"Hmm... useful but..." she frowned slightly, imagining the situation of eating that while being chased by zombies. "...not ideal."

Then there was "Crystal Spring Water," a clear bottle filled with glowing blue liquid. It could restore stamina quickly and remove fatigue for a short time. That one actually made her pause for a bit.

"This one’s not bad..."

But then she saw the price.

280 crystal cores.

Her lips pressed together slightly.

Still expensive.

Next was something even weirder.

"Laughing Mushroom Soup."

The description said it would make the consumer laugh uncontrollably for ten seconds after consumption, but also boost mental resistance afterward.

"...Why would I need to laugh in the middle of a zombie apocalypse?" she muttered, clearly not impressed.

Beside it was "Iron Skin Biscuit," a small hard looking biscuit that, when eaten, would temporarily harden the skin to resist minor attacks. That one sounded useful at first glance, but the effect only lasted five minutes.

"Five minutes..." she shook her head slightly. "...too short."

Another item rotated into view.

"A pair of silver scissors."

At first, it looked completely normal, but the description said it could cut through clothes with the precision of a swordmaster, making perfect cuts every time.

Bai Li stared at it for a second.

"...What am I supposed to do with this? Tailoring during apocalypse?" she muttered dryly.

There was also something called "Wind Candy," small green candies that, when eaten, could increase speed slightly for a short burst. Not bad, but again, too limited.

Then "Golden Fried Rice," which could restore a bit of stamina and slightly improve mood.

And another one called "Sleepy Milk," a small bottle that could instantly calm nerves and help someone fall asleep within seconds.

Bai Li just kept looking at the list, her initial excitement completely gone, replaced by mild disappointment.

There were more items scrolling below too, more strange dishes, more weird effects, some slightly useful, most of them just... random.

And the worst part?

None of them were what she needed right now.

None of them could solve the problem in front of her.

None of them could get her out of this rooftop filled with zombies.

Her eyes finally stopped moving, her shoulders relaxing slightly as she let out a quiet sigh.

"I can’t even afford anything useful..." she said under her breath, her voice carrying a hint of frustration now. "A thousand crystal cores... seriously? That’s way too much."

She glanced again at the items priced higher up, the ones locked or dimmed out because she didn’t have enough cores. Those were the ones that actually looked promising. Weapons. Tools. Things that could actually change her situation.

But they all started at over a thousand.

Way out of reach.

"And why are all the items under a thousand so... random?" she asked in her mind, clearly annoyed now. "This feels like a joke."

The system’s voice immediately responded, as cheerful and casual as always.

"Honey, the items displayed by the interdimensional market are completely random each time. Maybe next time it will be much better, hehe."

Bai Li’s expression didn’t change.

"...That’s not helpful at all," she replied flatly.

Bai Li stared at the screen for a few more seconds, her expression slowly turning more and more complicated the longer she looked at those useless items. Food, snacks, weird effects, strange transformations... none of it was what she needed right now. She let out a long sigh, the kind that came from deep inside, like she was already mentally exhausted just thinking about what to do next.

"Great... just great..." she muttered under her breath, rubbing her forehead with her fingers as a dull headache started forming. "Out of all the things, I get a menu."

She closed her eyes for a second and took a breath, trying to calm herself down, but the more she thought about it, the more helpless it felt. The only option left now was the lucky draw.

And that... was exactly the worst possible option for her.

Her hand paused in the air for a moment before she clicked it, and she couldn’t help but laugh dryly.

"Ah... lucky draw... yeah right," she said to herself, shaking her head slightly. "If luck had a grudge against someone, it would definitely be me."

Memories flashed through her mind without her even trying. Back in her previous life, during missions, there were times when everything came down to simple choices. Left or right. One out of two. Fifty percent chance.

And she still managed to pick the wrong one.

Every single time.

"There were only two paths..." she muttered, her lips twitching slightly in disbelief even now. "And I still ran straight into the enemy like I had a death wish..."

She let out a breath and looked at the screen again, her eyes narrowing slightly.

"I really don’t want to imagine what I’m about to get..."

But then again... she didn’t have a choice.

She still tried to think positively, even if it felt forced.

"Okay... okay... think about it," she murmured, tapping her finger lightly against the side of the machine. "I have over three hundred crystal cores. That’s... what... more than a hundred draws? Even if I’m unlucky, I should at least get something decent once, right?"

She paused.

Then added flatly, "...Right?"

Even she didn’t sound convinced.

Still, she took a breath and straightened slightly.

"No choice. Just do it."

She tapped the lucky draw option.

Immediately, the screen changed. A circular interface appeared, filled with small slots, each one glowing faintly with different colors. Then a red frame appeared, moving along those slots, spinning faster and faster, creating a faint blur as it rotated clockwise.

Bai Li leaned in slightly, her eyes following it, her heart starting to beat a little faster without her realizing.

"Come on... come on... give me something useful..." she muttered quietly.

The red frame slowed down.

Then slowed more.

Tick.

Tick.

Tick.

Each movement felt longer than the last.

And then—

It stopped.

Bai Li froze.

For a split second, nothing happened.

