LOGINNot only had they reached the coast, but they were now walking directly across the frozen ocean surface.And if they continued a little further… wouldn't that lead straight to the ice huts where the foreign woman he had met was staying?Those ice huts were built far out, more than ten kilometers offshore. Ray had only discovered them on a whim after deliberately venturing farther toward the sea. With his spatial perception covering a ten-kilometer radius, he had just barely picked up their presence.Given how wary Tim had been of Fanghold and other factions, it actually made sense that he would choose to establish his settlement in such a remote, isolated place.Cautious—but also intelligent.Even if Fanghold was actively searching for survivors and forcing people to evolve, they probably wouldn't come all the way out here.There was nothing here. No resources. No value. Who would waste their time?As expected, after walking a bit further, the ice hut settlement came into view.
Suddenly, his phone rang again.'Still not giving up?' he smirked.This time, Ray didn't even bother to answer. He simply hung up. However, he still didn't put the phone into his otherworldly storage space. He was worried about missing calls from home. Moreover, if that so-called Lieutenant Colonel Shay was tracking the device, then at least it would lead them straight toward Guillory City.When he returned to Bay Garden, he would simply toss the phone into his otherworldly storage space. At that point, who could possibly track the signal? It wouldn't even be in the same dimension anymore.With that thought, he stepped out of the building.Outside, the refined-looking man had clearly been waiting for some time.As expected, the moment Ray walked out, the man's expression remained unchanged. He simply smiled and asked, "Finished your call?""Yeah," Ray replied with a smile of his own. "Thanks for waiting.""No problem. Time is the least valuable thing we have right now," the m
"Ray, we have reliable sources of information. Please don't try to divert the topic," said the woman who claimed to be Lieutenant Colonel Shay.Ray remained calm and unruffled. He chuckled lightly. "How reliable are we talking?"The woman sounded slightly helpless, then blurted out, "It was one of Guillermo Rodriguez's men—Guillermo himself told them that you had stockpiled massive amounts of supplies before the disaster."What the hell.'Channing, you bastard. I really want to resurrect you just so I can kill you a hundred times over,' Ray cursed inwardly.He had initially assumed his cover was blown through some hacker-like method—someone digging up records of his pre-apocalypse hoarding. But no. It turned out to be one of Guillermo's men snitching?And in the end, wasn't this all Channing's fault?'Ah, Channing… no wonder I keep borrowing your name as cover. You really don't get slandered for nothing.'"That's nonsense. Pure fabrication," Ray immediately denied it cleanly. "
The man was around fifty years old, with a refined and scholarly appearance that gave off the impression of an intellectual elite.Of course, Ray would never judge someone by appearance alone—there were plenty of beasts in human clothing.The man was currently dragging a small covered boat.The boat wasn't large, roughly seven meters long. Thick quilts were draped over both ends, providing effective protection against the wind and cold. Inside were seven people—likely three married couples, plus a single man.The three couples sat close together, huddling for warmth.Having already encountered Alexander's hypocritical "saintly" facade before, Ray naturally felt immediate suspicion toward this man. Especially now—he had just discovered a child's corpse in the area, and moments later, an ability user appeared pulling a boat full of people. How could he not be wary?Could this man be that beast?The problem was, once a body froze in this weather, it was extremely difficult to deter
In the past, collecting energy had been part of Ray's daily routine. But after his conflict with Agatha's faction, he had put that task aside.Now, so many days had passed that a faint sense of urgency returned to him.What if he ran out of energy someday?As the saying went, only by dwelling in hardship could one avoid ruin in comfort.He stopped hesitating and acted immediately.Since the nearby gas stations had already been thoroughly swept clean by him, he headed straight to Orlaspen City and began his search there.The moment his spatial perception activated, everything within a radius of over 300 square kilometers unfolded in his mind—survivors, supermarkets, gas stations—everything was clearly mapped.Now, collecting fuel was absurdly simple.With spatial swap and the spatial portal, an entire fuel container could be directly pulled into his otherworldly storage space.After clearing two gas stations, he even casually eliminated two rogue ability users who were causing
Ray's refinement of the spatial portal had finally begun to show results. The portal now had a noticeable curvature.Of course, "noticeable" was only relative to its previous state. The actual tilt was less than one degree, but even that represented a massive breakthrough.And the benefit was clear: the spatial portal's frame had become significantly more resistant to pressure. Now, Ray could open it in water with ease.However, while opening and maintaining the spatial portal in air required no energy consumption at all, doing so in water was different. Energy was continuously being drained—though slowly, well within his tolerance.With nearly fifty thousand units of power, it was nothing to him.Still, although the spatial portal could now be opened in water, it remained impossible to open it within solid walls.'No rush. Take it slow,' he told himself.Still, this was good. He could go to the sea now.A faint smile appeared on Ray's face. This new capability gave him another
Ray tried using the new ability on the table.But… it wouldn't cut.Huh. So the upper limit was only something as "soft" as apple flesh?Then what was this ability even good for?Well, it was useful—extremely useful.Because even body‑enhancement ability users, with their tough skin and hardene
All the way here, Number 9 had insisted on showing off—riding a bicycle while freezing the snow beneath it into solid ice so the wheels could roll smoothly. But that stunt came at a cost. It drained his abilities nonstop. A minute or two might not matter, but when the consumption piled up, it became
Fortunately, Ray was a Senna City native and still quite familiar with the landmarks along the route. More importantly, certain sections of the elevated highways rose thirty to forty meters high—far too tall to be swallowed by the snow. They had become natural markers for orientation."That's Xande
Anyone who aimed a gun at Ray was an enemy. To grant them mercy would be pure foolishness.Ray never denied he had a weakness for women, but in this apocalypse, survival came first. Enjoyment was secondary, far down the list.Steel rods flew again, their target: Silvan.Ray hadn't forgotten his m







