Chapter 1: A World of Apocalyptic Wasteland

"I never thought that I would actually travel to an apocalyptic wasteland world. Is this God giving me another chance?"

So far, he still couldn't figure out why he would encounter such a strange thing as transmigration.

He had been recuperating for five days, and with Mu Liang's military attainment, he was able to collect some basic information.

This world was much larger than Earth, but it had already been abandoned and ruined, and civilization had decayed to near extinction.

The earth cannot grow food and is desolate for thousands of miles.

It rains very little, and when it does, it rains acid rain.

The sky is often covered with dust, and the sun's light only occasionally shines on the earth.

"At the current rate of recovery, he'll be fine after resting for one or two more days."

Mu Liang moved his arms, and the soreness had already disappeared.

After five days of rest, he gradually got his strength back.

Mu Liang pulled open a little gap through the wooden shed door and investigated the situation outside.

The sunset was going down, a desolate and bleak land without any greenery.

"The apocalyptic wasteland world, which was sort of predicted by some people on earth, is now upon him."

As an orphan on earth, Mu Liang didn't have enough tuition for university, so he joined the army halfway through his studies.

Five-year special forces member, but retired from service due to the relapse of old injuries.

He planned to use what he had learned in the military to become a short-video creator and shoot some videos of survival in the wilderness.

Who would have thought that Mu Liang had the misfortune of encountering an earthquake-induced ground fissure?

He thought it was the end.

But in the blink of an eye, Mu Liang woke up to find himself lying in a wasteland-like apocalyptic world, his whole body paralyzed with pain and unable to move.

Luckily, heaven never seals off all exits. A girl disguised as a boy rescued him and secretly dragged him back to the camp and hid him.

Mu Liang sighed helplessly, "However, maybe I'm really about to start a survival in the wilderness."

As a stowaway, if he was discovered by residents of the camp, he had to start leaving immediately.

According to Mino, if any stowaways were caught, the critically injured ones would be beaten to death, and the rest are generally worked to death.

Either way, it was not the result that he wanted.

Mino was the woman who disguised herself as a man, who passed by and saved Mu Liang, and she's also the one who hid him in her own home.

"Click~~"

A very faint cracking sound of a twig breaking was heard.

Mu Liang came back to his senses and immediately looked out vigilantly through the gap of the wooden shed.

A thin, dirty-faced figure was approaching the shack with a shrunken head.

Mu Liang's tense body relaxed, this sneaky figure was Mino.

Shhh...

The creaky wooden door was carefully pushed open.

In the next second, the wooden door was closed instantly.

"Ah...what are you doing by hiding by the door without saying a word?"

As soon as Mino closed the door, she turned her head to see Mu Liang in front of her, and her heart skipped a beat with fright.

"How's your harvest?"

Mu Liang took a step back and sat down leaning on the doorway.

"Mu Liang, you're really amazing. The trap you taught me is very useful."

Mino said excitedly.

She continued, "I caught many more lizards today than I ever did before."

"How many are there?" Mu Liang asked with a chuckle.

After five days of getting along with each other, he didn't expose Mino's identity as a woman pretending to be a man.

"Hee hee...it will definitely scare you."

Mino smiled playfully, pulled out the cloth bag that was slung across her sidearm, and pulled out a small brown lizard the size of two fingers.

Then she took out seven flat little lizards and placed them neatly in front of Mu Liang.

"How many stone pressure traps did you assemble today?" Mu Liang glanced at the wound on the girl's finger.

"Didn't have much time, I just made 22 traps today."

Mino was a bit unwilling and pouted, "Tomorrow, I will definitely be able to do more than 30 traps."

"Don't arrange too much, be careful not to be discovered by others." Mu Liang reminded calmly.

"Yeah." Mino was suddenly enlightened.

She then bit her lower lip and said anxiously, "But if no more traps are set up, and taxes will be paid in three days, what about your share of taxes?"

"How short am I?" Mu Liang frowned slightly.

During these five days, he also learned about the rules of the camp. If you want to live in the camp, you have to pay taxes. It can be anything as long as it's food.

