Chapter 848

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Main Character:

Shen Yao

The four of them ultimately chose to leave; for them, going solo was more worthwhile than partnering up.

The appearance of evolved wood puppets in this town meant that other cities were no longer safe either.

Shelters where the military gathered were certainly the places with the most people around; not only were there many people, there were also many wood puppets, and naturally quite a few evolved wood puppets existed there.

"Let's go straight to the shelter," if these evolution crystals really were useful, the military would definitely be hunting them near the shelter; once they reached the shelter their own safety would be guaranteed, and with no more worries about their rear, they could devote themselves wholeheartedly to hunting wood puppets to obtain evolution crystals.

Shen Chengyi had the highest combat strength among the four; no one opposed when she spoke. Besides, Shen Chengyi's suggestion was reasonable — evolved wood puppets weren't toys that could be killed at will, and the longer they dragged it out, the harder they became to fight. Going to the shelter was appropriate both emotionally and logically.

The four left the shop and searched radially for drivable vehicles; bicycles on the road were still too slow, and what they lacked most right now was time.

Fortunately, this town had quite a few built-up areas, and parking lots existed both underground and aboveground. Since everything happened too suddenly at the start, many people were caught off guard, and quite a few vehicles were abandoned here with no one to drive them away.

Because most car keys weren't in the vehicles, their selectable targets were very few. Fortunately, they still managed to find a vehicle in an underground parking lot. There were bloodstains on both the driver's and passenger seats, but the people inside had long since vanished without a trace.

Simply taking out tools to wipe the bloodstains clean, Shen Yao ushered the other three into the car quickly. Relying on the half-tank of gasoline in the fuel tank, she slammed the accelerator and charged straight out of the parking lot.

Beep beep beep

The wood puppets wandering outside heard the noise and hurriedly surrounded them, but no matter how fast they were, they couldn't match the car's speed. The car quickly broke out of the wood puppets' encirclement, detoured through a few impassable small alleys, and entered the main road.

Once on the main road, wood puppets were rarely seen. The reason was that there were quite a few survivors here; wood puppets would smell the human scent and run toward the gatherings, not staying long in one position.

Shen Yao's group of four was still too few; most wood puppets looked down on such small snacks. By a fluke, this saved them a lot of effort — at least they didn't run into any overly troublesome trouble while fleeing.

"Go this way, keep going forward, bypass the main road ahead and we can leave."

After leaving, it was a highway leading forward; the further they drove, the closer they would get to the shelter.

Shen Yao held the map in her hand and cross-referenced it. After confirming the route had no problems, she let out a breath of relief. Phew, not easy at all.

Shen Chengyu and Shen Chengning sat in the back leaning against each other, marveling at the hardships and difficulties of this journey. They were still very lucky; many people hadn't managed to dodge the initial evolution crisis, and even those who luckily survived faced a journey of eighty-one tribulations afterward. Lucky ones were few and far between.

…………

The town behind them grew farther and farther, the car speeding along the highway.

Midway, they stopped to add some gasoline, ensuring the vehicle wouldn't stall from running out of fuel.

Hurrying like this, they finally arrived at an open space before nightfall. Not far to the side stood a small house — a transfer station. But this kind of house lacked maintenance, and the inside had long been wrecked beyond recognition by passersby. They had no desire to suffer needlessly, so they simply took advantage of their space and rested in the car.

Shen Yao and Shen Chengyi took turns keeping watch, each persisting for several hours until the sky grew dimly bright, then they set off again.

Thanks to the four's caution and care, they reached the official shelter without suffering any large-scale attacks. Only when they saw rows of black steel barriers erected in the distance did they realize that, unknowingly, they had already arrived near the official shelter.

The official shelter was converted from an official base; its foundation was military architecture, so the surroundings were filled with a cold, solemn atmosphere.

When Shen Yao and the others drove up, a long queue had already formed ahead. The majority were all kinds of vehicles, carrying survivors who had come over. Their faces still bore the relief and lingering fear of having survived a disaster; after all, those who could reach the shelter's exterior smoothly were one-in-a-thousand lucky ones.

Besides vehicles, there was also a separate human queue to the side. They looked even more haggard and pitiable; quite a few were dragging families along.

