It was the girl who had screamed in fright earlier. She pushed through the people standing in front of her, stopping only when the man called Uncle Qiu held her back.
The girl, impatiently, said to Uncle Qiu, "Let's go quickly; it's raining so hard that my clothes are soaked. Hey, you're the one who hit us. We won't be paying for this bicycle."
The last part was directed at Lin Shi.
The girl, around the same age as Lin Shi, had flawless, fair skin. Although she was pretty, her current expression of impatience marred her beauty.
Lin Shi waved his hand, a look of self-reproach on his face. "No, no, it's my fault. I shouldn't have been riding so fast. If the uncle is injured, I can go home and get money to cover the medical expenses."
After eight years of surviving in the apocalypse, Lin Shi believed he had decent acting skills, portraying the image of an ordinary young man convincingly.
The middle-aged man, Uncle Qiu, gave Lin Shi a deep, scrutinizing look, then pulled the girl behind him, making way for Lin Shi. "Ride slower next time. It's very unsafe to go so fast."
The others also moved aside, clearing the path.
Lin Shi chuckled, his smile simple and honest. "I understand, thank you, Uncle."
With that, he got back on his bike and rode past the group.
It wasn't until he had ridden several hundred meters and turned a corner that the feeling of being watched, like needles pricking his back, disappeared. Only then did Lin Shi realize he had broken out in a cold sweat.
That group of people had given him a sense of danger, especially the middle-aged man, who had exerted the most pressure. In the situation just now, if a conflict had occurred, even with the advantage of his spatial pocket, Lin Shi wasn't sure he could have come out on top. Fortunately, it had ended without incident.
He didn't care who those people were or what they were up to. He was only here to gather supplies and didn't want any unnecessary trouble. After that encounter, Lin Shi slowed down his pace a bit.
Once he reached the main road, he saw that the streets were filled with abandoned vehicles. Unlike in his previous life, the cars were neatly parked along the roadside, with no scenes of dozens or hundreds of vehicles crashed into each other, blocking the roads.
There were few pedestrians, some hurrying along, others carrying bulging bags, presumably returning from scavenging. The entire city was now without power and unable to receive any outside information. Many people had already started to stockpile supplies, while others clung to the hope that it was just a temporary issue with the city's power grid, which would soon be restored.
But once people realized that the power would never return, and their familiar electronic devices were permanently useless, and the environment became harsh, with bodies lying unattended, they would understand that the city had descended into chaos. At that point, the darker aspects of human nature would break through the societal norms, turning the city into a frozen hell. Those who were still buying supplies now might resort to looting in a couple of days.
Lin Shi intended to get ahead of the curve by gathering supplies before the masses reacted. Many people would be rushing to supermarkets to hoard goods, but his target was the containers at the port.
More than an hour later, Lin Shi finally arrived at the southern port of Shashi. The port was filled with countless containers, cranes, and numerous cargo ships docked neatly. There were more ships than Lin Shi had anticipated. It made sense; if the authorities had ordered all vehicles to stop, they likely instructed the ships to dock as well. Perhaps his post had indeed served its purpose.
Lin Shi surveyed the area, ensuring no one was watching, and then stored the bicycle in his spatial pocket. Normally, the port had many staff, but after the solar storm, operations had ceased, and many had fled home in panic. Even if there were still some guards, there wouldn't be many. With no surveillance cameras, as long as Lin Shi was careful, he was unlikely to be detected.
The only sound in the port was the raindrops hitting the containers. Lin Shi approached one and placed his hand on it. With a thought, the contents were transferred into his spatial pocket. From the outside, the container looked intact, but inside, it was empty. This method of taking things without a trace was something only Lin Shi could do.
The first container he took contained a shipment of watermelons. Not bad, a good start. A faint smile appeared on Lin Shi's face. The fruits in Shashi, with plenty of sunlight, were sweet and delicious. This container of watermelons would last a long time.
He moved to the next container, which also contained fruit—this time, coconuts. After collecting six containers of fruits, Lin Shi headed towards another stack. His luck wasn't as good this time; the container was empty, and the next three were empty as well. Lin Shi quickly noticed that locked containers generally had goods inside, while unlocked ones were empty. Goods and empty containers were stacked separately. Realizing this, Lin Shi bypassed the unlocked containers and moved to the next stack.
This time, the container held clothing, mostly T-shirts. Lin Shi collected one container and moved on. He suddenly thought that since Shashi had a year-round summer climate, the locals' wardrobes would mostly contain summer clothes, with perhaps a few items for spring and autumn. When the extreme cold came, many of these residents might freeze to death. Perhaps even more than in Hai City.
Next, Lin Shi collected three containers of snacks, four of frozen seafood, and two of daily necessities. In one of the containers, he found several imported cars, worth tens to hundreds of thousands. The sealed metal boxes might have protected the cars from the EMP, but even if they were damaged, Lin Shi had plenty of space in his spatial pocket and collected them regardless.
Electronics, crafts, household items, food, industrial supplies... the port had nearly ten thousand containers, and Lin Shi went through them like opening mystery boxes, transferring the contents into his spatial pocket.
However, not long after, a group of unwelcome visitors arrived at the southern port.
"Brother Li, are we really going to be okay doing this?" Five young men, around twenty-five or twenty-six, walked towards the port. The one speaking was a bald youth, looking nervous and glancing around, as if afraid of something.
Li Kui slapped the bald youth's head, clearly irritated. "What are you afraid of! Didn't I tell you? The whole city is without power, and the surveillance cameras are off. There are so many containers here. We can clear one out, and no one will notice!"
These people had also set their sights on the containers!