A Game Account Carries The Entire Apocalyptic City - Chapter 3

Qi Li’s campus card contained a basic living allowance, so she had no problem covering meals each month.

She had happened to miss the peak dining period, and she wandered in front of the serving windows where there weren’t many people.

Her eyes lifted toward the signs overhead, bright and reverent as though she were gazing at a row of Buddha statues.

Bean sprout and minced pork fried rice, ham and egg fried rice, shredded pork with green peppers over rice, braised pork with preserved mustard greens over rice, two meat dishes and one vegetable dish, two meat dishes and two vegetable dishes, fresh pork wontons, pork and corn dumplings……

In the end, Qi Li bought a 6-yuan bowl of plain noodles because she could get free noodle refills.

When she carried the steaming bowl of noodles to the table, Qi Li picked up a mouthful with her chopsticks and reverently placed it into her mouth.

“!!!”

Such a clean taste of flour!

Even the clear noodle broth had oil from boiled meat in it!

If only she could bring this home, Qi Li thought.

Qi Ning and Qi Xing had been born later. They were the ones who had truly been born at the wrong time. After growing up, they had barely eaten a few proper bowls of noodles.

Sigh…… She also had no idea whether Qi Ning had safely escaped from the infected chasing her.

Qi Li’s mind was filled with countless thoughts, but her mouth didn’t stop moving for even a second.

It had been a very, very long time since she’d eaten noodles this clean, fresh, and fragrant. If she ate this extravagantly in the apocalypse, wouldn’t it cost three days’ worth of her family’s income?

She had never done anything so inconsiderate before, nor had she ever thrown a tantrum and demanded more food.

But today, she’d finally turned her fortunes around. She could straighten her back, put down her bowl, and stand in front of the serving window.

Enunciating every word clearly, she said, “Cook me another serving of noodles!”

The cafeteria auntie cooking her noodles was stunned.

Just how many meals had this student missed?

She had already eaten nearly half a kilogram of noodles by herself, and every single time, she even finished all the broth!

Being obsessed with studying was one thing, but she still had to eat properly.

Qi Li ate her fill at dinner. The sensation of her stomach being round and full was so unfamiliar that she had to sit in her seat for another five minutes to recover.

After clearing away her dishes, Qi Li walked back to the serving window.

She asked the staff member inside, “Auntie, are you hiring helpers here? Cooking, washing dishes, sweeping, things like that.”

The few students sitting nearby heard this and turned around with strange expressions, sizing Qi Li up.

The cafeteria auntie laughed. “Your school cafeteria is run by a contractor. All the positions have already been assigned. We don’t hire from outside.”

“Oh, okay.” Qi Li nodded and left, ignoring the expressions of the students who were still staring at her like she was some strange creature.

Back in the classroom, Qi Li saw on a workbook that her deskmate’s name was Zhang Ying.

During evening self-study, she asked Zhang Ying about it.

Qi Li: “Do you know if our school has any students doing work-study?”

Zhang Ying: “Never heard of any.”

Qi Li: “Then is there anywhere inside the school where I can work part-time?”

Zhang Ying: “Of course not. Where would a high school even let you work…… Why are you asking?”

Her petite deskmate Zhang Ying suddenly became alert and scrutinized Qi Li.

She abruptly remembered that Qi Li had even left campus that afternoon to bring food back for a few classmates, and she’d heard Qi Li had been paid an errand fee.

Zhang Ying: “Are you…… short on money?”

Qi Li honestly nodded. “Then outside the school, somewhere nearby, do you know anywhere that hires part-timers? I want to work on weekends.”

Zhang Ying shook her head. “I don’t know. I’ve never paid attention to that. Qi Li, what’s going on with you? Do you urgently need money? What for?”

Qi Li couldn’t exactly tell her the truth, so she only said she had reasons she couldn’t explain.

Zhang Ying: “How much are you short? I can lend you a little, though I don’t have much either. Just some leftover pocket money.”

Qi Li froze for a moment, then smiled. “It’s okay, no need. I’ll figure something out myself.”

