Chapter 25 – A Single Draw Can Create Miracles!
The mutated lantern fruit had an outer skin that was nearly transparent, appearing fragile but possessing a flexible feel to the touch. If it were larger, it might even be used as cloth.
Inside the fruit was a hollow space, resembling a uniquely shaped lantern. Through the fruit skin, one could vaguely see a round fruit ball hanging in the center.
It was this round little ball that emitted a faint glow, like the wick of a lantern. However, under the bright sunlight, this glow was almost imperceptible, making it seem unremarkable except for its unique shape.
Tang Yu’an hadn’t expected that this fruit was worth 49 credits, equivalent to three or four sweet fruits.
Looking at the child’s innocent and affectionate gaze, full of trust, Tang Yu’an felt a bit embarrassed.
The value difference was too great; he felt like he was tricking a child.
“Kang Kang, is your grandma home?” Tang Yu’an asked, already knowing the answer.
Kang Kang shook his head, “Grandma went out!”
“Can we come in and sit for a while?” Tang Yu’an gently coaxed. With Granny Guo not at home, it would be easier to conduct transactions with Kang Kang.
The child nodded without hesitation, “Yes!”
Then, Kang Kang climbed over the stone and made way through the skylight, allowing Tang Yu’an and Zhou Qi to climb into the house.
Inside the nearly sealed room, with several plants growing, it felt refreshingly cool, with only some heat seeping through the cracks in the walls.
“Kang Kang, have you had lunch?” Tang Yu’an asked.
The child shook his head, “Waiting for Grandma.”
Tang Yu’an patted his head and asked, “Do you have a drinking cup?”
Kang Kang nodded, then ran to a corner and brought out a cup. It looked like a thermos, somewhat old, not sure where they had found it.
“Brother, water…”
Tang Yu’an took the thermos and shook it, hearing the sound of water inside. He guessed Kang Kang thought he wanted to drink water, so he brought it for him.
“Kang Kang is so good.”
He opened the thermos and found the water inside still slightly warm, but it looked a bit cloudy.
In this apocalyptic world, there was naturally no clean tap water. Realizing they could exchange unlimited water from the grocery store, they were truly fortunate.
This murky water, of course, Tang Yu’an wouldn’t drink.
He glanced at Kang Kang, then closed the thermos and quietly handed it to Zhou Qi.
Understanding his intention, Zhou Qi took the thermos to a corner, turning his back to Kang Kang, and secretly poured all the water onto the soil where mushrooms were growing.
Then, using drinking water from the portable warehouse, he washed the cup and poured in 20 grams of glucose that Tang Yu’an had exchanged, adding hot water and stirring until it dissolved.
The child was weak and malnourished; glucose water would be easier for him to absorb. As for the 20 grams of glucose, it only cost 2 credits.
After the glucose dissolved, Zhou Qi added cool boiled water to lower the temperature. After tasting to ensure it was suitable, he handed it back to Tang Yu’an.
While Zhou Qi was preparing the glucose solution, Tang Yu’an kept Kang Kang engaged in conversation.
He discovered that Kang Kang might be older than he appeared, but due to malnutrition, his development was slow.
From his fragmented words, he pieced together some information.
After they left yesterday, Granny Guo accelerated the growth of a stalk of brown rice, and the result was impressive. In Kang Kang’s words:
“So much! So much! Rice!”
He excitedly pulled Tang Yu’an to see the jar where Granny Guo stored the grain seeds.
“Brother, look! So much! So much!”
Holding the jar that Kang Kang handed over, Tang Yu’an didn’t know whether to laugh or cry.
This child really didn’t treat him as an outsider at all.
He looked down at the seeds in the jar.
These seeds were probably collected by Granny Guo from the accelerated rice plant. They were plump and emitted a faint fresh plant fragrance, clearly very fresh.
They were all stored in a plastic jar, estimated to be about 2,000 grains.
Counting by the number of seeds, it was indeed a lot, but in terms of weight, it was only about 30 or 40 grams, roughly a third of a bowl of rice.
Relying solely on abilities to accelerate growth, if Granny Guo and Kang Kang wanted to eat their fill, they still had a long way to go. It was unknown how Granny Guo planned to proceed, whether she would open up farmland later…
This was a problem that Granny Guo needed to solve. Since she hadn’t actively sought help, Tang Yu’an didn’t plan to interfere.
