Chapter 32: Chapter 32: Return to the Supermarket
Translator: 549690339
On his way back, Song Jian hunted a few more mutated zombies and dog-beasts, earning himself several pieces of “zombie meat” and “dog meat” perfect for grilling.
In a few tens of minutes, it would be dark, and the apocalypse supermarket would appear. Song Jian planned to sell all these grilled pieces of meat to exchange for some doomsday coins.
The light golden pine tree constantly swirled in Song Jian’s mind, its golden pine nuts that shimmered with golden light, in Song Jian’s view, must be wonderful items that could rival the attribute fruit. If he defeated the snake beast earlier, he could obtain the treasure sooner; otherwise, the pine nuts would be all eaten by the beast sooner or later.
As the night fell, the apocalyptic supermarket appeared as usual in the center of Camel Square. But this time, around Camel Square, there wasn’t only Song Jian. In the moonlight, Song Jian could vaguely see about a dozen fuzzy figures around the apocalyptic supermarket.
These people were just watching from a distance, no one approached.
Song Jian hesitated for a moment, then took the lead to walk towards the doomsday supermarket. Seeing him move, the others began to slowly close in. “Little brother, do you know where this is?” A middle-aged man of large build saw that Song Jian was approaching the supermarket, and hastily jogged a couple of steps to catch up, panting as he asked.
“A supermarket?” Song Jian pointed at the glowing words on the top of the doomsday supermarket building – four characters each three or four meters in diameter – and with the eyes of someone indulging a mentally challenged child, stared at the middle-aged man.
At Song Jian’s gaze, Guo Yu almost choked on his own spit.
“Of course, 1 know that this is the doomsday supermarket, but is the supermarket here the same as the supermarkets in reality?” Guo Yu cursed inwardly.
“So… what all do they sell inside?” With a strained smile on his face, Guo Yu asked, his thick facial fat quivering as if he was trying hard to suppress something.
“Why don’t you go in and take a look for yourself?” Song Jian, walking towards the supermarket entrance, said this.
The presence of so many players in the game made Song Jian feel an unease, for in the small grove that morning there were precious goods. No one else must discover them.
After entering the supermarket, he left only two slices of meat for himself. The rest he sold for a sum of one hundred and eighty doomsday coins.
Song Jian headed straight for the skill area, intending to select a suitable skill book – using his bare fists to smash trees was simply too painful.
Only after seeing Song Jian enter the supermarket did others follow in. Looking around with the air of curious kids, comments and observations flew around.
“It really is a supermarket, it’s got everything.”
“An unmanned supermarket with completely automated management – incredible. Just what’s this doomsday coin, anyone got it from a monster kill?” “Nope, I killed five or six mutated zombies today, none of them dropped coins, just gave materials…”
“Me too…”
“No, 1 haven’t had any coins drop…”
“Damn, if you want to shop here, you have to be a member, and you have to do tasks…”
A crowd of people wandered messily around the supermarket lobby. Even at the glass doors looking into the supermarket, the crowd was stunned by the space within.
“It’s too big…”
Within the supermarket, as far as the eye could see. At the glass doors, they could only see a distance of a few hundred meters. Further than that, it was shrouded in a white fog.
“I’ll get a membership card first. It only needs ten zombie cores. Simple…” A boy looking to be only sixteen or seventeen, wearing a school uniform, was the first to accept the challenge and headed out of the supermarket.
Others also gradually accepted their tasks.
In order to consume goods from the supermarket, you must have a membership card. Most had seen the merchandise inside – they had everything. Quite a few watched as Song Jian picked a secret manual in the skill area, with eyes so envious it was almost painful. They wished they could immediately kill ten mutated zombies, get the cores, acquire a membership card and carefully explore inside.
Guo Yu didn’t take any tasks like the others, but waited at the supermarket glass door. He nervously took a packet of cigarettes from his pocket, lit a stick and inhaled deeply.
After more than a decade in a state-owned enterprise, Guo Yu might not have learnt any special skills, but he knew how to read people.
“This young man is a veteran. At least, his familiarity with this game is far greater than that of the others.” As soon as Guo Yu saw Song Jian, he knew.
That’s why Guo Yu was the first to strike up a conversation with him. Subsequently, it was indeed as he guessed – this young man had already obtained membership to the Doomsday Supermarket.
Song Jian did not know that a middle-aged uncle was waiting for him at the entrance to the Doomsday Supermarket. In the skill area, Song Jian was momentarily blinded by choices, but the skills he felt interested in were far beyond his current fiscal capacity.
“Seems like, this is the only choice.” Song Jian picked up a scroll emitting a white glow, thinking to himself.
“Young man, you finally came out.” Guo Yu saw Song Jian coming out of the supermarket, and hurriedly approached him with a smiling face.
“Who are you? Where are the others?” Song Jian glanced to the left and right as he asked.
“I’m Guo Yu, I work at Xincheng Thermal in Coastal City.” Guo Yu hastily pulled out a pack of Yuxi cigarettes offered Song Jian a stick.
Xincheng Thermal was a heating supply company in Coastal City, a company that Song Jian had heard of. He waved off the offered cigarette and asked Guo Yu, “Are you here just to wait for me?”
“Yes, 1 am playing this game for the first time. 1 didn’t expect it to be so real. If you die in the game, will you really die in reality?” Guo Yu asked fearfully.
Song Jian remained silent for a while, then nodded, “This is your first time playing this game? Do you have a main quest?”
“Yes, I just started this game. Considering how you’re playing, have you been playing this game for a long time?” Guo Yu asked tentatively. “What’s a main quest? 1 just finished a newbie quest when 1 entered the game, but I haven’t received any other quests since then.”
It seemed that other players, like Song Jian, did not receive a main quest upon their first entry into the game. This was probably intended to give players an adjustment period.
Song Jian pointed to the supermarket service desk and said, “Like everyone else, you should accept the task for the membership card. Also, try every kind of weapon. After you successfully land three attacks, you can master the corresponding basic skill. Although it’s not very useful, it’s better than nothing and can still help to enhance your strength to some extent. As for other stuff, 1 also haven’t been in the game long, and can’t really offer you much more help.”
The moment Song Jian finished speaking, he headed towards the villa area without looking back. Watching Song Jian’s departing figure, Guo Yu opened his mouth, as if wanting to say something. But in the end, he simply shook his head, a complicated expression in his eyes. After hesitating for a moment, he walked towards the service desk in the supermarket.