Commanding the Wasteland

Ye Fan, an enthusiast of solitary pleasures, possesses an innate ability to find joy in his own company. Self-enjoyment, to him, is an art form—a delicate dance between indulging in self-pleasure and navigating the realm of heartless escapades. In his world, the intricacies of sorrow and anger are distant echoes, easily drowned out by the symphony of joy emanating from the embrace of his trusted mobile phone or computer.

Beneath the facade of his seemingly carefree existence lies a reservoir of sharp intellect. His admission to City H's Industrial University speaks volumes about his seemingly unassuming persona harboring a high IQ. Originating from a modest family in the township of S city, Ye Fan, despite his unassuming demeanor, is regarded as a paragon of education within his local community.

Opting to embark on an educational journey in H city, Ye Fan chooses to live off-campus. Seeking solace in an old-fashioned rental building with a small bungalow outside the school, it proves a practical choice for attending classes and working part-time to support his education.

Family finances are tight, and Ye Fan shoulders half of his schooling expenses through diligent work. His life revolves around the trinity of school, work, and games. He avoids asking for money from his hardworking parents, who support not only him but also his sister, a high school sophomore.

However, Ye Fan's resilience faces a severe test during military training at the university. Despite excelling overall, he sustains an injury on the final day—a serious sprain that requires at least a week of rest. Despite the possibility of faster recovery in a hospital, the prohibitive cost leads him to endure the healing process in his rental building.

Returning home, Ye Fan enjoys a rare period of rest, embodying the life of a homebody in his compact abode. With only a computer as his companion, the absence of a TV and a modest refrigerator belonging to the landlord paints a picture of simplicity. His computer, an old-fashioned chassis with a second-hand LCD screen, contains a treasure trove of single-player games, eschewing the world of online games to avoid the unpleasant feeling of being abused.

One day, engrossed in a single-player game, Ye Fan's tranquility is shattered by the revelation of an extraordinary meteor shower. The peculiar sour smell lingering in the air raises questions, prompting him to explore online forums where people discuss the ongoing celestial event.

Bored by the discussions, Ye Fan decides to indulge in a game stored on his hard drive—Glory of Nations. As a connoisseur of the Qin and Han Dynasties, he navigates the game, choosing superior arms like the Black Hawk fighter jet and the Apocalypse main station tank.

Initiating an extreme challenge, Ye Fan faces ruthless enemies with super weapons across all countries in the game. "Let's take an extreme challenge. The biggest map has all the countries. They are ruthless enemies with super weapons. Let's see how many minutes I can hold on," he declares, putting his gaming expertise to the test.

However, a sudden twist unfolds when the sky outside his window becomes unusually bright at noon. "What happened?" Ye Fan wonders aloud. The sky is dominated by a dense meteor shower, accompanied by a strong sour smell that permeates the air. As the pain becomes unbearable, Ye Fan faints, unintentionally overturning his computer and exposing the power supply.

When he regains consciousness ten hours later, he grapples with the aftermath. "Uh...what's going on?" he mumbles, rubbing his bruised forehead. "I was playing games, and then suddenly a large meteor shower fell, and a sour smell came in, and I couldn't remember anything," he recounts.

"My head hurts a little, and my feet hurt even more," he adds, realizing the severity of his sprained ankle. As Ye Fan touches his ankle, he sees that his computer has been smashed to pieces. The computer monitor looks as if it had been burned by fire, pitch black and scorched. The power cord was pulled out of the wall, likely due to the fall.

"No, I don't know if the leakage protector has tripped. If there is a short circuit, it will be troublesome," he contemplates. It's not a big deal if the computer breaks down. It's not worth anything anyway. If the circuit burns out, the landlord will be responsible for repairing it.

Ye Fan raises his head and sees that the light is on, feeling a little more at ease. "What's wrong? Your reaction is slow?" he questions himself, observing the clock on the wall. The time should be eleven o'clock in the evening.

He reluctantly gets up, stands up, and goes to the window to look down, feeling that something is wrong today. The voice-activated light in the courtyard of the community is on. Through the light, he sees that the community is in a mess. Some battery cars and bicycles belonging to nearby neighbors are lying on the ground in a mess.

"What is going on? A murder scene? But this scene is too big!" Ye Fan exclaims. He doesn't think about calling the police immediately; he wants to find out what is going on. "Open your eyes and look carefully," he tells himself.

In a corner, a group of people is lying there, as if they were eating. Ye Fan's eyesight is good, and he can clearly see the person in the corner who has been eaten until almost all he has left is his feet.

One of them grabs a piece of flesh and roars excitedly. The mutilated cheek and the blood stains on his face prove that he is no longer a human being. "This is...this scene...resident evil!" Ye Fan realizes. As a college student in the new era, he has naturally seen many similar videos. The people eating now are clearly zombies!

He doesn't think this is a joke or a prank.

After a moment of panic, Ye Fan's concern deepened. He promptly retrieved his cell phone, attempting to contact his parents, but to no avail. His efforts to reach his sister met the same fate. Examining his mobile phone, he noted the transition from a 4G to a 2G signal, almost rendering it useless.

"In the end, this kind of situation is real; it's bad." Ye Fan, although a bit nervous, compelled himself to calm down, understanding that anxiety wouldn't be beneficial at the moment.

Focusing on steadying his breathing and heartbeat, he acknowledged that he needed to adapt to survive in this unfamiliar scenario. Cut off from the internet and any external information, he pondered his next steps.

Despite initial confusion, Ye Fan gradually composed himself. Just as his heartbeat normalized, a voice echoed in his mind.

"Brain wave analysis...normal...heartbeat analysis...normal...blood pressure analysis...normal, meets the binding conditions."

"Candidate for commander locked, blood type binding...DNA binding...binding successful, confirmed to have the highest command authority." Ye Fan was taken aback. The voice sounded peculiar, audible despite the apparent solitude of the room. It maintained an elegant, feminine tone.

"Who is this?"

"I am your personal secretary and assistant, Nana. Good evening, Your Excellency, the handsome lame commander."