Space Apocalypse Legend.

An unofficial side story. The space had become increasingly familiar territory for Cheng Ying and Chi Wu. By the time Cheng Ying’s great-grandson was born, with both she and Chi Wu still hale and hearty, Cheng Ying rarely bothered to venture out into the world anymore.

Of course, even if she did step outside, she certainly wouldn't let any of her descendants see her.

The world was vast; where could one not travel and explore? Furthermore, at their stage in life, status was no longer an issue. The visa troubles that had vexed Cheng Ying for so long, Chi Wu could resolve in a matter of minutes, casually producing several versions of identification documents.

Cheng Ying’s mouth gaped open. For someone of her great age, she had done very little that broke the law or propriety.

Chi Wu said calmly, ‘It’s still not as reassuring as using my own ID.’ So, the implication was that she hadn’t needed to use them before?

Cheng Ying strongly disagreed. Her own ID claimed she was born in the early sixties; stepping out looking the way she did now, people would assume she had stolen her relative's identification, which would be a headache.

She puffed out her chest and took a stroll, but sadly, very few of the people she knew were still alive; it was rather dull.

Every day now, Cheng Ying regretted, “If I had known the space could allow this, I would have sent the old lady here from the start.”

Cheng Ying truly never wanted her own grandmother to pass away.

In Chi Wu’s view, he might forget his children and wife, but his grandmother had never been forgotten. If he were to pass away someday, and his wife missed him as much as she missed the old lady, Chi Wu would consider his life worthwhile.

Cheng Ying asked, “If I were to dig up the old lady’s grave now and bring her into the space, do you think there’s a chance she might wake up?”

Perhaps it was the sheer boredom of their existence here; this wasn't the first time Cheng Ying had entertained such a thought.

Chi Wu recoiled in horror. “Spare the old lady, won’t you? Wouldn’t it be better for her to rest peacefully in death?”

Cheng Ying conceded it wasn't practical, only regretting again why she hadn't kept the old lady in the space; perhaps watching her there might have spurred an awakening.

Wasn’t he himself this old and still alive?

Chi Wu countered, “To tell you the truth, neither of our ages is that advanced; we could pass away any day. You don’t need to act like you're immortal. Of course, you can feel ageless, but true immortality? No.”

Cheng Ying challenged, “How is there not? I don’t feel any difference.”

Chi Wu, shameless since youth, remained shameless in old age. His words made it clear: “There is a difference. When I was young, I could go for two hours; now? My strength fails me; I can’t even manage to ‘bother’ a child anymore.”

Cheng Ying’s face flushed crimson. Not from embarrassment—there was no one around to be embarrassed in front of—but from pure anger, she was genuinely incensed to the point of exploding.

Ever since handing over his business to his son, this man’s problem-solving had never taken a conventional route; he always chose the most circuitous path.

Alright, a slight digression: “We were talking about the old lady.”

Chi Wu corrected his wife: “We are talking about the space. I’ve studied this thing for years. I truly haven’t found any extraordinary functions for it, aside from preventing aging, and that's limited to just the two of us. Everything else is just some minimal benefit for skin conditioning.”

To be honest, he understood it far better than Cheng Ying did.

Cheng Ying huffed, “Making a fortune is up to us. I wonder if it has any other uses.” She then disdainfully tossed a banana peel onto a large stone. This act felt like an insult to the space. The large stone had endured countless abuses from the pair over the years, becoming incredibly placid, almost impossible to provoke into displaying any reaction, let alone words.

But being so scorned now, it couldn’t remain calm. It flushed black, then red, then black again.

Cheng Ying mused, “If we brought in some lightning and struck it a few times, I wonder if this thing would reveal its true form. Maybe it’s some kind of demon.”

Chi Wu walked over and picked up the banana peel. “Don’t litter.”

...Having secured identification and freed from the constraints of living relatives, plus the inability to exhume Cheng family’s old matriarch for re-forging, Cheng Ying and Chi Wu began to explore with far greater abandon.

Chi Wu was a man who prioritized his home. From their journey thus far, he knew that anything he fancied, useful or not, he should stash away in the space. He brought in anything good he saw; the space was huge, with endless room for storage.

Over the years, Cheng Ying honestly had no idea what the space contained anymore. It likely held samples of every species found on Earth, given that the pair were wealthy idlers with infinite time.

