Ruyi walked around the house, only to discover that the electricity was still running.
It turned out that the house was equipped with a state-of-the-art solar power system, providing an independent energy source.
In preparation for the apocalypse, Ruyi had contemplated numerous strategies, such as acquiring electric vehicles since gasoline was scarce. Cars also often became unwieldy targets and were challenging to maintain. Yet, charging these vehicles had always stumped her. After leaving the hospital, her funds were tight, and time constraints prevented her from setting up a proper power system. She had, however, conducted extensive online research, which allowed her to recognize the cutting-edge nature of the solar array in this house.
It was as if fortune had dropped a golden opportunity straight into her lap.
She promptly gathered all the rechargeable flashlights and desk lamps from the villa, plugging them in. She even found an old phone in her spatial space, barely remembered, and charged it as well. By the time she glanced outside, it was already noon. She pulled out fresh scallions, pork, and flour from her space and treated herself to a delicious meal of dumplings, cooked using the still-functioning induction cooker. The only regret was that amidst the chaos of cramming supplies into her space earlier, she couldn't locate the vinegar.
Frustrated, Ruyi entered her space to face the mountain of scattered condiments, canned goods, and miscellaneous supplies. For the first time, she lowered her pride, attempting to sweet-talk the Sovereign into helping her organize the mess.
Her request was met with cold rejection. The Sovereign even chastised her for wasting time on trivialities, emphasizing her primary mission: "Grow stronger, stronger, and even stronger…"
Naturally, Ruyi ignored his demands. As a non-eating entity—or was it a quasi-entity?—how could he possibly understand the significance of these things to her as a human being?
After finding a pen and paper in the villa, Ruyi spent an entire in-space day sorting and cataloging her supplies.
Surveying the meticulously itemized list, Ruyi felt a surge of satisfaction. Eighty thousand yuan might not have been much to wealthy elites indulging in luxury goods, but for an average person buying essentials, it had amassed an impressive stockpile.
She tallied her inventory: 5,000 bags of flour, over 2,000 bags of rice, more than 30,000 packets of seasonings like pepper, chicken essence, and soy sauce, and 10,000 barrels of cooking oil. The quantities of vegetables and meat were harder to calculate but nonetheless abundant.
With this much, she could probably eat her way to the grave.
Other supplies included a modest stock of clothing and daily necessities. Limited funds had forced her to be selective initially, but she made a mental note to prioritize collecting these items in the future.
Stepping out of her space brimming with a sense of accomplishment, Ruyi noted the setting sun adorning the horizon with a golden-orange hue.
Today felt like her luckiest day yet. She wanted to cry tears of joy!
There was no way she would let this perfect moment be ruined by returning to the Wen family's house. Scavenging through the villa, she located the solar generator's manual, carefully disassembled it, then packed it into her space for future use. As night descended, she stripped the villa of anything remotely useful, climbed over the courtyard wall, and headed toward the city.
Danger, as Ruyi knew, did not differentiate between day and night. Buoyed by her newfound sense of fulfillment, she boldly resolved to head straight into the most perilous zones.
Her first encounter with zombies came just outside the villa district. She had planned to "borrow" a sports car parked nearby, but the zombie lounging beside it, still resembling a handsome man, seemed unwilling to part with it. His equally undead companion was less subtle, lunging at her with razor-sharp claws and drooling profusely.
Ruyi noted their naked lower halves and the secluded, wooded area they occupied. Clearly, these two had been up to no good before their untimely transformations.
There was no time for gossip. Tightening her grip on her blade, Ruyi met the attack head-on. Her first swing missed entirely, but her reflexes saved her; she pivoted swiftly, severing one of the zombie's arms with her next strike. Breathing a sigh of relief, she gauged both her strength and the blade's sharpness.
With this newfound understanding, the ensuing battle became much more manageable.
After dispatching the two zombies, she gagged but forced herself to extract their crystalline cores using chopsticks, just as the novels had described. She tossed the cores into her space and retrieved the car keys from the male zombie's body.
Starting the car, she was relieved to find more than half a tank of fuel. She drove onward, hacking through smaller groups of zombies along the way. Her most dangerous encounter involved a busload of zombies spilling out in a grotesque cascade. She managed to kill five before retreating, exhausted, into her space.
She had previously tested this: entering her space erased her presence in the outside world, like a supernatural vanishing act. The zombies, deprived of their target, wandered aimlessly before dispersing.
Inside her space, Ruyi noticed the crystalline cores she had thrown in earlier remained untouched.
"Didn't you say you needed energy to regain your strength? Why aren't these cores useful to you?" she asked, puzzled.
"Who told you I require such low-level energy sources?" the Sovereign replied with icy disdain.
"But… that's what the novels said! These cores are supposed to help upgrade spaces," she muttered under her breath.
"Foolish notion. Do you think a being of my stature can be compared to such trivialities?"
"Then… what do you need?" Ruyi asked, feeling increasingly exasperated. "Something rare and impossible to find, I bet! Don't tell me it's my blood!"
"Your pathetic amount of blood was barely sufficient to activate the space. What good would it do me now?"
"Then what?!" she demanded, voice rising. "If you don't tell me, how am I supposed to know? If it's too difficult to acquire, I'm warning you—I'm no miracle worker!"
Before she could finish venting her frustration, a massive steel plate materialized from nowhere, slamming her into the ground.
Groaning, she pushed the plate off herself and limped back into her restorative crimson space. The Sovereign's voice echoed coldly: "First-level trial complete. Second-level trial will commence next."
Emerging from her space under the blistering sun, Ruyi was immediately accosted by more zombies. Reinvigorated, she wielded her massive blade, decapitating them one by one.
After dispatching eleven zombies, Ruyi, now utterly drained, retreated into her space once more to recuperate.
Thus began her relentless cycle of killing, evading, and scavenging.
Fortunately, the apocalypse was still in its early stages. Many survivors, like Wen Xinyu and her group, hunkered down, waiting for rescue rather than venturing out. This left Ruyi free to claim valuable resources, though she made a point of leaving some fuel behind at gas stations for others.
By the time she reached the city, night had already fallen.
It had been two days since she parted ways with Wen Xinyu's group.
At her current level, Ruyi believed she could survive without their help. Returning to them would only mean more trouble. Determined to keep her distance, she focused on finding the energy the Sovereign needed to restore his strength and help her return to reality.
With such prospects ahead, her future seemed bright—full of hope.
But it didn't take long for her to realize the cost of underestimating the narrative's cruel twists.