Xu Dan and Yuqi, everyone is watching the news

In a hotel near the film and television city in Zhejiang Province, Zhu Xudan sat on the sofa, scrolling through her phone. For the past month, she had been busy filming, but as of yesterday, everything had changed. Filming no longer seemed important; survival was now the priority.

The film crew had arranged for the actors to stay at the hotel, and fortunately, the situation in Zhejiang was relatively stable, with the military having things under control.

As Zhu Xudan casually browsed through Weibo, she stumbled upon a post from Yuqi. "Yuqi is looking for someone with an awakened talent for refining medicine? That's me!" Zhu Xudan murmured to herself.

The previous day, around noon, she had experienced an intense headache, followed by a deep, sweat-soaked sleep. When she awoke, she discovered she had acquired the rare talent of refining medicine. Smart enough to keep this to herself, she hadn't told a soul.

Looking at Yuqi's post now, memories of their time working together flooded Zhu Xudan's mind. They had filmed Xin Yitian together years ago, but after the production wrapped, their interactions grew scarce. Zhu Xudan never understood why Yuqi distanced herself—until now. Perhaps it had something to do with their bosses.

Zhu Xudan worked under Da Mimi, while Yuqi was managed by Tang Yan. Rumors had circulated online that Da Mimi and Tang Yan had fallen out over competing for a leading role. But the truth, as Zhu Xudan knew it, was much more personal.

Tang Yan had once advised Da Mimi to slow down, to spend more time at home with her family, especially after getting married. Tang Yan warned her about the strain a workaholic lifestyle could put on her relationships. But Da Mimi saw it differently. She thought Tang Yan was trying to control her career, and they argued fiercely over it. Despite Tang Yan's good intentions, Da Mimi didn't listen.

Their friendship dissolved, and not long after, Da Mimi's marriage did too. The rift between them was now beyond repair, and Zhu Xudan suspected that Yuqi's coldness toward her was a way of protecting Tang Yan.

Zhu Xudan debated whether she should reveal her new talent to Yuqi. Should she reach out? Yuqi hadn't treated her like a friend in years. Why help her now? With the knowledge of her pharmaceutical abilities, Zhu Xudan decided to keep her newfound power a secret.

Meanwhile, on the floating island, Yuto Saito and his team of girls were glued to the large screen in their living room, watching the latest news updates. The broadcast highlighted the ten most severely affected areas in Dragon Country, ravaged by zombies and monsters.

The worst of all was Wu City, where chaos had fully consumed the region. The military had lost control, and the city was overrun. In Xiaoshi and Gang City, similar scenes were unfolding, though a few survivors had managed to escape before the cities were entirely occupied. Magic City, once teetering on the brink, had been stabilized by a massive influx of troops. Still, across the country, disaster loomed large.

As Yuto Saito stared at the screen, he realized something unsettling: three of the top-affected cities were all located in Hubei Province. The military had been strong enough to hold off ordinary zombies and low-level monsters in the early days of the apocalypse, using machine guns and grenades. But now, even that might wasn't enough to keep certain cities from falling.

Yuto, having lived through these events once before, knew what was coming next. In just a week, the global order would spiral into chaos as high-level zombies and even more powerful monsters emerged.

Ni Shuang, one of the girls in the group, asked, "Are we going to head to E Province soon?"

Yuto shook his head. "Not yet. The military will definitely send more reinforcements to E Province, but we're not ready. We need to focus on getting stronger first."

Yuto understood that the team's strength needed to grow significantly before they could face the coming threats. The floating island would soon expand, and they would eventually begin recruiting more members. But for now, strengthening their combat abilities was the only way to secure their future and protect their growing home.