Chapter 18

Chapter 18

"..."

Jiang Nian froze for a moment before letting out a low exclamation:

"Sp... space! The rings have storage space properties!"

This was huge. Though they weren't Wind-Fire Wheels that could take him to the skies, for him, this mutation was even more thrilling than flying!

Having an invisible portable storage in the apocalypse—who wouldn’t be grinning in their sleep?

Most importantly, the apocalypse hadn’t arrived yet, meaning they could stockpile even more supplies—food, clothes, housing, even vehicles—all could be carried with them!

Cheng Jing nodded with a smile:

"Right. It’s probably because I had them on me when my powers awakened, and they mutated after being tempered by my lightning-fire abilities. That’s why I asked you earlier."

When he first discovered this, he was so excited his body trembled, almost lost control of his powers.

"This..."

Jiang Nian was too overwhelmed to speak. This was insane luck!

Must be the universe making up for how miserable his past life had been!

He immediately grabbed something to test it out—just like that, he could store and retrieve items at will.

After some experimentation, they found that the space in one ring wasn’t particularly large—just over 2,000 square feet, slightly bigger than a three-bedroom place. But combined, the two rings offered a considerable capacity.

After all, these were mutated spaces derived from objects through a powered individual's influence, so their area was limited. They couldn’t compare to the innate spatial ability users, nor could they store living beings.

However, they could keep stored items in a perfectly preserved state for an extremely long time.

In other words, the decay rate of items placed inside the storage rings slowed to the point of being negligible.

Even perishables like fresh meat, vegetables, and fruits would stay fresh—that was all they needed.

The supplies in the safehouse were meant for consumption while waiting for rescue, but the resources in the spatial rings could be carried and used later.

Cheng Jing had clearly considered this as well. Without much discussion, they quickly reached an agreement.

This time, however, they wouldn’t buy things slowly. Instead, they’d wait until after the toxic rain fell but before the zombies appeared—say, on the evening of the 31st, right before the apocalypse officially began—to secretly raid supplies. Cheng Jing had already planned out what to take and where to get it.

"Ah, I’m going to die from happiness!"

Jiang Nian hugged a pillow and rolled around on the bed, covering the rings with kisses, completely at a loss to describe the euphoria he felt—so happy he might lose it.

And so, in his excitement, he ended up tackling Cheng Jing:

"Brother Jing, let’s go."

"Hm?"

Cheng Jing froze for a second before clearing his throat upon realizing what he was implying:

"Don’t mess around in the middle of the day..."

Jiang Nian paid no mind and shamelessly started feeling him up without shame:

"Who cares? The world’s about to end anyway."

Clothes acted like a restraint, keeping Brother Jing reserved and composed at all times. But once that seal was broken, it was like he became a whole different person—and he was *all about it*!

"Little lunatic..."

Cheng Jing's tone was equal parts exasperated and indulgent.

The other man went wild without a care:

"Mhm~ Your little lunatic!"

Their lips met in a deep, hungry kiss, love taking tangible form as their bodies and souls intertwined.

Once they’d worn themselves out and slept it off, half the day had already passed.

...

At 2 p.m., Cheng Jing and Jiang Nian split up to make their final preparations for doomsday.

Cheng Jing took his Hummer while Huang Qian drove another SUV to handle a full doomsday upgrade—stockpiling gas and fuel along the way. Thanks to their connections, things moved fast.

Where others might take days, they wrapped it up in an hour or two.

After parting ways with Huang Qian, Cheng Jing headed alone to the company’s materials warehouse, tucking the gasoline and car repair tools he’d acquired into his storage ring.

He also cleared out the infirmary—some of its meds and gear were better than what you'd find in regular hospitals or clinics.

Jiang Nian, on the other hand, rented a small truck and first hit up an appliance store for four commercial freezers. He found a quiet spot away from prying eyes and tucked them into his storage ring.

Then he hit the farmers’ market and wholesale district, loading up not just on fresh meat, veggies, and fruit, but also rice, flour, packaged food, seeds, and sundries.

He even grabbed two electric scooters and those top-tier batteries he used to hesitate over.

In his past life, back at the base, e-scooters were like gold dust—and sky-high expensive.

With Cheng Jing’s electricity superpower, power shortages weren’t a problem. As long as they had enough storage devices, they could convert and run any appliance.

Back at the base, water and electricity were strictly limited, making people with such powers highly sought after.

Jiang Nian had the freezers sorted:

Two packed with fresh and frozen meats, the other two filled with ice cream, frozen snacks, and semi-prepped meals. Once loaded, they went straight into the ring—staying cold even unplugged.

No point roughing it if you don’t have to.

Now fully convinced the end was coming, Cheng Jing went all out. Jiang Nian figured they really *were* made for each other.

Just past six, they got back to the safe house. Not long after, the sky turned dark with thick clouds, howling winds kicked up endless dust—the kind of dry, stormy air that felt like the world was holding its breath.

They locked up tight. Jiang Nian hummed in the kitchen, heating up takeout from a hotel—they’d bought enough to last a while, clearing some space in the freezer for extras.

Meanwhile, Cheng Jing leaned against a bare wall, jumping on a call with Huang Qian and the others. After confirming everyone had gathered supplies and returned safely, he gave the order:

"From now on, nobody leaves this place until I say so. Especially when it rains. Nobody trusts that rain after such a long drought—keep your heads on straight."

They worked in security, so they were always more cautious than most. With the weather going sideways, doubting the rainwater made sense.

Huang Qian was the first to respond, followed by the rest chiming in with their "Copy that."

Those who needed reminders got them; those who refused to listen were simply digging their own grave.

The meeting ended, and Cheng Jing called his family to tell them not to go out needlessly. He also sent his parents a photo of himself with Jiang Nian so they wouldn’t freak out later when the family reunited.

His family had known all about him and Jiang Nian from the start, so now that they were back together, they had to be told.

Huang Qian then video-called Jiang Nian, asking if she could come over for dinner. Jiang Nian was about to agree when Cheng Jing, who had just hung up his own call, cut in and shut it down:

"From now on, everyone takes care of themselves. Don’t come bugging us."

Everyone had their own supplies—yet she still wanted to freeload and crash our time? Not a chance!

"Big bro, you’re ruthless…"

Huang Qian wailed dramatically.

Cheng Jing remained expressionless:

"That’s why I’m the big brother—no mercy, no power. Isn’t that what you always say?"

With that, he hung up and prepared for dinner.

Jiang Nian chuckled beside him. When Cheng Jing took charge, he usually didn’t argue or push back—he knew when to go with the flow.