Chapter 34 – New Employee—Chi Hao
Chi Hao opened his eyes and gazed at the dark, starless night sky above, a hint of confusion flickering in his eyes.
Feeling the cool evening breeze, he was momentarily stunned and quickly sat up.
“Hiss—”
Because he moved too abruptly, he pulled at his wounds and couldn’t help but gasp, pressing his palm against his chest, only to touch something strange.
What’s this?
He pulled open his clothes and saw a plastic bottle hanging around his neck. The water inside swayed with his movements, striking his wound.
“Hiss—it hurts…”
Chi Hao couldn’t help but close his eyes, veins popping on his forehead, his back instantly drenched in sweat.
However, the moment he closed his eyes, terrifying battle memories flooded his mind.
The beast’s unstoppable claws seemed to be right before him, about to tear him to pieces in the next second.
Chi Hao abruptly opened his eyes, confirming that there were no monsters around him, and then began to take deep breaths.
As fresh air continuously filled his lungs, he became absolutely certain that he was still alive and had escaped that hellish world of monstrous beasts.
He widened his eyes, then frowned in confusion.
In the void before him, a transparent light screen floated, emitting a faint glow. In the pitch-black night, it was so conspicuous that it was hard to ignore.
Was he hallucinating?
Chi Hao blinked forcefully, finally suppressing the dizziness and straining to read the words on the light screen.
To him, the characters looked incomplete, missing strokes, but he could barely understand them.
[The mysterious merchant intends to recruit you as a “Peace Grocery Store” shop assistant]
[Job duties: Assist the store owner in selling goods and managing the store]
[Salary: 10 points per month]
[Benefits: Accommodation provided, unlock the store exchange panel]
[Accept]?[Decline]
What is this?
Chi Hao wondered if he was truly hallucinating, or perhaps he was still in the center of the desolate city, trapped in a dream by some creature’s control.
He moved his head to the left, then to the right, and found that no matter how he moved, the light screen remained fixed in front of him, always following his gaze.
Feeling another wave of dizziness, Chi Hao stopped moving.
He temporarily ignored the light screen and looked around at his surroundings.
All around was pitch black, with only the starlight providing a faint glow, allowing him to see that he was in a wasteland. Judging by the sparse vegetation, he had indeed reached the outskirts of the desolate city.
Memories before he fainted gradually surfaced, and Chi Hao recalled everything.
He and Old Xie had ventured into the center of the desolate city to investigate, only to encounter wave after wave of mutated creatures.
The density of mutated creatures here surpassed any place he had been before—not just in numbers but also in terrifying high-level strength!
Among them, the one that severely injured him and left a deep shadow was a mutated tiger.
That colossal body like a small mountain, overwhelming aura, seemingly invincible speed and strength… When facing it, one would feel utterly insignificant.
Chi Hao judged that this mutated tiger had at least reached Level Seven!
Level Seven was already considered a high-level mutated creature, a monster that he and Old Xie couldn’t possibly contend with.
Moreover, besides this mutated tiger, there were even stronger existences in the center of the desolate city…
He had only caught a glimpse but felt his courage shatter—even facing a mutated beast above Level Seven, he didn’t have the courage to look directly.
Of course, to escape the mutated tiger’s pursuit, he didn’t have time to continue investigating.
Fortunately, only the mutated tiger chased him; other mutated creatures either watched from afar or avoided him, perhaps also intimidated by the tiger’s presence.
In any case, he didn’t suffer an even more terrifying siege.
Finally, after fleeing to the edge of the desolate city, the mutated tiger gradually stopped chasing him. When the terrifying sound of its footsteps disappeared, Chi Hao didn’t dare relax at all.
Because in his condition at that time, even an ordinary creature could have taken his life…
After all, animals that could survive in the wasteland, even if not mutated, had some level of aggression and were never docile.
His blood continuously flowed from his wounds, his life force rapidly draining away.
Just when Chi Hao felt his life was about to end, his foot stepped into the void, and he rolled down a large rock.
When he struggled to open his eyes, he saw a house with a sign that read “Peace Grocery Store.”
For such a grocery store to appear in the wilderness was indeed strange and eerie.
But perhaps it was a relic from before the catastrophe?
However, when he pushed the door open and entered with his weak body, he found that the grocery store was not just an empty shell.
Inside, there were shelves and refrigerators, and the shelves were filled with items. Someone must have cleaned and maintained it—it looked so clean that he felt as if he had returned to the fortress.
Moreover, the owner of the grocery store had a cat and a dog.