She hadn’t expected Zhang Ying to willingly treat her so kindly, but Qi Li didn’t dare borrow money from her. The lesson of transmigrating away today while carrying all fifteen of her family’s crystal coins was still fresh in her mind.

What if she borrowed Zhang Ying’s money and transmigrated again? Who would Zhang Ying go to for repayment?

During evening self-study, Qi Li recharged another 6 yuan into Walled City and Survivors.

After it became 60 Sun Points, she bought six boiled eggs from the shop.

Cash balance: 2.36 yuan.

Unfortunately, there was one bad part: she had no way to confirm whether those supplies had actually materialized.

She spent the money but received no response at all. The app gave her no notification whatsoever.

Ever since this transmigration, it had been giving her the silent treatment.

By the time evening self-study ended, it was already 9 p.m.

After the convenience store beneath the teaching building finished its last batch of business, it prepared to close.

The owner, who was sweeping the floor, suddenly noticed that a student was still lingering at the entrance.

Qi Li jogged inside.

Holding a broom she’d taken from the classroom cleaning corner, she quickly and efficiently helped the owner sweep the convenience store clean.

The owner watched her enter without saying a word and immediately lower her head to sweep, utterly confused.

“Student, what are you doing here? Hey, hey, you don’t need to sweep this floor for me. School’s over, so hurry back and get some rest.”

Qi Li worked quickly and had already swept all the trash into one pile.

She straightened up and said to the owner,

“Boss, do you need a helper? During breaks, I can help you count stock, clean, whatever you need. I can do anything.”

The owner froze. “……You want to find a part-time job here?”

Qi Li: “Mm!”

The owner’s expression immediately turned indifferent. The way she looked at Qi Li even carried the faint sense of an adult looking at an unreasonable child. She walked around behind Qi Li and pushed her toward the door.

“Go, go. Hurry back to your dorm. I’m running a tiny business here. I only make a few cents here and there. Where would I get the money to hire a helper? Students should focus on studying!”

It seemed the convenience store wouldn’t be able to take her in as a worker either.

It was within expectations, so Qi Li wasn’t discouraged. She went back to the classroom and returned the broom.

When it was late and quiet, she secretly went to check the front and back school gates again.

Both gates were shut and locked tight, with security guards keeping watch under the lights. There was no opportunity to take advantage of.

Qi Li sighed. On her way back to the dormitory, she ran into the dorm supervisor making room checks.

Although she claimed she’d lost track of time while doing practice papers in the classroom, she was still scolded before being allowed back to the dorm.

The rules at this high school were restrictive in every possible way.

That same night, the darkness of the sky filled the people of the apocalypse with fear.

In Grandmother’s bedroom, Qi Xing lay on the bed with a persistent high fever. A white towel rested on her forehead, and unconscious moans escaped her lips.

Grandmother sat on the other side of the bed, while Qi Ning and Mom stood beside the wardrobe. All three wore grave expressions.

After Qi Li left home that morning, she’d disappeared outside and there had still been no word from her.

The infected wandering at night became even more sensitive.

No one would still be away from home after nightfall.

If someone didn’t come home, then that could only mean……

The silence lasted for a long time.

Qi Ning held her phone and stared blankly at the chat between herself and Qi Li.

[Sister, I got away from the zombie. Where are you? I’ll come meet up with you.]
[Sister, are you at the black market? I’m heading toward the black market now.]
[Sister, I’m worried about you. Reply when you see this.]
[I’m going to look for you near the pedestrian street now.]
[I’ve reached Baishang Street. If you see this, tell me where you are and I’ll come find you.]
[I heard something happened in Longyang District. Whatever you do, don’t go there!]
……
[Sister, I’m home. Come back as soon as you can.]

The messages stretched from 10 a.m. to 10 p.m., without a single reply.

Qi Ning had searched for Qi Li all day. She’d even gone to several black markets and places that sold medicine to ask around, but hadn’t found the slightest trace of her.

