The sun blazed fiercely, its heat prickling against the skin like needles.
The temperature had soared to at least thirty degrees.
Fully equipped, Yu Hong had barely walked for a short while before he was drenched in sweat, yet he dared not shed his gear.
In this environment, he had to guard against not just the strange shadows and menaces, but also other people.
So even though the heat was unbearable, he had to endure.
After walking for more than ten minutes, he arrived at the post office gathering point.
Waiting in front of the stone house, he took the time to carefully observe his surroundings.
The grayish-white stone house stood quietly among the dark green trees.
The exterior was covered in mottled and unidentifiable marks, and there were many signs of wear and tear along the edges.
Vines with mixed green and brown hues climbed up the roof, swaying slightly in the gentle breeze.
Yu Hong glanced down, his brows furrowing slightly.
The ground outside the stone house seemed to bear some footprints.
"Yu Hong, you’re here so early today?" Jean's voice came from behind him.
"Yeah, it’s almost the peak time, and trouble is about to come again. We need to prepare in advance. The current issue is how to solve our food problem," Yu Hong turned to face her.
Jean had changed into form-fitting camouflage clothing, her expression weary, and her eyes were bloodshot.
It was clear she hadn’t rested well.
As she approached, a foul odor wafted from her, indicating that she probably hadn’t even had time to clean herself.
"I tried to grow mushrooms, but the yield was inedible. It’s all just mixed fungi, and some of them are poisonous," she sighed.
"The mushrooms we normally eat should be cow leg mushrooms, right?" Yu Hong had gone through Old Yu's records over the past few days.
Even though the detailed cultivation process wasn’t included, there were many problems encountered during cultivation that served as notes—quite valuable reference material.
Cow leg mushrooms, similar to chicken leg mushrooms, were a kind of non-luminous mushroom, non-toxic, and yielded large harvests with each cultivation, making them great for supplemental food.
The most important thing was that these mushrooms didn’t require light, which made them suitable for the dark and humid environment they lived in.
"Could it be that you didn’t guard against the spores of other mushrooms during the cultivation process? After all, mixed fungi can't just appear out of nowhere," Yu Hong pondered.
"I was careful, but it’s impossible to completely eliminate them," Jean shook her head.
"I heard that Old Yu had his own cultivation box that specialized in cow leg mushrooms. If we can get that, we should succeed easily."
"Where’s the cultivation box?"
"In the basement of the post office."
For a moment, both of them fell silent.
No one dared to enter the basement of the post office anymore.
Once one was infected by the black handprint, confronting that fearsome undead woman, far stronger than the strange shadows, even the town’s United Army would have to retreat.
Ordinary people like them didn’t stand a chance.
"I also tried cultivating," Dr. Xu's tired voice came from their side.
She had changed into a black long t-shirt and jeans, her lips cracked and her complexion pale.
"I remember before, Old Yu secretly dug soil in some corners of the woods multiple times. I suspect that specific soil is necessary for mushroom cultivation; otherwise, it won't succeed," she continued.
"And I must remind you all that when trying to cultivate mushrooms, we need to be cautious of a disease known as mushroom lung."
"Mushroom lung?" Yu Hong’s expression changed slightly.
He recalled reading about this disease online before.
"Yes, during the mushroom growth process, as they near maturity, they will silently release spores. If these fungal spores are inhaled into the lungs, they can lead to the mushroom lung disease. Symptoms include coughing, white phlegm, chest tightness, chest pain, shortness of breath, and sometimes fever, heart palpitations, and nausea," Dr. Xu paused, "Of course, this disease arises from prolonged exposure to mushroom spores, so as long as you all take care to ventilate and wear masks, there should be no big issues."
“No wonder Old Yu always seemed to be coughing. He might already have some problem,” Jean reflected.
"That’s possible, but it doesn’t really matter now. Alright, the peak time is about to begin; the key now is how to obtain food," Dr. Xu shifted the topic.
The three of them exchanged glances, falling silent.
A gentle breeze brushed over them, and the scorching sun beat down, yet none could feel warmth.
Without food, they wouldn’t last a week.
Yu Hong was fine as he had sturdy protein bars that could last a day each.
Moreover, he had swapped some food with Old Yu earlier, so his food reserves could sustain him for two weeks.
But Jean and Dr. Xu were not as fortunate.
Looking at them, it seemed they would run out of food in just a few days.
"In the absence of a cultivation method, we can only find some other food to tide us over," Jean spoke solemnly.
It was clear she had thought about this before coming.
"As for what other food, I shouldn’t need to elaborate, should I?"
"You mean scavenging other people's dwellings?" Dr. Xu was the first to grasp her meaning.
"Would that work? They’ve surely taken everything with them, right?"
"There must still be some leftovers in the basement of the post office. Also, I know several hideouts of those who died during peak time. There should be some in those too, but getting in might be difficult," Jean replied.
"Do we go?" Dr. Xu looked at Yu Hong.
