The Reborn Otaku’s Code of Practice for the Apocalypse – CH119

Chapter 119 — Adding One More Duck

“Normal mushrooms?!” Luo Xun’s voice rose uncontrollably, eyes wide in disbelief.

In both his past and present life, he had never seen normal mushrooms in the apocalypse. Not in markets, not anywhere.

Every mushroom he had ever grown had mutated—no matter what strain he used, they all turned into the same thing: corrosive, red, deadly mushrooms.

And now… normal, edible mushrooms had appeared in his home?!

Seeing Luo Xun’s stunned expression, Song Lingling couldn’t help but grin proudly. She had reacted the same way earlier.

Xu Mei walked out from inside, equally delighted. “There are three more—not many.”

Yan Fei came in just then, his gaze naturally landing on the mushrooms. “Can these… really be eaten?”

It wasn’t strange for him to worry. These mushrooms had grown on their mushroom logs—the same logs that usually produced deadly mutated mushrooms.

And now, from that same place… ordinary mushrooms had appeared. How could anyone not feel uneasy?

“Should… be fine.” Luo Xun said, his face full of excitement as he picked up one perfectly shaped mushroom. These all looked like shiitake. Taking a deep breath, he caught the familiar fragrance and explained, “The spawn bags I bought before were shiitake, button mushrooms, enoki, and oyster mushrooms. I never got other strains. But after the apocalypse, no matter what strain we used, they all turned into the same kind of poisonous mushroom. I think… maybe after we grew enough mushroom logs, the toxic elements in the air decreased, allowing normal mushrooms to grow again.”

As he spoke, he turned to Yan Fei, eyes shining. “We can test it with a quail. If it eats some and nothing happens, we’ll know.”

After all, these mushrooms looked exactly like pre-apocalypse shiitake. If they had mutated even a little, they wouldn’t look this perfectly “normal.”

There weren’t many—Xu Mei and the others had checked all the mushroom logs and found only seven. For safety, Luo Xun picked a small quail and fed it a little. They had no proper testing equipment, nor did they want to involve base researchers. This was the simplest way.

Whether the quail was unusually resilient or just hadn’t eaten enough, by the time everyone went to bed, it was still lively, hopping around its small container.

In the end, they decided to string up the “seven black flowers” and hang them on the balcony, saving them for soups or cooking later.

Even a small hope was enough to give people something to look forward to. If seven mushrooms could grow now, who knew how many might grow in the future?

That night, as they sliced cucumbers and made spiral-cut cucumbers, they talked about all the delicious dishes mushrooms could become.

With the quail unharmed, everyone regained enthusiasm for the mushroom logs. Xu Mei and Song Lingling went from checking them every few days to inspecting them almost daily.

And their efforts paid off. Soon, they spotted more small mushrooms that looked normal. But normal mushrooms grew much slower—some taking nearly a month, others up to half a year.

All they could do now was hope more mutated mushrooms would revert to normal ones.

“Next time we go out, we’ll bring back more wood!” Luo Xun said, earning unanimous agreement. They were already suffering from lack of meat—mushrooms could at least help ease that.

—

In the last days of September, they finally processed a batch of ripe tomatoes—some frozen, some made into sauce, and a small portion sold.

With tomatoes available, everyone happily enjoyed sugar-mixed tomatoes after finishing their watermelons. Since Luo Xun had staggered the planting, they would continue harvesting them periodically—perfect for nutrition, especially for little Xinran.

Before heading out again, preparations were even more thorough. Xu Mei and Song Lingling prepared food for the trip, including thermos containers of tomato egg soup—made with quail eggs, of course. Combined with their homegrown cilantro and tomatoes, the taste was unforgettable.

On the morning of the 27th, the otaku squad gathered again on the fifteenth floor, fully equipped.

Luo Xun stood at the front, inspecting everyone’s gear before giving a briefing.

“It’s been two months since our last trip. You all know what’s happened since—zombie sieges, new dangers. I won’t repeat it.” He looked around. “There may be more high-level zombies now, maybe even unknown mutated animals. Even though our ability users have reached level three, we haven’t fought closely in a while. Stay cautious. Even if we gain less, don’t take unnecessary risks.”

“Yes!” everyone responded.

They set out early, joining the flow of traffic toward the base gate. After crossing the moat and passing through layers of defenses, they finally encountered zombies again.

Vehicles split off in different directions, each team heading to its own mission.

“There are no easy missions anymore,” Luo Xun remarked, looking at their task—collect a certain number of crystal cores within three days.

“Crystal-hunting is still relatively safe. The real trouble is missions deep inside the city,” Yan Fei said, lowering the window and activating his ability.

Now at level three, he could manipulate metal entirely with mental power. He could even extract and refine metals more efficiently, replicating objects he had studied.

Many of their equipment—containers, thermoses—were all made by him.

Using metal abilities for cookware… others might find it strange, but Luo Xun found it incredibly practical. He had even upgraded everyone’s weapons, making them lighter, more powerful, and longer-ranged.

