Lin Feng narrowed his eyes.
He wondered if he should just break in.
To complete the mission, he definitely needed to gather basic intelligence about the current world.
To get a higher score, interacting with the natives was crucial.
However, if he used force, would the dozens of residents in this village rush out?
Lin Feng was hesitant to test if this small village still had any sense of unity.
What if... he used some food to lure them out?
In this post-apocalyptic world, food and clean water were hard currency. No one would refuse them, no matter how dangerous it was.
But with snow everywhere, they probably didn't lack water!
Just as Lin Feng was considering whether to take out a piece of chocolate, the door of a relatively large house not far from them suddenly opened.
*Creak~*
The old wooden door, long unrepaired, let out a grating sound, immediately drawing the attention of Lin Feng and Ophelia.
The door slowly opened, revealing a face wearing a hat.
An old face, wrinkled like an orange peel, wore a forced smile.
Wearing a patched-up, worn-out cotton coat, the newcomer was a gaunt old man.
A gaunt old man.
"Outsiders? Want to come in and sit for a while?"
The old man invited them in, seeming very hospitable.
A cold wind blew, and the old man couldn't help but shiver, making a gesture to pull the half-open door back in.
Lin Feng narrowed his eyes, his mind racing.
But soon, a smile appeared on Lin Feng's face beneath his mask.
"Then we'll be intruding, elder!"
Lin Feng pulled Ophelia towards the house.
He could vaguely see a dim space behind the door.
It seemed well-sealed.
Upon entering, the light brightened slightly but remained dim.
However, compared to the outside, the room was well-sealed, so no cold wind rushed in.
Ophelia removed her mask, wanting to breathe in some fresh air, but her small nose quickly wrinkled.
There was a musty smell in the room, mixed with an unpleasant sour and rotten odor, like that of many animals having died together and then fermented.
"Sit down, please sit down, two outsiders!"
The old man, hunched over, gestured to the few chairs in the room.
In the dim light, Lin Feng could also see the old man's face clearly.
It was like a twisted old orange peel, with some inexplicable spots.
His expression was stiffly amiable, as if it were feigned.
However, Lin Feng found no sign of vigilance on the old man's face...
"Where are you two from?"
The old man chatted idly, adding a log to the fireplace.
A pot of boiling water sat on the stove.
"We..." Ophelia wrinkled her small nose, enduring the unpleasant smell as she was about to answer, but Lin Feng stopped her with a hand.
"Elder, it's inconvenient to disclose our origins. We are here only to ask some questions."
"Of course, I will offer appropriate compensation!" Lin Feng said, taking out a piece of chocolate.
Ophelia's personal terminal was unusable, and she had lost her ability to retrieve items from storage.
However, under the cover of his symbiotic organism, Lin Feng could retrieve items from his own created personal space.
Of course, all of this needed to be done discreetly, and he couldn't exhibit strength beyond that of a normal person.
Don't forget, someone was watching.
Using his coat to block the view, Lin Feng pretended to take the chocolate from his pocket.
"Do you recognize this? Chocolate!" Lin Feng dangled the chocolate in front of the old man's eyes.
The fleeting glint in the old man's eyes did not escape Lin Feng's observation.
"Yes, yes! Chocolate!" The old man's face showed a nostalgic expression.
"The last time I ate it was when I was very young. I only remember it being sweet and bitter. That taste, I'll never forget!"
The old man sighed, then suddenly stood up.
"The water is boiling. Let me pour you some."
"Ask whatever you want to ask. I've lived here my whole life, so I know most things!"
The old man, from somewhere, produced two bamboo teacups, put some dried grass that looked like tea leaves into them.
Then, he went to the fireplace and poured the hot water in.
At the same time, he silently hid a dark object by the fireplace into his sleeve.
After this small action, the old man silently observed the "guests" from the corner of his eye.
The man was looking down, waiting silently.
The little girl, however, was curiously observing the room's decorations. No one noticed him.
The old man brought back two cups of water.
Ophelia said thank you and took one.
The tea in the cup was relatively clear, but as one got closer, an indescribable smell could be detected.
It wasn't unpleasant, but it was definitely not pleasant.
Ophelia's nose twitched, and she didn't really want to drink it.
The old man noticed and chuckled, "Drink it, drink it."
"I've added some 'Ma Fu Ma Cao' to it. It can resist the erosion of radiation!"
Ophelia looked troubled. Her desire to not drink it wavered.
On her personal terminal, the erosion value was around 10%.
This represented the damage caused by the radiation she had received.
If the erosion value reached over 50%, it would cause irreversible mutation.
Of course, Lin Feng already knew this.
"Alright... alright... Thank you, elder!"
Ophelia didn't have a symbiotic organism like Lin Feng. So far, Lin Feng's erosion value was still 0%.
Since this tea could inhibit erosion, Ophelia felt it was acceptable to drink it.
Enduring the smell, Ophelia pinched her nose, preparing to drink it in one gulp.
Beside her, Lin Feng suddenly reached out and covered the rim of the cup.
Ophelia looked at Lin Feng in confusion.
Lin Feng gave her a look, but Ophelia still didn't understand...
He was helpless. Lin Feng was helpless.
How stupid could this girl be! In this post-apocalyptic wasteland, how could she dare to drink whatever people offered? And this thing obviously looked suspicious.
How had she survived in such a fiercely competitive black market? Lin Feng couldn't understand.
Seeing Lin Feng stop Ophelia from drinking, the old man's face darkened slightly.
"What's wrong, outsider? Are you looking down on this old man's water?"
The old man seemed angered by Lin Feng's "impolite" action.
"Elder, you drink it first!"
Lin Feng narrowed his eyes and smiled, pushing the cup back to the old man.
The old man puffed out his chest and huffed angrily.
"Ungrateful wretch!"
"If that's the case, you should leave now. This old man doesn't want to answer your questions!"
As he spoke, the old man silently moved a little closer to Lin Feng and Ophelia.
But everything appeared completely reasonable, like an angered host trying to drive away ungrateful guests.