Xiang Ge understood.
In other words, a Purifier’s ability was entirely a matter of sacrificing oneself for the benefit of others.
Unless absolutely necessary, using it to make money simply wasn’t worth it.
In that case, it really was better to focus on killing mutant beasts and earning purification points.
However…
“Who’s Little Tu?” Xiang Ge asked.
[That’s me. I forgot to introduce myself. I’m a system born from the wasteland world, so my name is Little Tu.]
Xiang Ge highly suspected the system hadn’t forgotten to introduce itself—it had simply assumed she wouldn’t live long enough to make introductions worthwhile.
“Since you’re a wasteland system, why not call yourself Little Waste… Actually, never mind. Little Tu does sound better.”
After all, Little Waste didn’t exactly sound flattering.
Xiang Ge began organizing her plans for the future.
Kill mutant beasts to earn purification points.
Get enough points to buy a laser weapon.
Produce a batch of Purification Fruits.
Search for more Pure Gems…
The more she thought about it, the more she realized there was a mountain of things waiting for her.
Shaking her head, she sorted out her priorities again.
The most important thing today was to visit the Underground City, sell the potatoes, exchange them for supplies, and see whether anyone sold laser weapons—and how much they cost.
As for mutant beasts, she already had a plan.
There weren’t actually that many mutant beasts roaming the wilderness. Hunting them one by one would be far too inefficient.
But those mutant fire ants in the potato field…
There was no way she was going to miss such a good opportunity.
It was still early.
Xiang Ge lay down on the bed, closed her eyes, and prepared to get some proper sleep.
The wooden planks beneath her were hard.
There was no pillow under her head.
There wasn’t even a blanket.
But Xiang Ge wasn’t picky.
She fell asleep quickly anyway.
The entrance to the Underground City was located in the southeastern corner of the base, still within the shantytown district.
It was even easier to find than Xiang Ge had expected.
On an open lot stood a glaringly obvious ten-foot-tall sign with the words “Underground City” written across it.
Right beside it was the entrance.
After descending two flights of stairs, she arrived.
Xiang Ge had assumed that a black market like this would be hidden and secretive.
Instead, it was astonishingly blatant.
The moment she stepped down the stairs, she saw bright lights everywhere and heard a cacophony of noise.
The place resembled a gigantic night market.
Makeshift stalls covered the ground, chaotic yet somehow orderly.
Carrying her sack, Xiang Ge wandered through the market.
She didn’t immediately put her potatoes up for sale.
Instead, she observed the other vendors first.
The stalls sold all kinds of things:
Food.
Weapons.
Daily necessities.
Whole mutant beast carcasses and butchered monster parts.
As she browsed, she listened to the conversations around her.
After a while, she realized the Underground City didn’t actually belong to Morningstar Base.
Anyone could come here to buy and sell.
Although one entrance existed inside the base, the Underground City itself wasn’t located directly beneath Morningstar Base. It extended farther southeast.
There were also numerous exits leading back to the surface.
Morningstar Base’s attitude toward the place was simple:
As long as trouble didn’t spill onto the base’s territory, they would turn a blind eye.
One could only imagine how chaotic a lawless zone like this could become.
Before coming here, Xiang Ge had considered disguising herself.
But she was too poor.
Forget a mask—she couldn’t even spare an extra scrap of cloth.
After considering her current strength, she decided she didn’t need to be excessively cautious and simply entered openly.
Before she knew it, she had nearly reached the far end of the Underground City.
There were fewer and fewer market stalls.
Instead, groups of armed individuals stood around talking.
When Xiang Ge approached, they merely glanced at her before losing interest.
She studied them as well.
It wasn’t difficult to tell that these people possessed some level of strength.
Many still carried the lingering scent of blood.
If her guess was correct, these were mercenaries.
Unlike the base’s two official military legions, the people here specialized in private jobs.
Near a railing by the wall, a beautiful woman in a cheongsam stood with her hands on her hips, loudly scolding someone.
“What exactly are you people doing?
The customer isn’t asking for dragon liver and phoenix marrow!
They only want low-radiation food!
Why is that so difficult?
The delivery is already two days overdue!”
Xiang Ge wasn’t in the habit of eavesdropping.
Unfortunately, the woman’s voice was simply too loud to ignore.
Looking over, she discovered a tall, voluptuous beauty with her hair elegantly pinned up.
Her makeup was exquisite.
In a place like this, her beauty felt almost out of place.
Though she was clearly no longer young, her charm remained undiminished.
She was stunning.
Yet there was nothing seductive about her gaze.
Instead, it was sharp and commanding.
One look was enough to tell she wasn’t the sort of delicate flower who depended on others.
“If you still can’t fulfill the customer’s order today and ruin my reputation, Wu Mei’s reputation, then you can forget about surviving in this Underground City!”
Several burly men stood before her with lowered heads, obediently enduring the scolding.
Their expressions were utterly miserable.
“Boss, it’s not that we haven’t tried.
The customer’s requirements are just too unreasonable.
We’ve already found several low-radiation foods for them.
Sweet potato leaves.
Mint leaves.
Purslane.
But they insist those aren’t common foods and don’t count.
They’re all edible, so why don’t they qualify?”
Wu Mei’s expression stiffened.
She knew how demanding wealthy upper-class clients could be.
They didn’t merely want low-radiation foods that were healthy.
They wanted ingredients that could also become delicious meals after cooking.
Both requirements had to be met.
But low-radiation foods were already hard enough to find.
Finding low-radiation foods that were also proper ingredients rather than wild plants was even harder.
“If they’re hard to find, then spend more time looking!
Stop standing around here and get moving!”
Wu Mei waved everyone away.
Her business catered to wealthy elites.
No matter how difficult the request, she had to satisfy her customers.
The men quickly dispersed.
Xiang Ge finally understood what was going on.
Once everyone had left, she walked over.
“Excuse me, Boss Lady. I happened to overhear your conversation.
May I ask how much you pay for low-radiation plants?”
“Did you find some while scavenging?”
Wu Mei raised an eyebrow at the girl before her.
Xiang Ge was thin and frail.
Her clothes were barely presentable.
She looked exactly like someone from the shantytown.
“I do need low-radiation plants,” Wu Mei said.
“But you heard what I said.
They have to taste good.
Random leaves and weeds won’t do.”
The boss lady clearly wasn’t taking Xiang Ge seriously.
Even her most capable subordinates couldn’t complete this task.
A scrawny little girl certainly wouldn’t manage it.
“Taste good?”
Xiang Ge thought about the potatoes in her sack.
Potatoes were practically impossible to make taste bad.
Steamed, boiled, fried, roasted—
As long as you added even a little seasoning, they turned out delicious.