Apocalypse Star House Hoarding

Chapter 216

Yan Ya is a smart person, and this intelligence is not something he boasts about himself but is recognized by everyone through his actions in various aspects.

Compared to others at school, he was born in a rural area with a poor family background. However, he has always been determined to improve himself, studying hard and maintaining a righteous and diligent attitude. He also has excellent hands-on skills.

However, in peaceful times, most of his abilities had no place to be showcased until later, when plants and animals began to mutate, and everything started to change.

Having grown up in the mountains, he was very familiar with plants. Even after they mutated, he could still identify about eighty to ninety percent of them through educated guesses.

Several classmates had avoided injury thanks to his warnings, so they gradually started to trust him. Whenever a major issue arose, he was the first person they sought for advice.

Yan Ya kept working hard. When the group was trapped underground for days, it was he who found a way to escape. Later, when they noticed the city was getting colder, he was the first to point out that temperatures might drop further and suggested finding a place to take shelter instead of continuing to move forward.

He knew how to make fire and what kind of wood would burn well without producing choking black smoke.

He understood the habits and weaknesses of various insects. Even after mutation, some insects retained their original vulnerabilities. In their current situation, even a small hint could give others hope for survival.

Bit by bit, he became one of the leaders of the group.

This time, it was also his idea to follow the black-clad woman out of the building. Some opposed it, believing it was reckless to follow a stranger without a complete plan. But others trusted his judgment. After all, in the eyes of normal people, venturing outside was only worth the risk for supplies. The fact that the woman also chose to go out at this time proved that Yan Ya’s earlier predictions were correct.

The heavy snow had stopped, revealing the ice-covered city beneath. The plants were barely alive, and there was no sign of insects—this was the best opportunity.

Among the three main members of the team, one was a girl and two were boys.

The girl was Zhuo Yun, a black belt in Taekwondo and a beautiful young woman. Her presence had reassured many along the way.

She was also someone Yan Ya had been trying to recruit into his group, though he hadn’t expected this to make Mu Keli jealous.

As for why Yan Ya wanted to recruit Zhuo Yun, that had to do with the other male in their trio.

His name was Lu Yichen. Unlike Yan Ya, he was a rich second-generation heir. While his academic performance was average, he was very street-smart and had learned some self-defense martial arts. Most importantly, he had the power of money.

Their survival, despite being trapped in school, underground, and in a building, was largely thanks to him stockpiling a large number of supplies early on, before the plant and animal mutations had fully spread.

At the time, the situation in the small city wasn’t too bad. His wealthy father had even planned to relocate their family and supplies there for safety. However, before he could arrive, the city had already fallen, and Lu Yichen lost contact with his father completely.

He knew that escaping the city with so many supplies alone was impossible, so he gathered a few friends and formed a team. Later, they merged with Yan Ya’s group and Zhuo Yun’s team.

Their three-way cooperation formed the current group.

Due to their different backgrounds and personalities, Lu Yichen and Yan Ya often had disagreements.

For example, this time, while Lu Yichen agreed with the plan to search the shopping mall for supplies, he disagreed with leaving immediately, insisting on making a more detailed plan first.

Zhuo Yun, on the other hand, believed they should give it a try, confident in her combat abilities.

Since Zhuo Yun was willing to go, Yan Ya was relieved. However, this made Mu Keli upset again. Encouraged by the slightly chubby boy beside her, she insisted on going too.

“What are you going for? To be a mascot? If we run into danger, someone will still have to save you, won’t they?” Zhuo Yun wasn’t as easygoing as Shen Qiu. If Yan Ya gave Shen Qiu a bowl of instant noodles, she would just look at him with grievance. But Zhuo Yun wouldn’t hold back her words.

“I’m going to be with my Ah-Ya! And even if I’m in danger, I won’t need your help!” If someone had patiently persuaded her—like Shen Qiu—Mu Keli might have given up. But now, being provoked by Zhuo Yun, she was determined to go.

Yan Ya was worried about losing track of the black-clad woman, so he quickly started putting on protective gear and grabbing his weapon. With little time to spare, he tried to dissuade Mu Keli a few times, but seeing it was useless, he stopped arguing.

In the end, Mu Keli dragged Shen Qiu along and followed Yan Ya, Zhuo Yun, and a few others who always sided with them out of the building.

**

The rain continued to fall, and You Xi walked at a slow pace. It wasn’t because of the people following her but because of the dense layer of seeds beneath her feet.

She stopped again on an uneven patch of ground and used her plant abilities to select a specific seed in the soil, aiding its growth.

Mutant plants required slightly more energy to cultivate than regular crops. However, since she was only focusing on one seed at a time, the energy cost was manageable.

Moments later, a small, tender green sprout pushed through the cracks in the cement. As You Xi reached out, the sprout immediately leaned against her finger and trembled slightly.

She smiled. Plants she personally nurtured were always more affectionate than those that grew on their own.

