Reborn and Open

"I'm not dead?" Xiao Jun woke up with a start from the bed.

As his eyes took in the familiar yet distant sights, scenes he had seen many times in his dreams, he fiercely pinched his own thigh. It hurt, it hurt a lot.

All of this was real. He had been reborn?

He hurriedly took out his phone to check the date. November 10th, 2040, 9 AM in the morning.

Xiao Jun didn't quite remember what was significant about this particular date, but he would never forget what happened the next day, November 11th, Singles' Day. That day, a disaster suddenly befell them.

November 11th was just an ordinary day, but over time, under the machinations of capitalists, it had become a carnival of shopping.

That night, countless people lost sleep, but they absolutely could not have imagined that just over ten hours later, at 11:11 PM on November 11th, the world would undergo an earth-shattering change.

The apocalypse had arrived.

It was as if the sky had been suddenly torn open, revealing a gigantic hole through which unprecedented rainstorms fell. In just one hour, Star City, this provincial capital, had become a vast ocean.

And the rain did not stop.

It would continue raining heavily for three days and three nights. By the time nearly the entire city was submerged under water, only then did the rain finally cease.

After this, only people above the 20th floor of buildings could have possibly survived.

But this was just the beginning. After the heavy rains came the fire rain.

Red raindrops fell from the sky, rapidly evaporating all the accumulated rainwater in the city, while also bringing with it 60°C high temperatures.

In such extreme environments, humans had no way to venture outside to search for food. Countless starved or were burned alive by the heat.

The time frame was also three days.

After three days, the temperatures returned to normal, and all the rainwater in the city had evaporated. The city seemed to have regained its original appearance.

Those still somehow lucky enough to be alive eagerly left their shelters, seeking aid. But what awaited them were countless zombies.

In his previous life, Xiao Jun was one of those few lucky survivors.

And because he was prudent, after the rain of fire ended, he did not immediately venture outside, thereby surviving safely.

In the apocalypse, Xiao Jun clung stubbornly to life for six years, but while out on a supply run, he was infected and, not wanting to turn into a zombie, chose to commit suicide in the end.

I can't think about that anymore. There are only thirty-odd hours left until doomsday. I have to do something!

Xiao Jun forcibly stopped his recollections. This was no time for idle reminiscing. Time was life itself! Grabbing a few sets of clothes, Xiao Jun rushed out of his rented apartment, leaving the key behind - it would be useless soon anyway.

His rented flat was only on the 3rd floor. In his past life, had he not been so clever, he would've drowned in the first hour of flooding.

In mid-November, it should've been entering winter, but oddly enough today was warm.

The sunshine was perfect and a gentle breeze blew.

Everything seemed to hint that today would be a good day.

And it was indeed a good day, because after tomorrow there would no longer be such carefree moments.

Soon Xiao Jun waved down a car and arrived at a high-end hotel. After tomorrow, money would be useless. If he had to choose a place to stay, naturally it should be the best.

"Give me the presidential suite," he said.

These words drew more than a few looks.

"Hello sir, the presidential suite is 39,888 a night," the front desk attendant responded.

The attendants here were worldly people, well used to all manner of guests checking in, rich and poor alike. At the very least outwardly they would never judge someone by their age or attire.

Sh*t, it's that expensive?!

This was Xiao Jun's first time inquiring after the room. He figured twenty thousand would be plenty. He didn't expect it to be nearly forty thousand a night!

The hesitation on Xiao Jun's face did not escape the attendant's notice.

[I knew it, another country bumpkin trying to pretend to wealth. Now he's gotten a slap of reality to the face.]

A voice suddenly sounded in Xiao's Jun mind.

"Who?" Xiao Jun looked left and right but didn't see anyone speaking just now.

[Oh, the acting begins? Such exaggerated surprise. No money then leave. Don't waste my time.]

The voice rang out in Xiao Jun's head again. Only then did he realize the voice bore some resemblance to that of the attendant before him.

His eyes bored fiercely into the attendant, and he released a hint of killing intent unconsciously.

"C-customer... what's... wrong..." The attendant began to stutter under Xiao Jun's intense gaze.

Xiao Jun remained silent, continuing to stare fixedly at her. Not a few seconds later, the voice in his mind surfaced again.

[What are you looking at? So aggressive, this is a lawful society. Dead broke but still want to get violent over not affording a room?]

A smile crept up the corners of Xiao Jun's lips. Now he understood what was going on.

He could somehow hear this attendant's inner thoughts!

With this realization, he turned to look at the other front desk attendant.

Three seconds later, another different voice sounded in his head.

[This man is so strange, could he be crazy? Should I call security?]

Just as Xiao Jun suspected, so long as he focused his mind on someone, he could hear their inner voice.

"Hahaha, fine, give me the presidential suite then," he said happily.

In high spirits, Xiao Jun no longer cared about tens of thousands of yuan in room fees.

The pre-apocalypse Xiao Jun was an ex-military man. He had enlisted at 16 and served for 6 years in the armed forces before being discharged just a few months ago.

Adding the money he had saved over those 6 years and his military pension now, he had over 200,000 yuan on hand. Staying in the presidential suite for a few days wouldn't be an issue.

"Ah?" The front desk attendant was flabbergasted. He could actually afford it?

"Two nights. Don't get it wrong," Xiao Jun added.

The room booked today would require checkout by 1 PM tomorrow afternoon. By then doomsday still wouldn't have arrived.

"Sir, card payment?"

"Card."

Not until the payment cleared successfully did the attendant confirm that this young man before her wasn't joking around.

She quickly handled the paperwork for him at top speed. Only after repeated rejections by Xiao Jun did she refrain from showing him personally upstairs.

While waiting for the elevator on the first floor, Xiao Jun's mood elevated even higher.

Rebirth plus cheats activated. Indeed, he was getting the protagonist treatment!

The presidential suite was on the top floor of this high-rise, the 21st floor. His private butler was already waiting for him at the door.

"I don't require anything. My only demand is to not be disturbed by anyone these two days. Understood?" Xiao Jun immediately dismissed the butler after giving instructions.

He then entered the place that would be his home for quite a long period of time hereafter.

The presidential suite was great, really great. With so much space, he could stockpile large quantities of supplies.

As for the room's interior decor, Xiao Jun didn't have the slightest interest. All that occupied his mind right now was how to spend the upcoming apocalypse in comfort.