And now, they were illegal residents. Time flowed differently in the mountains; it was unknown how many years passed before Cheng Ying and Chi Wu returned to their long-forgotten village to pay respects at the old lady’s grave.

The two had become so fashionable they took up hiking now; after all, Earth wasn't that large, and flying everywhere would mean circling the globe in just a year or two.

With the space, wherever they went, they went. They zipped around everywhere.

To be able to return to this familiar place felt like destiny.

Chi Wu believed their current detached lifestyle was partly thanks to his wife knowing how to cut hair; otherwise, he couldn't possibly endure maintaining his own appearance.

Cheng Ying countered, “I still find these mountains the most familiar.”

Chi Wu replied, “After walking in the mountains for so long, if I didn't see a familiar place, I’d think I was lost.”

Cheng Ying retorted, “That’s fate, or maybe your legs are just clumsy. Otherwise, our mother would have walked out long ago.”

Chi Wu pursed his lips—she was displeased. The two started bickering: Why criticize him for being old? The moods of a stubborn old man were hard to decipher.

As they spoke, the two arrived at a rather large private cemetery. Thanks to generations of descendants’ upkeep, the grave site of Cheng’s father had become quite prosperous—did having many descendants mean more people were buried there?

Cheng Ying observed, “That’s wrong. Even if we lived very long and had many descendants, there shouldn't be this many buried. Have all the descendants died out?”

That statement was truly lacking in tact.

Chi Wu glared. How could she speak of her own ancestors that way? It sounded exactly like cursing his own lineage to die out.

Cheng Ying stared ahead, “What is that?”

Chi Wu followed her gaze, and in an instant, the two were back inside the space. Cheng Ying trembled slightly. Experiencing life untouched by people was absolutely different from experiencing life without people.

Cheng Ying pleaded, “Though I don't follow mainstream society, I don't want to walk down such a different path either. Can we return to the normal route?”

Chi Wu was calmer. “Don’t frighten yourself. I’ll go out and look again later.”

Cheng Ying refused, “No.”

Chi Wu teased, “It’s like watching a zombie movie, are they filming a horror flick here?”

Cheng Ying asked weakly, “Can we just choose to see it that way?” Of course, after Chi Wu armed himself, when the two drove out in their sturdiest armored vehicle, the scene before them was the same, yet far more terrifying—a case of the dead refusing to rest. The humanoid figures who had been digging graves moments ago were now actively chewing on corpses.

Cheng Ying gagged and threw up.

After getting a clearer look, they retreated back inside. “The world changes fast. Only a few years, and new species appear. Don't call them human; I don't think they are.”

Chi Wu pursed his lips. The deceased in this graveyard were also his and Cheng Ying’s descendants, or at least close kin. Otherwise, they wouldn't be buried in this prime plot.

Compared to Cheng Ying’s nauseated analysis, the robust and vigorous Chi Wu was already arming himself, gathering every usable weapon, preparing to defend the ancestral graves.

Cheng Ying asked, “What do you mean?”

Chi Wu spoke, word by word, “Your father’s bones are out there.”

Cheng Ying retorted, “By now, they’re probably just bone dust.”

Chi Wu shot back, “Give it two more hills and you’ll say they are your mother-in-law’s bone dust.”

Cheng Ying grew anxious and joined Chi Wu in scrambling for supplies. “If I’d known, I’d have brought a rocket launcher in here!”

Chi Wu lamented, “If I’d known, I’d have cremated the old lady; just having an urn of ashes would save you the trouble now.”

In truth, Cheng Ying was used to using her mind to handle matters inside the space; they truly lacked much in the way of practical household tools. Finally, Chi Wu unearthed a diesel chainsaw. Donning thick protective clothing and gloves, the two headed out.

Cheng Ying stated, “If we can’t win, we retreat into the space.” She only dared to emerge because she had this fallback.

Chi Wu assured her, “I’ve observed them; their movements are slow. Don’t worry, a good chainsaw pass will reduce them to dust. We’ll be fine.”

Cheng Ying nodded. “If I’d known, I should have brought in more large Tibetan Mastiffs; we wouldn't have to risk going out.”

If the two of them were the only ones left alive, life would be meaningless. If one more vanished, Cheng Ying felt she would definitely hang herself from a crooked tree; the key was the profound loneliness.

