Apocalypse Embers: My System Only Accepts Lifespan

When spacetime rifts tear open the neon-lit streets of Xin Hai, humanity's last survivors face a choice: evolve or perish. Lin Mo, a 20-year-old scavenger haunted by his mother's death, discovers the bronze gear she left him isn't just a keepsake—it's the key to an Equivalent Exchange System that devours lifespan for power. In a world where mutated aberrations hunt through ruins and corrosive energy warps reality itself, every ability comes at a cost measured in years, days, and heartbeats. As civilization crumbles and the wasteland spreads, Lin Mo must decide how much of his life he's willing…