Wasteland Border Inspector

Chapter 13 Origins of Infection, Old Era, New Era!
As a modern person, one is naturally familiar with libraries.

Cheng Ye has lost count of how many days and nights he spent frantically typing away at his thesis.

Unexpectedly, upon arriving in the wasteland, I encountered a library.

Although the library is not as good as some rural primary school libraries in terms of appearance, Cheng Ye still felt a sense of familiarity and warmth welling up from the bottom of his heart after looking at it for a while.

Take a few steps forward and push open the fence gate in front of the library.

To Cheng Ye's surprise, the hinges of the gate were surprisingly smooth, which didn't match its rusty appearance. It seemed to be regularly maintained.

Behind the door, Cheng Ye saw a conspicuous wooden sign.

[Survival Library]

This library contains hundreds of books, including survival tips submitted by survivors from all over the wasteland. These are authentic and effective, and can significantly increase your chances of survival when facing infected.

[Reading is charged at 5 coins per hour (a 20-coin deposit is required upon entry; no credit is available)]

[Borrowing fees are charged based on the rarity of the books; collateral is required.]

You can submit valuable information, books, etc. If the librarian verifies their validity, a reward of varying amounts will be provided.

"5 coins per hour?"

Cheng Ye raised an eyebrow.

No wonder a group of people looked at him strangely when he got off the bus.

The reward for fixing a sewer pipe for a day is 16 coins, which isn't even enough to cover the entrance deposit here.

If you're not careful and just watch for a few hours, an ordinary resident could go bankrupt.

Even an inspector like him, earning a monthly salary of 500 dollars, wouldn't dare to immerse himself in such activities without any scruples if it weren't for the inheritance left by Jackie Chan.

"The training ground only costs 10 coins a day, but here it costs 5 coins an hour. I'm quite curious about the quality of the books inside."

Cheng Ye didn't care much about spending Happiness Coins.

Especially when it comes to paid knowledge products, if it's really as the sign says, it can guarantee that readers will have a significantly higher chance of survival when facing infected beings, then it's worth more than 50 coins, let alone 5 coins!
Follow the old tiled passageway into the library courtyard.

Upon arriving at the main gate, Cheng Ye hesitated for a moment. He first took off his raincoat, folded it, and hung it by the window. Then he carefully scraped the mud off the soles of his shoes from the steps next to him.

crunch.

Pushing open the library door, a faint musty smell mixed with the stale scent of paper hits you.

Cheng Ye peered inside cautiously.

It really is a very simple and unpretentious old-fashioned library style!

Three old-fashioned tungsten filament lamps hung from the ceiling, casting a dim, warm light.

Two rows of wooden shelves are neatly arranged, each shelf slightly dented by the yellowed books.

From there onwards, it was the study room setup that Cheng Ye was all too familiar with.

There were four large wooden tables, each looking extremely heavy, and each table was paired with two solid wood square chairs.

Since no one was around, the chandelier above the wooden table was off, making the interior somewhat dim.

"Cough cough."

A sound came from behind the door.

Following the sound, Cheng Ye noticed a table propped up behind the door, and a small bed behind the table.

A slightly hunched middle-aged Western woman nestled on the small bed, her gaze fixed on them.

Upon noticing that Cheng Ye had no water droplets on him and no mud on his shoes, the woman's gaze softened slightly.

"Please come in, guest. You are the only reader today."

"If you're short on cash, I can make the decision: it only costs 3 Happiness Coins per hour, and 10 coins can be used to read for a whole day."

The woman's face was deathly pale, and her gray hair was disheveled and scattered over her shoulders, making her look somewhat malnourished.

However, her voice was very gentle, like a spring breeze, gently lingering around her ears, creating a strong contrast with her haggard appearance.

"There's a discount?"

Cheng Ye was quite surprised, but then he immediately realized what was happening.

The high prices displayed outside are likely just a screening tactic, keeping out those who lack basic purchasing power or do not approve of the library's operating model.

Those who manage to get in here don't care about the cost of 5 coins.

The special discount creates an extra sense of surprise and anticipation for customers. In addition, the fact that you can watch for a whole day for just 10 coins makes people feel like they're missing out if they don't spend 10 coins.

"This is the deposit."

Cheng Ye touched it and took out two 10-yuan "happiness coins" from his pocket.

"Excuse me."

“Aishie Gwen, you may call me by my first name.”

"Alright, Miss G. Gwen, which book would be best for me to read if I wanted to learn about the types of infected and how to deal with them?"

“The first bookshelf is full of these kinds of books. If you’re about to face the infected and are eager to learn quickly, you can go straight to the third shelf, where there are concise practical manuals. But I suggest you take some time to read them from top to bottom to build a solid foundation.” After saying that, Gwen sat up slightly. “The second bookshelf is a travelogue of wasteland survivors. The first, fourth, and seventh books in the third shelf contain firsthand records about rare and special infected. If you are interested in special infected.”

"The third and fourth bookshelves contain some special survival manuals. Please rest assured, each one is valuable, containing the authors' understanding of the wasteland and some special survival skills. Although these skills may not be useful to your situation in the short term, once you use them, you will know what it means to be worth more than your money."

"Okay, thank you!"

Such detailed answers and advice made Cheng Ye realize that this was probably the result of him taking off his raincoat and cleaning the soles of his shoes.

It seems there is some mutual respect even in the wasteland.
Cheng Ye smiled inwardly, suddenly remembering when he was preparing for the postgraduate entrance exam, he was the only one who could eat in the library, which saved him half an hour of traveling back and forth to the cafeteria.

