Leave your brain here, and don't forget to pick it up on your way out!
Sign-in successful. Received 1 yuan. Balance: 1 yuan!
Luo Fan's expression darkened as he watched the notification drift past the corner of his vision.
One yuan? This was his Check-In System?
Other people's Check-In Systems gave them awesome secret potions, weapons, even mythical items and the like!
But his Check-In System had only given him one yuan?
Come on, buddy, this was the apocalypse! Even before the apocalypse, people wouldn't necessarily bother picking up one yuan off the ground. Money was even more useless now!
Yes, it was the apocalypse. A few months ago, for reasons unknown—perhaps Blue Star Online had played some enormous joke—endless horrors and Fierce Beasts had suddenly flooded Blue Star, a world previously oriented toward technology.
The corporeal Fierce Beasts were manageable enough. Firearms still had some effect on them.
But those bizarre horrors, some of which completely defied the laws of physics, were beyond anything conventional weapons could handle!
And so, Blue Star had quickly descended into an apocalypse!
Both Fierce Beasts and horrors could sense the presence of living humans, so the longer people stayed in the same place, the more likely they were to come under attack!
Survivor bases like those found in so many apocalyptic novels, movies, and TV shows? Blue Star had none!
After all, with so many living people gathered together and staying put, wouldn't a survivor base be like a torch in the night, attracting endless Fierce Beasts and horrors to attack in wave after wave?
As a result, most people on Blue Star had lost their lives in just a few short months.
Only a small number of survivors remained, living on the move. They formed groups and frantically relocated to evade attacks from Fierce Beasts and horrors!
Even traveling was dangerous, with only a slim chance of survival!
But staying in one place meant certain death!
They had to choose the lesser of two evils!
Back to the matter at hand!
Luo Fan had joined a group of survivors and likewise embarked on a journey with no destination whatsoever!
When Luo Fan had first awakened his special advantage, called the Check-In System, he had been delighted. After all, weren't systems something only protagonists in all those stories got to have?
But who could have imagined his Check-In System would be this pathetic? A check-in only gave him one yuan?
These days, even if it gave him a million, he had nowhere to buy anything!
What good was this damned Check-In System?
"Mall unlocked alongside sign-in!"
Before Luo Fan was even halfway through his inward complaints, however, another notification suddenly flashed past the corner of his vision!
"Huh? There's a Mall too?" The notification caught Luo Fan's attention, and realization followed!
Right, signing in for one yuan didn't mean he actually had a yuan in his hand. His balance showed one yuan!
Since it was virtual currency, having a corresponding Mall seemed perfectly reasonable, didn't it?
As the Mall unlocked, an understanding welled up inside Luo Fan, letting him know how to open it!
It was like someone who had never possessed eyes suddenly gaining them and naturally being able to see!
Like someone who had never possessed ears suddenly gaining them and naturally being able to hear!
That was roughly how it felt. Once the Mall unlocked, Luo Fan naturally knew how to open it!
With a slight shift of his thoughts, an interface resembling an online shop appeared in Luo Fan's mind. As he focused on it, several products appeared before his eyes!
Rice price: 2 yuan/500 g! Purified water price: 1 yuan/bottle! Pork price: 10 yuan/500 g! Baby Bok Choy price: 3 yuan/500 g! Whole milk price: 3 yuan/carton!
Only the purchase button for purified water was in color. The others were all gray, naturally indicating that he couldn't buy them.
Seriously? The shop only had these five products?
Even a village convenience store had a much bigger selection, didn't it?
And this thing had the nerve to call itself a Mall?
After opening the Mall and seeing only five products on its page, Luo Fan couldn't help silently grumbling to himself!
Loading...
Aside from those five products, however, there was also a "Loading" message at the bottom of the page.
But even after Luo Fan waited a long time, nothing else loaded.
Was his system an unfinished product? Seeing only five products and a loading process that never finished, Luo Fan couldn't help having that thought.
Luo Fan withdrew his attention from the Mall System.
With only one yuan, he could buy nothing but a bottle of purified water, and Luo Fan had no intention of buying it!
He took off the bag on his back and checked his supplies!
One bag of lion's mane mushroom biscuits, with only three left inside!
A little over half a bottle of water. It certainly wasn't purified water; it was slightly cloudy.
There was also half a palm-sized piece of bread, with specks of mold still visible on it!
After taking stock of his supplies, Luo Fan looked around.
Hope Convoy was the name of the convoy Luo Fan belonged to. Though called a convoy, it actually had only three cars, along with two motorcycles and a few bicycles!
Most of its members traveled on foot, like Luo Fan.
"We'll rest here tonight!"
"We'll set off again at daybreak tomorrow!"
"Also, barring any surprises, we'll pass through a small town tomorrow morning. Anyone who wants to gather supplies can get ready!"
As the Hope Convoy stopped to make camp, a middle-aged man spoke up, announcing this to everyone in the convoy!
"We're passing through a town tomorrow? I... I'll have to go in and gather supplies!"
"But towns have Fierce Beasts, and even horrors. It's too dangerous. Has there ever been a supply run where we didn't lose a few people? It's only been a week, and our convoy of over a hundred and thirty people is already down to around half that!"
"But we're almost out of food and water. If we don't go, we'll starve to death anyway!"
Following the middle-aged man's announcement, Luo Fan could hear the survivors around him discussing it.
Sigh. Only one yuan per daily sign-in? Even if I can buy supplies with it, that little money won't be enough to keep me alive!
Still, I could go in tomorrow and see if I can find a bicycle!
Of course, if I can gather some survival supplies too, all the better!
Ignoring the discussions around him, Luo Fan silently considered his options!
Even with the Mall System, three days would only get him 500 grams of rice and one bottle of purified water. With an average of dozens of li to cover on foot each day, those supplies clearly weren't enough to keep him alive.
So he, too, had to gather supplies.
Forget it. I'll eat tomorrow morning. I should be able to buy 500 grams of rice tomorrow!
Looking at his lion's mane mushroom biscuits and slightly moldy bread, Luo Fan thought for a moment before putting them away again!
Since he had decided to try his luck in town, he naturally had to save the food for tomorrow morning so he would have the strength!
As for going hungry tonight? He wouldn't be doing any work at night anyway, so he would just have to go hungry...
Before you continue