Chapter 90: Successfully Triggered a Hidden Mission
Su Tao knew that selling too much would attract unwanted attention and could bring trouble to both herself and the convoy.
Guan Zining wasn’t entirely in favor of the idea, but she still asked, “How much do you plan to sell?”
Su Tao replied, “Ten bottles of 500-milliliter water and five pounds of fuel. Not too much, right?”
Given the outrageous prices here, she figured she could make a clean profit of over a hundred thousand credits, which was more than enough for her.
Guan Zining said, “I’ll check with the Major.”
To Su Tao’s surprise, Shi Zijin agreed immediately. However, instead of letting her set up a stall, he directly called over the supply station’s procurement manager and arranged for Su Tao to negotiate with him privately.
With Guan Zining standing to the side, her gun holstered at her waist, the manager had no intention of scamming Su Tao. He reported the fair purchase prices honestly:
“Water is 8,000 credits per bottle, fuel is 6,000 credits per pound. That comes to a total of 110,000 credits. Miss Su, I’ve raised the price a little as a friendly gesture.”
Su Tao readily agreed, then suddenly remembered the surplus daily necessities stored in Lin Fangzhi’s space—shampoo, shower gel, brand-new towels, and even a stockpile of sanitary pads.
In a few days, she’d be back in Taoyang, where these items wouldn’t be worth much. She might as well sell them all here.
So she told the manager, “I have a few more things.”
She asked Lin Fangzhi to retrieve them from the convoy, though in reality, she was pulling them from her space.
The manager was sharp and immediately realized that these hygiene products could significantly improve the accommodations at the inn, allowing them to charge even higher rates.
“How much do you have? I’ll take it all!”
Su Tao replied, “Not much, just this one box.”
“And the price… how do you want to set it?”
After thinking for a moment, Su Tao boldly named a high price: “200,000 credits.”
The manager hesitated. “If this were drinking water, that price would be reasonable. But while these are rare, they aren’t essential… Miss Su, that’s really too expensive.”
Su Tao asked, “We could also barter. Do you have any medical equipment, books, or other rare items?”
The manager sighed bitterly. “Miss Su, this is just a small transit station. We don’t have medical equipment, and books are even rarer. Most of the people passing through here are rough men—barely any of them can even read.”
Still, he glanced longingly at the box of hygiene products, wracking his brain for something to trade. Suddenly, he remembered something.
“Would you be interested in something from a zombie? A crystal nucleus from its brain? A drifter passed through and traded it for some drinking water. We don’t know what it’s good for, but we figured it must be valuable, so we kept it.”
He had one of his men fetch a small wooden box. Inside was indeed a crystal nucleus from an evolved zombie.
Su Tao was pleasantly surprised and immediately agreed to the trade. Now, she had four crystal nuclei.
Both sides got what they wanted—a successful transaction.
After the manager left, Guan Zining remarked, “You definitely got the better deal. Once energy-based weapons become widespread, the value of crystal nuclei will be immeasurable.”
Su Tao smiled slyly. “But for now, it was a fair trade. That crystal was useless to them, while my items are valuable in the present.”
Guan Zining snorted. “Alright, shrewd merchant, whatever you say. Let’s head back.”
That night, the supply station remained noisy and brightly lit, so Su Tao didn’t sleep well. By the time the convoy set off the next morning, she was still groggy.
When she finally woke up, the supply station was just a tiny black speck in the distance.
Su Tao sighed, a hint of envy in her voice. “That little supply station is like a miniature empire. I wonder how much profit they make in a single night.”
From the passenger seat, Guan Zining replied without even turning her head: “Maybe you should ask your business partner, Gu Mingchi. He’s involved in some shady dealings at that station.”
Su Tao was stunned. “What kind of dealings?”
“Before the apocalypse, this business was called human trafficking. He specifically buys refugees, drifters, and underprivileged survivors’ children under the age of 18. He wouldn’t dare do this in Dongyang, so he keeps the kids at the supply station.”
“If you had walked a bit further behind the inn last night, you would’ve seen a small building. That’s where Gu Mingchi keeps the children.”
