Reborn One Week Before the Apocalypse

Chapter 34: Chapter 28: The Catastrophe Has Come

Actually, Tang Lianjie should have been the one leading this expedition. Everyone knew An Yang had played an indispensable role in maintaining the school’s current stability.

However, because of Tang Lianjie’s connections, the task of leading the team ultimately fell to An Yang.

Even the usually calm and rational An Yang couldn’t help but show a trace of emotion, his expression somewhat grim.

”An Yang’s luck is just the worst. He’s given so much, only to be cast aside now that he’s served his purpose.”

Li Lanlan lay on her bed in the dorm, filling her roommates in on the latest gossip. You had to admit, her takes were often incredibly on point.

”He shouldn’t have been the one to go. I don’t know why he insisted on accepting the task.” The worry on Song Qing’s face was plain to see.

”Do you know him?” Judging by Song Qing’s tone, Li Lanlan had no idea when her roommate had gotten to know An Yang.

”I suppose so,” Song Qing nodded.

Tang Mo was a bit surprised. ’So An Yang and Song Qing already know each other. And judging by her tone, their relationship doesn’t seem to be a casual one.’

Tang Mo’s days were meticulously scheduled: she left early and returned late, spending her time on experiments and nighttime training.

Li Lanlan, on the other hand, spent most of her time holed up in their room, occasionally wandering over to other dorms to trade the latest gossip.

Song Qing, like Tang Mo, also left early and returned late. Outside of her work in the lab, no one knew where she went or what she did.

Neither Tang Mo nor Li Lanlan asked. They figured she would talk about it if she wanted to, and that was the best thing about their dorm room.

”Aren’t you going to see him off?” Tang Mo asked.

Before the team entered the mist, many of their friends and well-wishers were gathered just inside the school gates to see them off.

”We’re all going,” Li Lanlan nodded, a little excited. She loved this kind of spectacle.

The day of their departure was bright and sunny. Tang Mo changed into a padded athletic jacket and went to the school gate with her roommates.

The team organized by the school numbered around fifty people, most of them men. Tang Mo and her friends got very close, close enough to see each person’s expression clearly.

An Yang, standing at the head of the team, glanced in Tang Mo’s direction, but his gaze ultimately settled on Song Qing.

Song Qing looked back at An Yang, biting her lip tightly. Their eyes met for a moment, but in the end, nothing was said.

”Tang Mo! Tang Mo! I’m off!”

Qin Ling, standing in the front row, shouted loudly, raising his right hand high to wave in Tang Mo’s direction. His voice was particularly jarring amidst the silent crowd.

He was wearing a short, black, padded bomber jacket and a pair of sturdy combat boots. He looked incredibly spirited, illuminated by the sunlight.

In an instant, all eyes were on Qin Ling and Tang Mo.

”So that’s the guy who sent the package. He’s pretty handsome,” Li Lanlan and Song Qing instantly put two and two together, connecting the young man before them with the person Tang Mo had mentioned.

”Stay safe!”

Ignoring everyone’s stares, Tang Mo cupped her hands around her mouth and shouted back.

Hearing Tang Mo’s reply, Qin Ling looked satisfied. He slung his bag over his shoulder, turned, and became the first to walk through the school gates and into the danger beyond.

It was an important day for the school, so Professor Tian’s experiments were canceled for the day.

After returning to her dorm, Tang Mo sorted through her belongings again. In truth, there wasn’t much left out—just a full backpack and a few stray packages of instant noodles and bottles of water.

Once everything was in order, Tang Mo got into bed to catch up on sleep. She had a grueling battle to fight tonight and needed to be in peak mental and physical condition.

She slept straight through until 6 p.m. After waking up, Tang Mo got dressed, put on her shoes, and then sat down at her desk and started devouring the food and water laid out on it.

Previously, to conserve her supplies, she had only ever eaten until she was about seventy percent full. But for this meal, she held nothing back, eating with an intensity that suggested she wouldn’t stop until she was stuffed.

The sight made Song Qing and Li Lanlan’s hearts pound with anxiety. ’Why is she eating like there’s no tomorrow?’

”Momo, even if you were the daughter of a rich landlord, you should still eat a little more sparingly! You still have to get through the days ahead, don’t you? You’re not... thinking of giving up, are you...?”

Li Lanlan hesitated for a moment before finally speaking her mind. She was afraid that if she didn’t say something, given Tang Mo’s legendary appetite, she’d starve to death in less than three days.

”You two should eat, too. Eat your fill. Eat as much as you can.”

Tang Mo urged, spreading the few items out on the table.

’My Space is already full, and so is my backpack. If everything goes according to how it did in my past life, I really won’t be able to take any of this with me.’

’There’s still a month and three weeks until we have to leave the school. After tonight, who knows if I’ll ever get to eat a proper, filling meal so openly again.’

Song Qing and Li Lanlan exchanged a look. They had only one thought: ’It’s over. The poor girl’s really been driven mad.’

By 8 p.m., the sky was completely dark.

Tang Mo locked the door and windows of their dorm room. Uncharacteristically, she didn’t go out to train or get into bed. Instead, she sat fully dressed at her desk.

She stared at the time on her ID Watch, as if waiting for something.

”AHHH!!”

Suddenly, a scream pierced the silence of the dark campus.

’It’s starting.’ Tang Mo’s body tensed. She glanced at her watch.

’8:12 p.m. Not a single minute off from my past life.’

Tang Mo knew exactly what was going to happen tonight. All her preparations today had been for this very moment.

Fifty people had entered the mist that day. If things played out like they did in her past life, they would have encountered mutant beasts shortly after entering—not just one, but an entire pack of them!

Against a single beast, they might have stood a fighting chance. But against a pack, there was no choice but to run.

No one had told them that there were so many mutant beasts in the mist, or how terrifying they truly were.

The group would have scattered quickly. Most of those who fled away from the school would have died, while the survivors who ran back toward the school would have led the pursuing mutant beasts right inside.

For the first six months of the apocalypse, the mutant beasts remained hidden in the mist, unable to emerge into the world. What people didn’t know, however, was that the beasts could still enter any area enveloped by that mist.

It was just that their five senses were temporarily dulled while trapped within the mist, making it difficult for them to break through and enter the areas it surrounded.

But now, with humans to lead the way, the mutant beasts were stampeding in, one after another, scrambling to follow the fleeing crowd.

”Wh-what was that sound?”

Everyone heard the screams rising and falling outside. The entire dormitory building erupted in a clamor.

But it was pitch-black outside, and no one dared to venture out.

Li Lanlan and Song Qing could no longer stay in bed. They quickly got dressed, put on their shoes, and climbed down from their bunks.

Tang Mo’s dorm room was on the third floor, its window directly overlooking a main road. The three girls grabbed flashlights and crowded around the window to look outside, only to witness a scene they would never forget for the rest of their lives.