"I can't stand this damn job for one more day!"
Lin Feng grumbled, dark circles under his eyes from the constant overtime and endless trivial tasks of his office life.
Just then, an email came through the internal system: due to declining profits, the company was implementing measures to cut costs and boost efficiency.
Employees could either "voluntarily" accept a pay cut and more overtime, or take a severance package and leave. The news sent a wave of panic through the veteran employees.
But Lin Feng's fists clenched. With no one but himself to worry about, he decided he wouldn't take it lying down. He gathered evidence, decisively chose the latter option, and prepared to give the company a piece of his mind!
He ended up with twenty thousand in compensation and went home, unemployed.
His home was in the Suburban Area of Hai City, in an apartment he received when his old village was demolished and redeveloped. While it was an old complex, in a city like Hai, where land was worth its weight in gold, it was still incredibly valuable.
His parents had passed away a few years ago, and with few relatives left, Lin Feng lived here alone. He had grown used to it over time.
Freed from annoying work meetings, Lin Feng booted up a game he hadn't touched in ages. He loaded the newest challenge map: a tower defense battle called the Star Sea Swarm.
In the game's lore, an extraterrestrial outpost of the Human Federation is under attack by the Zerg Race. As the Garrison Commander, players must Upgrade various defensive towers to protect the base!
Remembering the joy of playing pixelated tower defense games on his phone under the covers, Lin Feng felt a surge of excitement and immediately started a new game.
Unaware of the time, it was already nine in the evening. Lin Feng, having forgotten to eat, was still busy upgrading his equipment in the game when the doorbell suddenly rang.
Lin Feng took off his headphones, feeling a bit dazed. He walked to the entryway and opened the door.
Standing at his door was a beautiful young woman, holding a pot of soup. She wore yoga pants and a black spaghetti-strap tank top. A few beads of sweat trickled from her cheeks down to her ample chest.
"Xiaofeng, have you eaten dinner?"
The woman had large eyes and fine, fair skin. She radiated a youthful energy that completely belied her age; you would never guess she was in her early thirties.
She was Zhang Yurou, the wife of Lin Feng's neighbor. A former city-level track and field athlete, she also came from a family with some influence.
Because they came from the same village before the redevelopment, her husband, Lin Youzhi, was also a distant relative. This meant Lin Feng was expected to address them as "Brother" and "Sister-in-law."
It was because of this connection that after Lin Feng's parents tragically passed away, the neighboring couple had looked after him, bringing him food from time to time.
The sight of Zhang Yurou, panting slightly with her tight clothes clinging to her voluptuous figure, made the twenty-four-year-old Lin Feng unconsciously gulp.
Even though she was eight years older than him, her regular exercise routine meant she showed no signs of aging. Her figure was full and shapely, exuding a mature allure.
"Just look at you, you must be starving. Come on..."
Saying this, Zhang Yurou carried the pot of hot soup and walked right into Lin Feng's apartment.
Watching her slender figure from behind, Lin Feng took a deep breath to clear his head and walked to the dining table.
"It's all heated up. Come and eat."
Zhang Yurou ladled him a bowl of fragrant chicken soup and fished out a large drumstick for him.
Lin Feng's appetite was instantly whetted, and he dug right in.
'The soup and chicken are so flavorful... But this layer of goji berries covering the soup, and these ginseng roots…'
'Does Lin Youzhi usually eat such fortifying meals?'
"Um... Sister-in-law, is Brother Youzhi not back yet?"
Zhang Yurou pulled out a couple of tissues, wiped the sweat from her face, and shook her head with a sigh of resignation:
"He said he had project business today, that he had to entertain a client. Otherwise, they might not get the project payment that's already been delayed for half a year."
Lin Feng grunted, unsure of how to respond. He picked up his phone and started scrolling through the top news stories.
His neighbor, Lin Youzhi, had been a bit of a big shot in their old village. Later, he married Zhang Yurou, marrying into her family. Using his wife's family connections, he'd gotten into the construction business over the years and made a fortune.
He went from running a fleet of dump trucks to being a general contractor. Now, Lin Youzhi's construction crews handled many of the outsourced projects on construction sites in Hai City.
But ever since he struck it rich, he came home less and less.
After nearly ten years of marriage, the now thirty-two-year-old Zhang Yurou still hadn't conceived.
Thinking about this, Lin Feng brought it up without thinking:
"Didn't Brother Youzhi just get a new car? I heard it's the latest Mercedes model. Sister-in-law, it's about time for you two, shouldn't you be thinking about having kids by now?"
"If you had a child, maybe Brother Youzhi would settle down a bit and be more of a family man."
Completely lacking tact, Lin Feng didn't realize his words had struck a nerve. Zhang Yurou blushed and gave an awkward laugh as she explained:
"A few years back, your brother was trying to earn more money and completely wore himself out. It ruined his health, left him with some chronic issues. He's trying to recover now."
"It's nothing for you to worry about..."
Lin Feng glanced at the half-root of ginseng in his bowl and gave an embarrassed chuckle.
Zhang Yurou quickly changed the subject:
"Oh, right, Xiaofeng. How come you're home so early? Did you not go to work today?"
