Chapter 7

Civilization is the accumulation of beneficial elements throughout history that enhance human adaptation and cognition of the objective world, align with human spiritual pursuits, and are recognized and accepted by the vast majority of people as spiritual wealth and inventions.

So, it can be said that civilization does indeed exist here.

It's just a bit deformed.

If one word were to describe the technological level of the Sixth District, it would be "uneven." You can see mercenaries with rifles slung over their hips smoking and daydreaming at recruitment points, and traders using holographic computers to tally goods. People with missing limbs are not uncommon; some use crutches, while others have mechanical prosthetics that move more nimbly than real legs.

If one word were to describe the living standards of the Sixth District... it would also be "uneven."

Emaciated men and women are everywhere; due to hunger, they no longer have the strength to even moan. Uniformed soldiers patrol the streets in groups of three, guns in hand, ignoring the starving people and the prostitutes on the streets.

They are like machines, their faces hidden behind dark sunglasses, showing no expression.

"Absolute neutrality, that's the foundation of the Sixth District in this wasteland. The laws here are simple: killing and theft are punishable by death, tax evasion in trade results in expulsion, and malicious harm leads to imprisonment." Sun Jiao casually explained to Jiang Chen, who was still not used to the place.

"Why wasn't that person shot?" Jiang Chen swallowed hard, looking at a uniformed man beating a woman who was too weak to resist with a wooden stick. The man seemed to notice Jiang Chen's gaze and grinned at him.

"That's a patrol officer, responsible for dealing with the dead in the slums." Sun Jiao answered in a matter-of-fact tone, though Jiang Chen could sense that she didn't like it here either.

That woman was still alive...

"The inner circle of the Sixth District is cleaner, but if you want to enter, you have to pay a price in subcrystals. We're here just to trade for some useful things, so the outer market is enough." Sun Jiao changed the subject.

"..." Jiang Chen nodded silently.

This twisted civilization.

The outer market, though dirty and chaotic, was still better than the slums. Thieves or other unlucky criminals who were shot were thrown into the garbage pile, to be dragged to the "farm" by patrol officers at night, mixed with the "fat" harvested from the camp, and turned into fertilizer for crops.

Some more famous "big thieves" were preserved in formaldehyde and nailed to boards.

"—Rog Jelson, nicknamed Claw Wolf. He committed three murders in the Sixth District and was killed by the security team in the sewers."

A closer look revealed the identity of the deceased inscribed on the wooden sign.

The name seemed foreign, but that wasn't surprising. NATO forces had landed in this city, and many stayed.

At the market entrance, two merchants, dressed relatively cleanly, were haggling intensely. They finally reached an agreement, signing their names on a contract. Under the supervision of market officials, one party placed subcrystals on an energy counter, while the other moved ten women, barely clothed, out of a rented tent.

Yes, moved out.

Each woman had a ring-shaped electronic lock around her slender, pale neck, and their eyes were vacant as they submitted to being pulled.

The women were quite attractive, with skin as smooth as that of an inflatable doll, but their faces were marked with barcodes.

Apparently satisfied with the "goods," the merchant who paid the subcrystals directed his subordinates to load the women onto a truck and drive away from the market.

"New Horizon Hotel." Sun Jiao slowly said, squinting her eyes as she watched the truck drive away.

Jiang Chen noticed that Sun Jiao's hands had unconsciously clenched into fists.

"Hotel?"

"Just a brothel." Sun Jiao spat, "Providing comprehensive 'services' to guests. You know what kind of services. There, female slaves are consumables, as all kinds of perverted desires exist. I once heard a dim-witted guy in Luting Town's tavern bragging about how tender the flesh of the girls in the New Horizon Hotel is... in the context of food."

Jiang Chen shivered, imagining the hell those expressionless girls would face.

"That human trafficker probably belongs to the faction occupying the 101 Vault. They use cloning technology and culture solutions to produce low-cost clones. These clones are more like commodities than humans."

"So, what exactly is a vault?" Jiang Chen asked, looking at Sun Jiao's emotionless eyes with disbelief.

"It's a very special thing. Each vault has a different design philosophy to maximize survival efficiency." Sun Jiao shrugged. "I was born in Vault 071, and looking back, I consider myself lucky. The design philosophy there was to standardize personalities through fixed programs. The lifestyle was rigid but happy. Some vaults weren't so lucky."

Sun Jiao's beautiful face showed a cruel smile that didn't match her age.

"I once heard that the design philosophy of Vault 070 was to govern through human management, creating a spiritual leader to inspire people to survive... how naive the pre-war designers were. It's said that within 10 years of the vault's archway descending, it turned into a hell. The 'moral model' maintained justice for only a few years before forgetting his civility and becoming a tribal chief. He used his security program privileges to absurdly eliminate all males, leaving only females as his pleasure tools... As for Vault 101, it's probably an unmanned vault."

