Chapter 17: East City of Q City

Chapter 17: Q City's East District

The Guard Team wanted to send the shelter residents back as soon as possible, but unfortunately, it was getting late, and it was no longer a suitable time to dispatch vehicles.

Pitch-black nights easily trigger tension in humans, which is why pollutants are mostly active at night. This is also the reason why the Guard Team chooses to carry out pollutant cleanup operations during curfew hours after dark.

So the Guard Team arranged temporary accommodations for the shelter residents and promised to send them back early the next morning.

For the shelter residents, it made no difference where they slept. They were there to work and had no illusions about the job—when they signed up, they were prepared to risk their lives.

Shen Ji shared a room with one of his colleagues. None of them had slept well on the vehicle, plus they were busy all day, so most were fast asleep. The colleague sharing the room with Shen Ji soon started snoring—a chaotic, nonstop rumble.

Small mushrooms quietly crept up to the head of that person's bed.

At their master’s command, they would immediately gnaw on this noisy human!

Shen Ji reached out, tore away the small mushrooms off the headboard, sighed, turned around, and left the room to get some air and cool down outside.

There were quite a few people outside. Since pollutants were more active at night, the Guard Team’s workload increased, and they were changing shifts. The area was brightly lit, and the atmosphere didn’t seem particularly tense.

Shen Ji stood under the light and yawned.

"Interview: As a contaminated being, how do you maintain such a healthy sleep schedule?"

"I am the reporter."

"We're swapping roles. Now I’m the reporter."

Shen Ji ignored it. The wind outside was strong, and he was wearing a white outer garment, which made him quite noticeable. The young man was good-looking with a refined temperament, and with his glasses on, he resembled a lotus that can be admired from afar but not profaned, attracting look after look from everyone around.

So Shen Ji turned and walked toward a less crowded area, avoiding the stares.

"I suggest you go back and grab an umbrella. Why? Because the Pollution Prevention Center is about to start artificial rainfall to wash away the pollution. Not sure whose idea it was, but they firmly believe rainwater can rinse the pollution away."

"Does this look like a place where you’d find an umbrella?"

"A raincoat works too."

Well, raincoats were indeed available.

The Guard Team provided basic supplies for each member and kept extras on hand for emergencies. When Shen Ji asked, they generously gave him one.

Carrying it by hand was inconvenient, so Shen Ji opened the packaging and put on the transparent raincoat on this rainless night, then calmly walked away under everyone’s watchful eyes.

His hands in his pockets—yes, the raincoat even had pockets—Shen Ji walked with his head down. After a while, he suddenly heard a strange noise.

When he looked up, he realized he had wandered to the edge of the Guard Team’s area of responsibility. Beyond this point, there were no lights.

It was from a dark patch of dried grass that a rustling noise came.

"Did the Guard Team overlook a pollutant during cleanup?"

"No. No pollution levels detected."

"Then it’s a person?" Shen Ji stared at the spot. "Who’s there?"

The grass rustled again for a moment. A few seconds later, a tall figure emerged from the grass, wearing the familiar Guard Team uniform and sporting the familiar killer white hair.

Shen Ji: …

Li Zhiyan stood in the tall grass, making eye contact with him, holding a strange basket in his right hand. He seemed equally surprised to find someone here, so he returned Shen Ji’s gaze with a puzzled look. After a few seconds, he walked out of the tall grass, still holding the basket.

"I remember you—Shen Ji from the shelter, right? What are you doing here instead of sleeping?"

Shen Ji exhaled softly, not sure if it was out of relief or pent-up tension.

A few seconds later, he met Li Zhiyan's gaze calmly. "And what are you doing here, Mr. Li?"

"Me?" Li Zhiyan didn’t seem to mind sharing his intentions, so he handed the basket to Shen Ji for a look. "Gathering mushrooms. After autumn rains, mushrooms pop up everywhere. This area is full of them—perfect for hotpot."

His basket was filled with all sorts of bizarre mushrooms: some pure white, others brightly colored, some with red caps and white stems that looked highly toxic, the kind that could kill you with one bite.

Shen Ji: …

"I… I came here because…" Thrown off by Li Zhiyan’s odd behavior, Shen Ji fumbled for words before finally explaining, "My roommate’s snoring kept me up, so I went out for a walk and accidentally ended up here."

"That’s rough," Li Zhiyan said with an understanding nod. "I’m going to make hotpot later. Want to join?"

Shen Ji felt like he’d experienced a lifetime’s worth of moments of disbelief tonight.

"No, no," Shen Ji waved his hands hurriedly. "You enjoy it yourself."

"I thought you liked mushrooms?" the system quipped mockingly. "Why not now? Is it because they’re poisonous? You’re a pollutant! A bit of poison shouldn’t be a big deal for you!"

Li Zhiyan didn’t seem interested in forcing anyone to eat poisonous mushrooms. After Shen Ji declined, he didn’t press further.

Just then, a crack of thunder echoed overhead. Li Zhiyan glanced up at the sky, and soon, a drizzle began to fall.

It was only then that Shen Ji noticed Li Zhiyan was also wearing a raincoat. It was hard to see in the darkness, especially with his dark blue guard uniform blending into the night.

"It’s raining. Let’s head back," Li Zhiyan said, looking down at Shen Ji. "Also, let me get your number."

