Apocalypse Lord

Chapter 72 - “Hoarding 2”

Last time on Apocalypse Lord: A storm is brewing in Rising Cloud City.

This chapter has been brought to you by me and Smash10101.

Chapter 75 – Hoarding 2

In the world, there were always people who were quick thinking, and always were first. There were also people who were slow to react and always a few steps behind.

After spring started, Shao Hua was focused on saving money to trade for practical blue equipment, and did not think so much..

But one day, he suddenly found that the price of the food had increased 50 to 70%, and some of the dishes he wanted to eat were out of stock.

“What is going on?” Shao Hua was shocked inside. “Is there going to be a food shortage in the game world as well?”

Without high level equipment, he could manage with low level stuff. But if there was not enough food, the player had no other choice than to starve to death.

Thinking of this, Shao Hua’s heart started to beat faster, and hurried to the restaurant.

The system shop’s goods were famous for being useful but expensive. In normal situations, there would always be leftovers. But today, the system shelves were empty.

Seeing this, Shao Hua’s heart sank.

What to do?

At this moment, his mind was blank and he could not think of a thing.

At this time, Chef A walked out of the back kitchen and put three mixed grain steamed buns and two bowls of rice porridge on the shelves.

Shao Hua was both shocked and joyed, hurriedly buying them.

In the blink of an eye, the shelves were empty again.

“The mixed grain steamed buns are 50 copper coins each, and the rice porridge 50 copper coins per bowl. It is fine if I just buy once in a while, if I have to eat everyday at the restaurant, how long will my savings last?” Shao Hua was only happy for a little white before his expression turned solemn. “What to do in the future?”

As he was thinking, residents were quickly coming close.

Seeing the shelves empty, they were disappointed. “How come the restaurant food is also gone? In the future, will food be more rare and expensive than equipment?”

Shao Hua, “……”

He suddenly realized he had thought too much. Even if he had enough copper coins and was willing to buy food from the restaurant, he may still not be able to buy.

On day 258, the situation grew worse.

There were no more players setting up stalls to sell, and the cooked food just moved privately between people who knew each other.

Before going out to hunt, the residents would take the opportunity to run to the restaurant and then wait in the dining hall. Just after the NPC put the food on the shelves, the players would crowd over and fight like mad.

At this time, there were only fast hands. Movement speed and reaction speed determined if one could buy or not.

Later, because of this, it was the professionals who had high agility like the assassins and archers who stayed in the restaurant.

Others like the warriors and mages had given up on the battle, and thought of other ways.

In the warehouse, Yun Ling was taking inventory.

This was a new habit after spring started, in order to keep track of the specific amounts of strategic resources.

After making sure the warehouse stock was slowly growing, she would occasionally increase the amount provided to the restaurant based on her mood. If she was unlucky on the day, and did not get a lot, then she would not increase.

After a while, the situation was stable.

Yun Ling had a content expression after the inventory. “There are a lot of materials and finished goods, enough to last for a long time.”

As she spoke, a message jumped out.

[F City — Xin Tong Town — Zhao Xin Tong: Boss, there are two things I want to tell you.]

Yun Ling casually responded, “Speak.”

[F City — Xin Tong Town — Zhao Xin Tong: The first thing is there is a crazy person in the territory who wants to move to Rising Cloud City to live. They say that the top territory is the safest, and the other safety areas are not trustworthy.]

Yun Ling:”……”

Yun Ling said, “If I remember correctly, there are two cities between F City and S City?”

[F City — Xin Tong Town — Zhao Xin Tong: So I say he is crazy.]

[F City — Xin Tong Town — Zhao Xin Tong: It is true the game is more and more difficult. But is walking to Rising Cloud City very easy and safe?]

[F City — Xin Tong Town — Zhao Xin Tong: However, I did not come to speak of this. He packed up to leave, but when he reached the border of F City, he found the system will not allow players to leave the city.]

Yun Ling felt that she was listening to a story, everything was so mysterious. “How come you know?”

