184 gene fruit
After impressing Monica with his base, David looked at her astonished expression and gave a faint smile. He had always regarded Monica highly. After all, during the initial outbreak of the apocalypse, only a few people awakened as espers. The majority of the remaining population hid in their homes, praying that the zombies wouldn’t come knocking, even deluding themselves into thinking it was all just a dream. But when they finally realized it was an unprecedented human catastrophe, they fell into utter despair. Only a few daring individuals ventured out to scavenge for food and supplies, and most people starved to death in their homes out of fear.
Although Monica had her own team and successfully awakened her ability, she was among the first group of people to encounter the zombie outbreak. David never expected that such a seemingly fragile woman could survive the endless slaughter and rely on her own abilities to reach where she was today. This was, in fact, the ultimate law of the apocalypse: the adaptors would eventually prevail, while the weak would perish.
At this moment, Monica squatted on the ground and pointed to a melon being watered with drip irrigation. She asked, “Is this the genetically modified melon you mentioned?”
David had roughly introduced the different fruits and vegetables in the greenhouse to Monica earlier. Of course, he didn’t mention his own system and instead attributed it all to special genetic modifications.
David nodded and said, “That’s right, it’s a gene fruit. Not only does it taste good, but it also enhances human stamina, improves genetic makeup, and can even help espers level up.”
David walked over, bent down, picked a melon, and placed it in Monica’s hand. Looking at this gene fruit, which appeared no different from a regular melon, Monica couldn’t help but feel confused. How could such an ordinary-looking fruit be so powerful?
Monica examined the gene fruit in her hand and asked again, “How do you eat this? Do I just take a bite?”
Although Monica looked puzzled, upon hearing David say that this fruit could enhance human stamina and even assist in leveling up, she immediately placed it near her mouth, ready to take a bite. With the deteriorating situation in the apocalypse, she had long realized the importance of strength.
Seeing Monica so eager, David quickly said, “If you don’t want to be poisoned and die, you better hold on.”
Upon hearing David’s warning, Monica quickly moved the gene fruit away from her mouth. She looked at David with even more confusion, thinking that this guy was definitely messing with her.
David chuckled, turned around, and took out a bottle of transparent liquid. Taking the gene fruit from Monica’s hand, he poured the liquid over it, then handed it back to her, saying, “Now you can eat it safely.” 𝙚𝙙𝙣𝒐𝙫𝙚𝙡.𝙤𝙧𝒈
Knowing the preciousness of resources in the apocalypse, when constructing the greenhouse, David had intentionally added toxicity to the fruits and vegetables grown with the help of the system. Only after being washed with the transparent liquid in his hand could the toxins be completely eliminated. Otherwise, anyone who ate the gene fruit without being cleansed would be fatally poisoned within a minute.
David didn’t want others to take advantage of the things he had painstakingly grown during the apocalypse. As Monica looked at the gene fruit David had washed, she glanced up at him, then hesitantly took a bite. “Crunch!” The crisp sound echoed through the greenhouse as the juicy and tender gene fruit instantly enveloped her taste buds with its sweetness.
“This gene fruit is so delicious!” Monica’s eyes brightened, and she excitedly exclaimed. Since the apocalypse began, this was the first time she had tasted such a delicious fruit. She was instantly surrounded by a sense of overwhelming happiness.
“Don’t just stand there, start moving. That way, the gene fruit can penetrate your organs more quickly, and its effects will be maximized,” David instructed. He also picked a fruit, washed it with the liquid, and began eating it without hesitation.
Then David took off his shirt and started jogging in the greenhouse. Seeing David’s muscular physique, Monica’s fair cheeks turned rosy. Since David had started exercising, she felt it wouldn’t be appropriate to just stand there. So she followed behind David and started jogging as well. After about thirty minutes…
“Feels great!” David stopped and exclaimed joyfully. At the same time, he felt a pleasant surge of energy flowing through his body. The sweat dripping from his body emitted a faint white vapor.
David then drew a alloy dagger from his waist and demonstrated a swift and sharp knife technique in front of Monica. Whether it was the speed of his attacks or his agility in dodging, they were all faster than before consuming the gene fruit. Even his stamina seemed to be replenishing, despite having just run around the greenhouse for half an hour.
Observing David’s energetic state, Monica also began to feel the changes within herself. Indeed, after consuming the gene fruit, she could clearly sense the flow of power in her body. She then drew her own dagger and displayed a simple knife technique in front of David.
“Whoosh!” The dagger sliced through the air, producing a series of sounds, although Monica’s movements were imbued with a feminine grace unlike David’s.
“Not bad, it seems you have fully absorbed the gene fruit,” David nodded approvingly.
A hint of excitement appeared on Monica’s face as she incredulously examined her own body. She never expected that a simple fruit could bring her such pleasant surprises. If she were to consume one every day, wouldn’t her strength become extraordinary? After hesitating for a moment, she looked up at David and asked, “Do you sell gene fruits? I’d like to buy some.”
David had already anticipated Monica’s question and smiled, nodding in agreement. “Considering that we are old acquaintances, I can sell you some. However, the price…”
“The price is negotiable. Such a good thing is worth any amount of money,” Monica quickly interjected.
David nodded and, after some contemplation, held up five fingers.
“Five crystals for one gene fruit?” Monica asked. She found the price acceptable, but David shook his head.
“One gene fruit for five advanced crystals. Five advanced crystals,” David quoted a price that immediately shocked Monica.
“Do you think it’s too expensive? I may not sell it to others. Besides, this is already a discounted price for you,” David said with a smile, gesturing toward the hundreds of gene fruits in the greenhouse. In his view, although the price of five advanced crystals was somewhat high, no one else had these fruits but him. Naturally, he wanted to make a profit from this opportunity. He chuckled again at Monica’s astonished expression.