Chapter 37: Chapter 37: A Treasure as Precious as Life

The person tied to the wooden post writhed, struggling desperately to break free.

But his body was bound tightly by ropes, and his hands were tied behind his back. Escape was impossible.

His struggles only earned him the roaring laughter of the five men.

"Struggle all you want. Sweating before you die means we’ll need less salt..." a one-eyed man by the fire said in a hoarse voice. "Who are you!?"

He had spotted Shen Feng’s figure.

The men building the roasting rack immediately stood up and turned to look at Shen Feng.

Some had tumors on their faces, others had split lips or crooked features. Their limbs were also somewhat mutated. The firelight illuminated their ragged cloaks, making them look like the Five Brothers of Hell, good friends of the Three Sisters of Hell.

"Hahaha, it’s food! And a horse! No, two horses!"

"Dinner’s delivering itself!"

"By the grace of the God of the East Wind, get him!"

As they spoke, the five men simultaneously drew black long sabers and axes and charged at Shen Feng!

Shen Feng let out a long sigh of relief. Despite their strange, hoarse tones and rapid speech, he could still understand them. There was no language barrier.

Then, he closed his eyes and began to recall the feeling of fighting dozens of apes alone during the Stone Statue Apocalypse—the raging madness and brutal asphyxiation.

"The food’s scared stiff! He’s not moving!"

"No, he shows no signs of morbid mutation. His skin is good, too. We could sell him as a Seed Source for a good price!"

"He has two horses, how can he be an ordinary person? We have to be careful. He might have a... a gun?"

"A gun? No way. How could a Sacred Artifact like that still exist? Besides, they say guns are useless without Sacred Artifact bullets."

"Doesn’t matter! Just chop off his limbs first!"

One of the Desert Bandits sneered and swung a black long saber at Shen Feng’s arm.

Just then, Shen Feng’s eyes snapped open!

His pupils had narrowed into feline slits, and the muscles on his body bulged, turning a morbid, grayish-white.

CLANG! The blade struck Shen Feng’s skin, letting out the sharp ring of metal on metal.

The Desert Bandit with the saber froze. Before he could react, Shen Feng’s fist smashed into his face. The immense force was like a sledgehammer blow, caving in his facial features entirely as his body slumped to the ground.

A single, fatal blow!

His skin partially petrified, Shen Feng let out a savage roar, grabbed another Desert Bandit by the neck, and gave it a sharp twist. He then smashed the man’s head violently against another’s.

It was like two watermelons smashing together.

The two remaining Desert Bandits reacted instantly, turning to flee into the distance.

Shen Feng casually picked up two long sabers from the ground and hurled them.

The two fleeing men felt a sudden chill on their backs, then a blade tip burst through their chests. They slowly collapsed to the ground.

"...Bar...barian... It’s... a Barba..."

The last Desert Bandit stammered, then fell completely silent...

Shen Feng let out a long breath and looked at his hands.

’This is the first time I’ve ever killed people.’

’I’ve hunted and killed many animals and apes with all sorts of firearms in the Stone Statue Apocalypse, but they weren’t my own kind.’

’But this time, I killed several humans with my own hands.’

’However, I don’t feel any tension or discomfort. On the contrary, I feel a sense of relief.’

’These guys who hunt people in broad daylight and prepare to roast them alive are basically demons. You can’t even call them human anymore.’

’In extreme circumstances, like surviving on the remains of dead companions after a plane crash in some frozen, snow-covered mountain with no food—that, I could understand.’

’But this—this pure act of feeding on your own kind, even taking pleasure in it—it fills me with an absolute rage.’

’In the apocalypse, order has collapsed, and everything is about survival. I’ll probably run into situations like this again. I just hope it’s not too often...’

Shen Feng did not deactivate his combat form. He searched the bodies of the Desert Bandits but only found a dozen or so bottle caps.

The caps were of various sizes, mostly plastic, with their words and logos severely worn. Still, he could faintly make out brand names like "Uni-President Iced Tea" and "Nutri-Express."

