James Lon emerged from underground, finding himself in the first-floor lobby of Building C in Sunshine Garden.

He glanced back to see that the roads of the residential complex were completely obscured, swallowed by endless vegetation.

Human civilization is finished...

Sighing, James Lon was about to head upstairs when an unexpected event occurred.

A sinister red-glowing object darted into his [Perception] range at lightning speed!

In the blink of an eye, time seemed to freeze.

Although his body felt sluggish, James Lon's thoughts raced:

"What the hell is that?"

"It's targeting me!"

"I have to dodge!"

He struggled to move his body, but it was as though he were trapped in sticky glue, unable to respond quickly.

"No, it's not that I'm too slow—my consciousness has sped up, but my body can't keep up!"

Compared to James Lon's movement, the striped object was like a speeding car, trailing terrifying red light as it shot toward him.

Finally, he got a clear view.

It was a tongue.

"It's that mutant frog!"

James Lon immediately realized what it was.

The tongue was even thicker than when it had eaten the enslaved woman.

"What do I do?!"

As his body inched to the side, James Lon realized he wouldn't be able to dodge in time.

At the last second, he made a decision:

"Phasing!"

In the next instant, the massive tongue passed harmlessly through James Lon's phased body.

The tongue slammed into the nearby wall, creating a hole as wide as a bucket and punching straight through it.

As the tongue passed through his body's phantom-like form, James Lon felt his strength drain rapidly.

"It's too powerful! Just phasing through its tongue consumed a massive amount of energy!"

He shuddered to think what would happen if he phased through the frog's main body—it might drain his energy instantly.

Without hesitation, James Lon sank back into the ground.

The tongue retracted with a loud snap.

"Ribbit! Ribbit!"

The deafening croak of the mutant frog reverberated even underground, where James Lon was hiding two meters deep.

A massive frog, the size of a car, hopped into his [Perception] range.

In his vision, the mutant frog glowed brightly, like a second sun.

Compared to its dazzling light, James Lon's own glow was dim, barely noticeable.

Inside the frog's body was a bright, ginger-shaped blue core, far more radiant and complex than James Lon's own core.

James Lon's expression turned grim.

"My perception has a weakness: if an enemy attacks from beyond 50 meters, I have trouble detecting it. The mutant frog's tongue exceeds that range..."

The frog hopped slowly, croaking loudly.

Ribbit! Ribbit!

It moved like a king, patrolling its domain.

Wherever it passed, all other animals fled and hid, making no sound.

Suddenly, the frog shot its tongue into the air, catching a giant cat and dragging it into its mouth. The cat had no chance to resist.

Despite its power, the mutant frog posed no threat to James Lon underground.

He watched the scene calmly from his hiding spot.

"The mutant frog isn't fast, but its tongue is. It must have some ability to detect distant prey; otherwise, it couldn't target them from so far away."

"Judging by its glow, its combat power is at least three times mine."

"How did it get so strong? Did it also consume multiple Enlightenment Fruits?"

"Its intelligence seems low. After missing me, it didn't continue searching and seems to have forgotten about me entirely."

The mutant frog eventually hopped away, moving leisurely.

James Lon waited a few more minutes before cautiously moving to a room on the first floor and surfacing.

With a slight jump, his head touched the ceiling.

Phasing!

James Lon passed through the ceiling and landed on the second floor.

He moved through walls and floors, avoiding occupied rooms, until he returned to Shirley lnr's apartment.

Shirley lnr was staring out the window with a worried expression, while Monroe Anne scrolled through her phone, visibly restless.

James Lon's long absence had made them anxious.

A series of events earlier—murders and rapes committed by four men in Building A, and the afternoon's violence—had shattered their illusions of returning to normal life.

With their last hopes dashed, they now depended entirely on James Lon.

Both women were smart enough to understand that in a chaotic world, beautiful women without a strong protector would inevitably become someone else's playthings.

Swish!

James Lon suddenly emerged from the floor, startling the two women.

Seeing it was him, they both breathed sighs of relief and beamed with happiness.

"Master, you're back! Dinner is almost ready!"

"Master, you must be tired. Have some water!"

They clung to his arms, making James Lon feel at ease.

The company of two beautiful women helped relieve much of his mental stress.

As night fell, James Lon brought out a feast of food:

Potato chips, canned goods, frozen fish, shrimp, and even a whole slab of black pork ribs.

The women's eyes lit up, reassured by the sight of such abundant supplies.

"I'll cook!" Monroe Anne volunteered eagerly.

Not to be outdone, Shirley lnr added,

"I'll help!"

She was determined to learn how to cook as well.

Monroe Anne shot her a displeased glance.

As Monroe Anne prepared dinner, screams erupted from outside the balcony.

James Lon looked out and saw that the neighboring residential complex was plunged into darkness.

The power had finally gone out.

James Lon stared silently, having expected this outcome.

The rampant growth of plants was bound to damage electrical equipment. In fact, James Lon was surprised that New York's water, electricity, and gas systems had lasted this long.

By moonlight, he could make out panicked residents stepping onto their balconies, peering outside in alarm.

Realizing their entire complex was without power, they let out cries of fear.

In the terrifying evolutionary apocalypse, losing light drastically reduced humanity's chances of survival.

Above the 20th floor, there was at least some visibility. Below the 20th floor, however, the purple mist swallowed everything, plunging the area into total darkness.

Most people would likely be paralyzed with fear.

Monroe Anne and Shirley lnr joined him at the window, looking toward the neighboring complex.

"Will our power go out too?" they asked anxiously.

James Lon replied calmly,

"It's inevitable. Maybe tonight, maybe tomorrow—but it will happen. Modern cities are incredibly fragile."

The women's faces turned pale.

A power outage meant no water. Gas wouldn't last much longer either.

Additionally, widespread outages would cause cell towers to shut down, leading to network failures and total communication blackouts.

James Lon checked his phone and searched for news on power outages. He discovered that this wasn't the first instance—various cities had already experienced outages to varying degrees.

Coal-fired power plants, having run out of stored coal, were forced to shut down as workers had no way to resupply them.

Solar panels in the deserts had been smothered by overgrown wild grass, rendering them useless.

Only hydroelectric plants were still operational, but with equipment failing and lines going down, their days were numbered too.

The United States' once-proud power grid was crumbling.

As electricity became scarce, living conditions would deteriorate drastically, turning modern cities into the most terrifying battlegrounds.

Humans would struggle to survive not only against a hostile natural environment but also against each other.

Even rural areas, with fewer people, weren't much better off. While competition among humans was less fierce there, the abundance of plants meant an even harsher natural environment.

The women ate dinner in nervous silence, their minds preoccupied with the impending blackout.

James Lon, too, was concerned.

I must become stronger!

As the environment worsened, personal strength was the only reliable way to survive.

Taking out a handful of Enlightenment Fruits, James Lon began eating them.