Chapter 99
Tang Yu’an stared wide-eyed at the system prompt.
20 Points per use, or 3000 Points to permanently unlock the teleportation function? They even charge Points for usage?!
Seeing Tang Yu’an’s strange expression, Zhou Qi asked, “What’s wrong?”
“Brother Qi, the system is so unfair!”
After hearing Tang Yu’an’s explanation, Zhou Qi couldn’t help but click his tongue. The 2000 Points for building a branch store offset the 2000 from completing the mission.
Activating the protective barrier costs 2000, activating the teleportation array costs 2000, connecting to the main store costs 2000, plus 3000 for permanently unlocking teleportation, totaling 9000 Points.
If they wanted to build a second branch store, without the support of side quests, then… even without activating the protective barrier, just enabling teleportation would cost 9000 Points?
“So expensive, so expensive, so expensive!” Tang Yu’an couldn’t help but complain.
Choosing 20 Points per use might be fine in the short term, but in the long run, after 150 uses, the 3000 Points permanent unlock would be more cost-effective.
As the first branch store, and located in the Desolate City stronghold, the teleportation array would certainly be used frequently…
But the problem was, the Grocery Store was still in its early stages, and Points were extremely important. Tang Yu’an couldn’t accept spending 9000 Points all at once.
“I wonder if we can change our choice after selecting?” Tang Yu’an pondered.
If it could be changed later, that would be fine. He could choose the first option for now, and switch to the second option after accumulating more Points.
“Luckily we didn’t upgrade the main store to level 2, otherwise we’d be completely out of Points now.”
Previously, when the store level increased to level 1, quite a few Points were deducted. So Tang Yu’an had been cautious – even though they had met the upgrade conditions, he planned to wait until after building the branch store to upgrade.
He never expected activating the teleportation array would be so expensive!
“If we choose the second option, how many Points will we have left?” Zhou Qi asked.
“A little over four thousand,” Tang Yu’an replied.
Although that wasn’t a small amount, he originally had over thirteen thousand! After saving for so long, they were back to square one in an instant!
Zhou Qi sighed and said softly, “Then let’s choose the second option.”
Points were earned to be spent. Having over four thousand left wouldn’t affect their normal lives, and from a long-term perspective, the permanent unlock was naturally more cost-effective.
In the future, when opening branch stores in remote locations that wouldn’t be used frequently, they could choose the first option.
Tang Yu’an also sighed, choosing to compromise.
He clicked on the second option.
[Points deduction successful! You can now use this teleportation array without restrictions]
With a whoosh, Tang Yu’an’s Points balance became 4258. Having just broken 10,000 not long ago, they were back to square one again. QAQ
But what’s done was done, and he quickly composed himself.
“Let me try this teleportation function!” Tang Yu’an said as he stood in the center of the teleportation array. Immediately, a system panel popped up.
[Do you want to teleport to the main store “Peace Grocery Store”?]
Tang Yu’an selected “Yes”.
The patterns of the teleportation array immediately lit up, and the young man’s figure quickly disappeared into the light.
When the light flashed, Tang Yu’an felt his vision blur, and then the scenery before him changed—
He appeared in the attic of his home, and beneath his feet, the patterns of the teleportation array glowed.
However, as the light of the teleportation array faded, the clear patterns began to blur and finally vanished without a trace.
Tang Yu’an crouched down to touch the attic floor, but couldn’t find any trace of the teleportation array.
Was the main store’s teleportation array always there, just hidden most of the time?
Tang Yu’an scratched his head, feeling somewhat relieved.
If they had to build a teleportation array for the main store too, that would be another 2000 Points! He felt his wounded heart finally received a bit of comfort.
But wait, wasn’t Brother Qi standing with him? Why didn’t he come over?
Tang Yu’an thought for a moment and opened the employee panel. Sure enough, he saw the “Teleportation Array” function on the authorization page. He quickly granted Zhou Qi permission to use the teleportation array.
Soon, the teleportation array beneath his feet lit up.
Tang Yu’an quickly moved aside and saw Zhou Qi appear before him.
He was delighted at first, then froze.
“Where’s Lili?”
Zhou Qi looked at the backpack behind him and also froze, “She was left at the branch store.”
Worried that something might happen to Jin Lili, Tang Yu’an and Zhou Qi quickly used the teleportation array to return to the branch store. As soon as they got back, they heard the little girl’s cries.
She was sitting on the ground, crying very sadly.
In the empty, unfinished room, there was only this little child, her cries echoing throughout the room.
Tang Yu’an quickly ran over and picked her up, “Oh, don’t cry, don’t cry, we’re here, we didn’t mean to leave you behind.”
Seeing Tang Yu’an return, Jin Lili cried even harder.