When he realized there were living creatures in the store, he picked up his gun, preparing for a possible attack, but soon realized that the cat and dog posed no threat.
They seemed like pets, powerless against his forced entry.
This was rare in the wasteland.
Even in the fortress, few people kept pets; besides the scions of big families, others kept pets for protection and to enhance their combat capabilities.
Although the cat and dog bared their teeth and were unfriendly to him, they didn’t show much aggression.
This grocery store exuded an eerie atmosphere from the inside out.
Despite feeling strange, Chi Hao had no other choice at that time.
In his condition, if he continued to stay in the wilderness, the smell of blood would sooner or later attract mutated creatures; even ordinary animals could take his life.
So he chose to hide inside the grocery store.
He successfully entered the house, did not encounter any expulsion or attack, but didn’t have the strength to do anything more. He couldn’t even search the house for any usable medicine.
He could only lie quietly, despairingly feeling his life slipping away, and soon lost consciousness…
At this moment, feeling the chilly night breeze, Chi Hao knew that he was not trapped in an illusion.
He looked again at the light screen that hadn’t disappeared.
A shop assistant for “Peace Grocery Store”… This strange thing must be related to that grocery store.
Chi Hao frowned deeply, enduring the waves of pain surging through his body, looked down at himself, and then found something unusual.
His clothes were severely damaged, the buttons undone, revealing clean bandages carefully wrapped around his body.
Chi Hao reached out and touched his clothes.
They were dry, completely unlike the blood-soaked mess before he fainted.
Moreover, he felt warm; the cold night wind didn’t penetrate his body. It seemed that two sources of heat were continuously emitting warmth, bringing him comfort.
Chi Hao laboriously pulled open his clothes and saw two unfamiliar white patches stuck to his torso.
The surface of the patches felt uneven, like white gauze, and whatever was inside was emitting heat.
It was these two things providing him warmth, making him feel no cold on this suddenly chilly night.
Also…
Chi Hao picked up the plastic bottle hanging around his neck. The bottle still retained a bit of warmth, and a note was stuck on it.
On the note were a few slightly childish words, scrawled and a bit crooked: [Safe to drink].
Three simple words, and one of them was misspelled.
Chi Hao couldn’t help but internally critique, but at least he could understand the three words and feel the goodwill from the writer.
Everything that had happened to him told him that during his unconsciousness, he had received proper treatment, and the other party had even left supplies for him.
Who saved him? Was it the owner of the grocery store?
Was it the grocery store owner who created this strange light screen, wanting to recruit him as an employee? But how did they manage to do this? What kind of magical power was this?
Chi Hao thought as he unscrewed the bottle cap. If it was really the grocery store owner, why did they go to the trouble of saving him only to throw him out here when he was about to wake up?
Since they valued him and wanted to recruit him as an employee, why do this? Didn’t the grocery store owner worry that he might encounter dangers in the wild? Nights in the wilderness were inherently dangerous, not to mention he was severely injured.
Could this be a test for him?
Chi Hao unscrewed the bottle cap, sniffed the contents, and, not detecting any pungent smell, cautiously touched his lips to the bottle mouth—
Since they had pulled him back from the brink of death, there was no reason to poison him now. So he chose to trust the message on the note.
Then, Chi Hao’s eyes lit up slightly.
It was high-concentration sugar water!
This was definitely something that could save his life.
A surge of desire rose within him, and he quickly lifted the bottle, taking a big gulp. Even though the movement pulled at his wounds, he didn’t stop.
The warm sugar water flowed down his esophagus into his stomach.
Chi Hao felt warmth spreading in his stomach, and energy gradually flowed into his limbs and bones, repairing his severely damaged body.
How fortunate to have such a good thing to drink at this time!
Chi Hao suddenly had a bit of confidence to face the dark night.
Then, while drinking the sugar water, he stared at the light screen, pondering.
So who exactly saved him? What kind of person could build such a grocery store in the wilderness? And… why was it located right at the desolate city?
As for the goods in the grocery store, Chi Hao didn’t think much of them. From what he saw, such items could be found in the fortress.
Although they might be hot commodities in the wasteland, he wasn’t someone who hadn’t seen the world.
He mainly wondered about the identity of the grocery store owner. Why would they open a grocery store in such a dangerous and sparsely populated place?
The desolate city…
He glanced toward the city center, feeling that something was unusual.
Could it be that some big shot discovered the secret of the desolate city and came here in advance to set things up? The grocery store owner might not be from Qingmu Fort?
