Jiangnan City

“The moment the RR virus appeared, it rapidly spread across the globe. All life on Earth... whether human, bird, or beast, anything that breathed, became infected with the RR virus.” “By the time humanity discovered the existence of the RR virus, it was already too late.” “After infection, the RR virus had an extremely high mortality rate, nearly 30%. In just three months, according to post-event statistics, besides the massive animal deaths, the global population plummeted by nearly 2 billion! These three months were a nightmare. Scientists worldwide were helpless against this virus!” “Of the nearly 5 billion human survivors, all those who lived naturally developed antibodies within their bodies!” “After these nightmarish three months, the entire world was plunged into endless grief.” Luo Feng slowly continued, “During this process, the 5 billion human survivors discovered that their bodies had become stronger. Almost every human’s strength, speed, cell vitality, and skin toughness increased by more than double! Even an ordinary person could easily break past world records in weightlifting and the 100-meter dash.” “However... the true disaster had just begun!” “While humans, who had always lived comfortably, saw such significant improvements in their physical condition, the birds and beasts that also survived the RR virus, having always followed nature’s law of the jungle, experienced an even more astonishing increase in power. Furthermore, some terrifying monsters even developed intelligence!” “In September 2015, starting with an attack by countless marine creatures, innumerable birds and beasts, transformed into ‘monsters,’ began assaulting human settlements!” “Bloody and chaotic!” “In the war between humans and monsters, people were shocked to discover that the thermal weapons they had always prided themselves on were only effective against lower-tier monsters. Powerful avian and terrestrial monsters were completely unafraid of bullets and artillery. Bullets striking them couldn’t even penetrate their scales and armor! Missiles were easily dodged by monsters with quick reflexes and high speed.” “Even when humanity resorted to nuclear attacks, they were ultimately shocked to discover...” “The monsters’ defenses were too strong. Only within the core blast zone of a nuclear attack did a large number of monsters perish; in the wider affected areas, the monsters remained alive. The power of nuclear bombs was far less potent than humanity had imagined. While they did kill a batch of monsters, the nuclear radiation instead gave birth to even more terrifying beings among them. The most infamous was the ‘Blood Demon Sky Wolf’ of that era, which possessed the ability to fly and slaughtered over a million humans. It was then that humanity realized... nuclear radiation could actually cause some monsters to mutate! Giving rise to truly dreadful existences.” “While terrifying beings emerged among the monsters, powerful individuals also arose among humans! The Blood Demon Sky Wolf, in the end, was severely wounded and forced to flee by a human super-expert who could also fly, none other than the current internationally ranked second strongest, ‘Lei Shen’.” “These experts, at critical moments, saved countless ordinary citizens and assisted the military in resisting the monster hordes. During this period, numerous heroic and moving stories emerged.” “Meanwhile, human scientist Kroh-Dresner, utilizing materials from monster corpses and ‘Blue Gold’ metal discovered on the Moon, invented an alloy even harder than diamond—Kroh Alloy! This allowed human experts to wield terrifying weapons capable of cleaving through monster hides and scales, rather than fighting bare-handed.” In Luo Feng’s mind, this part of history, as recorded in books, was crystal clear. “During the war, countless cities were destroyed.” “Across our Huaxia Nation, the government urgently constructed six major bases, relocating vast populations to them. In terms of experts... our nation and India, which revered ancient yoga, had the highest number of human super-experts! Meanwhile, America, the European Union, and Soviet Russia led in technology.” “Due to the countless monsters in the oceans, almost every island nation was annihilated!” “Even now, the oceans remain the territory of monsters.” “In the war between monsters and humans, only our nation, India, America, the European Union, and Soviet Russia could protect themselves on Earth. Other