Zion got up and went to the exchange area to find Zack.
"Hey Zack, I want to exchange for a house in the inner district."
Zack's face showed a look of "I knew it."
"Brother, I told you, no one wants to live outside if they have credit points. Alright, give me your ID card."
Zion handed over his ID card. "I want to ask something. You know, Uncle Hunter said he could answer some of my questions, but he just walked away with a bottle of wine."
"Ask away. Hunter is an old drunk. He forgets everything when he sees alcohol."
"Can I exchange for a gun here?"
"Haha, brother, of course you can get a gun, and bullets too, as long as you can afford the price. A regular handgun is 5000 credit points, and a bullet is 10 credit points. An assault rifle is 10000 credit points, and bullets are 20 credit points each."
Zion thought to himself, "Are these bullets? 10 credit points for one. A pack of biscuits is also 10 credit points. This is like trading your life for bullets."
Zion shrugged helplessly. "Alright, it looks like I need to get more whiskey."
Hearing this, Zack looked up and said, "If you can get a lot of alcohol, you can find Hunter. He can help you find some bodyguards."
"Okay, thank you, Zack. If I get a lot of alcohol, I'll contact Uncle Hunter. By the way, do you have any crystals here?"
"We do, but they cost 1000 credit points each. I suggest you try your luck at the outer district market. They occasionally have some."
"Thanks." Maybe it was because of Hunter, Zack's attitude towards Zion was relatively friendly.
"All done. Take this card, and you can enter the inner district. Someone at the gate will take you to your room."
"Thank you, Zack. I'll go check out the outer district market first."
After saying goodbye to Zack, Zion headed towards the outer district. This was Zion's first time in the outer district. Before, Uncle Hunter had taken him along the edge of the outer district. There were people lying everywhere on the ground. Zion saw a cornered-off area surrounded by shopping carts. The few people walking around were in this area. It seemed like that was the market.
Curious, Zion walked into the market. The outer ring was a circle of supermarket carts, and inside were all kinds of makeshift stalls. The stall owners were fiddling with their goods. Some were trading with credit points, while others bartered with food or other items. The market was bustling, though the atmosphere was tense. Everyone was striving to find hope for survival.
As Zion wandered around the market, he suddenly saw a few glittering crystals at a stall. His heart skipped a beat. He knew these were zombie crystals, just like the ones he had seen in videos. He wondered if these could enhance his abilities. Excited and curious, he decided to ask about the price.
"Hello, how much are these crystals?" Zion asked, pointing at the crystals on the stall.
The stall owner, a thin middle-aged man, looked up at Zion and sneered, "Kid, these crystals aren't cheap. One crystal is 200 credit points, or 10 packs of biscuits, or 10 liters of clean water."
Hearing the price, Zion was secretly amazed. It seemed these crystals were indeed hard currency here. He considered whether he should try to collect some crystals to exchange for credit points.
"The price isn't cheap, but I understand." Zion said thoughtfully.
Seeing Zion's interest, the stall owner added, "Kid, these crystals are good stuff. Not only can they be exchanged for credit points, but they can also enhance physical fitness. If you're capable, go hunt zombies outside. With some luck, you'll get a good haul."
Zion nodded, secretly deciding to try hunting zombies to gather more resources. However, before that, he needed to find suitable containers to store food and water for his next actions.
Zion thought for a moment and realized he had 200 credit points, just enough for one crystal. "Do you have a large water bucket, like a 10-liter one?"
The stall owner glared at Zion. "Kid, if you plan to fetch a bucket of river water, forget it. I need clean water."
"Uncle, you misunderstood. 200 credit points, I want one crystal and an empty bucket."
The stall owner thought for a moment and agreed. "Alright, wait a moment." He walked to the back of his cart and brought out a large 5-liter bucket. "Kid, I don't have a 10-liter bucket, but here's a 5-liter one."
"Alright, Uncle." The stall owner took out a device similar to a card reader.
"Insert your card here." Zion did as he was told. The stall owner tapped a few buttons and showed the screen to Zion, which read 200 credit points. Zion nodded. "There's only 200 in there, so you can't overcharge." The stall owner pressed confirm and returned the card to Zion.
"Deal! Here's your crystal and the bucket." The stall owner handed Zion a crystal from the three he had.
"Thanks, Uncle."
Zion left the stall and continued to browse. Besides weapons, the market had everything. He learned that if you carried weapons, you had to trade them to the security personnel immediately, or you'd be shot. Only inner district residents could keep some weapons and bullets, and they couldn't bring them into the supermarket. They had to store them in the security personnel's armory outside.
After gathering enough information, Zion prepared to go to the inner district.
At the inner district entrance, Zion handed his ID card to the guard. After confirming it, the guard nodded at Zion. "Jason, take the newcomer to Dyson's C11."
"Got it, Boss." A young man of average height came out of the security room.
"Let's go, newcomer. I'm Nick."
"Hi, Nick. I'm Zion. Why is it called Dyson's C11? Does the place I'm staying belong to Dyson?"
"Haha! It used to. Dyson was a famous person here. He came when this place was first established. He had a team of about ten, all armed. They were the second-largest force here. You know, the largest force is us, the Guardians."
"Guardians? Is that the name of the ruling group in this survivor base?"
"Our organization is called the Guardians. The boss wants us to protect humanity in the apocalypse. But you know, food is scarce, so there's only so much we can do."
"I understand. Transforming this place in a week is truly incredible."
"We have superhumans on our side. This place was built in half a day. Anyway, back to Dyson." Nick clearly didn't want to talk more about this topic. "Three days ago, Dyson and his team went out for supplies and encountered two superhumans. Dyson and his team were wiped out by those two. A survivor who witnessed the whole thing came back to report it, and the boss rewarded him with a box of biscuits. So C1 to C11 became vacant. People have been moving into C1 to C10 over the past few days, and now only Dyson's C11 is left."
