Chapter 27: The Bathtub?

The probability of obtaining a level-two upgrade crystal is roughly one in twenty. To have drawn one now—Bai Xing’s luck with her hands must be cheating, it’s downright certain. As for those few first-tier zombies, perhaps because they had only recently been infected, not a single upgrade crystal was found among them.

But that no longer mattered; one second-tier crystal equaled ten of the first. Next came the airdrop box—nearly evening now, and this might just be the only one for the afternoon.

“A spatial ring?” The first item out was spatial equipment. What sort of box was this? Fang Xia’s anticipation grew.

He already possessed a ring and a jade pendant himself, so he let Bai Xing bind this new ring. It would be much more convenient in the future to leave things with her.

“This one’s a bit big, though.” Bai Xing hauled the second item out with both hands.

“A bathtub. Once placed, it can accommodate two people at once for bathing.”

“The bathtub doesn’t require manual water filling—it automatically absorbs water molecules from the air, storing water. It fills once every twenty-four hours, and each fill allows for two uses.”

Fang Xia was indifferent, but Bai Xing nearly jumped for joy. For a young, beautiful woman like her, being unable to bathe was torture. Now, with this tub, she could soak every day.

“So excited? Keep it, use it later when we’re back.”

Bai Xing nodded vigorously, her hands diving back into the box.

Ordinary upgrade serum.

At this, Fang Xia’s gaze sharpened. A top-tier airdrop box, without a doubt.

“Ordinary upgrade serum. Upon consumption, it changes the user’s genes, greatly enhancing basic physical attributes.”

“Note: Higher-grade serums will override the effects of lower-grade ones.”

So there was a limit—Fang Xia had thought he could use it again. Even if the ordinary serum only doubled one’s abilities, it would still push him up another tier. Clearly, the bug he’d imagined had already been patched.

“You take it.”

Bai Xing hesitated. Such a valuable item, for her? Wouldn’t it be wasted?

“I’ve already consumed one. This won’t have any effect on me now.”

Upon Fang Xia’s explanation, Bai Xing finally took the serum with delight.

“It feels like I’ve doubled in strength?” Two minutes later, Bai Xing opened her eyes, somewhat uncertain.

Double, more or less. Fang Xia now had a baseline: ordinary, advanced—he wondered if there were even better grades. This enhancement was like a cheat code, ensuring he’d always be unbeatable at his tier.

Bai Xing, now recovered, kept rummaging through the box. Three excellent items in a row, but then came five water bottles, one after another.

“This is too perfunctory, not even a change.” Bai Xing’s spirits took a hit, and she almost stopped, but Fang Xia encouraged her to keep going.

The ninth item.

“Pfft!” Fang Xia couldn’t help but laugh—it was another water bottle. Were they trying to tell her women were made of water?

“One last item. Hurry, finish up; darkness is coming soon.”

Reluctantly, Bai Xing reached in one final time.

A tent.

“A standard tent, beloved by soldiers in the field. Interior space: two hundred square meters.”

Damn, that’s a treasure. After the apocalypse’s third month, humanity would face another disaster: global earthquakes. Every building, no matter how tall, would collapse, leaving people homeless.

Afterward, most zombies in the city would be crushed, and survivors, led by a few teams, would sweep out the remaining zombies and establish Dawn City atop the ruins.

Fearing another earthquake, no city building was allowed to exceed two stories. Houses became symbols of status. Most ordinary folk were allotted only a tiny space, just big enough for a small bed.

Fang Xia had spent his previous life in such a place.

“Pack everything up. Let’s head back.”

Now wasn’t the time for research—he’d sort things out tonight.

On the way back, Fang Xia grew even more cautious, anxious about encountering another second-tier zombie.

Whether luck or rarity, they made it safely back to the hotel before nightfall.

Along the way, they ran into two other groups. Fang Xia noticed that after killing zombies, they too searched the corpses, suggesting they’d discovered the secret of upgrade crystals.

In his previous life, this secret had only been discovered five days after the outbreak, then spread rapidly, sparking a frenzy of zombie hunting.

Now, only three days had passed, and two groups already knew the secret—it was half-public knowledge.

Something strange was afoot—not just this, but the early appearance of second-tier zombies. All signs pointed to the timeline of this world shifting ahead, likely because of his rebirth.

Back at the hotel, Bai Xing gleefully set up the bathtub. Soon, she ran over, signaling that everything was ready.

A double bathtub, as the name implied, meant two people could bathe together.

Fang Xia laid his worries aside—what was there to fear? Whatever came, he’d face it head-on. As long as he kept growing stronger, disaster would always lag behind him.

Killing zombies every day—he’d even killed plenty of people yesterday. Filthy as ever, a luxurious hot bath was a true pleasure.

They soaked for over an hour. During that time, Fang Xia carefully inspected Bai Xing’s chest—no signs of flattening at all...

Both their bodies had strengthened; an hour seemed effortless. If the tub’s reservoir allowed for more than two baths, they could have soaked several hours more.

The room now had a proper lamp—no more relying on the faint glow of candles to grope around in darkness.

Lying in bed, Bai Xing nestled lazily into Fang Xia’s arms, absorbed in her comic book. Fang Xia lit a cigarette; Bai Xing wrinkled her nose at the smell.

Tomorrow, airdrop boxes would no longer be his focus. He needed to grow stronger.

Only by quickly reaching tier two could he avoid today’s peril.

He now possessed thirty-seven tier-one upgrade crystals and one tier-two crystal. If he concentrated on killing zombies, he should have enough for an upgrade by tomorrow.

Besides, it was best not to use the tier-two crystal yet. When he reached tier three, tier-one crystals wouldn’t work for upgrades; every extra crystal would count.

The sun was already high when Fang Xia finally opened his eyes.

He hadn’t planned to search for boxes today, so he slept in, indulging last night and savoring the joys of luxury.