Chapter 73: Breaking Ties, All Good Things Must End (Second Update)

Bian Changxi hooked her straight-bladed knife, sending a bench crashing down in front of a mutant rat. In her left hand, an axe suddenly appeared, swinging down at another rat.

This wasn't the battered, retired fire axe she'd used before, but one of the many cold weapons from the exhibition hall. Short and sturdy, beautifully crafted, and extremely sharp, it could be wielded swiftly and smoothly with just one hand. The rat jerked its head back in alarm, but its front paws were still exposed. With a flick of her wrist, Bian Changxi shifted the axe mid-swing, slicing one of its paws lengthwise from tip to base.

The mutant rat shrieked in pain.

Unlike zombies, mutant beasts weren't infectious, but most of them were sentient. They also didn't rot away into grotesque forms like zombies—most looked whole, just with significant changes in size and features.

At that moment, the rat blocked by the bench leaped over it. Bian Changxi swung her knife with her right hand, slashing horizontally along its mouth. Blood gushed out, and its jaws could no longer close.

The flesh at the corners of the mouth really was more tender.

Bian Changxi quickly finished off both rats.

She crouched down and dug into their skulls—mutant beasts sometimes had crystal cores in their brains, too.

Unfortunately, luck wasn't on her side; neither rat had even half a core.

She lifted the curtain and entered the kitchen.

The kitchen was a mess. A human corpse lay on the floor, chewed beyond recognition. Beside it was a headless zombie corpse. Judging by the scene, someone had come in looking for supplies, killed the zombie, but was then killed by the lurking mutant rats.

She checked the zombie's head, which was still intact, and dug out a shiny white core.

It was of good quality, seemingly on the verge of evolving to the second tier.

Right now, there was no formal distinction between first-tier and second-tier cores. Although this white core wasn't truly second-tier, its energy was probably worth three first-tier white cores. It would be a waste to trade it as just a first-tier core.

A genuine second-tier core could be exchanged for ten of the same type of first-tier cores. When Bian Changxi had gotten that second-tier green core and told Lin Rongrong it could be traded for ten first-tier white cores, it was actually because that green core's quality and energy hadn't truly reached the second tier, so its value was much lower.

These assessments were all based on personal judgment. Later, when crystal cores became more common and the rich and powerful sought convenience, they wouldn't care about such distinctions. The value would simply be calculated by tier. It was like silver in ancient times: in TV dramas, even small pieces of silver are clearly marked by weight, and you just toss a piece over when paying, no change needed.

In reality, silver had to be weighed to avoid discrepancies. Eventually, special instruments would be invented to weigh crystal cores and determine their exact value.

But for now, there were no ""scales"" and no experience, so things were a mixed bag.

She looked around the kitchen and found some withered, shriveled vegetables. She picked out the least bad ones and tossed them into her farm space, as extra feed for the chickens and ducks.

Everything else was either spoiled or not worth taking. She walked out, picked up the two dead mutant rats, and went to a crossroads that was easy to escape from. She tossed the rat corpses on the ground, letting the bloody scent drift on the wind. Soon, zombies arrived.

An hour later, Bian Changxi held five freshly obtained white cores and a yellowish-brown core. She wiped off the grime and held them up to the light, grinning wide.

Not bad, not bad. Even though it was just an earth-type core, it should be enough to trade for a green core. After a short rest, she packed up and headed back.

The exchange point was also in the train station. What used to be a ticket office now had three windows, repurposed for crystal core trading.

One window was for exchanging white cores for colored cores, another for colored cores for white, and the third for trading cores for supplies.

Some people wanted to trade supplies for cores, but unfortunately, there were no takers.

There weren't as many people inside as there had been in the morning. As Bian Changxi pondered which window to use for colored-core-to-colored-core trades, she walked straight up to the white-core-for-colored-core window. ""I'd like to exchange for a green core.""

The staff inside, wearing a stony expression, pulled out a green core from the drawer. Its color was pale, and the quality wasn't great.

Bian Changxi frowned. ""How many green cores do you have? Can I pick for myself?""

The worker glanced up, a bit annoyed, but didn't dare offend someone who could bring in crystal cores. Reluctantly, he took out a small plastic box containing five green cores, but kept it out of her reach, afraid she might snatch it. ""You can look, but you can't touch. Tell me which one you want, and I'll get it for you.""

""That's all you have?""

""Green cores are the most commonly traded, even more than blue ones. I heard a powerful wood-type user appeared, and now every wood-type wants to be like them."" The worker's tone was a bit disdainful, but his eyes were full of envy.

Blue cores were traded often because they were directly tied to water resources. With enough energy, water-type ability users could produce more water, faster.

Bian Changxi touched her nose. Was this all because of her?

She looked over the five cores. None were particularly good, but she picked the best of the lot. ""I'll take that one...""

""Um, I'd like to trade this green core for two white cores, and the rest for food, is that okay?"" came a voice from the next window.