Half an hour every day, over time, can save you several days in six months.

why?
It's not even a perk that comes from having a good relationship with the librarian!

The same applies now. With Gwen's reminder, Cheng Ye was immediately spared the trouble of searching, checking, and organizing everything himself.

"In that case, let's start with the first row. Two days is enough time for me to quickly browse through all the books on the first bookshelf."

He pulled out the first book from the first row and glanced at the title, which turned out to be a familiar set of Chinese characters.

Origins of Infection

The content is exactly what he is currently very interested in.

Upon arriving at the reading area, Gwen had already turned on the lights. Instead of a soft, warm light, the lights were a slightly cool white, which immediately invigorated the senses.

"The choice of lighting also helps with reading. If you need tea or food, please call me."

"grateful."

Cheng Ye nodded, sat down at the large wooden table, and gently opened the book to the first page.

Some hasty handwriting and cursive characters that require concentration to decipher unexpectedly evoke a sense of mission to transcend time and space and open the pages of history.

Do you believe in fate? Do you believe in prophecies? Do you believe in the end of the world?

'I never believed in it, but reality taught me a cruel lesson, forcing me to believe in fate.'

'December 21, 2032 (Old Era) – If it weren't for the twentieth anniversary of the Mayan prophecy of the end of the world, this would have been just an ordinary day. No one would remember it, not even me, an author who enjoys writing apocalyptic novels. I only remembered it when I saw related news reports.'

'Oh? It's the Mayan prophecy of the end times!'

"Haha, twenty years have passed, how can anyone still think there will be an apocalypse? This is just a hot topic for capital speculation, like Valentine's Day on May 520th or Singles' Day on November 11th. Eventually, it will all be stored in history and forgotten by everyone."

'But, but, it still came after all!'

"This apocalypse was twenty years late. That day, at four in the afternoon, I opened the window and witnessed a scene I will never forget: an enormous, luminous object visited Earth. Its long tail almost filled the entire sky, even obscuring the sun's rays. Experts speculated that it was an extraterrestrial life form that had jumped through a wormhole. I don't know if it's true, but its brief appearance completely changed the fate of Earth, tearing away the fragile facade of civilization step by step."

Debris breaking off from the comet fell across Earth, varying in size, sparking a frenzy of human activity.

Everyone was eager to learn something from these fragments, and countries began a fierce competition, trying to find an opportunity for technological advancement.

'Haha, indeed, something has been discovered. The S-1 virus, which strikes fear into the hearts of many, has appeared!'

Using saliva and blood as its vessel, the virus spread rapidly across the globe in just three months. Those infected resembled zombies from movies, but were far more terrifying. A scratch or bite would trigger a horrific mutation within ten seconds, causing them to indiscriminately attack their own kind and rapidly expand the infected area.

Even with the resilience of human civilization, and the limitations imposed by carbon-based life forms on those infected, the S-1 virus persisted for a full four years. It wasn't until the establishment of the Human Federation, the rise of sheltered cities across the land, and the gradual formation of organized combat units to encircle the infected population that this nightmare was temporarily sealed away.

The text is accompanied by an illustration of a man with a ferocious face, leaning to one side, with cloudy white eyes, protruding gums revealing broken canine teeth, and saliva dripping from the corner of his mouth.

Zombies?

Cheng Ye's brow twitched. He wondered if it was due to the influence of movies and TV shows, but compared to those infected with bizarre abilities, he felt that zombies were actually more troublesome.

After all, being bitten can lead to infection, which means that staying in a crowded sanctuary is actually more dangerous.

Fortunately, as described in the article, these zombies did not exceed the limitations of carbon-based life forms.

They can run, but because their bones and muscles are decaying and damaged, they can't run as fast as healthy adult men.

They are not afraid of death, but this also makes them clumsy targets who can be easily trapped by human traps.

Once humans react and form combat formations, the zombie apocalypse will have arrived.

How can a mortal body withstand the barrage of heavy machine gun fire?

With incendiary bombs used to clear the ground, even a large horde of zombies would only be "dry tinder" to fuel the fire.

In the winter of 2037, during the Old Era, when the last S-1 infected person turned to ashes in the incinerator, grand celebrations were held across the planet. Survivors left their sanctuary cities, returned to the ruins, and embraced each other in tears, as if announcing the beginning of civilization's rebirth.

'I was fortunate enough to be a part of it, survived the disaster, and celebrated the end of the world with joy.'

However, the "unlimited energy" granted to zombies by the S-1 virus ultimately aroused the greed of a small group of people. They longed to find the secret to immortality and a way to bypass the limits of carbon-based life forms. In some special underground laboratories, the original virus was intercepted and studied. Under human guidance, the S-1 virus abandoned the inefficient model of widespread transmission and instead directed its evolutionary direction towards the limits of life forms.

In the spring of 2041, the S-2 virus was born by chance!

'The special S-2 virus completely lost its widespread infectivity; humans must have close contact with the source of infection for more than 48 hours to become infected. And once infected, humans finally achieved their initial goal of breaking through the genetic limits of carbon-based life.'

During this period, giant infected individuals tens of meters tall, super-fast infected individuals reaching subsonic speeds, special infected individuals capable of flight, and intelligent infected individuals capable of mind control over humans emerged. However, due to limitations in its transmission methods and the fact that the Human Federation maintained its combat capabilities, the S-2 virus was easily suppressed in just one year and four months, with all sources of infection destroyed.

'However, once and twice, it will happen again and again. Now that the growth potential of the S-2 virus has been revealed, can humanity truly resist the urge stemming from its genes?'

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(End of this chapter)