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1. Deep in the lair
The body of the radioactive cockroach was still lying on the edge of the platform, with its six legs in the air, and the carapace on its abdomen glowed with a greasy cold light in the dim light.
Lin Shuang lowered his eyes and glanced for two seconds, then raised his feet and stepped straight across.
It’s not indifference.
It’s dehydration that has drained away excess emotions.Tears needed moisture. Even her saliva was sticky now, and her throat hurt even if she swallowed.
In the upper right corner of the field of view, the system number lights up quietly: 2.7μSv/h.
Since she woke up, she has been stuck in the yellow zone for nearly two hours.Iodine tablets can only block the thyroid gland from absorbing radioactive iodine, and the radiation damage to cells throughout the body is still accumulating little by little.
You must leave the subway station as soon as possible, but before you leave, if you can get more resources, you will have more possibilities to survive.
"System, scan the inside of the nest, flag materials and threats."
"Basic scan is free, deep scan consumes 10 energy, current 90/100, confirm execution?"
"Execution."
The panel refreshes.
The depth of the nest is about eight meters, and the deepest point is four square meters.
Recognizable: Metal container 1, plastic bag wrapping 3, some rotten organic matter.
There is no living heat source, but 12 low-temperature signals were detected - egg sheaths, with a temperature of 15°C and expected to hatch within 72 hours.
"There is no direct threat to the ootheca, but the nymphs after hatching will actively pursue the heat source. It is recommended to only take portable supplies, do not dig deeply, and do not destroy the ootheca - the nymphs will lock on to the scent of the destroyer and track them for 48 hours."
Lin Shuang took out the sixty-centimeter steel pipe with a thread on one end from the side pocket of his backpack.She held it horizontally in front of her and ducked sideways into the branch passage.
The passage was shorter than the main tunnel and she had to bend slightly.The pipes overhead were hung with spiderweb-like gray wadding, which rustled down when touched.The air was filled with the stench of ammonia mixed with rotten meat. Her stomach twitched violently, and acid water surged into her throat, which she swallowed hard.
It’s not that I’m strong, it’s that my stomach has long been empty and I can’t vomit.
At the end of the nest is a nest made of abandoned seats, billboard fragments, and dry plants. There is translucent mucus in the center depression, with a sour and pungent smell.Coins, broken glass, and aluminum foil are scattered around - radiating cockroaches' instinct to collect reflective objects.
Lin Shuang didn't touch the nest, and glanced directly at the scattered packages.
The first plastic bag: moldy bread, gray-green mycelium like a layer of fluff, throw it away directly.
The second one: three pieces of soap, wrapped in plastic wrap, dry and cracked but intact.
Her fingertips paused slightly.
Soap in wasteland does not clean, it cleanses the bottom line.She stuffed it into the inside of her backpack.
The third one: a box of unopened matches, fifty pieces, with the wax seal intact.
Finally, there is the military green aluminum kettle, which is pitted and mottled, and the lid is screwed tightly.
Unscrew it and the system will instantly determine:
"Water quality: lightly polluted, containing trace amounts of radioactive dust and bacteria. There is no acute risk for short-term drinking, but it must be boiled for a long time."
About 500 ml.
This is her most valuable harvest right now.
Water is more deadly than food - you can survive three weeks without food, and you will go into shock after three days without water.
She hung the water bottle in the side pocket of her backpack and glanced at the deepest egg sheaths, which looked like a bunch of gray-white grapes, each about the size of a thumb.
Take two steps back, confirm that nothing is missing, turn around and evacuate.
As soon as I returned to the main tunnel, the system warning suddenly pierced my mind:
“Multiple heat sources are approaching quickly, distance is 60 meters, speed is medium, number is 6 - radiated cockroaches return to the nest and gather their companions. Evacuate immediately.”
60 meters.
At the crawling speed of a cockroach, it will be there in 90 seconds.
Lin Shuang didn’t run away.
Can’t run.
Running will amplify the vibrations and sounds. The tunnel floor is covered with cockroach slime and humus mud, making it slippery and sticky to the feet. Once you slip, you are doomed.
She walked quickly, stepping firmly on the weight-bearing part with each step and keeping her breathing steady.Hold down the backpack with your left hand to prevent debris from shaking; hold the dead stone ax in your right hand, with your thumb on the connection between the ax handle and the blade, so you can strike with your backhand at any time.
40 meters - She walked to the edge of the platform.
30 meters - step onto the steps.
20 meters —— Push open the rusted iron door and squeeze out sideways.
10 meters - She leaned against the wall, breathing in the turbid air from the ground.
Pungent, choking, sour smell full of ozone and sulfides.
But it’s ten thousand times better than the stench in the tunnel.
Six radioactive cockroaches appeared at the corner of the tunnel, their tentacles swinging wildly.They smell the scent of intruders, but the prey has left the territory and can only circle anxiously at the entrance of the cave.
Lin Shuang waited for a minute to confirm that no cockroaches were chasing him, and then his tense muscles slowly relaxed.
My left arm was shaking - not from fear, but from exhaustion after the adrenaline ebbs.The wound oozed blood and soaked into the cloth, turning it dark red, and every heartbeat brought a dull pain.
But she knows.
Pain means the nerve is still alive.
It is much better than being unconscious.
She raised her eyes and looked around.
On the half-collapsed street, on the left is a six-story building with only its frame remaining, with steel bars piercing the sky like broken ribs; on the right, the intersection is blocked by cement blocks; directly in front is a dirt road made of construction waste, winding to the north.
In the distant sky, the gray-yellow sky and the black-gray ruins merge into one, indistinguishable boundaries.
There are no traces of anyone alive.
There is no sound.
Even the wind seems to have been sucked away by radiation dust, leaving only dull, low-pressure white noise, like a broken air conditioner idling in the distance.
This world is silent for the dead.
2. Supermarket ruins
System environment panel refresh:
【Environmental information】
Location: Unknown city ruins
Radiation: 2.7μSv/h (yellow zone)
Temperature: 9℃
Air quality: poor (radiated dust + suspended particles)
Visibility: 300 meters
【Main mission】
Spend 7 days safely
Reward: Water purifier blueprint
Progress: 0/7
Remaining: 6 days 23 hours 47 minutes Page (1/3)