146: Chapter 146 Filthy Soil

First, he had to resolve the drinking water issue. The Water Source from the old-fashioned public tap was unstable, and drinking it directly was risky. Ling Ye used an empty water bottle he had finished earlier and headed to the public tap in the basement late at night. As expected, the water flow was thin and carried a rusty color. He didn't collect it directly; instead, he first used a relatively clean piece of cloth (cut from discarded clothing) to filter it simply, then brought it back to his hideout.

In a corner of the hideout, he used a battered but mostly intact metal lunchbox he had found in a trash heap (which he had cleaned), along with a few stones of suitable shape, to build a crude "filter-sedimentation-boiling" device. He used the cloth for initial filtration, let it settle for several hours, and then carefully ignited a small amount of dry wood shavings and scrap paper he had picked up from a nearby construction site (under the metal box, being careful about ventilation and smoke) to boil the settled water for ten minutes. Although the efficiency was low and fuel was difficult to obtain, it basically ensured the safety of his drinking water. The amount he prepared at one time could last him about two days.

Food was a bigger challenge. Community relief meal packs were unsustainable, and collecting them was risky. Foraging was an important supplement. In the early hours of the morning, he went to the abandoned small garden again. Relying on the subtle perception of plant life energy from his "Spiritual Sense," he carefully identified and collected a few handfuls of wild amaranth tender leaves and several types of edible wild vegetables that he confirmed were non-toxic. He also found some plants similar to wild scallions and carefully dug up a few.

However, wild vegetables alone could not provide enough calories and protein. He needed carbohydrates; he needed more substantial food.

Scavenging and selling became a helpless but necessary option. During the day, he disguised himself as the most ordinary wandering teenager and wandered around the centralized trash dump on the edge of "Rust Town," his sharp gaze sweeping over the discarded debris. His goal was clear: relatively intact small electronic components (circuit boards, chips, connecting wires), specific models of waste batteries, tools that were not severely damaged, and any waste that might contain precious metals.

This required knowledge. Thanks to the original owner "Ling Ye's" background in "Starship Basic Maintenance" courses, and Ling Ye (Lin Ye)'s own powerful observation and learning abilities, he could quickly distinguish which scrap might still have some value in the eyes of the underground repair shops or black market merchants on the south side of "Rust Town."

On the first day, his harvest was meager; he only found a few segments of copper wire and an old personal terminal motherboard, though the chip seemed intact. He carefully hid these in the lining of his clothes.

On the evening of the second day, he risked approaching the southern shantytown and observed from a distance at a tin shack that was a suspected black market trading point. He saw someone take similar electronic waste inside, and a moment later, come out with a small amount of credits or a small package of items. The transaction process was brief, silent, and full of vigilance.

Ling Ye did not go up immediately. He continued to observe, noting the facial features of several regulars and the patterns of transaction times. On the third day, he chose a middle-aged man who looked relatively less fierce and had come alone. After the man finished his transaction and left, Ling Ye followed at a distance for a while, and when the other party turned into a quiet alley, he lowered his voice and spoke from the shadows:

"Boss, do you buy things? Clean boards and wires."

The man was startled, turned abruptly, and reached for his waist. Seeing that it was a dirty-faced, thin-bodied teenager, he breathed a sigh of relief, but his eyes remained vigilant: "What kind of stuff? Take it out and let me see. Don't play any tricks."

Ling Ye slowly took out the terminal motherboard and a few pieces of copper wire, showed them, and quickly withdrew them. "I just want to trade for some food, or credits."

The man squinted and looked, seemingly evaluating the value and risk, and finally said in a low voice: "The motherboard is too old, the model is obsolete, the chip might be salvageable. The copper wire is okay. Together, five points, or..." He pointed to the other end of the alley, "Over there at 'Old Cripple's' stall, you can trade for two synthetic breads."

