Chapter 6: Zero-Yuan Shopping
Standing before the entrance of the supermarket, Chu Yang craned his neck to take in the building, his eyes instantly lighting up.
The spacious retail floor stretched deep inside, easily covering at least a thousand square meters. He licked his dry lips, his heart fluttering with eager anticipation. In a store this massive, even after several rounds of looting, there had to be something left behind.
The glass double doors were shattered into dense spiderweb fractures. A chilly draft blew out, carrying the faint, nauseating stench of rot. Near the entrance, three zombies wandered aimlessly, their withered fingers clawing at the empty air in an unsettling rhythm.
At the sound of footsteps, their milky, dead eyes snapped toward the two young men. Dragging their mangled limbs, they let out wet hisses and lurched forward.
“Perfect timing to break in my new blade!” Chu Yang gripped the hilt of his Tang dao, his palms sweating faintly. The moment the nearest monster stumbled within a meter of him, his wrist twisted with fluid precision. The steel flashed in a clean silver arc, biting cleanly into the gap between the vertebrae.
Crack!
With a crisp snap, the severed head detached and bounced across the concrete, rolling half a meter away. Dark, congealed blood splattered across Chu Yang’s pant legs.
“Man, this sword is amazing!” Chu Yang weighed the weapon with pure satisfaction, his fingers brushing along the cold steel. Turning back toward Jiang Jue, he could barely contain his delight. “It’s sharp, fast, and balanced so well. Taking them down like this is a hundred times easier than swinging that clumsy baseball bat—saves a ton of stamina!”
By then, Jiang Jue had already dealt with the remaining two without making a sound.
With smooth, practiced efficiency, he slid his blade back into its scabbard, the metal seating home with a crisp click. His posture remained entirely unbothered, as though nothing out of the ordinary had occurred.
“Let’s move.” Jiang Jue stepped past the fallen corpses with long strides, leading the way into the supermarket.
Chu Yang hurried after him, taking in the chaotic scene the moment he crossed the threshold.
Overhead chandeliers swayed gently from exposed wiring. Most of the bulbs had shattered, leaving jagged glass fragments dangling in the dim light. Abandoned shopping carts were strewn haphazardly down the aisles, several flipped onto their sides with their contents scattered across the floor.
The majority of the main shelves stood bare, some even knocked flat on their faces. However, a closer look revealed plenty of overlooked items hidden underneath the kickplates and jammed into forgotten corners.
“As expected from a megastore!” Chu Yang dropped to one knee, uncaring of the thick layer of dust coating the floor. He parted the debris beneath the lower shelves and began sifting through it systematically. “Judging by the mess, this place must’ve been raided a dozen times, yet there’s still this much left over!”
He muttered a running inventory under his breath as he searched: “Pickled cabbage noodles, braised beef, spicy beef, river snail noodles, hot and sour glass noodles…”
His hands moved quickly, stacking the packets together without minding the grime smudging his fingertips. “Wait, is this a sealed case hidden in the back? Today really is my lucky day!”
He tore open the taped cardboard box. Inside, twenty assorted instant noodle packs sat untouched in pristine condition. “Hit the jackpot!” Chu Yang grinned from ear to ear. With a quick sweep of his hand, the entire box vanished into thin air, transferred straight into his storage space.
Beneath another collapsed display rack, he unearthed three large vacuum-sealed bags of braised eggs alongside two plastic tubs of seasoned quail eggs.
Chu Yang swallowed hard, his throat tightening. Having had practically nothing to eat since the previous day, his stomach had been aching for hours. The rich aroma of the braised marinade made his mouth water uncontrollably.
Unable to wait another second, he ripped open a pack of eggs, popped four into his mouth one after another, and grabbed a loose can of Sprite off the floor.
Crack-fizz!
The sharp hiss of carbonation echoed loudly through the cavernous store. Chu Yang tipped his head back and downed half the can in one long, desperate gulp. The ice-cold soda rushed down his parched throat, sending a pleasant shudder through his body as sweet relief spread into his limbs.
“Ah… I’m finally human again!” Chu Yang let out a long, contented breath, followed by a hearty burp. He smacked his lips, savoring the aftertaste. “These eggs are seasoned just right. A little dry on their own, but they go down great with a cold soda!”
Meanwhile, over in the bulk grain section at the northwest corner of the floor, Jiang Jue discovered more than ten large fifty-pound sacks of rice and flour tucked behind an overturned shelving unit. The thick bags remained tightly sealed, completely dry and untouched by pests.
He raised his chin toward Chu Yang and gestured faintly. “Over here.”
“On it!” Chu Yang trotted over, holding two freshly peeled braised eggs in his palm, offering them eagerly to Jiang Jue. “Brother Jiang, grab a bite first. These eggs are surprisingly great—savory and tender. Try them!”
Jiang Jue looked at Chu Yang’s dust-streaked face for a moment, then down at the food resting in his hand. After a brief hesitation, he took them and chewed quietly.
“Store these,” Jiang Jue said, motioning toward the grain sacks.
“No problem at all!” Chu Yang answered cheerfully. With an easy wave of his arm, the heavy stacks vanished from the floorboards, neatly organized inside his storage dimension.
When he reached the frozen food section, however, Chu Yang’s face fell. The power had been out for days; the cuts of beef, raw seafood, and frozen dumplings inside the display cases had thawed and decomposed into a foul, green mold that gave off a sickening odor. He had no choice but to back away.
“What a waste of good food,” Chu Yang muttered, shaking his head with a sigh. “If the grid were still up, we could’ve eaten like kings for weeks.”
