Chu Yi opened his eyes.
He found himself sitting at the front desk of a spacious lobby.
Directly facing the front desk was a bright, floor-to-ceiling glass door, through which the desolate, ruined plains outside were visible.
Presumably, this was the “inn” the system had mentioned.
He stood up from the chair behind the desk, tried moving his body a bit, and found that this physical vessel was still just as difficult to use as before.
“Cough…”
He pressed a hand to his mouth, gave a gentle cough, and surveyed his surroundings.
To the left of the front desk was a corridor leading toward the back.
On the left side of the corridor were three guest rooms, and on the right was a large public restroom.
The open space directly ahead served as a small living room, furnished with a sofa and a coffee table. On the coffee table sat a transparent plate filled with exquisitely wrapped candies.
The entire place was entirely visible at a glance and extremely cramped.
[Ding… ‘Inn Management System’ is loading. Please wait.]
A completely mechanical and rigid voice popped out of nowhere in Chu Yi’s mind.
Looking rather pale and struggling to maintain his footing, he nonetheless pushed himself to walk over to the somewhat dim corridor and pushed open the door to the first guest room.
The interior was indeed very narrow, even smaller by half than a standard double room in an ordinary inn. It held only a single bed one and a half meters wide, along with a set of a desk and a chair.
The bathroom was also pitifully small, around one square meter, barely enough for one person to stand in, and equipped only for showers.
Using the restroom meant heading out to the public bathroom outside.
Overall… it was pathetically run-down.
While Chu Yi was inspecting the current state of the inn, the system finally finished loading.
[Welcome, Host of System 999, Mr. Chu Yi!]
[Now issuing the task!]
[Novice Task (1): Have a guest stay at the inn for one night (0/1).]
[Introduction: Across the wasteland plains, there are always many pitiful hunters who cannot return to their bases, forced to spend the night amidst mutant creatures and wasteland dust storms. The existence of an inn is extremely necessary.]
[Rewards: 1. Unlock the System Mall. 2. Inn Experience +10.]
After briefly scanning the task, Chu Yi controlled his frail body and returned to the seat behind the front desk.
He continued reading the prompts provided by the system.
[Notice: The current inn level is LV.0 (0/100). The special protective barrier provided can only withstand attacks from Level 5 mutants and below. Its range is limited to the inn itself and a three-meter circular plot radiating outward from the inn. Within this range, the host is in an invincible state.]
[Considering that the host is a novice, the system will enable the ‘Inn Auxiliary Management Mode’. To disable it, please open the system panel – Settings and turn it off there.]
[Now, please set the pricing for the inn’s consumption modules.]
[Currently configurable consumption modules: nightly accommodation rates for First-Floor Standard Room 101 / Standard Room 102 / Standard Room 103 (one night is 24 hours).]
As it finished speaking, a book materialized out of thin air before him, titled Management Manual.
The moment Chu Yi opened it, the system continued:
[Based on big data analysis and estimation, the system’s recommended pricing for you is: 1 Tier-1 crystal core per night.]
[In this wasteland world, crystal cores range from Level 1 to Level 10 (Level 10 being the highest). These are products grown inside the brains of mutants and fierce beasts, possessing special energy.]
Chu Yi frowned.
He had already seen this price listed in the Management Manual.
In an instant, he slammed the book shut with a clap.
“Is this price fixed?” Chu Yi asked.
[Not necessarily. It is simply the normal price calculated by the auxiliary system, representing the standard normal baseline across other worlds of the same type.]
“Good then, change it for me,” he said. “Multiply the price by 100… actually, make it 50 times.”
System: […?]
[Host, this price is far too ruthless.]
Chu Yi tapped his fingers on the table and retorted, “Is it expensive? A safety barrier capable of resisting Level 5 mutant attacks, warm and comfortable beds, a quiet environment… If I recall correctly, in the promotional video of this world you showed me earlier, lower-class people lived in drafty tarp-covered shanties, didn’t they?”
[…Yes.]
[This is a wasteland world. A century ago, a mysterious subterranean gas leak triggered a nuclear reactor meltdown, causing a global disaster. Humans awakened superhuman abilities, but a greater number degenerated into mutants, and beasts were also transformed, creating a harsh environment.]
[Although humans have built quite a few bases now, the majority live on the outer peripheries, forced to eat cockroach biscuits, with dozens of people crammed into shanties. The situation is grim.]
