The yellow-level hook looked dark and gloomy. It was made from the front leg of a yellow-level insect, not only capable of hooking things but also serving as a weapon.

"Hmm? How do I shoot this thing?"

After some thought, Lucas used a red-level blank blueprint to draw an electric crane, the kind that could automatically reel in the rope.

Fortunately, he had five bodies of red-level insects, so he had enough materials.

With the yellow-level hook, red-level rope, and the crane, he had the necessary tools.

Lucas dragged the hook to the shore and forcefully threw it at the head of the giant infected catfish.

Splat—

Lucas had good aim and luck. The hook hit the target right on and lodged itself into one of the bullet holes on the catfish's head.

The crane was connected to the generator and started working, exerting force on the rope instantly.

With creaking sounds, the giant infected catfish was quickly pulled to the shore, gradually being hoisted up by the rope.

Luckily, the head of the giant infected catfish was tough, or else it wouldn't have been so easy to lift it up.

However, the giant infected catfish was incredibly heavy, and the crane started smoking before it was finally lifted onto the shore.

After closing the crane, Lucas stood by the massive corpse of the giant infected catfish, taking out his recurve knife.

At this moment, Lucas felt how small he was in comparison.

With a splash—

The blood of the giant infected catfish poured down on Lucas like a waterfall, almost crushing him under its colorful innards.

As for the risk of being infected, Lucas had long stopped worrying. He had stored several doses of the anti-infection medicine obtained from the system, and his skin was highly immune to the risk of infection.

At this point, Lucas was already prepared to search for crystal cores within the flesh of the catfish.

Following the catfish's innards, Lucas climbed up and began cutting and searching for something resembling a crystal core.

It took a full twenty minutes before Lucas's hand touched something hard. After a frenzy of cutting, a crystal core larger than Lucas's head was dug out.

This crystal core looked similar to the insect crystal cores, but it was many times larger, emitting a faint yellow light.

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The giant catfish was indeed a yellow-level infected organism, which slightly disappointed Lucas.

"How many capsules can this crystal core be exchanged for?"

After emerging from the catfish's belly and wiping off the substances on his face, Lucas asked the system.

【One yellow-level capsule.】

"Just one yellow-level capsule for something this big!"

Lucas became frustrated and, if the system were tangible, he would have wanted to punch it right now.

"What about the catfish carcass? Can it only be exchanged for a blank blueprint?"

Despite his anger, Lucas still restrained himself and asked another question.

The cost of obtaining this thing was so high that if the exchange conditions were the same as the insects, Lucas swore he would never deal with any infected organisms in the water again. It was simply not worth the effort.

【Four yellow-level blank blueprints.】

The system didn't care whether Lucas was angry or not, maintaining its usual indifferent tone.

"Four blueprints?"

Lucas felt like he might have misheard; he was quite surprised.

"Is it the size that determines the number of blank blueprints exchanged? How many can the smaller ones in the water be exchanged for?"

【One to two blueprints.】

"Exchange! Exchange for blueprints!"

As soon as the system finished speaking, Lucas shouted in excitement. His anger had dissipated, and his emotions became instantly elated.

【Congratulations, host, for obtaining four yellow-level blank blueprints.】

In an instant, Lucas had four additional yellow-level blank blueprints.

Lucas didn't rest and quickly repaired the crane, starting to frantically pull the infected catfish out of the water.

One yellow-level capsule.

Two capsules.

Three capsules.

...

After nearly half a day, Lucas harvested thirty-one yellow-level capsules.

He took a shower on the bus and made a bold decision.

He wanted to try eating the catfish because there was so much meat, and it looked tempting.

Lucas cooked a pot of catfish.

This was Lucas's first time trying the meat of an infected organism.

The meat didn't smell good, but it was incredibly tender and had a great texture.

Anyway, if he felt something was wrong, Lucas would immediately take an anti-infection pill, so there was hardly any risk.

After eating his fill, Lucas sat in his seat, nothing unusual happening, feeling a bit dazed.

Because he had exchanged thirty yellow-level catfish crystal cores for three orange-level capsules, three yellow-level capsules, and five red-level capsules.

Then, after exchanging sixty yellow-level blank blueprints for six orange-level blueprints, he had nine yellow-level blank blueprints and four yellow-level blueprints left.

If you were to ask Lucas about his current mood, he actually wanted to shout out loud.

"I'm the lucky one!"

After calming down, he began a big lottery.

The purpose of this trip was only halfway completed before reaching the destination, and the remaining task was to gather information about the post-apocalyptic world.

Instead of immediately opening the orange and yellow capsules, Lucas used the bodies of red-level insects as materials to enhance the reception of the bus with an electromagnetic amplifier.

Zzz...

Lucas turned on the bus's radio function and started searching for radio waves within a 500-kilometer radius.

Zzz...

Finally, the radio emitted a sound.

"This is Annan Sanctuary City, this is Annan Sanctuary City. Welcome superhumans to settle down here. Excellent treatment awaits."

When the radio mentioned superhumans, it naturally referred to evolved individuals.

In the early stages of the apocalypse, various names for the phenomena in the apocalypse had not yet been standardized, and human alliances had not been formed.

Lucas knew about Annan, which was about 400 kilometers away from Blue Sky Lake. Before the apocalypse, it was an inconspicuous small city.

"It seems that the sanctuary cities have started to be established. I wonder if the sanctuary city in the coastal city has been established."

Thinking about the sanctuary city in the coastal city, Lucas felt a bit strange because in his previous life, the coastal city, which was famous in the apocalypse, was the city of Cobras, which was currently under construction in the Blue Sky Lake Resort.

He didn't know what the sanctuary city in the coastal city would be like without Cobras.

Anyway, many things had already escaped Lucas's memory, but he didn't feel anything amiss.

From the current situation, it seemed that only one place within a 500-kilometer radius had established a sanctuary city.

After thinking it over, Lucas changed his destination and decided to go to Annan Sanctuary City to take a look.

Before that, he needed to improve his strength.

He opened the first orange-level capsule.

【Congratulations, host, for obtaining Shadow Clone.】

【Congratulations, host, agility attribute increased by 20. Agility: +20.】

【Congratulations, host, agility attribute value exceeded 100, reaching a superhuman level.】

As soon as the system finished speaking, Lucas couldn't wait and clicked on the description of "Shadow Clone."

【Shadow Clone】

The host can obtain a clone formed from their own shadow.

The clone's physical attributes synchronize with the host's body, has no independent thinking, and the appearance can be adjusted by the host. There is no time limit for usage.

The damage received by the shadow clone is halved for the host.

After reading the description, Lucas thought that the shadow clone was a good thing, but the last point seemed a bit problematic.

The clone and the host were connected, in simple terms, if the clone was killed, Lucas would endure 50% of the damage inflicted before the clone's death!