Her little hands tightly hugged the young man’s neck, her small face buried in his shoulder. Tang Yu’an comforted her for quite a while before she stopped crying, but she was still sniffling intermittently, looking even more pitiful.
Tang Yu’an gently patted her back, slowly lulling her to sleep.
The little girl curled up in his arms, still tightly clutching his clothes in her sleep, as if afraid he might run away.
Earlier, when she was left alone in this bare, empty room, it must have been quite scary. Tang Yu’an could understand her feelings.
So after the little girl fell asleep, he didn’t put her back in the backpack, but because his arms were sore, he still brought a chair from the Grocery Store to sit on.
Zhou Qi took out the gray-blue broom and sent it to clean the other rooms.
“From now on, the 10th floor will be our main activity area,” he said to Tang Yu’an, “This apartment has a teleportation array, we need to protect it carefully.”
They weren’t worried about anyone breaking in here, after all, from what they had seen earlier, people without permission couldn’t use the teleportation array.
What they feared was someone destroying the teleportation array, which would be a huge loss for them.
“We need to find a way to upgrade the daytime protection,” Tang Yu’an also said, “This apartment is so big, should we get some furniture to fill it up? At least we need two gray-blue refrigerators that can absorb heat, otherwise it’ll be hard to stay here during the day.”
Zhou Qi nodded, “I’ll go look for any refrigerators left from before the apocalypse.”
“But the branch store doesn’t have water or electricity, it’ll be troublesome to use appliances… Wait, since the gray-blue refrigerator can absorb heat and convert it into electrical energy, could it be used as a generator?”
Zhou Qi thought for a moment and decided to experiment with this later.
“Are all the rooms in this building unfinished?” Tang Yu’an asked, “Could there be any exceptions?”
“I’ll go check.”
“Mm, be careful.”
Tang Yu’an had already looked at the map. There were no dangerous creatures in the building, and very few animals or plants, but they couldn’t rule out the existence of mutant fungi.
Moreover, except for the 9th and 10th floors, the other floors hadn’t been reinforced, so they still needed to be cautious.
Zhou Qi nodded in agreement, then left the room.
Tang Yu’an stayed behind holding Jin Lili, and soon began to feel bored.
He looked down at Jin Lili in his arms.
In the system’s judgment, Jin Lili was still considered a customer, not turning into a pet like yesterday. If she remained in this state, she wouldn’t be able to enter the Grocery Store.
Tang Yu’an frowned slightly, feeling a bit troubled.
He opened the system panel and began to study it idly out of boredom. While browsing the store panel, he suddenly paused.
In the ruins of Desolate City, two people were chasing a wild dog, one in front and one behind.
They kept running through the ruins. The hot weather quickly drained their energy. Soon they reached a wide open area, where one of them shot an arrow that hit the wild dog’s hind leg.
The dog, which had been running fast, suddenly fell to the ground due to inertia, rolling several times before stopping.
The moment the dog stopped rolling, the other person raised a club and struck the dog’s head hard. The dog let out a yelp and then died.
Seeing their prey caught, the two finally collapsed on the ground, panting heavily.
Their skin was dark and red, long since sunburned by the scorching sunlight. The one with the club took out a knife from his pocket, cut open the dog’s fur, and began to drink its blood.
He was so thirsty that he would die of thirst if he didn’t replenish fluids soon.
Soon, his companion also crawled over and lay on the dog, gulping down its blood.
By the time the two finally recovered, their faces and hands were covered in blood. They carelessly scooped up sand and rubbed it on their faces to wipe away the remaining blood.
Then, the one holding the club pointed to the distance.
In the direction he pointed, there were two tall buildings leaning against each other, forming a triangular area below.
“A’Jian, let’s rest over there and get some shade.”
“Alright!”
A’Jian picked up the drained dog carcass from the ground and carried it on his back, then supported his companion as they headed towards the shaded area.
They were two ordinary people trying to make a living in Desolate City. Because they had offended someone in Jufeng Town, and the prey in Jufeng Mountain was becoming scarcer with more people competing for it, they had gritted their teeth and moved to Desolate City.
Although there was indeed more prey in Desolate City, it was also more dangerous, and their lives were still very difficult.
Fortunately, they were young and strong. As long as they could catch prey, they could still withstand the toll of hunting.
They were breathing heavily as they approached the triangular area step by step. However, the young man called A’Jian soon stopped in his tracks.
“Da Yan, look quickly, what’s that?”
Da Yan was using his club as a cane, his head dizzy from the intense sun exposure. Hearing this, he looked up, following his companion’s pointing finger.
They were already very close to the triangular area and could clearly see what was hidden below, partially obscured by huge rocks.
A rooftop was faintly visible.
The two men exchanged glances, suddenly energized.
They quickened their pace and soon saw a well-maintained house that looked strikingly out of place among the ruins.
