No matter how rotten an era was, there was always an infatuating scenery.
Similar to the sunset right now, the heat had faded. When the sun with the purplish glow set over the horizon, the night breeze that followed brought a sense of tranquility.
The entire dense forest of the Secondary Safety Zone wantonly expressed itself, emanating a vigorous vitality.
Tang Ling was sitting on a robust tree branch, squeezing the juice out of a blue locust fruit and applying the extract on the wounds on his calves and arms.
The extract from the blue locust fruit provided a cooling and soothing sensation to the stinging wounds. Tang Ling could not help but exhale a long breath of comfort.
Another two more hours tops, night would fall and when the Purple Moon rose, the moonlight would send the living beings in the forest into a frenzied state. Then, even the dense forest of the Secondary Safety Zone would be extremely unsafe.
Before that happened, Tang Ling must return to the settlement.
Unfortunately, the settlement was also a chaotic place, and he knew exactly what kind of temptation a bottle of Level 3 drinking water would cause.
Therefore, he had to keep his body at an optimal state before he even dared to exchange the Level 3 drinking water for his needs with Old Fox Quark.
“I’ll wait for another hour. It should be fine then.” The blue locust fruit was the best healing medicine Tang Ling could get his hands on, but his exhausted body still required rest and the extract of the blue locust fruit would take some time before it was effective.
Lying back against the tree trunk, Tang Ling took the precious bottle of Level 3 drinking water out and took a quick glance at it. His gaze then unconsciously shifted to Safety Sector No. 17 further away.
The sector was always visible at a distance on the edge of the Secondary Safety Zone. Its 150-meter thick gray walls made it look like a ferocious titan beast hibernating at the bottom of the cliff.
It was the heaven that Tang Ling yearned for.
If he could bring his grandmother and little sister into Safety Sector No. 17, they could at least sleep well at night and not worry about some monstrous tides, insect plagues, or even bloodthirsty plants plus all sorts of other natural disasters.
But was moving into the Safety Sector that easy? The hefty daily cost of 50 credits was not something he could currently afford.
However, he would be turning 15 tomorrow and if he could achieve ‘that’, he would gain the qualifications to stay in a Safety Sector without spending any credits.
With the thought in mind, Tang Ling quietly curled up his fists.
**
After exiting the dense forest of the Secondary Safety Zone, he would reach the Safety Zone.
The so-called Safety Zone was an expanse of land that surrounded Safety Sector No. 17, which was a short shrub forest that spanned less than 5 kilometers.
The settlement was hidden under the shrub forest. Beyond the shrub forest, there was a road filled with cracks rumored to have been left behind by the old civilization, and on both sides of the road were entrances to the settlement that were closely scattered along.
Some of the entrances were obvious while some were hidden.
Even Tang Ling had no idea how many entrances were hidden in the safety zone.
He headed north as he traveled down the road to the entrance that was nearest to where he was staying in the settlement.
His pace was not slow because in less than half an hour’s time, the Purple Moon would rise and then, this so-called safety zone would not be that safe either.
There were dens of lethal venomous snakes, irritating bugs, and all kinds of living beings that could threaten people’s lives.
Unless one was lucky enough to run into the Purple Moon Warrior patrolling the safety zone, appearing even in the safety zone at night was undoubtedly a suicidal act.
Tang Ling would not bet on his luck. It was quite the contrary as he was overly vigilant. However, luck was on his side today. When he was less than 300 meters away from the entrance of the settlement, he saw a patrol group of three Purple Moon Warriors further ahead of him.
Dressed in purple armor coupled with a black mantle and a bright silver blade which was a meter and a half long, the Purple Moon Warriors of Safety Sector No. 17 appeared to be similar.
Tang Ling could not help but slow down with the appearance of the Purple Moon Warriors. Even though humans were at the bottom of the food chain in this era, the Purple Moon Warriors were still powerful.
They seemed to have surpassed the limits of humans whereby all sorts of wild beasts were like ants in their eyes. They could even fight legendary fierce beasts.
