Yama Reborn-Chapter 589 - 586: I’m Starving to Death

The first time Chen Nuo ventured into the South America Tropical Rainforest.

That was also his first attempt to find Seed, in the Relic World, amidst a brutal battle...

There was a particular detail from that experience.

At the start of the chaotic fight, there were many monsters in the Relic World, all attacking Chen Nuo and other Special Ability Users under some mysterious command.

And what Chen Nuo did was dismantle the tip of the pyramid!

Just like removing an antenna from the Teletubbies, the monsters in the Relic World became powerless.

The mysterious force of the antenna had a range limit—otherwise, there'd be no reason to have an antenna in the first place.

The logic was simple.

That thing was part of Seed's abilities.

It can be imagined that Mother definitely possesses Seed's abilities!

So...

Pengpeng must be controlled by an antenna—or rather, not controlled but empowered. Once he steps out of its range, he loses his power.

And Mother's ability level is certainly higher than Seed's.

The antenna created by Seed grants power to monsters but also suppresses their consciousness.

Meanwhile, the antenna set by Mother... allows Pengpeng to retain his consciousness.

·

The RV was navigating the remote and desolate roads.

Dust rose from the wheels, against the backdrop of barren African wilderness. The exposed earth appeared arid and poor under the distant sunset, unshielded by clouds, enhancing a savage feeling.

The surrounding vegetation consisted of either low shrubs or sparse trees, yet deep within the forest, it seemed like some eyes were silently watching the bouncing RV pass by.

They had traveled over two hundred kilometers from the Capital City.

Heading north, according to the map, they should reach the northern border of this country in two days.

But that's not the way it would work out.

The water and food supplies in the RV were sufficient, but gasoline wouldn't last two days.

RVs inherently consume a lot of fuel, and a full tank lasts only a day.

After leaving the Capital City, they passed through two small towns where expensive fuel was an essential commodity—harder than US dollars, especially during wartime.

To refuel, Corot even clashed with an armed group in one of the towns, and it was Gray Cat who subdued them, managing to "negotiate" half purchase and half forcibly for a tank of gasoline.

Of course, Corot felt no guilt—after all, the others attacked first, attempting to steal their RV.

For the rest of the journey, they'd need to find more refueling spots.

So, they couldn't travel in a straight line. They would need to take detours and loops to find towns for fuel and supplies.

Corot quietly drove the vehicle, planning to find a campsite when the sun fully set.

Gray Cat lay calmly in the passenger seat, eyes closed, seemingly asleep.

Since the night he left the Capital City and returned the next day, Gray Cat appeared perpetually listless.

He spoke very little every day, mostly lying down and resting, rarely opening his eyes.

Corot was in charge of his meals and sleep arrangements.

Finally, when the sun almost touched the horizon, Corot found a suitable camping spot.

It was beside a dried riverbed, with only sparse shrubs in the distance and no lush vegetation.

The dryness of the riverbed was crucial—places with water sources weren't ideal for camping as they attract wildlife.

Dense vegetation also made it easier for wild animals, especially large carnivores, to hide.

After stopping and turning off the engine, Corot inspected the surroundings, grabbed his gun, and got out of the vehicle.

The RV contained supplies for starting a fire in the wild, including charcoal, and gathering some dry branches was not too difficult.

Corot quickly started a campfire beside the RV, placed two chairs, and sprayed some insect repellent around.

He boiled a pot of water, added two packs of dehydrated vegetable mix and some macaroni.

Then he skewered a steak with an iron fork and started roasting it over the fire.

While Corot was busy, Gray Cat, unnoticed, had already strolled out of the vehicle and lay down beside the campfire.

The temperature difference at night was significant, and Gray Cat had curled its entire body into a fuzzy ball, staying close to the warmth of the fire, eyes barely open, without moving.

Occasionally, when Corot's gaze moved over, he couldn't shake off a peculiar feeling.

This feline master...

Seemed somewhat "weak"?

