Chapter 28
Tang Yu'an and Zhou Qi looked at each other and both guessed why Grandma Guo said that.
After all, her ability to induce labor is limited. Now that she has to grow rice, she naturally has no spare energy to induce the production of fruits.
She should have some stock at home, but she and Kang Kang also need to eat, so naturally there is nothing left to trade with outsiders.
"As for food... I'm afraid I don't have any extra to trade with you." said Old Li.
Those who can survive in the wasteland for a long time are all smart people.
Old Li naturally realized that the two children came over almost every day, not entirely because of his injury, nor to see when he could take them to the market town.
They came to visit him so eagerly, as if to make a deal with him.
Although he couldn't figure out why the two children didn't exchange for what they wanted at once, but instead chose to go to such trouble to come here every day, Old Li didn't ask any more questions.
He guessed that this might also be part of their training - although this training project sounded strange, he had been away from the fortress for many years and did not understand the current situation in the fortress, so it was normal that he could not figure it out.
No matter what, these two children saved him, and since they needed this, he would cooperate.
Anyway, the things being traded are exactly what he needs.
"Do you need anything else? I can exchange it with you." Old Li said very kindly.
Zhou Qi looked down at the wooden arrows and thought of the mutant pig he encountered yesterday. His dagger hit its neck, but not only could it not advance an inch, it also curled back.
"Can these arrows hurt mutant creatures?" he asked.
Old Li went to the vicinity of the monitor lizard's nest in order to hunt the monitor lizard, and Lin Zhen is still paying attention to the subsequent situation of the monitor lizard... Are these arrows prepared for the monitor lizard?
Old Li looked up at him, then lowered his head again, "See what kind of mutant creature it is and see if we can find its weakness."
"Grandpa, can you find their weaknesses accurately?" Tang Yu'an asked curiously.
He had a pair of big, black eyes, filled with a bit of childish longing.
“Sometimes yes, most of the time no.”
Old Li smiled. He looked at Tang Yu'an and his tone softened unconsciously. "So these arrows need to be equipped with arrowheads."
He pulled over a basket nearby and lifted the cloth covering it, revealing a dozen or twenty metal arrowheads inside. He took one out and showed it to them.
The arrowhead is pointed and the blade looks very sharp.
"This type of arrowhead can break through the tough skin of mutant creatures and cause damage to them. Even giant lizards can be penetrated deeply into their flesh."
Old Li flipped the arrow, and the sharp tip seemed to flash with silver light.
He continued, "Of course, we also need to apply herbal juice with a paralyzing effect, so that we can cause substantial damage to the mutant creatures."
Because the mutant creature is huge, even if this small arrow penetrates it completely, it will hardly affect the mutant creature's actions in a short period of time. Unless it attacks its weak points, it will even stimulate the mutant creature to go crazy.
Tang Yu'an looked at the arrow and couldn't help swallowing. After a moment of silence, Zhou Qi asked, "Why isn't it fatal?"
Old Li put down the arrow and replied, "Because the so-called deadly poison may only paralyze mutant creatures."
If it is truly fatal, the dose is not something this small arrow can withstand.
"Maybe there's a poison that can kill mutants with just one drop, but it must be very rare. It's not something an old man like me can afford."
Old Li shrugged. "And it's also very troublesome to use."
Zhou Qi nodded. So the anesthetic used by Old Li should have been provided by Lin Zhen, right?
So...what about these arrows?
"Did you make these arrows yourself?" Zhou Qi's gaze fell on the basket of arrows again. Where did so much metal come from, and it could even pierce the skin of mutant creatures?
In these doomsday situations, who could produce these things, and how?
"I don't have that ability."
Old Li waved his hand and was about to continue speaking when Tang Yu'an interrupted him.
He took the lead and said, "We have changed your medicine. Can you tell us where we can get such a metal arrow?"
Old Li paused and looked at him strangely. He was just about to tell them.
But he continued, "Okay."
"It's a guy nicknamed Iron Gold. He has a gold-related ability and can produce these metal arrowheads."
"Of course, if you want it to be this sharp, you have to come back and polish it yourself." Old Li carefully put the metal arrowhead back in his hand. "If you need it, I can teach you how to polish it."
