Evolution Begins with Elemental Domination

The power outage during the day was naturally more noticeable on the commercial street than at the tent campsite.

The supermarket in front of him was called the Bonfire General Store.

Amidst the artsy decor sat a portly owner with a greasy face. Seeing a customer enter, he quickly said, "The power and internet are suddenly out. You’ll have to wait until the generator arrives."

In this situation, the checkout system and wireless payment scans were useless.

As the owner spoke, he started walking toward the door, clearly not intending to do business. His attention was completely captivated by the sounds of panic outside.

"I’m paying with cash."

Su Chen grabbed a shopping cart by the door and walked in, his tone leaving no room for argument, determined to make this purchase.

Very few people who ran a business had the guts to refuse legal tender.

The owner watched the young man brush past him. He was tall and well-built, with broad, solid shoulders. The owner, though annoyed, ultimately swallowed whatever he was about to say.

The moment he entered, Su Chen heaved three cases of drinking water into his cart.

They were 24-packs of 500ml mineral water, priced at 55 yuan per case.

The prices were on par with what you’d find at a campsite or a tourist spot; a single case of water cost at least fifty percent more than usual.

He didn’t quibble over the price, instead beginning to carefully select food from the shelves.

’Priority goes to things with a long shelf life, high protein, and easy storage.’

Canned goods were a pretty good answer.

He bought several cans each of authentic douchi fish, braised beef, and luncheon meat.

Next, vegetables.

After all, a balanced diet of meat and vegetables was important for good nutrition.

The store didn’t sell dehydrated vegetables, but thankfully, his RV had a refrigerator. Su Chen picked out potatoes, which stored well, along with tomatoes and napa cabbage that would keep in the cold.

Finally, he grabbed a small bag of rice, a packet of salt, two packets of sugar, and several Snickers bars for a quick energy boost.

He wanted to buy more salt and sugar; the latter, in particular, was an absolute strategic resource, a true hard currency in an apocalypse.

However, these branded goods, marketed as "artisanal salt" and "organic cane sugar," were quite expensive.

With limited cash, he had to make some choices.

Su Chen sighed internally. ’This is all I can get.’

The Bonfire General Store sold a wide variety of items. Besides food and drinks, there was also camping gear like sleeping bags, tents, cooking utensils, and camping lights. They even had some daily necessities, emergency medicine, and drones.

Fortunately, he always kept a medical kit in his RV, so he didn’t need to buy any more medical supplies.

This allowed him to spend all his money on food and water.

He had also wanted to stock up on some vitamin tablets.

But there were none of the cheap, state-approved OTC vitamins that cost a few yuan. All they had were the hundred-yuan-plus health-supplement vitamins, which were a total ripoff.

"Thirty-two!"

"Fifteen."

"..."

At the checkout counter, the owner was manually tallying the bill, punching numbers into a Casio calculator with his right hand. The clamor from outside distracted him, his eyes darting toward the door from time to time. At one point, Su Chen had to point out that he’d rung up an item twice.

"The total is 563 yuan."

When the owner finished calculating, he found that the man had already placed the cash on the counter. He picked it up and counted it carefully. Including three coins, it was the exact amount.

Just then, a few more people trickled in from outside, and three of them headed straight for the counter.

One of them was a man with black-framed glasses. He had a gentle, scholarly look, his expression conveying a mild graciousness.

He looked at the pile of food on the counter, a thoughtful expression on his face. Generally speaking, it was rather unusual for someone to buy such a large quantity of canned goods at a campsite. The act was no less bizarre than inviting a group of friends to eat instant noodles inside a KFC.

It was both illogical and a little strange.

Even the aloof beauty behind him, who was carrying what looked like an instrument case on her back, couldn’t help but take a second look.

And that was the point...

Yan Ziqian’s gaze lingered briefly on the tall young man before turning to the owner. "Sir," he said, "we’re having a class reunion and team-building event and urgently need to purchase some supplies. We can pay you back after the power is restored. Could we leave a phone as collateral for now?"

With that, he took a foldable phone out of his pocket.

Su Chen sighed to himself. ’If the situation continues to deteriorate, this guy is basically trying to get something for nothing. High-end electronics will soon be worthless, while cheap supplies will become priceless.’

And as the man took out his phone, Su Chen also noticed the thick calluses on three fingers of his right hand.