Not weary, not bored, but weak.

Corot didn't believe that a cat that was a Seed would fall ill.

As a Seed, nothing on this planet could harm it, no bacteria or viruses.

And this weakness doesn't seem to be caused by any injury—on that night in the Capital City, if there was something capable of hurting the Gray Cat, then the battle might have leveled the whole city.

The Gray Cat's weakness also showed in its appetite.

For dinner, the Gray Cat only ate a little beef, then lay there motionless.

If it were usual, this guy could eat a big piece of beef and still have some fruit and vegetable drinks.

Corot felt inexplicably anxious.

After all, now this cat owner was his only reliance.

The ice cream powder in the car was gone—not available in the Capital City either, where can you get that kind of stuff in a wartime situation.

However, Corot still managed to find some substitutes.

He used an ice maker to make some ice cubes, then poured some milk and juice, and used the car's blender to make ice slush.

When Corot finished preparing the cold drink and served it to the Gray Cat, it did open its eyes for a moment.

But its energy only lasted for a few minutes; the Gray Cat slowly crawled away after eating only half of the large serving of ice slush.

Corot tidied up the things, sat beside the Gray Cat, hesitated a while, then finally took a deep breath and spoke: "Respected Master... I think you seem somewhat off."

The Gray Cat lifted its eyelids to glance at Corot.

"Do you need some medicine, or...?"

"I'm not sick." The Gray Cat shook its head.

Corot thought for a moment: "So... do you need some 'entertainment'? I think there must be some wild feline animals around here, like leopards..."

The Gray Cat's tone was obviously disdainful: "Don't you know these wild animals never bathe? Would you be interested in a woman who hasn't bathed for several years?"

"Uh..." Corot was speechless.

The Gray Cat sighed: "I'm fine, you don't need to ask much or have any messy thoughts."

Seeing Corot's worried eyes, the Gray Cat thought for a moment: "Have you planned the rest of the journey?"

Seeing the Gray Cat willing to chat, Corot felt a bit relieved, quickly took a folded map out of his pocket, unfolded it swiftly and said: "I've studied the map carefully, heading north, the distance to the border is still two or three days, but we need to detour, find places to refuel and purchase supplies.

My plan is to head west tomorrow, detour about thirty kilometers to find a city called Doraki.

It's the fourth-largest city in this country, although not very prosperous, it must have gas stations and shops to buy fuel and supplies.

This is our last chance to replenish, after leaving Doraki, heading north, it's all war-torn areas, there won't be safe refueling and supply points, we need to cross the border quickly, leave this country."

The Gray Cat listened, jumped onto Corot's shoulder, looked at the map in his hand for a while, then nodded.

"Good plan, follow your lead."

·

In the morning, Corot's body shivered violently a few times, transforming from a pig into a human.

He crawled out from under the wrapped blanket, feeling something gently tapping on the car body.

Corot immediately got an adrenaline rush, jumped up from the RV bed.

Peeking through the window, he saw outside the car, a young African elephant was curiously using its trunk to gently tap on the RV's window.

The windows were one-way visible, the African elephant couldn't see inside the car, but was probably attracted by the sun reflecting off the glass.

Corot calmed himself, quickly observed the surroundings—where these animal cubs appear, there are usually adult beasts nearby.

Observing around from inside the car, he did see, in the dry riverbed, two adult African elephants were using their trunks to scoop up mud from the river and smear it on themselves.

Seeing African elephants up close can make an ordinary person instinctively feel awe—they're huge!

African elephants are much bigger and taller than Asian elephants.

Corot glanced at the Gray Cat, which lay there motionless, apparently uninterested and unresponsive to this situation, with no intention to help.

Corot thought for a bit, tiptoed to the driver's seat, then quickly checked the car body, ensuring there was no damage.

Afterwards, he started the car.

The roar of the engine and the vibration of the car startled the young African elephant curiously touching the RV, immediately backing away several steps.

