She thought, “I knew it. How could such a huge tree possibly be edible?”
But since the tree itself could not be eaten, did that mean the blue dot was pointing to the leaves above?
The mutated Chinese toon tree had become much smoother after mutation, making it difficult to climb. Ning Yu’an did not insist on getting stuck here. There was more than one blue dot on the map.
After testing several locations, Ning Yu’an roughly figured out the pattern behind the map’s markings.
The map only marked approximate locations. Based on the three wild onion leaves and two unknown wild fruits about the size of plums she had collected so far, the blue markings represented edible Level 3 mutated plants.
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Following another blue indicator, Ning Yu’an arrived at a puddle filled with mutated reeds.
She bent down and cut off several reed stalks.
There were quite a few Level 4 ones, but none were edible. Ning Yu’an noticed that her position on the map did not completely overlap with the blue marking. She adjusted the cloth wrapped around her head, then used the somewhat tough stems of the reed leaves to tie her trouser legs tightly.
She stepped into the water.
The icy temperature made Ning Yu’an shiver.
She did not want to stay there for long. After taking two steps toward the green dot, Ning Yu’an’s eyes suddenly lit up.
Her gaze instantly focused on several inconspicuous plants.
Several arrow-shaped leaves swayed gently on the surface of the pond. A few of them had two small white flowers blooming on top, while several others looked similar but had already withered, their dried stems standing there alone.
These few arrowhead plants were hidden among the tall mutated vegetation. They looked completely ordinary and had nothing particularly distinctive about them.
Ning Yu’an followed the stem downward with her hand. Once her fingers touched the mud, she tightened her grip and pulled upward.
A tuber as large as two fists appeared before her eyes.
Ning Yu’an did not rush to celebrate. It had not been tested yet.
She took out the detection needle and pierced a tiny spot of skin at the top.
“Beep. Level 2 radiation.”
This time, Ning Yu’an was genuinely delighted.
Food in this world was divided into five levels.
Level 5 was inedible. Eating it was practically no different from seeking death.
Level 4 food could only be eaten once or twice occasionally and in small amounts. The human body’s natural purification ability could metabolize it to a certain extent, but it would still cause considerable damage. Level 4 crops were more commonly used to make household items.
Level 3 was the everyday choice for most poor people and ordinary base residents. Its radiation level was relatively low, but consuming it year after year would still inevitably cause damage.
Level 2 had a very low level of radiation. Even eating it for an entire lifetime would not cause much harm. However, very little Level 2 food could be found outside. Only crops grown near the isolation devices inside the bases could produce larger quantities. Even then, “larger” was only relative. Level 3 and Level 4 crops still accounted for the greatest yields.
As for Level 1, it was truly priceless and practically impossible to obtain. These were foods in which no radiation could be detected.
It had been many years since Level 1 food had appeared anywhere on the Wasteland.
Although there was no one around, Ning Yu’an still quietly submerged the arrowhead in the water before storing it inside the map space.
Then, full of renewed energy, she tested the other plants one by one.
She found another Level 3 arrowhead, this one about the size of a small rubber ball.
This could definitely be considered a bumper harvest.
Arrowhead was rich in starch, and the trace elements it contained would also provide many benefits to Ning Yu’an’s current body. Two arrowheads would be enough to last her at least four days if she ate them sparingly.
Seeing the green dot on the map turn blue before disappearing, Ning Yu’an did not stay in the water any longer. After putting everything away, she gathered a bundle of reeds and climbed back onto the bank.
She checked herself to make sure she had not brought any strange creatures out of the water with her. Only then did Ning Yu’an sit down and place her shoes under the sun to dry while testing the reed leaves.
Unexpectedly, she found two more Level 3 leaves.
Ning Yu’an happily stored them away.
After enduring the scorching midday sun, Ning Yu’an saw that it was already three in the afternoon. She decided to head home early that day.
She bundled the collected Level 4 reed stalks, carried them on her back, and began making her way home.
Ning Yu’an, carrying a large bundle of reed stalks, attracted a few curious glances. After all, it was obvious at a glance that they were not edible. Once people took a look, they simply went about their business.
Carrying them was somewhat difficult for Ning Yu’an. Fortunately, while sorting them, she had secretly transferred some of them into her spiritual sense space. Otherwise, she really would not have been able to carry them all.
