The sun was scorching, and the sensation of its rays on the skin was akin to needle pricks. The temperature had already climbed to at least thirty degrees.
Yu Hong, fully armed, walked for a short while before he was drenched in sweat, but he dared not remove his gear.
In this environment, he had to guard against not only the shadow and Evil Shadow, but also other people.
So, he endured the heat.
After walking for more than ten minutes, he quickly arrived at the post office gathering area.
He waited in front of the stone house's door for a while, watching the surroundings carefully while waiting for others to arrive.
The gray-white stone house stood quietly amongst the dark green trees.
The exterior of the house was full of blotchy, unidentifiable marks and the edges and corners were worn with signs of collision.
Some green and gray-brown vines had climbed up to the roof.
A breeze blew, stirring the branches and leaves of these plants slightly.
Yu Hong looked down and his brows furrowed slightly.
The ground outside the stone house seemed... the footprints were somewhat...
"Yu Hong, you're here early today?" Jenny's voice came from behind.
"Yeah, it's about to be the surge period soon. Trouble is coming, we need to prepare in advance. The problem now is how to solve the Food issue," Yu Hong turned around to face her.
Jenny had changed into a form-fitting camouflage outfit, looking tired with bloodshot eyes. Clearly, she hadn't rested well.
As she walked closer, an unpleasant sour stench drifted from her body—it seemed that she didn't even have time to wipe down.
"I tried cultivating mushrooms, but the ones I grew were completely inedible. All contaminated, toxic bacteria," she sighed.
"The ones we usually eat should be Oyster mushrooms, right?" In the past few days, Yu Hong had gone through old records, which, while lacking detail on the cultivation process, detailed various problems encountered. This was akin to a collection of past mistakes, which was highly informative.
Stalk mushrooms, similar to Oyster mushrooms, are non-toxic, thrive without light, and produce a substantial quantity when mature, making them suitable as supplemental Food.
The key is that these mushrooms don't require light, making them perfect for cultivation in their damp, enclosed environment.
"Could it be that the cultivation process didn't guard against other fungal spores? Contamination doesn't just appear out of nowhere," Yu Hong speculated.
"I was careful, but it's impossible to completely eliminate it," Jenny shook her head. "I heard that old Yu had his own incubator specifically for cultivating Oyster mushrooms. If we could get that, it should be easy."
"Where's the incubator?"
"In the post office basement."
Both fell silent for a while.
No one dared to enter the post office basement anymore. Once marked by the Evil Shadow handprint, facing the Withered Woman, much stronger than the shadows, even the town's united forces couldn't withstand her, leaving them no choice but to evacuate. It wasn't even worth mentioning regular people like them.
"I also tried cultivating. I remember old Yu used to secretly dig up soil in some corners of the forest. I suspect specific soil is necessary for successful mushroom cultivation," Dr. Xu's tired voice came from the side of the two.
She wore a black long T-shirt and jeans, her lips chapped and her complexion pale.
"Also, I must remind you that when trying to cultivate mushrooms, you must be wary of a disease known as 'mushroom lung.'"
"Mushroom lung?" Yu Hong seemed to recall something, his expression changing slightly. He remembered seeing information about this disease online.
"Yes, during the cultivation of mushrooms, when they are about to mature, they silently release spores. If these fungal spores are inhaled into the lungs, they can potentially cause mushroom lung disease. Symptoms include coughing, white phlegm, chest tightness, asthma, and sometimes fever, palpitations, nausea, etc.," Dr. Xu paused, "Of course, the disease requires prolonged exposure to mushroom spores to develop, so it is generally manageable if you're careful, ventilate properly, and wear masks."
"No wonder... old Yu was always coughing... maybe there was already a problem," Jenny mused.
"That's possible, but talking about it now doesn't help. The critical issue now is how to get Food," Dr. Xu changed the subject.
The three exchanged glances, falling silent.
A breeze blew, and the sunlight scorched their bodies, failing to provide any warmth.
Without Food, they couldn't survive a week.
Yu Hong was still okay; he had protein bars, which could last a day each, and some extra Food he had traded with old Yu, so his current food supply could last another two weeks.
But Jenny and Dr. Xu were in trouble. Judging by their appearances, they would likely run out in a few days.
"We can only look for other sources of Food to tide us over if we can't figure out the cultivation method," Jenny said grimly. It was clear she had thought about this before arriving. "As for what other food, I suppose no further explanation is necessary?"
"Are you suggesting... scavenging other people's places?" Dr. Xu was the first to catch on. "Would that work? Surely, they would have taken everything?"
"There's definitely more underneath the post office, and I know a few holes where people died during the surge period... There's surely something there, just that the doors are difficult to open," Jenny replied.
"Shall we go?" Dr. Xu looked at Yu Hong. Ever since she visited his safe house, she had grown a subtle admiration for him, understanding he was not all talk but actually capable.