And the adult elephants playing mud bath in the riverbed seemed disturbed, immediately striding towards them.

Corot quickly pressed the gas pedal, turned the steering wheel, and the car sped away around the young elephant.

While behind him, the adult African elephants were very close.

Seeing the elephant herd not catching up, the car driving away safely, Corot breathed a sigh of relief.

Those are African elephants, even lions wouldn't easily mess with them.

Yet his feline master apparently seemed completely unconcerned.

Fortunately, after driving in the set direction for about half an hour, Corot saw the roadside sign.

It was a rusty giant iron sign, with simple directional content.

An arrow pointing west.

Below it was [Doraki].

And another line [Doraki International Hospital].

Corot's mind settled a bit.

If a city can maintain an International Hospital, this place called Doraki must have gas stations. 𝕗𝐫𝚎𝗲𝘄𝐞𝕓𝐧𝕠𝘃𝕖𝐥.𝐜𝚘𝚖

·

When the fuel gauge of the RV indicated only one-fifth left, the vehicle had already reached the outskirts of Doraki Town.

However, Corot observed that a large number of refugee camps had gathered north of the city.

To avoid trouble, Corot drove around the outskirts of this town and found a way into the city from the southwest.

When he saw the military checkpoint at the entrance to the city and noticed that the soldiers guarding it were not the disorganized local soldiers but were dressed in obviously elite black military gear and were all white people...

Corot immediately realized that this place was probably occupied by an international mercenary group.

However, this gave Corot a slight sense of safety.

The local warlords were too unruly, just killing and robbing at will.

If it was under the control of mercenaries, it might even be a bit safer.

Passing through the checkpoint wasn't difficult; after he showed his passport and handed over twenty US dollars, he was easily allowed entry into this town.

The town seemed much more desolate than the Capital City, with no tall buildings.

However, upon entering the city, it was relatively close to the International Hospital.

When passing the checkpoint, Corot asked the mercenary soldiers and received a piece of news that did not comfort him much.

Due to war, Doraki City was temporarily under military control.

The gas stations in town were under military control and not open to the public.

To ensure the local people's fueling needs, there was only one gas station in town still open, and it had daily quotas.

The gas station was not far from the hospital, about a kilometer away.

Corot drove for a while, took a wrong turn once, but finally found the gas station.

However, when he stopped to refuel, he ran into a problem.

Due to the war, gasoline was classified as a strategic controlled material, so there were many restrictions on refueling now.

The first issue was the quota.

For the large off-road RV that Corot drove, the fuel tank was enormous.

They simply could not sell you such a large amount of fuel.

According to the quota, the most they could fill Corot's tank was about halfway.

Corot's cash power didn't help at all.

Because the gas station was controlled by mercenaries - these mercenaries simply would not accept Corot's bribes.

It's not that these mercenaries were particularly honest, but rather because it was heard that a high-ranking mercenary officer was in town.

Being so close to the decision-maker, the people below were somewhat restrained in their actions.

Half a tank of fuel?

Corot was caught in a dilemma.

With half a tank of fuel, he couldn't make it to the border!

In the middle of areas controlled by the tribes, the vehicle would break down!

At that time, would he have to cross those barbaric and ignorant tribal warlord territories on foot?

Gray Cat was now in a sickly, unreliable state!

However, perhaps seeing the pack of cigarettes Corot offered, the mercenaries at the gas station pointed Corot in a bright direction.

We can't sell you more fuel, but... others can.

You can buy from the local residents.

The local wealthy people, those with vehicles, also have quotas and can come to refuel; you just need to pay them to buy the fuel.

Corot nodded, then thought for a moment, returned to the car, and told Gray Cat about the situation.

Gray Cat still looked listless and weak, jumping to Corot's shoulder.

"Since there's a way to refuel, let's follow that way. But don't rush to buy fuel; you'll have to ask around household by household, you can do this in the afternoon.

For now, let's find a place to eat; I'm tired of eating roasted meat outdoors every day."

