SWDnovel Chapter 1 Medicine
Chapter 1 Medicine
Xu Mo leaned against a peeling wall, feeling like a piece of charcoal thrown into a furnace.
His head was throbbing, and his body alternated between chills and burning fever; every breath felt like a fire in his throat. Xu Mo touched his burning forehead, his mind filled with only one frantic thought: he had to find fever reducers.
I've been transported to this damned apocalypse for six days now.
Without warning, Xu Mo woke up to find himself transformed from an ordinary office worker into the only living person in this deserted town—if you ignore the stiff "things" wandering the streets.
"Zombies..."
Almost at first glance, Xu Mo understood his situation: he had transmigrated to the apocalypse.
For the past few days, Xu Mo had barely survived thanks to his caution and limited survival knowledge. But bad luck eventually struck; starting last night, a high fever, like an invisible flame, slowly devoured his strength and sanity.
In this hellish place where medical care is scarce and danger lurks everywhere, a high fever is the most direct death notice.
"We can't delay any longer..." Xu Mo licked his chapped lips and whispered hoarsely.
He splashed the last bit of cool water on his forehead, trying to rouse his drowsy consciousness. Then, Xu Mo focused all his attention on the countdown in his mind.
【00:00:03…02…01…00】
Time is up!
Since time travel has already happened, it seems only natural that he would have a system. Unfortunately, there is no system, only a timer that accompanies Xu Mo and resets every 48 hours.
When it was triggered for the first time, Xu Mo panicked and stood there for only a moment in that empty, familiar world where time seemed to stand still before being thrown back to reality, wasting a precious opportunity.
The second time, Xu Mo learned his lesson and managed to scavenge some food, which barely allowed him to survive in this apocalyptic world.
Perhaps it was discomfort with the other world, or perhaps it was simply bad luck, but after returning, Xu Mo began to have a fever. This made him clearly realize that his only cheat ability was both a lifeline and a death sentence.
This is the third time.
Xu Mo struggled to walk toward the barely intact security door beside him—this was another rule he had figured out: his abilities had to be attached to a real "door" to be activated, and he could only stay in that static world for 60 seconds.
Pressing his burning palms onto the rough door panel, Xu Mo roared inwardly:
"Open the door!"
As the dim light shifted, the scene behind the door suddenly changed—Xu Mo staggered in like a hungry wolf pouncing on its prey.
After rushing inside, Xu Mo's tense nerves relaxed slightly.
Behind the door wasn't a cold office cubicle or an empty factory, but a warm and inviting living room! A light gray blanket was casually draped over a beige fabric sofa, and an unfinished cup of coffee and an open magazine sat on the glass coffee table. A family photo next to the TV cabinet showed warm smiles. The entire space was clean and cozy, a stark contrast to the post-apocalyptic desolation.
"It's a house...lucky me!" This thought flashed through Xu Mo's mind, and his body instinctively rushed inside.
Sixty-second countdown, begin!
Time was of the essence, but Xu Mo had already rehearsed the route in his mind countless times during his fever.
"For an average family, the priority for storing medicines is: 1. Bedside table in the bedroom. 2. Drawer in the TV cabinet or coffee table in the living room. 3. Bookshelf in the study. Lastly, storage cabinet in the bathroom!"
This is a "medicine search guide" that Xu Mo summarized based on common sense and fragmented information he had seen in the past. After all, who would go to the bathroom to look for medicine in the middle of the night when they have a fever? Most people would keep it within easy reach of their bedside.
Xu Mo's first target was the master bedroom.
Rushing into the room, he immediately saw the bedside table. He opened the first drawer—it contained only some receipts, charging cables, and a glasses case. Xu Mo's heart skipped a beat, and he quickly opened the second drawer—perfect! A slightly messy little basket caught Xu Mo's eye, containing a thermometer, several strips of pills, and an open bottle of vitamins.
Xu Mo's gaze, like a scanner, instantly locked onto one of the trays—ibuprofen sustained-release capsules! Only four lonely capsules remained on the aluminum foil tray. He grabbed them and stuffed them into his pocket.
Twenty-five seconds have passed!
