After lunch, Yang Xiao took a walk nearby. No one else had entered the area around the mountain, so for now, he was still safe—after all, since there was no food on the mountain, people generally wouldn't choose to take refuge there.
After briefly stretching his legs, Yang Xiao returned to the large rock to take a nap.
Despite his efforts to reverse his biological clock, his sleep during the day was intermittent. He usually had to wake up three or four times in the middle and couldn't sleep soundly throughout the day.
Today was the third day after the great disaster. The people down the mountain were beginning to become restless and anxious. Many had run out of food and water. Places both inside and outside the academy had been searched. Collapsed buildings had covered most of the food, leaving only limited supplies that could be scavenged.
Due to the large number of bodies buried in the collapsed ruins, after three days, the decay had begun to unleash a foul odor, making it agonizing to search for food among the ruins.
The water pipes had long since run dry, and although there were a few small lakes in the academy, the water was filthy, usually green, and carried a rotten smell. It was undrinkable.
Once a modern city encountered a great disaster, its fragile ecosystem immediately displayed its fatal weaknesses.
More critically, on the third day of the disaster, everyone was still waiting for government rescue teams, which had yet to arrive, crushing their hopes and torturing everyone.
A sense of fear began to envelop everyone.
If this were in the countryside, perhaps they could find relatively clean rivers and crops in the fields.
Some students began discussing heading to villages outside the city to find food and water sources.
A few students, puzzled, went to the Genetic Store to inquire with Gu Bo.
"Mr. Gu Bo, is it true what you said about the genetic mutations in Earth's creatures occurring seven days after the disaster?"
"Hehe, of course it's true. Today is the third day; just wait four more days and you'll see. The question is, can you survive until the seventh day?"
Gu Bo spoke in a casual tone, as if all of this had nothing to do with him, like he was just a spectator.
To date, the Genetic Store had not taken any action to help everyone. The two Samurais at the door stood 24 hours a day, showing no signs of fatigue.
The doors of the Genetic Store were open 24 hours a day, allowing anyone to enter. Gu Bo, the store owner, generally chatted casually with everyone and was rather amiable. Of course, what he mostly talked about was still related to Genetic Fragments, telling everyone how to hunt wild beasts and sell the Genetic Fragments to him after the mutations of Earth's creatures.
To everyone, Gu Bo seemed solely interested in purchasing Genetic Fragments. As for what the Genetic Fragments were, no one had any idea yet.
Dozens of students teamed up to leave the academy and head to villages dozens of kilometers away, seeking a new way out.
Incidents of food theft began to happen frequently, each accompanied by bloody conflicts.
Xiao Zhe's group of over a hundred people was powerful, with ample food and water, and many begged Xiao Zhe to take them in, but he always refused outright.
Qin Yu, a third-year finance major and famously beautiful girl known throughout the academy, was currently in Xiao Zhe's group.
"Xiao Zhe, they're so pitiful. We still have a lot of food, just share some with them."
Xiao Zhe had always been pursuing Qin Yu, and this disaster was a perfect opportunity for him. Of course, survival was far more important than love, especially now as Xiao Zhe could have any woman he wanted in a matter of minutes.
"Hehe, Qin Yu, our food is also limited. Don't think we've collected a lot of food, but we have more than one hundred and fifty people. We consume a lot every day. Besides, who knows how long we need to hold out? Who knows when the government's rescue team will arrive?"
Xiao Zhe's words immediately gained agreement from his companions.
For their own survival, most people were against helping anyone outside their group.
Qin Yu was somewhat agitated and said:
"Are we just going to watch our former classmates die like this?"
"Qin Yu, all I can do now is protect you and ensure our safety. I can't manage much for others. Our capabilities are limited."
Qin Yu felt helpless, knowing she couldn't persuade Xiao Zhe, and even if she did, the rest of the team wouldn't agree.
Outside the temporary tent boundary set up by Xiao Zhe, dozens of girls yearned with pleading eyes towards Xiao Zhe and her group.
Qin Yu, moved by compassion, took half a packet of biscuits and a small bottle of water from her backpack and walked outside to hand them to a familiar girl – her classmate, Huang Wen.
"Huang Wen, take this, it's all I can do to help."
Huang Wen hadn't eaten or drunk since yesterday afternoon. She instantly stuffed two biscuits into her mouth, choking on them because she ate in such a hurry and quickly gulped down two mouthfuls of water.
Around Huang Wen, dozens of eyes desperately fixed on the food in her hands.
Hesitating for a moment, Huang Wen broke the biscuits into small pieces, distributing them among a dozen girls nearby.
These girls, none particularly attractive, had formed a temporary team led by Huang Wen. They banded together for warmth and resolutely refused to bow down to the malicious boys.
Huang Wen then passed around the remaining water.
"Take just a small sip each."
The water bottle was silently passed around; everyone wanted to drink it all but restrained themselves, taking only a small sip to moisten their throats.
"Qin Yu, thank you!"
said Huang Wen.
"I'm sorry I can't help more. From now on, I'll save half of my daily rations for you. Come and get it from me."
Tears filled Huang Wen's eyes as she nodded, turned, and walked away with her group of sisters.
"Sisters, we must stand firm in our beliefs and never bow to these rogues. We need to save ourselves."
"Huang Wen, how can we save ourselves?"
someone asked.
"Food may be hard to find, but we can still find water. There's a pond at the foot of Biyun Mountain. We can take pots there to boil the water, and then we will have water to drink."
Her words reminded many people that there was indeed a sizable pond with decent water quality at the foot of Biyun Mountain. They had even picnicked there before and knew they could drink the water if boiled.
"And what about food?"
"For now, we can only search the mountain for wild fruits or vegetables."
"Huang Wen, it's autumn; there might not be any wild vegetables, and this mountain doesn't seem to have any wild fruits."
"Then we eat leaves and roots. It's better than waiting here to die,"
Huang Wen said defiantly.
"But Gu Bo from the Genetic Store said that in seven days creatures would mutate, and there are lots of animals on the mountain—it must be dangerous!"
The crowd was shocked into silence upon hearing this.
At last, Huang Wen could only say helplessly:
"Let's go boil some water at the pond first. Everyone gather some empty bottles. Having water to drink is better than having none."
Finally, everyone agreed and found two iron basins and two lighters among the ruins. Emboldened, a dozen girls headed to the pond at the foot of Biyun Mountain.