[Dear residents of Happiness City, good morning!]
[This is the Happiness City Morning Radio, accompanying you punctually at six o'clock every day. I'm today's announcer: Little Sun, hoping to deliver warmth and happiness through the airwaves to you!]
[First, let's focus on the weather news. Look outside the window; a playful storm is gently covering Stone Province, Cloud City, Sun City, and all nine cities including Chuan City, where our Happiness City is located. However, the playful rain might be having too much fun; flash floods, like infected bodies playing hide and seek, might appear at any time. Adventurers going out, remember to open your eyes wide, don't let the flood take you to other provinces~]
[Speaking of our neighbor Cloud City, good news! The infection tide there has finally ended, but unfortunately, Yueye Shelter City wasn't so lucky. Heard they suffered a great loss in the infection tide and now can only shiver in their underground facilities. Little Sun is cheering for them, hoping the gloom disperses soon!]
[Oh, and an important reminder! Some water-loving infected bodies affected by the storm might go on a sudden 'trip'. Warriors about to leave Happiness City, ensure you're prepared; don't get scared by these savage guys!]
[Next is news from surrounding provinces. A strange thick fog has appeared recently in Sand Province. People walking into it are like falling into cotton candy, could it be secretly hidden by Yun Duo?]
[In Sea Province, a new tentacle infection source has appeared, reportedly measuring thirty meters in length, a distant relative of Death Language Tentacles, yikes, truly disgusting!]
[....]
A lively female voice from the dilapidated radio clashed with the death-filled tone of the Wasteland.
Amid the sound of rain.
'Uncle Dong' lay with crossed legs in a rattan chair, swaying a palm fan, occasionally muttering curses, exclamations, and curiosities in response to the radio broadcast.
The morning radio, every three days, is one of the few entertainments for the lower-level people in the Buffer Zone.
Unlike the daily punctual evening broadcast, which always maintains a harsh gray tone, imbued with the threat of death, as if not heeding the warnings would result in being torn to pieces by infected bodies at once.
Little Sun's broadcast always made people feel comfortable, as if those infected bodies had become friendly neighbors.
Yet, the happy time was always so short, and in a blink of an eye, half an hour of news time was over, ending the whispers of news from all over the Wasteland.
The closing sound slowly emanated from the radio speaker:
[Alright, the director has been urging, so.. today's broadcast ends here~]
[However, before ending, I still want to chat with the family members living in Happiness City, please do not fear new changes. We have diligent guards cleaning around the city around the clock, minimizing the threat of infected bodies, with a real-time information-sharing network established with over twenty surrounding shelter cities to master all dynamic changes at the first moment...]
[Of course, we also have the most professional inspectors who can keep all infected bodies out of the checkpoints, protecting every citizen's safety from the source!]
[Quickly get up, carrying the vitality that Little Sun gives you, live energetically today too~]
"That's it?"
The sweet femal voice disappeared, transforming into chaotic static.
Uncle Dong, somewhat dissatisfied, cursed a bit, pulling out the right hand he had just tucked into his pocket.
Damn storm, even cut off Little Sun's radio time by two minutes, missing the final sweet singing segment.
He was just about to start, and it ended?
He glanced up at the electronic clock on the wall, the hands had just moved past 6:31. Uncle Dong smacked his lips, and his injured right arm started hurting again in such humid weather.
"Still need to earn more money, get surgery sooner..."
Damn stormy day, probably no business today.
But thinking of the astronomical surgery costs, Uncle Dong had no choice but to stand up and slowly pull up the shutter door.
The rusty iron chain creaked, the roller made an old gear-grinding squeak. When exposed to a half-person high gap, a pair of scarlet eyes slowly emerged.
"Shit!"
Uncle Dong shivered in fright, having retired for many years, his courage greatly reduced, now actually scared to retreat two steps.
Bang.
The iron door was held by a pair of hands, lifted from outside to inside, scarlet eyes downward, revealing a young man's angular jawline.
"Cheng?"
Seeing it was Cheng Ye, Uncle Dong obviously breathed a sigh of relief but his heart still pounded.
"Why are you here so early..."
The words stuck in his throat and stopped, even though it was just a day missing, Cheng Ye's state had become somewhat confusing for Uncle Dong.
Skin increasingly pale, blue-black veins already visible underneath, like vines swelled by the storm.
His body, previously flat, now showed muscle bulging, especially the chest muscles, slightly forming an inverted triangle.
In addition, with years of old soldier experience, Uncle Dong also noticed that Cheng Ye's hands seemed to have grown larger?
This is a sign that only martial artists can have, representing the opening of the qi vein in hands, able to hold weapons better in close combat, or explode stronger force when barehanded!
"Uncle Dong, how many bags of nutrient paste do you have here, bring them out, I... want them all!"
Cheng Ye's voice was hoarse, like sandpaper grating on rust, a bit terrifying.
Uncle Dong frowned, but ultimately still didn't ask anything, quickly coming out with a box of nutrient paste.