"Thank you, Grandpa!" Tang Yu'an immediately responded.
Old Li continued, "Tie Jin lives quite close to Lin Zhen's house. Go find Lin Zhen and ask her to take you there. Just tell her that I told you to."
[You completed a loss-making transaction with an old customer, experience point +1]
Non-physical exchanges are always considered to be losses in the system's judgment.
However, where there are people, there are rivers and lakes, and there are human relationships and social customs. It is completely worth it to use a little benefit to open up the situation.
Tang Yu'an recalled the principles his parents had taught him, ignored the system prompts, and then asked, "Should we just go find him directly?"
"Well, trade him some food." Old Li said, "Lin Zhen will take you there. He won't cheat you."
Then he roughly talked about the transaction price. Generally, five fresh fruits can be exchanged for a piece of metal as big as an arrow. If you want a more complex shape, you have to pay additional processing fees.
"If you have fresh meat, you can exchange it for more." Old Li continued, "As for salt and sugar, you'll have to negotiate with him yourself."
"Okay, I understand." Tang Yu'an nodded and asked again: "So you need to eat?"
"Of course this is necessary." Old Li nodded.
Tang Yu'an glanced at the arrows on the ground and said, "Can we trade food for a few arrows?"
"Do you have a crossbow?" asked Old Li.
Tang Yu'an shook his head.
Old Li said, "Without a crossbow, what do you need these arrows for?"
Tang Yu'an didn't know how to explain it, so he said, "Just change it first, it will definitely be useful in the future."
"Okay." Old Li agreed.
But he didn't expect that what Zhou Qi took out would be a bag of rice.
"Are you going to exchange this rice with me?" Old Li widened his eyes slightly.
These were very fine rices. He had eaten the salty rice porridge with a faint aroma of meat that day. Even now, when he thought about it, he still had endless aftertastes for it.
Zhou Qi nodded.
Both brown rice and wheat can be used as seeds. I exchanged fruits with Granny Guo at that price before, and it is not easy to sell them at a lower price now.
But 20 grains of brown rice for one arrow?
Old Li, who doesn't have the ability to stimulate plant growth, would be crazy to exchange with them at this price.
So it’s better to exchange it for refined rice. There is still a lot of rice and beans in the grocery store, and there is not enough space in the portable warehouse to store them. They will easily go bad over time.
Old Li has initially gained their trust, and Zhou Qi feels that they can come up with some good things.
Old Li licked his lips, his old eyes looking back and forth at the two teenagers, and finally asked, "Are you sure you want to take it out and exchange it?"
This bag of rice can be used to make porridge, which should be enough for a few days.
"Yes, use this rice in exchange."
Seeing his firm attitude, Old Li couldn't resist the temptation and finally agreed.
So Zhou Qi traded 100 grams of rice to Old Li in two parts, exchanging a total of 6 arrows.
Old Li didn't bother to think about why he had to do it in two batches. He poured the rice into a biscuit box he had picked up before, and returned the plastic bag to Zhou Qi.
His palms trembled as he stroked the white grains of rice, but he still felt it was extremely unreal.
Tang Yu'an and his friends did not lose money either, but they only made a profit of 4 points in the end, which was far less than the points earned from trading fruits.
But there is nothing we can do about it.
Fortunately, the transactions were completed, and I got 3 experience points. Together with the rewards for completing daily tasks, the total points were 12 points.
The deal was done, but they didn't leave immediately.
"Do you have any other questions?" Old Li closed the rice box and became more friendly to them.
Zhou Qi pondered, "Grandpa Li, how did you get the stone you gave us the other day? Do you know where else we can get a stone like this?"
They came out of the fortress, and according to this character setting, they should know the function of that kind of stone.
If he asked directly, it would definitely arouse Old Li's suspicion, so Zhou Qi needed to test him in a roundabout way.
He guessed that this stone was good for parasites and might even enhance the power of supernatural powers, but since he knew of the existence of parasites, he couldn't use it casually to verify it.
Therefore, it is better to try it out clearly.
Old Li looked at him carefully and said, "You can't use that crystal stone, right?"
