After finishing his meal, Guo Xiaobei felt much more comfortable. However, perhaps due to just recovering from a serious illness, he still felt somewhat fatigued. Since he was a freelancer and didn't have to worry about going to work, he decided to continue lying in bed to rest.

For a moment, he couldn't fall asleep, so Guo Xiaobei summoned the system again, preparing to study it carefully.

He had only glanced at it briefly before, and there was still a lot he hadn't explored. However, he noticed that the backpack icon was flashing, so he focused his mind on it.

The backpack had about forty to fifty slots, but currently only two slots contained items: a blue and a pink little bundle. The system indicated that these were random rewards from a recent task.

Guo Xiaobei mentally opened one of them, and the bundle disappeared, transforming into a bottle of clear water, while the other bundle revealed a rough loaf of bread.

Upon closer inspection, both the water and the bread had small labels, stating "500ML of clear water" and "low-grade rough bread," respectively.

Was there really such a thing as high-grade versions of these items? Guo Xiaobei wondered as he looked at the water in his backpack: what was this stuff for?

As the thought crossed his mind, he suddenly found himself holding something cool in his hand. Guo Xiaobei raised his hand to see a bottle of mineral water, identical to the one in his backpack. When he glanced back at the backpack, he saw that the first slot was indeed empty.

This thing... can I drink it? Guo Xiaobei sat up, twisted off the bottle cap, and took a sip. Hmm, not bad; it tastes a bit sweet, like Nongfu Spring!

So it turns out the items in the backpack can be taken out. That's great! I wonder if I can put them back in. The empty feeling in his hand made Guo Xiaobei feel a bit joyful; sure enough, the bottle of water he had just drunk was back in the backpack.

Wow, this is amazing! Is this the legendary storage bag?

Guo Xiaobei found it quite interesting. If he could really become like a character in a game, wouldn't that be like having a cheat code? Life would definitely be enjoyable then. Guo Xiaobei chuckled foolishly and pinched his arm hard, which left a big red mark on his skin. While wiping away tears of laughter, he continued to smile: My time has come!

But speaking of games, to stand out, it really depended on the equipment. Guo Xiaobei clicked on the character's equipment, and instantly a miniature three-dimensional figure of himself appeared before him, dressed in the same clothes he was wearing.

Shirt Defense: 0, Pants Defense: 0... Guo Xiaobei sighed; as expected, he was wearing the lowest-level gear. But isn’t that what makes upgrading enjoyable?

However... whose face is that? Guo Xiaobei looked curiously at the three-dimensional image of the little figure in the system. It looked like him but also didn’t. The features were fine, but the appearance... why did it look like a minor?

Guo Xiaobei rushed to the bathroom, and the reflection in the mirror was surprisingly the same as the one in the system. The familiar brows and eyes seemed more pleasing, which were good changes, but how could he explain that a 23-year-old young man now looked like he was seventeen or eighteen... that’s putting it mildly...

It was a headache. How would he explain this when he went out?

Unable to think of any solutions, Guo Xiaobei could only bury his head in the sand and returned to bed to continue studying the system.

Entering the store, Guo Xiaobei glanced around. The first page was mostly various types of drinking water and food. There were 500ML bottles of clear water and low-grade rough bread similar to what he had in his backpack, as well as a variety of canned drinks and high-end foods.

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Oh my gosh, there’s even pizza! Guo Xiaobei felt his mouth water. He loved all kinds of junk food, and even though he knew they weren't nutritious, he couldn't help himself. Having been sick for several days and with no taste in his mouth, seeing the pizza made him unable to resist.

Looking at the price below the pizza, he could still bear it—50 gold. But... real-world money probably wouldn’t work here, right? Guo Xiaobei rummaged through his wallet and pinched out the last crisp hundred-yuan bill, mentally noting to deposit it.

Ding. System deposited 10 gold.

Pfft... cough cough cough...

Guo Xiaobei choked on his breath, breaking into a violent cough. That was a hundred-yuan bill! How did it turn into 10 gold? So this damn pizza is worth 500 yuan!

The ridiculously high price instantly killed his appetite. However, he also felt a bit happy; he had earned 20 gold just from washing up and cooking noodles, which meant he had effectively made 200 yuan. If he could just withdraw that money, life would be easier. Earning 200 yuan a day was much faster than making money by writing on the website. Guo Xiaobei couldn't help but grin foolishly.

That’s right; Guo Xiaobei was a writer. He usually wrote novels on a website to earn some living expenses, but he specialized in romance novels. Male romance writers were quite rare in the author community, and he lived a life constantly teased by a bunch of women.

However, his writing wasn't very popular. Despite working hard every day, he still couldn't make much money and could only barely make ends meet. If it weren't for a substantial insurance payout he received after his parents passed away in an accident a few years ago, he might have had to go out under the scorching sun to find a job.

Guo Xiaobei was inherently lazy and quite introverted. After graduating from college, he had very little contact with classmates and friends. Once he discovered he could earn some living expenses by writing novels and even had girls flirting with him, he started his career as an online writer.

In the year 2026, the legendary apocalypse. Just a few days ago, Guo Xiaobei was joking in his newly finished story that on December 21, he would turn into a zombie. Who would have thought that before the end of the world arrived, he would fall ill first? However, since his updates were always irregular, the editor didn’t pay him any mind. Even if they did, they wouldn’t see his replies because he had a high fever and was out of his senses.

After this ordeal, Guo Xiaobei felt a bit lonely. At least when he was sick, it would have been nice to have someone take care of him, so that if he died, no one would find out until he started to smell.

But... Guo Xiaobei sighed. It wasn't that he had never had a girlfriend; it was just that none lasted for more than a month.

The more he thought about it, the more he felt troubled. Guo Xiaobei decided to open his laptop. There were only a few comments urging updates under his article, and the editor hadn’t sent any messages.

At least no one was scolding him. At least... it was just very lonely.

Guo Xiaobei clicked on a news pop-up beside him.

"Contagious virus infiltrates the water supply system; residents are advised not to drink." The ominous headline appeared on the front page of the news section, followed by a call from the authorities urging the public to stay home and wait for notifications from various streets. Hospitals would be sending additional medical personnel to neighborhoods to administer vaccines to residents. Those already infected were advised to call the government, and special vehicles would come to take them to the hospital for treatment. Symptoms of infection included: flu-like symptoms, fever, and confusion...

Guo Xiaobei looked at the area map, and his city was included. After a long silence, a strange thought suddenly popped into his mind: could it be... that a zombie outbreak really had occurred?

Recently, natural disasters have been occurring frequently everywhere, and the weather has been quite abnormal. It was precisely because of this that he caught a cold and developed a fever while going out to buy something, and his condition was much like what was reported in the news. Even if he hadn't been infected before, the water he used to cook his noodles was tap water...

To clear his doubts, Guo Xiaobei began searching online for terms like "tap water." What he found terrified him; it turned out that similar zombie-like symptoms had emerged in various regions, and many incidents of attacks on humans had already occurred. Additionally, there were vague warnings that being scratched or bitten by these zombie-like individuals could lead to infection.

Could it be that he received this mysterious system to save the country and humanity? But with just this little bit of water and food, what difference could he make?

In the short time he spent online, the sound of ambulances had echoed countless times outside his building. He looked down through the window and saw a chaotic scene below, with cries and shouts ringing out incessantly. It seemed the situation was getting more serious, and he had no idea when the new vaccines would arrive or if they would even be effective.

Author's Note: Choosing such an intense time to publish, this king is undoubtedly telling you all that this king is an unrivaled powerhouse...