After looking for a moment, he asked Kang Kang to put the plastic jar back in its place and reminded him not to show it casually to outsiders.
This was the hope for Granny Guo and Kang Kang’s future; it should be properly preserved.
Kang Kang nodded in confusion.
At this time, Zhou Qi returned with the thermos. Seeing his serious manner in educating Kang Kang, he seemed to recall something and a slight smile curved his lips.
Just as Tang Yu’an was about to take the thermos, he saw the smile on Zhou Qi’s face and couldn’t help asking, “Brother Qi, what are you smiling about?”
“I remembered when you took me to see Uncle Tang’s stash of private money in a cookie tin when we were kids.”
“…”
Was there a need to remember such embarrassing stories?
Tang Yu’an pretended not to understand what he was saying, took the thermos, and turned to Kang Kang, “Do you want to drink some water? If you give me another lantern fruit, I’ll let you drink.”
Kang Kang wasn’t particularly thirsty, but he liked this pretty, cheerful big brother who loved to smile and play with him.
So as soon as Tang Yu’an spoke, he hurriedly ran off, retrieved a ripe fruit that had fallen to the ground from under the lantern grass, and handed it over, “Brother, here~”
Perhaps because he had been talking more, his voice sounded soft and sweet, no longer as hesitant.
“Haha, good.”
Tang Yu’an handed the other lantern fruit to Zhou Qi, then opened the thermos and carefully fed the glucose solution to Kang Kang.
As soon as he tasted the water, Kang Kang’s eyes lit up, “It’s sweet!”
Tang Yu’an chuckled, “Yes, it’s good, isn’t it?”
“Yes! It’s delicious!”
Only then did Tang Yu’an take the lantern fruit from his hand. After this operation, he gained another 49 credits and 1 experience point.
Then, Tang Yu’an said, “Kang Kang, if you give me another lantern fruit, I’ll let you drink more sweet water.”
“Okay.” He ran off again and brought back another lantern fruit, “Brother, here.”
“Good, good.”
After feeding him water and completing the transaction, the system interface in front of Tang Yu’an once again displayed a prompt of gaining 49 credits. In this way, he had obtained a total of 147 credits and 3 experience points!
Tang Yu’an once again took the thermos away, pointed to Zhou Qi, and said, “This is Brother Zhou. Call him, and I’ll let you drink sweet water.”
“Brother Zhou…”
Facing Zhou Qi, little Kang Kang wasn’t as relaxed, and he timidly called out, then received another serving of sweet water from Tang Yu’an.
Tang Yu’an repeated this process several times. Kang Kang thought he was playing a game and happily cooperated, calling out more and more smoothly.
In the end, Tang Yu’an triggered three loss-making transactions.
Beyond that, the system no longer counted, and these three times were just counted without any experience points, which had happened before.
“Brother Qi, why do you think that is?”
Zhou Qi thought for a moment and guessed, “Could it be related to achievement titles?”
“Yes, that’s very possible!”
Only then did Tang Yu’an remember this, but there was no display on the achievement title interface. He could only see the profit and daily combo achievement titles and corresponding rewards.
Maybe special titles were hidden and only displayed when achieved?
Since there was no way to verify, after discussing with Zhou Qi for a bit, they could only set it aside for now.
He looked at the child and said, “Kang Kang, can you give me the thermos?”
Kang Kang nodded and returned the thermos to him. As a result, Tang Yu’an said, “These three mutated lantern fruits are also for you.”
Without waiting for a response, he stuffed the fruits back into the child’s hands. Sure enough, the system did not display any prompt, neither indicating a loss nor deducting his credits.
This was probably the benefit of the intelligent system being in sleep mode?
Little Kang Kang held the fruits, somewhat at a loss as he looked at him.
Tang Yu’an smiled and said, “Give me more tomorrow.”
Hearing that he would come again tomorrow, Kang Kang instantly forgot any unhappiness and nodded vigorously.
“Okay!”
Then he put the three lantern fruits back where they belonged and sat on a small stone.
At this time, however, Tang Yu’an handed the thermos back to him, letting him drink the water himself.
Kang Kang felt that the big brother might be playing a game with him, so he didn’t mind, happily holding the thermos, sipping the sweet water, feeling warm inside and no longer sleepy.
When there was about half a cup left, he stopped drinking.