This was a mutant rose seedling. Yu Xi had seen mutant roses before—the matured thorns on their stems could launch outward. While they weren’t lethal, their sheer number could still cause excruciating pain.

Yu Xi thought that since she had the ability to catalyze mutations and nurture plants with combat potential, she shouldn’t waste it. That was why she had ventured out—to find suitable mutant plants to cultivate and carry with her.

The mutant rose seedling could sense her intentions. It struggled to move but soon trembled in frustration as it realized its roots were deeply embedded in the soil.

Yu Xi understood—it had mutated but still couldn’t survive without the earth. If she wanted to take it with her, she would have to find a potted container, fill it with soil, and carry it along.

However, the Starhouse storage space couldn’t hold living things. Even if she nurtured it to the point of being battle-ready, she would still have to carry the pot everywhere she went.

She imagined herself walking around with a potted plant in hand and immediately felt a headache—wouldn’t that make her like Li Jing, the Pagoda-bearing Heavenly King?

After a moment of consideration, she gave up on the idea. If she was going to choose a mutant plant as a battle companion, the first requirement was that it had to be able to detach itself from the soil.

Mutant Rose Seedling: ????

With this decision made, Yu Xi patted the seedling with her fingertips before standing up and leaving.

A short distance behind Yu Xi, Yan Ya and his group were struggling to make progress.

Though there were no plants obstructing their path, the roads were severely damaged. At times, they encountered large gaps between broken concrete slabs, forcing them to climb. The wet, muddy ground made the footing slippery, and a single misstep could send loose rocks tumbling, potentially trapping their ankles.

Even Zhuo Yun, the most physically capable among them, was panting from exertion, not to mention Mu Keli and Shen Qiu.

Shen Qiu wasn’t skilled in physical activities, but she had great endurance. Sometimes she would stumble and crawl, but she still kept going. Mu Keli, on the other hand, didn’t want to be outdone by Zhuo Yun. Suppressing her usual complaints, she grit her teeth and pressed forward.

As time passed, Yan Ya grew increasingly concerned. The black-clad woman was still heading toward the shopping center, but her path was winding and inefficient. A journey that should have taken just over half an hour had already stretched to nearly two hours, and she was still two intersections away from the destination.

Mu Keli couldn’t hold back her complaints, speculating that the woman had noticed them tailing her and was deliberately wasting time.

“That’s impossible. She must have her own reasons,” Shen Qiu interjected when she noticed that Mu Keli’s growing frustration was starting to influence the rest of the group.

Unlike Mu Keli, who had fled quickly that day and never heard the woman speak up close, Shen Qiu had recognized Yu Xi’s voice in the building.

Because she was aware of Yu Xi’s unpredictable abilities, she had decided to follow Mu Keli and the others outside. Compared to her classmates, she placed more trust in the mysterious woman’s capabilities.

Yu Xi had stopped multiple times, squatting down to do something unknown. Shen Qiu had considered speaking up to calm the others, but when she turned her head again, Yu Xi glanced in her direction and made a quick “shush” gesture.

The motion was so swift that it would have gone unnoticed had Shen Qiu not been looking at the right moment.

She didn’t know how Yu Xi had managed to time her gesture so precisely, but the message was clear: Don’t say anything.

Shen Qiu wasn’t foolish. She understood that Yu Xi had a reason for making such a request, so she swallowed the words she had originally intended to say.

That didn’t mean she was willing to stand by and let her companions badmouth Yu Xi—even if the person doing it was Mu Keli.

Mu Keli had already been upset with Shen Qiu over a minor squabble about some secretly stashed starlit lollipops. Now that Shen Qiu was siding with an outsider, her irritation only grew.

“Qiu Qiu, why are you speaking up for an outsider? Who’s your real friend here?”

Shen Qiu remained silent. She didn’t try to soothe Mu Keli’s temper, which only made the latter angrier. Seeing her fuming, Zhuo Yun sneered.

“You think you’re the center of the world? Other people can’t have their own opinions?”

As soon as Zhuo Yun spoke, Mu Keli exploded like a lit firecracker.

Yan Ya, growing impatient with the commotion, snapped at her in a low voice, telling her to stop acting up.

Mu Keli felt extremely wronged. She wanted to retort but, upon seeing the serious look in Yan Ya’s eyes, she realized he was genuinely angry. In the end, she could only purse her lips and put on a pitiful expression.

Unfortunately for her, everyone was wearing masks, so no matter how aggrieved she looked, Yan Ya couldn’t see it.

Even without turning around, Yu Xi was well aware of the commotion behind her.

As the two-hour mark approached, she stopped once again. Reaching into her backpack—or rather, her Starhouse storage—she retrieved a sunscreen spray and applied a fresh layer of oxygen protection.

A small pink-and-white bottle appeared in her hand, and she quickly sprayed herself all over.

The people following her all noticed her actions.

