Chapter 7

Nan Yuan took the fruit and whispered, "You're here."
His heart settled. He knew that person was by his side. He wasn’t the only human in this wasteland, he had company.
Even if he had to face ferocious beasts next, Nan Yuan felt that even death would hold no regrets.
He didn’t know that his expressions were faithfully reflected on the screen.
Tao Shushu watched as the little figure went from pursing his lips tightly to breaking into a smile, a small sun symbol popping up above his head.
Then she saw him carefully accept the fruit and solemnly tuck it into the deepest part of his supply backpack.
It was just a fruit she had given him.
Tao Shushu recalled the game’s initial plot summary: Humans were infected with a zombie virus. Today’s comrades-in-arms could become mindless enemies by tomorrow.
On this barren planet, her cub was the only human left. He must have been so lonely.
Tao Shushu fell silent for a moment, then gently patted his head.
The moment her hand made contact with his skin, a flood of system notifications popped up on the screen.
Tao Shushu began to understand, the event log seemed to trigger whenever she touched her cub.
She gave him another gentle squeeze and checked the records:
Your cub explored the cave.
Obtained sniper weapons ×2, explosive weapons ×2.
Found a damaged vehicle ×1 outside the cave.
A vehicle!
That meant her cub could drive to search for a base.
Excited, Tao Shushu clicked to inspect the vehicle. It was a military transport, large, with ample space in the back for supplies. But the tires were ruined. Tao Shushu considered it, she now had a “fortune” of 30 gold coins. She could easily spend them to repair it.
Then she moved on to the next log entry:
Your cub found some cotton batting in the cave.
He spread out the cotton padding to make a bed.
Stepping over ten meters away from the bed, he laid dry grass on the ground near the fire.
Your cub slept on the dry grass.
Your cub couldn’t fall asleep for a long time.
He walked back to the cotton-padded bed.
Using three branches, he set up a frame and hung dry grass as a curtain to shield the cotton-padded bed.
Your cub returned to the dry grass bed.
He kept his ears perked up.
After a long while, he fell asleep.
Tao Shushu shifted her perspective to the sheltered spot deep inside the cave and, sure enough, saw the originally bare stone bed now covered with cotton padding.
That was the bed her cub had prepared for her.
Her cub had even thoughtfully set up a curtain.
Even though her cub couldn’t see her.
Tao Shushu gazed at her cub with a complicated expression. Finally, she pressed her fingers against the cotton-padded bed he had prepared. She couldn’t feel it, but she imagined it must be soft.
Nan Yuan waited for a while. The beasts were still roaring outside, but for the time being, they didn’t dare to attack. It was safe for now.
He couldn’t help but want to confirm that the person was still there.
He wondered if that person had seen the bed he made.
When he prepared the bed, Nan Yuan hadn’t thought too much about it, he just wanted to give that person a place to sleep. Later, it suddenly occurred to him that he didn’t even know the person’s gender, so he set up a curtain for privacy.
But now, thinking about that person being nearby, Nan Yuan suddenly felt a bit worried. He wondered what that person would think upon seeing the bed.
Maybe that person was incredibly powerful. Maybe that person was an artificial intelligence that didn’t need to sleep and would only find the bed amusing.
Just then, he sensed movement from the direction of the bed.
He turned his head slightly and saw the simple curtain being pushed aside, and the cotton padding being patted.
A row of small arrows appeared at his feet, pointing toward the bed.
Was that person trying to tell him to sleep there?
Nan Yuan was taken aback. "That was prepared for you."
Tao Shushu saw another row of asterisks pop up above Nan Yuan’s head, indicating encrypted speech.
She paused, really wanting to know what her cub was saying, but… it would cost 1,000 gold coins.
Suddenly, the glaring "33 gold coins" displayed at the top of the interface didn’t seem so appealing anymore.
Nan Yuan said something else in explanation.
Tao Shushu still only saw encrypted symbols.
After a moment, Nan Yuan shook his head, pointed at the cotton-padded bed, waved his hand in refusal, then pointed at the dry grass on the ground and nodded, indicating himself.
Was the cub making these gestures because he realized she couldn’t hear his words, specifically using this method to explain? The cub is just too clever.
Tao Shushu was astonished, then quickly swelled with pride: "As expected of the cub I raised, his intelligence is truly high."
Nan Yuan stubbornly refused to sleep on the soft cotton bedding.
He stood like a door god, vigilantly guarding the cave entrance.
Tao Shushu couldn’t pull him away, so she switched perspectives and moved outside the cave to check out the vehicle the cub had found.
It turned out to be a military vehicle.
The body was painted in camouflage colors, all parts had been modified, and there was a large storage space at the back. The damaged part was the steering wheel.
When the artificial intelligence rebelled, all autonomous driving systems self-destructed, and the explosion had caused significant damage to this vehicle.
Tao Shushu pondered: the steering mechanism and braking system both needed repairs. She wasn’t sure if the 30 gold coins she had would be enough.
Just then, a message popped up on the interface: Side Quest 1, Assist the cub in repairing the vehicle. Reward: 5 gold coins. Additionally, for every 100 kilometers traveled afterward, reward: 5 gold coins.
Tao Shushu’s eyes lit up instantly.
In that moment of brightness, she noticed several green, glowing dots outside the cave.
Tao Shushu adjusted the control lever to get a better look.
She was startled.
They were wolves.
Green eyes were everywhere, a full dozen wolves.