“The repair fee is one crystal core. Thank you for your patronage~”
An Mengyue, wearing a baggy worker’s uniform, wiped the sweat from her forehead after patching up the ceiling and slipped Lin Ran’s crystal core into her pocket.
Lin Ran felt a pang of pain in his heart.
He never imagined that his first crystal core—his only asset—would be gone before it even warmed up in his hand.
This was hard currency! How was he supposed to buy things in the future…
Suddenly, a flash of inspiration hit him, as if he’d thought of something.
“Hey, right, there should be a Baku in every cabin, right? So what if someone gets wicked ideas, wants to kill you and steal your crystal core? What do you do then?”
The moment the words left his mouth, the smile vanished from An Mengyue’s face.
She shrank into the corner like a startled cat.
She stared warily at the window, as if ready to jump out at any moment.
“Don’t worry, I have no such intentions.”
Seeing her reaction, Lin Ran quickly waved his hand in reassurance.
“Besides, you don’t have much money on you anyway. Killing the goose that lays the golden eggs isn’t worth it. I’m aiming for sustainable development.”
He leaned back lazily in his chair and spread his hands to show he wasn’t a threat.
Seeing his harmless demeanor, An Mengyue finally relaxed.
She sighed, her gaze turning dim.
“…It’s true. Several of my kind have already been killed. And in our form, it’s easy for men to… You understand.”
Lin Ran nodded, understanding.
In the apocalypse, human evil was amplified infinitely.
People would instinctively think of maximizing profit.
Like his portal.
If it were someone else, they might have slaughtered the entire dorm building to take all the food and supplies, leaving no survivors.
In theory, it was the most rational, profitable method.
But Lin Ran never considered doing such a thing.
Because, rather than an apocalypse, this felt more like a game with unknown rules.
For a little pitiful resource, when you had a stable food source, to attack other players…
The risks far outweighed the benefits.
Not to mention whether there were penalties like Hongming Chengfa, or if others might be stronger.
And then there was the information about crystal cores Chen Jing provided, and the repeating, memory-erasing cycles in the dreams of others.
These precious clues couldn’t be obtained through senseless slaughter.
They were worth far more than a little food and water.
Returning to the topic at hand, Lin Ran looked at An Mengyue.
She clearly had more to say.
“Seeing is easier than explaining.”
She stepped forward, grabbed Lin Ran’s hand, and led him to the window.
She opened the window and snapped her fingers toward the outside.
“Vmm——”
With a buzz, the distant scenery seemed to be dragged close by an invisible hand.
A wooden cabin at the far end of his vision was pulled near, almost right beneath the building.
Outside the cabin, a female Baku who looked similar to An Mengyue lay motionless.
She’d been stabbed several times and was long dead.
Inside the cabin was an even more horrifying sight.
A creature that was probably human was trapped inside, its body swollen six or seven times like a balloon, skin stretched to near transparency.
A constant “boom-boom” sounded from within, and each explosion sprayed blood from its orifices.
His face had turned purple from pressure, twisted in agony, eyes nearly popping out of their sockets.
An Mengyue grinned darkly as she explained.
“We’re petty! Anyone who harms us, we’ll use every means to take revenge!”
“That man is probably experiencing a nightmare where his body is stuffed with bombs, exploding, shattering, regenerating, and exploding again in endless darkness~”
As she spoke, An Mengyue’s face twisted with a shadowy smile.
Lin Ran swallowed unconsciously at the sight.
Thank goodness he was still lawful good and had never thought of such things.
Still… after the fear, a more practical problem came to mind.
“If I can’t make money from you, what should I do…”
Lin Ran shook his head and sighed, face full of worry.
“You really do want to rob me, huh!”
An Mengyue’s act broke instantly, and she glared at him, cheeks puffed in anger.
“Haha, just kidding. That compensation you mentioned… Could you spare a crystal core…?”
Lin Ran’s tone was nearly pleading.
After all, he really needed the stuff.
Whether it was trading with An Mengyue or with others in the future, crystal cores were essential.
An Mengyue paused for a few seconds, then showed a look of sudden realization as if she’d only just remembered.
But—a crystal core was the bottom line!
“No money, only my life to give.”
She crossed her arms over her chest.
Even the baggy worker’s uniform couldn’t hide her curves as she eyed Lin Ran up and down.
Her gaze lingered on the toned abs under Lin Ran’s white shirt, turning playful.
She smiled and threw him a flirtatious wink.
“If it’s not enough, I can pay in kind.”
When An Mengyue said this, her face was calm, without a hint of blush.
She was the polar opposite of those bashful girls at home who blushed just from a little skinship.
Lin Ran casually read An Mengyue’s mind to see if she was serious or just fishing for another solution.
But…
[Hehehehe… This little cutie looks so good, and that body… those solid abs… If I could just touch… No, if I could pin him against the wall…]
Why did it feel like she was the one profiting from the “payment in kind”?!
…
…
By the time Lin Ran saw off the persistent An Mengyue, it was already late at night.
The second wave of enemy attacks would likely continue for a while.
After all, most people probably still didn’t know how to break through.
Not to mention guys like him who wanted to save the Autonomous Dolls, prolonging the Di’erbo Gongshi even further.
Before most people cleared the stage, the Di Sanbo Gongshi shouldn’t start.
So Lin Ran slept in the cabin that night.
—It was indeed more comfortable than the dorm.
But…
From the start, first Limu came over with her pillow, saying she couldn’t sleep and wanted to share the bed.
Then, An Mengyue clung on stubbornly.
Finally, even Xiao Shilaime and the little dolls joined in.
Especially the Xiao Shilaime he’d saved earlier, who had somehow crawled from the washbasin into his bed and was now sleeping soundly.
Fortunately, they eventually quarreled among themselves and returned to their own rooms.
Only the Autonomous Doll remained silent.
Not that he had any unrealistic fantasies.
It’s just that since returning, he’d been busy talking business with An Mengyue.
He hadn’t even had the chance to name the Autonomous Doll.
Forget it… I’ll think about it tomorrow. Time to sleep.
…
“Apocalypse environment detected. First survival plan activated.”
“All members, please cooperate to achieve the objective.”
When Lin Ran was jolted awake in the middle of the night, the first thing he saw was the Autonomous Doll straddling him.
And himself, tied up tight by the little dolls.
Hmm…
Hmm?
You really went for a night raid?!
…
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