Crystal? So blue represents water? He can't use it because only people with the corresponding attribute can use it?
"But it is very valuable." Zhou Qi said ambiguously.
"Indeed." Old Li pursed his lips. "Anyone outside who wants to enter the fortress must hand in at least three crystals. This was the rule in the past. Is it still in place now?"
Zhou Qi felt that once this rule was formed, it would be unlikely to be abolished, so he nodded.
Old Li sighed and said, "This kind of thing is hard to come by. I can only say that those who are lucky can pick it up on the road."
Hearing this, Zhou Qi couldn't help but look at Tang Yu'an.
Tang Yu'an smiled. It seemed that he was indeed lucky. He picked up a glass bottle, and there happened to be a crystal stone in it - although it was a very small one.
"Grandpa, can I use this crystal?" Tang Yu'an asked.
Hearing this, Old Li couldn't help but glare at him.
"You can't..." He paused, then said, "The elders in your family didn't teach you, so they naturally have their reasons. You just have to be obedient."
So, Grandpa Li could tell that he had no parasites in his body... or no superpowers?
Tang Yu'an thought about it and showed a sad expression.
Seeing this, Old Li quickly comforted him, "You are still young, and there is still a chance for you to awaken. If you don't awaken, even if you have more crystals, it will be useless and may even cause danger."
"Then how do you use this crystal? Do you eat it directly?" Tang Yu'an asked.
"No, you can't eat it!" Old Li said seriously, "Even if you awaken your superpowers in the future, you can't swallow the crystal directly. You must control this desire."
"Why?"
“You’ll die.”
Tang Yu'an widened his eyes, and Zhou Qi's expression also froze.
Old Li looked at Zhou Qi and said sternly, "I don't know your background or specific circumstances, but since you've awakened your abilities and are still out there training, you should have received relevant training in the fortress."
"As an older brother, you should at least tell your younger brother such important information, even if he is still an ordinary person."
Obviously, Old Li thought that Zhou Qi had settled the matter with Tang Yu'an secretly.
Tang Yu'an opened his mouth, but his hand was held down. He turned his head to look at Zhou Qi, and after receiving the message conveyed in his eyes, he had to shut his mouth and calm down.
"It's my fault." Zhou Qi admitted it directly.
Old Li finally relaxed his expression and looked at Tang Yu'an again, saying with some concern, "People who have just awakened will crave crystals with corresponding attributes, but they must not be controlled by this desire."
"Once you swallow the crystal, there's a high probability that your body will explode and die. Even if you manage to survive, you'll become a half-human, half-ghost. So you absolutely can't do this!"
"Okay, grandpa, I understand!" Tang Yu'an quickly said that he would never do that.
"Even if you've been awakened for many years, it's still dangerous to swallow the crystal directly." Old Li continued, "You can only carry the crystal with you. If it has the corresponding attributes, your body will slowly absorb it and slowly increase your strength."
He thought for a moment and then warned, "When you first awaken your superpowers, don't rush to improve them. Let them settle down and adapt for a few years. Even without crystals, your superpowers will gradually increase over time."
At this point, Old Li didn't say anything more.
Tang Yu'an quickly said, "Thank you, Grandpa, for telling me this."
He knew that Old Li told him such important information out of his love for him. Feeling this kindness, he felt warm in his heart.
"This is for you. You need to get better soon."
Tang Yu'an took out a small bag of rock sugar and put it into the basket next to him before Old Li could react.
You completed a loss-making transaction with an old customer.
"Then Grandpa Li, we'll go find Sister Lin first and come back to see you tomorrow."
After saying that, Tang Yu'an pulled Zhou Qi away.
When Old Li saw him drop the candy and run away, he wanted to catch up with him but couldn't, so he had to give up.
Just like yesterday, he stood by the window and watched their figures gradually disappear into the distance.
-
When they got to a place where Old Li couldn't see them, Tang Yu'an secretly took out the umbrella. They stayed at Old Li's house for a while. Unexpectedly, as soon as they came out, they found that the sunlight was even stronger.
When he could no longer feel the sun, Tang Yu'an said, "Brother Xiaoqi, Grandpa Li just..."
