Doomsday Reboot: I Use a Plant Guide to Rekindle Civilization

In 2077, the third year after the crimson fog devoured the world, Shanghai’s dome collapsed with a crash beneath the strangling grip of mutated vines. When Lin Ye crawled out of the ruins, all he had left was a yellowed copy of A Guide to Plants, the last memento of his botanist father. A second before the spikes of a man-eating flower pierced his throat, the pages suddenly lit up with a glow, and a line of data appeared: [“Bloodkiss Flower” gene sequence detected. Antitoxin serum can be synthesized.] It turned out the old book was a biological database capable of analyzing apocalyptic plants and transforming their properties. He weaves bulletproof vests from iron-devouring vine fibers, uses glowing moss to light up nuclear radiation zones, and filters poisoned water through the roots of Venus flytraps… While others still fight over a single ration bar, Lin Ye has already grown a “safe zone” in the ruins alongside his companions. But as more and more secrets in the guide are unlocked, he discovers that the crimson fog was never a natural disaster. There is the vanished biotechnology company, the plants deliberately altered, and the Kunlun Base, rumored to hold purification technology… “Maybe rebuilding the steel dome isn’t the answer.” Lin Ye runs a hand over the new sprout on the guide’s page. “Perhaps we should learn to coexist with this new world.”