Jiang Chen swallowed hard, shocked by the cruel reality. However, he still didn't understand some of Sun Jiao's words.

"Unmanned vault? No one needs to be saved?"

"Ha, of course. Storing the DNA data of elites from various fields, and after the vault's term, activating the embryo culture dishes to automatically 'produce' perfect bodies, then using virtual reality systems to give them years of 'memories' in a short time. Ha, I wonder what the purpose of these commodities is. Did the pre-war designers already realize that these commodities would be in high demand in the post-war wasteland?"

Jiang Chen, standing by as a listener, remained silent, unable to hide his shock.

Is this the end of civilization...

"We're here." Sun Jiao's brief words interrupted Jiang Chen's thoughts, and she led him to a shop.

This is the official acquisition station of the outer market of the Sixth District, responsible for evaluating and purchasing goods needed by the camp. While canned goods and batteries can be used as currency in some survivor camps, such trading rules clearly don't apply to the "prosperous" Sixth District. Therefore, a credible organization is needed to implement a unified currency, which also makes it easier to collect taxes.

Subcrystals, as the main energy source for high-power equipment, are in rigid demand for any survivor base. Their portability also meets the necessary characteristics of a circulating currency.

Although opening a shop to sell canned goods would be more profitable, the "not short of money" Jiang Chen chose the most convenient route, selling the expensive canned goods to the most fair Sixth District authorities.

Sun Jiao didn't try to dissuade him, clearly not wanting to stay here long.

"Goods." A mechanical and practiced response came from the window.

Seeing Sun Jiao's signal, Jiang Chen took out his backpack and placed one of the items on the table.

"Whoa..." The trader at the window drew a sharp breath.

Jiang Chen finally heard a hint of disbelief in the tone, and he felt several greedy eyes fixed on his back.

Shivering uncomfortably, Jiang Chen looked at Sun Jiao with a questioning gaze. Sun Jiao smiled, indicating that he shouldn't worry; no one would dare break the rules here. At least until they left the Sixth District, they were absolutely safe.

"Sir, do you have more of this?" The voice was now respectful.

Fresh meat canned... even the nobles in the inner circle mostly eat mutated beef and accelerated vegetables. The front desk trader even suspected his scanner was malfunctioning, as the screen showed...

Fresh beef, storage period 127 days, harmful substances far below the edible threshold. Food quality—perfect!

Meat itself is a luxury, and this fresh beef... it could be called a luxury of luxuries. Such things are almost extinct in the post-apocalyptic world. The entire Earth probably doesn't have a single unmutated fat cow. If there were, it would likely be in the distant north, where radiation levels are relatively low.

In the Sixth District, or the entire wasteland, most people don't have the chance to eat healthy food. Survivors usually use nutritional supplements to stave off hunger. These supplements, made from the protein of mutated organisms, don't taste good, only barely edible.

Jiang Chen, perhaps the only one in the entire wasteland, could afford to eat "green food" every meal.

More shockingly, this guy even thought the canned food wasn't as good as fresh food...

"There's quite a bit more."

"Please proceed to the VIP room for settlement. A dedicated trader will serve you." The front desk trader smiled at Jiang Chen, quickly processing the paperwork. Soon, a beautiful lady walked up to Jiang Chen.

"Respected sir, please follow me." The female trader smiled mysteriously at Jiang Chen, then turned and led them to the VIP room. The VIP room is used to protect customer information. If a large amount of valuable goods were displayed in the main hall, the person might not have a chance to leave the Sixth District within 100 meters.

Pushing open the wooden door, a faint tea fragrance greeted them. Classical wooden tables and leather sofas, a incense burner in the center of the tea table, and a valuable purple clay teapot exuded a refined elegance. The VIP room had a modern tea room feel.

"Please come in, sir." The beautiful female trader bowed slightly, her chest revealing a hint of a seductive cleavage. Sun Jiao, standing beside her, narrowed her eyes, a playful smile on her lips.

For some reason, the female trader's gaze made him feel uneasy, as if she wanted to eat him.

But Jiang Chen didn't think much of it, stepping into the VIP room.

As the female trader was about to enter and close the door behind her, Sun Jiao casually walked in as well.

The female trader looked at Sun Jiao with slight surprise and dissatisfaction. But the fierce Sun Jiao glared back without hesitation.

Glancing at Sun Jiao's impressive chest, the female trader pouted, still maintaining a polite smile, and quietly closed the door.

Jiang Chen, of course, was unaware of this brief confrontation.

For transactions over 100 subcrystal points, the VIP room is used, partly for caution and partly to court "big spenders"... The VIP room is also associated with special services, which is no secret in the Sixth District.

"Professional" female traders earn tips through special services, and the back office of the Sixth District exchange gains "good reviews" from big customers, a win-win situation in a sense.