Lin Feng hesitated for a moment before telling her that he had quit.
Zhang Yurou frowned slightly, her voice filled with concern:
"That won't do. How are you going to get married without a good job? Do you plan on being single forever?"
"Why don't I ask Brother Youzhi to find a spot for you?"
The thought of working on a construction site—which sounded even worse than his old office job tapping at a keyboard—made Lin Feng quickly decline:
"It's okay, Sister-in-law. I've already found a new job. I'll be starting in a few days. For now, I just want to take a break and relax."
"Oh, right. The news said there's a once-in-a-century solar eclipse tomorrow morning. Sister-in-law, if you go for your morning run, remember not to stare right at it. You'll damage your eyes."
Zhang Yurou nodded. Her gaze grew distant as she looked at Lin Feng, and she bit her lip, lost in thought.
"Sister-in-law?"
Seeing Zhang Yurou staring blankly for a while, Lin Feng called out to her.
Snapping back to reality, Zhang Yurou shivered. A chill ran through her; she had been sweating heavily from a night run earlier, and now that her body was cooling down, she was liable to catch a chill.
"Ah, right... You go on and eat. I'm going to head back and take a shower."
"Since you're home alone, try to eat less instant noodles. Come over to my place for meals whenever you're free the next couple of days. We always have a spot for you."
With that, she stood up and left.
'Watching Zhang Yurou's retreating figure, Lin Feng finished his soup with a soft sigh. 'Such a wonderful, caring woman, yet she's always left all alone in an empty house…'
'I guess every family has its own troubles.'
Lin Feng pinched the bridge of his nose. After eating and drinking his fill, sleepiness washed over him. He rubbed his eyes and fell into a deep sleep.
In the apartment across the way, Zhang Yurou lay alone on her soft bed. A fever had set in, and she tossed and turned all night, unable to sleep.
......
The next day, Lin Feng shot awake at six-thirty. He washed his face, brushed his teeth, and got dressed out of habit. It wasn't until he was standing at the door that he remembered he didn't have to go to work anymore.
Suddenly, the sky outside grew dim.
Lin Feng checked his phone. He only had one bar of signal. The time was 7:30.
'The eclipse wasn't supposed to start until after eight. Why is it happening early?!'
Puzzled, he walked to the window and looked up.
The Sun had turned pitch-black, with only its corona glowing an eerie, blood-red.
Lin Feng's eyes suddenly stung, and he quickly looked down, squeezing them shut. When he opened them again, a string of unknown characters filled his vision, like writhing, digital floaters.
Before he could make sense of what was happening, a luxury car careened into the driveway below, slamming into a pillar with a loud BANG before screeching to a halt.
'That's Brother Youzhi's new car!'
Ignoring the strange artifacts in his vision, Lin Feng's face went grim. He bolted downstairs, dialing emergency services as he ran.
When he yanked the door open, he found Lin Youzhi inside, clutching his stomach. He was covered in blood, his face ashen.
Seeing Lin Feng, Lin Youzhi grabbed his wrist.
"COUGH, COUGH... Lin Feng, take this..."
As he spoke, he pulled out a blood-stained pistol and pressed it into Lin Feng's hand.
"Take care of your sister-in-law for me... Get her... get her out of here... The bugs... so many bugs..."
He didn't get to finish. Lin Youzhi's eyes shot wide, and with a final, ragged breath, he died.
Stunned by the sudden turn of events, Lin Feng was frozen in place when a scream from the backseat broke his trance. He looked up to see a young woman in the back. She was dressed in professional attire—a hip-hugging skirt and black thigh-high stockings—her hair a mess as she trembled uncontrollably.
"What the hell happened?"
Lin Feng demanded, but before the woman could answer, more bloodcurdling screams erupted from nearby!
Through the dim light, he could just make out five or six giant, two-meter-long red beetles swarming through the residential complex's main gate. They tackled people off their electric scooters, pouncing and immediately starting to tear at their flesh.
'What... What the hell are those things!?'
Lin Feng's pupils shrank. Adrenaline flooded his system. He didn't hesitate for a second, turning and sprinting back toward his apartment building. The woman in the car finally snapped out of her stupor, scrambled out the door, and followed close behind him into the building.
After slamming the iron gate shut and locking it, Lin Feng stood panting, drenched in sweat, the heavy pistol still clutched in his hand.
As he stared at the gun, the flickering characters in his vision suddenly changed:
[Identification in progress...]
[Inferior Handgun LV 1/9, White Quality]
[Upgrade Points: 6/10, Damage: 3, Effective Range: 15 meters, Remaining Bullets: 6/12]
[Evaluation: This is a crudely made replica gun, but that doesn't make it any less lethal. Hitting a target will grant Upgrade Points.]
[Bind as equipment to activate character Attributes.]
Lin Feng's eyes lit up as if he'd been thrown a lifeline. Just then, the tall, professionally dressed woman's trembling voice sounded beside him:
"Y-You're Lin Feng, right? General Manager Lin just told you to take care of me..."
"Yes. I'm your sister-in-law."