Shen Ji stared back, puzzled. "Why?"

"Might need to reach you about something later," Li Zhiyan replied.

Though he wanted to refuse, doing so would draw too much attention. After all, Li Zhiyan was a well-known figure in City Q—not just an S-Class Mutant but also a pillar of the Pollution Prevention Center. Everyone, whether for work or personal reasons, wanted his contact information.

In the end, Shen Ji pulled out his phone and exchanged numbers with him.

Satisfied with the number, Li Zhiyan left, still carrying his basket.

Watching Li Zhiyan’s retreating figure, Shen Ji curiously saved the new contact as "Protagonist." After a moment’s hesitation, he added a few more words: "Troublesome Protagonist."

Early the next morning, Shen Ji and the others from the shelter were taken back by the guard team, finally without running into him again.

Due to the earlier incident where they’d been trapped, the shelter scraped together half a day off, telling them to return to work the following day.

But as shelter staff, everyone still went to check on the patients under their care. Shen Ji did the same, only to discover that one of his patients was missing.

Chen Guo’s mother: Lin Yujuan.

/

Her medical record had a stamp on it with three bright red characters: "Cured."

"Are you looking for Lin Yujuan?" Zhang Qingli, who worked in the same Zone I, said, "She's been discharged and is now living with her daughter. Your patient roster has been updated."

Shen Ji flipped through the files. "...And a few more have been added."

People don’t want to work; people dislike overtime; people resist increased workloads.

"You only got five extra, I got seventeen more." Zhang Qingli sounded even more despairing.

But they could understand why the number of patients had increased. The Undertaker incident in the eastern district had contaminated quite a few people. Fortunately, the Undertaker was dealt with promptly, so only Zones I and II were overloaded with patients. Everyone was relieved—the fact that it hadn’t reached Stages III or IV was good news.

Medical staff undergoing concentrated treatment due to occupational exposure were also assigned to each person’s care, pooling their wisdom to try and find better solutions.

Shen Ji noticed a new line added under these patients’ details.

‘New contamination characteristic: Patient appears to talk to themselves in the middle of the night.’

"Even less like Filth contamination now. Your little mushrooms wouldn’t be so lonely as to talk to themselves."

"If they could talk, they’d probably chirp like chicks all day."

"Is it really appropriate to assign bird traits to mushrooms?"

After briefly checking on the patients, everyone took advantage of the rare half-day off to go out for a meal. Shen Ji didn’t mind such social activities—back when he was a reporter, these kinds of events were countless, and they were a surefire way to build rapport among different people.

The gathering wasn’t held at the shelter but a short walk from the shelter’s dormitory. The location was a bit out of the way, but it seemed like a regular spot for shelter staff—the owner was very familiar with them.

"It’s your first time here. What would you like to eat? The food’s pretty good; everyone comes here often."

Zhang Qingli pointed at the food cabinet in front of them and said to Shen Ji, "Order whatever you want. How it’s cooked depends on what the owner feels like making."

Shen Ji stared at the lush green vegetable cabinet in silence for a few seconds. "Do you have any mushrooms?"

"Mushrooms? Wild ones?" Zhang Qingli sucked air through his teeth. "Yeah, I really don't think they do."

"They might stock regular mushrooms, but wild ones are out of the question. Those need to be foraged, and with Q City under such strict lockdown, no one can leave. So, no chance."

Shen Ji nodded. "That’s what I thought."

"Then why did you ask?"

"Better to ask than not to."

Zhang Qingli fell silent for a moment before speaking again. "You come off as this stern, abstinent, cold-faced type, but you’re actually a deadpan comedian?"

"He's figured you out!"

Shen Ji: ...

That's total nonsense!

In any case, Shen Ji didn’t order anything. He just ate along with everyone else—after all, he wasn’t paying. The treat was courtesy of Doctor Cheng Gu, the lead of this support operation and the organizer of the gathering. He gave an impassioned speech about the mission and even handed out bonuses to everyone present.

A meal with bonuses is a good meal!

Shen Ji took a couple of bites. As a contaminant, he hadn’t had much hot food since crossing over. Eating something warm now even touched him a little.

When luck is on your side, misfortune always follows—and Shen Ji was no exception.

No sooner had he finished feeling touched than he heard his phone ring—the notification sound for a text message.

Shen Ji didn't put down his chopsticks. Instead, he used his other hand to fish the phone out of his coat pocket, and then he saw the sender.

"troublesome protagonist"

'Why is the protagonist sending me a text?' Shen Ji couldn't figure it out. 'Are we that close? No way! We're practically strangers.'

"I'm not sure either, but anyway, um... do you want to see what he sent?"

Shen Ji and the system nervously opened the message.

Inside was a color photo. The colors in the photo were vibrant and fresh, lit perfectly. A bright red tomato broth was paired with colorful mushrooms, with their sliced stems black, and the rising steam looked like it had been tinted the colors of the rainbow. Sitting across was Zhou Ye, looking like he was facing a formidable enemy, his horrified gaze fixed on the pot, giving the impression he was about to flip it over in a panic.

Shen Ji: ...

"System, how is he not dead from poisoning yet?"

"...Well, maybe SClass Mutants are immune to all poisons?"