However, Shen Yao also noticed a phenomenon: most of those queuing were able-bodied young adults. The occasional young women all had muscular, unapproachable strong men beside them. The elderly and children were rare. In contrast, inside the vehicles, men, women, old, and young were all quite numerous.

They had driven over, so they didn't need to get out and queue. Shen Yao rolled down the car window, ignoring the envious, jealous, and other gazes cast their way, and just slowly advanced until they were stopped by staff arranged by the military.

Get out to register, including producing some documents to prove their identities, in exchange for four new cards.

The cards were only palm-sized, covered in unknown silver-white patterns, with each person's name, photo, and ID number written on them.

"This is the universal household card of the official shelter; it can store points.

Points are the survival currency of the official shelter. As long as you live in the shelter, daily food and necessities all rely on points to purchase and consume."

The processing staff finished explaining simply, then added that points could be exchanged with one's own supplies — similar to the vehicle they drove over, the crystals they hunted, or the food they brought — all could be exchanged for points through the shelter's internal trading center.

Shen Yao smiled and thanked the other party for the help, then called Shen Chengyi and the other three to get in the car. They still had to make it into the shelter and get settled before dark, otherwise they'd have to spend the night in the wild.

The wild was still very risky, especially since the area outside the shelter was full of people who had come over.

Wood puppets gathered, drawn by the human scent. If not for the military backing behind them, these people would likely have lost their lives to the puppets' mouths, becoming nourishment for the other side's evolution and upgrade.

The car crept forward slowly until it stopped in front of a black iron gate.

This was the last line of defense to enter the shelter. Inside, they were mainly responsible for checking whether people were injured, because wood puppets had a certain infectivity — if wounds appeared, it was easy to become new wood puppets.

The military shelter did not take in injured people. Regardless of the circumstances of the injury, they would be sent to the isolation zone for observation until it was confirmed there was no danger whatsoever before being released. This observation time was uncertain; if possible, it was still best not to let oneself fall to that extent.

Shen Yao's group of four cooperated obediently, unlike others who resisted so much, so their progress was very fast. Even the car they drove over got a free parking spot.

"Parking spots charge fees, limited-time free."

The registrar explained that the shelter's building area was insufficient, and the surrounding survivors were increasing. They were currently summoning manpower to expand the shelter, but this took time. During this period, parking spots — such a scarce resource — had always been exchanged by points.

Shen Yao's trunk had several drums of gasoline. Hearing the registration office could also exchange for points, Shen Yao straightforwardly took out two drums to exchange for points. The bulk stayed on her own household card, a small portion was transferred to Shen Chengyi and the other three, and she incidentally renewed several days' worth of parking fees.

After all, the military shelter advocated free development. Wanting to eat the minimum guarantee could only ensure not starving to death, but quality of life was not to be hoped for. If they wanted to live well, they had to go out and hunt wood puppets. Without a car as a daily means of transport, their efficiency would be greatly reduced.

Driving in through the small gate, then parking the car in the exchanged parking spot, Shen Yao looked up at the densely packed tents all around, corresponding to the many signs hung above, and headed for the trading center.

The trading center was not in the middle of the tents, but in a small two-story white building at the very outside.

Both upstairs and downstairs were within the trading center's scope. Entering the door, there was a row of counters similar to a bank, with busy staff sitting behind them. Many people were queuing in front — all survivors who had come to seek refuge at the official shelter. They all had some good things in their hands, more or less, unwilling to use them themselves, so they took them out to exchange for points for daily expenses in the shelter.

What Shen Yao's group of four needed most to solve was lodging, which required going to the second floor.

"For lodging, different prices for different areas. The best is naturally the family room, but it costs thirty points a day."

Thirty points — just the crystals would need three. Everything else would have to be estimated according to value.

Moreover, the family room was special; it couldn't be rented by month or quarter, only renewed day by day. Houses in the shelter that could be rented whole were extremely expensive.

Shen Yao calculated the resources in her hand, then looked at the other room layouts, and finally chose a quad room that wasn't too crowded. The four of them fit just right, and the room had a washroom and a small kitchen inside. It only needed twelve points; monthly rent would be even cheaper.

"Seven days"

Handing over the household card in her hand, as the points inside were deducted, Shen Yao left the second floor.