Corot sighed, "So, esteemed master, what would you like to eat? I see that this street doesn't have any open restaurants, many shops are closed."

"I want to eat fish, just find a place that serves fish."

After finishing, Gray Cat closed its eyes.

·

Chen Nuo was eating fish.

Not at the Mayor Mansion.

But at a restaurant.

As one of the few businesses still open in the city, the reason this restaurant managed to stay open was because... its owner was replaced by Enke the day before yesterday.

The former owner... died.

The deceased was a local notable figure, hoarding grain and opposing Enke, then Enke quickly suppressed him.

The restaurant's ownership changed to Enke.

And Chen Nuo was called by Enke to have a meal...

How to put it, the chef here was reportedly trained at a major restaurant in the Capital City, learning the European style of Western cuisine.

Originally, this did not interest Chen Nuo.

However, he heard that this chef, after returning from the Capital Restaurant, also spent half a year working at the Huaxia Mining Company's labor settlement in the north.

Reportedly, he learned some Chinese culinary methods.

To Chen Nuo's surprise, this black chef actually knew how to make meat buns!

This made Chen Nuo quite happy!

However, upon seeing the menu, Chen Nuo couldn't help but grimace.

As expected, they adapted to local conditions.

The restaurant's manager and chef enthusiastically introduced their "Huaxia Specialty Meat Buns."

The filling included... crocodile meat! Wild buffalo meat!

And wild boar meat!

Chen Nuo sighed.

He wouldn't eat those wild animal meats... because of the parasites they carry.

Upon confirming they had regular farmed pork, Chen Nuo said: Just that!

The most ordinary pork buns would do, no need for those exotic options!

But since the chef learned some Chinese cooking, Chen Nuo also brought in a bucket of fish for him to cook.

He heard that the black chef could make braised fish.

So... might as well give it a try.

However, when the black chef took out a bottle of authentic Huaxia soy sauce, Chen Nuo's confidence increased a bit!

The soy sauce was something the black chef got in exchange from the Huaxia Mining area in the north.

Hmm, not bad, with soy sauce and knowing how to use it, the braised fish should be fine.

·

The taste of pork buns... well...

How to put it, it was decent.

Even less flavorful than the chain bun shops below his apartment in Jinling.

But to have a bite here, that was already good enough.

Chen Nuo ate a few, and also packed a few to bring back to Lu Xixi.

And the braised fish...

Chen Nuo took one bite and didn't touch it again.

It had too strong of an earthy taste!

The black chef didn't know how to remove the fishy smell, didn't use scallion, ginger, or garlic.

He directly had the chef take the fish away, throw it into the trash outside.

Actually, the chef wanted to take it back to eat himself... but in front of this big shot, he dared not do it.

He obediently took it outside and dumped it.

Seeing he had nothing else to eat...

Things like grilled crocodile meat, Chen Nuo was not interested in at all.

In the end, he could only carry a paper bag with a few meat buns, slowly leaving the restaurant.

As soon as he got outside, Chen Nuo was stunned!!

A plump cat was squatting by the trash can, rifling through the red-braised fish on the ground!

Its paws were batting at it, seemingly wanting to eat but hesitating...

In the moment Chen Nuo was dazed, Gray Cat looked up and saw Chen Nuo.

Instantly, their eyes met.

Chen Nuo: "Damn! It's you!!"

Gray Cat covered its face with its paws: "No, it's not me!!"

Chen Nuo suddenly got angry and started to walk over: "You damn cat! You tricked me into... huh?! What are you doing?"

Because instead of running, Gray Cat sped straight toward Chen Nuo!

Then its plump body hugged Chen Nuo's leg tightly, and the cat's head rubbed against Chen Nuo's leg a few times.

Gray Cat took deep greedy breaths, like a smoker desperate for a cigarette after going a week without one.

Breathing frantically, Gray Cat's voice trembled: "Quick, let me absorb some of your Life Essence... If I don't get energy soon, I'm going to starve to death!!"

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