Now, although Xu Nuo knew that Park Su was probably making him meals because of the debt, he didn't take that debt seriously. After all, while he cherished the space ring, it was only a failure to him now, with more sentimental value than practical use.
In his eyes, selling that ring for over a million was already a profit for him. As for the IOU, it was just something he used to tease Park Su, not expecting the boy to agree so readily.
As a Taoist cultivator, Xu Nuo believed in karma - you reap what you sow. He felt that Park Su never owed him anything; rather, it was he who owed Park Su for saving his life. Although he might have survived without Park Su's help, it wouldn't have been as comfortable.
Even in his semi-conscious state, he could feel Park Su's care during that time, so by his count, he was the one in debt. That's why he made those demands; it was his way of justly repaying that kindness.
Over these days of interaction, Xu Nuo felt he hadn't misjudged Park Su at all; he was even more naive than he had thought.
However, Park Su's heart was also too soft. In this world, often only those who are ruthless enough can survive. Park Su was quick, precise, and ruthless when dealing with zombies, but when it came to humans, he hesitated too much, which Xu Nuo considered unnecessary.
In Xu Nuo's view, sometimes humans can be more terrifying than zombies because at worst, losing to a zombie means your strength isn't enough; if you're strong enough, zombies can't harm you. But with humans, it's different. You can't predict how many are duplicitous or how many would betray you for personal gain. Human nature becomes uglier in such times, with greed and schemes that were once hidden in peaceful times now surfacing.
He doesn't deny the existence of good people, but how can you be sure the person you meet is one of them? Moreover, in Xu Nuo's opinion, if good people still act like the overly benevolent figures from peacetime, they likely wouldn't survive long.
In his eyes, good people simply have more moral principles, more loyalty, and they wouldn't harm others' interests while pursuing their own. However, he wasn't sure if this loyalty was enough to resist the temptation of benefits.
This is why he was even less willing to interact with others and thought that with Park Su's personality, left alone in this world, he would surely suffer or even lose his life. Since Park Su wasn't overly naive but loyal, simple-hearted, and good at cooking, Xu Nuo saw no harm in helping him out.
After all, he had nothing else to do, and Park Su seemed knowledgeable about the current world situation, which could save him a lot of trouble.
Although Xu Nuo didn't know how Park Su knew about those bases, considering he had only been picked up by Xu Nuo two days after the apocalypse started, even if he was out of touch with the world, he knew the government wouldn't have set up bases that quickly. This made him certain that Park Su had his secrets.
However, Xu Nuo wasn't concerned about these secrets; he was more interested in the bases Park Su mentioned, knowing that where there's power, there's greed, and human nature would become even more avaricious. He doubted Park Su could keep his secrets well with his temperament.
Also, Park Su's expression upon learning he could draw talismans and make space rings was too strange. Perhaps he should find an opportunity to probe further?
Standing at the top of the stairs, Xu Nuo's mind was filled with these thoughts as he watched Park Su. Meanwhile, Park Su, who was busy cooking downstairs, had noticed Xu Nuo the moment he came down, given his second-tier wood element abilities, how could he not feel a gaze on him?
But since realizing Xu Nuo might be the legendary Master Xu Nuo and with the intention of getting in his good graces, Park Su pretended not to notice he was being watched and continued to work hard on breakfast.
He wanted Xu Nuo to see how much effort he put into cooking, hoping to greet him with a smile when he came downstairs to bridge the gap between them. He hadn't expected Xu Nuo to just stand there on the second-floor landing, staring at him.
If Xu Nuo had only stared for a minute or two, Park Su would have tolerated it, but even after he had set all the breakfast dishes on the table, Xu Nuo's gaze didn't waver, which began to annoy Park Su. What did he mean by this?
So, Park Su stopped pretending, looking straight back at Xu Nuo. To avoid making the situation awkward, he forced a somewhat polite smile, "You're up, then hurry over for breakfast. I need to go out and deal with zombies after eating!"
Hearing Park Su call out to him, Xu Nuo snapped back to reality, completely unaware that staring at someone like that was impolite. Instead, he found Park Su's smile somewhat irritating, probably because it was too polite and lacked warmth.
However, seeing Park Su speak to him in this manner made Xu Nuo feel warm inside, increasingly thinking that Park Su had the potential to be an excellent spouse, though if Park Su knew Xu Nuo thought this way, he might not be too pleased. After all, being likened to having "wife potential" isn't something most men would feel happy about.
Although Xu Nuo thought this way, he didn't show it on his face, maintaining his usual cold expression as he quickly descended the stairs and took his seat. Seeing no unusual reaction from Xu Nuo, Park Su breathed a sigh of relief internally, feeling that he had been too foolish last night in front of him.
Even if he was shocked by Xu Nuo's identity, he shouldn't have shown such expressions just based on speculation. And he had even failed to respond to Xu Nuo's questions several times because he was lost in thought. The more he thought about his behavior from the night before, the more pathetic he felt it was.
Park Su wished he had a mental ability so he could erase Xu Nuo's memory of his behavior from the previous evening. Feeling more embarrassed, he could only speed up his eating, but with the goal of getting in Xu Nuo's good graces, he didn't know how to start the conversation, knowing how taciturn Xu Nuo was.
After some thought, he realized he could only bring up the events from yesterday. His ears turned redder, and he drank his porridge faster. Just as he swallowed a mouthful, steadied himself to speak, he heard Xu Nuo's cool voice from across the table, "Aren't you afraid of burning yourself by drinking so fast? Or do wood element ability users not feel heat?"