There was even a sign hanging on top of the house, but they were illiterate and couldn’t read what it said.
All they knew was that through the open window at the front of the house, they could see carefully tended potted plants inside, and… goods displayed on wooden shelves!
Both men rubbed their eyes, wondering if they were seeing things.
After confirming this wasn’t a hallucination, they took a deep breath, unable to contain their excitement.
It looked like there were quite a few good things inside this little house!
Greed made them quicken their pace once again as they approached, but then… a snow-white figure suddenly appeared in the window.
It was a beautiful large dog they had never seen before. Its two front paws rested on the windowsill as it looked out with its mouth open, curiosity written in its dark eyes.
Before A’Jian and Da Yan could react, another golden figure appeared beside the white dog.
It was also a large dog, with golden fur. It sized up the two people outside, quickly baring its teeth and showing a fierce expression.
The two men were startled and stepped back.
However, as they got closer, they could see more of the scene inside the house, including many unfamiliar goods.
The two exchanged a glance, their fear quickly replaced by viciousness.
They were just two dogs after all, and it’s not like they had never hunted before! If they could take over all the good stuff in this house, their future life in Desolate City would be much better.
Of course, they didn’t rashly break into the house.
The two found a shadowy spot to crouch down, watching the two dogs at the window while guarding against their attacks and discussing their strategy.
Whether fortunate or not, the two dogs didn’t run out to attack them—
It wasn’t that Wang Cai was unwilling, but Tang Yu’an had given the pets instructions not to actively attack humans unless in danger.
Since A’Jian and Da Yan hadn’t forcibly entered or attacked them with weapons, Wang Cai could only bare his teeth in warning.
As for Yin Bi…
After curiously observing the two humans for a while, seeing Wang Cai baring his teeth, it quickly bared its teeth as well.
This undoubtedly gave A’Jian and Da Yan time to recover their strength, which was fortunate for the two who had just been through a hunt.
But with the shelter of the house, it would be difficult for them to kill these two dogs. They would need to lure them outside.
“What kind of person do you think owns these two dogs?” A’Jian asked in a low voice.
He had never seen dogs raised so well, with such shiny and majestic fur. They were clearly well-fed, which made envy and hatred flash in his eyes.
They lived such difficult lives, yet someone was using precious food and water to feed dogs? Where was the justice in that?
Da Yan was more rational. If not for these two dogs, they would have already entered freely.
This was precisely why the owner kept dogs.
Of course, this also made him more eager and greedy for the food stored inside.
“No matter who it is, we definitely can’t beat them head-on,” Da Yan said. “How could someone without great abilities have a house like this in the Wasteland, and raise two such beautiful dogs?”
“Judging by the dogs’ reactions, the owner must not be home. We need to act quickly before they return.”
A’Jian nodded, his heated mind finally cooling a bit. He asked, “What do you plan to do?”
Da Yan pulled some dried plants from his pocket.
“Is that dizzying grass?” Arrow said excitedly.
Dizzying grass, as the name suggests, is an herb that can cause dizziness in humans and animals, whether eaten or inhaled.
“The wind is blowing towards the house now,” Da Yan said softly. “We’ll light the dizzying grass upwind, and the smoke will blow into the house.”
A’Jian’s eyes lit up. “Once we stun those two dogs, we can go in and take the goods!”
With their current strength, even if they successfully lured the dogs out, subduing them would be difficult.
Now with the dizzying grass, it would be much simpler!
“Let’s start quickly then!” A’Jian urged.
Though he envied the owner of this house, he also knew that someone who could have such a house and two dogs in the Wasteland must be extraordinarily powerful.
So they had to stun the dogs and steal the goods before the owner returned.
“I’ll start the fire first.”
Da Yan picked up a stick and placed it in the sunlight, then rapidly spun an iron rod against it. With the high temperature, plants were already prone to spontaneous combustion, let alone with this friction.
Soon, the stick caught fire in the sunlight.
They moved the burning stick to the shade, then stood upwind and threw the dried dizzying grass onto the flames.
A thick smoke soon rose up, blown by the wind towards the Grocery Store.
The two covered their mouths and noses with rags, then kept fanning towards the Grocery Store. Soon, the grayish-white smoke enveloped Peace Grocery.
Plus, with the Grocery Store situated at a lower elevation, the smoke settled down, gradually becoming so hazy it was hard to see clearly.
“Woof woof!”
Wang Cai knew the two humans were up to something and barked angrily.
However, since they weren’t directly harming the dogs, all it could do was bark warnings.
Wang Cai barked anxiously, while beside it, Yin Bi had already started shaking its head, and after a while collapsed dizzily to the ground.
Perhaps due to its higher mutation level, Wang Cai’s symptoms weren’t as severe.