Tang Ling yearned to become a Purple Moon Warrior, but every single warrior was precious. Becoming one was not an achievement that relied on hard work or natural super strength and nimble reflexes.
To become a Purple Moon Warrior, one must pass a mysterious test. Only when certain clandestine criteria were met, one would be qualified to become a Purple Moon Warrior.
As for what test or what kind of criteria was required, Tang Lin had no idea. Even the information of the so-called test was bought from Old Fox Quark by spending 2 credits.
Retracting his gaze, Tang Ling did not overthink it. He turned around and strode to the settlement. The dream of becoming a Purple Moon Warrior was too farfetched for him.
The entrance to the settlement was hidden behind an inconspicuous shrub. Moving the shrub aside and lifting the iron lid, there was a flight of stairs that led downwards.
Those who lived here would not have to worry about strays finding out about the entrance and occupying the place because the settlement was, in fact, an ‘underground water sewer system’ rumored to have been left behind by the old civilization.
Tang Ling could not understand the meaning of the term. All he knew was that in this intertwined, complicated underground tunnel, if one were not a resident who had lived here for years, one would be completely lost in the tunnel and probably end up as a meal to the black-toothed rats.
As a matter of fact, even the people of the settlement gathered only in a limited area in the underground tunnels.
However, Tang Ling was very familiar with the place that he lived in, the Fifth Settlement Camp. He could search for the place even with his eyes closed.
A locked iron door stood before him, blocking the entrance to the settlement. When Tang Ling knocked on the door using the secret code, a small window creaked open and a yellowish face appeared behind it.
“Tang Ling, it’s been three days! I thought you were left for dead in the wild, you little bastard!” The man obviously knew Tang Ling and his tone was not exactly friendly.
Tang Ling did not show any expression. He took two metal coins out, which represented 2 credits, and tossed them to the man.
The man caught the metal coins, grinning to reveal his black teeth, but he was not in a hurry to open the door. He sized up Tang Ling instead.
“It seems your gains after going out for three days aren’t that great, eh?” His tone held a sense of humor, but it sounded more like a doubtful questioning.
“It’s good enough to be alive.” Tang Ling’s face still did not display any expression. He then urged the man with a slightly impatient tone, “Open the door.”
The man’s smile faded as he opened the iron door, and when Tang Ling crossed the door, the man observed him suspiciously.
Tang Ling was not in a hurry to leave either. The bottle of Level 3 drinking water was well-kept, so he would not have to worry about it being exposed, but the notice at the entrance captured his attention.
The notice was issued by Safety Sector No. 17 and addressed to the settlement. It stated that tomorrow, every teenager who had reached the age of 15 could gather at the front gate of the sector to participate in the selection for reserved warriors.
“Such a coincidence!” Tang Ling was slightly surprised. It was difficult for him to believe that tomorrow when he would turn 15, the Safety Sector had coincidentally arranged a selection for reserved warriors on the same day.
Truth be told, the date of the selection for the reserved warrior was not fixed, but it was often held early summer. This year, it seemed the selection was moved up the schedule. It was just late spring, slowly going into summer.
However, none of that mattered anymore. Tang Ling only hoped that he would be chosen. Even if it was just passing the initial test to enter the Fifth Reserved Camp, it would be good enough for him.
“Tang Ling, are you still dreaming about becoming a warrior?” The gatekeeper’s mocking sounded behind Tang Ling.
As a matter of fact, the odds of teenagers in the settlement getting selected as a reserved warrior was 1 to 50. Moreover, Tang Ling did not seem strong.
The gatekeeper taunted Tang Ling because there was almost nothing to be profited from him. Tang Ling turned around and glanced over the gatekeeper calmly. Then, he turned away.
The gatekeeper did not care either. It was just a split second, but Tang Ling’s forehead already had tiny beads of cold sweat on it.
It has appeared, it has appeared again.
Tang Ling hastened his steps and his fists, hidden in his sleeves, clenched tightly.
That familiar ‘it’ that almost devoured everything churned at his chest. He had to hurry up.