Her current bed only had a thin mattress with a hard wooden board underneath. She wanted to make a reed mat to lay over it. The little house did not even have a proper floor. The ground was simply dirt. Laying a mat around the area near the bed would at least reduce the amount of dust.
The cotton inside the quilt had already clumped together as well. She would have to pull the cotton apart and refill it.
Thinking about all the chores waiting for her at home, Ning Yu’an unconsciously quickened her pace.
The poor district surrounded the outer city walls of the base. Ning Yu’an’s home was located in the southern district, relatively close to the outskirts.
When she had lived with her parents, their home had been in a better location. However, the original owner could not afford enough food, so she had exchanged her residential rights for food and moved to a place closer to the outskirts.
Although the little house was run-down, it was still much better than the shacks and tents Ning Yu’an had seen along the way.
When she reached the dilapidated house at the foot of the mountain, Ning Yu’an took out her key and unlocked the tiny lock hanging on the door, which was hardly of any real use.
She pushed open the thin wooden door.
The little house was about twenty-five square meters.
A small wooden bed stood against the innermost wall, with a set of quilts and bedding whose cotton had already clumped together. Under the bed was a woven rattan box containing miscellaneous items such as water bottles.
A woven rattan backpack hung on the wall. Several baskets and other woven items were piled underneath it.
Two bamboo buckets were used to fetch water, while a large bamboo vat was used to store it.
A small wooden table stood beside the door. On it were two bamboo cups and a bamboo basin.
Beside the table was a small stove with a palm-sized iron pot on top. Firewood was stacked next to it.
There was nothing useless in the house. All her belongings could be seen at a glance.
The section of roof directly opposite the door even let in drafts.
Ning Yu’an had adapted quite well to the bare state of the house.
At least she had a house to live in. There were still many people in the poor district who lived in shacks.
Ning Yu’an spread the reed stalks against the wall to dry. Then she took out the Level 2 arrowhead, cut off a small portion, and chopped it into pieces.
She put the pieces into water and simmered them over low heat. Just before taking them off the stove, she added a little of the coarse salt that the original owner had left behind, along with a small pinch of chopped green onion.
Dinner was ready.
There were no bowls in the original owner’s house. Ning Yu’an could not even spare a moment to care about the heat. She used her chopsticks to pick up a piece of arrowhead and eagerly took a bite.
Even though it was so hot that she had to keep puffing air through her mouth, Ning Yu’an still could not bear to spit out the food.
The texture of arrowhead was not as soft and fluffy as a potato, but it was still pleasantly starchy. It tasted slightly bitter at first, but after chewing, a sweet aftertaste gradually emerged.
With that one bite, Ning Yu’an nearly burst into tears.
This was the taste of carbohydrates.
She had been in this world for a day and a night, and all she had eaten was a single leaf.
Now, at last, she had something substantial in her stomach.
Even though she had tasted countless delicacies in her original world, Ning Yu’an felt that none of them could compare to this small pot of arrowhead soup after experiencing true hunger.
It was not actually surprising that she felt so hungry.
After all, the sensation of starvation that the original owner had experienced before dying of hunger still affected Ning Yu’an to some extent after her transmigration. That was unavoidable.
Moreover, the memories of the original owner frequently going hungry for several meals at a time kept reminding her of the importance of food.
Ning Yu’an slurped down the entire small pot of hearty arrowhead soup and contentedly narrowed her eyes.
“Ahh, so comfortable~”
After resting against the side of the bed for a while, Ning Yu’an cleaned up the utensils.
There was not much water left at home, so Ning Yu’an picked up the bucket and went to the water station to collect some.
There were four water stations in the poor district. The nearest one to Ning Yu’an was about a ten-minute walk away.
The large groups that had gone out to gather resources were just returning, so there were not many people at the water station.
When Ning Yu’an arrived, she swiped her wristwatch, and the water gate began releasing water.
The base added water purification agents to the water here and managed the supply centrally. The water quality was not particularly good, but fortunately, it was relatively cheap.
Five contribution points bought one ton of water, and payment had to be made in advance.
Her wristwatch recorded the amount of water dispensed each time.
Once the bucket was full, Ning Yu’an swiped her wristwatch again, and the water gate reset.
After making three trips back and forth, Ning Yu’an filled the bamboo vat and topped up the water buckets as well.
Her wristwatch still had enough credit for more than two hundred liters of water.