章 37: Chapter 37: Such a Big Place, Why Not Throw a Party?

Under Mo Chen's "meticulous guidance," the Raptures came to a sudden epiphany, choosing to abandon their dark ways and embrace a brighter future.

Inside the dilapidated power station, an utterly surreal and bizarre scene unfolded:

The Raptures, mimicking human behavior, toiled diligently within the workshop. Some operated the power-generating equipment, while others repaired and produced components—tightening bolts, applying adhesives.

As the newly appointed factory manager, Mo Chen commended his "employees" for their hard work, urging them to keep striving for excellence and embrace "wolf culture" while enjoying the human lifestyle.

Where could one find such diligent workers?

In the midst of his musings, a peculiar thought crossed Mo Chen's mind.

Could these Raptures reproduce?

The idea of Rapture reproduction flashed briefly in his mind before being dismissed as absurd.

If they can't have children, they're definitely not human, he concluded.

Still, the thought that Nikke reproduction might be more realistic lingered for a long moment before he shifted focus to "recruitment expansion."

While Mo Chen had no shortage of Raptures—many already infected and loyal—they were only suited for combat and orders. Anything involving delicate labor was far beyond their capabilities.

Great at demolition, useless at actual work.

As for the intelligent Raptures in the factory, he assumed their knowledge came from the humans who had once worked there. But those humans had been dead for decades.

Clearly, something deeper was at play.

Determined to uncover the mystery, Mo Chen wandered further into the facility.

It was massive, akin to a small city, with concentric circles of structures that reminded him of his school's layered walls.

He even recalled the time he was punished for ordering food over the wall. Those memories, though nostalgic, were better left unexamined.

Now, I can stand on walls and eat if I want to, and nobody would say a word!

Since the Raptures had full control of the power plant and any disturbance would be immediately reported to him, he had no reason to worry.

Inside the core machine room, he stumbled upon the plant's servers.

To his surprise, they contained a trove of human data: videos, audio recordings, text, and even... adult films.

Perhaps this is how the Raptures learned, he speculated.

But that wasn't the end of his discoveries.

In three separate rooms, he found stacks upon stacks of old currency.

The towering piles nearly filled the rooms, forming miniature mountains.

Mo Chen couldn't help but recall news reports of anti-corruption raids, imagining the riches hoarded by officials too afraid to spend.

Now, those hoarded bills had become worthless relics.

They didn't dare spend a single cent, and now they can't even spend it if they wanted to.

Moving into the core generator area, the space was eerily empty.

As he walked, he noticed something unsettling:

Large bloodstains covered the corridors and passageways. Time had turned the blood black, and the walls bore numerous bullet holes.

Clearly, a fierce battle had taken place here.

As Mo Chen ventured further, he noticed an unsettling detail—there were no Rapture corpses. Based on his understanding of Raptures, they weren't exactly the type to clean up after their fallen comrades.

He continued walking, eventually arriving at a vast open plaza. The space was enormous, spanning the size of several football fields. The echo of his footsteps resounded across the area, emphasizing the eerie emptiness.

What is this place? he wondered. Even for hosting extravagant parties, this space seemed excessive.

Suddenly, his system notifications began to ping.

"Congratulations, you have rescued 8,379 people, rewarding 8,379 points."

"Congratulations, you have rescued 11,375 people, rewarding 11,375 points."

"Congratulations, you have rescued 7,849 people, rewarding 7,849 points…"

A new message followed:

"In the year XXXX, the Raptures launched a large-scale invasion. Humanity's resistance faltered, vast territories fell, and humanity faced an unprecedented massacre.

Mission objectives have been updated:

Transition from prioritizing human rescue to securing food, water, and shelter. Prioritize personal survival.

During this period, points for killing Raptures are doubled."

The sudden stream of notifications left Mo Chen stunned. Rescued humans? What humans?

He glanced around the desolate space. The area was as barren as a skating rink—where could so many people possibly be hiding? His system's detection range only spanned a few dozen meters. Even packed like sardines, there was no way that many people could be within range.

Could it be... ghosts? A chill ran down Mo Chen's spine. Even as a staunch materialist, this desolate place made his imagination run wild.

Wait a second. Mo Chen's thoughts halted as he stared at the ground.

The floor was unnaturally smooth, polished to a reflective sheen. The ventilation system of the plant, despite its age, was immaculate.

A horrifying realization crept into Mo Chen's mind: mass graves.

The term, usually reserved for history books, suddenly felt far too real.

Memories surfaced of past atrocities, from schoolyard bullying escalating to tragic murders, to the chaos that engulfed society during apocalyptic collapse. When order disintegrated, human malice grew untethered, like a wild beast breaking free. Food, water, dominance—any excuse sufficed to justify heinous acts.

Perhaps the Raptures' pleading gestures hadn't been learned from human data banks after all. Maybe…

Leaving the plaza, Mo Chen's mood grew heavier. A scan confirmed it: the ground beneath his feet held human remains, and many of them had been buried alive.

Humanity's enemy wasn't solely the Raptures. The Raptures were more like a manifestation of humanity's darkest impulses, now unleashed and thriving like invasive weeds.

Whether the cause was internal strife or resource rationing no longer mattered.

Exhaling deeply, Mo Chen tried to shake off the gloom. What he'd witnessed only reinforced his belief: to liberate humanity, he needed to start with liberating its mind—eliminating oppression and exploitation.

The power plant's electricity could sustain the Ark for three months. While three months might not sound like much, it was significant for a population exceeding tens of millions.

But Mo Chen had no intention of handing the power plant over to the Ark. He decided this location would serve as his base of operations.

Energy was secured, but food and water were next on his list. Fortunately, rivers and pipelines surrounded the plant, and its internal water purification systems were operational. That was one less worry.