Virus King - Chapter 1

Chapter 1: The Hourglass of Time! The Apocalypse Approaches!

TL: YYang

“Mother Goddess, no!”

In the dormitory at Jiangcheng University, on a sunny afternoon, a low, hoarse shout echoed from a bed.

A figure abruptly shot up from the bed, gasping for air.

His pupils, wide with terror, gradually shifted to astonishment, then finally settled into doubt.

Chen Bai looked around suspiciously at everything. The blue-and-white curtains billowed gently in the breeze from the open window.

The sunlight slanted in, casting warm, soft rays that filled the space with a peaceful ease.

This scene felt so familiar, yet so alien.

After the catastrophe, this leisurely sight had become the greatest luxury in everyone’s minds.

Even after decades in the apocalypse, where he had become known as the “White Demon Saint” and had reached a level of power that most low-level Evolvers could hardly fathom, he still constantly yearned for a return to the time before the apocalypse!

And now, it seemed he had truly returned.

Under the wrath of the Dark Mother Goddess, the White Demon City he’d built with his own hands—and he, the White Demon Saint—had been squashed like an insect for inciting the goddess’s fury.

To sign a contract with a god was no different from bargaining with a tiger!

But had everything that happened truly been just a dream?

The will of the cosmos, attributes, professions, zombies, mutated beasts, dungeons, secret realms, those dark gods lying in wait beyond the heavens, gathering places, Evolvers—

Could all these vivid memories be nothing more than a dream?

The next moment, Chen Bai tossed that thought aside entirely because he saw something on his neck—a small object that hadn’t been there before.

It was the size of a fingernail, a tiny, minuscule hourglass!

“Time Hourglass…”

His gaze sank into memories. He had accidentally acquired this item in a unique dungeon realm, though he knew little about its effects or capabilities.

Even the Cosmic Will couldn’t fully analyze its origin or properties.

For this reason, he had never mentioned it to anyone.

Could it be…

Looking at the small hourglass etched into his memory, Chen Bai finally confirmed: the secret to his return to this time likely lay within this Time Hourglass!

However, for now, the apocalypse had not yet begun.

The Cosmic Will hadn’t formally appeared, and he couldn’t confirm whether his rebirth was indeed linked to this hourglass, whose purpose he had yet to unravel.

Chen Bai pulled out his phone and checked the date.

There were ten days left until the date that, for most, was like a living nightmare.

On that day, the global apocalypse would erupt!

A strange cosmic magnetic field would sweep over, rendering all human technology and weapons ineffective.

The Cosmic Will would descend, transforming Blue Star into a unique trial ground.

It would start with nearly half of humanity turning into a kind of zombie-like existence, as seen in movies.

However, these zombies were far more powerful than their slow, brainless counterparts.

Eventually, even royal-class zombies would emerge to form their own nation, spawning undead descendants and rebranding themselves as the so-called “Undying Race.”

Not only would plants and animals zombify, but some would also mutate into formidable creatures.

Even terrains that had never existed on Blue Star, along with secret dungeon spaces, would gradually begin to appear.

Blue Star’s landmass would expand more than a hundredfold!

…

At the same time, the Cosmic Will would grant the remaining humans the ability to evolve.

Talents, professions, levels, equipment, skills, bloodlines!

These became powerful tools to evolve and strengthen oneself.

However, only Chen Bai knew that, beyond these things, the greatest threat came from other cosmic races looming to descend, and even from beings so powerful they could be called “gods”!

In his previous life, Chen Bai had leveraged his exceptionally handsome appearance to become the representative of the powerful Dark Mother Goddess, who ranked among the most formidable of these dark gods.

Unfortunately, in a certain secret dungeon realm, he had lost to another dark god’s representative on Blue Star.

Following his defeat, the Dark Mother Goddess, in a fury, invoked their contract to directly take his life!

Recalling this, Chen Bai’s gaze turned ice-cold. In his last life, he had walked on eggshells, making countless compromises and changes to survive, to evolve, and to strengthen himself.

He had even gone so far as to exploit his own looks to win the favor of that beauty-obsessed Dark Mother Goddess, becoming her representative on Blue Star!

Yet all of this had been like duckweed drifting on water, meaningless and unanchored.

Only true power was worth relying on!

Chen Bai remembered the top human Evolvers on Blue Star in his previous life—those powerful individuals who bore the title of “Emperor.”

Not a single one of them had grown strong by serving as the lackeys of dark gods from beyond the stars.

Chen Bai also believed that, once the trial period in this apocalyptic arena ended, even if those gods descended in their true forms, these warriors would not be defenseless against them.

Perhaps they would even…

…replace them.

In the past, Chen Bai had looked upon those figures with boundless admiration and awe.

But now, fate had mysteriously granted him another chance to start over. This time, Chen Bai intended to seize control of his own life!

This time, given the opportunity, he would make the so-called “gods” who had treated him as nothing more than a plaything—especially that Dark Mother Goddess—taste what it felt like to be at the mercy of others!

Exhaling deeply, Chen Bai pulled out his phone and searched quickly.

Just as he expected, local Jiangcheng news already reported a few cases of patients with peculiar illnesses.

Though the news seemed buried in a minor corner, Chen Bai instantly recognized it.

These were the early signs of zombification!

Even after the official outbreak, the transformation into zombies had not been random!

Some weaker individuals, those with certain genetic flaws, would show such signs during these ten days leading to the descent of the Cosmic Will and the cosmic magnetic field. Their bodies would be unable to handle the transition and would transform.

These individuals were already showing symptoms!

Chen Bai, too, had only realized much later in his previous life that the ten days before the apocalypse held a hidden trial period.

The better one performed during this time, the stronger their awakened talent would be!

It might even lead to an early awakening of one’s talent!

Thinking of this, a spark ignited in Chen Bai’s eyes.

Today marked the first day!

…

The ‘Bai’ in Chen Bai means ‘White’.