It was just unfortunate that Yiyi had left so early, otherwise, following Yu Hong, they might actually have a shot at a better life.
"Let's take a look," Yu Hong nodded. If they could procure some valuable miscellaneous items from others, it would be worth it even if they couldn't get any food.
Especially the Red Value detector. He was quite envious of that device; if he could get his hands on one and enhance it, it might be very useful—at least for environmental alerts.
"That's fine, I'll lead the way shortly, just follow closely," Jenny nodded, as if she had anticipated their agreement.
"By the way, where's Aifu? Isn't she coming out?" Doctor Xu suddenly asked.
"She said she's feeling unwell and is hiding in her bedroom alone, not sure what she's doing. But she's moving less so she's consuming less, and I didn't bother her," Jenny responded.
"Speaking of which, wasn't Aifu in town before? Why did she suddenly come back? Why didn't she move with the town?" Doctor Xu curiously asked.
"This... I'm not sure," Jenny's face revealed a hint of discomfort, "It seems she offended someone in town, I don't know the specifics. But you both know, Aifu is very beautiful, always attracting a lot of admirers."
"That's true, sometimes being too beautiful is not a good thing in these times..." Doctor Xu agreed with a sigh.
Yu Hong was walking at the back, wiping off his sweat while listening to the conversation at the front. When he heard about offending someone, his expression also showed a thoughtful look.
In the quiet woods, the three, carrying tools, left the stone post office and moved along a rain-washed stream, soon arriving in front of a small hillock.
Below the hill was a crude iron door.
The door was black, painted, and areas where the paint had peeled off revealed yellow rust.
Jenny stopped in front of the iron door, picking up a thick branch and knocked on the door panel.
Clang clang clang.
The door emitted a dull sound.
"This is Elxi's dwelling, he and his father lived here, they both went to dig pyroxene ore in the distance one day, and then never came back."
"Elxi... such a shy young man... both he and his father were good people... he even helped me chop wood..." Doctor Xu also remembered the person, sadness showing in his eyes. "Good people don't last long in this world."
"It has nothing to do with being good or bad, surviving is all about being careful enough," Yu Hong interjected.
"That's true," Doctor Xu nodded.
The three fell silent and allowed Yu Hong to step forward with the chisel he had brought, and he began smashing the door.
Bang bang bang!
The iron door was already severely corroded and the lock was quickly smashed off.
Yu Hong pulled the door open, and immediately a visible cloud of dust poured out.
A mixture of mold and foul smell rushed into their nostrils.
"What's this stench!?" Jenny quickly stepped aside, covering her nose, her face contorted.
"It's a corpse..." Doctor Xu covered his nose and squinted into the cellar.
In the narrow cellar, a grey-yellow corpse that had decayed down to skin and bones lay quietly on the ground, surrounded by tiny bugs.
The corpse wore tattered long sleeves and pants, grey-white in color, with an arm wrapped in a bandage and a pair of black glasses on his head.
He lay with his face turned to the side, his eye sockets eaten away leaving only two gaping holes, staring straight out as if desperately yearning to leave even in death.
"It's Elxi... I was the one who bandaged him up... Didn't expect him to have come back..." Doctor Xu recognized the identity of the corpse, his eyes suddenly showing a hint of sorrow.
"What a pity... he was a good young man..."
"Don't feel sorry, we don't have much time," Yu Hong stepped beside the body, holding his breath as he entered the cellar.
After rummaging around, he quickly found two bags of jerky, a bag of dried mushrooms, and a half-eaten bag of dried wild vegetables.
"The food is still here, he didn't starve."
He walked to a corner where a fire pit was located, picked up a crumpled aluminum kettle from it, shook it, and still, half a kettle of water was inside.
"There's still water, he didn't die of thirst."
"It was the shadow."
Doctor Xu bent down and picked up a bag of powdered Pyroxene from the ground. The powder still faintly showed traces of red runes.
Yu Hong shook his head, took the food out, and after checking it was okay, he divided it among the three.
Then the three moved on to the next house.
They kept smashing open cellars, and with time passing, they visited other survivor's safe houses that had been abandoned.
Some were empty, with nothing inside. From others, they found some food.
After visiting five safe houses, each of them ended up with two bags of jerky, a little over one bag of dried mushrooms, and dried wild vegetables, which somewhat resolved their urgent needs.
After searching through the last house, Jenny glanced at the sky.
"We still have time, we could make a trip to the nearby Pyroxene Ore Mine, smash some pyroxene to take back as a reserve, shall we?" she looked at the others.
"How far is it from here?" Yu Hong asked.
"From here, about two kilometers, but the paths in the woods are much tougher than on flat ground, so we must hurry if we're going," Jenny replied.
"Let's go tomorrow; it's too rushed now, in case something happens on the way, and we end up stranded outside overnight, that would be dangerous," Yu Hong frowned.