The end of the world is approaching, I'm handing myself over to the country.

Lin Mo's movements finally came to a complete stop.

"behind?"

The system nodded: "Do you want to go take a look?"

Lin Mo waved his hand dismissively: "I'm not going."

System: [Aren't you even a little bit curious about who it is?]

Lin Mo continued browsing the items in the system shop: "Why are you curious?"

"The other side made such a big commotion in front, and then secretly did something behind our backs, all to cover their tracks and secretly investigate us."

"Those who are assigned such high-level missions are usually not trash. If I go there now, I'll either be humiliated."

"Either you can't bear the humiliation and fight back to the death."

Neither outcome is beneficial to me right now.

"So why should I go?"

"Besides..."

"No matter what they do, they can't get in. Let them do it. It's not my time that's being wasted."

system:【......】

That makes so much sense, I can't even argue with it.

"Absolutely!"

The system flapped its wings: "However, I won't pretend nothing happened."

[Hmph! Just because I haven't shown my teeth doesn't mean you can take me for a pushover.]

Sparrow sneered, completely ignoring Lin Mo's reaction, and continued speaking to herself.

[A complete idiot who doesn't even understand the rules dares to show off his limited skills in front of me.]

Little sister, since you want to play, let this grandpa play with you properly!

Lin Mo: "???"

"Where did you learn such vulgar language?!"

No, who taught him that!

Who taught this?!

Lin Mo was completely speechless.

Who the hell has such rudeness!

Don't you know that saying the wrong thing can have a bad influence on children?!

As soon as he finished speaking, a barely perceptible stream of data light appeared on the sparrow's body.

He then closed his eyes, seemingly entering some kind of special state of confrontation.

Lin Mo wisely refrained from bothering him any further.

Just then.

The store door opened, and Chi Zhengyang and Zhou Jian walked in one after the other.

The arrival of the two people instantly made the already tense atmosphere in the store extremely tense.

Seeing the serious expressions on their faces, Lin Mo felt a chill run down his spine.

Has something happened again?

Chi Zhengyang's gaze swept quickly around the shop before finally landing on Lin Mo.

He skipped the pleasantries and went straight to the point.

In the most concise language, they recounted Zhou Jian's encounter with the Bone King in reality, as well as all the information they had just found.

Lin Mo listened quietly, his expression shifting from calm to surprise, and then to seriousness.

Monsters have infiltrated reality and even acquired real-world identities.

Or perhaps, humans have turned into monsters.

This news shocked him even more than the million-strong monster army outside.

"...That's how it is."

After Chi Zhengyang finished speaking, he took a step forward and looked at Lin Mo solemnly.

"Comrade Lin Mo."

"So, I want to ask you."

Do you know Ainz Ooal Gown?

Zhou Jian's gaze also focused on Lin Mo.

Even monsters, is it possible for them to be friendly?

Lin Mo felt the heavy pressure and also gleaned a startling truth from Chi Zhengyang's words.

The existence of the general store probably attracted the attention of the monsters long ago.

They may be wary of the rules of the safe zone, which is why they have hesitated to take action.

They've just been pulling strings behind the scenes.

Lin Mo remained silent for a moment, and finally slowly shook his head.

No, I don't know.

Although they had guessed it beforehand, this answer still made Chi Zhengyang and Zhou Jian's hearts sink slightly.

Lin Mo looked at him and gave his explanation.

"Although I experienced that apocalypse, I don't know much about it."

"The first wave of monsters that brought about the apocalypse nearly destroyed everything."

"On that day alone, almost 99% of the people died."

"Ordinary people have absolutely no ability to fight back against those monsters."

"And those monsters didn't give us any time to breathe."

"The second and third waves of monster armies followed one after another."

"Some of them have keen hearing, some have keen smell; we've done everything we can just to survive..."

Lin Mo spoke softly, yet he painted a picture of an incredibly tragic apocalyptic world.

An overwhelming army of monsters appeared one after another, until they occupied every corner of the world.

Cities, towns, wilderness...

The number of monsters is as numerous as the stars in the sky.

Human resistance proved utterly fragile in the face of such a catastrophe.

"Bone King?" Lin Mo shook his head. "I've never heard of that name before."

Lin Mo's words plunged Chi Zhengyang and Zhou Jian's hearts into despair.

This is practically the only clue they can think of right now.

The atmosphere inside the store was so oppressive that it was hard to breathe.

Lin Mo suddenly spoke up: "But do you know the Sand Abyss Lord—Qian Sha?"

Chi Zhengyang and Zhou Jian were both taken aback and looked up at him.

They naturally knew that name.

Although I haven't seen it in person, I've seen it in many videos.

Lin Mo ignored their questions and continued speaking on his own.

"A monster the size of a small city, capable of swallowing half a city block in one gulp."

"There were countless monsters like that at that time."

"In that environment, even surviving was a luxury..."

Chi Zhengyang and Zhou Jian were speechless.

Is it as big as a small city?

Countless?

This has exceeded their wildest imagination.

That world back then was probably teeming with monsters.

Chi Zhengyang felt somewhat helpless about Lin Mo's explanation, but there was nothing he could do.

Indeed, when survival itself becomes a problem, who would want to be a monster research expert?

Zhou Jian, who had been silent all along, rubbed the bone ring on his left hand with his right hand, and suddenly asked a question.

"Brother Lin Mo, do you think... monsters... can be good?"

This question is abrupt, even somewhat naive.

But none of the people present could laugh.

Lin Mo knew that Zhou Jian wasn't asking about the monster, but about the "Bone King" who claimed to be his friend.

He shook his head, not answering directly, but instead turning his gaze to his shoulder.

What do you think?

At this moment, the data glow on the sparrow had completely faded, and it regained its luster.

It flapped its wings and landed steadily on Lin Mo's shoulder, preening its feathers.

They were all regulars, and this time, the system didn't try to avoid Chi Zhengyang and Zhou Jian, appearing in their line of sight as well.

【Done! A mere A-grade kitten dares to be so insolent in front of me!】

[I taught her a small lesson within the rules, to see if she dares to pry again.]

The system's voice was full of self-aggrandizement.

Lin Mo: "..."

"You're such a little genius."

【uh-huh!】

The system stood tall and proud.

He ignored the system's boasting and instead repeated Zhou Jian's question.

The system tilted its little head, as if it were thinking.

Are there good and bad monsters?

This is an interesting question, but I don't know how to answer it.

It paused for a moment, and a hint of indifference, not belonging to this species, flashed in its beady eyes.

Then, in a completely emotionless tone, it asked in return.

Are you a good person?

Would you feel sorry for the ant you stepped on and killed?