18 Floors Above the Apocalypse
Chapter 43

Luckily, Cooper was very loyal and as soon as he returned, he would dive right into Stella's arms, even fetching his dog bowl every time they went out. There was no way around it. Jasper's cooking skills were so bad that even the dog would eat the food he made, so Stella had to prepare dog food in advance. Observing Cooper's dramatic transformation, Angela sneered at Lukas and Cody, "Look at you guys, you can't even compare to a dog."

Despite the constant rain, no one was idle. Angela was also relentlessly training these two weak ones. Whether their physical fitness had improved was uncertain, but Stella acknowledged their resilience as they bore bruises and swollen faces. Feeling a little playful, she decided to test them herself. The boys dodged her attack like sly foxes, "Really? You want to hit us? No way!" Their laughter echoed.

Unlike the cries of despair from other floors, all the members on the 18th floor were improving, including Rosie who was now learning to read and write English, practicing with a children's story about a crow drinking water.

The hydroponic vegetables were a success. Looking at the line of lettuce on the balcony, Stella couldn't help but smile.

The hybrid vegetables had a strong vitality, grew quickly with the added nutrient solution, and were much larger than ordinary vegetables. Every day they were closely observed and so far, no pests had been detected.

After finishing outside, Stella went into Arcadia to cut Timothy hay to feed her rabbits. The hay was brought back from Griffith Mountain, along with a bunch of wild grass and small tree seedlings. Anything useful was planted, everything else stored. The garden was filled with countless pieces of furniture and building materials, but there was still some black soil left. However, Stella didn't use it to plant vegetables or grains, as they had enough of both and planting was too time-consuming. What she lacked wasn't food, but time to freely stay in Arcadia. Thus, she planted fruit trees on the remaining soil, which required minimal maintenance.

Just as she stepped out of Arcadia, she noticed Cooper scratching at the door. Someone was calling her from downstairs.

As Stella descended, she was met by a young man supporting an old lady, "Hello, do you know how to treat illnesses?"

Through the iron gate, she could see the old lady in pain. Stella inquired nonchalantly, "What's wrong?"

"My grandmother sprained her back, but the hospital ran out of medicine. They suggested we seek alternative medicine."

The young man, Mikey, wore glasses and seemed polite and refined, "I heard you studied acupuncture. Can you help my grandmother?"

"I do know some acupuncture, but I'm not particularly skilled. Are you okay with that?"

The old lady, in pain and unable to sleep, had no choice but to agree.

Stella was initially reluctant but eventually agreed, "I can try, but I can't guarantee her recovery. Also, there will be charges."

"Can we pay later?" Mikey asked, "All my money is in the bank and I can't withdraw it now. I promise to pay you back as soon as the flooding subsides."

To ensure she agreed, he added, "You can charge interest."

Stella didn't agree, "You can pay with food."

Hearing this, the old lady, Katie, quickly stopped her grandson, "I've lived long enough. It's not worth it."

Despite her words, she was only in her sixties. Survival was a human instinct, but she didn't want to burden her grandson.

Mikey reassured his grandmother and asked Stella if they could exchange something else of value. "I have a mountain bike, bought for $1800, only ridden a few times." Stella agreed, "Okay."

So Mikey brought up the bike, "See, it's almost new."

The deal was made, covering ten treatments.

Stella took the bike but didn't allow Mikey to come up, "Come back in an hour and a half."

After carrying the bike, he helped Katie upstairs.

Katie was in severe pain, but was quite gentle and kind, "Thank you, young lady."

"No need to thank me, I'm getting paid."

Stella didn't let her in; she checked Katie in the hallway. It was a lower back injury from overwork and a sprain, not a serious illness, but it would be very uncomfortable for the next few months.

She got a soft, comfortable tail stool from Arcadia and brought it to the hallway for Katie to lie on.

Since Katie was in so much pain, Stella massaged her with some herbal wine to relieve blood stasis. Her technique wasn't skilled, but it brought Katie some relief.

After the massage, she took out silver needles and began acupuncture. With previous practice in school and recent review, Stella was confident and steady in her technique.

Katie, who had been in pain for several days, even fell asleep during the treatment. She woke up when Stella removed the needles, feeling significantly less pain, "Young lady, I didn't expect your medical skills to be so good." Stella advised her to rest well, especially given the long-term humidity.

Arcadia had painkillers and plasters that could speed up Katie's recovery, but Stella didn't offer them. She was worried that if she gave them to one person, everyone would know she had medicine.

"Can I discuss something with you?" Katie asked, taking off her gem bracelet, "That bicycle is my grandson's favorite. Can we exchange it with this?" The gem bracelet was of good quality and should be worth a lot. Stella wasn't greedy, "Your injury won't be healed in ten treatments. When the floods recede, he can redeem his bike with money."

Hearing this, Katie was relieved. Their family was actually quite well off, but the younger generation had the habit of not using cash, which was why they were caught short.

As they finished up, Mikey came to pick up his grandmother. Seeing her in better shape, he thanked Stella politely.

After they left, Cody opened the door, "Stella, you're amazing. You're earning money through practicing medicine now."

"It's not a big deal, just practicing."

In this post-apocalyptic world, skills were essential for survival. This was why Stella didn't give up her studies. If they had to live in a base in the future, this would be her means of survival. Lukas was envious, "You made a good choice with your major. Unlike me who studied software programming. It is completely useless now."

"That may not be the case. One day it might come in handy."

Lukas was driven to train with Angela after realizing how powerful Stella was. Although he couldn't use his academic skills, he could at least improve his physical fitness.

The humid weather made everything more uncomfortable. Stella was doing physical training in the living room, sweating profusely after two hours.

There was a knock on the door, and Cooper, hearing the sound, rushed to the door.

Jasper had come to pick up Cooper, but upon seeing Stella in the middle of her boxing routine, he paused before walking in. "It's not like that," he noted, "Your punches need to be a bit higher." Coming from a professional, his advice sounded much more credible than any video tutorial. Stella didn't take offense. Instead, she adjusted her stance, lifting her fists a little higher. "Like this?" Almost perfect. Jasper stepped in to adjust her fist slightly upward.

After she completed her routine, he pointed out a few more flaws. It was rare to see a woman boxing with such strength and grace outside the military. Intrigued, Jasper couldn't resist the urge to challenge her. "How about a friendly match?" he suggested.