Apocalypse: Everyone Levels Up, I Return to the Time Before the Server Opened - Chapter 1

Chapter 1: A Mysterious Game is About to Open

“22:15:09…”

“22:15:08…”

…

…

“The countdown is almost over!”

“You still haven’t figured out what’s going on?”

“The experts say it might be an alien invasion countdown.”

“Three-Body? Sophon? What kind of cosmic joke is this?!”

“Regardless, everyone should prepare in advance. Food, water, weapons…”

…

The internet exploded!

All over the world, endless speculation about the ‘countdown in our minds’ kept emerging!

Every bizarre theory imaginable!

TV, news, even variety shows were discussing it!

…

Hanxia Nation.

Anlong City, Tianhe Province.

Inside a small house.

Ye Qiu sat dumbfounded on the bed for a long while.

His eyes finally cleared.

“2028…

“I’ve been reborn?!

“Back to twenty years ago!

“That damned thing hasn’t launched yet!

“The countdown hasn’t hit zero yet!”

Ye Qiu’s breathing became rapid.

His face shifted between crying and laughing.

His memories were still stuck in 2048.

The moment Earth was destroyed.

The moment humanity went extinct!

As his thoughts contracted, his emotions gradually calmed.

“When the countdown ends, all of humanity will be able to freely enter and exit the ‘City of Trials.’ Or rather, enter a game world!

“At first, people thought it was just a real virtual game, something to play in their spare time, killing monsters, leveling up, and reviving after death.

“But… ten days later, the game would shut down immediately, and everything people obtained inside — levels, equipment, skills, pets… everything except revival — would transfer into the real world!

“However, where there is fortune, there is disaster! The monsters from the game came out as well!

“In the game, players charged forward fearlessly, throwing themselves at the monsters, because even if they died, they could respawn!

“But when everything became reality, the monsters remained just as ferocious.

“But the players… only had one life!”

“If they died, they were truly dead!”

Ye Qiu recalled the past.

In his previous life, he, like most people, drifted through the countdown without much thought. He entered the game cluelessly, killed monsters and leveled up aimlessly, and never took the ‘game’ seriously.

Aside from the first day spent immersed in the game, for the remaining days, his average playtime was at most one hour per day.

Because the time ratio between reality and the game was 1:10.

One hour in reality equaled ten hours in the game.

One day in reality equaled ten days in the game.

Ten days in reality equaled one hundred days in the game.

When ten days passed in reality, the game shut down instantly!

People were still in a daze.

Then came the roars of monsters, waking everyone up!

In that moment, people finally realized tha teverything they had gained in the game had transferred into reality!

And the monsters from the game had arrived in the real world!

Everyone regretted it!

Including Ye Qiu.

At that time, he was only level 5!

And most people were only around level 10.

Some purely casual players had nothing but basic gear and were level “0!” Those people broke down completely! Some nearly committed suicide on the spot!

“I can’t let history repeat itself!” Ye Qiu took a deep breath.

He immediately got up, grabbed his phone, and rushed to the nearest supermarket!

He had to stock up! Buy enough food and water! Then spend as much time in the game as possible!

Killing monsters! Leveling up!

Before the shutdown, he had to become absolutely invincible!

The supermarket was crowded.

People were discussing wildly, speculating about everything.

They were worried about the apocalypse, a zombie outbreak, an alien invasion, and more.

Stocking up on supplies, just in case!

Luckily, supplies were still abundant.

Ye Qiu wasn’t picky. Bread, instant noodles, bottled water, compressed biscuits, ready-made meals…

He only needed to last ten days!

Moreover, after ten days, a global currency reset would happen.

Old currencies would be rendered useless.

All transactions would use in-game currency instead. Monsters would also drop money.

Ye Qiu borrowed as much as he could from every available platform.

It was a total of around 300,000.

His parents had passed away long ago, leaving him only a residential house.

He had no family obligations. He only needed to take care of himself!

He hired a helper to move all the supplies back home.

Once everything was in place, Ye Qiu locked himself in and waited for the game to launch!

Beep beep…

His phone rang.

Ye Qiu glanced at it.

It was a message from his class group chat.

[Class President Su Xintong: @Everyone The school has organized a Mutual Aid Group. If you have no one to rely on and are uncertain about what will happen when the countdown ends, you can come to school and join. We have plenty of food and water.].

Seeing this message, Ye Qiu felt reassured.

Everything was unfolding exactly as it had in his past life!

Someone quickly responded.

[Fang Yifei: @Class President Su Xintong, me, me, me! I want to join!].

[Class President Su Xintong: @Fang Yifei, there’s a 500 yuan entry fee.].

[Fang Yifei: Huh? We have to pay?].

[Class President Su Xintong: The Mutual Aid Group spent a lot on food and water. We can’t just let people eat and drink for free, plus we provide shelter.].

[Class Rep Chen Ziheng: @Everyone The class president is right. We have to pay for this stuff; we can’t expect the school to provide for free! Thumbs up, class prez! [Heart emoji]].

[Ma Pengfei: Are there lots of girls? If so, I might consider joining.].

[Zhang Chao: If the world’s ending, we should just enjoy life while we can. Wasting time on this is pointless!].

[Tian Kang: Heh, I’m not afraid of the apocalypse! My family owns a convenience store. We’ve already locked up, so we can survive inside for a year or two no problem!].

[Tong Lei: I’m hunkering down in a rental with my girlfriend. As long as it’s not a zombie outbreak, we’ll be fine!].

[Xu Jiajing: Everyone, stay positive. Maybe it’s just a prank.].

The once-quiet class group became lively again.

Ye Qiu was a loner by nature. And after experiencing the horrors of his past life’s catastrophe, he no longer felt joy or sorrow.

Looking at these familiar yet distant names, his mind was filled with past memories.

Class President Su Xintong had died on the first day after the shutdown.

He remembered it vividly, because everyone had gathered at school for safety.

Ye Qiu had been in the shower at the time.

Then—

Boom!

The entire school building trembled!

Walls collapsed. The boys’ and girls’ shower rooms were smashed open.

Ye Qiu saw, in terror, Su Xintong’s naked body impaled against the wall by a giant hornet’s stinger.

Blood dripped from her mouth. Her eyes wide open, filled with fear and a hint of confusion. Then, she stopped breathing. Dying tragically right before Ye Qiu’s eyes!