Since she had visited Yu Hong's safe house, she had developed a subtle admiration for him; he was clearly no empty talker, as he truly had abilities.
If only Yi Yi hadn’t left so early; if she had stayed with Yu Hong, they might have had a better chance.
"Let’s go take a look," Yu Hong nodded.
If they could get valuable supplies from others, it would still be worth it even if they couldn’t find food.
Especially the red value detector; he felt quite greedy for that.
If he could get his hands on one and strengthen it, it could prove extremely useful.
At least he would have environmental warnings covered.
"Alright, I’ll lead the way shortly; you two stay close," Jean agreed, as if foreseeing their compliance.
"By the way, where's Aifei? Isn’t she coming out?" Dr. Xu suddenly asked.
"She said she wasn’t feeling well and locked herself in the bedroom, not knowing what she is doing. But if she’s moving less, she’ll consume less, so I didn’t bother with her," Jean replied.
"Speaking of which, wasn't Aifei in the town? Why did she suddenly come back? Why didn’t she migrate with the town?" Dr. Xu asked with curiosity.
"Well, I’m not clear on that."
Jean showed a hint of discomfort on her face.
"It seems she offended someone in town, but I don’t know the specifics. You know, Aifei is very pretty, and she always attracts a lot of admirers."
"Indeed, sometimes being too beautiful is not a good thing in these times," Dr. Xu sighed in agreement.
Yu Hong walked at the back, wiping away the sweat while listening to the conversation in front.
When he heard about offending someone, a thoughtful look crossed his face.
In the quiet woods, the three of them carried their tools and left the stone house of the post office, following a waterway weathered by rain.
Before long, they arrived at a small raised hill.
At the base of the hill, there was a rough iron door.
The door was black, painted but with chips showing yellow rust around the edges.
Jean stopped in front of the iron door, picked up a thick branch, and knocked on the door.
Clang, clang, clang.
The iron door made a dull sound.
"This is Elcy's residence. He lived here with his father. One day, they went to dig up brilliance stones together and never returned."
"Elcy, huh? A shy young man. Both he and his father were good people. They even helped me split wood," Dr. Xu recalled with a hint of sadness in her eyes.
"In this world, good people don’t last long."
"It’s not about being good or not; how long one lives depends on how cautious they are," Yu Hong added.
"That’s true," Dr. Xu nodded.
The three of them fell silent, letting Yu Hong step forward.
He grabbed the chisel he had brought earlier and struck the door repeatedly.
Bang, bang, bang!
The iron door was so rusty it broke the lock with just a few hits.
Yu Hong pulled the door open and was immediately greeted by a cloud of visible dust.
A musty and foul odor rushed into their noses.
"What’s that terrible smell?!" Jean quickly moved aside, covering her nose and grimacing.
"It’s a corpse," Dr. Xu crouched down, squinting into the cave.
Inside the small cave lay a decayed body, reduced to skin and bones, quietly sprawled on the ground, surrounded by tiny insects.
The corpse was dressed in tattered long sleeves and pants, now grayish-white, with a bandage wrapped around the arms and black-framed glasses on its head.
Its face was turned sideways, with only two eye sockets left, staring blankly at the door as if yearning for freedom even in death.
"It’s Elcy. That bandage was wrapped by me. I can’t believe he’s back," Dr. Xu recognized the corpse, her eyes filling with sadness.
"What a pity; he was a good young man."
"Don’t dwell on it; there’s no time," Yu Hong stepped aside and over the corpse, holding his breath as he entered the cave.
After searching a bit, he quickly found two bags of dried meat, a bag of dried mushrooms, and a bag of half-eaten dried wild vegetables.
"There’s still food; he didn’t die of starvation."
He walked over to a corner near a fire pit, picked up a tilted aluminum kettle that was resting there, and shook it.
It still contained half a kettle of water.
"Water is also present; he didn’t die of thirst."
"It’s the strange shadow," Dr. Xu bent down to pick up a bag of brilliance stones that had turned to powder.
From the powder, they could still see remnants with red markings.
Yu Hong shook his head, pulled the food out and after checking it, he divided it among the two women.
They continued on to the next hideout.
One by one, the cave entrances were smashed open.
As time passed, the three of them visited other abandoned survivors' safe houses.
Some were empty, containing nothing; others yielded a bit of food.
After visiting five safe houses in a row, each person managed to gather about two bags of dried meat, and an additional bag of dried mushrooms and wild vegetables.
This helped ease their immediate concerns.
Once they finished searching the last dwelling, Jean glanced at the sky.
"We still have time. We can head to a nearby brilliance stone mine to collect a few stones for backup. Should we go?" she looked at the other two.
"How far is it from here?" Yu Hong asked.
"From here, it would be about two kilometers, but the paths through the woods are difficult compared to flat lands. So if we decide to go, we must be quick," Jean responded.
"Let’s save it for tomorrow; it’s too rushed. If anything happens on the way and we’re stuck outdoors for the night, it could be dangerous," Yu Hong frowned.
(The End of This Chapter)