Dangerous Survival in the Apocalypse Chapter 251 Discussion

(Update: 12/03/2022)

Finally got a chance to reread! This time, I read it till the end after purchasing all the VIP novels from JJWXC and making an MTL copy (ooof that took me quite a while TxT). [FYI: For those who are wondering what changed between the original copy and the revised copy, most of the changes occurred in between chapters 110-180, I think. But, the changes were mostly cosmetic. Like, making the characters fit better and straightening out the worldbuilding and such to have a more coherent development. When it comes to the big things, not much has changed, but since the MTL of the original copy is a mess, I recommend reading the revised MTL!)

The premise of this novel is very similar to a lot of Zombie Apocalypse CN novels. The MC (Shen Shi'an) has a magical space artifact that enables him to cultivate prior to the apocalypse -- which multiplies his survivability after the zombie apocalypse officially hits. He's not the only one with powers, of course. This is the type were both humans and zombies slowly evolve to have supernatural powers, which causes great changes in the world's balance. The story is a lot more detailed than a lot of other similar novels though! Everything has a reason for existing, even the more whimsical magical space is given an explanation. As for the ML (Shen Xun), he's a mysterious being that comes barelling through the MC's life early on (before the apocalypse), and the two of them travel through a zombie infested landscape to start with, cultivating themselves and gathering allies along the way!

ALL in all, it's a great read! Honestly, if the author hadn't been so flaky -- revising the original copy so majorly after publishing T.T -- I think this could have been a lot more popular. The writing itself is great. The characters are well-developed and complex, the setting has a strong foundation and development, and the plot is exciting and satisfying. There's really nothing to complain about! THAT is, if the revision weren't so major. *Big sigh*. Now that the major revisions are done though (the main text has finished and all that's left are the extras) hopefully more people will read the novel!

Anyway, as for my rating. It was originally 4 to 4.5 stars out of 5. Now I'm a little more certain. With the revised text, my rating is definitely above 4.5! If it was fully translated, it would be 4.75. But as for right now, since a majority of what I read is still in MTL, I can only stick to 4.5/5 for poor reading experience T.T

A favorite! I think it might not be everyone's cup of tea, but if you give it a chance (and get through the slog chapters in the beginning and some of the latter parts) you can enjoy a very rich universe with amazing characters!

CHARACTERS:

• • Shen Shi'An (MC) : After a car accident, the MC finds out that he is actually an owner of a magical space artifact. The discovery was made three months before the apocalypse occurred, during which he explored the powers of the magical space and begins to cultivate.

Minor Spoilers: Spoiler

The MC is the cold on the outside, sweet on the inside type of person. He is the shou/bottom of the story, and is pretty OP. Not only is he an intelligent medical student, but he's the illegitimate (but loved) son of someone in power!

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• • ML: The ML's name changes at least three times, but he'll be known as Shen Xun for the most part. He is a dog spirit that was picked up and adopted by the MC after his car accident. After jumping into the pool in the MC's space, he becomes a child. And, as stated in the summary, he'll complete the transformation into an adult thereafter.

Minor Spoilers: Spoiler

A lot of people seem to be disappointed by his slow growth, so I'll say this now: it will be a while before he transforms into an adult. If my memory is correct, it's around 150 chapters!!! Anyway, he's charming even before then. He's the spoiled!Gong type. He loves only his An'An! Oh, and as is implied in the beginning, he has a hidden background that makes him even more OP than the MC.

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• • Side Characters: There are many important side characters. Too many to name! But the spoilers below should have most of the core members. There are more than this, but the rest are introduced much later on. Like the 200s.

Spoiler

Major/Minor Spoilers:

1. 1. Yun Feiyang: MC's BFF!

1. 1. Chen Nan: Plant ability user! Bro-con. Earliest encounter.

1. 1. Liu Fangzhou (MTL sometimes calls him Ark) : Self-professed pe*vert.

1. 1. Liu Xiuyuan: Minor scum villain that becomes relevant later.

1. 1. Tao Yuan: Baby faced sniper.

1. 1. Xu Ge: Fire ability user and only woman in the team.

1. 1. Xiong Mangshan: Dual strength and speed ability (cursed LOL).

1. 1. Tang Song: Young researcher!

1. 1. Liu Ruan: Superhuman bodyguard of Tang Song.
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SETTING:

Zombie apocalypse but with cultivation elements. The MC is powered primarily through cultivation in the beginning (along with his space artifact.) The ML's powers are otherworldly (literally, but that's a latter arc point). While most of the side characters introduced have a unique set of abilities (creating a strong core group.)

PLOT:

This has Walking Dead vibes when it comes to pacing (with a slow escalation of conflicts.) The first part is focused on survival and collection of team members. The second part is political intrigue. And I'm assuming the third part will end with the fight with the big bad.

The summary of the story is pretty misleading, as the romance in this is bit a drop of in a bucket. It's really not the focus at all, more of an extra bite-sized snack. In comparison; the title is more honest, since this really is focused on surviving through the apocalypse. The setting is very detailed and there's lots of technical stuff being thrown around (which I love). So yeah, if you've watched/read walking dead and you like it, this definitely has similar vibes! Just with superpowered humans, zombies, and other creatures to spice things up.

RATING;

My rating for this novel is somewhere between 4-4.5 stars. That's really high for me! The only reason I didn't give it the 4.5 treatment is that the story starts of reallllly slow (and there's also more draggy parts later on.) sometimes I like the slow parts, sometimes I don't. Anyway, the translation for this is also far from finished and the MTL is a mess because of the anti-theft chapters and the constant revisions from the author. I think it was somewhere around chapter 180??? Where an arc repeated for no reason. I'm assuming that has to do with the revisions the author talked about because it was a repeat for 10-20 chapters. Anyway, will definitely read this again, and I do highly recommend it. But I want to wait till the translation is further along or the MTL is cleaned up T.T