“What the heck? Sunscreen spray on a rainy day? That’s a first!” Zhuo Yun exclaimed.

Having trained in Taekwondo, she had a natural admiration for strength. Watching Yu Xi move smoothly and effortlessly over the broken terrain, Zhuo Yun had already realized that her skills far exceeded her own.

Because of that, she had no intention of agreeing with Mu Keli or the others’ complaints.

Yan Ya, however, furrowed his brows.

After a brief moment of thought, he made a decision—it was time to step forward and talk to her.

From his perspective, the black-clad woman had already noticed their presence and was deliberately slowing down. She was dragging out the journey to gain leverage in their upcoming negotiations.

He wanted to have a proper discussion with her to establish clear terms of cooperation. Although their weapons and equipment weren’t as strong as hers, and their average combat ability was lower, they had numbers on their side. If they encountered real danger, it was uncertain who would end up helping whom. He hoped she wouldn’t underestimate them too much.

“You think I want to go to the shopping center?” Yu Xi looked at the young man in front of her, her tone as indifferent as ever.

“Then what? Are you really just out for a stroll like you said?” Yan Ya thought of Lu Yichen, who had opposed immediate action—he didn’t want to return empty-handed.

He wanted to use her strength but didn’t want to approach her like a supplicant, so he ultimately spoke in this way.

However, to Yu Xi, this was a terrible attempt at negotiation. He was just a student who had never stepped into society. While he wasn’t a bad person, he was overly naive and self-assured, which made him seem insincere instead.

But that young girl was in the group today. Yu Xi liked her and didn’t want her to have made the trip for nothing.

So, she nodded at Yan Ya and agreed to cooperate.

With that, she stopped wandering and changed direction. Twenty minutes later, they arrived at the entrance of the shopping center.

The moment she stepped inside, Yu Xi could feel the restless energy of the plants within.

They were pleading for her help. The elephants upstairs were terrifying. During this period of heavy snow and extreme cold, with no food outside, the elephants had stayed in the upper floors, nearly eating them all up…

Yu Xi spent some time communicating with the plants and eventually reached an agreement: the plants would retract some of their vines to create a narrow passage for the group to pass through, and in return, she would help them deal with the elephants on the top floor.

“Once inside, turn left immediately and take the narrow path through the vines. Walk through the checkout area, then use the supermarket’s internal staircase to reach the upper shelves where you can collect the supplies you need. This is the shortest and safest route.”

The group: ???

She found the safest route already?

But they had only been inside for less than a minute!

Standing just inside the damaged entrance, the students glanced at the escalator leading to the second floor. Though partially broken, it was mostly free of plant growth. Compared to the dense vegetation along the route Yu Xi had suggested, the escalator clearly looked safer.

The students exchanged looks, clearly skeptical of her words.

Yu Xi didn’t try to convince them. She simply found a clean corner, leaned against it, and continued communicating with the plants.

“I trust her.” Shen Qiu reached out to pull Mu Keli along, but the latter yanked her hand away and hid behind Yan Ya instead. Shen Qiu sighed, then, without hesitation, turned toward the narrow vine path and stopped in front of it.

A moment later, Zhuo Yun also led her group in that direction. “Let’s give it a try. Maybe she’s been here before and knows the layout.”

The rest of the group looked at Yan Ya, waiting for his decision. But internally, he was caught in a fierce struggle. On one hand, he wanted to take the seemingly easier route. But his experience in the apocalypse told him that in this world, there was no such thing as pure honesty.

At the very least, he wasn’t that kind of person himself.

Everyone had their own selfish motives, especially in times like these.

What if she was just using them to clear a path for herself?

If her route was truly so safe, why had she taken so long to reach the shopping center instead of heading straight here?

One doubt after another surfaced in his mind, and his thoughts became a tangled mess.

The people who had been following him saw his hesitation and couldn’t help but speak again. “Are we still going for supplies or not? We followed you all the way here—don’t tell us you’re thinking about turning back now.”

Their words pulled Yan Ya back to reality. He didn’t want to return empty-handed, but he also didn’t believe in free handouts.

So, he finally spoke. “Alright, how about this? You guys don’t have to take that path. Stay here and wait for me. I’ll go up the escalator with Xiao Zhong and a few others to check it out first. There aren’t many plants on this side, at least from what we can see—it should be safe.”

As he spoke, he glanced at the black-clad woman. She didn’t say anything, merely making a gesture as if to invite him to proceed.

Yan Ya made up his mind and turned to Mu Keli. “You stay here too.”

Mu Keli looked at the dark, empty escalator leading upwards, then turned to glance at Zhuo Yun. “They don’t trust you, but I do! I—I’ll wait here for you…”

“Pfft—” Zhuo Yun let out an unrestrained laugh.

Yan Ya said nothing more. He and his companions checked their protective gear and weapons, then cautiously headed toward the escalator.