By the time the east lane stopped shaking, Luo Yan's legs felt like they weren't his.
The fence still held, but it was bent in places like a tired back. Bodies lay piled outside. Inside, medics dragged the injured away. Soldiers argued about ammo. Civilians cried and tried to sleep sitting up, afraid to close their eyes.
Lan Huan got them back to the container before anyone could "thank" them or ask questions.
Inside, it was dim and damp, but quieter.
Qin Yi sat down right away and pressed his fingers to his temple. His breathing was shallow. "If anyone asks," he muttered, "tell them I'm a normal person."
He Li ignored him and checked the container door latch twice.
He Chenyu pulled out water and shoved a bottle at Luo Yan. "Drink," he said.
Luo Yan drank. His hands shook so much the bottle rattled against his teeth.
Lan Huan stayed standing, arms folded, eyes on the door like he expected it to open by itself.
Outside, the rain eased. The base noise shifted again. Less screaming. More coughing. More tired voices.
Slowly, the sky started to pale.
Dawn.
Not safe. Just light.
Luo Yan felt the system prompt flicker in his head, private and crisp.
Ding.
NIGHT ONE MISSION COMPLETE: HOLD UNTIL DAWN
Reward Unlocked: Storage (Preservation) Basic
Capacity: Small
Effect: Food stored stays fresh longer
Reward: Recipe Template - HOT SALT CONGEE (Basic)
New Mission: FEED YOUR UNIT
Time Limit: 08:00:00
Objective: Provide one hot meal for at least 5 people
Reward: Squad Stamina Recovery (Small)
Reward: Void Screen Stability +1
Luo Yan swallowed.
A hot meal.
In a base made of scrap and panic.
He looked down at his hands like they might suddenly remember how to be a chef again.
Lan Huan spoke, low. "Dawn," he said. "We move before the crowd wakes up fully."
He Li nodded. "Fence teams rotate," he said. "Rules will start."
He Chenyu added, "Zhao will try to assign awakened to lanes."
Qin Yi muttered, "Cage time."
Lan Huan ignored the word and looked at Luo Yan. "You said you can cook," he said.
Luo Yan nodded. "If we have a pot, water, heat, salt, and starch."
He Chenyu frowned. "Starch is hard."
Luo Yan's mouth tightened. "Rice. Noodles. Anything."
He Li said, "Ration lane has dry packs."
Luo Yan shook his head. "Not those," he said. "We need bulk. Like bags."
Lan Huan's eyes narrowed. "Where do we get it?"
Luo Yan hesitated. He didn't want to sound like he had answers he shouldn't have.
So he kept it simple. "Supply crates," he said. "Military stock."
He Chenyu's mouth tightened. "Those are controlled."
Lan Huan's voice was flat. "Everything is controlled."
He turned to He Chenyu. "Find out where the cooking gear is," Lan Huan ordered. "Quiet."
He Chenyu nodded. "Yes, sir."
Lan Huan turned to He Li. "Scout for awakened who can help hold lanes," he said. "We need people."
He Li's eyes sharpened. "Recruiting?"
Lan Huan nodded once. "Yes."
Qin Yi lifted his head a little. "We're doing this again?" he said.
Lan Huan looked at him. "You can say no," he said. "And you can go be alone in a base that's falling apart."
Qin Yi stared at him, then sighed. "Fine," he muttered. "I'll be a weapon."
Lan Huan's gaze stayed steady. "Be a shield," he corrected.
Qin Yi's mouth twitched. "Still dramatic."
Lan Huan ignored him and looked at Luo Yan. "You stay," he said. "Rest."
Luo Yan blinked. "What?"
Lan Huan's voice was calm. "Your arms are shaking. Your Void cracked twice. You rest until your hands stop."
Luo Yan's throat tightened. Nobody had told him to rest since the world ended. It almost made him angry.
"I'm fine," Luo Yan said.
Lan Huan didn't argue. "He Chenyu," he said, "you keep an eye on him."
He Chenyu nodded once.
Luo Yan wanted to protest.
But then he remembered the core in his pocket.
He took it out in the dim light. The one from the fast infected.
Grey, with a thin green thread.
He stared at it.
It felt… stronger than the first one.
Or maybe he was imagining it.
He didn't dare absorb it yet. Not without knowing the cost.
He slid it into his palm and thought: storage.
He tried it, half expecting nothing.
The core vanished.
Luo Yan's breath caught.
He pulled it back out again with a thought.
It appeared in his hand, warm.
Preservation.
He swallowed hard. A small power, but in this world, small power meant control.
He put it away again and looked up.
He Chenyu was watching him.
Not accusing. Just seeing.
Luo Yan's stomach tightened. "Don't tell anyone," he said quietly.
He Chenyu's expression stayed flat. "Tell anyone what?" he asked.
Luo Yan blinked.
He Chenyu added, calm, "I didn't see anything."
Luo Yan exhaled, slow. "Thanks."
He Chenyu shrugged. "Get some sleep," he said. "You look like you'll fall over."
Outside, the base started to wake up in waves. Voices got louder. Feet moved faster.
Lan Huan opened the container door.
He looked back once. "I'll be back," he said.
Then he left with He Li and Qin Yi, moving into the grey morning.
Luo Yan sat down on the tarp for the first time.
His eyes burned.
He told himself to rest.
But his mind wouldn't stop.
Because if there was one fast infected already, there would be more.
And if cores were real, people would find out.
And if he could store food, then feeding the unit wasn't just "nice."
It was survival.
He closed his eyes anyway.
Just for a minute.
And in that minute, outside the container, someone screamed again.
Not from the fence.
From inside the base.