It wasn’t that he couldn’t finish it, but he wanted to save some for Grandma. This water was different from what he usually drank; not only was it sweet, but it had an indescribable feeling.
In any case… it was delicious!
When would Grandma come back? He missed her a bit.
If it were a normal day, Kang Kang could only nestle beside the lantern grass, quietly waiting for Grandma to return.
But today was different.
Today, he had two brothers accompanying him!
Kang Kang put down the thermos and then pulled Tang Yu’an to look at the lantern grass.
The mutated lantern grass was Kang Kang’s favorite plant because he could sense its emotions. When he talked to it, it would respond, so he didn’t feel lonely staying here alone.
This was his most important friend.
Brother Tang also liked the lantern grass, so they were all good friends!
Before long, there was a noise at the entrance.
“Grandma!”
As soon as he heard the sound, Kang Kang immediately called out and ran with his short legs to wait at the entrance.
Soon, a tired but spirited Granny Guo came in through the entrance and appeared before them.
Seeing Tang Yu’an and Zhou Qi, unlike her guardedness yesterday, Granny Guo was momentarily stunned, then showed a pleased expression.
“Oh, it’s you. When did you arrive?”
“Not long ago,” Tang Yu’an greeted her with a smile, “Sorry to bother you, Grandma.”
Granny Guo quickly shook her head, “I’m happy that you came to accompany Kang Kang.”
After saying that, she continued carrying the wooden bucket on her back, stepping heavily toward the water jar placed in the corner, with water dripping from the cracks in the bucket along the way.
Zhou Qi stepped forward to help. As she untied the bucket, he poured the water into the jar.
The water filled less than half a bucket, and even after pouring into the jar, it wasn’t much.
Granny Guo was already sweating profusely. After untying the bucket, her expression finally relaxed a bit, and she sat on a stone to rest, holding her waist.
“Grandma, drink…”
Little Kang Kang came to her side, holding the thermos, and handed it to her.
Granny Guo smiled and took it. After tasting the sweet, clear water in the cup, she was momentarily stunned, then looked up at Tang Yu’an and Zhou Qi.
“This…”
“Please drink, Grandma. In this hot weather, you must be exhausted.”
Looking at Tang Yu’an’s angelic smile, Granny Guo was dazed for a moment, then lowered her head and drank the warm water in the cup, one sip at a time.
After replenishing water and energy, she felt much better and then looked at the two boys, “Are you hungry? Would you like some fruit?”
Then she took two fruits and gave one to each of them.
Although, due to past experiences, Granny Guo was wary of people, she was also someone who knew right from wrong. These two children were so kind and generous to her and Kang Kang, and she wanted to repay them.
[You have completed a transaction with a regular customer and made a profit. Credits +16, Experience +1]
“Thank you, Grandma!”
Tang Yu’an accepted it with a smile, then looked at Zhou Qi, wanting to leave the remaining transaction opportunity for him.
Brother Qi could only gain 1 employee experience point per transaction, and loss-making ones didn’t count. Today, he mainly interacted with Grandpa Li, and only gained 2 experience points from transactions with him.
Now his experience bar was at 9/10; one more profitable transaction, and he could level up.
Understanding, Zhou Qi first put away the fruit, then said, “Granny Guo, let me help you carry a few more buckets of water.”
While the Lightfoot Technique was still in effect, it would be convenient to carry water.
Granny Guo was about to decline when she heard him say, “Let’s exchange for fruits; we need them.”
She hesitated for a moment but then nodded.
Yesterday, she had already tried it; the brown rice seeds were good. As long as she continued planting, she could surely let Kang Kang have enough to eat.
But the brown rice required a lot of water, using up all the water they had stored.
That’s why she went out to fetch water today. Who knew that the previous place she fetched water from was occupied by a few wild dogs; she didn’t dare get close and had to go further to get water.
She made two trips in the morning, and with the bucket leaking, she only filled half the jar. After settling and filtering, the usable portion wasn’t much.
“Then sorry to trouble you,” Granny Guo said, “You can have as many fruits as you want.”
Zhou Qi picked up the wooden bucket and walked out. Granny Guo wanted to tell him where to fetch water, but he said, “I know where to find water.”
“Brother Qi…”
Tang Yu’an followed him but was stopped by Zhou Qi, “Wait here; I’ll be back soon.”
Tang Yu’an had to stay, watching him leave with the bucket, keeping an eye on the map to monitor his situation, and waiting anxiously.
