Chapter Thirteen: An Unexpected Delight

Mu Chen was busy counting the spoils of battle. With Mu Jiu’er and the others focused on him, no one noticed Yang Zhiying’s subtle movements.

“Brother, after today’s haul, it’s like we’ve gained two more days of survival in the red mist. If every day could be like this, I think it wouldn’t be so bad after all!” Mu Jiu’er beamed as she looked at the number of [Sources of Turbidity] Mu Chen showed her. Food and drink were no longer a problem; if they could just find a place to settle down, it would perfectly match her post-apocalyptic dreams.

“What are you thinking? You’re this happy over just a day or two’s worth? Don’t get ahead of yourself. Remember what happened at the restaurant.” Mu Chen rolled his eyes, dampening her enthusiasm.

The reason was simple: in order to survive in the red mist, caution was the first rule. The moment you let your guard down, death would be close behind.

Mu Jiu’er pouted. “Hmph…”

Clearly, his words had the desired effect.

“Um, excuse me…” Yang Zhiying approached Mu Chen, looking a bit hesitant.

“Sorry to interrupt, but where do the monsters’ corpses go? Earlier you said we had to fight in order to survive—is it because of the monsters’ bodies?”

Yang Zhiying’s question brought Mu Jiu’er back to life, her face filled with pride.

“You don’t know, do you? The reason is actually quite simple.” Everyone, including Mu Chen, waited for Mu Jiu’er’s explanation. For a moment, the atmosphere fell silent.

Mu Jiu’er: “…”

Yang Zhiying: “…”

Mu Jiu’er: “…”

Yang Zhiying: “???”

“You’d better ask my brother. There are a lot of things I can’t say for certain,” Mu Jiu’er said, spreading her hands.

“…”

“We’ll talk as we walk. Don’t linger here too long,” Mu Chen said helplessly.

The road ahead was smooth.

They were now only a kilometer from the toll station. At their current pace, it wouldn’t take long to arrive, but the uncertainty of the monsters ahead left Mu Chen uneasy.

His gaze swept the surroundings and information surfaced before his eyes.

[972 meters ahead, a group of lazy creatures are fast asleep. But if any living thing enters within five meters of them, they will attack fiercely. Of course, their attack methods are simple—after all, all they do is eat and sleep. You’ve already realized how they attack, haven’t you?]

[To the left, you could also reach the final destination, but the bones along the way would surely drive you back.]

[On the right, a “big one” is fighting another of its kind; clearly, it’ll be a while before either wins.]

[Behind you, you realize you need to pick up the pace. A creature at the top of the base food chain is patrolling its new territory. If it discovers your presence, none of you will survive—your combined legs aren’t even half as long as its.]

Still too weak. That was the crux of it—because they were weak, they had no real choices. After adjusting his mindset, Mu Chen began to explain some survival basics to Yang Zhiying.

“I’ll make this brief. Listen carefully.”

“Killing a ‘juvenile aberrant’ completes the novice task. After that, you unlock your backpack and workbench. The monsters’ bodies can be disassembled at the workbench for various materials. You can look up the details of the novice tasks in your task list.”

Yang Zhiying’s eyes lit up at Mu Chen’s explanation.

“Among the materials, are there items that let people survive in the red mist?” Yang Zhiying’s gaze grew feverish.

“You’re right. Disassembling a monster’s body yields something called the Source of Turbidity. Consuming it increases mental strength.”

“Thank you, truly, for telling me all this. At least now we have a hope of surviving.” Yang Zhiying clung to every word as if it were a treasure, her reaction a puzzle to those around her.

Mu Chen didn’t dwell on it and continued, “The backpack works like in a game—twenty slots for twenty types of items, but there’s a weight limit, so you can’t carry anything too large at once.”

Thus, group unity and killing juvenile aberrants to complete daily tasks was the only way to gain a foothold in the early days of the red mist.

Yang Zhiying suddenly understood. Earlier she had been astonished to see monster corpses vanish before Mu Chen; now, having heard his words, she finally understood.

“So…next time we meet a juvenile aberrant, can I do the novice task too?” Whether from excitement or some other reason, as she asked, Yang Zhiying leaned in, her arm brushing Mu Chen’s cheek.

“We’ll see when the time comes. You’ll get your chance, but right now we have other priorities,” Mu Chen replied, neither warm nor cold, leaving her a bit disappointed.

By the roadside, a sign appeared.

500 meters to the toll station.

The information on the sign precisely marked their distance from the monsters.

The group moved in silence, already used to the quiet while traveling.

Mu Chen took out several bottles of water and distributed them to the group. Watching him, Yang Zhiying couldn’t help but feel another pang of envy.

“Everyone, hydrate. After this, we’ll try to make it past the toll station in one go.”

He hadn’t yet told them what lay ahead, but as long as they didn’t get too close, the monsters shouldn’t attack them without cause.

Two minutes later.

After everyone had finished drinking, Mu Chen collected all the empty bottles, revealing his scrapper’s instincts—an essential trait in the apocalypse.

Without lingering, they soon passed the sign marking 100 meters to the toll station.

A few moments later, Mu Chen’s heart skipped a beat—a mass of shadowy shapes appeared in the red mist ahead.

“They look like mounds of earth…”

The strange sight ahead forced the group to halt.

The toll station had vanished without a trace.

“Sade, push me forward slowly,” Mu Chen instructed.

As he moved forward, the shapes ahead came into focus—a horde of grotesque, humanoid monsters, sprawled on the ground like slabs of meat. Each was about ten meters long, their massive bodies utterly still; from a distance, they looked like a series of small hills.

There was no need to deliberate—even one of these monsters was far beyond their ability to fight, let alone a whole group.

Just as he withdrew his gaze, more information surfaced before him.

[Tumor Flesh Hills: Abyssal low-tier species. Social creatures. Skill 1: Devour. Skill 2: Rapid regeneration.]

Note: They have neither sight nor hearing, dooming them to be lowly creatures of the abyss. Their social habits have allowed their survival until now. Whenever a Tumor Flesh Hill is attacked, it will quickly lunge toward the attacker and attempt to devour them.