Park Su's words, which were on the tip of his tongue, got stuck due to the question. After a while, he managed to say, "Isn't it because I need to eat quickly to go out and deal with zombies? After yesterday's events, we can't stay here long. I think we should prepare more, we might leave in the next few days. You, will you come with me?"
Xu Nuo, eating the lean meat porridge with the side dishes Park Su prepared, seemed quite pleased, "I see your cooking skills have improved recently. I doubt I'll get tired of your cooking anytime soon." Park Su felt a surge of joy at these words; although not explicitly stated, it seemed Xu Nuo intended to come with him.
So, his smile became more genuine, "Alright then, tell me what you need to take with you. With all those space rings, you can take a lot. If you don't need all of them, you could give me one or two. Not to give or sell, but since you won't have much to carry and we're on the road together, it would improve our living conditions, wouldn't it?"
Xu Nuo found Park Su's eager smile amusing, "Isn't one six-square-meter ring enough for you?"
Park Su pouted at this, "A six-square-meter ring is at most 216 cubic meters. Sounds big, but it's about the size of the smallest bathroom in this house. How much do you think we can fit in there?"
Seeing Park Su's look, Xu Nuo felt like teasing him, "As long as it can hold the kitchen stuff, isn't that enough? After all, I only care about your cooking."
Park Su was genuinely annoyed by these words but looking at Xu Nuo, he felt he couldn't lose his temper, especially not after seeing Xu Nuo's capabilities the day before. Moreover, Park Su had made up his mind to cling to Xu Nuo, so getting angry would only harm the goodwill he was trying to build. So, he took a deep breath, gathered his things, and decided not to engage further.
Xu Nuo found this amusing, but he noticed something different in Park Su's attitude towards him. If it were before, Park Su would have snapped back by now. Today, he was putting up with it, even though Xu Nuo saw the initial impulse to retort. This made Xu Nuo raise an eyebrow; what was the reason for this change in attitude? Was it just because of the display of his strength, or did Park Su have other thoughts? Regardless, Xu Nuo preferred the Park Su who was unguarded around him.
However, this sudden change made Xu Nuo curious about how far Park Su's tolerance for him would go, so he quickly finished the porridge in his bowl.
As Park Su was about to leave after packing his things, Xu Nuo suddenly spoke up, "Why not wash and pack my things before you go out?"
Park Su was taken aback. Normally, while he did the cooking, they had an unspoken agreement where whoever ate was responsible for cleaning up. Although today he was aiming to please Xu Nuo, there was a difference between doing something willingly and being asked to do it. Xu Nuo speaking to him like this gave Park Su the impression that he was being taken advantage of.
Since Xu Nuo had already agreed to travel with him, and considering his earlier comment about not even lending one space ring while wanting all of them for kitchen items, if Park Su complied just because Xu Nuo asked, it would feel like he was being manipulated.
However, keeping in mind his goal to get in Xu Nuo's good graces, he didn't want to make things too awkward, so Park Su turned around, gave a half-smile, and said, "Sorry, I don't have the time. I need to go out to gather supplies. Remember, I'm the one working to feed both of us now."
Xu Nuo thought Park Su was acting like a child, not minding his sarcastic tone. He figured there must be something Park Su was either wary of or wanted from him, perhaps the method to make space rings, given Park Su's peculiar obsession with them. Or it might have something to do with Park Su's own secrets. But whatever it was, with time, he'd find out; there was no need to rush.
Seeing Park Su angrily preparing to leave, Xu Nuo, somewhat unusually, stood up and said, "Alright, you pack these up for me, and today I'll go with you to deal with zombies. Since we made so many gains yesterday, it shouldn't hurt to leave a bit later today, right?"
Park Su's eyes lit up at this, "You're saying you'll come out with me to fight zombies?"
Xu Nuo raised an eyebrow, "Don't want me to?"
Park Su quickly flattered him, "How could I not? I'd love that, very much." With that, he eagerly cleaned up the table before looking at Xu Nuo with shining eyes, "Alright, let's go!"
The truth was, although Park Su had spent considerable time with Xu Nuo, Xu Nuo initially stayed inside to recover and later to study his abilities. This meant Park Su had to do the cooking, gather supplies, and felt somewhat resentful about it. If Xu Nuo wasn't around, he could take food with him, search for resources further away, and solve his lunch problem on the go, rather than rushing back to cook. Xu Nuo's presence had significantly slowed his resource gathering.
However, yesterday's trouble with the woman brought them a good haul of resources, but it also made Park Su realize he needed to share some benefits to avoid becoming a target and prevent future troubles. On the other hand, with zombie crystals just starting to appear, he wanted to collect more for future use. With the bases not fully established yet, this was a window to possibly elevate his abilities, ensuring a higher survival rate when they set out.
Moreover, knowing Xu Nuo had many empty space rings, Park Su planned to accumulate more supplies. Even if Xu Nuo didn't agree to let him use them, Park Su was determined to find a way, whether by nagging or other means, to get those resources into those rings. This was crucial for securing a better life for himself and his mother in City B. He didn't want to repeat the struggles from his past life in S base. Now that he had a second chance, he was determined to improve their quality of life in this apocalyptic world.
To achieve this, he either needed strong personal power or abundant resources, along with the means to store them.