After fully understanding the system, Yu Yao finally let out a long breath.
The apocalypse was cruel—but now that she had a cheat ability, she felt far more secure.
Her top priorities now were to improve her body, train her combat skills, consolidate her assets, and stockpile supplies!
Once she had it all figured out, Yu Yao immediately took out the Marrow-Cleansing Pill and headed for the bathroom.
The original owner had been somewhat reclusive and didn’t live in a dorm. Her current residence was a place her older brother had specially rented for her near Hai University.
It was a small one-bedroom apartment with a living room—not large.
But it was exquisitely decorated, located in the most prosperous district of Hai City, only a few hundred meters from her school.
The rent was expensive, and by every measure, it was an excellent place to live.
Inside the small bathroom, Yu Yao stripped off her clothes and tossed the Marrow-Cleansing Pill straight into her mouth.
The pill melted instantly upon entry. It tasted sweet and refreshing—unexpectedly delicious.
Yu Yao was just about to praise it mentally when a sudden, violent pain ripped her attention away.
So this was the classic sweet date before the slap!
She clenched her teeth, refusing to cry out, relying purely on willpower to endure wave after wave of pain—pain that felt like her entire body was being shattered and reconstructed.
In her previous life, she had suffered a crushed spine and damaged internal organs, coughing up blood daily in agony.
And the original owner’s pain—destroying her own face with a dagger, then being torn apart and eaten by zombies—
Compared to what she was experiencing now, those pains were nothing more than child’s play.
Yu Yao didn’t know how she endured the full day and night of marrow cleansing.
She only knew that even someone as strong as herself had, more than once, wanted to give up and just die.
Countless times, she passed out from the pain—only to be awakened by it again, over and over.
Thankfully, she survived in the end.
The moment she caught a whiff of the stench filling the room, Yu Yao gagged and hurriedly turned on the shower, scrubbing herself desperately.
It took a full hour and a half. Her shampoo and body wash were nearly emptied before she was finally clean.
After the marrow cleansing, Yu Yao felt so light and comfortable that she nearly floated. That lingering sub-health heaviness was completely gone.
Her figure was still slender, but from the inside out, it now contained astonishing energy.
Her five senses had grown much sharper. Without trying, she could hear the boy upstairs cooking while talking to his girlfriend on the phone.
He was making beef stew with potatoes—his cooking skills were definitely good. She could easily smell the enticing aroma.
The original owner’s slight nearsightedness and astigmatism had also recovered—her vision was even sharper than before.
Yu Yao curled her lips slightly and glanced at her hands—fair and delicate, fingers like peeled scallions.
After receiving the memories, she had already known what the original owner looked like—very beautiful, universally acknowledged as campus belle material, and identical to her appearance in her previous life.
Delicate features, excellent bone structure. A tiny vermilion mole between her brows added a striking brilliance, naturally elegant.
And paired with a set of glistening peach-blossom eyes—eyes that could ensnare hearts even when cold and indifferent—set in a palm-sized face, perfectly blending allure and gentleness.
She was undeniably beautiful—stunning even without makeup.
Now, after the marrow cleansing, on top of that beauty came an added liveliness and spiritual grace that ordinary people lacked. Perfectly balanced, flawless.
The original owner had been 165 cm tall. After the cleansing, she’d grown a bit taller.
About 168 cm now—not exceptionally tall, but with great proportions: long legs, a slim waist, curves where they should be, nothing excessive where they shouldn’t.
Looking at the vibrant beauty in the mirror, Yu Yao thought to herself—it’s pretty good.
Who doesn’t like being beautiful?
In the original owner’s past life, she had no means of self-defense. She had disfigured herself with a dagger, done heavy labor all day, never bathed, never dressed up.
She had deliberately ruined herself until she looked like a beggar.
As for Yu Yao’s own previous life, because of her poor health, she stayed indoors all day, wasted away until she was skeletal—utterly lacking in beauty.
Now, with a body that was not only healthy but also so wonderful, Yu Yao wanted nothing more than to thank the heavens, thank the earth, and thank the system for bringing them together.
……
Of course, she didn’t linger in sentiment for long. She quickly dried her hair, got dressed, and laid out all the assets she currently possessed.
Two hundred thousand in savings left by her brother.
One million in compensation for his death in the line of duty.
A rundown commercial apartment left by her parents in Hai City.
And the remaining 2,100 yuan in living expenses.
The apartment her parents left behind was an old building from decades ago. The property itself wasn’t worth much, but the location was good, and there was potential for future demolition—so the price wouldn’t be low.
Yu Yao was highly decisive. She quickly looked up the phone numbers of the most reputable real estate agencies in Hai City.
Then she called them one by one, explaining the property’s situation and stating clearly that she wanted to sell—cash payment only. The price could be slightly lower; the faster it sold, the better.
After comparing the attitudes and estimated prices offered by several agencies,
Yu Yao chose a realtor surnamed Chen. She listed the property with him, authorizing him to handle the resale. Viewings could be arranged at any time.
After finishing with the realtor, Yu Yao rubbed her protesting stomach and spitefully ordered a large amount of barbecue and milk tea for delivery.
While waiting, she did the math.
At present, adding everything together—including the estimated one million from selling the apartment—she would have roughly 2.2 million yuan in usable funds.
