Chapter 95: The Value of Canned Food

The screech of brakes rang out.

“Prepare for battle!” Ye Shan shouted as he got out of the truck.

He had only fifteen soldiers under his command, all armed with firearms and more than enough ammunition.

At the order, the fifteen men dismounted at once and took up their weapons.

Yun Xuan and Bai Xue also got out and looked toward the aberrant beast that was feeding nearby.

It was tiger-shaped, towering five meters high and more than fifteen meters long, its eyes blood-red, a streak of blood still clinging to the corner of its mouth.

Everywhere it passed, ordinary houses were crushed beneath a single step. It was hardly an opponent even for a giant hero from the legends.

“Get into the building for shelter. Five of you will clear the way. The rest of you prepare to move into the other building, and be ready to abandon the truck,” Ye Shan told the ten ordinary people. With five soldiers leading the way, they entered the nearby building.

“You two, follow me—hey, what do you think you’re doing?” Ye Shan saw Bai Xue walking toward the tiger-beast and hurriedly tried to stop her.

“Don’t worry. Just keep watch on the surroundings.” Yun Xuan patted Ye Shan on the shoulder.

“Huh?” The soldiers and Ye Shan all looked at Yun Xuan as if he were insane.

Bai Xue walked step by step toward the tiger-beast, expressionless, her sword gripped tightly in her hand.

“Roar!” Seeing this human dare to challenge it, the tiger-beast bellowed and sprang into the air, crashing down upon Bai Xue.

Boom!

A thunderous impact shattered the ground.

“Is this how you want me not to worry?” Ye Shan said coldly. As a soldier, he could not accept abandoning a comrade.

“Watch a little longer before you speak. Her strength is more than enough to deal with this kind of beast.” Yun Xuan smiled.

Through the smoke, a figure shot out. A sword pierced the tiger-beast’s eye, then flicked upward, and an eyeball flew crashing down before everyone’s feet.

“Roar, roar, roar!” The tiger-beast screamed in agony.

Bai Xue landed on its head, and above her, only Yun Xuan could see the blue bar had already filled completely.

The sword in Bai Xue’s hand split into two, and she murmured a single word: dual blades.

Splurt, splurt, splurt, splurt, splurt, splurt.

Blood sprayed everywhere. Bai Xue moved like a specter, and the tiger-beast’s body was covered in wounds.

At last, a finishing blow landed on its tiger-like head, and the beast’s head fell to the ground.

“So strong...” Ye Shan’s mouth fell open.

Bai Xue landed, gave the severed head a quick strike, and a crystal core appeared in Yun Xuan’s spatial backpack.

“Five hundred exchange points?” Seeing the points increase, Yun Xuan smiled faintly. Indeed, killing aberrant beasts was the proper path.

Bai Xue walked to Yun Xuan’s side without a word. There was only a scattering of blood on her clothes.

“Let’s go,” Yun Xuan said as he climbed back into the truck.

“Set off!” Ye Shan snapped back to himself, and the people in the building nearby came out as well.

As they continued on, Ye Shan did not say another word, afraid that his jinxing mouth would make a disaster happen again.

Yun Xuan was happy for the quiet. Bai Xue remained expressionless the whole time, sitting beside him.

...

After more than ten minutes on the road, Yun Xuan finally saw the settlement for survivors.

A five-meter-high iron wall encircled it, and every few meters a soldier lay stationed atop the barrier.

The truck passed through the guarded city gate, the ten ordinary people were taken away for inspection, and Yun Xuan and Bai Xue, led by Ye Shan, entered the iron-walled city known as Clear Moon City.

Once inside, Yun Xuan looked over the endless tents and the residents on either side of the road.

“This is the slum district. Most people here wait for construction work within the city or exploratory expeditions. Women will abandon their bodies in exchange for food. It’s a chaotic place, but it is also these people’s only means of survival,” Ye Shan said. He glanced at a child by the roadside staring at him with pitiful eyes, said nothing, and walked on.

Yun Xuan followed him through the slums, a trace of heaviness in his heart.

He did not have the ability to save everyone, so he did not look at those expectant eyes.