*
On the way here, Zhou Qi had observed that there were many low-lying areas in the ruins with accumulated water, and some damaged houses also had collected rainwater.
But these were all stagnant waters, not only dirty but also breeding mosquitoes and parasites.
Even boiling such water might still cause problems; it wasn’t even suitable for watering indoor plants.
Besides that, Zhou Qi had also seen a pond.
That pond seemed to be living water, connected to underground streams, so it appeared much clearer.
Although the pond attracted many animals, and there were unknown creatures swimming in the water, and the journey was farther, considering the protection of the Shadow Umbrella, Zhou Qi ultimately chose this place.
Around the pond, plants were lush, looking vibrant and full of life, which made Zhou Qi feel nervous.
This might be what Granny Guo had mentioned before: the closer to the city center, the more luxuriant the plants grow, and the more dangerous creatures there are.
Fortunately, he had the Shadow Umbrella.
This umbrella was stored in the No.1 portable warehouse, accessible to both of them.
No creatures detected his approach, and only some small animals were startled when he filled the bucket with water.
But since he was fast enough, no creatures had time to get close to him.
However, just after he ran away, a stream of water shot out from where he had just been, finally hitting a low wall by the pond and piercing a hole.
It was imaginable what effect that water stream would have had on a living being.
Watching the flying dust and the ripples spreading on the water’s surface, Zhou Qi was secretly alarmed and more aware of the pond’s danger. He didn’t dare linger and quickly carried the bucket back.
Because he returned quickly, the bucket was still full. After making another trip, he filled the water jar.
He seemed so relaxed that Granny Guo re-evaluated his abilities and didn’t dare to neglect them further.
She took out some fruits, but Zhou Qi and Tang Yu’an didn’t take more—they needed to save some for future transactions.
In the end, Zhou Qi exchanged the two buckets of water for two mutated lantern fruits from Granny Guo, gaining 98 credits and 2 experience points.
This was a transaction between Zhou Qi and Granny Guo; Kang Kang didn’t interfere.
As for the mutated lantern fruit, besides emitting light, Granny Guo wasn’t sure what other uses they had.
When she first discovered them in the wild, she had tasted them; the fruit skin was very tough, making it hard to chew.
And the fruit ball inside not only tasted extremely bitter but also seemed slightly poisonous. After eating a little, she had diarrhea and didn’t dare try again.
But since Kang Kang liked them, she transplanted one back home, just reminding him not to eat it. Kang Kang was obedient and didn’t eat randomly, and he would actively take care of the lantern grass.
Unexpectedly, under Kang Kang’s care, the plant grew bigger and bigger, completely different from the ones in the wild.
It eventually grew as tall as a small tree, and the fruits began to emit light, like little lanterns, hence the name “lantern grass.”
Granny Guo knew that this plant had probably mutated, but besides the fruit emitting light, it didn’t seem to have any other special features.
She had tried trading them with Grandpa Li and others; the fruits that emitted light at night were quite popular. So when Zhou Qi made the request, she readily agreed.
“Although these fruits emit light, after leaving the plant, they only last for half a month.”
Granny Guo said, “If you want more, you can tell me… tell Kang Kang.”
“Yes!” Little Kang Kang nodded vigorously.
“Alright, alright.” Tang Yu’an agreed with a smile, “If we need more, we’ll come to you and Kang Kang.”
Each fruit was worth 49 credits!
Rounding up, two fruits could be exchanged for a special cold medicine or a basic healing bandage.
Looking at the immature fruits on the mutated lantern grass, Tang Yu’an’s eyes sparkled, as if seeing a large amount of credits beckoning to him.
*
After playing with little Kang Kang for a while, when Granny Guo started preparing lunch, they took the initiative to say goodbye.
By this time, the effect of Zhou Qi’s Lightfoot Technique had long ended, and they returned to normal human speed.
They were not in a hurry, holding up the Shadow Umbrella, leisurely finding a cool place to sit and drink water and eat.
The Lightfoot Technique had two uses left, but it seemed wasteful to use it just to rush back to the grocery store for lunch and rest. They decided to solve their needs outdoors.
“Alas, I’ll have to wait until evening to eat my stir-fried meat,” Tang Yu’an sighed.
Zhou Qi patted his head comfortingly.