Chi Hao analyzed in his mind, but ultimately couldn’t figure it out.
He pondered while vigilantly observing his surroundings.
He didn’t realize that the grocery store was actually only about a dozen meters away from him. After all, in the afternoon, he had stumbled upon it in a panic.
Now that night had completely fallen and visibility was limited, he couldn’t recognize the environment around the grocery store.
Moreover, in Chi Hao’s view, since the grocery store owner had thrown him out, it was unlikely they’d leave him near the store. With this kind of preconceived notion, he was even less likely to realize it.
Chi Hao re-capped the half-drunk sugar water.
The urgent matter was to find a safe place to hide; otherwise, when the night deepened, being exposed like this in the wild was extremely dangerous.
He looked around and soon saw a triangular area formed by two buildings leaning against each other—which was exactly where the Peace Grocery Store was located.
Under the concealment of the protective barrier, Chi Hao naturally didn’t discover the grocery store.
He stared in that direction, frowning slightly.
It seemed somewhat familiar…
For someone who could be dispatched on missions, he couldn’t possibly be directionally challenged. Chi Hao had an excellent memory, so he vaguely sensed something was off.
Chi Hao looked at the light screen again.
Letting this thing float in front of him wasn’t a solution; it could easily interfere with him. So what should he do?
Would the light screen only disappear if he chose to accept or decline?
After some hesitation, Chi Hao gritted his teeth and chose to Accept.
Although the sugar water and heat sources could support him for a while, if he encountered nocturnal predators, he could lose his life at any moment.
If he declined the invitation, he’d lose his last safeguard.
Since the grocery store owner had shown goodwill, he might as well take a gamble and accept the recruitment. Would they really ignore him? Perhaps they were watching him from the shadows!
It couldn’t get worse than his current situation anyway.
After Chi Hao chose Accept, he found that the light screen changed again, and a series of prompts popped up.
[Congratulations on becoming a shop assistant at “Peace Grocery Store”]
[Access to the “Peace Grocery Store” safety protection barrier is now open. Within the barrier, you will receive personal safety protection]
[Conditions not met; employee panel not yet activated]
[Please work hard. When you meet the requirements, the mysterious merchant will unlock the clerk panel for you, providing more benefits]
Safety protection barrier?
Chi Hao frowned. Could this thing protect him from harm by wild creatures?
Employee panel? Work hard to meet requirements?
But they didn’t tell him the specific requirements; how was he supposed to achieve them?
One question after another popped up in Chi Hao’s mind, but he quickly pushed them aside. He found that the glowing semi-transparent screen could be closed according to his thoughts.
Mind control? This was increasingly feeling like a hallucination…
After experimenting a few times and confirming that he could make it appear and disappear at will, and that there was nothing else special, Chi Hao gave up paying attention to it.
He focused again on the triangular area beneath the two buildings.
Ignoring the unsettling feeling in his heart, that place was concealed enough to serve as a hiding spot.
However, when Chi Hao struggled to stand up and took a step toward that area, he suddenly stiffened, his body freezing in place.
“Huff—”
The warm breath of a beast sounded in the silent ruins of the night.
A shadow enveloped him from behind, blocking out the last of the starlight.
Cold sweat oozed from Chi Hao’s forehead, slowly sliding down the side of his face. He instinctively reached for his waist but grabbed empty air.
He had noticed upon waking up.
His weapons had been lost during his escape!
Chi Hao was completely rigid, his heart pounding at an extreme rate, and the breathing behind him was getting closer.
A silhouette of a massive beast was cast on the ground.
It couldn’t end like this!
Chi Hao no longer cared about his injuries. He suddenly leaped and rolled to the side, throwing a flame from his hand into the darkness as he rolled.
At the same time, as he threw the flame, Chi Hao spat another mouthful of blood.
What made him feel even more despair was—the massive figure flickered slightly, easily dodging the blazing flame.
By the light of the flame, Chi Hao saw the creature’s appearance—a giant canine head with black and gold fur, topped with four golden eyes, staring coldly at him.
It was that Four-Eyed Dog!
Chi Hao was shocked; he knew this Four-Eyed Dog’s strength. Although its mutation level was assessed between Level 3 and 4, not yet formally a mid-level mutated creature, its speed was incredibly fast.
This should be its mutation ability. In terms of speed alone, Chi Hao felt that even the Level Seven mutated tiger might not match it!
Now, injured and alone, he couldn’t possibly be a match for this Four-Eyed Dog!
I’m doomed!