“That settles it. My place is clean, free from abnormal radiation, capable of repelling outside threats, and most importantly, everyone gets their own private room with an attached shower. In a wasteland where water resources are extremely scarce, how is that not a luxury item?”
At this point, Chu Yi sighed.
“However, you have a point. I really should adjust the room pricing.”
This statement reignited hope within the system: [Then, Host…]
“Let’s go with a tenfold price increase then.”
System: [?]
“After all, the poor folks around here wouldn’t be able to afford fifty crystal cores a night anyway,” Chu Yi said, a look of wistfulness crossing his face. “Goodness me, my heart is truly far too soft.”
[…]
While they were talking, a stealthy figure appeared outside the inn.
Xue Xiaobai was the most ordinary scavenger in the wasteland.
He was 16 years old, having just come of age, and had an elderly mother afflicted with wasteland dust lung disease back home. The heavy burden of supporting the family fell entirely on his shoulders.
Normally, humans showed signs of ability awakening around the age of four or five.
Yet Xue Xiaobai was already an adult, and the probability of him acquiring an ability was virtually zero.
He certainly couldn’t afford an ability development serum priced at tens of thousands of points. After all, every single credit earned from scavenging had to be spent on purchasing cockroach biscuits and medicine for his mother’s illness.
Today, just like any other day, he passed the inspection of the city guards, left the Panlong Base, and headed out into the wilderness to search for useful items.
Who would have thought that shortly after their vehicle convoy set off, they would run into a terrifying Level 4 mutant.
Ordinary people like them could barely manage to fight off a Level 2 mutant with knives and guns, but running into a Level 4 meant certain death!
In an instant, the convoy was scattered, and Xue Xiaobai was left all alone.
He lost his bearings and wandered aimlessly across the wilderness.
Who could have guessed that upon walking up to a red grove, he would discover a brand-new set of single-story brick houses right there!
Clean white exterior walls, deep blue tiles, and completely transparent glass doors.
It looked so immaculate.
A place this nice was something Xue Xiaobai had only ever seen in the administrative districts of the big shots within the inner city.
He immediately felt a sense of awe and trepidation.
Places like this were usually inhabited by formidable ability users.
Adhering to the principle of avoiding trouble whenever possible, Xue Xiaobai decided to stay away from the area.
Yet just as he turned to leave, his peripheral vision accidentally caught the sign hanging above the building’s entrance.
‘Chu’s Inn’.
…An inn?
This building was an inn?
Although there were inns within the base, those were reserved for ability users from other bases who came out on missions, costing a fair number of credits.
Thinking of this, Xue Xiaobai dared not move around carelessly.
However…
He looked up at the sky.
Billowing dark clouds rolled by, tinged with a scarlet hue in the distance.
Night was falling, and a minor wasteland dust storm was about to strike.
Lingering outside at a time like this was practically asking for death.
Xue Xiaobai took a deep breath.
Should he go inside and take a look?
While he hesitated, the system was also trying to work on Chu Yi’s mindset.
[Host, aren’t you going to go out and attract guests?]
“Attract what?” Chu Yi had already noticed Xue Xiaobai lingering outside.
The auxiliary features provided by the system were quite powerful, allowing the names of these individuals to be displayed directly above their heads.
By focusing and clicking on them, one could even view the other person’s specific details.
Take right now, for instance.
[Name: Xue Xiaobai
Age: 16
Ability: None
Family Situation: Mother (early stage wasteland dust lung disease)
Possessions: Panlong Base credit card x1 (containing 167 credits), Tier-1 crystal core x15, basic survival gear in various quantities (folded)]
The information was extremely brief. After reading it, Chu Yi sighed.
“Truly a penniless wretch.”
[Host, this is the baseline of the wasteland. That’s why the pricing given by the auxiliary mode is the most rational.]
Chu Yi acted as if he hadn’t heard that remark.
Right at that moment, Xue Xiaobai, who had been pacing outside the inn, finally summoned the courage and walked inside.
The interior was just as clean as the outside; the white tiled floor was spotless, making the grime on his own shoes stand out all the more starkly.
Standing inside the room, the shame on his face overflowed.
“H-Hello…” Xue Xiaobai walked cautiously up to the front desk and looked at Chu Yi sitting behind it.
This was a young man who looked to be in his early twenties, possessing a face as flawless as fine jade. His skin lacked a single blemish, a rarity indeed in a wasteland where eighty percent of the population suffered from skin conditions.
While he was sizing up Chu Yi, Chu Yi raised a hand, gently covered his mouth, and gave a light cough.
