When Lu Yao woke up again, it was already late afternoon.

A purple twilight swirled outside the window; the light reflected off the shattered glass across the street, slicing across his face like a dull knife—it didn’t hurt, but it was annoying.

He sat up, and a realization flashed through his mind: he had overslept. 

The aroma of steamed rice filled his nostrils.

He glanced at the sky outside and felt angry with himself, then walked out and gave Qin Ye, who was cooking in the living room, a piece of his mind.

“It’s all your fault, Qin Qing—you’ve thrown my sleep schedule all out of whack!” 

Qin Ye was so startled that his hand trembled, causing the spatula to clang against the edge of the pot: “Sorry, boss. …Also, boss, my name is Qin Ye.” 

“All right, I get it, Qin Liu,” Lu Yao said.

Qin Ye: “…Boss, please don’t do that. It scares me.” His hand trembled again, and the spatula clattered against the pot once more.

Lu Yao stared at the spot where it had just clattered, feeling a surge of mischief.

Qin Ye showed a look of terror: “Big boss, you’re not seriously thinking of playing into the stale old meme of ‘I ship it! I ship it!’, are you?”

Lu Yao said with a hypocritical, self-righteous tone: “Hmph, what a joke. Do I look like the kind of person who’s obsessed with lowbrow humor?” 

Qin Ye: “Uh… okay…”

He scooped the food out of the pot. “Boss, go ahead and eat.”

Lu Yao: “Can’t I really use that joke? They even use it on the Spring Festival Gala—why can’t I?”

Qin Ye：“……”

Qin Ye: “Boss, if you really want to say it, just go ahead.”

Lu Yao felt a little embarrassed, so he snatched the bowl of rice Qin Ye had just served and sat down to eat. Qin Ye had cooked a ready-made meal from Lu Yao’s company: sour cabbage and fish.

It was tangy and spicy—a real appetizer.

Qin Ye had no choice but to go cook another batch of rice; he was actually quite good at adapting to new situations. 

The aroma of the food made the whole house feel even more like a home. 

Qin Ye went to the stove, added another handful of wood chips, and picked up a second small pot to cook his own meal.

“Boss, what are we doing down here?” Qin Ye asked, peeking over his shoulder.

Lu Yao: “The Qingming holiday ends tomorrow.”

Qin Ye: “Mm-hmm.” He felt he was finally catching up with the Boss’s train of thought.

Lu Yao replied matter-of-factly, “So we have to go to work after tomorrow.” 

Qin Ye:???

Wait, he’d better take back that thought he just had.

No, back to work? Qingming holiday? What? What the—?

Lu Yao couldn’t care less that his one sentence had sent Qin Ye’s pupils into a frenzy; he continued eating calmly.

Today was a milestone—it had been exactly one month since the system arrived.

Over the past month, Lu Yao had consistently been strict with himself and lenient with others, practicing civility and setting a positive example—he hadn’t violated a single public code of conduct.

The month had finally come to an end—time to check in for a big prize!

But he didn’t rush to check in and draw a prize; he planned to complete the remaining Qingming Festival tasks first. Processes require closure, and holidays call for a sense of fulfillment.

“I’m going out to visit the graves.” Lu Yao stood up and went to the door to grab his coat, knife sheath, gloves, and various other gear. “Do you want to come along?”

Qin Ye was strongly reluctant: “Can I skip it?”

Lu Yao smiled and said gently, “You must be dreaming. Of course not.”

Qin Ye had no choice but to go get dressed, looking rather put out: “Boss, I feel like I’ve never once given you the right answer.”

Lu Yao: “I was thinking about it last night while I was waiting for you. If I got lucky and you’d gone out to kill and rob someone, I could’ve taken care of you and gone to sleep, then gone for a walk in the park next door during the day.” 

Qin Ye: “……” He wasn’t sure which part to call out.

“Too bad my luck wasn’t that good,” Lu Yao continued. “I waited all night and all day, but you never made a move.”

Qin Ye couldn’t help but quip, “Well then, big shot, you’re actually pretty unlucky…”

Lu Yao: “Damn it, considering that I am a rational person, I know going for a spring outing at night isn’t very appropriate…”

Qin Ye: “Actually, I think sweeping graves at night isn’t very appropriate either…”

Lu Yao: “You just had to run your mouth, didn’t you? There are so many apocalypse survivors out there, and if every single person ran their mouth like you, the day would be over! Can you afford to pay back that kind of wasted time?!”