Su Tao felt a chill. “Why would he buy so many kids? Is he some kind of pervert? Does he abuse them?”
Would that mean her partnership with Gu Mingchi was aiding a criminal?!
Guan Zining rolled her eyes. “…What are you thinking? Abuse? He spends a fortune buying and raising these kids, and he treats them quite well. He even hires homeless women to take care of them.”
Su Tao relaxed slightly. “Then… isn’t that a good thing?”
Guan Zining snorted. “He may be saving these kids, giving them food and stability, but he’s also brainwashing them into worshiping him. They see him as their savior, their god, and they’d do anything for him.”
“Once they turn eighteen, those with awakened powers become his elite warriors. Those who don’t awaken still become his most loyal followers, willing to devote their entire lives to him.”
Su Tao finally understood. “He has big ambitions.”
Guan Zining nodded. “That’s why I told you to be careful of him. He craves power and has little sense of morality.”
The convoy continued for another half-day before suddenly encountering a massive zombie horde—at least a hundred of them. Among the swarm, three “Blood Scythes” could be seen looming in the distance.
Shi Zijin immediately ordered full defense mode, positioning the two most crucial vehicles in the center while leading the core team into battle.
Inside the car, Su Tao listened to the chaotic sounds of fighting outside, her heart pounding with fear. She wanted to take a look, but Guan Zining refused to open the privacy curtain.
Xue Dao became extremely agitated at the sound of gunfire, scratching at the door as if it were desperate to rush out.
Su Tao struggled to hold it back. “What’s wrong with it?!”
Guan Zining explained, “It thinks it’s supposed to be part of the fight. It was trained too intensively when it was younger—combat is ingrained in its instincts.”
Hearing this made Su Tao feel a pang of sadness. Even in their old age, military dogs could never truly rest.
The battle lasted nearly an hour. When the privacy curtain was finally lifted, Su Tao caught a glimpse of the blood-soaked battlefield—bodies and remains were scattered everywhere, some human, some zombie. She immediately pulled the curtain back down.
But after a moment’s hesitation, she clenched her teeth and opened it again. She needed to be brave. This was the true reality of the apocalypse.
At that moment, she saw Shi Zijin, covered in blood, leaning against the back of a vehicle. Corpses lay at his feet as he reached into his shirt pocket, pulled out a cigarette, and lit it with his bloodstained fingers.
Smoke curled around his face, partially obscuring his expression.
But Su Tao clearly saw his hands trembling.
Then, the logistics officer came forward to report:
“Major, we lost eight people… Sixteen are severely injured, twenty-four are infected. Dr. Jian is already treating them.”
Shi Zijin immediately crushed the burning cigarette between his fingers, his expression returning to its usual unreadable calm. “Understood. Give me the list of the fallen soldiers… and recover the bodies as soon as possible.”
Because of the attack, the convoy failed to reach Panliu Mountain on schedule. That night, the fallen soldiers were cremated. Each of them was reduced to a small box of ashes.
Su Tao felt numb.
She stared at the names on the urns. Some of them had laughed and joked with her just days ago. The youngest was only nineteen, the oldest no more than forty.
In just one hour, they were gone forever.
She looked at Shi Zijin, his face emotionless, but she noticed the slight tremble of his lips. No one was suffering more than him.
Without saying a word, she stepped forward and gently hugged him.
Shi Zijin closed his eyes, allowing her to hold him, standing completely still.
One by one, the urns were placed onto the vehicles. The convoy resumed its journey.
At last, in silence, they arrived at Panliu Mountain.
When Su Tao stepped out of the car and saw the abandoned garage gate at the base of the mountain, the system suddenly chimed:
[Host has reached the designated location. Hidden mission triggered: Obtain management rights over this site within three days. Requirement: Consume five Level-1 crystal cores.]
Su Tao’s eyes widened as she hurriedly opened the system interface. Sure enough, on Taoyang’s original map, a small flashing area appeared, seemingly waiting for her confirmation.
Did this mean she could control this area just like Taoyang by spending five crystal cores?
But what exactly were Level-1 crystal cores? Were they the evolution cores from advanced zombies?
Thanks for the updates!