It sounded like a lot, but it was far from enough for stockpiling.
There were still 50 days before the apocalypse. When there were about 30 days left, she could try borrowing or taking out loans—she should be able to scrape together a bit more money.
But that still wouldn’t solve the core problem!
So she decided to prioritize buying items that would be impossible to obtain after the apocalypse. As for the rest…
She’d have to rely on zero-cost acquisition.
In the original owner’s memories, because Hai City sat at a relatively low elevation, a tsunami would strike on the fourth day after the apocalypse began, swallowing more than half the city.
Hai City was a major port city, home to the largest trade docks, stacked with countless import and export goods.
Once the tsunami hit, all of those goods would sink straight into the sea.
Not only that—most of Hai City’s supplies would be wasted along with it. Since that was the case, she might as well go for a zero-cost sweep after the apocalypse.
After the apocalypse began, everyone would fall into a deep sleep for three days. The tsunami, however, would strike on the fourth day—leaving her one full day to collect supplies.
Right now, she needed to think carefully about what things would be impossible to buy after the apocalypse, and stock up on those in advance.
For example—clean drinking water.
Once the apocalypse arrived, pollutants and viruses in the air would contaminate all surface water sources and topsoil.
In the early stages, usable water would mainly come from bottled mineral water produced before the apocalypse, stored water supplies, and underground water.
Another option would be water-type ability users.
It wouldn’t reach the point of complete water shortage, but the impact would be huge—water resources would instantly become precious.
Then there was prepared food and snacks.
Yu Yao could cook, but her skills were average, and she didn’t particularly enjoy it. After the apocalypse, the chances of her cooking for herself would be slim to none.
If she wanted to eat hot meals, she could only stockpile them in advance.
And then there were online entertainment resources—TV dramas, movies, novels, anime, and the like, all readily accessible on the internet.
Once the apocalypse hit and communication networks went down, all of that would disappear…
Spiritual food couldn’t be allowed to run out!
There were many things she needed to buy, but with limited funds, Yu Yao could only stockpile small amounts of everyday necessities.
She would focus on hoarding large quantities of items that couldn’t be obtained after the apocalypse. As for the rest—
She could only rely on luck and zero-cost acquisition.
Before she finished writing her list, the food delivery arrived. Yu Yao quickly put away her paper and pen and went to open the door.
The delivery guy seemed a bit curious—after all, it wasn’t every day that a young woman living alone in a studio apartment ordered such a huge amount of food.
So his expression was a little strange.
But Yu Yao didn’t care whether he found it strange or not. She shut the door and dug in, eating while thinking about her next steps.
……
After eating and drinking her fill, Yu Yao continued organizing her list, looking up ordering phone numbers for various manufacturers, preparing to place orders by phone the next day.
As for herself, she packed up all her personal belongings in the apartment at top speed and contacted the landlord to terminate the lease and recover some funds.
The landlord was a kind-tempered auntie surnamed Liang, married into the Xu family.
Her son had been Yu Zhao’s classmate and close friend in the past, and she had also heard a bit about Yu Yao’s recent situation.
When she heard that Yu Yao wanted to end the lease, Auntie Liang didn’t complain about the sudden interruption.
Instead, she gently advised her, “Why are you suddenly moving out? You don’t need to worry about the rent. You can stay for now—there’s no rush to pay until after you graduate and start earning money.”
Yu Yao smiled. “Don’t worry, Auntie. I just want to go back home and live there for a while.”
Auntie Liang’s surprised voice came through the phone. “Isn’t your home far from the school? Why do you suddenly want to move back? Won’t that be inconvenient?”
“I’ve taken a year off from school. I want to take some time to rest.”
After Yu Yao said this, there was a brief silence on the other end of the line.
Finally, Auntie Liang sighed. “That’s good too. Taking a break to adjust yourself is a good thing. If anything is inconvenient after you go back, just call me—or you can look for your brother Zhīwú as well, okay?”
“Don’t worry, I know,” Yu Yao replied.
After that, Auntie Liang reminded her of a few more things before hanging up.
It wasn’t that Yu Yao hadn’t considered giving Auntie Liang a subtle warning—telling her to go out less and stockpile more food.
But bringing it up now would be too early. Besides, the house Auntie Liang’s family currently lived in was at a relatively high elevation, outside the tsunami’s flood zone, and fairly safe.
Most importantly, in the original owner’s memories, she had seen the Xu family in a safe zone later on.
They had all awakened abilities and had even formed a powerful team.
Back then, the original owner hadn’t failed to consider seeking refuge with them.
But the thought had only flashed briefly before she dismissed it and deliberately avoided them, until the Xu family eventually left her safe zone.
Thinking it through, they most likely wouldn’t need Yu Yao’s warning to safely get through the early stages of the apocalypse.
……
Not long after hanging up, a notification sound rang out on Yu Yao’s phone.
It was a bank alert—Auntie Liang had returned the prepaid rent and security deposit that Yu Zhao had paid for her. A total of 10,000 yuan, with a few hundred extra.
A text message from Auntie Liang followed shortly after, roughly saying it was to round things off, no need to return the change.
It ended with the familiar reminders and well-wishes. Yu Yao felt a warmth in her heart and replied with a simple:
Thank you, Auntie Liang.
Soon after, she fell into a deep sleep.