This thought flashed in his mind, prompting Chi Hao to activate his ability again. Spitting blood, he threw three more fireballs and then turned to flee for his life.
Today might be his unlucky day.
The Four-Eyed Dog didn’t chase him; perhaps with prey already in its mouth, it wasn’t interested in him?
In any case, Chi Hao didn’t dare linger.
He didn’t consider his injuries, running with all his might, quickly disappearing into the thick darkness of the wasteland ruins, vanishing without a trace.
*
Yuan Bao stood in place, watching the figure disappear into the distance.
It indeed wasn’t very interested in this human.
In the past, even if it had already hunted prey, it might still chase down and pounce on a human in the wilderness. After all, who would mind having too much prey?
Moreover, this human’s neck looked quite tempting. Sinking its teeth into his flesh and snapping his neck would probably feel satisfying.
But for some reason, it didn’t do so in the end.
Watching the human run away, it didn’t feel any urge to chase.
This guy’s attacks posed no threat to it, and his fleeing figure wasn’t enticing.
Even the smell of blood from him felt stinky, like rotten meat left out for over ten days, making Yuan Bao feel disgusted.
Such a two-legged creature wasn’t worth its time, let alone chasing.
The Four-Eyed Giant Dog shook its head, withdrawing its gaze. It first put down the prey in its mouth, then controlled its body to revert to the puppy form.
It liked this new form.
The juvenile body was more agile and light, and could save energy consumption. But the most important reason was…
The Four-Eyed Puppy dragged the prey to the grocery store door. Before it could push the door, the door opened, and a figure appeared inside, illuminated by the warm yellow light.
“Yuan Bao, you’re back!”
The boy’s surprised voice sounded. “Wow, you brought back prey again. Yuan Bao, you’re amazing!”
He praised it, his soft, tender palm landing on its head, gently rubbing.
Yuan Bao stood still. When the boy reached out to rub its head, it didn’t dodge or evade, but it didn’t lean in either.
It was a reserved mutated dog, not like that silly dog Yin Bi.
The Four-Eyed Puppy held its head high, looking proud, but its tail wagging so fast it left afterimages betrayed its inner joy.
It liked this small place and liked this small human.
Seeing Yuan Bao return, Tang Yu’an was delighted.
After bringing the little guy inside, he looked up at the map in the direction where Chi Hao had left.
When he had received the notification that the recruitment had been accepted, he was taking a bath, so he hadn’t checked immediately. When he finished bathing and came out, he saw Yuan Bao outside, and Chi Hao had already run off—
The encounter between Chi Hao and Yuan Bao hadn’t caused much commotion. Strictly speaking, it couldn’t be called a battle; Chi Hao had just thrown a few flames at Yuan Bao.
So Tang Yu’an and Zhou Qi were unaware of what had happened.
Since he had run away, should he directly dismiss him to erase his memory?
Tang Yu’an looked at the blue dot moving slowly on the map, feeling a bit conflicted. Being alone outside… could he be in danger?
Before dismissing him, Tang Yu’an opened the employee panel to glance at his employee data.
[Total number of employees: 2]
[Zhou Qi…]
[Chi Hao]
[Employee Level: lv0 (0/10)]
[Age: 25]
[Height: 187 cm]
[Skill: Fire Element Manipulation]
[Title: None]
[Comprehensive Ability: C ]
[Potential: S ]
[Special Status: Symbiotic State, Critically Injured (Health below 25%)]
This brother is so tall! And his ability is indeed fire-based. But the description “Fire Element Manipulation” is a bit broad; I wonder how strong he really is.
But his comprehensive ability is so low? Only C? Brother Qi’s initial comprehensive ability was A!
But his potential rating is pretty good…
Seeing the final status column, Tang Yu’an couldn’t help but widen his eyes. Chi Hao wasn’t in a parasitized state but… a symbiotic state?
What does that mean? Does it mean that in the end, abilities will enter a symbiotic state with the parasite?
Or is Brother Qi special, and only he is parasitized by the parasite, while other ability users have something in their bodies but are in a harmless symbiotic state?
One question after another popped up in Tang Yu’an’s mind as he stared blankly at Chi Hao’s employee data.
Then…
He watched as the words “Critically Injured (Health below 25%)” in his special status changed to—”Life-Threatening (Health below 10%)”
?
A question mark appeared above Tang Yu’an’s head. He opened the map to look and saw that the blue dot, which had been moving slowly, had indeed stopped.
What’s going on?
We just saved him, and now he’s dying again?
lmfao XD