Shen Chengyu and Shen Chengning hadn't gone upstairs. The two stayed in the first floor lobby to gather other information about the shelter's interior, including the shelter's building distribution, which canteen tasted good, which canteen was good value, which exit was more likely to encounter wood puppets, and so on.

"Where is Chengyi?"

"Eldest Sister went to ask about the crystals."

Shen Yao hummed in response, mentioning where they would be staying next; they would rest for two days first to get familiar with the Shelter's interior, then go out to hunt Wood Puppets for crystals.

"There are also Evolved Wood Puppets; the Officials announced the exchange ratio for Evolution Crystals, and they provide Evolution Potions," only it requires Evolution Crystals as payment, basically exchanged one-for-one.

Compared to Evolution Crystals that are hard and difficult to absorb and prone to problems, Evolution Potions are easier to absorb; the Officials are banking on poor craftsmanship, as anyone with ambition will agree.

Evolution Crystals work well, easier to extract and utilize than ordinary crystals; the Officials have announced Ability Users' capabilities through various channels, and calling wind and rain, flying and burrowing will no longer be imagination.

"Are Evolution Potions dangerous?" Shen Yao pondered for a moment, asking.

"No danger, but similarly, Evolution Potions have milder effects; becoming an Ability User requires far more Evolution Potions than Evolution Crystals, and after becoming one, Evolution Potions are still needed to stabilize and improve," it can be said that those who walk this path have no retreat, unless they can accept the possibility that their abilities will never change.

Having tasted the flavor of power, how could people bear to give these up; they will surely risk everything to improve their abilities and make themselves more powerful.

This is the End of Days after all; only by enhancing one's own abilities can safety be ensured, and those who pin their hopes on others are merely a small minority.

"Go back and rest first; we've been on the road for several days," setting other things aside, their mental state has reached the Limit, and continuing like this will easily lead to trouble.

Walking south from the Trading Center is a stretch of tall buildings; their assigned Dormitory is among them.

Sixth Floor

Shen Yao took out the key and opened the door, only to find the inside excessively empty.

Right inside the door is a Wooden Shelf where shoes can be placed; further in are four empty single beds, with the bathroom on the other side, and the Kitchen to the right of the doorway.

Shen Yao:...

Fortunately they only rented it for a few days; otherwise, if they really had to live here for a month or two, their mood would surely plummet directly.

"We still need to hunt more Wood Puppets to rent the whole place," instead of single rooms.

Taking out Slippers from the space to change into, then going to the bathroom to wash up simply, making all four single beds, they simply ate the Cooked food previously stored in the space, then lay down on the beds and fell asleep.

This sleep was especially long; when Shen Yao opened her eyes, it was already the next morning.

Raising her hand to rub her head, while pulling open the curtains she also patted Shen Chengyu and Shen Chengning who were still asleep; as for Shen Chengyi, she should have gone out in the morning and not returned yet.

Waiting until Shen Chengyi returned, the three of them queued for the bathroom to wash up; fortunately, water and electricity in the room were free, otherwise they would have had to calculate their living expenses.

Clang clang

Shen Chengyi carried back youtiao, soy milk, and steamed buns bought from the Kitchen; a small bag cost about five points, though not very filling, the taste was good, and it was said the master chef had previously worked in a restaurant and was hired for his excellent craftsmanship.

Shen Chengning cheered and took the food, simply placing it on the table beside them to spread out.

The table was just a single Wooden Board structure, with four lonely Wooden Sticks underneath, showing how hastily this Shelter was built—nothing at all, yet more and more people kept coming, and there was fundamentally not enough space to live.

Eating the pork steamed bun into her belly, Shen Yao said their purpose today was to familiarize themselves with the various buildings inside the Shelter; they would be living here temporarily, and if possible, they would make contact with the Officials.

The Officials were more reliable than imagined; choosing to make the effects of crystals public rather than conceal them showed the Officials' attitude leaned toward Cooperation.

One person's wit is short; relying entirely on individual strength, it is very hard to live well in the End of Days.

Shen Yao did not think they could escape Collective Life; after all, humans are gregarious creatures, and besides, Shen Chengyi chose to attend the Military Academy in this life precisely to make something of herself, believing the Officials would not refuse capable people.

After finishing the food Shen Chengyi brought back, the four of them simply tidied themselves, stood up, and went out.