Cheng Ying shivered slightly. “Don’t be scared. Don’t be scared,” she muttered to herself.

Chi Wu comforted her, “Relax, it’s fine. Think about it: even if we died right now, we’ve lived more fully than they have.”

Cheng Ying worried, “I’m afraid of losing one person.” Chi Wu became angry again; this old man was more volatile than he had been in his youth.

Before the pair could get close, the group gnawing on corpses turned their attention toward them. Looking at their numb faces and twitching mouths, Cheng Ying fought back the urge to vomit and stepped back slightly with Chi Wu.

They had seen much over the years, but something this bizarre was unprecedented. “They aren’t human. They definitely aren’t human.”

If they didn’t comfort themselves with that thought, Cheng Ying and Chi Wu couldn’t bring themselves to attack. No normal person could swing a chainsaw indiscriminately through a crowd.

However, when the things shrieked and lunged, Cheng Ying and Chi Wu didn't need self-delusion anymore; they truly weren't human. No human being would rush forward, howling, eager to tear and bite.

And looking at their hands, those should be called claws.

Cheng Ying’s legs went weak with fright. Fortunately, Chi Wu acted manfully, slicing through a group of creatures with the chainsaw. By the time he was done, Cheng Ying was collapsed nearby, vomiting until she brought up bile.

Chi Wu said, “You go in first; I’ll check things out here.”

How could Cheng Ying agree? What a joke—if she allowed Chi Wu into the space now, who would she cry to? Didn’t he see her clinging to the corner of his robe while vomiting?

Cheng Ying insisted, “Just pretend you’re pregnant; you’ll get used to throwing up.”

Chi Wu observed, “They aren’t human. I noticed their blood is black. They must have been dead for a long time. Why they look like this, I can’t figure out. It’s not like a reanimation; maybe there really was a biological catastrophe. I wonder if other places are like this.”

Cheng Ying asked, “What should we do?”

Chi Wu, hardened by the years, replied coolly, “Live as we must. Are we going to save the world? Do you think you’re Sailor Moon? Look at your age.” It was a sharp jab.

Cheng Ying knew Chi Wu teased her when he was frustrated; she was used to it. “Then let’s return to the space. We’ll come out less often from now on. Neither of us is a great hero, after all.”

Truth be told, Cheng Ying’s selfish and petty nature was rather well-suited to this environment.

Chi Wu refused, “Not yet. They share a surname; I have to burn this place down.”

Watching others desecrate their own ancestral graves, Chi Wu couldn't accept it. He preferred to dig them up himself and burn the remains, rather than see the scene he’d just witnessed.

Cheng Ying urged, “Hurry up! I still need to check on my grandmother.”

A slight smile touched Chi Wu’s face. His wife never forgot her grandmother. But it was precisely because of these attachments that the two still retained a sliver of humanity; otherwise, they might become semi-immortal beings, devoid of any human warmth.

It took Chi Wu quite a while to clean up that section. Cheng Ying prepared water for him, and after washing until they were spotless, they re-armed and went out again. Fortunately, paths had been established long ago, though the road conditions now were abysmal, looking like they hadn’t been maintained for years.

Two hills away, Cheng Ying and Chi Wu encountered two more groups like the one they had seen before reaching the old lady’s gravesite. Chi Wu managed to clear out the remains; there was truly only a handful of bone fragments left. After burning them, only ash remained.

Cheng Ying felt little reason to weep. “Now, there is truly nothing left of her.”

Chi Wu felt he had done right by the old Cheng family; he had collected their remains, preventing them from being further desecrated.

The two drove towards the village. It was utterly desolate. During famine years, people said nine out of ten homes were empty; now, it was ten out of ten.

Cheng Ying wondered, “Could it be that we are the only two left alive?”

Chi Wu suggested, “Maybe they fled elsewhere.”

Cheng Ying insisted, “Let’s go check on the descendants. Don't tell me not a single one is left alive.” They were ordinary people; what living people cared about most were these very things.

The pair got back in the car and continued their journey, finally realizing they weren't the only survivors.

However, the condition of the living was truly grim. The dead ate the dead, and now, the living ate the living too. Cheng Ying sighed, “This world is so chaotic.”