"Including the little lizards captured today, we're still about thirty little lizards short."

Mino lowered her head in a loss.

After five days together, from vigilance at the beginning, to Mu Liang using his survival equipment to trade with the girl for residence and to maintain secrecy.

It was not until last night that Mu Liang taught the girl how to set up a stone pressure trap, which made Mino feel a little dependent on him.

It also made the girl enjoy the warmth of being cared for which she hadn't felt for a long time

"Did you gather your share of taxes?" he asked casually

It was not difficult for him to pay the taxes. As long as he recovers well, small lizards aren't what he's going to catch.

Mino was not in high spirits and muttered in a low voice, "I've already handed over thirty-five little lizards before. Only need five more."

"Don't worry, I'll leave if my tax is not enough." Mu Liang comforted her.

"Huh? Are you leaving?"

Mino suddenly raised her head and looked at Mu Liang in astonishment, but didn't know how to get him to stay.

"Yes, I'm almost recovered." Mu Liang clenched his fists.

"Isn't there still three days left? I'll surely be able to collect your share of taxes." Mino said in a panic.

Without waiting for his reply, she hurriedly teared up the rubble pile in the corner of the wooden shed and took out a wooden box from it.

"I still have some lizard meat jerky here. We can definitely pay your taxes if we take some of it."

Mino opened the wooden box and took out eight sun-dried lizards from it.

"Put it away, this is your emergency food reserve." Mu Liang's eyes narrowed slightly, and his heart was a little moved.

He reminded her in a deep voice, "Don't forget that I'm a grown man. The tax I pay is different from yours."

"I..." Mino trembled and said unwillingly, "There must be other ways."

How could the young girl forget that adult taxes are different? She just wanted to keep Mu Liang, and then secretly set up more stone traps to collect fifty little lizards.

"Have you forgotten what you said on the first day we met?"

Mu Liang raised his head slightly and looked at the girl calmly.

On the first day Mino rescued him, thinking that Mu Liang was dead, she started rummaging through his body.

Unexpectedly, Mu Liang suddenly made a sound, and Mino was extremely frightened.

Nevertheless, the girl was still too tender and was fooled by Mu Liang's words.

In exchange for the girl's help, he used the military knife and water bottle that he carried with him.

That's the day when Mino said, This is just a deal, you should leave immediately as soon as you feel better.

"I..." Mino flushed, trying to say something in a panic, but didn't know how to explain it.

She turned around without saying a word and pulled out a camouflage backpack from under the wooden bed.

The girl hurriedly carried the backpack and gently placed it in front of Mu Liang.

"I didn't move anything. It's all inside."

Mino pursed her lips and pleaded timidly, "I'll return it to you, will you stay here?"

"Why do you want me to stay?"

Mu Liang didn't even glance at the backpack, and asked doubtfully, "We have only known each other for five days. Aren't you afraid that I am a bad guy?"

He reminded the girl that he wasn't trying to get his things back but simply wanted to know why the girl suddenly changed.

"I, I...I don't know." Mino lowered her head and grabbed the hem of her clothes with her small hands.

Anyhow, she felt very uncomfortable when she heard that Mu Liang was leaving.

This was how she felt when her sister had to leave four years ago in order to pay her taxes.

A very confused girl who wanted to hold on to whatever she had felt.

Mino was too young to have a choice then, but now she didn't want to experience the loneliness and helplessness of when her sister left.

"Wait, I have one more thing, it should be enough to pay the taxes."

Biting her lower lip, Mino recalled something.

The young girl seemed to have recalled something important, turned around in the wooden shed, and finally hurriedly crawled under the wooden bed.

"I found it, it's still alive."

After a while, the girl uttered joyous cheers.

"What is it?" Mu Liang poked his head out and asked.

Mino crawled out of the wooden bed, holding a slapped tortoise with both hands, and presenting it to Mu Liang.

"A tortoise?" Mu Liang said in surprise, he reached out his hand and held the tortoise that looked a bit like a turtle.

At this moment, a voice resounded in his mind:

"Ding! A tameable creature detected, binding to the trainer system..."