Apocalyptic Hoarding Diary

Chapter 296 Dungeon Forum

She sat up, reached for her backpack on the bedside table, unzipped it, and took out her phone.

In the signal bar, those few small bars indicate that the signal is at full strength.

She looked at the signal bar, hesitated for two seconds, and then clicked on the official Dungeon app. Every time she opened this app before, a payment screen would pop up, displaying "This online connection will consume points, continue?"

She had to click "confirm" every time before she could enter, but this time, there was no charge notification or "continue?" confirmation box.

The dungeon forum interface popped up directly.

She paused for a moment, then exited and re-entered.

still none.

Unconvinced, she went into the settings again and checked the network connection history—it was empty, with no record of any points being deducted.

Could it be that the entire B area has free internet access? This thought surprised her somewhat.

In Zone C, internet access is a luxury; every connection costs money. Although 0.1 points isn't much, it adds up over time. Therefore, most of the people in Zone C she knew only went online when they needed to, and stayed offline otherwise.

Free internet in Zone B? Is there really such a good thing? Is it really a windfall? Without thinking any further, she clicked into the forum.

Back in Linchuan, forums were her primary source of information. However, once she moved to Zone C, the forums there became so deserted due to the cost of internet access that she abandoned this source of information.

But this time, as long as the forum doesn't become too deserted, she feels she can still keep going.

It turned out she was overthinking it; what she saw before her eyes left her completely stunned.

The homepage is densely packed with posts, not sparsely arranged, but truly densely packed, with twenty posts per page, and every page is completely full.

She scrolled down, one screen full, and there were more; she scrolled another screen, and there were more; she scrolled to the bottom of the page, clicked on the next page, and it was still full.

She randomly clicked on a few and took a look.

There is a post asking for a used baby stroller: "Looking to buy a used baby stroller, condition doesn't matter, as long as it works, price to be discussed privately."

There's a buy-all ad: "Buying all kinds of tobacco and alcohol regularly. If it's inconvenient to go out, we can pick up the goods from your door."

There's a casual chat thread: "State-run supermarkets are having a discount on eggs during holidays. Anyone want to split the cost? I can't finish a whole box by myself."

There's a news post saying, "A new community canteen is supposedly opening in the western district. Does anyone know the specific discounts and benefits?"

There's a gossip post: "That couple on the third floor is arguing again, in the middle of the night, it's so annoying."

A post seeking help has appeared: "My child has a fever, what medicine is best? Hospital fees are too expensive, we can't afford it! Does anyone have any medicine? Looking to buy!"

There's a transfer post: "Moving sale, backpack in 90% new condition, price negotiable."

There's a complaint post: "Can't you do something about those people who park haphazardly? They're like peacocks displaying their feathers all the time. You can't show off like that. Do girls like that?"

There's a sharing post: "I learned a new dish today, here's a picture of the finished product."

Xu Xiaoyan read through the list one by one, finding it increasingly unbelievable.

Is this still the same dungeon forum she knows? She continued scrolling down, her finger constantly sliding across the screen.

Posts with all sorts of content, including requests for purchases, acquisitions, casual chats, news, gossip, requests for help, transfers, missing persons, complaints, and sharing, are just like those on ordinary online forums.

She hadn't felt this way in a long time. She stared at her phone screen, looking at the densely packed posts, feeling somewhat dazed.

The last time there were so many posts was when she was in Linchuan City. At that time, she thought these things were incredibly boring and a waste of time, but now that she thinks about it, it was such a normal part of life.

Xu Xiaoyan took a deep breath to suppress the feeling of disorientation.

She clicked on the contact list.

The list was short, with only a few entries. She randomly clicked on one—it was an older sister she had met in Zone C.

She opened the chat interface, and the input box was still there, but she didn't rush to type. Instead, she glanced at the status bar at the top of the screen, where there was a line of small, gray text: "The other party is not within the server range."

She then opened another contact, Xiao Zhou, the mechanic from Honghu Auto Shop who repaired her car. The same message appeared at the top of the screen: "The other party is not within server range."

Only Uncle Ge's contact information is blue, indicating that she can be contacted.

It seems that the network in Zone B is a local area network. In short, people in Zone B can contact each other, post and chat on forums, and read all kinds of gossip news, but all of this is limited to within Zone B.

If you try to contact someone outside of Zone B, it will display "The other party is not within the server range". This is a closed network, belonging to Zone B, an independent and self-contained network.

From now on, she and the people in Zone C will live in two different online worlds.

She sat on the bed, holding her phone, her feelings a mix of emotions.

Xu Xiaoyan stared at the line of small gray text for a long time, then exited the chat interface and returned to the forum.

The forum was still as lively as ever, with new posts popping up one after another.

She scrolled down and saw a post: "Anyone want to carpool to the West Industrial Park from near No. 23 East District? We leave at 7 a.m. every morning and there are two seats available."

The address is No. 23 in the East District, near her room. I clicked on the link and saw that the poster was a person with the ID "West District Worker". They said that they had to go to work in the West District Industrial Park every day, and it was too wasteful for them to drive alone, so they wanted to find someone to carpool with to split the gas costs.

Several people replied below, some asking about the price, some asking about the time, and some saying, "I'm staying at number 24, is that okay?"

Xu Xiaoyan exited the thread and saw another one, "Seeking recommendations for good restaurants near the East District." There were dozens of replies below, with all sorts of recommendations: "The noodle shop downstairs in Building 17 of the East District is good," "The fast food restaurant next to the supermarket is cheap," "Don't go to the one opposite Building 23, it's expensive and the food is terrible."

After reading a few more posts, she exited and clicked on the news section.

The pinned post was an official notice titled "Notice on Adjusting the Points Prices of Some Goods." She clicked on it and saw that the prices of rice, flour, and cooking oil had all increased slightly, by about five percent.

The comments below contained all sorts of things, but they were mostly complaints about the price of rice, flour, and cooking oil rising again.

There was also a news item titled "New community canteen built in the West District, expected to open next month," accompanied by a rendering that looked quite nice.

The comments section was filled with anticipation. Some said, "Finally, I don't have to cook anymore," others said, "I hope the price isn't too high," and still others said, "It's very close to my home, I'll eat there every day from now on."

She read through them one by one, and before she knew it, almost an hour had passed.

The people in Zone B lead normal, everyday lives, just like ordinary people on the ground.

If you enjoy stories about surviving the apocalypse by stockpiling supplies, please bookmark: Apocalypse Stockpiling Survival Story