Chi Wu grimaced. “We have to guard against monsters, and we have to guard against people. It’s getting harder to get by. It’s no wonder the descendants weren't ambitious; the world progressed too quickly.”

Cheng Ying realized, “Now I know how important the space is. We just didn't use it at the right time.”

Chi Wu said nothing more, his thoughts deep. “Don’t mention this again. We can’t let outsiders know.”

Cheng Ying understood the gravity of the situation. She looked at the people gnawing on coarse grain cakes and realized that if anyone knew about the fertile lands and abundant resources inside the space, the situation would be disastrous. Even a few small potatoes would incite a fight.

Chi Wu stated grimly, “This is the apocalypse, an apocalypse testing human nature. People go mad hearing the word ‘supplies’; they are scarier than the monsters.”

Cheng Ying countered, “You don’t need to worry about me. My personality is actually quite suited to this current life; I just wish there were fewer monsters.”

Saying that, everywhere they went where people still survived, Cheng Ying would always select some unused items from the space—food, seeds, or other provisions—and leave them behind.

She wasn't so selfish as to sit by and watch life and death unfold.

The large stone in the space had become quite arrogant recently, maintaining its sacred yellow hue. The stone had no idea why it considered yellow particularly sacred. Cheng Ying teased it, “If you think you’re so holy and still a virgin, you should be turning white instead.”

The stone was infuriated, because it had turned black instead.

Chi Wu shook his head. His wife might think she was overstimulating it, making the stone capable of speech. She constantly provoked the wretched rock; it was the only source of amusement in their lonely existence.

Chi Wu and Cheng Ying’s trip to the provincial capital took the longest. Road conditions between points were worse than when they used to travel by horse-drawn cart.

In many places, Cheng Ying had to get out and use the space to move obstacles from the road so they could pass.

Of course, the denser the population, the slower their progress, because crowded areas held more monsters. Mingling with the crowds, Cheng Ying and Chi Wu gradually learned the true extent of the disaster: there were no safe havens left in the world.

Except, of course, for Cheng Ying’s space.

Chi Wu’s brow furrowed tighter each day. Before, he had longed for death; now, he feared it. If he died, leaving Cheng Ying alone, fright alone might kill her.

Therefore, whenever they were outside the space, their armor was always top-notch. Sometimes, Chi Wu was willing to risk exposing the space rather than put his wife in danger.

Cheng Ying admitted, “My former self was all pretense. Now I realize how much I cherish my life. I can’t afford to die.”

Chi Wu suggested, “Why don't you stop going outside? We should reach the provincial capital in about half a month.”

Cheng Ying vehemently refused, “No way, not even if you beat me! If you go out alone, can you fly? Can you hide? Do you think you’re more capable than I am?”

Chi Wu grasped his old wife’s hand, thinking that finally, she had shown a flicker of romance. They would face life and death together.

As they traveled, Cheng Ying and Chi Wu distributed aid—it should indeed be called charity. The current state of the populace couldn't afford the scale of their generosity; they could casually toss out a dozen bags of corn or a dozen crates of potatoes. Admittedly, their goods weren't the most exquisite, but they could certainly solve immediate hunger. People at this time cared little for taste, let alone organic food or pesticide residue; merely eating until full, just avoiding starvation, was enough.

Cheng Ying lamented, “It’s so much harder than our time. At least when we went out for food then, we didn’t risk our lives. How did it come to this?”

Chi Wu dedicated himself inside the space to arming them both; security was paramount.

Fortunately, he had a hoarding habit, collecting everything, useful or not, back into the space over the years.

Now, he would ask Cheng Ying if she had an item in mind, and if Cheng Ying focused her intent, the object would instantly appear before her, no need to flip through an inventory ledger—it was incredibly convenient.

Of course, they didn’t keep any ledger anyway.

Chi Wu prepared the gear and let Cheng Ying try it. Cheng Ying took the assembled item and, using her mental power, replicated it within the space. Her version was immediately lighter, more streamlined, and sturdier. It wasn't too bizarre, resembling the pressurized suits used for moon landings—a full-body outfit that concealed every strand of hair.

Chi Wu noted, “Even if we threw ourselves into a pile of monsters, they’d need considerable effort to tear through this.”

Cheng Ying accepted that it was heavy, but tolerable—far better than facing the monsters directly outside.

