Zhou Dun hadn't expected the Sequence Adept before him to be a teenager with delusions of grandeur.
Back at the Gas Station, he and his two younger sisters had filled five bottles with gasoline to bring along. Each bottle held three liters, for a total of fifteen liters.
He'd originally planned to trade the gasoline for one supernatural material, then trade all their supplies and most of their food for another.
But since this teenage wannabe was so easy to negotiate with, he wasn't going to hold back!
"Bro, how about this? I'll trade these fifteen liters of gasoline for three of these materials."
The teenager paused, looked Zhou Dun up and down, and rubbed his chin thoughtfully. "That's not out of the question."
"But I like you, so here's a word of warning: these things aren't much use right now."
"I think we might get the technology to make equipment out of them someday, but we probably don't have it yet."
"And while they're a little different from ordinary objects, they're no different from ordinary stuff in your hands. Don't get your hopes up about awakening a Sequence by touching them, either. I've tried. It doesn't work."
He'd taken Zhou Dun for a survivor hoping to awaken a Sequence through these supernatural materials.
After all, their convoy had people like that too. Uncle Zhou had been a criminal police officer, while he and Li Feifei, their guide, were only high school students.
They still had a strong sense of justice and firm moral boundaries.
Besides, he'd collected all those supernatural materials because he thought they might be useful in the future. The survivors occasionally borrowed a few from him to try awakening a Sequence, but every attempt had ended in failure.
Zhou Dun merely gave an awkward smile, suddenly feeling as though he was taking advantage of a rich landlord's dim-witted son.
But the feeling vanished as quickly as it had come.
"I'll just give it a try. If it doesn't work, so be it. My two sisters and I don't have a car, so this gasoline isn't much use to us anyway."
"Either way, I won't lose out."
Wei Haoran nodded and pointed beside him. "In that case, sure. Put the gasoline here, then pick any three."
Behind them, Captain Hui had already walked over to Zhu Qing's stall. He shook his head as he watched the trade.
"Aren't you going to trade?" Zhu Qing asked curiously.
"No rush. I'll wait until they're done." Captain Hui adjusted his glasses. "You're asking me, but why aren't you trading?"
"I took a look just now. He doesn't have any Anomalies hides or fur at his stall, so none of it seems useful to me. It's not like I'm short on this stuff."
Zhu Qing shrugged. "Chu Sheng still owes me two fusions."
"I think you should get yourself a weapon first. Fighting barehanded makes it easy to get hurt." Captain Hui shook his head.
Zhu Qing froze, then fell silent.
How had I not thought of that?!
Even if I can't make sacrificial clothing yet, I can at least get a weapon first, right?
Why have I been so fixated on clothes?!
Zhu Qing rubbed his head, frowning in deep thought.
"Could the Giant Sequence affect your intelligence?!"
"I think it probably does." Captain Hui couldn't help laughing. "Though I'd rather call it having a screw loose."
"I don't know what you were like before, but ever since I met you, I've always felt like you had a screw loose. Once you get an idea, you won't let it go."
Zhu Qing: "..."
While the two were still talking, Chu Sheng and An Xi walked over. Seeing Zhu Qing's defeated expression and Captain Hui's smile, An Xi couldn't help asking curiously, "What happened to you two?"
"Qing, did the captain fuck you in the ass? You look awful."
"Oh, get lost. I just pointed out his shortcomings." Captain Hui waved a hand as though shooing away a fly.
Meanwhile, Zhou Dun tucked the three supernatural materials he'd chosen into his pockets.
He'd picked a tortoise shell that looked very hard, an ordinary-looking Bone Club, and a pair of pulleys.
Zhou Dun didn't understand why the two pulleys counted as supernatural materials, but according to Wei Haoran, anything could turn into an Anomalies after the apocalypse began.
He'd taken those two pulleys from a machine that had become an Anomalies.
There was no telling what the machine had originally been. By the time they encountered it, it had become a robot assembled from all kinds of objects.
The pulleys had been removed from that robot.
Zhou Dun didn't understand, but he was deeply stunned.
After trading for the supernatural materials, he exchanged three bundles of dried noodles and ten packets of instant noodles for a partially sharpened Craft Tang Dao at Zhou Qi's neighboring stall.
Then he glanced back at Chu Sheng and the others, especially Chu Sheng, before leaving.
Chu Sheng knew another deal was probably coming his way.
After Zhou Dun and his sisters left, Chu Sheng and Captain Hui walked over as well.
Rather than trade for supernatural materials, Chu Sheng approached Zhou Qi's stall. Looking at the pile of Craft Knives and Swords, he asked curiously, "How much are these?"
Zhou Qi grew wary at the sight of Chu Sheng, but still answered, "That depends on the value of what you're offering."
"There's no fixed currency in the apocalypse. It's all barter. Show me what you've got, and I'll appraise it. If you think it's fair, we trade. If not, we don't."
"Fair enough." Chu Sheng nodded, then waved the Little Supernatural Cherry Tomatoes he'd been carrying in front of Zhou Qi.
"These are Supernatural Fruits. They can heal injuries and restore stamina."
As he spoke, he took one out and handed it to Zhou Qi. "Try one first. Once you've confirmed the effects, you can make an offer."
Zhou Qi accepted the Little Supernatural Cherry Tomato and gave Chu Sheng a suspicious, scrutinizing look, as though checking whether he'd poisoned it.
Chu Sheng: "..."
There was truly no trust left between people.
After studying it for a while, Zhou Qi gave a light cough. Wei Haoran, who was trading with Captain Hui, turned to look at him. Seeing Wei Haoran's reaction, Captain Hui didn't hurry him, instead casting an amused look at Chu Sheng.
His eyes seemed to say, See? That's your reputation.
In front of the three of them, Zhou Qi ate the Little Supernatural Cherry Tomato. Then he froze and stared incredulously at the bag Chu Sheng was carrying.
"Something like this actually exists?!"
The instant he ate the Little Supernatural Cherry Tomato, he felt a warm current sweep away all the fatigue from the past few days of travel. At the same time, he felt his stamina return to full strength.
For a moment, his eyes burned with desire.
"Oi, that look in your eyes is a little too hungry!" Chu Sheng couldn't help interrupting his burning stare.
"Let's talk price now!"
"Half of what's in your bag, and all these knives and swords are yours."
"Not enough!" Chu Sheng shook his head. "These are Supernatural Fruits that heal injuries and restore stamina! You know how important something like this is in the apocalypse, right?"
"Well..." Zhou Qi was immediately caught in a dilemma and began thinking with a frown.
Indeed, the importance of these Little Supernatural Cherry Tomatoes in the apocalypse went without saying. They could even be considered strategic supplies.
"Add these, and we'll trade for all your Little Supernatural Cherry Tomatoes!" Li Feifei appeared before them, holding a pair of Gloves.
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