Only then did Xue Xiaobai notice that the young man’s lips were pale, and he didn’t look particularly healthy.
Most importantly, mixed within the young man’s flowing black hair were traces of grey and white strands, making him look like a person well past middle age.
Chu Yi ignored his scrutiny and didn’t stand up to greet him either.
Instead, lounging in his seat, he cast a lazy glance at Xue Xiaobai and said, “I’m the manager here. Are you looking to stay at the inn?”
As soon as his voice trailed off, a fierce gale whipped up outside.
Scarlet dust swept along by the raging wind battered the surroundings, causing quite a few abandoned metal objects outside to crash and rattle as they flew about wildly.
The sky grew completely dark.
The wasteland dust storm had arrived!
Xue Xiaobai’s body went rigid.
Yet immediately after, his eyes widened in utter shock.
Such a terrifying storm outside hadn’t managed to invade even an inch of the building!
It was as if those glass doors possessed some magical power, blocking out all the violent winds and dust!
And the air inside the shop remained fresh enough to make him feel slightly dizzy!
Good heavens! He had truly stumbled into the territory of some major bigwig, hadn’t he?!
“H-Hello!” Xue Xiaobai grew even more cautious. “Manager sir, how do you calculate… the rates for staying here?”
Seeing him state his request, Chu Yi instantly smiled into a pair of curved crescents, looking precisely like a fox that had caught its prey.
He spoke, his tone lifting slightly at the end: “Ten Tier-1 crystal cores per night. Check-in is until checkout at the same time tomorrow. No items other than crystal cores are accepted as payment.”
Xue Xiaobai blinked, finding it hard to believe.
A place this miraculous, capable of resisting a wasteland dust storm and clean without a single speck of dirt!
Could it really… cost only ten Tier-1 crystal cores?!
You had to know that the starting price for those inns inside the base was a Tier-2 crystal core!
Was he dreaming?
Xue Xiaobai pinched his own cheek, the pain causing him to gasp sharply.
Without any time to overthink, he hastily opened his backpack, fumbling for the crystal cores hidden at the very bottom.
Once he got hold of them, he poured them all out in a rush, terrified that if he was a moment too late, the price might change.
“I want to stay for the night!!!” He said, his voice trembling as he spoke.
Chu Yi looked at the ten Tier-1 crystal cores resting on the desktop.
The crystals were turbid and opaque, with lingering dust and bloodstains smeared across their surfaces.
He frowned slightly, first putting on a pair of gloves, then pulling a tissue from the front desk to wipe them clean one by one before carefully picking them up by the fingertips and dropping them into the cash drawer.
His expression was dripping with utter disgust.
Xue Xiaobai didn’t feel offended in the slightest.
After all, being able to run an inn out in the wilderness and even fend off a wasteland dust storm meant this manager had to be an extremely formidable ability user!
For someone this powerful to charge such a cheap fee made him a veritable saint! Failing to handle his crystal cores properly was entirely his own fault!
Xue Xiaobai made a mental note of it immediately.
“Let’s go.” At this moment, Chu Yi stood up and led him toward Room 101.
Xue Xiaobai walked on tiptoe, terrified that his dirty feet would leave filth behind in the inn.
Even so, the floor still ended up smudged with brownish-grey footprints.
Chu Yi glanced at it without saying much, opening the door right before him.
Coming into view was a clean, tidy bedroom carrying a faint hint of woody fragrance.
Brand-new desk and chairs, alongside a soft, spacious bed.
Xue Xiaobai felt as though he was on the verge of suffocating.
He frantically pinched his own arm.
Was this truly a room someone like him was allowed to stay in?!
Good lord! This had to be the kind of place the big shots in the inner city lived in!
And… and it actually only cost ten Tier-1 crystal cores!
Was he about to be sold off or something?!
Xue Xiaobai didn’t dare step inside. He looked down at himself: his clothes and skin were caked in grime, and his hair hadn’t been washed in months, tangled up and exceptionally greasy.
He turned his head toward a mirror, catching sight of his own reflection with a startled, comically funny expression.
“Is this… a bathroom?”
Xue Xiaobai only just noticed that a small one-square-meter partitioned room stood inside the bedroom, equipped with a water faucet.
Chu Yi swept a glance in the direction of his gaze, maintaining a calm demeanor.
“Mhm,” he said. “You can take a shower.”
“Ten minutes for one Tier-1 crystal core.”
System: […???]
[Host! Taking a shower is free!!!]