"Well, he's concerned about you. I'm fine." Zhou Qi shook his head. "It's all thanks to you that I was able to get such important information."
What Old Li said just now contained a lot of information, and they could already infer that perhaps every person with superpowers has a parasite in his body.
It was the parasites that transformed their bodies and gave them superpowers.
Recalling the conversation just now, Tang Yu'an said somewhat strangely: "According to Grandpa Li, people who awaken superpowers seem to only desire crystals with corresponding attributes, but..."
Whether it's a crystal stone or a gold crystal stone, Xiaoqige has a reaction! Could it be that he has awakened the dual elements of water and gold?
But didn’t Grandpa Li say that Brother Xiaoqi is not a water type?
A new mystery is born.
Zhou Qi thought for a moment and guessed, "Perhaps the information Grandpa Li knows is not entirely accurate. After all, he has been away from the fortress for many years."
"Hmm." Tang Yu'an said again, "Then do you want to take a crystal stone and put it on your body?"
Zhou Qi thought about it and shook his head: "Not for now. The crystal stone is used to enhance my abilities, and I think it will also indirectly enhance the parasite. I will wait until I am completely unaffected by it before I decide."
"good!"
Tang Yu'an encouraged him, "Don't worry, Xiaoqi. Look, Grandpa Li and Granny Guo both have special abilities, but they are alive and well. You will definitely be fine too."
"Yeah." Zhou Qi nodded, "Where are we going next?"
"Let's go to Granny Guo's house first."
Anyway, the distance to Grandma Guo’s house is not far, and we will get there soon.
Although Granny Guo no longer sells fruit to the public, as mentioned before, they still focus on completing daily tasks and getting full experience points, even if they make a loss.
After a while, they arrived at the platform of the air vent of Grandma Guo's house, but found no response after shouting.
Looking at the map again, the two small light spots were indeed here. Zhou Qi carried Tang Yu'an on his back and turned to the entrance of another passage. Sure enough, he found Granny Guo and Kang Kang in a shadow near the entrance.
The old man was struggling to drag a plastic box from the sun into the shade.
In the sunshine, dozens of rice seedlings planted in plastic boxes swayed in the wind, their green leaves stretched out, looking full of vitality and hope for new life.
Kang Kang also ran out of the house and was helping to drag the box, his little face flushed red from holding it in.
"Grandma Guo! Kang Kang!" Tang Yu'an spoke first.
Hearing the familiar voices, Grandma Guo stopped, looked up and saw that it was them. Her wrinkled face was full of wrinkles as she smiled.
And Kang Kang clapped his hands happily: "Brother! Brother!"
Tang Yu'an jumped off Zhou Qi's back, ran over and touched the child's head. Kang Kang squinted his eyes happily, looking as cute and obedient as a kitten.
Zhou Qi took the initiative to help and moved Grandma Guo's rice box into the shade.
The box was filled with soil and water and was very heavy, but he dragged it effortlessly and could even lift it easily.
The parasite in his body seemed to be constantly transforming his body.
"Thank you. I'm sorry to bother you."
Grandma Guo said this with a smile, then turned around and took out two fruits from the backpack beside her, and stuffed one into the hands of each of the two boys.
"Are you thirsty? Eat some fruit to quench your thirst."
[Employee Zhou Qi completed a profitable transaction with a regular customer, earning +16 points and +1 experience point]
Tang Yu'an held the fruit and looked at Zhou Qi in surprise.
"What's wrong? Why don't you eat?" Seeing their strangeness, Grandma Guo asked curiously.
"We just came from Grandpa Li. He said that you won't have any fruit to trade for a long time." Tang Yu'an said truthfully.
"That's someone else, how can you be the same?" Granny Guo finally regained her smile and said, "Hurry up and eat, we still have some."
Tang Yu'an and Zhou Qi looked at each other, but in the end neither of them took the fruit. Instead, they silently put the fruit back into Grandma Guo's backpack.
Anyway, the points and experience points have been obtained, so it doesn’t matter if I return them to Granny Guo.
"We just need to drink water." Tang Yu'an said, then changed his mind and said, "I like this leaf. Give it to me."
He picked a leaf from another fruit.
