Lu Sheng observed along the way and found that the zombies' activity range was still in the vicinity of the subway station for the time being. After exiting the subway station, there were no traces of zombies on the streets.

Kyoto University is some distance from the subway station, so it seems safe for the next few days.

The snow on campus was getting thicker and thicker, almost reaching Lu Sheng's knees. The four of them took turns carrying the fish from the trunk upstairs, and were exhausted by the time they got to their dormitory.

Even for someone like Lu Sheng whose body has been enhanced, his arms were a little sore after a day of this.

"You and Teacher Xu did all the work today, so let me and Tiantian handle the task of cleaning the fish."

Lu Sheng originally planned for the four of them to string the fish together and hang them outside the window to freeze for preservation, but Xiao Yu and Sun Tiantian disagreed and forced Lu Sheng and Xu Yi to sit on the sofa to watch TV.

The television station is broadcasting live the snow removal work on the highways in the suburbs of Beijing.

"The municipal engineering team has mobilized all personnel to work overtime to clear the snow. We believe that with everyone's efforts, the highway will be open to traffic soon."

The host was so cold that his teeth were chattering, but he forced a stiff smile.

Lu Sheng's expression was serious. In the live broadcast, a man wearing a cotton-padded coat suddenly stumbled and ran from the snow-clearing team toward the host.

The man had a pale, grayish complexion and cloudy eyes, clearly indicating that he had been infected with the zombie virus.

Huffing and puffing.

The man suddenly attacked from behind, biting the host's slender neck tightly.

A splash of blood appeared on the live stream camera, followed by a piercing scream from the television. Chaos erupted as people rushed to separate the zombies from the female host, only to be bitten several more by the zombies.

After they finally subdued the male zombie, the bitten female host rolled her eyes strangely and bit her colleague next to her.

All the viewers in front of their televisions watched this chaotic scene unfold.

A few seconds later, all television signals were cut off.

"It seems the zombie virus has already broken out in other parts of the city." Lu Sheng remained calm; he knew he had to face it sooner or later.

Xiao Yu and Sun Tiantian had already prepared the fish, washed their hands, and sat down next to Lu Sheng.

“My buddy just texted me saying he overheard his family’s urgent work phone call. The government has decided to lock down the city, and all exits will be blocked within half an hour.” Xiao Yu handed Lu Sheng the WeChat screen on her phone.

Soon, news of the city lockdown was also circulating in the mutual aid group.

Most people thought it was just a deadly infectious disease outbreak in the city, never imagining it was a zombie virus.

Many people in the group discussed whether they should flee to other cities before the lockdown.

"What should we do?" Sun Tiantian asked Lu Sheng.

"Remain unchanged in the face of all changes, and wait and see how things develop."

Even if they leave the city now, it's too late. According to Lu Sheng's memories from his previous life, the government has not yet identified the zombie virus, and all its handling methods are based on emergency infectious diseases.

The roads are blocked by heavy snow, and cars can't get out of the city at all. To leave the capital, you have to walk dozens or even hundreds of kilometers. Even if you don't get bitten to death by zombies, you'll freeze to death.

Moreover, the zombie virus outbreak wasn't limited to the capital; other cities would only descend into chaos. Furthermore, as the economic and political center, the capital would be the first to organize restoration efforts once the situation stabilized, making it the fastest place in the country to restore basic order.

"It's so cold, let's have hot pot?" Lu Sheng suggested, standing up as the four of them decided to hold off for the time being.

“Okay! I want spicy hot pot! And I want dipping sauce too!” Sun Tiantian was the first to raise her hand in agreement.

Lu Sheng took out a bag of Haidilao red oil base from Sun Tiantian's inventory and asked Xu Yi to help cut the mutton.

Sure enough, Xu Yi even cut the mutton into neat, square pieces with meticulous care.

If Lu Sheng hadn't seen Xu Yi take the knife with his own eyes, he would have thought that the perfectly uniform slices of mutton were carved out of a mold by some obsessive-compulsive person.

Seeing Lu Sheng staring at him with a hesitant expression, Xu Yi's usually calm face showed a hint of unease for the first time.

Sun Tiantian is a big foodie, and she even has an ancestral copper pot that she brought from her hometown in Northeast China in her dormitory.

Lu Sheng took some charcoal, heated it until it was red-hot, placed it on a copper pot, and poured in a pot of bone broth and seasonings. Once the broth boiled, he added mutton and fresh crab to the pot.

There's also abalone and lobster, sliced ​​and cooked together.

The charcoal fire heats up slowly, but the mutton cooked in it is tender and fresh, with a unique flavor that electric hot pot can't match.

I also soaked some wood ear mushrooms and chrysanthemum greens, which were crisp and tender after being cooked in the hot pot.

After a day of frolicking in the freezing cold, the four of them finally relaxed and enjoyed a hearty meal around the copper pot.

Fresh mutton coated in rich sesame sauce, one bite and the chill is gone.

Crabs, abalone, and lobsters soak up all the broth, making them incredibly fresh and delicious – you just can't stop eating them.

The snow continued to fall heavily outside the window, with only the occasional bark of a mutated stray dog. The city's former prosperity and glory seemed to have been deeply buried by this heavy snow, leaving only the decay of civilization on the verge of collapse.

But all of this was irrelevant to the four people inside the room. Lu Sheng swallowed a bite of tender and chewy abalone slice and silently loosened his belt.

I've really gained weight.

...

After finishing his meal and returning to room 403, Lu Sheng placed the bag full of crystal cores on the ground.

After changing into a comfortable tank top and shorts, Lu Sheng leaned against Zhuang Zhuang and sat on the floor to study today's harvest.

Since the installation of geothermal heating, she has gotten used to sitting barefoot on the ground, where it feels warm and cozy.

Excluding the system's extra rewards, they found 362 primary crystal cores and 5 intermediate crystal cores today while digging into the brain.

In the apocalypse, crystal cores can not only upgrade superpowers and restore physical strength, but are also the most useful universal currency.

Based on the purchasing power of crystal cores in the early days of the apocalypse, their gains today are equivalent to what Young Master Wang's father called a "small goal".

Lu Sheng originally planned to divide the crystal cores equally, but Sun Tiantian said that she didn't have any special abilities and Xiao Yu said that the street lamp's special abilities were not worthy of upgrading, so they gave all the crystal cores to Lu Sheng.

Xu Yi also said that they would temporarily keep the crystal cores with Lu Sheng, and all the crystal cores would be in Lu Sheng's hands.

Zhuangzhuang curiously moved closer to Lu Sheng's hand and stuck out his tongue to lick the shiny thing in the bag.

"You can't eat it!" Lu Sheng patted Zhuangzhuang's big head, and Zhuangzhuang sullenly shrank back.

As a nobody, Lu Sheng had never seen a crystal core in his previous life, but he had at least seen pigs run even if he hadn't eaten pork.

The crystal cores extracted from zombie brains cannot be eaten directly; they need to undergo a purification process.

In the previous life, the method of purifying crystal cores was an insurmountable barrier for ordinary people. In order to maintain their hegemonic position, the major bases kept the method of crystal core purification a secret.

Some people, disbelieving in the superstition, ate it directly, and either exploded and died or mutated into low-level zombies.

Lu Sheng spent a long time searching using the system's built-in post-apocalyptic beginner Q&A collection.

Huh? That's all the purification method is?