Without pausing for a moment, Xu Mo turned and rushed to the kitchen; food and water were essential for survival! The refrigerator door was flung open, the interior brightly lit, and time seemed to stand still. Xu Mo deftly grabbed two bottles of mineral water from the refrigerator door and stuffed them into his pocket, then quickly scanned the kitchen countertop and the area around the sink—no ready-to-eat food was found.
Thirty-five seconds!
Xu Mo knelt on the ground and quickly pulled open the food storage cabinet below. The cabinet door creaked slightly, unusually clear in the deathly silence. There weren't many things inside, but they were all life-saving—several cans of fish and meat were neatly arranged like soldiers, next to them was half a bag of rice, and two unopened packs of compressed biscuits. Xu Mo's fingers were clumsy with urgency, almost roughly pulling out the cans and biscuits and stuffing them into his already bulging arms. The rustling sound of the plastic bags was the only sound of life he could hear at that moment.
Fifty seconds!
Xu Mo rushed back to the living room in his last moments, his eyes sweeping over the fruit plate. He reached out and grabbed two more rosy apples. Just as he reached out to grab two more bananas, an irresistible pull suddenly seized him.
Everything before my eyes shattered and vanished like a broken mirror.
The next second, the biting cold and the pungent stench enveloped him once more. Xu Mo sat heavily on the cold, hard ground of the apocalypse, with only the two red apples tightly clutched in his hands remaining as a brief and illusory warmth from another world.
Confirming that he had returned to the apocalypse, the familiar, chilling air, thick with decay and dust, sent a shiver down Xu Mo's spine, a profound sense of loss washing over him. Those brief sixty seconds of warmth and tranquility were like a fragile dream; upon waking, reality was far more piercing.
But this disappointment was quickly dispelled by the weight of the items in his arms. Xu Mo lowered his head and picked up the supplies scattered on his lap one by one, quickly and carefully counting them by the faint light coming in from the broken window:
"Ibuprofen, four pills, that's right." Xu Mo held the sachet of life-saving pills tightly in his palm, as if he could draw strength from them.
"Two packs of compressed biscuits, perfectly sealed."
"Three cans of dace with fermented black beans." Xu Mo touched the round metal can with his hand; the cold touch made him feel at ease.
"Chocolate, four bars." Seeing these high-energy foods, Xu Mo subconsciously swallowed.
"Two apples, in perfect condition."
"Mineral water, two bottles, 500 ml each."
After taking inventory, the haul far exceeded expectations! If used sparingly, these supplies will be enough to sustain me through the most difficult two or three days. A strong sense of exhilaration overcame the weakness and dizziness caused by the high fever.
However, this excitement was quickly interrupted by a strong thought—backpack!
Just now, in the living room of that world, when I rushed out, I seemed to catch a glimpse of a dark-colored backpack next to the cabinet in the entryway! At the time, all my attention was focused on the medicine and food, and I completely overlooked such an important container!
"Damn it! If I had that backpack, all this stuff would have been so much easier to pack and move around in. Now I'm just awkwardly stuffing it all into my clothes, and I barely managed to get everything!"
A wave of regret washed over Xu Mo.
In the apocalypse, a sturdy backpack is an extremely valuable resource. Xu Mo cursed himself for not thinking things through and decided that next time he activated his ability, he must prioritize finding and carrying a backpack, which would greatly improve his scavenging efficiency.
Frustrated as he was, the most urgent thing was to deal with the high fever. Without further hesitation, Xu Mo unscrewed a bottle of mineral water and gulped down several large mouthfuls. The cool liquid slid down his burning throat, bringing him a brief moment of relief.
Then, Xu Mo carefully pried a capsule off the ibuprofen bar, tilted his head back, and swallowed it with water.
The pills slid down his esophagus, but he didn't feel any immediate effect. However, Xu Mo knew that hope had been planted. He carefully gathered the remaining pills and supplies into a relatively clean corner beside him.
After doing all this, an intense feeling of exhaustion overwhelmed him like a tidal wave. Xu Mo leaned back against the peeling wall, and amidst alternating chills and fever, he drowsily closed his eyes. He was waiting for the medication to take effect, and also waiting for the next forty-eight hours to arrive.
.