The apocalypse begins with a dungeon game.

Li Can took a step back and entered the ward, but the door remained open and could not be closed manually.

The door seemed to weigh a ton; no matter how hard he pushed, he couldn't budge it an inch.

Upon closer inspection, this dark mass was composed of tangled strands of solidified hair.

Adding fuel to the fire has indeed had a restraining effect on it, and by relying on his connection with the vulture puppet, he has taken the initiative and gained the upper hand.

The current priority is figuring out how to completely destroy this thing...

What could be its fatal weakness? Does this guy even have a weakness? Li Can was starting to get a headache.

The raging fire suddenly plunged into the ward and attacked him.

He could feel the immense suction force all around him, constantly pulling him toward the center of the flames.

Its methods don't involve external attacks; the only way to kill someone is by absorbing their power. Li Can dodged and controlled the zombies to attack from inside the house.

"Damn it..."

For the first time, Li Can panicked; this thing was more difficult to deal with than he had expected.

Looking around, there were no suitable tools available.

The zombie puppets that Li Can summoned in succession were all swallowed up by it, which only delayed the situation for a few seconds.

The brain kept sending prompts.

【Puppet Egg No. 1】

[Having suffered a major attack, its body is severely damaged, signal connection has been lost, and it is losing vital signs. The puppet egg is expected to become inactive in ten minutes and will soon be placed in a dustbin for storage.]

……

Number 1, Number 2, and Number 3 were puppets he acquired when he first entered the wasteland. Unexpectedly, after leveling up alongside him, they are all about to become ineffective in this battle.

Li Can felt a pang of heartache, enveloped by fear and crisis. He could no longer fight with puppets; the disparity in strength between them was too great.

"Big brother, let me help you!"

In the face of desperation, Wang Qing rushed from behind, actually using his own body to block the invasion of the dark matter.

The flames on the dark matter instantly enveloped and ignited him, and the continuous suction pulled his upper body into it.

"How can you help like this?" Li Can's face immediately darkened, and he now felt the same way Wu Xiuyuan was.

First of all, I know your intentions are good, but could you please not start yet?

Helping him doesn't mean sending him to his death; this is the first time he's seen someone willingly walk into a trap.

"You can't die here!" Li Can panicked and quickly grabbed Wang Qing's hind leg, pulling him backward.

As the flames burned longer, the dark matter became less intense than when it first appeared.

Li Can watched helplessly as Wang Qing's upper body was completely submerged, and dared not let go of the leg behind her lower body.

What to do? This thing can't be burned to death, so what's there to be afraid of... What else can be used at the scene? Li Can kept thinking about the relevant items he had seen before and after entering the hospital.

Suddenly, a brilliant idea struck him. Looking at the incandescent light bulb in the corridor, he had a bold idea that he felt he could give it a try.

The remaining puppets that were sent out managed to pry an electrical wire out of the wall and run back with all the bottled saline solution they could get their hands on at the nurses' station.

"Splash..." Li Can controlled the zombies to tear open the bottle caps at the same time and pour all the liquid out, while the other one, holding the wire end, was directly shoved into the dark matter.

Sodium chloride salt water, when electrified, will kill anyone who gets electrocuted. Regardless of whether it's expired or not, it's about 5 to 20 times more conductive than tap water.

The fire was not extinguished, but the sudden electric shock caused it to collapse and dissolve uncontrollably.

"It's done!" Li Can was overjoyed.

A pile of tangled, dissolved, and rotten hair fell to the ground with a clatter, mixed with a large amount of decaying flesh, emitting an extremely strong stench.

He pulled Wang Qing backwards instantly, and neither of them felt much better.

Wang Qing had already fainted, while Li Can suffered much less electric shock damage because he later changed to holding onto his pants.

Just before he fell into a coma and closed his eyes, Li Can heard the hospital's announcement over the loudspeaker:

"Ding-dong."

"It's time for nurses' rounds. Please be ready in your rooms..."

With her last bit of strength, Li Can manipulated the puppet to find herself and Wang Qing, whose hair and upper body clothes were burned off, and threw them onto the corresponding bed.

Then, finally, I closed my eyes in peace and sank into deep darkness.

In the moment his consciousness faded, his missing puppet eggs gradually emerged from the pile of burnt, rotting flesh.

In the darkness, the egg's body continuously absorbed dark matter, and its originally shimmering surface was gradually covered by a dense blackish-purple light.

Seemingly full, the puppet eggs let out a loud burp, rolled their bodies under the hospital bed where Li Can was lying, and automatically retracted into his body.

So tired. After passing out, Li Can felt that he had finally found a peaceful and comfortable place to rest.

The constant stream of nerve-wracking adventures left him exhausted.

He felt as if he were in a dream, yet also in reality; the path beneath his feet felt light and airy, as if he were walking on a cloud.

"Brother, where did you go? Why can't I find you anywhere?"

He suddenly heard a familiar voice behind him.

It was a sob uttered with tension and a heavy nasal tone.

"Li Lan? What are you doing here?" Li Can's expression froze, and she turned around to see a face covered in tears.

Before me was a girl of only thirteen or fourteen years old, paralyzed in both legs, sitting in a wheelchair. Although she wanted to cry, she held back her emotions.

"Brother, after the explosion they all said you were dead, but I don't believe it. There was no body of yours in the toy store."

"Brother, you're alright, right?"

"But where did you go? I searched all over Upper Moon but couldn't find you."

"After Mom and Dad died, didn't you promise you wouldn't abandon me?"

"There are so many monsters outside, brother, I'm so scared."

"Will you come home with me?"

A surge of immense sadness welled up in Li Can's heart, and unease overwhelmed him like a tidal wave. He stood there, trying to struggle to breathe, but the oxygen was so scarce.

His sister… He felt like he had forgotten something important all along… It was his family. That’s right, he still had family struggling in a certain timeline of this world.

He wasn't alone; he had promised his parents he would take good care of his younger sister.

After I leave, how will she, a child with no means of self-protection, survive in the apocalyptic world?

Thinking about the fate of the world and how everyone would die, Li Can's heart pounded.

"Brother, come home with me." The girl in the wheelchair, dressed in thin clothes, stretched out a pale, bony hand to him.

Because of years of injections, the back of my hands is covered with bruises and lingering needle marks.

Her thin body looked as if a gust of wind could blow her apart, and she appeared to be on the verge of collapse.

He rushed forward, taking two steps at a time, eager to grab her.

"I..." Li Can stopped abruptly just as she was about to grasp that hand.

No, how could he have met Li Lan at this time?

Isn't he in the instance world?

Just now, he dealt with that dark substance engulfed in flames...

Wang Qing is now in a precarious situation in order to help him.

Why did Li Lan suddenly appear?

"Brother, what's wrong?"

Are you really going to leave me?

The girl's face suddenly stiffened, and she frowned.