Qin Ye: “…”

Qin Ye: “I can’t afford it, I can’t afford it.” What else could he possibly say?

“Anyway, let’s go.” Lu Yao picked up his backpack and clipped his entrenching shovel into the side loop. “Go, go, go!”

The night was deep, and from the main road outside the residential complex came the occasional sound of something being dragged, as if someone were pulling a coffin through the night.

Lu Yao dimmed the flashlight to its lowest setting and made his way to the greenbelt surrounding the complex.

Of course, Lu Yao wasn’t going to the cemetery—it was too far away and too dangerous. The essence of ritual lies in sincerity and in observing the proper form.

All he needed to do was dig a grave right there in the greenbelt.

Upon learning of Lu Yao’s plan, Qin Ye’s mind went blank for a few seconds, and an involuntary growl escaped his throat—much like that of a zombie.

At that moment, Lu Yao was still excitedly convinced that Qin Ye was about to mutate.

But that didn’t happen.

Anyway, the two of them grabbed the military shovels he’d received when he checked in five days earlier and quickly began digging in the neighborhood lawn. Dew clung to the blades of grass, dampening the hems of their pants; as the wind blew, a chill crept up their calves.

“Man, digging a hole is exhausting—it’s nothing like it is on TV,” Qin Ye said, panting as he leaned on the shovel handle and looked at the small pit in front of him. 

Lu Yao: “Guess what? I’m exhausted too. Let’s just leave it at that—we’ll put the zombie in there.”

Qin Ye looked skeptical: “But isn’t this hole a little too small?”

Lu Yao: “Do you read sci-fi novels?”

Qin Ye: “Occasionally?”

Lu Yao: “There’s a Hugo Award-winning novel called *Folding Beijing*.”

Qin Ye: “I think I know, but what does that have to do with what’s going on now?” 

Lu Yao smiled: “So we’ll just fold it up and toss it into the pit.” 

Qin Ye: “……”

Qin Ye almost dropped to his knees again: “Big shot…”

Lu Yao shook his head and sighed, sounding all grown-up, “How come your knees are so weak at such a young age?”

This time, Qin Ye really did kneel; he had come to terms with reality.

“You really did kneel. Kneeling counts against the clock, too,” Lu Yao said, spouting nonsense. “Come on, let’s go find a zombie.” 

They quickly found a dead zombie, then, following Lu Yao’s instructions, “folded” it up and buried it. Throughout the process, Qin Ye stared blankly, forcing himself to use only his physical strength—without thinking or relying on his intuition.

“Clean it up properly—we’ve got to keep things sanitary.”

Lu Yao used the shovel to push the fingers, buttons, and scraps of fabric scattered around the area back into the pit. A dragging sound of footsteps drifted over on the wind from the distance.

They all stopped at once and held their breath.

A zombie shuffled slowly past. It circled the area a few times; detecting no scent of the living, it was guided by the wind to change direction and wandered off into the distance.

“Let’s continue,” Lu Yao said in a low voice.

The two quickly filled the pit with dirt, patted the top flat, and packed it down.

Lu Yao pulled out the sign he’d prepared from his backpack; it read “Grave of the Victim,” and they used it as a headstone.

After adding some expired bread and pastries from the convenience store, Lu Yao opened a can of beer, rolled it around a bit, and poured some onto the dirt. The bubbles spread out, and it went gurgle, gurgle.

These steps are essential.

With that, Lu Yao began swinging the broom to sweep the grave.

While sweeping the grave… he swept and swept and swept…

Since the hole they’d dug was small and the burial shallow, Lu Yao nearly swept the grave owner’s head out of the ground while cleaning. 

Qin Ye let out a startled, high-pitched scream: “B-boss, um… that looks like a head…”

Lu Yao was silent for a second, then kicked the clump of dirt back into place with his foot, pressed the broom down on top of it, and restored the scene to its original state. He looked up, completely calm: “The wind is too strong.”

Perhaps the System couldn’t stand it anymore; in any case, it said in a dull voice:

【Grave Sweeping 1/1】 

Huh? Isn’t the System’s voice usually pretty lively? What’s going on here?

【……】

The System refused to respond.