He also created “water gun” devices for spraying mushroom extract—deadly in group combat, especially when paired with explosive mushroom bombs.

They advanced cautiously toward their usual southeastern route.

Yan Fei controlled metal along the way, now able to extract even tiny traces embedded in stone or concrete—something only possible after leveling up.

When they reached their usual trap site, it looked more damaged than before. But the bigger issue was—the zombies were much stronger.

Before reaching the destination, they encountered a level-three fire-type zombie. A massive fireball came suddenly—if Yan Fei hadn’t reacted quickly, their vehicle might have been destroyed.

Taking advantage of the moment, Zhang Su used wind to launch debris and crushed the zombie’s head, securing a level-three crystal.

Upon arrival, more zombies rushed in. Speed-type zombies charged like the wind, only to slam into a suddenly raised metal wall.

The wall collapsed outward, crushing several instantly.

This time, the zombies were far more aggressive, attacking relentlessly, giving no time to set up defenses.

“Remove the trap covers!” Luo Xun ordered decisively. If this continued, they would be overwhelmed.

Xinran immediately dissolved the coverings. Zhang Su and Xu Mei unleashed a fiery sandstorm, while Yan Fei raised metal barriers, forming a defensive perimeter.

The pressure finally eased.

“Hold the firing points—let them recover,” Luo Xun commanded.

They rotated between abilities and weapons, using water guns and mushroom bombs to full effect.

Gradually, they regained control of the battle rhythm.

Meanwhile, metal walls rang with constant impacts. Yan Fei reinforced them further, even raising their height, preparing to build a roof.

The sky above had already darkened—an autumn rain seemed ready to fall at any moment.

Luo Xun began carefully observing the distribution of zombies in different sections of the traps, calculating the right moment to pour in the mushroom extract and gasoline. Once the number of zombies inside reached a certain level, the newly made metal tanks mounted on the walls—already filled with mushroom extract—suddenly tipped over, splashing their contents into the traps from all directions!

The one controlling these metal tanks was still Yan Fei. This method had been planned before they left—it was far safer than having everyone manually pour from different inlets. Otherwise, a single mistake could result in someone splashing it onto themselves—or worse, getting burned.

Seeing the mushroom extract fully poured, Luo Xun immediately directed everyone to refill the tanks with gasoline. Under Yan Fei’s control, the metal containers returned completely clean, without any residue.

Everyone quickly brought out the gasoline from the vehicle and began pouring. Suddenly, Luo Xun felt the light dim, as if a large cloud had blocked the sun. He instinctively looked up—

If it were a sunny day, this would be normal. But today was already overcast… was it going to rain?

The moment he looked up, his eyes nearly popped out as he shouted in alarm, “Mutated bird!! A giant mutated bird!!”

A massive bird, with wingspan at least twice the size of their temporary structure, was circling above them!!

“I—I—I…” He Qiankun stood frozen, mouth agape, unable to form a sentence.

Everyone else stared upward, gasping.

The giant bird circled four to five hundred meters above them, making round after round, clearly unwilling to leave.

Luo Xun’s face turned pale. This was his first time seeing a living mutated animal. No need to question how he knew—it was obvious. Zombie animals were always decayed, tattered, often bald or bat-like. But this one? Its brown feathers were intact and pristine. It was definitely not a zombie creature.

“Is it… going to land? Why does it keep circling us?!” Wang Duo’s voice trembled.

Luo Xun reacted instantly, shouting again, “Quick! Pour all the gasoline! Fill everything—fast!!”

Though confused, everyone obeyed, rapidly emptying the gasoline into the metal tanks.

As Luo Xun worked frantically, he kept glancing upward—sure enough, the bird was flying lower!

“What is it trying to do!?” Xu Mei’s voice broke with fear.

“It wants to land. Our wall is circular… it probably thinks this is a nest site!” Luo Xun’s voice was tight and dry. He desperately hoped he was wrong—but clearly, the stupid bird had exactly that idea.

“A nest?! Why build it here instead of on a tree?!” Song Lingling nearly screamed.

Han Li gave a shaky laugh. “Maybe… it can’t find a tree big enough to hold it. It’s too huge…”

“So how did it even grow this big…” Li Tie muttered weakly. No one laughed.

Zhang Su looked up coldly. “Should we blast it away? I can compress air and combine it with Xu Mei’s fire—drive it off?”

Over the past two months, they had been training. Even a small compressed fireball, the size of a child’s fist, could dent Yan Fei’s metal sandbag. A few hits could pierce through it entirely.

“Don’t use abilities yet!” Luo Xun immediately stopped him. “If it has abilities too, one attack from it could wipe us out.”

“Everyone! Move to the edges of the wall!” Luo Xun ordered once the gasoline was ready.

As for the vehicles left in the center… they could only hope the bird wouldn’t crush them flat.

After giving the order, Luo Xun glanced at Yan Fei. Yan Fei pulled him tightly into his arms, shielding him between himself and the metal wall. His eyes were resolute—no matter what happened, Luo Xun would not be hurt as long as he was alive.

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