Some of them still had "Thank You for Your Patronage" and various QR codes for prize draws printed on the inside, and two or three even said "One More Bottle."

’From the kneeling figure and his two pursuers I met at the start, to these five Desert Bandits—they all carried bottle caps, and treasured them like precious jewels.’

’What are they collecting bottle caps for?’

Shen Feng was suddenly reminded of a game he used to play—the classic post-apocalyptic series from Black Island Studio, Fallout!

’That game also depicted a post-nuclear wasteland apocalypse where human civilization had completely collapsed, and the few remaining survivors eked out a living in scattered settlements.’

’The pre-war currency was long worthless, replaced by the metal caps from glass Coca-Cola bottles.’

’Could it be that in this post-nuclear wasteland I’m in, the remaining humans also use bottle caps as a basic currency?’

The more Shen Feng thought about it, the more sense it made. He took out the bag of caps he had acquired a few days ago and tossed in the dozen or so he had just collected.

’I just wonder if these caps have different denominations.’

’How many small caps is a big cap worth?’

’How many Iced Tea caps is a plain Master Kong Mineral Water cap worth?’

Lost in thought, Shen Feng walked over to the bound "food."

The "food" was motionless, as if completely unconscious.

Shen Feng was unmoved. "Stop pretending," he said, his expression flat. "I know you’re awake. Name?"

He was still in his combat form, and all his senses were several times sharper than usual. He had already detected the person’s slightly ragged breathing and faintly glimpsed the eyes hiding beneath a curtain of long hair.

At Shen Feng’s words, the "food" immediately tossed back her long hair, revealing a pretty face. She begged:

"Mr. Barbarian... Please, I’m begging you, don’t eat me! My meat is tough and sour, it doesn’t taste good... And I have a treasure! I have a treasure to offer you!"

The "food" was a girl of about sixteen or seventeen. Though her face was smudged with dirt, she was still quite lovely, her skin glowing with a wheat-colored luster in the firelight.

’Looks like she thinks I’m some kind of Barbarian.’

Shen Feng remained impassive. "What treasure? Name?"

’I may not be a cannibal, but in a desperate, apocalyptic world like this, I’m definitely not going to be a saint.’

’Who knows if this girl is hostile, or what hidden cards she might have.’

"My... my name? My name is Firefly. I’m a miner from Nameless Town..." As Shen Feng sized her up, the girl sized him up as well. Seeing the young man’s features and his clear, calm eyes, she immediately asked, "You’re not a Barbarian?"

Shen Feng’s brow furrowed.

Seeing Shen Feng’s impatience, the girl hurriedly said:

"The treasure is in a hidden pocket in my clothes! That’s why those Desert Bandits captured me, but they got hungry right after they caught me..."

’Nameless Town? A miner?’

’So there are still human settlements in this world? With industrial production, and even mining operations?’

Shen Feng quickly analyzed the information in her words.

He then reached out and patted the girl down, and after confirming she had no hidden weapons, he used his dagger to cut the ropes binding her. He did not, however, untie her hands.

Firefly was sharp enough to understand this was a life-or-death moment. She immediately reached into her clothes, fumbled around, and soon pulled out a small pouch, holding it up to Shen Feng as if presenting a priceless treasure.

It was a small pouch woven from bark and dried grass roots.

Shen Feng opened the pouch. Inside was a single sheet of faded, yellowed paper, carefully folded. The paper had grown brittle with age; it was impossible to know how old it was.

His movements were a bit rough as he unfolded the paper, causing Firefly to look on with worry.

Two large words immediately appeared before him:

MEGA SALE!

RT-Mart Supermarket Weekend Super Sale!

Member prices, tons of surprises!

Electronics

Haier Refrigerators, 500 yuan off...

Gree Air Conditioners, price drop...

...

Meat

Pork, 20 yuan per jin...

Beef, per jin...

...

It was a promotional flyer for a supermarket sale.