Beyond the slums there was another layer of iron wall, guarded by soldiers.

Ye Shan said a few words to the guard, who gave Bai Xue a wary, awed glance before letting them through.

Once inside, Yun Xuan saw tidy pedestrians on the streets, vendors calling out from stalls by the roadside, and felt as if he had crossed into another world entirely from the one outside.

“Could you take us to a place that can handle large quantities of supplies and still trade in good conscience? The reward is this box of liqueur chocolates,” Yun Xuan said quietly, taking out a small box.

“No problem.” Ye Shan’s eyes lit up, and he tucked it into his chest.

Cigarettes and liquor could be said to be among the rarest treasures; every cigarette and bottle of alcohol outside had either been ruined or gone bad long ago.

With Ye Shan leading the way, the three of them arrived at a shopping mall guarded by soldiers.

“Well now, Brother Ye, long time no see.” As soon as they entered, a young man in a suit came forward with a smile.

“These two are enhanced individuals. They want to discuss a deal involving supplies,” Ye Shan said in a low voice.

“Please, both of you, come inside.” The young man smiled.

“I’ll be going then.” Ye Shan said a word to Yun Xuan and left the mall.

The young man led Yun Xuan and Bai Xue to a private room and poured them tea.

“We come on behalf of our faction. You may call us Post-Apocalyptic Merchants. The first shipment will be ten thousand cans, fresh premium goods, shelf life over twelve months. This is a sample,” Yun Xuan said, taking a can from the backpack behind him and placing it on the table.

“Ten thousand cans?” The young man stared at Yun Xuan in shock.

“The second batch will be fifty thousand, the third one hundred thousand. After that, supplies will continue without interruption. Thirty gold coins per can. If you want to buy, we can trade as early as tomorrow.” Yun Xuan took a sip of tea and spoke calmly.

“One hundred thousand? You’ll keep supplying us after that too?” The young man was stunned, then asked excitedly, “If the situation is stable, we can maintain a long-term partnership.”

“I am Moonlight, the person in charge of the Clear Moon Exchange. Thirty gold coins per can is fine, especially if it’s fresh quality. I’ll inspect the goods first.” Moonlight looked at the can and swallowed hard.

Since the fall of the world, fresh-quality canned food had long since vanished. The cans sold in the mall were all things whose expiration date had passed long ago and which only barely avoided poisoning people.

Moonlight opened the can. Smelling the fish-and-meat aroma, he trembled with excitement and ate with big mouthfuls, not forgetting to scrape the inside clean.

“Well?” Yun Xuan asked, still calm.

“Fresh quality, no mistake. If all of them are fresh quality, we’d be very pleased to continue cooperating. May I ask where the first batch will be traded?” Moonlight asked, a little embarrassed as he set down the empty can.

“Here.” Yun Xuan took out a map and pointed to a place four kilometers from Research Institute Number 1215.

“This square? No problem. And the time?” Moonlight thought for a moment.

“Tomorrow, from noon to one o’clock,” Yun Xuan said after considering it.

“Very good. Then I wish us a pleasant cooperation.” Moonlight extended his hand.

“Pleasant cooperation.” Yun Xuan shook it.

After the three of them left the room, Yun Xuan exchanged the thirty cans in his backpack for nine hundred gold coins.

“Please bring me a bio-mimetic mask maker, light armor, and a gravity bracelet.” Yun Xuan bought the supplies directly; all of them were available in the shop.

The bio-mimetic mask maker had originally been only for actors, or for toys. Because of the recognition system, it had been of little use, and it cost only one hundred gold coins.

Light armor covered the whole body, including head and feet, and could defend against bullets and explosions. It came with a pistol, one hundred rounds of ammunition, and ten flash grenades, priced at five hundred gold coins.

The gravity bracelet had originally been for people to experience gravity, even for use in weight loss. Later, it was collected by the people of Clear Moon City, and some used it for physical training. It cost only three hundred gold coins.

As for this week, there still isn’t a recommendation slot. What a disaster, truly a disaster. Still, I’ll keep writing this one through to the end, at least a million words. I’ve written two million-word novels before, so please trust that my updates are reliable.