nations had long since fragmented. At this critical juncture, with these five great nations at its core, the Earth Alliance was established! The Earth Alliance’s joint forces assisted in establishing numerous human bases across the globe.” “The war between monsters and humans, which began in September 2015, finally concluded in March 2021, following the successful development of ultra-high-frequency laser cannons, which successively killed over a dozen S-tier monsters and two SS-tier monsters.” Luo Feng sighed with emotion. A full five and a half years of war, the most terrifying war! In this conflict, nearly a billion humans perished. Only the five great nations preserved their ‘national’ systems; all other nations’ surviving populations moved into various human bases, living together in mixed communities. Even now— On land, humanity holds the advantage. But in the oceans, there are far too many monsters; the sea remains their domain! “From 2013 to 2021, these eight years marked the Great Nirvana Period in human history!” Luo Feng said slowly, sitting on the sofa. Dong~~ dong~~ dong~~ dong~~ dong~~ The chime of a clock echoed through the room. The wall clock struck five times; it was already five in the afternoon. “The Great Nirvana Period.” Luo Hua also sighed with emotion. “Brother, honestly, I can barely imagine that before the Great Nirvana Period, there were over two hundred countries and regions worldwide. How many people were there back then? Only 7 billion. Some of those small countries were truly tiny. I bet a single powerful monster could have wiped out one of those nations.” Luo Feng nodded. “So, now, the world consists of five great powers and 23 cities.” On the entire Earth, there are five great nations—Huaxia Nation, India, America, the European Union, and Soviet Russia. Additionally, there are 23 human bases, or cities, formed in various regions like South America and Africa! The Huaxia Nation alone has six major human bases, which are now its six great cities! Luo Feng’s home is in Yian District, within ‘Yangzhou City,’ one of Jiangnan City’s Eight Great Guardian Cities. The entire Jiangnan City has a population of nearly 200 million. Yangzhou City, one of Jiangnan City’s Eight Great Guardian Cities, has a population exceeding 10 million. The Jiangnan City human base was primarily formed in the past by large populations migrating and gathering from the former Jiangsu and Zhejiang provinces. Of course, there were also some from the former Anhui province. “That feels so distant.” His younger brother, Luo Hua, looked at the wall clock. “It’s already 2056 AD, and the Great Nirvana Period ended over 30 years ago. In human society, training at a Martial Arts Hall is practically a must for everyone. Human society is much stronger than it was 30 years ago.” Luo Feng nodded. In thirty years, the number of human experts had indeed increased significantly, and technology had advanced somewhat. However, many terrifying beings had also emerged among the monsters. ... “Click!” The door opened, and a middle-aged couple walked in. The man’s clothes were soaked with sweat and stained with paint, making him look quite tired. The woman, not very tall, carried a vegetable basket filled with some vegetables and meat. “Dad, Mom.” Luo Feng immediately stood up. This couple was his parents. His father, Luo Hongguo, and his mother, Gong Xinlan. “Heh heh, ah, Xiao Feng, you study, you study. Don’t mind me.” Luo Hongguo said with a smile. His son had the college entrance exam approaching, and in Luo Hongguo’s eyes, studying was naturally the most important thing. Luo Hongguo looked down and saw a large plastic cup of cool boiled water on the table, and his heart warmed. Every time he returned, cool water was ready. After a day of work, he picked up the large plastic cup and ‘gulped’ it all down in one go, exhaling contentedly. “Go take a quick shower, look at all that sweat on you,” his mother, Gong Xinlan, said with a smile. “Haha.” Luo Hongguo chuckled and immediately grabbed a change of clothes, heading towards the small ‘bathroom’ that the family had used for years. Gong Xinlan smiled as she looked at her two sons. “Xiao Feng, Xiao Hua, Mom’s making braised pork for you today!” “I love that the most!” his younger brother, Luo Hua, immediately exclaimed. Luo Feng couldn’t help but smile, watching his mother tie on her apron to cook dinner. Luo Feng knew very well... Mom always went grocery shopping after work in the