Apocalypse: I Can Upgrade Everything

Chapter 144: Ranked Within the Top One Thousand

Chen Ye had just stepped out of Wu Jianshan’s office when he ran into a storm cloud named Chu Che.

“Captain Chu, you…”

Chu Che sneered, his eyes cold. “Didn’t you say Old Wu only gave you four bottles?”

Chen Ye scratched his head, grinning awkwardly. “Hey, look at the time. You planning to see Old Wu too?”

Chu Che ignored the deflection. He pushed past Chen Ye and shoved open the door to Class 1, Grade 4.

When Chu Che emerged a few minutes later, he let out a long, heavy exhale, as if trying to purge the foul air from his lungs. Tucked securely in his jacket were three bottles of Death God’s Blood Tears.

He headed down to the second floor.

Most of the convoy survivors and lower-ranking cultists were housed here. Chu Che stopped in front of a classroom that had been converted into a makeshift infirmary.

It was a grim place. The windows were sealed tight with layers of plastic sheeting and old bedspreads, blocking out the light and trapping the stale air inside. A few cots were pushed against the walls. In the center sat a lonely table with a thermos of hot water.

Cough, cough…

The sound of weak, wet coughing greeted him as he entered.

“Captain Chu, you’re here!” Xiao Wang, the convoy assistant, stood up from a stool.

Chu Che nodded and walked to the bed in the corner.

The other survivors in the room, sensing the gravity of the moment, quietly slipped out, leaving only the Captain, the assistant, and the dying man.

“A’Che… you came…”

Uncle A Bao lay on the cot, looking withered. His gray hair was a mess against the pillow. He tried to sit up, but Chu Che gently pressed him back down.

It was hard to believe Uncle A Bao was only fifty.

The apocalypse had aged him twenty years in six months. Before the end, he had a happy family and a three-year-old grandson. He should have been looking forward to retirement.

Instead, he had watched his entire lineage die, one by one. The grief had turned his hair white and bent his spine.

The arrival in Rong City, with its biting cold, had been the final straw. After the battle with the Abyssal Blood Eye, A Bao had collapsed.

Illness strikes like a landslide; recovery comes like spinning silk.

Chu Che had given him diluted Blood Tears, but the effect had been fleeting—a single day of clarity before the crash. That was why Chu Che had gone to Wu Jianshan. He had traded favors for the pure, undiluted stuff.

Chu Che knew the truth: A Bao’s heart had died long ago. His body was just catching up.

“Uncle A Bao, stay down,” Chu Che said softly. “Look… I got the good stuff from Captain Wu. Undiluted. This will help.”

He held up the small glass vial. The crimson liquid inside glowed faintly in the dim light.

A shadow of guilt crossed A Bao’s face. “A’Che… did you promise him something? Did you sell yourself for this?”

“No, Uncle. You’re overthinking it.”

“Ah… A’Che. Forget it. You’re a cultivator. You know what you’re doing. I won’t nag.”

“Just rest, Uncle. Get better, and I’ll take you out of here.”

Chu Che carefully dripped a single drop of the red liquid into the old man’s mouth.

Color returned to A Bao’s cheeks almost instantly. He murmured a few more words, his breathing steadying as he drifted into a deep, chemically induced sleep.

Chu Che’s smile vanished.

He knew this wasn’t a cure. It was just buying time. A few days, maybe a week.

Xiao Wang stood by the bed, his eyes red. To him, A Bao was a father figure. Without the old man, Xiao Wang would have been a frozen corpse in the desert months ago.

“Xiao Wang.”

Chu Che’s voice cut through the silence.

“Captain?”

“Go tell everyone,” Chu Che said, his voice flat. “Tell them they have permission to join the Death God Church.”

Xiao Wang’s head snapped up. “Captain, this…”

“Don’t argue. Just do as I say.”

Xiao Wang lowered his head, his shoulders slumping. “Yes, Captain.”

Chen Ye, clutching the eyeball in his pocket, considered returning to his dorm. But Iron Lion and Chu Che would be there.

He needed privacy.

He headed for the roof.

The snow was still falling, a relentless white curtain. Chen Ye waved his hand, and thick gray smoke billowed out, forming a solid, opaque box around him.

Safe inside his smoke construct, he pulled out the prize.

[System Message: Appraisal requires 1,500 Slaughter Points. Confirm?]

Chen Ye blinked. 1,500?

Previous appraisals had cost a pittance—rarely more than 100 points. This was a massive jump.

“System, is your calculator broken? 1,500 points?”

[System Response:] [According to protocol, materials for Artifacts ranked below #2000 are considered “scrap.”] [The System charges a nominal fee for scrap.] [However, materials capable of crafting Artifacts ranked within the Top 2000 are true treasures. The fee reflects their value.]

Chen Ye was speechless.

So everything I’ve found before was just trash?

He gritted his teeth. “Confirm.”

It hurt his wallet, but it also fueled his anticipation. If the System valued it this highly, it might actually save his sight.

[Appraisal Complete]

[Item Name: Eyeball of the Abyssal Blood Eye] [Origin: Remnant of the Abyssal Blood Eye, one of the Three Great Anomalies of Rong City’s Changwang District.] [Description: This item retains a portion of the entity’s potent ocular abilities. With a high-level Artifact Craftsman, its potential can be maximized.] [Note: During the battle with the Death God, the Abyssal Blood Eye was suppressed and unable to utilize its full arsenal. While it cannot defeat the Death God, its true power is far greater than demonstrated.] [System Evaluation: A rare and precious material. Used correctly, it can be crafted into an Artifact ranked within the Top 1000, or potentially higher. Warning: Severe side effects are likely.] [Specific Commentary: If the user intends to use this to replace a failing left eye, EXTREME CAUTION is advised.]

Top 1000?

Chen Ye felt a surge of ecstasy.

Aside from the Sky Whale (Rank #009), he had never encountered anything close to this level. The Skin-Peeler Ghost’s Scalp and the Human-Faced Scorpion’s face were garbage in comparison.

But the question remained: How?

Did he just gouge out his own eye and shove this thing in?

That seems… excessively bloody.

“System,” Chen Ye asked, steeling himself. “How do I replace my left eye with this?”

The familiar loading circle spun.

[Option 1: Pay 500,000 Slaughter Points to upgrade and modify the Eyeball. Post-modification, the Blood Eye will gain the [Auto-Parasitism] trait and integrate safely.]

“Five… five hundred thousand?”

Chen Ye stared at the astronomical figure, his jaw dropping.

He took a deep breath, calming his racing heart.

“Is there an Option 2?”