Five credits, or two of the cheapest breads. This was naked exploitation. But Ling Ye did not have the capital to bargain, nor did he want to attract more attention.

"Bread." He chose the food.

The man seemed a bit surprised but didn't say much, signaling Ling Ye to follow. They arrived at a food stall at the end of the alley made of rags, and the stall owner was a silent, lame old man. The man said a few words to the old man in a low voice and pointed at Ling Ye. The old man expressionlessly wrapped up two hard synthetic breads and handed them to Ling Ye. The man then took the scrap from Ling Ye's hand and left quickly.

The first transaction was completed in tension and repression. The two breads were of poor quality, but they could provide calories. More importantly, he had verified the feasibility of this supply acquisition channel, although the efficiency was extremely low and the risk was not low.

Over the next few days, Ling Ye rested during the day, engaged in basic exercises and the cultivation of "Qi," and alternated activities at night: gathering wild vegetables and preparing clean water late at night; going to more distant trash dumps to "work" in the early morning, looking for valuable waste; and occasionally, after observation, conducting one or two extremely cautious scrap transactions to trade for bread or sporadic credits.

He strictly controlled the frequency of going out and the trading partners, never fixing them, and never being greedy. With the credits he earned, he bought some basic salt and a small bottle of anti-inflammatory ointment from a mobile vendor, carefully hiding them away.

The gears of survival began to turn slowly and arduously in this dark corner. Although life was bitter, he had at least temporarily escaped the crisis of starving or dying of thirst. His body was slowly recovering its Origin Qi under the rough food and regular exercise, and even became more lean and tough due to continuous labor and the application of "Qi."

At the same time, he was not completely isolated. When scavenging or trading, he would deliberately stay on the edge of the crowd, or choose corners where homeless people and low-level workers gathered, pricking up his ears to catch snippets of conversation drifting in the wind.

What he heard more of were exaggerated rumors about the "Oak Street Explosion," various speculations about the "Blue Dome," and complaints about the resulting price fluctuations, difficulty finding work, and deteriorating public security. Occasionally, someone would mysteriously mention that "those people in black jackets from the north have been checking very strictly lately," or "I heard that people from above have come down and are looking for something."

These fragmented pieces of information were like scattered puzzle pieces, unable to form a complete picture for the time being, but they gave him a more concrete sense of the undercurrents in "Rust Town" and even the entire Dawn City after the incident.

The energy barrier of the Old Factory District seemed to remain stable, and official reports were still repeating the same old tune. Online college courses were still continuing; Wang Hao would occasionally send messages complaining of boredom or sharing some interesting anecdotes from the college (deliberately avoiding sensitive topics). There was still no more news from Zhou Ming and Sun Li.

Ling Ye knew that beneath the surface calm, the standoff and the search were continuing. Hiding here, he was like an inconspicuous reef beside the raging waves, temporarily safe, but could be smashed by the next wave at any time.

He needed more information, needed to understand the progress of the "Cleaning" operation, needed to know the movements of Su Qing and Zhou Ming, and also needed... to prepare for the day that might come when he could no longer hide.

Perhaps it was time to turn his gaze back to the outside world and try to obtain key information in a more active, yet safer way.

He thought of the network. That anonymous "Midnight Wind" might still be following the incident in some corner. He also thought of the encrypted forum of the "Anomaly Research Society"; although it was silent, perhaps there would be new clues.

Even... He touched the black stone in his bosom that no longer had anything special about it. Perhaps he could use it as a "bait" or "topic" to try to contact some special buyers or researchers interested in "Old Factory District minerals" or "anomalous residues"? But this would require extremely precise planning and disguise.

The road ahead was still shrouded in mist, but at least he was no longer that teenager who had just escaped from the storm, possessing nothing, and in a panic.

He had a dirty but hidden lair, had food that could barely fill his stomach, had gradually recovering strength, and also had a pair of eyes that had been peeking into the darkness for a long time, becoming increasingly calm.