Chapter 22: Ongoing Scavenging
The battle around Su Ning was insanely intense. The Moko tribesmen were fiercely fighting the Storm Clan’s flying beasts.
However, Su Ning chose to move between the already-destroyed farms instead.
Among them, she arrived at the place where she had previously killed the giant python — where the Jade Dew Fruit trees grew.
Looking at the now-destroyed Jade Dew Fruit trees in front of her, Su Ning couldn’t help but feel a sense of regret.
The Jade Dew Fruit trees had been completely ruined — only broken branches, wilted leaves, and shattered fruits scattered across the ground remained.
Knowing how precious these Jade Dew Fruit trees were, Su Ning quickly acted, collecting the intact branches and storing them in her backpack.
She considered trying to plant these branches in the real world to see if it was possible to grow more Jade Dew Fruits.
In addition, the fallen Jade Dew Fruits nearby became her next target. She carefully picked them up one by one and stored them in her backpack.
After finishing the scavenging of the Jade Dew Fruit trees, Su Ning headed to another farm she had stayed in before.
The scene before her left her speechless. The enormous Giant Flower had collapsed sideways, seemingly lifeless.
Originally, Su Ning only intended to pick some Giant Fruits from the plant, but now she found that the Giant Flower wasn’t completely dead, which meant it might still be useful.
For instance, it could be used to dispose of corpses or to stimulate new Giant Fruit growth.
So without hesitation, she stored all the still-living Giant Flowers into her backpack. At the same time, she quietly took three Black Rock Bows and several arrows from a few of the farms.
These weapons might prove useful in a critical moment. The universal shovel she got from the previous instance had already been used to bury the death worms. These bows were now her best tools for self-defense.
After scavenging, Su Ning looked toward the slaughterhouse area opposite the farm. But with only half an hour left in the instance, it was unrealistic to head there to scavenge — she wasn’t familiar with that area at all.
Su Ning gave up immediately, feeling it was a bit of a shame. The slaughterhouse was surely full of meat items. If she had time and a spatial backpack, she could definitely smuggle a lot out.
However, Su Ning had somewhere more important to go.
The Starfruit Orchard was the center of the battle.
Just as she was heading there, she unexpectedly ran into someone — Fu Qingge.
The moment their eyes met, both of them froze.
The sounds of battle around them quickly snapped them back to reality.
Su Ning knew this wasn’t the place to talk, so she immediately led Fu Qingge toward the advanced farming area.
Without hesitation, she asked, “What are you doing here at a time like this?”
The battle at the slaughterhouse was clearly less intense, but this place was obviously very dangerous.
Su Ning had searched through many farms, and most players had already fled to safer areas. Only those with special motives, like her, would come here.
With that in mind, Su Ning realized this man was probably here with a goal in mind — just like her.
Fu Qingge didn’t hide anything.
“Do you know about the Starfruit?”
Su Ning nodded. That was exactly what she was here for.
Fu Qingge said, “The Moko Tribe’s cafeteria is right next to the slaughterhouse. I heard from players in the cafeteria that when the Moko tribesmen eat food made from Starfruit, their bodies awaken different abilities. I was hoping to grab a few before the instance ends.”
Su Ning chuckled. “So you’re after the Starfruit too.”
Seeing the smile on Su Ning’s face, Fu Qingge was slightly stunned. It had been a long time since he’d seen anyone smile. Ever since the apocalypse began, everyone wore the same miserable expression.
But Su Ning’s appearance gave him a different feeling.
Su Ning didn’t notice Fu Qingge’s frozen expression at all. He always had a poker face, so she couldn’t tell the difference anyway.
“Since we’re both after the Starfruit, let’s work together.”
Su Ning knew very well that this man’s attack abilities were formidable.
Fu Qingge didn’t refuse, “You know this area better than I do, I’ll follow your lead.”
Su Ning was surprised but didn’t hesitate. “Alright then, let’s slowly approach the Starfruit Orchard. It’s currently the main battlefield!”
The two carefully moved to the outskirts of the orchard. Su Ning could feel Fu Qingge approaching because the temperature around him was extremely low.
This was probably due to his Ice ability.
“With this kind of ability, he’d definitely survive well in the Extreme Heat Apocalypse — no fear of high temperatures!”
There were also many ways to use it for survival — for example, selling ice.
Su Ning could think of countless uses for Ice abilities.
But now wasn’t the time to think about that.
At this moment, they hid behind the corpse of a massive Moko tribesman.
Su Ning looked at the two sides in battle.
One side was the Moko Tribe, led by the Administrator. The other side was the Storm Clan’s bird-like monsters.
Judging by the situation, the Storm Clan clearly had the upper hand!
Su Ning said to Fu Qingge beside her, “From the looks of it, sneaking in is basically impossible!”
Fu Qingge nodded in agreement. “Yeah, unless we join the battle, we won’t even get close to the Starfruit Orchard.”
At this point, there were only ten minutes left in the instance.
Su Ning checked the time, then turned to Fu Qingge and asked seriously, “Wanna take a gamble? Go big or go home?”
Fu Qingge raised his eyebrows slightly at the suggestion — surprised, yet curious and intrigued.
Su Ning took a deep breath and laid out her plan: “We’re currently Moko Tribe staff. If we join the battlefield, we’ll automatically be on the Moko Tribe’s side.”
Fu Qingge was a smart man. He immediately understood Su Ning’s intention.
Seeing that time was almost up and knowing that players would soon leave the instance, he picked up the thread of the plan and said, “You mean we use this chance to get close to the Starfruit and try to grab some right before we’re forced to exit?”
Su Ning nodded. “Exactly. Of course, whether we actually manage to grab them depends on our own abilities!”
After thinking for a moment, Fu Qingge’s eyes flashed with determination. He clenched his fists and replied firmly, “Alright, I’m in!”
With that, Su Ning grabbed the Black Rock Bow slung on her back, pulled an arrow from her quiver, nocked it, and drew the bowstring with force, aiming at a Storm Bird attacking the administrators.
With a soft twang, the arrow flew like lightning, piercing the Storm Bird’s head cleanly.
Blood splattered as the creature lost control and crashed to the ground.
This shot demonstrated Su Ning’s astonishing archery skills and precision — truly impressive.
Both the administrators and Fu Qingge were shocked by her skill.
No one expected Su Ning to shoot down a Storm Bird so quickly and accurately.
Su Ning shouted to the administrator: “Administrator! As farming staff, we have the right to defend our farm!” She declared her position and fired another arrow at the Storm Clan.
Fu Qingge also sprang into action. A chill radiated from his body as he formed hand seals and chanted under his breath.
With a powerful gesture, five icy blasts surged from his palms, transforming into five sharp icicles that shot toward the incoming Storm Birds.
Su Ning and Fu Qingge had officially joined the battlefield, coordinating seamlessly.
Su Ning continued firing with her Black Rock Bow, while Fu Qingge used his frost abilities to strike the enemies.
Step by step, they pushed closer to the central Starfruit tree, fighting fiercely against the enemy.
(End of chapter)