Furthermore, Chi Wu equipped the suits with weapon sets: rather dainty chainsaws. Truly, if they wore this ensemble during normal times, they would look like homicidal maniacs.

But this was the current era. When Chi Wu sawed and pulled, it wasn't illegal. Cheng Ying cooperated, taking one for herself.

When the two reached densely populated monster areas, it was like walking into a woodpile; they closed their eyes and engaged in a spree of cutting, leaving corpses scattered everywhere. The sight was terrifying.

Cheng Ying had adjusted to the scenes over these past few days, but she never felt good about it.

Chi Wu conceded, “This is the best we can do. Their tools are far less delicate for dispatching monsters than this. You’ll have to make do.”

Cheng Ying agreed. “The only drawback is the terrible smell, and the pace is too slow. Even so, crossing this city on foot would take ten to fifteen days—there are simply too many monsters to fight through.”

Chi Wu brought his wife back into the space to improve the suits. Chi Wu had a vast collection of items; when they had gone deep-sea diving back in the day, he had acquired many oxygen tanks. Chi Wu had once had a whim that if they had enough oxygen tanks in the space, they could freely explore the ocean depths. For this dream, Chi Wu had an entire warehouse of oxygen tanks.

Equipping themselves with these tanks was incredibly convenient, though it significantly increased the weight.

Given the city was strewn with rotting corpses, the smell was truly awful. To breathe more freely, Cheng Ying had to work hard on her weight tolerance—choosing the lesser of two evils.

When Chi Wu and Cheng Ying emerged again, Chi Wu noticed that the monsters they had cut down were all headless. They had been sliced open. Cheng Ying wondered, “Is there a new type of monster, or does the monster’s head really contain valuable things, like in those old novels?”

Chi Wu preferred practical testing; splitting open a monster’s head was the best way to find out. Well, women always loved shiny objects, and shiny objects inside monster heads were even more appealing. Unfortunately, Cheng Ying found no appeal in them; remembering where they came from made her nauseous, and she didn't even want to touch them.

After advancing another stretch, Chi Wu brought his wife back into the space, clutching some glittering objects.

Chi Wu wanted to study them; the current chainsaws weren't ideal for extracting these things from the heads. The weaponry needed further refinement.

Chi Wu and Cheng Ying had just finished cleaning the grime off their bodies when Chi Wu noticed the glittering objects were gone. He looked at his wife, knowing she wouldn't care for such things. Nothing stored in the space had ever vanished before; this was the first time anything had been lost.

Cheng Ying couldn't locate it even with her mental focus, which was strange.

Chi Wu wasn't worried; as long as the things existed outside, he would eventually figure out how they vanished.

What Chi Wu pulled out in the spatial dimension was a high-temperature, high-pressure spray gun. While they had gasoline in their spatial storage, it was the type of consumable item that disappeared once used—inconvenient.

Cheng Ying simply purified the fruit wine stored there; high-concentration alcohol could achieve the same effect as gasoline. The development of this new type of weapon significantly sped up the journey for both Cheng Ying and Chi Wu.

Furthermore, after firing a whole spray, Cheng Ying only needed to collect the crystal cores, avoiding any gruesome sights. After the first experimental weapon burned everything away, Cheng Ying brought back nearly half a bag of crystal cores—a remarkable achievement.

And they hadn't soiled their clothes at all; it was incredibly convenient.

The two returned to the spatial dimension, their attention entirely fixed on the half-bag of crystal cores. At a speed visible to the naked eye, the cores zipped over to the large stone. Cheng Ying and Chi Wu approached to observe. It had only been a few days, yet the stone, which hadn't changed for a long time, was now considerably smoother, as if an old woman's wrinkled skin had transformed into the delicate complexion of a baby's face. It was miraculous.

Cheng Ying exclaimed, "No way, you evolve relying on this? If I had known, I wouldn't have bothered provoking you."

Perhaps due to the good mood, the large stone could actually display writing: "I just cherish this."

Chi Wu asked, "The outside world has nothing to do with you, right?"

The stone turned red: "How could you suspect..." This wasn't written text.

These words echoed directly in the minds of Chi Wu and Cheng Ying. They were astonished; the stone could actually communicate this way. The large stone, feeling wronged, fell silent again. Chi Wu thought to himself that as long as it was unrelated to him, that was fine. Cheng (To be continued) R580