In this way, it is equivalent to exchanging two fruits for this leaf.
[You completed a loss-making transaction with an old customer, experience point +1]
Hehe, in the blink of an eye, I got another experience point!
Granny Guo stared at him strangely for a few seconds, then shook her head: "Okay, take whatever you like."
"Hey, grandma, you're so nice."
Granny Guo couldn't help but laugh. She really couldn't understand the purpose of these two young men. They obviously came from the fortress, but they chose to settle in a remote and dangerous deserted city. After getting to know each other, they came to her house every day.
She knew that no matter how good the fruit she produced was, it would never be as good as the ones in the fortress.
It was impossible that these two young men simply liked to eat fruit, but she really couldn't think of any other purpose, so she could only attribute it to their kindness.
The two of them are fair-skinned with innocent and clear eyes. They had previously saved an old man named Li, whom they had never met before. They are indeed kind children.
She felt relieved when Kang Kang played with them.
"Grandma, these seedlings are growing well!" Tang Yu'an looked down at the rice in the plastic box and felt waves of fresh air coming towards him, making him feel refreshed.
Hearing this, Granny Guo smiled again.
"Yes, he looks very good."
Her special ability can only give birth to one plant at a time, and the vitality of the fast-growing seeds will decrease, and they will completely lose their reproductive ability after a few generations.
Therefore, she did not plan to use the purely rapid growth method for these dozens of rice plants. Instead, she planned to let them grow naturally and then use her special abilities to assist them, so that the rice could fully be exposed to sunlight, rain, and soil nutrients during the growth period.
This not only shortens the growth cycle, but also ensures that the harvested seeds still maintain sufficient vitality, and the grains will be fuller and more nutritious.
Dealing with dozens of rice plants at a time consumes a lot of her supernatural powers and energy, so during the rice planting period, she does not plan to use her supernatural powers on other plants.
Looking at these dozens of rice plants, Grandma Guo's eyes were full of brilliance.
"When can these rice be harvested?" Tang Yu'an asked curiously.
"Probably less than half a month."
"Then why don't you plant more, mother-in-law?" Tang Yu'an asked.
He knew that Granny Guo had already grown a rice plant to maturity and obtained a lot of seeds. In his opinion, it would be more efficient to plant more at one time.
Only dozens of plants were planted this time, and the final harvest might be only three or four kilograms of brown rice.
Assuming that you eat half a pound of brown rice a day, the brown rice grown in half a month will only be enough for about a week, and half a pound is still a lesser amount.
Granny Guo shook her head and said unhappily, "Do you think I don't want to? Planting also depends on the weather. The weather will get hotter and hotter, and rice needs a lot of water, so we can only plant a little bit at first."
After these dozens of rice plants mature, they will not be eaten immediately. The seeds will be preserved for future planting.
Fortunately, although this type of rice has a high demand for water, it seems to be more tolerant of high temperature environments than ordinary plants. Even though it is so hot now, they are still in good condition.
Next, she will screen the rice and keep the plants that are most resistant to high temperatures and require less water.
In this way, seeds are cultivated and preserved from generation to generation, and the most suitable ones are picked out in each generation, so as to strive to grow rice that can withstand drought and high temperatures in the future.
Although this process will be long and she doesn't know whether she can accomplish it in her lifetime, Granny Guo feels full of energy when she thinks of this goal.
What she wanted now was not only to feed Kang Kang, but also to leave him with something to rely on to have enough food...
"Yeah, I also feel like the weather is getting hotter." Tang Yu'an said, "So it wasn't just my illusion?"
Granny Guo came to her senses, looked at the boy and said, "This is the climate in this area. It's considered good now. You haven't experienced those two years..."
She could no longer remember when the catastrophe began, but she remembered that the weather around the world suddenly became very chaotic.
Earthquakes, tsunamis, floods, volcanic eruptions, snowstorms...all disasters that cannot withstand life have swept the world in just one or two years.
Just thinking back on it, Grandma Guo still feels a lingering fear.
Suddenly she thought of something and stared at Tang Yu'an and Zhou Qi: "Did you study in the fortress? Was there any history class?"
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Anzai: I did learn, but I wore... [sweating profusely.jpg]
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