Nutrient Solution

In the end, Third Master never brought up the grudge between Qu Jianlei and Rogers again.

Maybe he had forgotten, or maybe he simply did not think it was worth mentioning.

Was there any need to specifically talk about a dispute between two little ants?

Qu Jianlei was taken back to the Survivors' temporary camp in the wilderness and thrown into a deep pit five meters deep.

He could not prove his innocence, especially with slipknots around both his wrists and ankles. He was far too suspicious, so being watched was only natural!

Keeping him company was Rogers' corpse. They seemed to want to use it to determine whether he ate people or not.

Qu Jianlei definitely would not eat human flesh, but... he was simply too hungry.

So he shouted and begged, "Third Master, could you spare me a tube of Nutrient Solution? I'll transport goods for you once later!"

"I've got a piss here, nice and warm. Want it?" Third Master cursed from afar.

"Then could you trouble yourself to give me a sheet of Filter Paper too?" Qu Jianlei truly did not mind the humiliation. Living in the Wasteland, one could forget about dignity.

At least piss was warm. Wasn't warmth a source of calories?

Besides, water resources in the Wasteland were extremely scarce, and people defecated far more often than they urinated...

That description was a little too smelly, so there was no need to say more.

Then, a tube of Nutrient Solution fell from above and landed in the deep pit.

Third Master's voice followed with another curse. "Transport goods twice... or I'll tear apart your Tricycle!"

There was not much human kindness in the Wasteland, but as long as major interests were not involved, most people did not mind occasionally doing a good deed.

Third Master truly could not stand Silly Qu, but aside from being a little foolish, Silly Qu had never done anything bad.

More importantly, in the Fallen nest this time, Silly Qu had actually undone the knots around his hands and feet. That definitely took some skill!

Not to mention, he had even tied new knots afterward, pretending that he could not move.

Even ordinary Survivors would find that difficult to pull off, yet Silly Qu had managed it. That meant that foolish as he might be, he had ability.

A capable person was naturally worth investing in, and Third Master understood that clearly.

It was only a tube of Nutrient Solution. It was not easy for Qu Jianlei to obtain one, but Third Master truly did not care about such a small amount.

"It can only be one delivery," Qu Jianlei muttered softly, regardless of whether the other party could hear him.

After swallowing the Nutrient Solution, he gave a contented little hum. "That hit the spot!"

A tube of Nutrient Solution was not large, only about half the size of a sausage—the thinnest kind.

Its taste was nothing special, even somewhat strange.

Yet one such tube could basically sustain a person's daily needs, including the relevant trace elements and vitamins.

So it was... rather miraculous. Qu Jianlei had always been trying to crack the manufacturing process behind Nutrient Solution.

Well, calling it cracking was a bit excessive. His sources of information were limited, and he had no money. What was there to crack?

He merely wanted to know how to make a cheap imitation version of Nutrient Solution.

He was now so hungry that his vision swam. Though he had swallowed a tube of Nutrient Solution, after the brief comfort passed, his body only felt even hungrier.

After all, he had not eaten for two days.

The next moment, another tube of Nutrient Solution dropped down, and a voice spoke. "That Tricycle... is it yours?"

Qu Jianlei stared helplessly at the tube of Nutrient Solution, but did not reach out to pick it up—some things might taste good but be hard to swallow.

He swallowed and answered with difficulty, "The Tricycle is mine... I designed it that way to make turning easier..."

"But I was knocked unconscious during transport. Whatever the Tricycle has done recently has nothing to do with me."

"With that one sentence, you answered every question I wanted to ask," the voice said coldly.

After a while, it spoke again. "The transmission system is ingenious. Are you willing to work for me?"

If I were willing to work for someone, I would have done it long ago. Qu Jianlei was rather speechless.

Working for someone was impossible. He had never worked for anyone in his previous life, and it was even less possible in this one!

Besides, he now had one more reason than before. Not only could he not stand a superior ordering him around, he was even more afraid that someone would see through his Trump Card.

Qu Jianlei swallowed and replied, "If I don't work for you, then this tube of Nutrient Solution has nothing to do with me, right?"

Sure enough, the other party was extremely arrogant. "It's only a tube of Nutrient Solution. If you refuse, I'll take it back and feed it to a dog!"

The wording was precise. He did not value the Nutrient Solution, but neither would he indulge the greedy.

It was just... a little insulting!

Qu Jianlei did not get angry. "Then take it back and feed it to a dog. It's more valuable than I am."

It would be a lie to say he was not angry, but there was no point arguing. Besides, being recruited by such a powerful force could truly be dangerous in the future.

So there was no need to flare up immediately. It was enough to muddle through this matter. How big a deal was conceding verbally?

"Oh? Interesting." The person snorted coldly. "Since you refused, don't touch that Nutrient Solution."

"When you starve to death, I'll naturally retrieve it!"

The words were absurdly condescending and deeply insulting—even if you starve to death, you are not allowed to touch my Nutrient Solution!

My Nutrient Solution is for my dog!

How could an ordinary person endure such words?

Yet Qu Jianlei truly was not an ordinary person. He thought differently.

