Chapter 9 The First Time Entering the Hazard Zone to Work (3)

After that trip, Ye Nai returned the trolley and stood outside the door of the prefabricated house waiting for the three female classmates to come back.

"I'm going out to take a break and grab something to eat, what about you guys?"

"I'm coming with you, I'm dying of thirst. I need to drink some water." The voice of the person speaking sounded off, hot and stuffy inside the protective suit, about to collapse at any moment.

The other two exchanged looks through their goggles and nodded in agreement.

"Let's take a break, both my arms are sore and shaking."

"Then let's hurry up and go, so we don't get mixed up with the main crowd again."

All four entered the prefabricated house and, following the instructions on the wall and directions from the staff, took turns posing for a photo with their backs to the camera on the wall. They printed out their number and the character '正' on thermal paper, which they used to get paid after taking off their protective suits.

Ye Nai removed her equipment, threw it into the recycling bin, and walked through a five-meter-long decontamination spray corridor. Once outside, there stood a conspicuous prefabricated house with two doors, one for entering and one for exiting, across the hard pavement. On its walls, painted in bright red, were three large characters: "Settlement Room".

As if afraid people with nearsightedness couldn't see it.

The three classmates came out one after another, and the four of them entered the Settlement Room together. Inside, there was a row of long counters manned by six cashiers.

Ye Nai was first in line and handed over the thermal paper to the cashier, who read the number on her pass. The cashier matched the number on the paper to confirm twice before handing over the money.

Then Ye Nai took out her phone and opened the payment QR code, earning envious looks from her classmates. Within a few seconds, she received the 20 yuan in her account.

The cashier even praised her for being well-prepared.

"I'm so envious, your parents even prepared a phone for you in advance."

"Yeah, all we can do is take cash."

"How much was your phone?"

"The phone, the SIM card, and the recharge, a total of 610." Considering they were classmates, and all girls at that, Ye Nai earnestly offered some advice, "If your parents won't buy you a phone, just save up for it on your own. You get cash, and your parents don't know how much you earn each day. Save a few yuan a day, and in a hundred days or at most half a year, you'll have enough for the phone."

The three female classmates listened and nodded silently, but whether they would follow through with the advice was up to them, after all, every family's situation is different.

The cashiers behind the counter had been watching the gossip unfold and gave Ye Nai a few extra glances before interrupting their conversation, urging them to finish settling their accounts and not hold up the people behind them.

Ye Nai and the other three hastened to leave and followed the signs outside.

Walking on, the length of the road seemed endless, with an unchanging view of the electric fence surrounding them. After a couple of twists and turns, they lost their sense of direction, but by the time they snapped back to reality, they were already at the end of the long street, with the prefabricated house where they handled their passes in sight.

"Wow, we've finally made it out."

"Feels like the way out was longer than the way in, as if we took a detour."

"Hey, it doesn't matter if we took a detour or not, anyway, we are out here to rest and eat, we're not in a rush."

"That's true, look, there's a public toilet over there, let's see if we can wash our hands."

All four rushed to the public toilet, where the sinks were outside and communal soap was provided. Although it looked wet and sticky, which was somewhat disgusting, they could still use it as normal.

After washing their hands and using the bathroom, they freshened up their faces to get rid of the sweat trapped by the protective suits and then hurried towards the street, looking for a place to have lunch.

That morning, Ye Nai released spores several times, which continually fed her energy. Compared to her classmates who were tired, thirsty, and hungry, she was much better off. She wasn't tired, but she sure was hungry.

After wandering around the street for a while, there were plenty of small eateries. Steamed buns, stuffed buns, soup noodles, and covered rice ranging from a few cents to several dollars, as well as stir-fry dishes for a few dozen dollars—there was something for everyone, affordable or extravagant.

East Ridge City itself was built like threading a needle through the seven hazardous zones around it. With its long and narrow terrain, the total area wasn't large, so in order to sustain its population, agriculture was emphasized over livestock farming. This was evidenced in the market by the high cost of meat. A vegetarian bun cost 30 cents, but if it was filled with meat, the price jumped to one dollar each.

The three classmates had each earned only about ten dollars that morning and could only afford to eat vegetarian buns, but Ye Nai splurged, buying five meat buns and a bottle of a beverage.

Physical work like this absolutely called for meat.

They stood at the side of the street to eat. At this time, the street was crowded with people having their meals; no one paid them any extra attention, and certainly, no one would rudely ridicule her for being a "little girl with extravagant tastes for meat buns." Everyone here was involved in trash removal—who was to claim any superiority?

The meat buns were well-made, with generous fillings and savory juice inside. Ye Nai didn't want to rush and stain her clothes, plus there was plenty of time, so she ate slowly.

While eating, she overheard people nearby gossiping as they looked towards the Plane Channel in the sky.

"Hey, they're having a mass Awakening; did your second child awaken yet?"

"No, his brother risked getting him Mutant Beast Meat from inside a few times, saying it could increase the chances of Awakening. Turns out, it was as if he didn't eat anything."

"How many times has he eaten it? I heard that eating too little doesn't work; it's best to eat regularly."

"Who can afford to eat it regularly? The eldest said there's only a bit of edible meat on each mutant beast, and even the squads find it too little for themselves; there's nothing left to bring home to family members. If you want to bring meat home, you have to hunt it yourself. Every time his brother came back with meat, he was covered in wounds. I can't very well sacrifice the eldest's life for the younger one's Awakening, can I?"

"True enough."

Ye Nai felt a stir in her heart, and involuntarily her gaze drifted towards the oppressive Plane Channel on the horizon.

So the mutant beasts inside could be hunted for their meat?

This was indeed news to her; with no Awakener in the family, she truly was out of the loop.

But she didn't have an Awakening Badge to prove she was an Awakener; how could she enter the Plane Channel?

Ye Nai chewed her bun slowly, consoling herself not to rush. There would be time.

People bustled about nearby, quickly finishing their meals before heading back to work. Another round of labor meant another round of pay.

After eating their buns, Ye Nai and her three friends wanted to rest a little longer, mainly because their arms were trembling and aching from the strain—it was impossible to resume work immediately.

They found a curb shaded from the sun to rest and digest. Ye Nai casually scattered spores outward, letting them drift on the wind deep into the hazardous zones, taking root and attempting to break down the Otherworld trash.

It was then that they finally saw large groups of classmates coming out, looking utterly exhausted. They waved at them, but none noticed Ye Nai and her friends sitting in the shade.

Wave after wave of classmates walked past them. The four girls remained silent, quietly observing as they pulled out cash just received to buy their lunches.

With so many students clutching a few dollars, Ye Nai sharply noticed several seemingly aimless kids loitering around. They didn't attract much attention, but their gazes were fixed on the pockets of the students.