Luo Shu turned on his computer.
He created a new folder.
But just as he was about to start writing, his pale hand froze in midair.
He suddenly realized—he didn't know how to write an original apocalyptic story.
And those famous post-apocalyptic novels from his past life? He'd forgotten them all.
Luo Shu sat silently for a moment, admitting to himself he wasn't some creative genius. So he decided—time to cheat.
He manifested an NTZ-48 pill, slightly modifying it to reduce its side effects.
This was the super-enhancement drug from the film Limitless—a brain-boosting stimulant that activates neural potential within 30 seconds by stimulating the brain's synapses.
With NTZ-48, you gain photographic memory, master languages, stay energized, think sharply, move swiftly, and even piece together subtle clues into clear conclusions.
In simpler terms: a god-tier cheat. Even a loser could instantly become a genius in art, science, language, combat, and literature.
To manifest it, Luo Shu spent 7.4 Divine Authority Gems—his heart ached just thinking about it.
"Void, this thing's safe, right?"
"Bzzzt bzzzt~ (All good)!"
Seeing the silver ripple tremble on the left side of his vision, Luo Shu finally smiled with relief.
Then he looked down at the tiny blue pill in his palm, eyes filled with resolve.
Gulp—
NTZ-48 slid smoothly down his throat, dissolving instantly, releasing a chill that spread through his chest.
Thump-thump… thump-thump…
That feeling…
Each heartbeat pounded like thunder, surging with boundless vitality.
Panting lightly, Luo Shu felt his body undergoing a dramatic transformation. His metabolism alone had skyrocketed a thousandfold.
It felt like invisible chains had been shattered—his entire world suddenly grew sharper and brighter.
Not only were his senses heightened, but his mind now processed information at a hundred times the usual speed.
He felt like a living supercomputer.
Those complex concepts from his past life—calculus, geometry, data structures? Child's play. His mind now handled them like breathing.
Luo Shu found himself terrifyingly calm.
Even calmer than post-nut clarity. Emotionless. Unwavering.
Absolute calmness—nearly impossible for a desire-driven species like humanity.
But somehow, for him, it came as naturally as sucking milk to a newborn.
This serenity was now instinctual—engraved into his very DNA.
He sat down at the computer, his gaze steady.
After some logical deliberation, he decided to localize and adapt a short story known as: "Land of Steel" by Kinoku Nasu
Land of Steel, as the name implies, refers to a world hardened like steel—a metaphor for a planet stripped of life and vitality due to endless human consumption and exploitation.
Crops can no longer grow. The atmosphere is no longer fit for animals.
Most of the land has become cracked wasteland, while the sky is cloaked in murky gray-white clouds.
Earth has reached its final chapter—a dying star.
Unlike more fantastical apocalypse stories, this one was disturbingly realistic.
Popular apocalyptic tropes like the Christian Great Flood, Comet Impact, or Zombie Outbreak dominate because billions of believers have ingrained fear of such events.
Ancient people lived along rivers and had deep-seated trauma from floods. Every culture has an end-of-days myth rooted in this fear, which echoes through time.
But those stories often feel like alarmist fantasies.
So Luo Shu resolved to write something more chilling—something plausible enough to disturb readers and make them genuinely uneasy.
At the same time, he simply loved "Land of Steel" as a concept: a work that showcased the unyielding greatness of humanity.
The world is dead?
No problem. We'll still survive.
The world thought we were unworthy of life and tried to eliminate us?
Fine. We'll fight back—and win.
They've even slayed UO-class planetary threats just to carry on human existence, even if it means genetically altering humanity itself.
That resilience—the brilliance of the human spirit—shone like gold, lighting up the long, dark road ahead.
Especially the concept of the Slash Emperor—who chose to destroy the world to protect humanity. That's the spirit mankind should hold toward the universe.
If no one will save us, then we will save ourselves.
To build our happiness, we must dig it out with our own hands.
Luo Shu took a deep breath.
He opened Twitter, registered a new account, cloaked his identity with a pseudonym: "Merlin." Divine Authority Gems masked his personal info.
Click.
Post settings:
Gender: Confidential
Age: Confidential
Occupation: Confidential
Hometown: Confidential
Bio: No guarantee of updates. No promise to finish. No explanations. No DMs. No publications... I write, you read. Stay quiet.
Then—
Luo Shu slowly closed his eyes. Countless sparks of inspiration burst in his mind, converging with fragments of memory to craft a masterful story.
As the keys clacked away—
Line by line, dark script flowed across the screen.
---
Humanity's Final Ending, Vol. 1: Land of Steel
Chapter 1
Scene One — The Death of Gaia
That day, the auroras blazed.
That day, the end arrived.
Crushing despair. Suffocating sorrow. With all resources exhausted… what future remains for humanity?
The scene opens in a modern city—vibrant flowers, crowded streets, cheerful chatter.
A false peace.
Beneath this bright illusion, humanity was burning away its future.
Moments later, a swirling black vortex tore through the blue sky.
In 2012, a grand magic ritual was performed. Humanity siphoned the vast magical energy hidden in the atmosphere. The planet was drained. Gaia—the source—collapsed.
The Earth broke. And with it, all life.
Gaia, the planetary consciousness, calmly accepted its fate—murdered by its own children.
It had birthed humanity and was now slain by them. And yet Gaia saw this as natural. Just. Inevitable.
Earth came from silence and would return to silence. That… was destiny.
As Luo Shu unraveled the tale, a profound sorrow—ancient and vast—poured from the words.
But even as he typed, something still felt off.
He frowned slightly.
Then, like a light switching on—he understood.
At once, he manifested master-level art and music skills.
With NTZ-48 still in effect, he absorbed the knowledge like a sponge.
Immediately, Luo Shu began illustrating the story's opening.
His right hand moved like a multi-limbed beast over the mousepad. Simple sketches formed rapidly, followed by detailed shading and color rendering...
In no time, a vivid animated illustration appeared.
Its oppressive atmosphere was perfectly captured—so intense it felt less like fiction and more like a stolen scene from a real world.
~~~
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