“We finished cleaning the graves before midnight.” Lu Yao glanced at the time, then raised his hand to give both himself and Qin Ye an “OK” sign. The wind grew colder on the way back.

The zombies were more active at night, so Lu Yao moved even more quietly. Every few steps, he’d glance at the shadows; every few steps, he’d stop to listen to the wind.

Over the past month, he’s been deliberately clearing out the zombies in the neighborhood and even locked the main gate. But of course, this isn’t a foolproof solution—a zombie could pop up anywhere.

They walked in silence the whole way until they reached his apartment door. Lu Yao gently turned the key, stepped inside, locked the door from the inside, and engaged the deadbolt. All sounds blended into a single thread of safety.

Only then did Lu Yao slowly exhale. He’d better avoid doing such dangerous things in the future.

He glanced at Qin Ye again—he was panting like a little dog.

Lu Yao returned to the bedroom, sat on the edge of the bed, and called out in his mind, “System, System, settle the Qingming Festival mission.”

【Congratulations, Host, on having a pleasant Qingming Festival.】 The System’s tone had returned to its cheerful, business-as-usual tone.

【Swinging on a Swing with Others (3/3)】

【Exchange holiday greetings with five people (5/5)】

【Sweeping a grave (1/1)】

Too bad he missed the spring outing and planting willow branches.

【Obtained Item: Qingming kite】

【Kite Description: When flown, it attracts zombies’ attention. Lasts 10 minutes.】

【Obtained Item: Qingming green rice ball x10】

【Description: Provides protection against low-level zombie virus infection for 1 hour after consumption; stamina slowly regenerates during this time.】

【Item Obtained: Zombie Potion x1】

【Description: After consumption, you can disguise yourself as a zombie for 30 minutes (cannot be stacked; using this with items that emit strong odors may have unpredictable consequences).】 

Interesting.

Lu Yao raised an eyebrow.

The system has started rewarding non-natural items.

That makes sense—zombies are already unnatural enough, and evolution in the midst of a disaster rarely remains pure.

He weighed the green rice dumpling in his palm; its color was a plain green, and it had a faint scent of mugwort—it looked quite delicious. The green rice dumpling can fend off low-level zombies.

This description contains at least two pieces of information: First, zombies have levels.

Second, beyond the low-tier, there must inevitably be high-tier zombies.

Since the enemy can level up, he can’t afford to stand still—humans are creatures with immense potential. It’s also possible that everyone will eventually awaken special abilities.

Who knows, maybe the system will drop a skill book or something for him later.

 Next up is another highlight! System, check-in for today!

【Check-in Successful】

【Congratulations to the Host on 30 Days of Law-Abiding Behavior】

【Congratulations, Host. You have received your monthly check-in reward: 50 tranquilizer rounds.】 Wow, these 50 tranquilizer rounds are a really nice check-in reward.

In the apocalypse, courage comes either from the heart or from the number of items you have in your hands.

【Congratulations, Host! You’ve earned one chance to spin the Yellow Wheel of Fortune.】

The tiers of the Wheel of Fortune are as follows:

Gray is the lowest tier, followed by white—which can be spun once a week—then green, yellow, red, purple, and finally gold. The monthly spin is yellow-tier, skipping right over green, and Lu Yao was very excited about it.

The yellow big wheel appeared in Lu Yao’s consciousness.

【Energy Recovery Potion (Pack of 10)】

【Low-Tier Supernatural Ability Fragment】

【Yellow-tier alloy bone blade】

【Lightweight Bite-Resistant Tactical Vest】

【Electromagnetic Pulse Grenades (3)】 

【Anti-Zombie Toxin Serum】

【Compressed Nutritional Paste (10 tubes)】

……

Lu Yao’s gaze paused briefly.

Looking at these rewards—especially this low-tier ability fragment—Lu Yao focused intently. 

No sooner had he formed a hypothesis than the system indirectly confirmed that supernatural abilities do indeed exist in this world.

Lu Yao wanted to read the description, but he couldn’t view it until he’d obtained the item. Gosh, this really is a frustrating mechanic.

“Let’s begin,” he exhaled, setting the pointer in motion. The pointer spun… and spun…

This was his only chance to draw a prize once a month—he hoped he’d get something good.

The little red triangle darted back and forth across every possibility, starting fast and then slowing down, getting slower and slower…

It stopped on the 【Yellow-tier alloy bone blade】.