Chapter 9: Live Broadcast

Pan Han trembled even more violently, his face streaked with tears and snot. With a hoarse voice, he pleaded, "Brother Guang... I... I'll kowtow to you... please... don't touch Lili... I'll do anything! Really, I'll do anything!"

"Then go bring your wife here and serve me properly," Pan Guang said, his eyes filled with murderous intent. "Otherwise, both of you will die here today. Make your choice!"

---

Elsewhere, Mu Chen and Chen Jiahe sat side by side on the sofa, watching a live broadcast on a smartphone screen.

"Damn, these bastards are really willing to stream anything!" Mu Chen couldn't help but curse.

On the screen, three trendy young people—a man in a baseball cap, a guy carrying a camera, and a girl with exaggerated makeup—were sneaking through an abandoned shopping mall.

"Hello, family! It's the third day of the apocalypse, and our death-defying... ahem, our exploration team is heading out again. Today's target: the biggest mall in the city center!" The man in the baseball cap winked at the camera. "I'm your old friend Little K, this is my golden partner, the cameraman, and our lucky guest for today, the beautiful Lili!"

The chat box was instantly flooded:
"666, the streamer is a legend! Are you really not afraid of death?"
"Wait for me, I'm sending a rocket to calm your nerves!"
"How is the signal working? I can't even receive carrier text messages here!"

Little K explained smugly, "Trade secret! Simply put, we have special channels; the government's emergency communications haven't completely collapsed yet."

Before he could finish, the cameraman suddenly lowered his voice, and the camera shook. "Shh! There's something ahead!"

The three immediately hunched over and hid behind a damaged counter, the camera nervously pointed toward the pitch-black corridor ahead.

*Rustle... rustle...*

A spine-tingling scraping sound drew closer.

Lili covered her mouth, her eyes wide, her body trembling uncontrollably.

In the next second, a massive creature lunged out of the darkness!

It was a rat, nearly the size of a medium-sized dog, pitch-black with eerie red eyes and a tail covered in barbs!

"Damn it!" Mu Chen felt his scalp crawl. If that thing jumped out and took a bite...

Chen Jiahe screamed and instinctively grabbed Mu Chen's arm, her nails digging deep into his skin.

The live stream feed began to shake violently, spinning out of control.

"Run! Run!" Little K’s voice was filled with tears. The screen spun wildly, and then—it went black.

The image jerked, followed by nauseating chaos.

There were countless of them—dozens, perhaps hundreds—of these unimaginably giant rats, a dark tide surging from every corner of the mall, heading straight for the three stunned young people.

"Help! There are too many! Too many of them!" Lili's voice had completely changed, screeching and piercing.

A black shadow flashed by, moving too fast to track. In the next second, a rat had clamped its jaws onto Lili’s ankle!

"Ah—!!!"

*Snap!*

The crisp, horrific sound of bone fracturing was clearly audible even through the interference.

Lili fell, screaming, and was instantly swallowed by the swarming pack of rats. All that could be seen on camera was a frenzied mass of black fur and... splashes of dark red.

The cameraman’s voice was shaking uncontrollably, sobbing, "Run... we have to... oh god..."

Then, a static hiss.

The live feed cut out. The screen plunged into dead silence.

Chen Jiahe’s face turned pale instantly, her lips trembling, barely able to form a complete sentence. "A-are... are they... all..."

Mu Chen didn't speak; he only tightened his grip on his arm, which Chen Jiahe was pinching painfully. His other hand had balled into a fist, his knuckles turning white.

Just then, a mechanical notification sounded in Mu Chen’s mind, cold and devoid of emotion.

[Warning: Increased mutation levels detected in the city. Danger rating elevated.]

Mu Chen’s brows knitted together. He looked out the window at the black fog, which had been thin before but was now significantly denser.

"The situation is even trickier than I anticipated," he muttered to himself, his voice cold. "I must find a way to awaken supernatural powers as soon as possible, otherwise..."

He didn't continue, but the unsaid words filled Chen Jiahe with even deeper fear.

Mu Chen disconnected the call. The living room was so quiet he could hear a pin drop.

Chen Jiahe’s hand was still clamped around his arm, her palm slick with cold sweat.

"Those rats... they... they ate the people..." Her throat tightened, and she couldn't finish the sentence.

"Yes," Mu Chen said, his tone calm and detached as he pulled his arm away. "So, the outside world is a living hell now. Understand?"

Chen Jiahe nodded heavily, her face drained of all color.

An abrupt vibration shattered the silence.

The phone screen lit up. Caller: Pan Han.

Mu Chen’s eyebrows twitched.

What could he possibly want at a time like this?

"Hello?"

"Mu Chen! Mu Chen! Help! Please, save me!" On the other end, Pan Han’s voice was shaking uncontrollably, heavy with tears, practically screaming.

"Pan Han? Aren't you with your brother, Pan Guang?" Mu Chen asked.

"He... he’s lost his mind! Pan Guang is crazy! He wants to kill my wife! Mu Chen, I know how to awaken supernatural powers! It's true! I'll trade this secret for supplies!"

Mu Chen sat up straight.

The method for awakening powers?

"What did you say?" he lowered his voice.

"I’m a university lecturer, I teach biology! I’ve been risking my life these past few days to observe those mutated monsters, and I’ve found a pattern!" Pan Han spoke rapidly, terrified that he would die if he took a second too long. "Awakening isn't some bullshit random event; it requires specific conditions!"

Mu Chen’s heart hammered against his ribs.

This was top-secret information that even his system couldn't retrieve. How could Pan Han, a mere university lecturer, have figured it out?

"What conditions?"

"First... give me supplies! Food! Water! My wife is starving to death! Otherwise, I won't say anything!" Pan Han panted, trying to bargain.

"State the conditions," Mu Chen said, his voice devoid of warmth, leaving no room for negotiation.

On the other end of the line, only Pan Han’s heavy breathing remained. A stifling silence lasted for several seconds.

"...Contact with the black fog is just one part," Pan Han said in a hushed, mysterious tone. "At the same time, you must endure immense mental trauma! Fear, anger, despair... the more extreme the emotion, the better the effect! But the most crucial point..."

He paused, his voice dropping even lower. "It must be done within a specific time frame! When the concentration of the black fog is at its peak—usually between midnight and three in the morning!"

Mu Chen’s mind reeled.

So that was it!

This information was worth a fortune.

Mu Chen: "Be specific."