Willow Young watched the car speed away, kicking up dust. She could still see a hand wave at her from inside.

She was flabbergasted. "How can you be like that?" she yelled. "We live in the same building, right across the hall from each other! Neighbors are supposed to help each other out. It was on your way, so why wouldn’t you help? How can anyone be that selfish...?"

"Forget it, Lulu. It’s not like she was obligated to. We’ll figure something out ourselves..." The young man beside her tugged on her arm, gesturing for her to calm down. It wasn’t a good look to be yelling curses in public!

...

By the time she got home, the rain had stopped, but the roads were covered in deep puddles. Stella Sterling was soaked to the bone. She rushed inside and went straight to the bathroom to take a hot shower.

The moment she stepped out of the bathroom, she sneezed.

’This body is still too weak. Now that I finally have some free time, I need to start training right away!’

Stella Sterling muttered to herself while drying her hair.

Just then, a message notification chimed. As she was about to check it, a frantic knocking echoed from her front door.

She opened the door. It was the man and woman from across the hall again. Both of them were soaked like drowned rats, water dripping onto the floor. The woman was glaring at her furiously, while the man was trying to hold her back, his expression apologetic.

Stella Sterling frowned and took two steps back in disgust. "What is it?"

Willow Young furiously took two steps forward, ready to confront her, but Stella Sterling held up a hand. "Stop. And please don’t get water all over my floor."

Willow Young instinctively took two steps back. When she realized what she’d done, she grew even angrier. "What was that all about today? Why didn’t you give us a ride?"

"Why should I give you a ride?"

"We’re neighbors!"

"So?"

So?

Willow Young was stunned into silence for a moment, then her anger flared up again. "We’re neighbors! We’re supposed to help each other out, especially when it was on your way!"

"Sorry, but I’m a cold and selfish person. The thought of helping others for the fun of it has never crossed my mind." Stella Sterling offered a faint smile. "Don’t knock on my door and bother me again. Otherwise, there’s no telling what a person like me might do when I get angry."

"Oh, and one more thing. I’m not a good person. So stay far away from me."

Willow Young was so stunned by Stella Sterling’s words that she couldn’t process them. It was the first time she had ever heard someone describe themselves in such a way.

She barely even registered Stella’s last two sentences.

After a moment’s daze, just as she was about to say something more, the man beside her sharply stopped her. "That’s enough! Stop making a scene and let’s go back!"

His voice was laced with panic. For some reason, hearing the woman across the hall say those things in such a calm voice was strangely terrifying.

Willow Young froze, stunned by his rebuke. She clearly hadn’t expected him to speak to her like that. Her eyes immediately reddened as she turned her anger on him.

Stella Sterling had no time to deal with the pair. With a loud BANG, she slammed the door shut. The sound made both of them jump, and even Willow Young quieted down. "That woman... I just came to talk some sense into her. What’s with the temper!"

"I told you, she’s not someone you should mess with. I told you to leave her alone, but you wouldn’t listen..."

"How did I mess with her? It was on her way! I just asked for a ride..."

The voices from the hallway faded in and out, but Stella Sterling paid them no mind. She was checking her messages. One was a text message from Mr. Quinn, saying the money she’d requested was ready and that she should bring her shares with her tomorrow.

Stella Sterling raised an eyebrow. ’As expected of the Sterling Family, one of the top families in Mirefall. They prepared such a huge amount of liquid cash in less than a day.’

After replying with a simple "Okay," Stella Sterling put it out of her mind and opened her messaging app.

"Miss Sterling, I heard you’re in need of oil. I have a friend in the business. Would you like an introduction?"

The message was from Mike. Stella Sterling’s eyes lit up, and she immediately placed a video call. He answered almost instantly, his distinct foreign features filling the screen. "The beautiful Miss Sterling..."

Half an hour later, Stella Sterling ended the call, a bright, satisfied smile on her face.

Mike had pulled some strings for her, connecting her with a foreign oil dealer to arrange a large shipment. They scheduled a meeting for three days later.

’What a pleasant surprise!’

「The next day.」

Stella Sterling woke up early, preparing to head to the Sterling Family estate. Getting her hands on the money was the priority.

When she stepped outside, she noticed it wasn’t raining, but the temperature felt significantly lower than the day before.

’She recalled her past life. Back then, even though there were plenty of natural disasters leading up to the apocalypse, the weather and temperature had stayed normal right until the very end. It wasn’t like this life, with its sudden torrential downpours and such a steep drop in temperature.’

’Something feels off. This life doesn’t seem to be following the same trajectory as the last one.’

’Could it be... that the apocalypse is coming early?’

Her brow furrowed, but she quickly relaxed. ’What’s coming will come. I’ve already made the necessary preparations. Even if the apocalypse were to arrive now, I can face it calmly. There’s no need to worry too much.’

Upon arriving at the Sterling Family estate, Stella Sterling was not met with a single welcoming face. She didn’t care. This was strictly business: they give her the money, she gives them the shares. How they felt about it was none of her concern.

’Of course, it would be best if they didn’t keel over from anger. I’d rather keep them alive to play with later.’

The three hundred million couldn’t all be in cash. The Sterling Family gave her one hundred million in RMB, with the remaining two hundred million converted into gold, jade, and other precious gems.

She considered it. ’Aside from oil, I don’t have any other major expenses right now, so this is fine. Gold is a hard currency and will be useful in the future. And even though jade and gems will become worthless later on, they have a use for me.’

’My dimensional space’s exchange zone collects all kinds of special materials, and jade is one of them. I can just throw it all in there, and the space will undergo some unexpected, beneficial changes.’

For the next several days, Stella Sterling didn’t leave her apartment. She stayed home, focusing on her physical training. She had already purchased some fitness equipment and was just waiting for some downtime to start working out. Her body was her most important asset; it had to be a priority.

The next day, Mike came in person to take her to meet his friend. The man was in the business, and since Stella Sterling had the money ready, he was very direct. She acquired several hundred thousand tons of petroleum from him—a haul that far exceeded her expectations.

The large oil barrels were delivered to her warehouse, and afterward, she transferred them all into her dimensional space.

"I’m heading back to my country, Miss Sterling. I hope we can meet again!"

Mike said with a smile. After a moment’s thought, Stella Sterling gave him a word of advice about stockpiling food for the natural disasters.

"Haha, things have been so strange lately, I’ve already made plenty of preparations. But I’m very glad you’re concerned for me, Miss Sterling. I hope we both survive and see each other again!"

Stella Sterling was taken aback for a moment, then she smiled. ’That’s right. These rich and powerful people are always thinking ahead. Even if they don’t know the apocalypse is coming, they’d still prepare for the worst.’

"Yes. Let’s meet again, alive."

Mike departed on his private jet. Stella Sterling went back into the warehouse and spent nearly an hour moving all the petroleum into her space. When she finally emerged, she discovered that, even though it was May, a heavy snow was falling...