After resting for a while, the convoy set off again.
No one knew whether the strange horrors behind them would catch up again, so even though quite a few survivors grumbled, they all followed along.
Nobody wanted to face those terrifying things again.
They traveled like that for another few hours.
It was already afternoon.
[Ding! Would you like to spend 100 Survival Points to upgrade these instant noodles?] [Yes]
As soon as he answered, the instant noodles in Fan Shang's backpack flashed with light, which then faded away.
Fan Shang took out the noodle cake, sprinkled a little salt on it, and took a bite.
A feeling of fullness washed over him.
He took another bite.
Only then did he put the instant noodles away.
Looking at the quarter of the noodle cake that remained, Fan Shang estimated that the noodles, which would originally have lasted for only one meal, could now feed him for two days after the upgrade.
Even so, Fan Shang still felt it was a terrible deal. Upgrading this single noodle cake had put a dent in his already meager supply of Survival Points.
[Ding! Congratulations on surviving another day. Survival Points +100] [Current Survival Points: 2400]
These were all the Survival Points he had saved since entering this Weird World. Aside from the 100 points the system awarded each day, every other point had come from surviving one life-threatening crisis after another. They could hardly have been more difficult to earn.
That was why he rarely spent them on upgrading food, using them almost exclusively to improve his own strength.
But as a precaution, Fan Shang had made a habit of keeping 2,400 Survival Points in reserve, precisely to deal with special circumstances like these.
Now, it seemed he had been right.
At least he would not starve to death anytime soon.
Especially when supplies were scarce and they had yet to find anywhere to replenish them.
As he thought about this, Fan Shang suddenly noticed a dark shape approaching him.
It was Little Black, the Black Cat.
Little Black padded up to Fan Shang in tiny steps, then looked up at the two-legged creature.
"Meow!"
"Senior, hungry?"
Hearing the meow, Fan Shang spoke.
Even as he spoke, his hand was already reaching into his bag.
Other than warning him of danger, Little Black only meowed at him when hungry and wanting food.
After all, Little Black had been famously aloof on campus.
Only when hungry would the cat let the two-legged creatures offering food pet those sleek fur. At any other time, anyone who dared try would get scratched.
Little Black was quite famous as a result-not only for being a Black Cat, but also because foolish two-legged creatures kept overstepping their boundaries and getting scratched.
As for why Little Black was so close to Fan Shang, there was only one reason: he had saved the cat's life.
Back then, some supposed cat lover had broken both of Little Black's front paws, even bending them above the cat's head. Little Black could only walk on those two front legs and could barely eat. It was Fan Shang who had saved the cat's life.
What he had never expected was that this small act of kindness would save his own life after he entered this Weird World. No, not just once.
"Mew, mew, mew!"
He handed Little Black the remaining half of a sausage, and a series of mewing, munching sounds followed.
After stroking Little Black's fur, Fan Shang glanced at the convoy, which was about to set off, and got to his feet.
[Name]: Fan Shang [Species]: Human [Physique]: 11 (Normal human peak: 10. Physique is the foundation of human movement. Those lacking it, such as college students, are nearly at death's door after running a kilometer; those with an abundance can travel dozens of kilometers a day without tiring. Affects strength, speed, endurance, defense, wound healing time, etc.) [Spirit]: 8 (The Human Limit in optimal condition is 10. Those with an abundance: "I really can solve math problems." Those depleted: forget something seven seconds after it happens. Affects willpower, intuition, senses, mental resilience, etc. Offers some resistance to oppressive auras, pressure from higher life forms, fear, and other forms of mental corruption.) [Qi]: 8 (Normal human peak: 10. Qi is the source of energy. Affects maximum energy, energy recovery speed, sensitivity to qi, etc.) [Skills]: Willpower lv1, Street Elbow Strike lv3, Learning lv3 [Sequence]: None [Survival Points]: 2400
After they had traveled a little farther, a startled cry suddenly rose from the convoy.
"Holy shit, are those... supplies?!"
Hearing that, Fan Shang looked over too.
He saw a patch of colorful flowers in the mist beside the road.
Clusters of unfamiliar yellow flowers bloomed there.
But those were not the important part. What mattered was the skeleton among the flowers.
Yes, a skeleton.
A human skeleton slumped against a tree amid the flowers. A thin layer of shriveled flesh clung to its pale bones, roots and stems crawled all over its body, and an orange-yellow flower bloomed right out of its eye socket.
From a distance, someone who did not know better might have thought a person had fallen asleep among the flowers. But a closer look revealed the stark white bones exposed on the flower-covered corpse's face.
Clearly, this person was already dead.
But the crowd's attention was plainly not on the fact that the corpse was dead.
What they were looking at was the backpack clutched in its arms.
Fan Shang peered closely. It was an old-fashioned hiking backpack with its zipper open, and he could faintly make out bottled water, bread, snacks, and other supplies inside.
An entire bagful.
"I... I'm not seeing things, am I? Those... those look like supplies. A bag that big could feed me for days!"
A young man among the survivors spoke up.
"Heh, you'd actually dare eat that shit? Careful-you might live long enough to grab it, but not long enough to eat it. Still, if you can't spot such an obvious trap, dying here would suit you."
"Who says I can't see it? But what else am I supposed to do? I haven't eaten in days..."
"..."
Just like that, the people in the convoy began arguing over the bag of supplies.
But arguing was one thing. None of them were fools, and not a single person dared go over and take the supplies.
Sure enough, those who had survived this long still valued their lives.
"Brother Tie! Brother Tie, what do you think?"
"Are we going to take those supplies?"
Seeing this, Steward Huang from the convoy hurried over to Liu Tie with small steps, his beer belly jutting out.
He wiped the sweat off his face and spoke.
"What do I think? Huang, don't tell me you can't see that this is an obvious trap."
But after hearing his question, Liu Tie merely glanced at the bag of supplies before turning his gaze away.
He looked at the heavyset man standing before him as he spoke.
The fat man's name was Huang Shan. He knew how to read people and handled things efficiently, making him one of the convoy's few smart people. Though he liked taking petty advantages, he had still been appointed the convoy's manager, so Liu Tie remembered him.
The reason he had come to Liu Tie was that the survivors had made a fuss over the matter.
They had sent him to ask the Sequence superhuman for his opinion.
"Then... Brother Tie, what do we do now?"
"What do we do? Hmph!"
At that, Liu Tie almost laughed aloud.
Glancing at the convoy members watching them, Liu Tie knew exactly what they were thinking. They simply wanted him, the Sequence superhuman, to make the decision.
Then, if anything went wrong, they would have someone to blame.
But they had clearly miscalculated. They did not understand what the apocalypse meant at all.
"We leave, of course!"
"Huh?"
"We've rested long enough. Convoy, move out!"
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