Then suddenly, the machine emitted a soft golden light, and a card slowly materialized in front of her, floating slightly in the air like it was waiting to be taken.

On the front of the card... was a picture.

A small bottle.

Colorful.

Bright.

With a cheerful design.

"...What is that..." Bai Li said slowly, her voice already carrying a bad feeling.

She reached out and grabbed the card.

The moment her fingers touched it, the golden light disappeared completely, and the screen flashed a bright "Congratulations."

Bai Li didn’t move.

She just stood there, staring at the card in her hand.

Silent.

Completely silent.

"...No way..." she muttered softly.

The system’s cheerful voice immediately rang in her mind.

"Honey, the back of the card shows its attributes. Your thoughts are connected to the card, so you can use it anytime with just a thought."

Bai Li didn’t respond.

Her face slowly turned darker.

"...A drink..." she said, her voice flat.

"...A baby drink."

Her hand trembled slightly.

Not from fear.

From pure disbelief.

"I almost died..." she said slowly, her tone getting heavier with every word. "I climbed seven floors... fought zombies... almost fell to my death..."

Her grip on the card tightened.

"And this... THIS... is what I get?"

She looked up at the sky for a second like she was questioning life itself.

"...Am I being bullied by the universe right now?"

She flipped the card over with a stiff motion.

The text appeared clearly.

"Wahaha Card Attributes: Lowest grade card. One of the most beloved drinks for children, combining fruit and milk flavors. In the apocalypse, it might bring back childhood joy."

Bai Li stared at it.

Her expression went completely blank.

"...Childhood joy..." she repeated slowly.

Then suddenly, her eye twitched.

"Joy?" she snapped quietly. "What joy?! Am I supposed to sit here and drink this while zombies are waiting outside?!"

She almost crushed the card right there, her fingers tightening so much that the edges bent slightly.

"Two crystal cores..." she gritted her teeth. "Do you know how hard it is to get those? I risked my life for those!"

She took a deep breath.

Then another.

Trying very hard not to lose it completely.

"Fine... fine... really fine... Wahaha..." she muttered through clenched teeth, forcing out a laugh that sounded more like she was about to break something.

For a moment, she just stood there, holding the card like it had personally offended her existence.

Then she exhaled slowly and forced herself to calm down.

"...Okay... calm down... calm down..." she muttered, rubbing her temples again. "This is just the first draw... just bad luck... happens..."

She looked at the machine again, her eyes narrowing slightly.

"I still have more than three hundred cores..."

Her lips curled slightly, though there was still a hint of irritation in her expression.

"...No way I’m this unlucky."

She paused.

Bai Li slowly lifted her head after staring at the useless card for a while and her eyes landed on Yan Cijin, who was standing a few steps away from her, quiet and composed as always, just watching everything without saying a single word. There was no confusion on her face, no curiosity that she voiced out loud, and more importantly, no questions. She had clearly seen everything just now, from the moment Bai Li started the lucky draw, to the golden light flashing, to the card appearing out of nowhere right in front of her. Any normal person would have at least asked something, even if just out of shock. But Yan Cijin didn’t. She simply stood there like it was all completely normal.

And honestly... Bai Li liked that.

She was already annoyed enough dealing with her own terrible luck. The last thing she needed right now was someone asking her questions like "what is that," or "how did you do that," or "where did those come from." She didn’t have the mood or the patience to explain anything. So Yan Cijin staying quiet like this actually made things easier for her.

Still, when Bai Li looked at her, she couldn’t help but feel a bit... strange.

Yan Cijin didn’t say anything, but her eyes were clearly observing everything, calm and steady, like she was taking in every detail. And deep inside, Yan Cijin really was amused.

Very amused.

Because from her perspective, this whole scene was... honestly hilarious.

In her previous lives, her luck with the interdimensional market had always been pretty decent. Not insane, not ridiculously overpowered, but good enough. Whenever she really needed something, especially in life threatening situations, she would usually get something useful. Sometimes even something surprisingly good. That was how she survived in the early stages, how she slowly built herself up.

But Bai Li...

Yan Cijin almost laughed just thinking about it.

This woman... her luck was really something else.

And not in a good way.

The way she kept pulling out useless things one after another... it was almost impressive in its own way.

At the same time, though, Yan Cijin’s eyes flickered slightly as she thought about something else.

Bai Li’s abilities.

The way she took out crystal cores from nowhere.

The way that beautiful dagger just appeared in her hand like it was nothing.

That weapon... Yan Cijin could feel it instinctively. It wasn’t normal. It carried a presence that was definitely not inferior to the Doomslasher she had in her previous life. And that weapon... she had paid an insane price for it. Almost everything she had saved up over years. High level crystal cores, rare items, even mythical resources. All of that just to get one weapon.

And Bai Li...

Just casually pulling something like that out?

"Interesting..." Yan Cijin thought quietly, her lips curving slightly, though she didn’t show it too clearly.

But she didn’t ask.

She had no intention of asking.

Everyone had their own secrets. And clearly, Bai Li had a lot of them.

So instead of breaking that balance, she simply stayed quiet, watching.

.

.

.

To be continued.