“Next time before we go out, we’ll prepare lunch and dinner and put them in the portable warehouse, so we can eat them anywhere.”
“Okay!”
Tang Yu’an agreed; after all, food placed in the portable warehouse remained as it was, tasting fresh and delicious, without spoiling.
He quickly cheered up.
He took out two cans of cola and creamy meat floss bread. The cola had been chilled in the refrigerator before; even now, it was still cold. He took a big gulp and let out a satisfied sigh.
In such hot weather, being able to drink a cold cola was wonderful~
Then, while munching on the bread, he said, “Brother Qi, we’re almost out of bread.”
Bread had a short shelf life, and the store didn’t stock much. They found it convenient to eat bread when going out, so they consumed it quickly.
They didn’t have an oven, nor did they know how to make bread. If they wanted to eat it later, they might have to wait until the wholesale market was unlocked.
“Well, let’s see tomorrow. If there’s time, we can make steamed buns and dumplings,” Zhou Qi suggested.
There was still flour in the grocery store, quite a bit. When it was used up, they could exchange for wheat, but grinding it into flour would be troublesome.
Thinking of fresh steamed buns and dumplings, Tang Yu’an couldn’t help swallowing.
“Yes, yes, with the bird meat that Black Pearl brought us, we can make meat buns!” Just thinking about it made him drool. “Brother Qi, do you know how to make buns and dumplings?”
“Grandma taught me.”
“That’s amazing…”
After finishing lunch, Tang Yu’an felt a bit sleepy. He leaned against Zhou Qi, squinting his eyes and yawning.
“If you’re sleepy, take a nap.”
Under the Shadow Umbrella, the temperature gradually dropped to a comfortable level. Though the sun was blazing in the sky, under the umbrella, they seemed to be in a separate little world, cool, peaceful, and secure.
“Then I’ll nap for a bit.”
Having gotten up at six in the morning, Tang Yu’an indeed felt a bit exhausted. He hugged Zhou Qi’s arm and peacefully closed his eyes.
Zhou Qi looked down at him, then carefully draped his jacket over him.
Tang Yu’an snuggled closer into his arms.
Even in such a dangerous apocalyptic world, as long as he was by Brother Qi’s side, he felt completely safe and soon fell into a deep sleep.
When Tang Yu’an woke up again, more than half an hour had passed.
“Brother Qi, do you want to sleep for a while?”
“No, I’m not sleepy.” Zhou Qi stood up, stretching his slightly numb arm.
Tang Yu’an stretched lazily, held the Shadow Umbrella to stand up, and after the nap, he felt refreshed and energetic.
Remembering something, he quickly asked, “By the way, Brother Qi, did anything change when you leveled up?”
After the transaction with Granny Guo, Zhou Qi’s employee level had increased to Lv1; Tang Yu’an had received a prompt.
Zhou Qi glanced at the record.
[Congratulations! Your employee level has increased to Lv1. You need 19 experience points for the next level up. Please keep up the good work; working hard might earn the favor of the mysterious merchant and unlock more benefits!]
There was a prompt, but it seemed more like empty promises.
Tang Yu’an pouted, “This system is so stingy.”
“It’s okay.” Zhou Qi comforted, patting his head. “You’re the main one; it’s enough if your merchant level up brings benefits. I can just follow along.”
Seeing that Zhou Qi wasn’t upset, Tang Yu’an smiled, leaning on him, “Yes, after all, we won’t be separated. You can use everything I have.”
Zhou Qi rubbed his head, a slight smile appearing at the corner of his mouth.
Like this… he could be considered to have gained the favor of the mysterious merchant, right?
“What do you want to do next?” Zhou Qi looked at his watch. It was just after 2 p.m., four hours before six o’clock.
Tang Yu’an opened the task panel, “Continue to clear dangerous creatures?”
He had previously triggered the task [Clear Dangerous Creatures (2)], this time needing to eliminate 10, with rewards including 4 Lucky Wheel spins and a 30% discount card, which was quite worthwhile.
“By the way, I still have a lottery spin!”
He hadn’t used the draw from completing the daily tasks in the morning.
Rubbing his hands, Tang Yu’an excitedly said, “Watch me create a miracle with a single draw!”
Of course, he was just joking; how could he always be so lucky? Then he saw the pointer on the big wheel finally stop at…
[Congratulations! You’ve obtained a special item: “Happy Marble”]
Tang Yu’an: 0.0