The portly owner didn’t realize the gravity of the situation. Being a mercenary businessman, he wanted to secure this large sale, especially since his wasn’t the only supermarket nearby.

He pondered for a moment, then grinned. "Leave the foldable phone, and I’ll need your ID card as collateral too."

It was none of his business. Having paid, Su Chen immediately walked out of the Bonfire General Store.

...

The clamor outside continued.

Beyond the sound of the Wind, the public camping area across the way was in a state of panic.

After loading all the supplies into his vehicle, Su Chen began to observe the changes in his surroundings.

The vast, neatly trimmed lawn had started to grow uncontrollably in the wind, now resembling a messy patch of weeds.

Beneath the large hexagonal canopy tents, on top of the overgrown weeds, several barbecue grills that had been in use moments ago suddenly erupted with surging flames. Flying sparks and charcoal sent screams echoing across a section of the campsite.

But the most severe incident was at the all-you-can-eat barbecue restaurant at the end of the commercial street. The restaurant’s large grill had completely exploded, causing thick smoke to pour from the shop’s doors and windows. Even now, a few figures could be seen stumbling out of the choking fumes.

"Surging water, rampant vegetation, howling Wind, and raging Fire."

Su Chen summarized the strange phenomena he had observed so far.

Ever since Dongfu City had connected with an unknown, mysterious world, mysterious elemental factors—perhaps flowing in a way similar to high and low pressure systems—had permeated the air, causing the surrounding environment to change.

After reaching a sort of dynamic equilibrium in a short time, the phenomena gradually stabilized. The waves of grass stopped their frantic growth, and the howling Wind died down to a low murmur.

"Look!"

Someone shouted urgently.

Following the person’s gaze, many people saw the clouds and mist in the distance gradually dissipating, revealing a wild, primeval forest landscape below.

"Did I eat some bad mushrooms?"

An older man rubbed his eyes, finding it hard to believe what he was seeing.

"Are you crazy? Is this still the outskirts of Dongfu City? You could tell me they moved the Amazon Rainforest here and I’d believe you."

The series of bizarre events was driving people mad. With the power and internet down and all contact with the outside world lost, some panicked parents immediately scooped up their children and sprinted toward the parking lot.

A few of the younger people, however, were unburdened by such worries. Their faces full of excitement, they operated controllers with built-in screens, sending their drones deep into the unknown forest in the distance.

"There’s a ball of light falling from the sky!"

Just then, a couple made a new discovery.

The falling object was a small ball of light. It seemed weightless, its descent slow as it neared the ground.

"What the heck is that?" the woman shouted in confusion.

Her boyfriend shook his head. He stared up at it for a moment and could only say that it looked a bit like a hailstone. Worried, he couldn’t help but grab his girlfriend’s arm.

"Maybe it’s waste falling from an airplane."

Su Chen said coolly as he walked over.

"Ah!"

His remark reminded the young couple of a famous story about a "divine gift from heaven" that fell from the sky. A villager, convinced the object could grant longevity and cure all diseases, actually started mixing a few bites of it into his meals every day.

"Forget it, let’s just go with the crowd."

The girlfriend, feeling her stomach turn, lost all curiosity and turned to leave.

In contrast to them, Su Chen walked over at an unhurried pace.

Then, he raised his left hand high and, with perfect accuracy, snatched the drifting "ball of light" out of the air.

’Not bad luck.’

Both its texture and feel were extremely similar to the Water Element essence from before, and its surface was likewise covered in complex, script-like patterns.

The difference was that this "ball of light" was spherical, surrounded by a halo like an incandescent light bulb, and emitted a gentle glow.

’This must be the Light Element!’

Su Chen felt he couldn’t be mistaken. He also noticed that the jade pendant he wore around his neck was inexplicably growing warm.

In exactly the same manner, the ball of light in his grasp melted into his left hand.

Accompanied by a faint, prickly itching sensation, another incandescent white, shimmering brand appeared on his palm, intertwining with the original water-blue pattern.

’It’s missing a corner.’

Su Chen couldn’t decipher the meaning of the mysterious Rune. It looked like a character, but not quite; like a drawing, but not quite.

But it was clear to the naked eye that this set of mysterious symbols seemed to be arranged in a triangular formation, yet it was missing a piece in the crucial bottom-right corner.

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