Chapter 17 Catching Fish and Preparing to Leave the Rented House

Cheng Zhiyu temporarily put away the thumb-sized crystal core and will study later how to get Xiao Tie to absorb it.

Hmm... Crystal cores are probably used for absorption, right? I'll try it later. If it doesn't work, I can ask the system.

Although the system often selectively answers his questions, it can answer anything it can about plants.

After installing the crystal core, Cheng Zhiyu washed Xiao Tie with water again. After working for a while, Xiao Hei in his arms stirred and poked its head out.

Cheng Zhiyu patted his head and said gently, "Did I disturb you?"

Xiao Hei shook his head; he had rested for a while and had recovered.

Even with those two plants, this human was still worried about facing zombies alone.

Of course, it's not for any other reason than that Cheng Zhiyu is a good cook, right? Xiao Hei thought awkwardly.

Xiao Hei patted Cheng Zhiyu with its paw: Shouldn't we go back?

After the metal-type zombie was dealt with, the neighborhood fell silent. There were hardly any zombies left, just a few scattered here and there, not enough to cause any real trouble.

Cheng Zhiyu understood what Xiao Hei meant, wiped the sweat from his forehead, and said with a smile, "No rush, let's go somewhere."

Xiao Hei's ears twitched. His body hadn't recovered yet, and he was too lazy to move, so he nestled lazily in Cheng Zhiyu's arms and let him be.

Following his memory, Cheng Zhiyu turned left and right in the neighborhood. If he encountered any stray zombies, he would not hesitate and would take them out with a single slash.

Finally, he arrived at a pond. If he remembered correctly, this was the community's artificial lake. He had heard that the community property management had raised some fish in it and would distribute them to the residents during the Chinese New Year.

After the power went out in the apocalypse, meat became even harder to find. It had to be frozen in the refrigerator, and by the time Cheng Zhiyu found it, it had already gone bad and was inedible.

So they haven't eaten meat for a while, and now that they know there's fish here, they're determined not to let it go.

Before coming here, Cheng Zhiyu was worried that the artificial lake would be polluted, and that even if there were fish, they wouldn't be able to eat them. Fortunately, his worries did not come true. Looking around, the artificial lake was relatively clean, with only some fallen leaves and branches in it.

Xiao Hei glanced at Cheng Zhiyu, who was looking excited, jumped out of his arms, walked to the edge of the artificial lake and looked inside. In the eyes of a winged race, he could easily see fish swimming around in the pond, and they were quite plump.

He was engrossed in watching when Cheng Zhiyu stopped him: "Don't walk on such the edge, be careful not to fall."

Xiao Hei thought rebelliously: He's not stupid, how could he possibly fall down?

With that in mind, I still moved away from the edge of the artificial lake.

When Cheng Zhiyu went out today, he was thinking about catching fish. He took out the fishing net he found from his space, broke off some steamed buns and threw them in, and then dropped the net into the water.

He's strong now, and he easily throws the fishing net around. The fish are probably hungry, because they soon jump into the net one after another.

Xiao Hei found this troublesome and stretched out its claws to try to catch fish with its superpower, but Cheng Zhiyu stopped it with lightning speed: "Good boy, you're overdrawn on your superpower right now, you need to rest properly. Be good, and I'll make you some grilled fish later."

When Xiao Hei heard the words "grilled fish," its ears twitched, and it reluctantly retracted its paw.

The fishing net quickly filled with fish, and Cheng Zhiyu pulled it up with force, instantly creating dozens of lively fish on the shore.

Because the fishing net has relatively large holes, the fish are all quite large, with the largest being as long as Cheng Zhiyu's forearm.

Cheng Zhiyu thought for a moment and decided to process the fish here first, so that when it was time to eat it, he would only need to wash it briefly, which would save water.

Although Xiao Hei has water-based superpowers, Cheng Zhiyu is used to being frugal. Besides, wouldn't it be tiring to use superpowers?

Just then, a fish that didn't know any better jumped in front of Xiao Hei. Although fish tastes good when cooked, this one smelled really bad. Xiao Hei was very clean, so he splashed water on it and the fish stopped moving.

Cheng Zhiyu: "..." Never mind, I'll pretend I didn't see it.

He took out the kitchen knife he always carried with him and, as if he had killed a fish at RT-Mart for ten years, ruthlessly gutted it, removing the fish's internal organs, gills, and scales, then threw it into the artificial lake and simply rinsed it with lake water.

Seeing Xiao Hei casually circle around him, Cheng Zhiyu knew he must be craving it, so he didn't make him wait any longer.

I just found a portable gas stove today. It has all the amenities you need, so you can eat grilled fish right here.

Cheng Zhiyu rinsed the fish with clean water again, then made a few simple cuts on the fish to help it absorb the flavor. He marinated it with scallions, ginger, and garlic. Under Xiao Hei's expectant gaze, he lit the portable gas stove, heated the oil, and fried the fish until golden brown on both sides. He then added various seasonings and stir-fried it. Finally, he added some water and simmered it for a while before it was ready to eat.

While the fish were cooking, Cheng Zhiyu killed the rest of the fish, then thought about keeping the innards so he could use them to catch more fish later.

Although they've caught more than twenty fish so far, given their appetites, it's hard to say how many will be left after they finish eating.

Let's catch more. Anyway, the space has a preservation function, and we don't have to worry about other things getting mixed up. He has the idea of ​​going out, so naturally we need to store more food.

