Building a Safe Zone with My Harem In The Post-Apocalyptic World Chapter 76: The System Is A Cheat

The aberrant was even larger than Gideon rembered. Now that the flesh had mostly rotted away from its head, the skeleton looked far more terrifying. Its massive jaw hung open, frozen in place, as if the creature had been trapped in the exact mont of its death.

"Big, isn’t it?" Jade said. "Now I’m wondering how you managed to kill it with just a sword."

"That’s an exaggeration. It wasn’t only a sword, and it’s not like I chopped its head off with so legendary blade," Gideon replied. "The most likely answer is adrenaline."

He knew the truth was more complicated than that. Even now, he still could not believe a sword worth ten thousand Love Coins had been able to sever the tail of an S-rank aberrant.

’This system really is a cheat,’ he thought. Even an ordinary weapon turns into sothing ridiculous.

He shook his head, still feeling a bit of disbelief.

"Maybe," Jade said with a small shrug. "But if I were you, I wouldn’t worry about that part. I’d be more concerned about your na spreading to smaller factions... maybe even the larger ones."

She turned toward him. "You ever hear what those governnt dogs do to people with powers? If I were you, I’d talk to that old man living with the Child of Eden. Ask him where those abilities co from and what that bastard governnt wants."

Gideon narrowed his eyes. "Why are you so sure about that? Did Daphne tell you sothing? For all we know, her grandfather might have adopted her during the apocalypse."

Still, Gideon had already planned to speak with the old man eventually. But would he really know anything?

From what Delilah explained earlier, Gideon suspected the Children of Eden might not have been born with their abilities. There was a strong possibility they were humanoids created in laboratories.

It is also possible that the old man might have run away with the experint subject, but it was unlikely that he was living this long.

’Wait, is he the reason that the ruined governnt’s search for the Children of Eden in every faction?’ he thought.

Jade sighed. "Well, it turns out I’m not as dumb as Elaine likes to think," she said before turning and walking away.

Gideon stayed where he was for a mont, watching her back as she left.

Sothing about her mood felt different. Maybe she was simply in work mode. He rarely saw her this serious or this sharp-tongued.

Still, she was right about one thing.

He needed to visit Climber Rift soon to check the market value of the fangs and scales. After that, he would head to the ’hospital’.

For now, he walked closer to the workers. They were separating the remaining flesh from the scales. Most of the rotting at had already turned into thick sli, so they ignored those parts and focused only on the sections that were still solid.

"Sli at will lt through those protective suits if it lands on you. And we can’t use forklifts or excavators because the corpse is too fragile," Jacob suddenly said behind him.

Gideon flinched slightly at the sudden voice. "Oh, I see. That’s a sha though. There are still scales stuck in those parts, right?"

Jacob nodded. "Yeah. But we’re not risking our lives for them." He shrugged.

It turned out Jacob was the supervisor in charge of this part of the operation. Workers rotated every three hours while constantly reporting conditions in the field.

At so point, even the protective suits and gas masks would stop being effective. When that mont ca, they would have to burn the entire corpse as quickly as possible.

"Hm... would it be alright if I take it? Could you wash the sli off with water afterward?"

Gideon was curious about the limits of his body. This aberrant residue was extrely toxic. He wanted to know whether he could withstand exposure to sothing this concentrated.

"Are you insane?" Freya shouted and rushed toward him.

She had been staring at the Devourer’s corpse in fascination a mont ago. The second she heard what he said, she ran straight to him.

"You’ll die!" She grabbed his arm and shook it. "I know we need cores and money to build your territory, but that doesn’t an you should kill yourself just to get them!"

"Whoa, calm down," Gideon said. "I’ll pull back the mont my body starts feeling strange. I’m not trying to commit suicide."

"Oh really?" Freya snapped. "Says the man who let the Devourer swallow him and then blew it up from the inside!"

Their argunt was loud enough that several workers stopped what they were doing. A few even turned their heads, curious to watch the lovers quarrel.

Gideon frowned. "I didn’t do that deliberately. The monster was too big and too close for to dodge. So right now, you need to trust the sa way I trust you."

Freya groaned in frustration. "Ugh... fine. But I’m staying right beside you. If sothing happens, I’ll drag you back myself."

"You need to keep your distance. That’s the deal."

Freya hesitated, then finally nodded. Both of them looked toward Jacob.

"Fine," Jacob said. "But don’t bla if anything goes wrong."

He handed Gideon a crowbar and a pair of heavy blacksmith tongs.

"This is what we use. If a scale is stuck in the sli, pry it loose with one of these. Just rember sothing. Each scale weighs around ten kilos and is about the size of a forty-inch television. You might end up carrying it by hand."

"No problem. I can handle it," Gideon said.

He passed the crowbar to Freya.

The two of them moved toward the rotting section of the corpse. This part was closer to the head, where the flesh had almost completely dissolved and the bones were visible. Several scales had already fallen onto the ground.

Gideon stopped when the thick sli ca into view.

He turned around. "Don’t follow . Stay there."

"Your boots will lt! Gideon, stop this!" Freya protested.

"Just let try once," he said, ignoring her complaints and stepping forward.

Freya had been right. The mont he stepped into the sli, his boots began to lt. Heat surged through his feet as if he were walking on burning coals.

Still, he pushed forward. Using the tongs, he grabbed one of the massive scales and turned back imdiately, running toward safe ground as fast as he could.

The sensation was similar to when he had been inside the Devourer’s stomach.

Once he reached clean sand, he dropped the scale and quickly pulled off his ruined boots. He sat down and examined his feet.

The skin was red, blistered, and badly burned. But it was already healing.

The regeneration was slower than the first ti he fought the aberrant, yet the wounds still closed rapidly. Within monts, the pain faded.

"Damn," Gideon muttered with a laugh. "So wounds from aberrants heal ridiculously fast. And I’m completely immune to the toxins too, even at this level."

His laughter stopped the mont Freya started yelling at him again.

anwhile, the workers who had witnessed the whole thing had stopped their tasks completely. So looked impressed. Others looked terrified.

Even Jade stood nearby with her arms crossed, watching him silently as if deep in thought.

Gideon noticed the expression, sothing about it felt strange. His instincts told him she was hiding sothing important.