It shook its head and quickly quieted down, realizing that barking made it inhale more smoke, making it dizzy faster.
Wang Cai lay on the windowsill, its eyes peering through the thick smoke, staring intently at the two humans outside the Grocery Store.
“The barking has stopped!” A’Jian said happily.
The thick smoke also blocked their view, so he didn’t know one dog hadn’t fainted and was still hidden in the smoke, watching them closely.
Hearing the barking stop, they assumed both dogs had been subdued.
“Haha, Da Yan, that trick of yours was brilliant!” Arrow said excitedly.
Da Yan’s mouth curved into a smile, unable to contain his excitement, but he quickly took a deep breath and said softly, “Let’s move fast, before the owner returns!”
“Okay!”
A’Jian nodded, tying the wild dog they had caught earlier to his body. Then, gripping a dagger in one hand and covering his mouth and nose with a rag in the other, he stood up and approached the grocery store.
Da Yan also grabbed a club, covered his mouth and nose, and followed behind him.
They slowly approached the Grocery Store, their hearts beating faster and faster. Just thinking about the food stored in this house made them unable to control themselves.
Even if they couldn’t find food, those two plump dogs would be enough for them to eat for days!
However, when they reached the rocks in front of the Grocery Store, they suddenly froze, standing dumbfounded.
What was going on?
Why couldn’t they see any house in the thick smoke? The triangular area was completely empty!
Had the intense heat caused them to hallucinate?
Peace Grocery Store No. 1, 10th floor.
Tang Yu’an sat in a chair holding Jin Lili. Since he hadn’t checked the map, he didn’t know the main Grocery Store had been exposed again, and this time it had attracted some unsavory characters.
He had been idly browsing the system interface when his eyes suddenly lit up.
He saw that compared to before, there was now an extra button on the store management panel:
[Close Store].
Tang Yu’an remembered very clearly that this button definitely wasn’t there before.
So did this mean what he thought it meant?
Tang Yu’an hurriedly studied it, thankfully there was an explanation for this button.
[When a merchant owns two or more branch stores, they can choose to close one or more stores, ceasing operations. Note: At least one store under the merchant’s name must remain open for business.]
Tang Yu’an’s eyes shone.
Wow!
So he could close stores under his name, and closed stores would stop operating externally. Did this mean the protective barrier would work during the day too?
During the day when the protective barrier was ineffective, they could only leave Wang Cai and Yin Bi to watch the house. They had always worried about a repeat of the Chi Hao incident.
After all, they couldn’t be so lucky that everyone they encountered would be as good as Brother Chi Hao.
If the protective barrier could work during the day too, that would be amazing!
Thinking of this, Tang Yu’an quickly moved to close the main store—of course, before executing, he used the Portable Warehouse to exchange opinions with Zhou Qi.
Zhou Qi also thought it was worth a try.
So following Tang Yu’an’s selection, a new system message appeared—
[You are closing the “Peace Grocery Store”. After closing, the main store will cease operations and will no longer be able to serve customers. Do you confirm the closure?]
Confirm!
As Tang Yu’an confirmed his choice, the Peace Grocery Store on the management panel entered a closed state.
Meanwhile, in reality…
A’Jian and Da Yan looked at each other, then, not believing it, jumped down from the rocks and walked towards the center of the triangular area.
But after just two steps forward, they were blocked by something invisible.
Da Yan reached out to touch in front of him and found something like a membrane blocking him. No matter how he pushed forward, he couldn’t take another step.
A’Jian reached out and pounded hard, then picked up a rock and smashed it forcefully. Da Yan thought for a moment, then took out his dagger and slashed at the barrier.
It was completely useless!
Could this be the house owner’s Ability? One that could both hide the house and block outsiders from entering?
This Ability was too overpowered!
There was unwillingness in both their eyes, but Da Yan was calmer. He knew they couldn’t stay here any longer.
They had essentially triggered the house owner’s Ability and might have alerted them. If they attracted such a powerful person, they would really be in for it!
He pulled the reluctant A’Jian and turned to climb back up the rocks.
Little did they know, although they couldn’t see the Grocery Store, Wang Cai guarding inside could see them clearly.
As the watchdog, the moment the two humans attacked the Grocery Store’s barrier, its master’s order not to attack unless in danger became invalid.
However, the dizzying grass had affected it after all, so Wang Cai didn’t chase after them.
It stared at the two humans’ retreating figures, a dark green light glowing in its eyes.
“Ah! What’s this?”
A’Jian suddenly screamed, then shook his body. Something quickly fell off his hand.
Da Yan looked closely and saw it was a long-legged spider, about half the size of a fist.
He was about to say something when he saw more and more spiders of various sizes emerging from every corner, quickly surrounding the two of them!