Putting the ruined food behind him, he continued clearing out the remaining aisles.
“Brother Jiang, do you want this bottle of shampoo? It’s anti-dandruff and soothing. We’re getting covered in zombie guts every day, so our hair’s going to need a serious wash!”
“Brother Jiang, look! A complete grooming kit with fresh blades! Shaving is going to be so much easier now.”
“Brother Jiang, this heavy stainless steel pot is solid. We can definitely use it for hot pot later—it’ll be amazing!”
“Brother Jiang, there are massive jugs of purified water over here! They’re fully sealed, enough to keep us supplied for days!”
Listening to Chu Yang’s endless chatter, Jiang Jue’s brow twitched with mild irritation. He genuinely couldn’t fathom how a grown man could talk this much, chirping away nonstop like an energetic sparrow.
Once they had cleared out the best food and daily necessities on the ground floor, the two climbed the motionless escalator up to the second-floor apparel department.
This floor was far less chaotic. Racks of summer clothing—dresses, short-sleeved shirts, and light polos—hung in neat, colorful rows.
Chu Yang’s eyes swept over the thin fabrics, and a specific detail from the novel suddenly crossed his mind: around the tenth day of the outbreak, a sudden temperature anomaly would cause the weather to plummet by dozens of degrees, kicking off an extreme cycle of harsh chills and blisteringly erratic seasons.
A shudder ran through him at the memory, and he pulled his thin hoodie tighter around his shoulders. He immediately began combing the racks, grabbing a few comfortable summer pieces before shifting his focus entirely to heavy winter gear.
“That’s weird…” Chu Yang searched through every rack, even checking the staff lockers and backroom storage, but came up completely empty on winter jackets, parkas, or wool coats. “Not a single heavy coat in the whole place? Did this store not understand how seasonal clearance sales work? Talk about bad business sense!”
In the end, he had to settle for a few sturdy tracksuits, heavy denim jeans, and thick flannel shirts, which were still far better than nothing.
Passing by the women’s lingerie aisle, Chu Yang found himself face-to-face with rows of delicate, lace-trimmed garments. He cleared his throat softly, his ears flushing a faint pink, and quickly averted his gaze to head for the men’s basics instead.
He gathered several packs of standard cotton underwear. Just as he was about to store them, his eyes landed on a pair of bright, fiery red boxer briefs sitting right in the center of a display.
“Brother Jiang,” Chu Yang couldn’t resist holding them up, waving the vivid red fabric with a mischievous grin. “Check this out! Such a lucky, festive color. Want a few pairs for good fortune?”
Jiang Jue turned around, his eyes settling on Chu Yang, who was grinning brightly with a look of pure mischief.
Walking over with measured steps, Jiang Jue bypassed the red pair entirely. With his long fingers, he tapped a pack of charcoal-gray boxers hanging right beside it—two sizes larger. “No need. This size and color will do.”
Chu Yang looked between the size Jiang Jue had pointed out and the one in his own hand, muttering under his breath, “Two sizes bigger… really?” He puffed his cheeks out slightly in mild defiance. “Tag sizes don’t prove anything. For all you know, mine’s bigger anyway!”
Jiang Jue paused. Turning his head, he gave Chu Yang a long, inscrutable look, an unreadable glint in his dark eyes.
Chu Yang hadn’t expected his quiet remark to be heard so clearly. Heat rushed straight to his cheeks. He hurriedly turned away, pretending to inspect a nearby clothing rack while keeping his mouth firmly shut.
“We have enough here. Let’s move,” Jiang Jue said, scanning the rest of the floor.
Chu Yang took a moment to check his mental storage space. With a quick count, he found it was barely half full.
He pointed toward the upper stairwell. “Brother Jiang, I still have plenty of room left. Looks like there’s a third floor up there. Want to check it out? There might be more useful stuff!”
Seeing the hopeful gleam in the young man’s eyes, Jiang Jue hesitated for a brief second before offering a subtle nod and heading toward the stairs.
Up on the third floor, they found an expansive furniture showroom. Plush leather sofas, elegant dining sets, and high-end bedroom displays were laid out in tidy vignettes—all items that would have cost a fortune before the collapse.
Chu Yang’s attention was immediately captured by a massive luxury mattress sitting in the center of the showroom. Walking over to check the tag, he let out a sharp whistle—the printed price read an absurd ¥9,999,999.99.
“Man, is this thing stuffed with solid gold or built with built-in massage motors? Why on earth was it that expensive?” Chu Yang walked a full circle around it, pressing down with his palms. The surface yielded with incredible softness while providing firm, bouncy support. “At that price, only an idiot would’ve bought it before the apocalypse. No wonder it stayed on the floor!”
He grinned triumphantly. “Well, since it never sold, it’s mine now!”
Raising his hand, he channeled his power and stored the ridiculously priced mattress into his space, sweeping up the matching solid wood frame along with it. Sleeping on this would be infinitely better than lying on a hard concrete floor.
As for the heavy leather sectionals and grand dining tables, he considered them briefly before passing. Large furniture took up too much volume. When trying to survive on the move, bulky items were dead weight—it was far smarter to keep space open for food and water.
Turning back toward Jiang Jue, Chu Yang smiled broadly. “Brother Jiang, we made out like bandits today! Food, daily essentials, and proper bedding are all covered. These supplies should keep us comfortable for a good while. Shall we head back?”
Jiang Jue offered a slight nod. Side by side, the two made their way out of the looted supermarket, setting off into the streets toward their temporary shelter.
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