Chapter 225: Darkness Descends

Byeol was lying on the seat cushion with his paws tucked beneath his body, while Hwi was sitting upright beside him, majestically paying attention to the movements around them. He looked just like a powerful general.

Noticing Joo Joowon’s arrival, Hwi’s eyes immediately lit up, and he quickly let out a cry.

Byeol moved his ears, finally waking from his state of resting with his eyes closed. He raised his fluffy tail and looked at Joo Joowon, the tip of his tail curling up slightly.

Joo Joowon immediately scooped Byeol into his arms. The ground was too dirty. Rather than letting him walk around on the ground, it was better to have him stay on his body.

After scooping both cats onto himself, Joo Joowon finally began dragging out the supplies.

Only a little light remained in the sky, and it was about to be swallowed by the darkness of night. Joo Joowon unlocked the door and walked into the house, putting the two cats down. He then went outside and took Bomi out of his backpack, along with the mutated rat that it had not finished "eating" yet.

Bomi slowly moved its roots over. Joo Joowon crouched down in front of it and said, "Help me keep an eye on the other two, and while you’re at it, help me watch the front gate too, okay~"

Generally speaking, courtyards like this would have dogs to watch the house and guard the property. However, Joo Joowon did not have a dog with him, so there was no harm in temporarily using the cactus as a substitute and leaving it in the courtyard. He could treat it as an opportunity for the cactus to get used to its new job in advance.

Bomi showed no reaction. Considering the adaptability of a cactus, as long as it was not placed somewhere excessively damp that would cause its roots to rot, it did not really matter where it stayed.

Joo Joowon did not care whether it understood him or not. If they really encountered danger, it would naturally take action to protect itself. The commotion it created would be enough for Joo Joowon to notice and come over to deal with the problem.

He did not rush to tidy up the bedroom. Instead, Joo Joowon casually found a chair and sat down, opening the trading market interface and waiting for it to activate.

This was the final day.

After today ended, the trading market would close. Joo Joowon had no idea what major move the apocalypse game would make next.

Joo Joowon casually took out a bag of cold spicy rabbit from the supplies and gnawed on it while waiting for the countdown to reach zero.

Three, two, one...

The system’s voice appeared even before the trading market.

[ Congratulations to all surviving players for enduring until the seventh day since the apocalypse descended~ ]

[ I believe these seven days of beginner adaptation must have allowed you to officially accept this new world. The Age of Apocalypse will undergo an online update within the next thirty minutes. ]

[ Now then, let’s talk about some bad news. ]

[ System Notification: All boss restrictions have been lifted. They can now freely choose whether to stay at home or go outside. ]

[ System Notification: Special Event [ Revival of the Darkness ] has begun. The entire world will enter a seventy two hour period of darkness. Be cautious of light. All dark creatures will rush toward sources of light without regard for anything else. Under the long night, all zombies will receive a 30% increase to all attributes, and their experience rewards will be doubled. ]

[ System Notification: Special Event [Voices of Eternal Night] has begun. During the night, all players across the world will hear unknown whispers. Be careful of players around you who show signs of mental abnormalities. Mental abnormalities can easily trigger mental mutations, and mutated players will be unable to properly use some of the functions of the Age of Apocalypse. ]

[ Finally, we wish all players an enjoyable game. You still have this final thirty minute beginner adaptation period. ]

[3]

[2]

[1]

[ Darkness Descends~ ]

As the system’s voice faded away, the entire world immediately plunged into darkness.

This was not the familiar darkness Joo Joowon had known in the past. Instead, it was a viscous, malicious darkness, an indescribably complicated sensation that made it feel as though countless pairs of eyes were staring at him from within the darkness. It was as if the world had suddenly become unfamiliar, as though he were seeing the world for the first time.

Joo Joowon could not help touching the goosebumps that had inexplicably risen on his skin. In his current condition, he should not have such an intense reaction simply because of darkness. Yet, strangely enough, he really had goosebumps all over his body simply because darkness had descended.

His mental power spread toward his surroundings as Joo Joowon walked to the window and raised his head to look at the sky.

If he had not been certain that his head was raised, he might not even have been able to tell whether he was looking at the sky or the ground.

There was truly not even the slightest trace of light. He could not see his own hand in front of his face. No celestial bodies gave off even the faintest glow in the pitch black sky. Whether it was the stars or the moon, everything had been swallowed by the darkness.

"Meow?!"

A panicked cry from Byeol came from behind him, followed by the sound of something crashing into an object. Joo Joowon was startled and hurriedly went over to pick Byeol up.

"Meow..." Byeol hugged Joo Joowon, looking somewhat frightened and uneasy.

Why could he not see anything?

Only then did Joo Joowon realize that this darkness was truly different from the nights of the past. It had actually reached the point where even a nocturnal animal like a cat could not perceive any light in the darkness.

Joo Joowon did not hesitate at all; he took an electronic candle from his spatial waist pendant before pressing the switch, ignoring the system’s warning.