"I see. Thanks for telling me, Nick." Zion said gratefully.
"Haha, as long as you don't mind." Nick laughed as they arrived at a house. "Here we are. Just swipe your ID card at the door. Don't forget to renew your rent at the exchange office within a week if you want to keep this place. Otherwise, everything inside will belong to us." Nick chuckled.
"Thanks, Nick." Zion said, swiping his ID card to open the door. Nick turned to leave. After saying goodbye to Nick, Zion entered the room.
The room only had a single bed, a table, and a chair. On the table were two cups and some disposable bowls. Besides that, there was nothing else.
Zion first took out the kitten and found it still asleep. Zion was a bit worried but couldn't do anything about it. He placed the kitten on the floor, summoned some chicken in front of it, and filled a disposable bowl with water. After taking care of the kitten, Zion sat on the chair and took out the crystal to examine it.
Holding the crystal, Zion felt a surge of energy. He focused on the energy, and instantly, the energy was absorbed into his body, flowing from his arm to his brain. Zion clearly felt his brain's energy increase and a tingling sensation spread through his body.
"This is amazing. I wonder if my abilities have enhanced." Remembering this, Zion took out the 5-liter bucket from his backpack. He concentrated, intending to replicate some whiskey into the bucket. Suddenly, Zion felt something different. "What's this?" Instead of the whiskey floating in the air, a bottle of whiskey appeared in front of him. "I can replicate food packaging now?" But Zion felt that replicating the bottle of whiskey consumed twice the energy compared to the liquid alone. "Looks like I can directly use this to trade for credit points. But since I was checked when I came in, for safety, I'd better go out again. With confirmation from the security personnel outside, I can openly trade for credit points."
Determined, Zion canceled his planned nap, grabbed his backpack and duffel bag, and set off.
At the entrance, Zion noticed Uncle Hunter wasn't there. That saved him from having to explain.
Zion showed his ID card to the security personnel and walked out. As soon as he left the supermarket area, Zion felt his nerves tighten. After scanning his surroundings, Zion walked in the direction he had come from. After a few minutes, Zion climbed through a window into a shop, which seemed to be a clothing store. Of course, it was a mess inside. This kind of place probably wouldn't attract survivors. Zion walked to the back storeroom. After checking the area and confirming no one was around, he locked the door and started summoning whiskey.
"Come on, my credit points!" Zion summoned ten bottles of whiskey in one go. "A bit tired, let me eat something to replenish my energy." Zion summoned a burger with extra cheese and a steak. He also summoned a bottle of ice-cold cola. "Haha! No more worrying about getting drenched in cola." Eating the extra-large burger and drinking the ice-cold cola, Zion felt the joy of being alive.
"In these damn times, I awakened such a powerful ability. I must use this ability to live well, then build a food-rich base to truly protect humanity, and maybe even take back the Earth!" For the first time, Zion had the idea of establishing his own base.
Three hours passed, and dusk was settling in. Zion dawdled back to the supermarket entrance.
The guards at the gate looked at Zion's backpack in astonishment. "Did you find a new supermarket?"
"Just lucky, found a delivery truck," Zion fabricated a story.
"Newcomers always have the best luck. Let me see what you've got."
Zion sensibly took out a bottle of whiskey from his bag. "This is a little something for you two."
The two guards' faces lit up instantly. They quickly glanced at the contents of his bag, which had a few bottles of whiskey and some biscuits. "Alright, little brother, go on in."
"Thank you, thank you."
Zion picked up his bag and entered the supermarket. This time, he took the side entrance straight into the supermarket to avoid registering again.
Zion effortlessly made his way to the exchange point. "Zack, let's see how many credit points I can get for these," he said.
Zion began taking items out of his backpack one by one, and Zack watched in shock. What Zack didn't know was that Zion had sneakily replicated a few more bottles of alcohol while unpacking, as it wasn't safe to carry so much alcohol on the way back.
After tallying everything, Zack exclaimed, "My god, 5800 credit points. Did you stash these items outside in advance?"
"I found a delivery truck when I first arrived," Zion replied, fabricating a story.
"Sorry, Zion, I overstepped. The base rules say we shouldn't ask about the origin of items," Zack apologized.
"It's alright, Zack. The truck was almost empty when I found it. Most of the stuff had already been taken," Zion reassured him with another made-up tale.
After Zack finished the transaction, the credit points were loaded onto Zion's ID card. "Alright, see if there's anything you need to buy."
"Zack, what's in high demand here?" Zion asked.
Zack thought for a moment, "Medicines, disinfectant alcohol, and gasoline." Zion nodded in understanding.
Zack added, "Oddly enough, there's no shortage of guns and ammo since they're so expensive. And, you know, we have more gun shops than burger joints." Zack cracked a joke that they both understood.
"Thanks, Zack. I'll think it over and come back tomorrow to buy some supplies."
After bidding Zack farewell, Zion returned to C11 in the inner district. The little kitten was still sound asleep, and the meat placed beside it remained untouched. "I wonder how long you'll keep sleeping," Zion mused.
Zion sat at the table and summoned a feast: pizza, cola, grilled ribs, and a heap of seafood. "Wow, I never imagined I'd ever be able to eat all of this until I was stuffed," he thought. Many of the dishes were the kind of delicacies he used to have only during Christmas.
After satisfying his hunger, Zion fell into a deep sleep. The day's events had been overwhelming, and summoning all that whiskey to exchange for credit points had drained much of his energy.