Just then, his hand was slapped by Xiao Hei's claw. He turned to look at Xiao Hei and saw that the other's eyes were fixed on the fish. Even though he tried his best to restrain himself, Cheng Zhiyu could tell that he was craving it.

Looking down, he saw that the fish was almost cooked. He smiled and patted Xiao Hei, saying, "Don't rush. This fish should be boneless, but you still have to be careful. Wait a moment, I'll pick out the fish meat for you."

Because Xiao Hei was there, he specifically chose the boneless varieties. As for the ones with many bones, he wouldn't waste them; he could make fish soup with them later.

Cheng Zhiyu ceremoniously put a bib on Xiao Hei. Today it was blue. Xiao Hei was already used to this and didn't bother to argue with him.

Take out Xiao Hei's small bowl, use chopsticks to pick up several large pieces of boneless fish, and when Xiao Hei starts eating, he starts eating too.

After stewing for so long, the fish was already very flavorful. Because it was just pan-fried, it also had a slightly charred aroma, which, combined with the spicy flavor, made it incredibly delicious.

The man and the dog finished the big fish in no time. Cheng Zhiyu washed the pot and cooked another one.

And so, they ate fish for ten whole days until they were almost full. Cheng Zhiyu then cooked a pot of soup, adding only some salt and nothing else. The soup tasted exceptionally delicious, and Xiao Hei drank several bowls. Cheng Zhiyu drank the rest.

After eating and drinking to their hearts' content, Cheng Zhiyu washed the pot and put it away, then threw the net again to catch fish.

Xiao Hei had just eaten fish and thought it tasted great. Now, like a little supervisor, he jumped onto Cheng Zhiyu's shoulder to watch.

This time, they caught a lot of fish, about fifty in total. These fish had already taken up most of Cheng Zhiyu's space. He couldn't keep all the fish in his space, so he had to stop catching them.

Xiao Hei still felt that fifty fish were too few, wondering how long they could last. Cheng Zhiyu said, "We eat fish every day, and we'll get tired of it eventually. Don't you want to eat something else that tastes good?"

Little Black's ears twitched, successfully convinced, and it snuggled into Cheng Zhiyu's arms, eating its fill and going to sleep comfortably.

Cheng Zhiyu returned to his rented room, and after consulting the system, buried the metal crystal core in the soil next to the small iron root system.

The little iron tree shook its branches and leaves with unusual cheerfulness, and then quickly began to absorb the nutrients diligently.

The next day, Cheng Zhiyu received a system notification: [Congratulations, host! Little Iron has completed its upgrade and is now eligible to switch forms. Please select a form.]

Then, the familiar drawing board appeared in front of Cheng Zhiyu.

Practice makes perfect. Having been tricked by the system before, Cheng Zhiyu was now very cautious. Instead of drawing, he asked, "Can I use an image instead of drawing it?"

System: 【…Okay.】

Cheng Zhiyu had been waiting for these words. His eyes lit up, and he rummaged through his bedroom, pulling out a picture to show the system: "This one will do!"

System: [Sorry, Xiao Tie's current level is still at the melee weapon stage and he cannot switch to firearms mode.]

Cheng Zhiyu exclaimed "Ah!" and glanced at the AK in the picture he was holding, looking quite disappointed.

That makes sense, though. If it could take any form, that would be too overpowered.

He thought about it carefully. His encounter with the metal-type zombie today had taught him a lesson. Melee attacks alone were clearly not enough; he needed a weapon that could also be used for ranged attacks.

So in the end, they chose the crossbow.

The back part is similar to a pistol, which can be fired by pressing the trigger, but the front part is a horizontal bow-like object.

The system confirmed the form was correct and proceeded with production.

That evening, Cheng Zhiyu saw Xiao Tie's brand-new form. Putting everything else aside, it looked much cooler than a kitchen knife in his hand.

He tried to pull the trigger and shoot at the target, but missed.

Cheng Zhiyu: "..."

Xiao Hei, who was watching from the sidelines: Haha.

He's handsome, but as an ordinary person before the apocalypse, Cheng Zhiyu obviously doesn't find crossbows as easy to handle as kitchen knives.

He can only practice his accuracy now, but fortunately his hearing and eyesight are excellent, which makes his practice even more effective.

After several days of practice, his aim was finally almost perfected. That afternoon, he pulled the trigger, and an arrow shot out with a whooshing sound, instantly flying towards the leaves of a tree not far away. The arrow pierced through the leaves and then automatically returned to the bow and crossbow in less than half a second.

Cheng Zhiyu stood at the window of the rented room and slowly smiled: "Finally... well, my learning ability is not bad, isn't it, Xiao Hei?"

Xiao Hei yawned slowly and nodded perfunctorily.

Cheng Zhiyu reached out and rubbed the dog's head, only to be glared at by Xiao Hei before grinning mischievously: "Xiao Hei is so cute, and its fur is so soft to the touch. Seeing you makes me feel much better."

Xiao Hei: "..." It's always the same routine.

Ironically, he was quite susceptible to this approach; otherwise, Cheng Zhiyu wouldn't have used it every time.

With a thought, Cheng Zhiyu sent Xiao Tie back to his spatial dimension. He smiled and said, "That's about enough. Let's set off tomorrow."

Three months have passed since the apocalypse began. It's time to leave this rented room and see what's going on outside.