Judging from the evidence, it was highly likely that Qi Li had encountered danger not long after leaving the residential complex that morning.

At present, no one knew whether she was alive or dead.

Holding back her tears, Qi Ning suddenly raised her hand and slapped herself across the face with a sharp crack.

Her face turned to one side. In the dim light, strands of hair covered the cheek rapidly turning red, leaving only her trembling, thin chin visible as broken sobs escaped her.

“I knew there was more than one infected in the complex. I shouldn’t have run so far away. I should’ve gone looking for her sooner…… I… I hurt Qi Li and Qi Xing.”

“Ning, it wasn’t your fault. You almost got hurt yourself.”

Her aunt hurriedly caught Qi Ning’s wrist and pulled her into her arms.

The aching concern suppressed in her chest escaped in a pained sigh. “Don’t do this.”

Qi Ning leaned against her shoulder, sobbing silently.

Tears blurred her vision as she clenched her fingers and murmured, “If only I… if only I’d gone to meet up with Sister sooner……”

“Qi Li……” Suddenly, a weak voice came from the bed.

No one knew when Qi Xing, her face deathly pale and covered in cold sweat, had awakened.

She turned her head to look toward them. “Did something happen to Qi Li……?”

Her aunt hurried around to her side and bent down to wipe the dense sweat from her face.

She said gently, “No. She just hasn’t come home yet. She’ll be back soon.”

Early the next morning.

Qi Li came to the school gate and watched the endless stream of day students stopping at breakfast carts outside to hand over money and buy food. Her expression was like that of a caged bird yearning for freedom.

During class, she was absentminded and could barely hear anything the teacher was saying.

By the second class of the morning, Qi Li stared at the clock hanging above the blackboard, slightly lost in thought.

Counting from the moment she’d left the apocalyptic world, an entire day had already passed.

Had Qi Xing gotten medicine yesterday? Was she okay today?

“Qi Li.”

The Chinese teacher noticed her spacing out and deliberately called her name, telling her to stand. “You answer this question. What technique did the author use in this sentence, and what are they trying to express?”

Only as Qi Li stood up did her eyes focus on the words displayed on the PPT.

But at the same time, a line of white text suddenly blocked her vision—

[This 24-hour transmigration trial has ended. Returning shortly! -00:03]

Qi Li’s lips parted slightly in surprise……

In an instant, it was as though the world swept through countless ages.

The scene shifted!

When air filled with rot and mold rushed into her nose, Qi Li completely recovered that familiar sensation!

Unbelievable. She had really returned to the gate of the residential complex in the apocalypse!

[Duration of this transmigration: 24 hours
Remaining transmigration cooldown: 24 hours
(Note: The beginner trial has ended.
From now on, the amount of time you may remain in the other world during each transmigration will no longer be limited;
however, the amount of time you spend in the other world each time will become the cooldown period required before you can transmigrate again after returning;
when the transmigration cooldown reaches 0, you may freely choose when to transmigrate.)]

As the white explanatory text appeared in midair before her eyes, another mysterious block of information loaded into Qi Li’s mind.

[Items Awaiting Collection:
Beginner Medical Pack (Contains: Antibiotic Injection1, Elastic Bandage1, Alcohol Spray*5)1
Boiled Egg6
——]

The word “Awaiting” made Qi Li immediately realize that the medicine and food hadn’t actually been delivered into her family’s hands.

She hurriedly claimed both items.

The next second, a medical pack appeared in her right hand!

And the zippered pocket of her jacket was suddenly filled with several hot, round objects!

Every sensation was completely real!

After a moment of stunned disbelief, Qi Li immediately shoved the medical pack under her clothes and hid it securely!

Carefully avoiding roads where infected might appear, she hurried home impatiently, constantly looking left and right and weaving from place to place until she reached the bottom of her building.

Out of the corner of her eye, she noticed that the pool of blood beside the flower bed had already dried and darkened.

She realized that the passage of time had not changed because of her absence.

Then her family must be worried sick about her right now!

And she felt exactly the same.