He muttered softly, "Trying to starve me to death in three days... that probably won't be enough."

Hearing this, the person could not help slapping his forehead in frustration. "He really is an idiot... he doesn't understand a word!"

A day quickly passed, and Qu Jianlei was so hungry that his vision had begun turning blue.

He had actually learned quite a few Daoist methods, and had even tried practicing the Turtle Breathing Technique, but... this was clearly not the time to use it.

Just then, the roar of powerful engines came from the distance outside, sounding as though it would shatter the sky!

Is Hong Four's combat team coming out? Qu Jianlei could not help thinking.

Hong Four was the only Settlement nearby. He had heard there were also places called Hong Five and Hong Qi, but those Settlements were far too distant.

The Settlement combat teams possessed terrifying combat strength, practically equivalent to official military units.

Hunters were already considered powerful, yet not every Hunter was qualified to live in a Settlement!

Whenever a Settlement issued a bounty-hunting mission, every Hunter would scramble to complete it.

There was no need to elaborate on the gap between the two.

As for Qu Jianlei, he had only heard about Settlements and had, at most, glimpsed one from afar.

He was not even qualified to approach a Settlement, much less enter one.

Then a rapid series of gunshots rang out, and Qu Jianlei recognized them at once. "A Gauss Machine Gun!"

A Gauss Machine Gun was far more powerful than a Gauss Automatic Rifle, with fierce firepower and a long range.

The sheer force of the sound revealed that it was vehicle-mounted, though thankfully, he could tell that the muzzle was pointed at the sky.

The machine gun only fired one burst before a High-Volume Loudspeaker blared.

"The Patrol Team of Hong Number Four Settlement is conducting business! Everyone, everyone remain where you are and raise both hands over your heads!"

"Those who disobey... no mercy!"

Qu Jianlei did not know what was happening outside. As for himself, he leaned against the pit wall and weakly raised both hands.

Before long, a commotion broke out. Someone shouted angrily, followed by several more gunshots.

Someone muttered under their breath, "Damn wanted criminal!"

Clearly, a wanted criminal had tried to escape and was then killed.

Qu Jianlei could no longer be bothered to speculate about those sounds. He was simply too hungry, and thinking consumed calories.

At that moment, he even felt like laughing. Among the Survivors outside the Settlement, who knew how many wanted criminals there were?

That one had merely failed to keep his cool, so he became target practice.

The next moment, two armed men in uniforms came to the edge of the pit.

Their uniforms were not particularly new, covered in sand and mottled stains of every color.

Yet both held automatic rifles, with pistols and Hand Grenades at their waists and short daggers strapped to their calves. They radiated a chilling, murderous aura.

One of them also had a long weapon slung across his back, apparently a long blade.

Looking down at Qu Jianlei from above, he asked, "What do you do?"

"I make a living at a Mine," Qu Jianlei replied weakly. "I was captured by the Fallen earlier..."

Because he had no strength, he kept his words brief and explained the situation in just a few sentences.

"The kid's got quite an attitude!" The Long Blade Patrol frowned and spoke unhappily. "Just a few sentences... who are you trying to brush off?"

From his tone alone, it was clear that he could kill someone at any moment.

"Please forgive me, sir." Qu Jianlei gave a bitter smile. "I only ate one tube of Nutrient Solution in five days. I'm too hungry to have any strength."

The other Patrol Member snorted. "If you're going to lie, at least put some thought into it. Look to your right—what's that?"

"They wouldn't let me eat it. They said that once I starved to death... they'd take it back to feed a dog."

"Huh... are you really that hated?" The man blinked, then casually took out two tubes of Nutrient Solution and tossed them down.

After thinking for a moment, he tossed down two more. "Since you're hungry, eat them all right now... immediately!"

Compared with Survivors in the wilderness, Patrol Members were not short on money. At the very least, they could afford a few tubes of Nutrient Solution.

But he was not simply a kindhearted man either. Only by eating all four tubes of Nutrient Solution could Qu Jianlei prove that he was not lying!

Anyone who had eaten Compressed Biscuits knew that overeating high-calorie food could cause serious trouble.

However, that truly was not a problem for Qu Jianlei. He had lived in hunger for years.

As for binge-eating after starvation causing negative physical reactions, that was not an issue either.

Nutrient Solution was easy to digest and would not cause any discomfort to the stomach or intestines. All one needed was the ability to withstand the calories it contained.

And calories were what Qu Jianlei worried about least. This body lacked far too much. "Thank you for the reward, sir."

He gulped down three tubes of Nutrient Solution in one go, then stopped.

The man looked at him with a half-smile, one hand already moving toward the pistol at his waist. "Can't eat anymore?"

"I need some water," Qu Jianlei answered seriously. "It can help carry the calories through my body."

In truth, it was not about carrying calories. The heat within his body had temporarily risen to an abnormally high level, and he would soon become dehydrated.

If he forced himself, he could still consume the fourth tube, but... why abuse his own body?

"That makes sense." The Long Blade Patrol nodded with interest and tossed over a waterskin. "Here, have some water!"

The Patrol Team had canteens, but the waterskin currently held water meant for filling engine radiators, so it was not particularly clean.

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