7: Chapter 7 The Lament of the World Channel

Lin Feng stood in the center of the train door like an emotionless statue, his cold gaze sweeping over all the girls who were eager to try their powers.

“Put away your ridiculous field trip mentality.” Lin Feng's voice wasn't loud, but in the silent carriage, it struck everyone's heart like a heavy hammer. “Do you think that because you've awakened some insignificant abilities, you're suddenly superheroes?”

The carriage instantly fell silent, everyone cowed by the aura of authority radiating from Lin Feng.

“Su Ya, tell them what the law of conservation of energy is.” Lin Feng said coldly without turning his head.

Standing at the front of the crowd, Su Ya was momentarily stunned.

She pushed her gold-rimmed glasses up the bridge of her nose, her icy blue horns shimmering in the dim light.

As the top scholar of Jiangcheng University, her rationality returned faster than anyone else's.

“Energy cannot be created out of thin air.” Su Ya's voice was a bit dry. She glanced at the girl with heavy makeup. “When we released fire, frost, or water just now, we weren't consuming the air; we were consuming the mana within our bodies.”

“And the production of mana requires the consumption of our own calories and physical strength.”

“Smart.” Lin Feng sneered. “Until you obtain a stable and sufficient food source, every time you use an ability, you are overdrawing your own life.”

He turned around and pointed at the deathly silent platform outside the door.

“You think it's safe here?”

“Wrong! The fact that there are no monsters here means this is a dead zone—a dead zone where even monsters can't find food.”

“Your stomachs are empty right now. If you squander your strength without restraint, you won't need a monster to bite you. By tomorrow morning, you'll freeze or starve to death because of mana depletion and heat loss!”

His words were like a bucket of ice water, dousing the fire of hope that had just ignited in all the girls.

They stared blankly at Lin Feng, only now realizing how foolish their previous thoughts had been.

The cruelty of survival far exceeded the imagination of these delicate flowers from the ivory tower.

Xia Wanqiu stood quietly behind and to the side of Lin Feng.

Her originally exquisite pleated skirt uniform was in tatters; she could only wrap her body tightly in a piece of soft animal hide from Lin Feng's lounge.

Her fair, slender legs were exposed to the cold air, frozen to the point of breaking out in fine goosebumps.

But unlike the fear the others felt, Xia Wanqiu's state at this moment was very strange.

Having just experienced Lin Feng's deep 'Life Energy Infusion,' the sense of backlash from her depleted state was completely suppressed.

In its place was an indescribable sense of fulfillment and an instinctive dependence on Lin Feng.

Her rosy cheeks still bore the lingering flush of passion, and her pink peach-blossom eyes were shimmering with moisture.

As the cold wind blew, she instinctively leaned closer to Lin Feng.

That slender, heart-tipped demon tail uncontrollably peeked out from under the animal hide, silently wrapping around Lin Feng's calf, greedily absorbing the masculine warmth radiating from the man.

Lin Feng felt the sensation on his leg, but he didn't kick her away.

She was a highly obedient tool; appropriate rewards were necessary.

Just then.

“Ding!”

A crisp electronic notification sound exploded simultaneously in the minds of all survivors worldwide.

[Warning: Newbie Buffer Period has ended.]

[Regional network connection successful.]

[System Prompt: [world channel] and [trading post] functions have been unlocked.]

[All survivors can summon a virtual panel through their thoughts for information exchange and resource trading.]

Lin Feng's eyes flickered slightly.

world channel?

This meant he could obtain information from other regions.

With a thought, a translucent blue virtual light screen immediately popped up in front of his retinas.

It was divided into two sections: on the left was the frantically scrolling [world channel], and on the right was the empty [trading post].

At this moment, the world channel was a completely blood-red asura field.

The text scrolled so fast it was dizzying, and every message reeked of desperate bloodiness.

“Help! Save me! It's so cold outside, I can't feel my hands or feet!”

“Holy crap! I just saw my roommate get trampled into a pulp by a zombie as big as an elephant! Someone save me!”

“Water... who has water! I'll trade my labor for it, I'll do anything! My throat is burning with thirst!”

“Liar! The system is a liar! I awakened an ability, but after firing one fireball, I'm too hungry to walk. Now I'm trapped in a toilet by monsters, I'm going to die!”

“Please, someone give me some food, I'll trade my girlfriend to you, she's very beautiful...”

The screen full of wailing, betrayal, and despair vividly displayed the fragility and ugliness of humanity in the face of the apocalypse.

The girls in the carriage also summoned their panels one after another.

Looking at those shocking cries for help and hearing the shrill words echoing in their minds, the campus belles and seniors who had just been smug about awakening their abilities now looked completely ashen.

Fear, like an invisible giant hand, tightly gripped their hearts.

[System Global Announcement:]

[The first hour of the Descent has ended.]

[Initial global player count: 10 billion.]

[Current survivors: 8.5 billion.]

[Global survival rate has plummeted by 15%. Good luck to everyone.]

A cold, mechanical voice broadcasted this set of hair-raising data without a hint of emotion.

One hour, 1.5 billion people dead.

These were no longer light numbers, but 1.5 billion fresh lives brutally snuffed out amidst mist, monsters, freezing cold, and hunger.

“Ugh... I don't want to play anymore, I want to go home...” In a corner, a freshman girl with twin tails finally broke down, hugging her knees and sobbing loudly.

Crying is contagious. Soon, the sound of suppressed sobbing filled the carriage.

Su Ya bit her lip hard, trying her best not to let her tears fall.

She looked up at Lin Feng, who was standing at the door with his back straight.

At this moment, she finally understood completely that Lin Feng's previous coldness and lack of human touch were correct.

If Lin Feng hadn't decisively closed the door, if Lin Feng hadn't controlled the distribution of supplies, if Lin Feng hadn't stopped them from using their abilities recklessly...

They would now be part of that 1.5 billion death toll.

Su Ya's body trembled slightly, unsure if it was from lingering fear or the cold.

After awakening the Succubus Bloodline, their constitutions had changed; they had some resistance to high temperatures but were extremely sensitive to this cold and damp environment.

Her thin white shirt couldn't block the cold wind blowing from the platform at all.

Two buttons on her collar had popped off due to her previous large movements, revealing a large expanse of snowy, delicate skin.

As the cold wind poured in, her full chest couldn't help but tremble slightly.

“Have you cried enough?”

Lin Feng's cold voice interrupted the mourning in the carriage.

He closed the world channel and turned around to look at everyone. “Tears can't be drunk as water. The system gave us two hours of docking time, and ten minutes have already passed.”

He randomly pointed at four girls.

“Su Ya, Xia Wanqiu, and you two. Follow me off the train to search for supplies. The rest of you, stay in the carriage and lock the door. Without my command, if anyone dares to open the door, I'll throw her out to feed the zombies.”

The two ordinary girls who were called out trembled all over, but they didn't dare to resist. They could only steel themselves and walk to the door.

Su Ya took a deep breath, forcibly suppressing her body's tremors, and stepped forward to follow.

Xia Wanqiu obediently stayed close behind Lin Feng, her tail still lingeringly wrapped around his leg.

“Let's go.”

Lin Feng took the lead and stepped onto the freezing platform.