[F City — Xin Tong Town — Zhao Xin Tong: Since he could not go to Rising Cloud City, he came back to Xin Tong Town. When he saw a person, he would complain and say that he was scammed by the system.]

[F City — Xin Tong Town — Zhao Xin Tong: But it is my first time hearing that the players can only stay in the city, and not go out.]

“Maybe the system was set up like this on purpose?” Yun Ling guessed.

Then she asked, “What about the second thing?”

[F City — Xin Tong Town — Zhao Xin Tong: Does Rising Cloud City need food? Xin Tong Town has a lot and can sell to you.]

Yun Ling smiled. “You do not know what is going to happen in the future, why are you not hoarding the extra food in the warehouse?”

[F City — Xin Tong Town — Zhao Xin Tong: Xin Tong Town is different from Rising Cloud City. There are not many residents here, and the food used up is limited. The pressure is not so high.]

[F City — Xin Tong Town — Zhao Xin Tong: In reality, the reason that Xin Tong Town is a town is because the population is not up to par……]

[F City — Xin Tong Town — Zhao Xin Tong: Even more importantly, other people know the boss in order to get favors. I am different! I am with Boss in the hope that one day, I will support Boss!]

Yun Ling’s eyes were full of laughter. “You have great ambition.”

[F City — Xin Tong Town — Zhao Xin Tong: Just speak directly! Give a chance!]

She would not be polite in the face of such spirit.

Yun Ling immediately said, “If you dare to give, I dare to accept.”

[F City — Xin Tong Town — Zhao Xin Tong: Xin Tong Town is near the sea, and each day, we get a lot of seafood. It is rare to eat and very good to change the menu. After eating daily, the residents cannot bear it.]

[F City — Xin Tong Town — ZhaoXin Tong: Wait a moment, I will make a list, and give the extra seafood to you.]

When one had enough food and clothing, they could be picky, but when there was nothing to eat, everything smelled good.

Yun Ling knew this truth well so she accepted as much as Zhao Xin Tong gave. “How to settle the account? Copper coins, bandages, or equipment?”

[F City — Xin Tong Town — Zhao Xin Tong: Copper coins.]

[F City — Xin Tong Town — Zhao Xin Tong: I need money to upgrade the territory’s buildings.]

Yun Ling crisply responded, “Okay.”

The transaction was successful. Rising Cloud City’s lack of food was solved, and Xin Tong Town sped up its building process. Both sides benefited.

[Name: Sweet Potato Seed]

Quality: Normal

Use Effect: After sowing, you will get a patch of sweet potato. The harvest will depend on the situation of the soil and the growing conditions.

[Name: Potato Seeds]

Quality: Normal

Use Effect: After sowing, you will get a patch of potato. The harvest will depend on the situation of the soil and the growing conditions.

[Name: Rice Seed]

Quality: Normal

Use Effect: After sowing, you will get a patch of rice. The harvest will depend on the situation of the soil and the growing conditions.

Other than this, there were also seeds for flax, cotton, sorghum and other crops.

Feng Hui chose two, and carefully put them away. Then she put on her equipment, and went out with a worn linen backpack.

Walking in the wilderness, there were players who occasionally brushed past her. Most of them were teams, and only a rare few were lone players she would only occasionally encounter.

Feng Hui walked in a hurry in a clear direction, running so fast there were afterimages.

“Lucky that I have Agility 2, Stamina 1.” She rejoiced inside. “My combat power is not great, but in terms of running, I am first class!”

She ran for thirty minutes. When she saw familiar scenery, Feng Hui finally stopped.

There was a patch of wheat, golden wheat with its ears hanging down, waiting for players to harvest.

Feng Hui came close to inspect and found that other than the few on the side had been eaten by the wild beasts, the others were fine.

She was full of joy. “It seems I have good luck today.”

Then, she took out the machete, and bent down to harvest.

In the knowledge of the ordinary players, the wild resources were refreshed by the system, but the reality was not so.

