Border of the Pure Land

Lu Bu'er could only turn around and dash along the road littered with vehicles, scrambling and leaping onto the fragile roofs of cars, while the monstrous dogs chased tirelessly behind him. At one point, his ankle was almost bitten, but fortunately, he was able to kick back fiercely thanks to his height advantage, pummeling downwards in a flurry of powerful kicks.

In his left hand, he awkwardly held a Swiss Army Knife for defense, and in his right hand, he grabbed a rusty steel pipe to swing around, slamming it into the monstrous dogs' heads using the Dog Beating Technique, surprisingly effective.

The Dog Beating Technique swung through the air, and the monstrous dogs' heads burst open.

As Lu Bu'er fought and retreated, an especially burly dog launched itself at his face through the air. He swung the steel pipe backhanded in self-defense but unexpectedly, it was caught in the creature's jaws, impossible to pull free.

Luckily, Lu Bu'er was prepared, aiming straight for the monstrous dog's left eye with his knife and plunging it in. A thick stream of bloody mist sprayed out, and with a whimper, the dog collapsed lifelessly, killed instantly.

Unexpectedly, the other monstrous dogs seized this opportunity to surge forward, their crimson eyes and sharp fangs dripping with saliva closing in from all sides.

For a moment, Lu Bu'er thought he was going to be torn to pieces by the pack of dogs.

Games and reality are different.

In games, he had bonuses.

But in reality, he had nothing to rely on!

With a bang, a gunshot exploded a monstrous dog's head, scattering the pack in obvious confusion.

The doors of a church on the outskirts of the street flew open, and a man with a pistol in hand strode out, firing repeatedly and striking the monstrous dogs in their heads, shouting, "Come here!"

Lu Bu'er was startled, not expecting anyone else to be there.

Two more figures emerged from the shadows, brandishing fire extinguishers and spraying the dogs relentlessly, the heavy powder sending them into a disoriented frenzy, while the more lethal sound of gunfire continued to echo.

Lu Bu'er seized the opportunity to knock a nearby monstrous dog away with the steel pipe and dashed for the safety of the dark church doors.

Bang, the door behind him closed and Lu Bu'er escaped to safety.

·

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For Lu Bu'er, this experience was unprecedented. He leaned against the door, panting heavily, while outside the growls and scratching of the monstrous dogs sent shivers down his spine.

In the darkness, the beam of a flashlight came on, and his hands were swiftly restrained. Especially chilling was the sensation of cold metal at the back of his head—the feel of a gun barrel!

"Speak, who are you?"

The man holding the gun demanded, gasping for air.

Lu Bu'er was taken aback and for a moment didn't know how to respond. He saw a sea of unfamiliar, dirt-streaked faces, all in tattered clothing.

They looked like a group of refugees.

Among these people, there were security guards and strong fitness coaches, but also elderly men and girls cowered in a corner, trembling. They were all armed with weapons like electric batons, kitchen knives, and steel pipes, likely for self-defense.

The old man holding the flashlight scrutinized him carefully, especially taking note of the emblem on the chest of his school uniform: "Eh, he's a student, from Fengcheng City Secondary School no less."

Lu Bu'er also got a clear view of this man's face in the light.

It was Boss Zhang from the grocery store by the gates of their school.

Though gaunt and dressed in rags, he was immediately recognizable.

He hadn't expected to run into a familiar face here.

"I have my student ID card in my pocket."

Lu Bu'er calmed down, "I have no ill intentions towards you all."

Boss Zhang pulled out his personal belongings from his pocket, and when two packets of egg yolk pies flipped out, the breath of the people in the corridor clearly became hurried, their eyes lighting up.

"Alright, he's still a student, don't scare him."

Boss Zhang stuffed the items back into his pocket, "Let him go."

Lu Bu'er felt the people on both sides move away, and the gun at his back was also removed.

"Sorry for scaring you just now."

The man with the gun took out his credentials from his pocket, "I'm a public safety officer from East Sea Road Police Station, my name is An Bai. We've all had similar experiences, so we have to be cautious. We didn't know your identity and whether you were part of the mastermind behind this."

"The mastermind behind this?"

Lu Bu'er wanted to say something but then hesitated.

If there were a mastermind, it would probably be the company where his parents used to work.

Or perhaps, his parents themselves.

Clearly, the people here also emerged from cocoons without any explanation, their expressions filled with fear and confusion. Upon discovering a new person, they asked around only to realize nobody knew anything, and everyone appeared deflated.

"We don't know either."

Boss Zhang sighed deeply, "Everyone fell into a deep sleep after putting on the virtual reality helmets, and when we woke up, we were wrapped tightly in silk. This place is already a ghost town."

"So you've just woken up? We woke up a few days before you, and everyone just happened to come together by chance. Along the way, we've encountered various mutant beasts attacking us, and some people... have died." Officer An said in a low voice.

Lu Bu'er pondered for a moment. He dared not reveal all the settings he was aware of, for fear of being mistaken as an accomplice of the mastermind, which would be very unfavorable for him.

Wait, there was also He Sai!

He Sai had also bought a virtual reality helmet.

At this moment, he might also be experiencing the same kind of crisis.

"If you ask me, you are all making a big fuss out of a small matter. What if we truly entered a virtual world? What if all this is just a game? Be realistic, where in this world do you find demons and ghosts? Waking up from a sleep only to find yourself traversed in time, how is that possible?"

At the end of the corridor, a middle-aged man in ragged clothes stood up and fished several bank cards from his pocket, "Young man, you have two egg yolk pies, right? Each of these cards has two million in it, just give me the food, and you can take one of them!"

Lu Bu'er was stunned again. It seemed this middle-aged man was very wealthy, and not knowing how long he had been hungry, he had become restless when the egg yolk pies were searched out earlier.

In this city, aside from the buildings that were essentially intact, everything else was rotting.

As for his personal belongings, they had been preserved together with him in the cocoon.

Perhaps that was the reason they had been preserved.

Two million, it was an amount he didn't even dare to dream of, enough to continue his treatment for a very long time.

Yet at this crisis, it was so cheap that it could be exchanged for just two egg yolk pies.

At that moment, however, Boss Zhang pulled him back and spat, "Stop bullshitting the kid, you big idiot, still think this is a game. Can't you see the gash on your own thigh? Would a game be this real? We don't even know if we can survive; what use is money at a time like this? Besides, you say there are two million on this card, is it really there? Why don't you say there's a hundred million?"

He turned and said, "Kid, hide those two egg yolk pies well, don't let anyone else snatch them away. Who knows what will happen next, they might just save your life."

As he said this, Boss Zhang's own stomach started grumbling.