Chapter 14: Mixing Medicine

“Okay, search around more. This Blood Thistle Grass is also a good thing. Its red leaves can be eaten. Eating a lot of them can slightly improve a person’s physical condition. The milky-white roots can be used as medicine.”

In the post-apocalyptic Earth, food was the most important thing. In the Fate Store, spending a few Fate Points could buy enough food and water for one day. But the later it got, the harder it was to obtain Fate Points. In the future, many people would rely on searching for plants in the wild to survive.

Xu Feng once relied on Blood Thistle Grass to get through a very difficult period. Even now, thinking about it, he could still taste the bitter flavor of Blood Thistle Grass in his mouth.

“Edible?” Wang Ying asked curiously. She glanced at Xu Feng, plucked a leaf from the Blood Thistle Grass, and cautiously took a small bite.

“Ugh, so bitter! It’s disgusting. How can anyone eat this? It’s just grass,” Wang Ying said, frowning.

Xu Feng shook his head and smiled bitterly. When there was no food, and you were so hungry you felt weak and close to death, you would dare to put even dirt in your mouth, not to mention grass.

“Alright, let’s see if there’s any more Blood Thistle Grass.”

Soon, the two of them searched the entire flowerbed and found a total of six Blood Thistle Grass plants. They considered themselves lucky.

“Let’s go. Find a place to mix the medicine, then kill the Green Poison Insects. After that, we can rest properly,” Xu Feng said.

The two found a clothing store with its door wide open nearby. They cleared out the Black Armored Beetles inside, and Xu Feng began to prepare the medicine.

First, he took out the large plastic bag of medicine. He selected a few tablets from each type of medicine—some he took two tablets, others three—and piled them together, making one portion.

“Find something like a bowl,” Xu Feng said to Wang Ying as he sorted the medicine.

Wang Ying ran to the cashier counter of the clothing store and started rummaging around. Xu Feng continued sorting the medicine. Soon, more than a dozen piles of pills, large and small, were stacked in front of him.

“That should be enough. There’s too little Blood Thistle Grass, and we can’t waste this medicine. In the apocalypse, finished medicines like these are limited, so we have to use them sparingly,” Xu Feng thought to himself.

“Xu Feng, will this work?” Wang Ying asked, holding a mug.

“Yes, bring it here.”

Xu Feng threw one portion of the medicine into the mug. Then, using the handle of his cleaver, he began to crush all the tablets into fine powder.

“Blood Thistle Grass,” Xu Feng said.

Wang Ying took one Blood Thistle Grass plant from her Virtual Backpack and handed it over.

Xu Feng first cut the Blood Thistle Grass into two sections, neatly separating the white roots from the red leaves.

He stuffed the upper red leaves into his mouth. Holding the white roots, he began to squeeze them. Soon, a drop of milky-white liquid dripped from between his fingers into the small pile of powder in the mug.

“Sizzle~”

The milky-white liquid reacted with the medicine powder, releasing a faint wisp of green smoke.

“Wow, it smells so good!” Wang Ying said, sniffing hard.

“Hmm, this fragrance is harmless to humans, but it’s deadly to Green Poison Insects.”

After the liquid from the Blood Thistle Grass roots dripped into the mug, the powder began to clump together. Soon, it formed an irregular crystal about the size of a small fingernail.

“Next portion!” Xu Feng said to Wang Ying after taking out the crystal, which looked like multicolored glass.

Wang Ying threw another portion of medicine into the mug and began crushing it vigorously. Xu Feng continued squeezing the Blood Thistle Grass roots.

Soon, more than a dozen inconspicuous, irregular crystals lay before Xu Feng.

“Alright, that should be enough,” Xu Feng said, putting the crystals into his pocket.

“Then let’s go find the Green Poison Insects now. Do you know where they are?” Wang Ying asked. She was tired and hungry and just wanted to finish the task quickly so she could get a good night’s sleep. A bath would be even better.

“Hehe, the Green Poison Insects are right under our feet,” Xu Feng said with a laugh.

“Under our feet? Where?”

“Follow me.”

Xu Feng walked out of the clothing store, grabbing a few pieces of clothing on the way and putting them on. Even in the apocalypse, and with a girl nearby, it didn’t look good to always be shirtless.

“I wonder how long these clothes will last. I’m really starting to miss armor equipment now,” Xu Feng thought to himself.

Ordinary clothes were too fragile. After just one fight, they would turn into rags. Only armor of Black Iron Grade or higher could withstand damage from the Insect Race.

Xu Feng walked into a narrow alley, took a few steps, then bent down and lifted a manhole cover. “The Green Poison Insects are down here,” he said.

After speaking, he jumped down first.

Wang Ying walked to the manhole opening and looked down. Her face showed reluctance. The sewer was too dirty, and she really didn’t want to go down.

But when she thought about the ferocious Insect Race and how Xu Feng had taken care of her along the way, Wang Ying hesitated by the manhole for a moment before gritting her teeth and climbing in.

After Xu Feng jumped into the sewer, he didn’t rush her. He just stood quietly nearby, waiting for Wang Ying to make her choice.

If Wang Ying wasn’t willing to jump down, then Xu Feng would have to continue on his own from here. Even if Wang Ying had an SSR talent, Xu Feng would part ways with her at this point.

However, Wang Ying soon followed him down. Xu Feng said, “Be careful. It’s very dark here. I’ll walk in front, and you stay close behind me.”

After speaking, Xu Feng started walking forward.

The sewer was pitch black, and they couldn’t see anything. The two walked cautiously, stepping carefully.

Squeak squeak~

“Ah, a rat!” Wang Ying screamed in fright, tightly grabbing the hem of Xu Feng’s clothes.

“Don’t be afraid. Stay close to me. We’re almost there,” Xu Feng said.

Soon, Wang Ying noticed a faint green light ahead. It seemed like a layer of algae covered the entire passage.

“What… what is this?” Wang Ying asked, pulling on Xu Feng’s clothes, feeling scared.

“Green Glow Algae. It tastes pretty good when dried,” Xu Feng said.

Wang Ying felt somewhat helpless. It seemed like in Xu Feng’s eyes, everything could be eaten.

“I really don’t understand the world of food lovers,” Wang Ying thought to herself.

Just then, a rat suddenly scurried out from a small hole nearby. It ran across the Green Glow Algae but, after just a few steps, suddenly fell onto the algae and let out a piercing shriek.

In no time, the living rat was decomposed as if it had fallen into concentrated acid.

“It… it’s carnivorous?” Wang Ying was startled. The thin, harmless-looking algae had not only killed such a large rat but also dissolved its body. It was terrifying.

“It’s fine. As long as your skin doesn’t directly touch it, there’s no problem,” Xu Feng reassured her.

“Alright, we’ll stop here. Green Poison Insects like to build their nests near Green Glow Algae. We might encounter them ahead, so we’ll lure them over one by one from here,” Xu Feng said, taking one of the crystals from his pocket and tossing it forward. The crystal rolled onto the Green Glow Algae.