But with Miss Sun Jiao here, the female trader's tips were naturally lost.

After a quick inventory, the transaction was quickly settled. 20 cans of perfect quality were fairly priced at 50 subcrystals each. After all, these cans were not just food but could be considered luxuries. If these cans were offered to the rich in the inner circle, they might fetch double the price.

Rarity makes things valuable.

For this, Sun Jiao had complained to Jiang Chen countless times, but he didn't care much, secretly rejoicing.

How much is a can worth? But 1 subcrystal point can charge the jump ring by 30%!

This deal is a no-brainer.

"Do you know what the VIP room is?" Walking through the bustling market, Sun Jiao suddenly asked.

"Huh? A place for large transactions?" Jiang Chen was puzzled, not understanding why she asked this.

"Ha," Sun Jiao suddenly laughed, covering her stomach, "As expected, you don't know."

"I don't find it funny." Jiang Chen looked at Sun Jiao, speechless.

After laughing enough, Sun Jiao suddenly leaned close to his ear, a teasing smile on her face.

"A place for special services."

Jiang Chen felt a breath on his ear, causing a pleasant tingling sensation. But he was used to Sun Jiao's occasional teasing and didn't jump back with a red face as he used to, instead showing an enjoying expression.

"Are you mad that I ruined your fun?" Sun Jiao teased, "If I had stayed outside, she might have given you a 'full service.' That girl is probably still cursing me for ruining her business."

"How could I be mad? I prefer you." Jiang Chen also leaned close to Sun Jiao's earlobe, blowing a breath as revenge.

"..." Sun Jiao's face turned red, after all, she was still a young girl. Though she often called herself a big sister, she wasn't much older than Jiang Chen.

Suddenly, Sun Jiao's eyes narrowed.

"Someone is following us."

"Who?" Jiang Chen was startled, instinctively wanting to turn back.

"Don't turn back, act like nothing is happening. No one dares to act here. I have my ways to deal with these rats, my boss." Sun Jiao smiled, biting Jiang Chen's ear. To others, they looked like a playful couple.

Because of the follower, their next steps were naturally accelerated.

Sun Jiao directly led Jiang Chen to a place that looked like a hospital. Inside, he learned that it sold various vaccines and gene agents.

After paying a total of 55 subcrystals, the masked doctor gave Jiang Chen two injections. One was a T-type vaccine to prevent zombie bacteria infection. The other was a C-level gene enhancement agent, which, according to the doctor, could increase muscle strength, reflexes, and bone strength by 10-25 points. The physical enhancement effects would gradually take effect over three days.

There were many useful agents in the pharmacy, and Jiang Chen selectively bought some. These were agents to improve physical attributes, as strength is the prerequisite for wealth, and he couldn't always hide behind Sun Jiao.

Though Jiang Chen would prefer to hire someone to fight, it seemed more dignified, cough...

Next, they went to the arms store to replenish ammunition. Sun Jiao's Sirius assault rifle uses C-type batteries as ammunition, and charging five magazines costs 1 subcrystal.

The 7.62mm rifle rounds for Jiang Chen's PK200 assault rifle were a bit more expensive, 360 rounds costing 4 subcrystals. Although Sun Jiao looked pained, Jiang Chen paid the price without hesitation.

Canned goods for weapons, a profitable deal!

Of course, these "barbarians" wouldn't understand.

In this wasteland, laser weapons are undoubtedly an environmentally friendly and economical choice. General-purpose short to medium-range laser rifles are suitable for most urban combat scenarios. As long as they are not high-power long-range laser rifles, their energy consumption is very low. For example, the Sirius in Sun Jiao's hands has an effective range of only 400 meters, and the energy of the laser rounds drops sharply beyond 400 meters. However, one C-type battery can provide 200 laser rounds. If not for the risk of overheating, this weapon could even fire like a machine gun at close range.

As for kinetic weapons, their advantage is a longer effective range, with less significant bullet energy drop, and they cannot be completely blocked by energy shields. For the PCA's standard weapon, the PK200 assault rifle, with an 8x scope, it can be used as a sniper rifle. Although this gun might be a bit wasteful for Jiang Chen, it is undoubtedly the most suitable for him.

Kinetic weapons are much more reliable than laser weapons. An EMP grenade can disable a laser rifle, but a kinetic rifle can still fire. If something goes wrong, Sun Jiao can handle the laser weapon's issues, but Jiang Chen would just be left staring.

"We'll stay here tonight." Sun Jiao glanced at the setting sun and casually glanced at the follower with her peripheral vision.

"But..." Jiang Chen frowned, feeling uncomfortable being followed.

"Night is dangerous," Sun Jiao said coolly, a cold smile on her face, "but it's also full of opportunities."

It seems that tonight, some people are bound to be in trouble.

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