By chance, Feng Hui had accidentally dropped seeds in a hole in the soil.

She had wanted to pick it up, but then a light flashed. Many thoughts flashed through her mind and she did not act. She covered it with dirt, watered it moderately and then watched for a change.

Days passed like this.

The seed sprouted, quickly growing, and then a patch of potato appeared, the same as the other items in the wilderness. Feng Hui finally understood the correct use of the seeds.

After this, she would scatter the seeds into remote corners, allowing them to grow, and when the time came, she would come to harvest.

Because no one took care of them, the growth was ordinary. Many times, they produced 28, 29, and when few, 21, 22.

But Feng Hui was very satisfied. These gains were enough for her to be full, and live comfortably.

During the planting process, accidents would frequently occur.

Sometimes, the crops would be ruined by wild beasts, completely uprooted with nothing left. Sometimes, she was a step later and the players who passed by would harvest the crops beforehand.

Several times, she was even so unlucky that people were targeting her. The other players seemed to realize that a certain area “refreshed” crops faster than the others, so they kept on coming here to stand guard.

Due to this, Feng Hui had to change her planting spots, and went further and further.

After cutting the last ear and putting it into the backpack, she looked around, and rested for a while before running to the next planting spot.

But this time, she was not lucky. She should have been able to get a large patch of sweet potatoes, but this time, she saw nothing. The surroundings were a mess, like a beast had come through.

“Next time I get nothing, I have to consider changing places,” Feng Hui murmured as she took out the sweet potato seeds and dug into the soil to plant them.

The so-called sweet potato seeds were in reality seedlings. After digging a hole and giving some water, everything else would be up to it — the planting in the game was this simple.

Feng Hui opened the window, and saw the negative state she had gotten because of “too much fatigue.” “It appears that I have to return to the territory first. After resting, I can go to other places to harvest.”

“No matter what, planting is better than roaming endlessly and searching for resource points. Whatever seeds you put in, what materials you will get back out it is very simple and clear.”

“Also, the income is relatively steady. Even though there are special situations occasionally, as more places are planted, each day, I can get about 40-50 units of resources, enough for daily living.”

“On the way back, I will go to more the planting spots, and if I find any useful crops, I can harvest them as extra income.”

After calculating this, she was reassured, and jogged back to the territory.

Day 259

The panic spread. Some players set up stalls selling good equipment, not wanting copper coins, not equipment, just food.

For example —

“Skill upgrade card! After using it, C-rank will become B-rank, B-rank will become A-rank, A-rank will become S-rank!”

“Are you still bothered by the low level skills you learned early in the game? Are you still worried about how to increase combat strength? With the skill upgrade card, you will have a path to become strong!”

“Rare card, boss drop only, right now, you can trade for it with food, come and see!”

Someone came close “what if you are already S-rank? If you use the card, will it become SS-rank?”

The stall owner asked, “S-rank is maximum, you cannot use the skill upgrade card.”

Someone else asked, “Upgrade one skill, or all?”

The stall owner said, “Of course one.”

One person curled their lipsed, “From C-rank to S-rank, three cards will be needed, this is too wasteful!”

The stall owner said, “Starting from C-rank just proves that your foundation is too bad, you cannot blame the card for being bad to use.”

There were many players who asked, but few who bid, and reliable bids even fewer.

The stall owner was very depressed. He thought the price he asked for was not high, but he had waited so long and there was no one.

He could not even help but suspect, was the situation already this bad? S-rank item (skill upgrade card) but no one asked about it, and it could not be traded for food?

When the stall owner was doubting life, Yun Ling stopped in front of the stall. “Report an appropriate price, and I will take the card.”

No matter how good the card was, it could not be eaten as food.

The stall owner lowered expectations, and reported a good price.

Yun Ling thought that it was acceptable, and responded.

The transaction was formed.

The stall owner sighed in relief — for the next seven days, they did not need to worry about the family starving to death.