Chapter Nineteen: Tao Tao

The place where Li Cheng and his companions lived was a district of single-story houses. Four adjoining courtyards had been connected, making the space quite spacious. Of these four courtyards, two belonged to members of the squad, while the owners of the other two had perished in one of the many conflicts. Since the beginning of the apocalypse, deaths had been a constant, and what was once a shortage of housing had turned into clusters of empty houses; fights over places to live no longer happened.

Shen Lie followed Li Cheng and his group into the courtyard. To his surprise, upon their return, more than a dozen elderly people and children poured out of the houses. All their eyes were filled with hope, but seeing everyone come back empty-handed, their faces quickly faded into disappointment.

"Chengzi, how's the situation outside?" asked an elderly man, about sixty, shuffling forward unsteadily. He glanced at Shen Lie, then turned to Li Cheng for an answer.

"It's alright, Second Uncle—same as always, but food is getting harder and harder to find," Li Cheng replied, shaking his head and sighing helplessly.

"Ah, what a cursed world this is, there's nothing to look forward to," the old man lamented. Though barely in his sixties, his frail, decrepit appearance made him seem well over eighty. He could barely walk, and Shen Lie could see he was suffering from hunger.

"Dad, I'm hungry!"

"Uncle, I'm hungry too!"

"Auntie, I'm hungry!"

Several children, likely famished, rushed forward before the adults could finish speaking, each clinging to their relatives and begging for food. Just three months ago, these children were cherished treasures of their families, indulged with new treats every day and still picky about what they ate; but in less than a hundred days, they had fallen from paradise into hell, enduring constant torment both mentally and physically.

Shen Lie noticed that every child’s face was sallow, their movements weak and unstable. Two of them were wounded, and one little girl with large, expressive eyes had her entire left arm broken, wrapped in white cloth with fresh blood seeping through—a new injury, it seemed.

Such a wound, back in the old days, would have required a trip to the capital for proper care. Now, all they could do was wrap it with any old cloth. This scene stirred deep compassion in Shen Lie, who approached the big-eyed girl, crouched down, and gently asked, "What's your name?"

The little girl was timid and hesitated, only whispering after a long pause, "My name is Tao Tao."

"Does your arm hurt?" Shen Lie reached out, intending to touch her broken limb, but reconsidered and withdrew his hand.

"It hurt at first, but now it doesn't hurt anymore," Tao Tao replied, gaining a bit more courage as Shen Lie spoke kindly to her.

"No pain?" Shen Lie frowned, suspecting infection. Such a wound, left untreated, would surely become infected; the fact she was still standing was a miracle. He touched the girl’s forehead—very hot, as expected, she was feverish. Shen Lie patted her head and stood up, saying to Li Cheng, "I have some medicine. Let me treat the child’s injury."

Li Cheng gave Shen Lie a deep look. He had personally experienced Shen Lie’s ruthlessness—when Shen Lie had stabbed his palm with the black spear, he hadn’t even blinked. Now, seeing such tenderness toward an unrelated child, Li Cheng could not determine which side was Shen Lie’s true nature.

"I also have some food left—let’s give some to the children," Shen Lie said, removing his backpack and placing several packets of food on the cement table, motioning for Li Cheng to distribute it.

"Quick, thank Uncle Shen. From now on, Uncle Shen will be our leader; you must all listen to him," Li Cheng instructed the children to thank Shen Lie, even as he swallowed hard at the sight of instant noodles and sausages. But since Shen Lie had specified these were for the children, Li Cheng dared not touch them.

The children didn’t think much of Li Cheng’s words, but the older folks were both astonished and curious, their eyes fixed on Li Cheng, awaiting an explanation.

"Well, everyone should go back inside. We’ll cook some porridge with what little rice we have left. With Old Master Shen leading us, things will get better," Li Cheng said. Shen Lie had instructed him not to reveal his awakened abilities, so Li Cheng spoke vaguely. But everyone here had been numbed by the apocalypse; no one questioned further, quietly returning to their rooms.

Today has passed, and who knows if they’ll survive tomorrow; whoever leads makes no difference—that was their mindset.

Shen Lie took a room for himself, and Li Cheng sent a young woman to serve him: the owner of the Jingsheng Hair Salon, named Zhang Jing.

Shen Lie said nothing about this; he had no interest in women at the moment. The urgency he felt drove him to ponder every minute how to strengthen himself. Only by becoming powerful could he hope to leave the red mist zone.

"Oh, where is that girl, Tao Tao? Bring her here so I can treat her wound, and fetch me a basin of hot water," Shen Lie ordered after tidying up a bit. For some reason, he felt a natural closeness to Tao Tao—the girl’s big eyes were unforgettable.

Zhang Jing silently left and soon returned with Tao Tao and a basin of hot water. Shen Lie unwrapped the girl’s makeshift bandage and found the wound already festering. Luckily, he had some medicine in reserve. He treated the injury as best he could, wrapped it in gauze, and gave her a few antibiotic pills. Whether she survived would be up to fate; he was no doctor, and this was all he could do.

"Have you eaten? I have a few packs of instant noodles—cook them and bring Li Cheng over so we can eat together. I have a few questions for you," Shen Lie said after tending to Tao Tao, taking out several packs of instant noodles and a tin of canned fish from his bag, placing them on the table for Zhang Jing.

Zhang Jing glanced at the food, swallowing hard and struggling to restrain her urge to snatch it, then nodded and hurried off to prepare hot water and utensils.

Once Zhang Jing had left, Shen Lie sat in his chair, deep in thought, then took the Phantom Mushroom from his pocket.

At this point, Shen Lie no longer suspected Li Cheng might deceive him; it would do him no good. Shen Lie had made it clear he had no interest in authority, and Li Cheng surely saw that, too. Besides, there was little worth fighting for among these few survivors.

That mushroom could enhance an awakened one’s abilities—an important discovery. Upon hearing this, Shen Lie’s first thought was not how to obtain more, but rather what level of power those four awakened ones in town had reached. The mushrooms had been around for some time now, and those four must have consumed plenty, making them far stronger than when they first awakened.

This was why he had told Li Cheng not to reveal his identity as an awakened one; if his abilities were exposed, those awakened might come after him, and if he couldn’t defeat them, his fate would be grim.

Although he hadn’t eaten a Phantom Mushroom, he had used several spider monster crystals, gaining considerable power. He might well have the strength to contend with the other awakened ones.

But first, he needed to learn how effective the Phantom Mushroom was, and what the four awakened ones were truly capable of—knowing oneself and one’s enemies was the key to victory.

Zhang Jing soon returned with a kettle of hot water, followed by Li Cheng, both clearly eager. Each had two packs of noodles soaking in a small basin. The noodles were barely ready when Zhang Jing and Li Cheng began devouring them, not even pausing when scalded by the heat; their hunger was evident.

The tin of canned fish, however, remained untouched. Shen Lie nodded silently—whether out of genuine restraint or pretense, these two knew their limits and did not overstep.

"Tell me about the other four awakened ones—be detailed, about their personalities and abilities," Shen Lie said after the meal, stopping Zhang Jing from clearing the dishes and beginning his inquiry.

"Which one of them is the strongest?" Shen Lie pressed before either could answer.

Zhang Jing kept silent, glancing at Li Cheng. Li Cheng answered without hesitation, "The strongest is Du Tianwang, who controls Silver Hao Supermarket. Her Fire Dragon technique is formidable—it can even melt metal. Another fire-type awakened one, Ma Zhanlin, occupies Dacheng Grain Store, but he’s much weaker. Still, Ma Zhanlin was already a 'celebrity' in town, and his influence far surpasses Du Tianwang’s."