The previous owner might have made some modifications.
There was also this storage room.
And the items in the refrigerator.
Although the fruits and vegetables had rotted, perhaps seeds could be found to cultivate new crops.
No matter how much food there was, it would eventually run out.
Only by planting various crops could sustainable development be achieved.
Han Ning made up his mind, took nothing, and walked to the door, listening intently.
Outside the corridor, only the sound of rain remained, with no signs of any living creatures.
He gently opened the door, quickly descended the stairs, and returned to the seventh floor.
Back at the familiar door of Unit 703, Han Ning opened it and searched for containers to carry things.
He then packed some of his own supplies, frequently used tools, a few changes of clothes, pillowcases and bedding that carried his masculine scent, and other essentials into the containers.
Without pausing to catch his breath, he decisively went out again.
Time was life—he had to transfer as many supplies as possible to the new residence before being discovered by others or encountering monsters.
Though his belongings weren't many, the miscellaneous items couldn't be moved in one trip.
Newly planted crops, for instance, were heavy.
He prioritized moving the most important items.
On his second trip, just as he was dragging the last of the supplies and carefully making his way to the stairwell—
Suddenly.
Tap… tap… tap…
An extremely faint sound came from downstairs.
"Footsteps?!"
"And not just one—they're light but moving upstairs quickly."
Han Ning listened closely, his expression instantly turning grave.
The direction… was straight toward the eighth floor where he stood.
At the same time, the beings below seemed to have noticed Han Ning's sudden halt in movement, as their footsteps grew more rapid.
Han Ning retracted the vines wrapped around the supplies, his gaze fixed on the lower stairwell.
If they were humans, in terms of sheer combat ability, they weren't that terrifying.
The footsteps grew louder and clearer.
Tap tap tap, tap tap tap!
They were fast—and made no attempt to conceal themselves.
There was a sense of… urgency and greed in their movements.
The next second.
Five figures abruptly emerged from the sixth floor, coming face-to-face with Han Ning, who was about to ascend.
Leading them was a lean, muscular young man with a crew cut.
In his hand was a steel pipe wrapped in cloth, its tip sharpened to a point.
Their eyes locked onto the storage boxes behind Han Ning, filled with hunger.
The crew-cut man raised the steel pipe and pointed it at Han Ning. "Drop the stuff and scram!"
Before the words fully left his mouth, two men behind him, unable to hold back any longer, lunged toward Han Ning like unleashed wild dogs, saying nothing.
"Looking to die!"
Seeing their bandit-like demeanor.
Han Ning's fury surged violently.
Days of life-and-death struggles and the anxiety of dwindling supplies ignited within him at this moment.
Whoosh! Whoosh!
Sharp whistling sounds tore through the stagnant air of the corridor.
Ten vines, their surfaces covered in dense, jagged wooden thorns, erupted from the gaps in the floor, the corners of the walls, and even the shadows of the ceiling beside Han Ning.
The two men charging at the front only saw a blur of green before—whack!—an immense force slammed into their chests and arms.
"Argh!"
"My hand!"
The dull thud and the piercing scream rang out almost simultaneously.
The man reaching for the rice bag had his wrist precisely struck by a vine. The crisp sound of bone fracture was clearly audible as he was sent tumbling backward with a scream, crashing heavily into the stagnant water.
His skin was pierced by over a dozen wooden splinters—it looked excruciatingly painful.
The other guy fared even worse. Two vines lashed out—one struck his outstretched arm while the other swept viciously across his calf, sending him tumbling down the stairs.
The remaining two, who had been half a beat slower in charging forward, were utterly terrified by the sudden, brutal assault. They skidded to a halt, their faces pale with fear.
They stared in horror at the ten vine-like appendages writhing like living creatures around Han Ning.
"An Awakened?!"
Crew Cut Man's facial muscles twitched violently. Unnoticed, he had already taken several steps back.
His expression shifted as if by magic, instantly replaced with an almost ingratiating smile.
"Misunderstanding! A huge misunderstanding!"
Crew Cut Man hastily dropped the steel pipe with a clang, raising his hands in surrender as he loudly explained,
"Brother, we're on the same side! This was all just a terrible mistake."
He cautiously inched half a step forward, but upon glimpsing the ten dark green vines slowly undulating before Han Ning, he immediately froze.
Seeing no sign of Han Ning attacking, Crew Cut Man continued:
"To be honest with you, our boss is also an Awakened. Right now, he's actively seeking out people like you."
Han Ning frowned and asked, "Your boss? Is he in this building too?"
"Yeah, we usually operate between the fourth and fifth floors."
Crew Cut Man nodded,
"It's damn hard to survive alone in this hellhole."
"Our boss says the only way to make it is by sticking together—uniting everyone as one."
"Brother, with your skills, if you joined us, you'd definitely be second-in-command. You'd have access to all kinds of supplies, women—anything you want."
"So, what do you say? Want to think about it?"
Crew Cut Man completely ignored the agonized cries of his subordinates behind him, straining to sound sincere.
Han Ning's face remained expressionless, though inwardly, he sneered.
The way these men had lunged at the supplies like rabid dogs was still fresh in his mind. Now, suddenly, they were "on the same side."
More likely, they were eyeing the supplies he'd just found and his abilities as an Awakened, hoping to recruit him as either a thug or cannon fodder.
"Not interested." Han Ning's voice was utterly flat as he rejected the offer outright.
Crew Cut Man's smile stiffened momentarily before quickly recovering.
Rubbing his hands together, he forced a dry chuckle:
"Understood, understood. After our earlier... misunderstanding, it's natural you'd have reservations."
"No rush—take your time to think it over."
As he spoke, he gestured for the other three to help the two injured men off the floor.
"We're in Room 402 on the fourth floor. If you change your mind or need anything, just come find us anytime."
Han Ning simply watched them coldly, saying nothing.
"Well, we'll get going then."
Under Han Ning's icy gaze, Crew Cut Man felt a chill down his spine and dared not linger. He hastily signaled his companions, and they hurried away.
The chaotic footsteps quickly faded, disappearing into the darkness of the stairwell.
Soon, only the ceaseless sound of rain remained in the corridor.
Han Ning swiftly turned around, flung out the vines, and wrapped them around the storage box containing various tools and food before continuing his way up to the 8th floor.
Back inside the apartment,
Han Ning carried the last load of supplies into the entryway of Unit 803 and locked the security door behind him.
Only after finishing these tasks did he have time to carefully inspect the specific supplies in the storage room.
After a quick tally, he found that the storage room of this apartment contained:
Four hefty vacuum-sealed bags of rice, ten unopened cases of bottled water, as well as some compressed biscuits, canned goods, dried provisions, noodles, self-heating rice… and a few bags of vegetable and fruit seeds salvaged from the fridge that hadn't completely rotted yet.