Boom—

Boom—

Boom—

At dusk, as the sky darkened, the first villa to the right of the main gate at Heavenly Fate Community echoed with heavy pounding sounds. It sounded like someone hammering a wall with an iron hammer. Corpses—human or Zombie, it was unclear—lay on the ground, their blood congealed in the soil, creating a gruesome scene.

Yet in this eerie setting, a group lingered around the villa, refusing to leave. Some scanned the area, others felt the walls, and a few even climbed to the second-floor balcony—all desperate to get inside.

Only when the burly man wielding the hammer delivered his final blow, and the shrill impact echoed across the sky, did they witness the safe house’s terrifying strength.

BOOOOM—

Crack!

The hammer’s wooden handle snapped on impact. The burly man tumbled to the ground from overexertion. He propped himself up with his hands, panting heavily, sweat dripping from his brow, his small eyes wide with shock.

—He’d given it his all, yet not even a scratch marred the villa’s surface! Staring at the spot he’d hammered, he gasped in horror:

“How is this possible? There’s a steel plate inside the wall!”

“What?!”

His companions let out terrified cries. They rushed past him to the villa’s base and saw the plaster peeled off, revealing a hard, smooth metal surface beneath.

The metallic wall was glossy and seamless. After over half an hour of pounding, not a flake had chipped off—only a barely noticeable dent remained.

But this burly man was a Level 4 Esper! His physique rivaled pre-Apocalypse world-class strongmen. Even steel plates should have cracked!

“Who exactly is this Duan Heng? A leader’s relative? Afraid of assassination?”

“Who fortifies their home this much? Doors are one thing, but walls this tough? Preparing for missiles?!”

“Bunch of losers, get out of the way! I’ll handle this!”

As he spoke, a scar-eyed man shoved the crowd aside. He strode up to the villa—towering, fierce-faced, muscles bulging—a clear high-level Esper.

This group had come earlier that day to trouble Duan Heng, following instructor Li Zheng’s orders. Students spent the morning finding the villa, then the whole afternoon trying to breach its doors.

“Hah!”

With a fierce shout, the one-eyed man leaped onto the second-floor balcony. Through the floor-to-ceiling window, he saw a gym, gaming consoles, a barbecue grill, ice cream and bubble tea machines, black stockings on the sofa, and even a homemade sniper rifle!

Such luxury—who wouldn’t be tempted? His eyes widened in exaggerated shock, speechless.

He recalled his chaotic Apocalypse days. Displeasure washed over him. He planted his feet in a horse stance, facing the window, channeling his Esper energy, and snarled inwardly:

‘The room’s so clean? That idiot Duan Heng is probably dead outside.’

‘Then we’ll take your safe house! Wealth and women belong only to the strong! Trash belongs underfoot!’

‘—Walls might be tough, but windows can’t be. Shatter!’

Blue energy surged around him. His powerful Esper ability stirred the air into waves. Even meters below, people felt the terrifying pressure.

“My god, is this Level 7 strength?”

“No wonder he’s Boss Ba—so powerful!”

“How can anyone beat him? We’ll never save our classmates…”

Boss Ba’s underlings cheered excitedly, eyes filled with admiration.

The enslaved students sighed in despair. Thinking of female classmates held hostage by his men, they felt powerless and resentful.

—Esper energy gathered in his fist, a blue glow flashing brightly! Boss Ba stood like a god blessed by holy light, his face brimming with confidence.

He raised his right arm and swung a punch downward!

BOOOOOOM—

With unstoppable force, the punch crashed down, hitting the window’s center dead-on!

Boss Ba’s lips curled up slightly, his gaze filled with disdain and mockery, as if he already saw the glass shattering…

‘What a safe house? Pathetic!’

‘But supplies are plentiful, and the community has many women. I’ll treat my brothers to fun for days, hahaha…’

Craaack—

“Uwaaah!!!”

At that moment.

The sound of snapping bones echoed on the balcony.

Then, an ear-splitting scream erupted!

‘What’s happening?!’

Before the crowd could react, Boss Ba tumbled off the balcony—he crashed into the dirt, clutching his right arm, face twisted in agony as he rolled and screamed wildly:

“Aaah! Bones! My bones are broken! Damn it!”

“Why is the window so hard too?! How is this possible?! My hand!”

“My hand is broken!”

Screams continued nonstop. Onlookers sweated and exchanged uneasy glances—upon closer look, Boss Ba’s arm bones had burst from his elbow, slicing through his skin like blades.

Stark white bones hung with bright red blood and muscle; just seeing it sent chills down their spines.

But this made no sense!

Everyone knew Boss Ba was a Level 7 Esper with defense-specialized skills. He could bend steel pipes—how could he not break glass?

As the crowd puzzled, another man climbed the opposite balcony. He pressed against the glass, examining it, then cried in terror:

“My god, this window’s thickness is wrong! It’s not right!”

His eyes widened as he scrutinized the pane. Though unwilling to believe it, he explained in fear:

“I worked in renovation with my uncle. This glass is over 60 millimeters thick—military-grade! Not even Boss Ba could break it; bullets can’t penetrate it!”

“Huh?!”

The crowd gasped again. Boss Ba’s underlings jumped in frustration, scratching their heads and shouting:

“Military-grade? What normal person uses bulletproof glass for windows?”

“So all our work was for nothing? Better to raid a convenience store.”

“I want meat! I want women! Let’s rob others in the community!”

These thugs had no convictions. Since the Apocalypse, they’d followed Boss Ba in looting, quick to complain at difficulties.

Boss Ba, just helped up, had bloodshot eyes and seething rage. He glared at the students, teeth clenched, directing all hatred at them, and snarled viciously:

“It’s all your fault… you brats broke my hand! You bastards!”

“What?! What does this have to do with us?!”

Students stepped back in fear. One brave boy shielded the others and retorted:

“It was Li Zheng who told you to come after Duan Heng! Blame him. Who could guess his safe house was this well-defended…”

“Shut up! I don’t care!”

Before he finished, an enraged Boss Ba roared him down. Students huddled together, trembling, no one daring to speak.

Boss Ba had descended into madness. His fury grew—just thinking Duan Heng, unseen, cost him his arm, this humiliation was unbearable!

In rage, he bellowed at the students:

“If you can’t break the walls, dig! I don’t believe the whole villa is ironclad—I don’t care if you use shovels or hands, start digging now! Dig three feet deep to find an entrance! Fail tonight, and you all die!”

Under the quiet dusk, Boss Ba’s cry was shrill and desperate. His furious voice revealed he’d lost his mind.

Male students exchanged uneasy glances. Under his man-eating glare, one timid boy shrank back and silently walked to the villa to start digging.

“What are you waiting for? Get to it!”

Seeing others hesitate, an underling snarled. The rest gritted their teeth and dug—the hard soil wouldn’t yield even with broken nails, but they dared not stop. The scene had turned into Boss Ba and his thugs enslaving servants.

However…

Just as students toiled miserably digging, while thugs shouted orders…

a sedan slowly approached from afar and parked beside the villa. Its conspicuous body drew every eye. Before Boss Ba could speak, the car door opened slowly. Bai Ling in the passenger seat looked at the crowd with a bewildered expression:

“Who are you people? What are you doing at my home?”