Bian Changxi turned and saw Chen Haitao. Noticing the green core in his hand, her eyes lit up. ""Wait!""

""Eh? Miss Bian, you're here too?""

Bian Changxi walked over. ""Can I trade with you for your green core? I need one right now. I have both white cores and food—well, only one white core at the moment, but I can owe you the rest and pay you back this afternoon.""

""Of course, no problem! No need to talk about owing or not. Miss Bian, you saved my grandfather. Giving you this green core is the least I can do, it's just..."" Just that he's strapped for resources and under a lot of pressure to survive, so he couldn't be too generous. Chen Haitao quickly handed her the green core.

Bian Changxi waved him off. ""Wait here a moment."" She traded ten white cores and the earth-type core for two green cores, then said to Chen Haitao, ""The food's at my place. Come with me and I'll get it for you.""

Of course, there wasn't any food in her room, but she still had plenty in her farm space. The food she'd bought before the apocalypse hadn't run out yet. She'd gotten more from Qiu Yun at the supermarket, snatched some here and there, and the patients she'd healed yesterday had brought her some as thanks. So for now, she wasn't facing a food crisis. When she got home, she saw Wei Xiaodong wasn't there, nor were the neighbors, so she took out half a box of instant noodles, two cans of eight-treasure porridge, a can of beef, some biscuits, and water.

She thought for a moment. Chen Haitao was no longer with Gu Xu; his family had four people, but only one and a half could fight. It couldn't be easy. That green core was second-tier—not quite perfect, but better than the one she'd gotten before. It must've been hard for them to get it, so she was already getting a good deal and didn't want to take advantage.

So she only packed four cups of instant noodles, four cans of eight-treasure porridge, kept two cans of beef for herself and gave him three, tossed in extra sausages and eggs, added a few chocolate bars, and filled the box. The water and biscuits she carried separately.

""Take these. Most were given to me yesterday. I can't carry them all, and if I leave them here, I worry someone might steal them. Your green core is worth this much."" After much persuasion, Chen Haitao finally accepted. She pocketed the green core and hurried to Area B—ah, now she owed another white core. Time to keep working.

Meanwhile, Chen Haitao walked a while and met someone. ""Captain Gu, she took the green core. Here's the stuff...""

Gu Xu looked up, his gaze passing over the mouthwatering food and landing on the white core. He picked it up and examined it. ""If she gave it to you, just keep it. This white core is worth three ordinary ones—be careful when absorbing its energy.""

That second-tier green core obviously hadn't been obtained by Chen Haitao himself; Gu Xu had given it to him. Chen Haitao figured Captain Gu must've known Miss Bian needed a green core and came up with this way to help her.

But it was strange—what had happened between the two of them to make things so tense? He saw Miss Bian trade for that earth-type core; in the past, she would've given it straight to Wu Dalang.

Lost in thought, he was startled by Gu Xu's words. ""But... Miss Bian said she'd give me another one to make up for it.""

Gu Xu smiled faintly, as if thinking of something. ""She doesn't like to take advantage. If she wants to make it up to you, just accept it.""

If Bian Changxi knew the green core had come from Gu Xu, who knows if she'd still be smiling. Anyway, she was in a great mood now. As long as she had food, weapons, and green cores, she was content and wanted nothing more. Killing zombies was hard and dangerous, but she felt fulfilled and free.

By sunset, she'd collected more than ten crystal cores. When she went to the train station, the green cores were already gone. She sighed in disappointment and returned the white core to Chen Haitao.

Chen Haitao was now a member of the Warriors Squad. His father hadn't qualified, but through Gu Xu's connections, he'd gotten a spot in the management team. Both father and son had a family member quota, so the four of them got a small room assigned by the military, with daily food and water rations, though the amounts were meager.

But this peaceful life didn't last long. The next day, the thirteenth day of the apocalypse, the remaining troops of the Jiangcheng Military District—over 75,000 people—finally arrived. Commander Qu Shangjin, the district leader, finally appeared, gave an important speech, and announced that the next day, everyone would leave the New Zone for the Su City base.

Because of this, the entire New Zone, which had just barely settled down, was thrown into a frenzy of activity.

Bian Changxi had nothing to tie her down and could leave at any moment. She stood quietly at the edge of the wind, gazing toward the city, her brows slightly furrowed.

Bian Kuang still hadn't come.

It didn't make sense. In her previous life, the Bian family had left for Su City with the military.

She looked up from under her cap. The sunlight seemed to form endless rays, the world a giant oven, the distant earth shimmering as if exuding oily smoke.

It was the hottest time of day. If she returned to the city now, she could still make it back before dark if all went well.

She put on her sunglasses and prepared to leave, but the soldier guarding the entrance to the New Zone stopped her with an outstretched hand. ""What are you doing? Orders from above—no one is allowed out of the New Zone."""