"There are thirty-five bags left, how much can you drink, today Uncle Dong treats!"
No answer.
Cheng Ye had already reached out both hands, forcefully grabbing two bags, forcing them into his mouth and squeezing them.
Milky white liquid flowed down from the mouth, Adam's apple moving up and down, producing continuous gurgling sounds.
Frankly, the nutrient paste produced by Happiness City doesn't taste unpleasant.
It's a bit like soy milk with the taste diluted by ten times, with a faint sweetness and a hint of grass.
This is the only thing Cheng Ye felt fortunate about after crossing into the Wasteland.
The researchers in this Wasteland World weren't as foolish as those depicted in many Wasteland novels, where the main food for energy replenishment for the lower humans was made into terribly tasting dark cuisine, leading to a class overthrow due to food differences.
Drinking nutrient paste over a long period, apart from making your palate bland, and losing a part of life's meaning, it's much healthier than the modern gutter oil meal combo.
"Six bags... eight bags... ten bags!"
Uncle Dong squinted his eyes, observing Cheng Ye's frenzied eating, his complexion gradually losing its pallor, taking on a tinge of redness.
The exposed skin was no longer wrinkled and white like it had been soaked, but quickly restored the color and luster a normal person should have, becoming healthier.
Especially those hands, which Uncle Dong had been closely watching, with a look of envy and a trace of jealousy.
Qi Vein Hand, one of the most desired talents among Martial Artists.
The ancient martial arts of the old era were full of wonders, but limited by the change in human genetic direction, they never flourished. In the years after moving to the Wasteland, as genes reverted to primal savagery, they finally found a use again.
Only with his talent, after a lifetime of training, had he not even scratched the surface, while Cheng Ye at such a young age had already grasped the essentials.
Truly, comparisons are maddening!
Soon, the eighteenth bag of nutrient paste went down.
Cheng Ye stopped, finally feeling that the hunger in his abdomen had subsided significantly, becoming bearable.
"Uncle Dong..."
Before entering, Cheng Ye had thought of an explanation, but didn't expect Uncle Dong to wave his hand first: "No need to explain, before Long left, he even left you a tube of Genetic Purification Serum, you really have patience, using it today to maximize its effect."
Genetic Purification Serum?
What the heck?
Like Captain America's?
The original host had never come into contact with such high-level things in the Inner City, spending every day either in romance or fiddling with poetry and essays, leading Cheng Ye to think from his memory search that he wanted to be a trendy idol in the Wasteland.
Now that Uncle Dong provided an explanation, Cheng Ye, without batting an eyelid, tucked away his prepared excuse about taking special medication.
He still remained cautious, fearing Uncle Dong had fabricated something nonexistent to trick him.
Therefore, he did not acknowledge it, instead shaking his head with a smile: "Uncle Dong, you're joking, I've never even heard of an Enhancing Serum, I just didn't have time to eat because I was too busy with work yesterday and got really hungry!"
"It's good that you haven't heard of it, remember to eat on time in the future."
Uncle Dong laughed carelessly, pushing the rest of the nutrient paste and the box over to him, "Luckily, there's only two days left until the expiration, take all of it."
"How much?"
"I said it's on the house, are you going to deny Uncle Dong this favor?"
"Thank you, Uncle Dong, if there's any trouble in the future, feel free to come find me."
Cheng Ye patted his chest, promising grandly, and walked out of the store holding the box.
For Uncle Dong to have crawled through the battlefield for over twenty years, injured and returned to open a shop after retirement,
That can't be achieved just by being smart, he must be a ruthless character with very tough hands.
"Using a box of nutrient paste to invest in me, to earn my favor... just right, I also need Uncle Dong to keep a secret, our goals do not clash."
Upon entering the room, he closed the door.
Cheng Ye opened another ten bags from the remaining seventeen bags of nutrient paste and gulped them down, finally feeling somewhat full, dispelling the hunger that lingered in his mind.
Going to the communal bathroom to take off his shirt, the body in the mirror was no longer as thin as before, overnight it was covered with a thin layer of muscle, the lines not exaggerated, yet exuding a sense of powerful beauty.
Staring at himself in the mirror, Cheng Ye fell into unparalleled shock.
"This is... terrifying, the boost from this ability far exceeds my imagination!"
It's hard to use science to explain exactly what happened.
Lv.1 Basic Power not only brought about force exertion techniques and muscle memory, but also caused these muscular changes overnight, skipping months of hard training.
"Is it because the muscle memory of force exertion requires enough muscle to support it?"
"Then if I find skills that enhance physique in the future, will I achieve such a massive improvement again?"
Back in his room, Cheng Ye fell into a blissful dilemma.
The sudden surge in power greatly boosted his confidence in surviving the upcoming field tasks.
But the obvious overnight transformation made it harder to develop quietly among the crowd.
Beep beep beep.
The Defense Communication device on the table was receiving a call request.
Who's calling me this early?
Cheng Ye curiously glanced at the screen and suddenly froze.
It wasn't Liu Bi, but a name he had never expected.
...