"Holy shit!" James Lone felt the ground temperature rise rapidly behind him and quickly took off in the other direction.

He didn't stop until he was a safe fifty meters away, still shaken from the experience.

The mutated earthworms had vanished, likely vaporized.

The cave walls were completely melted, oozing as they radiated excessive heat.

Now, James Lone understood why the cave walls looked that way.

It seemed that any mutated creature falling in could trigger an attack from the mysterious ice block.

Sighing in relief, James Lone thought, "This thing is indeed dangerous!"

For now, he could do nothing about it.

Moreover, even if he managed to destroy it, he doubted that would end the purple fog.

Who knew how many blue ice blocks existed on Earth?

James Lone did not believe the aliens lacked contingency plans.

Additionally, if he were to destroy the mysterious ice block, it could very well attract the alien's attention, leading to even bigger problems.

James Lone had no idea what tracking methods the alien might possess.

After studying the blue ice block one last time, he decided to return upwards.

"The reaction radius of the blue ice block seems to be about one meter; that might prove useful..."

With that thought stored in his mind, he made his way back.

Upon returning to the temporary stone house, James Lone found Linkon and the others fast asleep.

However, one person remained on watch.

Full of energy, James Lone only had a late-night snack out of boredom before settling in for some rest.

Finally, dawn broke.

James Lone, feeling restless, followed Linkon and the others for yet another day.

As day turned to night once more, they found themselves just two kilometers from Dill Holiday.

Linkon's group halted again, settling into a house for the night.

They had lost three more members today.

The pressure weighed heavily on everyone.

Yet, thinking of the shelter ahead, with its clean, safe rooms and delicious food, somewhat lifted their spirits.

After ensuring their encampment was secured, James Lone committed the location to memory before sneaking off to the unnamed cave to practice his breathing technique.

When James Lone returned, the night had deepened.

This time, everyone was sleeping soundly!

Even the guards responsible for watching the area were completely out cold.

After two arduous days of trudging through the dense forest, everyone was utterly exhausted and barely able to keep their eyes open.

Now was the time!

With determination gleaming in his eyes, James Lone began to construct his Will Space.

Bolstered by a willpower score of 360, James Lone successfully simulated Linkon's villa and the shelter from memory with remarkable precision.

He smirked as he focused his gaze on Linkon.

Come in, if you dare!

Linkon found himself dazed, suddenly realizing he stood outside his own villa in Dill Holiday.

"Wait, how did I end up here?"

Something felt off to him; it was as if something was missing, but in the haze of sleep, he couldn't quite put his finger on it.

After pondering for a moment with no clear answers, he shrugged it off.

As he turned his gaze around, surrounded by thick mutated trees, a sense of urgency pinched at his heart. He hurriedly made his way to the door of his home.

He had long lost the key along the way, but fortunately, the smart lock still had power, allowing for biometric access.

However, the cameras had been damaged by animals, rendering it unable to unlock.

"Holy shit! How inconvenient!" Linkon felt a rush of anxiety.

What if he couldn't open the door? That would create a real problem.

With the entire villa made of bulletproof glass and steel plating embedded in the walls, if he couldn't get through the door, he would be completely locked out.

Fortunately, the smart door lock had a backup code.

Linkon accessed the interface.

The interface seemed a bit off, looking different from what he remembered.

However, he didn't overthink it.

Perhaps he was mistaken.

He cautiously input the code: 381127.

Click!

The lock opened.

Linkon felt a surge of happiness as he pushed the door open.

Inside, the familiar furnishings awaited him, untouched by any encroaching vegetation.

"Thank goodness!"

Linkon felt jubilant.

Suddenly, he became acutely aware of his thirst.

The kitchen should have food!

He rushed toward the kitchen.

Opening the fridge, he was greeted by a revolting sight—all the food had spoiled, teeming with rancid odors and disgusting white maggots.

"Ugh!"

Linkon rapidly covered his nose and shut the fridge door.

The shelter was supposed to have a generator, so the freezer ought to still be functioning.

