Only when the hunger subsided did she feel truly alive again…
With her slender arms and legs, she struggled to keep up with the crowd and was utterly exhausted.
Stopping to take a sip of water, she could see the Guard Corps vehicles in the distance, which reminded her of being rescued by them yesterday. Everyone in their convoy was armed and trained, making it much easier for them to deal with those Mutated Beasts compared to ordinary people like her.
She was already too far from the Shantytown. She had set out before dawn, and it was now 9:20.
Not daring to waste any more time, she immediately found a spot to begin testing the nearby plants.
"Beep beep beep! Radiation Level 99, High Radiation—not recommended for consumption!"
"Beep beep beep! Radiation Level 95, High Radiation—not recommended for consumption!"
…………
The Radiation Levels in this area were quite high. Sang Luoluo didn’t expect to find anything edible here. With so many people ahead of her, it would be extremely difficult to find food.
Perhaps she shouldn’t have followed such a large group.
But going alone would be even more dangerous. With her frail physique, any Mutated Creature could easily pounce on her and devour her.
Soon, it was 10 o’clock. Sang Luoluo had already found a large tree to hide under in advance. Today was unusually hot—the water in her bamboo canteen was completely gone, and she was sweating profusely. The perceived temperature was already over 40 degrees Celsius.
And it was only a little past 10 a.m. Who knew how high the temperature would climb by noon.
In the distance, she could see the Guard Corps members had already taken shelter inside their vehicles. Their trucks were specially modified to withstand Radiation. They were safe inside, but it was a different story for Scavengers like her—they could only seek out shaded spots that blocked the Radiation.
Sang Luoluo recalled the terrifying intensity of the heat in her memories. The highest temperatures could reach 80 or 90 degrees Celsius. Simply hiding under a tree wouldn’t be enough. At that level of Radiation, one could only venture out wearing a Radiation Suit. Those without one had to stay indoors with air conditioning—provided they had the means.
She had been careless. Feeling anxious, she tapped her Wrist Device to check today’s weather forecast. The predicted maximum temperature for the next two hours was 60 degrees Celsius.
The shade from the tree behind her was ample, but Sang Luoluo could still feel the heat. Sweat continued to pour from her body, so she quietly drank another bamboo canteen of water to relieve her fatigue.
While taking shelter from the Radiation, Sang Luoluo didn’t dare move recklessly or fall asleep. Just moments ago, she had witnessed someone stealing another person’s water and even seizing their shaded spot, pushing the other person into the direct Solar Radiation. She watched as that person was exposed to the sun for a while before struggling to find another place to hide. In that short time, multiple Radiation Burns had appeared on their body.
The Guard Corps was quite far from here, and they wouldn’t risk Radiation exposure to intervene in such matters.
Not only that, but humans couldn’t move around under high-intensity Radiation, whereas Mutated Animals could. They roamed as usual. Sang Luoluo watched helplessly as two Mutated Giant Rats, each as large as an adult cat, passed by nearby.
Although Sang Luoluo wasn’t afraid of rats, this was the Wasteland. If bitten by a Mutated Animal, wound infection would be the least of her worries. If she contracted an Unknown Virus, the consequences could be severe—an entire Shantytown could be wiped out.
Finally, it was almost three o'clock. Some people had already come out wearing sun-proof hats to move around. The temperature was too high, and this time they had followed the Guard Corps quite far. A few people had already finished the water they brought.
"Could you give me some water? My water bottle spilled when I was fighting mutated flying insects earlier. I can pay with Credits." A middle-aged man went around asking people under the shade of the trees.
"Please, just give me a sip of water."
"Kind soul, just sell me a little water."
Everyone shook their heads and refused. Water was so precious. To reduce the load, each person only brought a small bottle and had to ration it carefully. Even if offered Credits, they wouldn't trade.
Sang Luoluo looked over. The middle-aged man seemed not to have drunk any water since morning. His lips were so dry they were peeling, and his clothes were already soaked with sweat. Under the scorching heat, sweat evaporated quickly. From the sound of his voice, his throat was swollen.