evening because vegetables and meat were much cheaper then than in the morning, though they weren’t as fresh. Luo Feng glanced at the bathroom again, silently thinking, “I must obtain the ‘Warrior Title’ as quickly as possible. Then, Mom won’t have to go shopping in the afternoon anymore, and Dad won’t have to do those tough, tiring renovation jobs.” In his heart... Luo Feng had always yearned to let his parents rest, to quietly enjoy the sunshine and delicious food. “Xiao Feng,” his father, Luo Hongguo, said, walking over after his shower. “Dad has something to tell you.” “What is it?” Luo Feng looked at his father. Luo Hongguo smiled slightly. “It’s like this, Xiao Feng. I haven’t asked you about your plans after high school graduation. Could you tell Dad?” Luo Hongguo rarely discussed such things with his son because he didn’t want to put too much pressure on him. He knew his son always worked very hard and always did very well. The moment Luo Hongguo spoke, his mother, Gong Xinlan, who was cooking, slowed her movements slightly. Parents were naturally concerned about their son’s future. “Dad, this is what I’m thinking.” Luo Feng stated directly, “With my academic scores, I believe getting into the ‘Jiangnan First Military Academy’ for the college entrance exam shouldn’t be too difficult. I’ve already earned the ‘Advanced Student’ title at the Martial Arts Hall, so once I’m at Jiangnan First Military Academy, I’ll be directly trained as an officer. You and Mom can also move directly into the military family residential district.” Being a soldier also had its tiers. Of course, the Huaxia Nation was recruiting soldiers now, but ordinary soldiers didn’t receive many benefits. However, if one was a ‘Martial Arts Hall Advanced Student’ at a young age and could also get into the ‘Jiangnan First Military Academy,’ it meant being ‘proficient in both academics and martial arts.’ The nation would certainly prioritize their training, and the government would directly allocate a house in the military family residential district. The housing for officers’ families would naturally be ten or even a hundred times better than this low-rent apartment. “What if you don’t get into Jiangnan First Military Academy?” Luo Hongguo said. “Xiao Feng, don’t put too much pressure on yourself.” “Jiangnan City has two key military academies. Even if I perform poorly on the college entrance exam and can’t get into the First Military Academy, getting into the Second Military Academy is absolutely no problem.” Luo Feng was very clear about his scores; he usually scored about 50 points above the undergraduate admission line, and the Second Military Academy only required reaching that line. In today’s college entrance exam, there was no distinction between ‘Tier 1’ and ‘Tier 2’ undergraduate programs; there were only two types: undergraduate and vocational, with only one admission line. Above the undergraduate line was undergraduate, below it was vocational. “Even at the Second Military Academy, with my status as an Advanced Student from the Martial Arts Hall, I’d still be trained as an officer. The benefits wouldn’t be much different,” Luo Feng said with a smile. To get into an undergraduate program... Only two out of ten people could achieve that. However, among high school students, only one in over a thousand could earn the ‘Martial Arts Hall Advanced Student’ title. “Alright, alright, as long as you’re confident, Xiao Feng. But don’t put too much pressure on yourself. Your mom and I just want a stable life.” Luo Hongguo nodded slightly. “You, my boy, you just put too much pressure on yourself.” “No way,” Luo Feng chuckled. “I’m not under any pressure. Young people just need a bit of drive, you know.” Luo Feng said this aloud, but secretly thought, “Mom, Dad, Little Brother, after my college entrance exam, you’ll soon have a good life. Once I earn the ‘Warrior Title,’ you won’t have to do these tough, tiring jobs anymore.” “Hurry up and get the bowls and chopsticks, serve the rice. Dinner’s ready!” Gong Xinlan urged with a smile. “Alrighty.” Father Luo Hongguo stood up with a smile and went to get the bowls and chopsticks. “The greens smell so good,” Luo Feng said, sniffing near the soup pot, and helped carry the bowls. “I smell braised pork, wow~~” his younger brother, Luo Hua, also exclaimed excitedly, pulling on his wheels as his wheelchair moved closer to the dining table. The family of four enjoyed a harmonious and joyful atmosphere.