmly stood up and walked to counter number 3 with his ticket.

"Hello, what business would you like to conduct?" the female teller asked with a smile.

Han Ming sat down, took out his bank card, and got straight to the point. "There's a problem with my account. I'm not sure if it's a display error or an issue with your bank's system. Could you please verify it?"

"Of course, let me check for you." The teller took the card, placed it on the card reader, and typed rapidly on the keyboard. A few seconds later, she said, "Sir, your account is completely normal. There's no issue."

"No issue?" Han Ming immediately frowned. He quickly took out his phone and opened his banking app, only to find the balance remained unchanged, still occupied by that dense string of nines.

"Look at this, how can you say there's no prob—"

He raised his phone screen, trying to prove his point, but the words died in his throat the moment he looked up.

Behind the bulletproof glass, the female teller sat upright. The smile on her face was terrifyingly bizarre. Then Han Ming saw her lips part slightly as she slowly said,

"Found you, Wallfacer."

What?!

A bone-chilling cold shot up his spine to the crown of his head. Han Ming abruptly stood up from the stool and backed away. He turned his head, scanning the surroundings. The once-bustling, brightly lit hall was now completely empty.

Thump-thump-thump...

A rolling sound echoed. Han Ming looked down and was horrified to see a dark, round object rolling out from a corner, trailing a large amount of red liquid.

He focused his gaze and immediately sucked in a sharp breath. That dark object was the severed head of the security guard from earlier!

He snapped back to reality and turned around, only to see a flash of cold light. Then, his horrified vision began to tumble and roll across the floor. In his peripheral vision, he saw his own headless body slowly collapsing.

...

Gasp!

"Again!"

Han Ming sat up in bed once more, covered in cold sweat, his ears ringing. Panting, he grabbed his phone.

02:45

He had only been asleep for two hours...

"I think about going to the police, and I dream of being killed at the station. I think about going to the bank, and I dream of being killed at the bank. How can it be this creepy?!"

Rubbing his throbbing head, Han Ming got out of bed and splashed cold water on his face. This bizarre situation was making him realize things might not be simple.

He turned on his computer and directly opened several websites, continuing to search for clues to figure out the strange events happening to him.

He searched for terms from his dreams, like "Wallbreaker," "Wallfacer," "immortality," "infinite wealth," "bank card suddenly shows 999999999999."

But no matter how he searched, the results were mostly about *The Three-Body Problem* novel or other irrelevant content, offering no useful reference.

He leaned back in his chair, his head feeling heavy.

At that moment, an idea occurred to him, one that might resolve his doubts.

That was to determine whether this bank card could actually be used.

"If the balance changes, the bank's system will inevitably detect the anomaly during data review and trigger an alert. But if that happens..."

Han Ming paced back and forth in his room. If he did this, Han Ming, knowing full well the money was obtained illegally, would be placed in an indefensible position.

But if the bank still showed no reaction, it would prove this astronomical wealth was not under any supervision. Then the problem... would start to become science fiction.

Clearly, this idea was very dangerous. A single misstep could completely ruin his legal career. After all, knowingly breaking the law like this wouldn't just harm him personally; even if it only resulted in an ordinary administrative penalty, it would still tarnish his law firm's reputation. Gambling his future on this required careful thought.

The two strange dreams in a row left Han Ming completely sleepless.

Early the next morning, he made himself a strong cup of coffee and went out to meet a client.

The client's company was over ten kilometers away in Mingjiang District. Han Ming took a taxi. After getting out, his gaze was suddenly drawn to something.

Looking up, he saw a bank directly across the street. What struck Han Ming as odd was how much it resembled the bank from yesterday's dream.

Cars streamed by on the road. The morning air still carried a hint of cool freshness. His expression gradually turned serious.

"It must be a coincidence. All ICBC branches have similar entrances. What's so strange about that?"

Han Ming stood there for a moment, his gaze firming. He walked straight across the street to the bank and pushed the door open.

"Sir, what business are you here for?"

"Personal account matters."

"Please take a number over here."

"No need!"

The moment he saw the security guard, Han Ming's pupils contracted violently. He immediately turned around and left!