Sang Luoluo wasn't short of water—she was short of Credits. Right now, she was penniless, and her situation couldn't get any worse.
Carrying a nearly full bamboo tube, she walked over, stood under the shade, and waved at him cautiously. "Two Credits, and I'll give you most of the water. I'll only keep a little."
"Deal." The man said happily. Two Credits—this girl was clearly young and didn't know how to extort people. If you really met someone who asked for an exorbitant price, you'd have to pay dozens of Credits. In a critical moment, were Credits more important than life?
Sang Luoluo showed him the amount of water in the bamboo tube and poured out most of it, leaving only a little.
The other person immediately transferred two Credits to her happily.
After three o'clock, Sang Luoluo continued her detection. There were still flying insects on the weeds and leaves in front of her. What used to be sesame-sized flying insects were now as big as dragonflies in the Wasteland, fluttering everywhere. Fortunately, these green flying insects weren't very aggressive.
Sang Luoluo used a wooden stick to poke through the waist-high weeds, making sure no mutated animals would suddenly jump out before walking over.
She had also learned to be cautious. Places where others had already conducted detection would always leave traces, so she headed toward areas no one had checked yet.
From a distance, she could hear the sound of the Guard Corps firing their guns and the howls of mutated animals being hit.
She was lucky and found a patch of beans. Unlike the beans she remembered, the high-radiation beans in the Wasteland were as thick and long as loofahs, and the vines were much sturdier.
She started detecting them one by one, and the Wrist Device kept beeping with prompts.
"Beep beep beep! Radiation Level 77, high radiation, not recommended for consumption!"
"Beep beep beep! Radiation Level 120, high radiation, not recommended for consumption!"
"Beep beep beep! Radiation Level 109, high radiation, not recommended for consumption!"
"…"
She sighed in disappointment. After two hours of continuous detection, she hadn't found a single edible bean.
There were also a few large trees nearby, and she thought about checking another spot.
Feeling hungry, she had to stop and take a few sips of water. She had filled the bamboo tube about halfway with spring water—any more would have been too heavy to carry.
She had only taken a few steps forward when that familiar sense of attraction came again.
She quickly looked in the direction she felt it from—it was the tree in front of her.
It was as thick as two people embracing, a huge sycamore tree with lush branches and leaves. Each leaf was as big as a banana leaf. She was truly amazed.
She walked over and touched the tree trunk, discovering that the Crystal Core was embedded right at the center of the trunk, level with her eyes.
Before she could feel any joy, she realized that the Stone Knife in her hand was impractical for digging out the Crystal Core. Even if she worked all night without eating or drinking, she wouldn’t be able to extract it, and the Stone Knife might not even hold up.
What she urgently needed now was a Chainsaw—to saw down the tree and retrieve the Crystal Core.
There was no other way. For now, she could only mark the location of this Crystal Core.
Sang Luoluo glanced around. No one seemed to be paying attention to this area, so she used her Wrist Device to mark her current position.
She would have to return with the right tools later.
She couldn’t alert anyone, or this Crystal Core would surely be taken from her.
Just as she was about to step away, she suddenly felt something cool and slippery wrap around her ankle.
Instantly, her scalp prickled with fear. Looking down, she saw a Red Flower Snake as thick as her wrist coiled around her leg.
"Ahhhhhhhhh!!!!!!!"
Sang Luoluo’s scream echoed through every corner of the area.
She shook her leg frantically, using the Stone Knife in her hand to strike the snake’s head. Fortunately, she had noticed the snake as soon as it wrapped around her once, or it wouldn’t have been so easy to shake it off.
Terrified, her hair practically standing on end, she immediately sprinted toward the direction of the Guard Corps in the distance. "Snake~~ There’s a snake!!!"
Her sharp, piercing scream was heard by everyone nearby. At the mention of a snake, they all went on high alert.
