Chapter 4: Forging the Doomsday Sanctuary

Xiao Yang confirmed six hatchlings had gone cold, their tiny bodies stiff. Burying them beneath the camphor tree, he cradled the surviving chick—its feeble cries piercing the mountain air like broken glass.

Survivors recognize their kind.

Back at the villa, he converted a sunroom into a makeshift aviary. The chick devoured earthworms with desperate gulps before collapsing into sleep. Xiao Yang watched its chest rise and fall. One bird against the apocalypse? Why not.

Two hours later, a Land Rover disgorged a mountain of a man—Mu Guang from Guangyuan Construction towered over him at 6'4". "Mr. Xiao," the contractor rumbled, "your request... intrigues me."

As Xiao Yang outlined triple-reinforced walls, geothermal bunkers, and hydroponic farms, Mu Guang's expression morphed from curiosity to outright alarm. "Forgive me," the contractor finally interrupted, "but this sounds like..."

"A doomsday bunker. Precisely."

Mu Guang exchanged a look with his Land Rover. The rear door swung open, releasing a glacial beauty in a linen dress—Mu Wanqing, his sister. Her porcelain features froze Xiao Yang's breath. Haven't I seen those jade-green eyes in another life?

"Miss Mu specializes in architectural fortifications," Mu Guang explained.

Her fingers danced across blueprints as Xiao Yang spoke. "Ballistic-grade windows here. Rooftop sniper nests disguised as garden trellises. Underground water purification..." Her clinical tone belied flushed cheeks.

"You're not just a doomsday hobbyist," Xiao Yang observed.

Mu Wanqing's mask cracked—a dimple appeared. "Let's call it... professional interest."

By midnight, they'd transformed the villa into a war-ready fortress on paper. Xiao Yang approved the 30 million RMB quote without blinking. "Spare no expense," he ordered, watching moonlight catch in Mu Wanqing's hair.

As the siblings departed, Mu Guang eyed his sister. "Rich lunatic or prophet?"

"Both." She pressed a hand to the car window, tracing the villa's silhouette. "But his nightmares... they feel real."

Upstairs, Xiao Yang collapsed onto bulletproof bedding. The surviving chick chirped weakly—its cries already stronger.

Three days left.