Quickly, Linkon dashed toward the living room behind the couch.

He crouched down and pressed under an oil painting.

The wall slowly slid back, revealing a thick alloy door.

Upon the door was a keypad.

Linkon swiftly input the code again.

381127.

The alloy door creaked open.

Linkon stepped into the corridor, which was instantly illuminated with automatic lights, bathing the space in brightness.

Linkon let out a long sigh of relief.

"I made it!"

"Hahaha! I finally made it back!"

"Thank God I built this shelter!"

Feeling relieved, Linkon walked into the shelter and shut the massive door behind him.

He quickly sought out food and water, indulging in a satisfying meal. However, something about the taste struck him as peculiar and somewhat unreal.

Having eaten his fill, Linkon began to inspect the various facilities within the shelter. After confirming everything was operational, he stepped into the monitoring room, entering the password to check the system.

As he typed in the numbers, he thought to himself, "This is my safe haven; nothing can go wrong here..."

Suddenly, his world plunged into darkness.

Linkon inexplicably fell into a deep sleep once again.

The password had been acquired: 381127!

James Lone didn't rush to take lives; instead, he departed immediately to return to Dill Holiday that very night.

After testing to ensure the code was correct and that Linkon hadn't made any mistakes, he finally relaxed.

Without a second thought, James Lone immediately changed all the passwords to something new, erasing all existing fingerprints and facial recognition settings, replacing them with his own.

As a result, no one could access the shelter besides James Lone.

His recent actions had awakened the light sleepers, Shirley Inr Won and Lancy George.

"Master! You're back!"

The two women exclaimed with delight.

James Lone had been gone for two nights, and they worried for his safety.

Without James Lone, they weren't confident they could survive in this apocalyptic world.

James Lone glanced at Lancy George but chose not to mention her father's fate.

He needed to have a direct encounter with Jack George to make a decision.

Jack George was the first relative of this group of women who had survived.

James Lone would treat the situation with caution.

If Jack George was willing to collaborate, that would be ideal.

If he was not willing...

James Lone would not hesitate to eliminate Jack George to ensure future complications were dealt with, taking that secret to his grave.

One way or another, Linkon had to die!

James Lone responded calmly, "I have a few matters to attend to; you all should rest. Oh, Lancy George, I need to take a video in your room."

"Ah?" Lancy George replied, bewildered.

Suddenly, her face flushed red.

In the middle of the night, a man wanted to head into a woman's room to take a video...

Shirley Inr Won shot a jealous glance at Lancy George.

This shameless woman certainly knew how to play the game!

"Why didn't I think of that before?"

Lancy George, her cheeks rosy, asked, "Can I at least wear clothes when you shoot it?"

James Lone paused for a moment before responding, bewildered, "What are you thinking? It'll just be an ordinary video!"

"Ah!" Lancy George gasped, her face flushing even more.

Shirley Inr Won finally let out a sigh of relief.

Suddenly, James Lone wore a mischievous grin.

"However, since you mentioned it, it's best we record moments while we're young, so we can reminisce when we're old..."

Both women's faces turned crimson.

Ten minutes later, James Lone finished filming and passed through the wall to head toward Linkon and the others.

Seeing James Lone return unscathed eased the two women's worries, and they retired to their rooms for sleep.

Before long, James Lone reappeared at the temporary camp where Linkon and his group were stationed.

Everyone was still asleep.

James Lone wasted no time, using his will to link with Jack George, who was dreaming.

"Do you want to know where your daughter is? Come out."

Jack George reacted with surprise. "Who are you? Where's Lancy?"

The voice vanished.

"Don't go! Don't go! Where's my Lancy?!!"

Jack George jolted awake.

The room around him was ominously dark.

Only a torch at the entrance emitted a faint glow.

The sounds of men snoring filled the air, providing a stark reminder that it was indeed a dream...

Jack George sighed and was about to drift back to sleep when the voice uttered once again:

"Lancy George is alive. Come out to chat."

Jack George opened his eyes wide.

Could it be... not a dream?