The Red Flower Snake seemed to regard the phoenix tree as its territory and chased after Sang Luoluo, the intruder, trying to bite her.
Sang Luoluo glanced back and saw the Red Flower Snake twisting its massive body, flicking its tongue as it advanced toward her. She was utterly terrified.
Was she going to die by snakebite today?
"Help me!!!!"
The Red Flower Snake moved with alarming speed, and Sang Luoluo didn’t dare pause for even a second.
In the distance, Lei Qi heard the sudden cries and shouts. Upon learning that a Mutated Snake was attacking someone, he immediately grabbed his Sniper Rifle and headed over. He saw a girl, crying uncontrollably, running and screaming, with the Red Flower Snake briefly visible behind her.
Aiming at the Red Flower Snake, he pulled the Trigger. The next moment, the snake’s head was blown apart, and its body writhed briefly before lying dead on the ground.
Seeing the girl still running, Lei Qi watched as she tripped over something, let out a muffled groan, then shakily got back up, waving a wooden stick in her hand toward her back.
Only when she noticed the dead snake in the distance did she stop her frantic movements. She glanced over, then burst into even louder sobs.
Through his Mic, Lei Qi reported to his captain, "Captain, a Mutated Snake attacked someone. I’ve taken care of it with my Gun. I’m going over to check."
On the other end, Captain Qi Feng had also heard the screams, but he was focused on dealing with a Mutated Animal in front of him and simply acknowledged.
Lei Qi walked over, confirmed the Mutated Snake was thoroughly dead, and glanced at Sang Luoluo. She looked familiar. Ignoring her choppy, uneven hair, he finally remembered and chuckled lightly, "It’s you again. It was just a Juvenile Snake. It’s dead now."
Remembering something, Lei Qi approached and used his Wrist Device to scan the Mutated Snake’s body.
"Beep beep beep! Radiation Level 58, Medium Radiation—recommended for consumption!"
Lei Qi’s eyes lit up. He reached out, picked up the Mutated Snake’s corpse, and called out to Sang Luoluo, who was still red-eyed in the distance, "I killed this snake, so I’m taking it with me."
Sang Luoluo nodded. "Thank you."
After all, he had saved her. Taking a snake that could be eaten—well, let him take it.
Seeing the empty basket lying on the ground beside her, Lei Qi paused for a moment, but still resolutely took the snake meat. Food was precious in the Wasteland, and survival depended entirely on oneself. He had no intention of giving his own chance to live to someone else.
After he left, Sang Luoluo snapped back to reality. Her knee was scraped from the fall earlier, but she didn’t touch it. Picking up her basket, she leaned on her walking stick and hobbled toward home.
If she returned too late, she couldn’t guarantee she’d make it out of this area before dark.
"Captain, look how lucky I am—I found a snake that’s edible!" Lei Qi boasted to his teammates before stuffing it into the cloth bag at his side. Basking in the envious gazes of the others, he added jokingly, "What a coincidence! The girl being chased by the snake earlier was the same little one Captain saved yesterday from the mantis. Thanks to the Captain, if he hadn’t stepped in, I wouldn’t have been so lucky today to find such a big snake. Back at the Base, this could trade for dozens of Nutrient Solutions. Hehe."
The others shook their heads, green with envy. How did this guy get so lucky?
Edible Mutated Animals were already rare, and finding one was even harder. Lei Qi’s luck was just too good.
By the time it grew dark, Sang Luoluo had finally made it safely to the Shantytown.
Her body was utterly exhausted, and hunger hit her hard, making her dizzy. Summoning her last bit of strength, she leaned on her walking stick and made her way to the Shantytown’s Trading Market.
After inquiring at two shops in a row, she finally managed to trade her last two Credits with a shopkeeper for an Original Flavor Nutrient Solution that would expire in three days.
As soon as she got it, she opened it and drank a third of it.
Only when the hunger subsided did she feel like she had come back to life.
She didn’t dare drink any more of the rest. Who knew what tomorrow would bring? This was her only food for now.