Super Gene Hunting Ground

Yang Xiao ran two strongholds and found that the ones trading at the street stalls were mostly ordinary people, or those with a lower Genetic Evolution Level.

Yang Xiao walked from one end to the other, finishing his tour of the entire street stalls and seeing nothing particularly rare. Just as he was about to turn back, his gaze froze; he actually saw a youth displaying two packs of Master Kang instant noodles on the stall.

There are even sales of instant noodles?

Several people were gathered around, asking the young man the price. Finding it too expensive, they all shook their heads and walked away.

What surprised Yang Xiao even more was that in front of the instant noodles crouched two children, around twelve or thirteen, wearing Fish Skin Armor to keep out the cold, but with a low Genetic Evolution Level, their faces were red from the freezing cold.

The two kids were staring greedily at the instant noodles in front of them.

Yang Xiao was shocked inwardly; since entering this post-apocalyptic world, this was the first time he had seen children.

Yang Xiao approached and observed carefully; one was a girl, and the other a boy, who seemed to be siblings from their conversation.

"Brother, how much are you selling these instant noodles for?" Yang Xiao asked.

"Three hundred Crystal Coins a pack," said the young man.

"Three hundred Crystal Coins could buy a necklace or ring with four attribute points, too expensive."

Yang Xiao had never been short on food, so he wasn't very familiar with the outside market.

The young man gave Yang Xiao a look, noticing the tall Flame Horse Yang Xiao was leading. It was apparent that he was no ordinary man. It was probably difficult to sell these instant noodles to the poor, as everyone was worrying about Crystal Coins.

Three hundred Crystal Coins were nothing to Yang Xiao but could be quite a struggle for these poor people.

Although Magic City's resources were plentiful, most were concentrated in the hands of upper management. Otherwise, with a population of over two hundred thousand in Magic City, equally distributing resources would be an impossible venture.

Yang Xiao had heard from Zhou Jian that roughly half of the population in Magic City could enhance their Genetic Evolution by consuming Mutant Monster flesh and blood. Among this half, as their Genetic Evolution Level increased, it would gradually become fixed.

When eating more Mutant Monster flesh and blood could no longer elevate their Evolution Level, they would be excluded from the nurtured group.

Very few could truly enter the Enhanced Gene Stage, and ultimately, Magic City's resources would predominantly cater to these high-level Evolvers.

Ordinary people might scavenge some Ice Fish to stave off hunger, plus some grain distributed by Magic City itself.

At this time, there was an abundance of Ice Fish, but eating fish every day had many people sick of it, making a pack of instant noodles appear quite precious.

"Brother, you don't look like someone short on cash. If you want, take both packs for 500 Crystal Coins. How about that? I want to exchange for a necklace and am short of money. This is the food I saved up from a few months back. Nowadays, getting instant noodles is tough."

Yang Xiao smiled,

"Alright, 500 Crystal Coins."

He took out five hundred Crystal Coins and handed them to the young man, who happily gave Yang Xiao the two packs of instant noodles and then hurriedly ran to another stall to buy the equipment he had set his eyes on.

With the instant noodles sold, the onlookers dispersed.

Those people were also observant, knowing from Yang Xiao's appearance and demeanor, especially the Flame Horse he was leading, that he was not an ordinary poor man, so no one dared to think of robbing him.

Yang Xiao led the horse forward a few steps, found a house with eaves to stand under, and pretended to be ready to eat the instant noodles.

These were fried instant noodles and could be eaten directly without soaking in hot water.

Upon turning around, he discovered the two kids were following him, their eyes glued to the instant noodles in his hands.

These two kids were unusual, perhaps the people around had grown accustomed, but it was different for Yang Xiao.

"Want some?"

Yang Xiao lifted the instant noodles towards the two children, about twelve or thirteen years old.

The two kids swallowed their saliva but said nothing, their eyes burning with more intense greed.

"Brother will ask you a few questions, and if you can answer me, I'll give you some to eat."

The boy nodded immediately upon hearing this.

The girl, however, pulled her brother's hand, seemingly a bit fearful of Yang Xiao.

Yang Xiao smiled and handed a pack of instant noodles to the girl,

"Here, you take this first."

"Really?"

The woman's eyes sparkled, and a radiant smile spread across her face as if she had found a treasure. She took it with both hands, gently caressed it, and quickly placed it into her bosom.

"Thank you, big brother!"

The girl, overwhelmed with excitement, bowed gratefully to Yang Xiao.

"Why aren't you eating it?"

"I want to wait until I go back, boil it with hot water and eat it. It tastes better that way, and I can also enjoy the delicious noodle soup," said the girl excitedly.

"What are your names?"

"I'm Yang Ying."

"And I'm Yang Kai."

Yang Xiao was taken aback, then chuckled.

"What a coincidence, I also have the surname Yang. My name is Yang Xiao."

Perhaps it was Yang Xiao's peaceful demeanor that made the two children feel a kinship; they immediately called out loudly:

"Hello, Brother Yang Xiao!"

"Are you two siblings?"

"Yes, I'm the older brother, and she is my younger sister. I am a year and a half older than she is."

"Where are your parents?"

Yang Xiao asked instinctively, as one would usually inquire about a child's parents upon meeting them for the first time.

As soon as he asked, he regretted it, knowing that in this post-apocalyptic world, only people around the ages of 18-22 were likely to have survived. Today was the first time he had met children who had managed to live through it.

The two children seemed to have gotten used to it, and the boy, Yang Kai, said indifferently:

"When we woke up, our parents were already gone. It's the apocalypse now, no one has parents anymore."

Yang Xiao nodded and handed the other packet of instant noodles to the boy, Yang Kai.

The boy hesitated, not taking it.

"Why won't you take it?"

Yang Kai looked at Yang Xiao, his expression uncertain, and said:

"Just for asking those two questions, you give us two packets of instant noodles?"

Yang Xiao patted his head,

"So, what do you think, do I need to ask you something else?"

Yang Kai fell silent, not knowing how to respond.

Yang Xiao stuffed the instant noodles into his hands and asked:

"What's your current level of genetic evolution?"

"My four attributes are all at 7, and my sister's at 6."

"Oh, not bad at all, to be at 7 and 6 already at such a young age. What do you usually rely on to enhance your genetic evolution?"

"Genetic Fragments. My sister and I follow the older brothers and sisters to dig for Ice Fish at the Wangchuan River."

Yang Xiao nodded, saying:

"Where do you live? Do you want me to take you back?"

"We live nearby, just across two streets, in an underground parking garage of a collapsed building. That's where we stay, inside the parking garage."

"Are you sure you can get back on your own without someone taking these noodles from you?"

Yang Xiao asked, as he had already noticed several young people paying attention to the siblings, Yang Ying and Yang Kai.

As Yang Xiao said this, the siblings suddenly realized their situation, and fear appeared on their faces.

The boy had an ordinary Black Sword hanging by his waist, while the girl had one too – the kind that could be bought for three Crystal Coins, with a 2-point enhancement in Strength Attribute. That had once been Yang Xiao's treasured weapon when he started out.

(Tonight there will still be two more updates, compensating for the chapters owed to the Alliance Hierarch from yesterday, totaling an owed five chapters.)