Someone spoke first, saying "thank you," and then a chorus of thanks echoed along the wall...

At that moment, the light from the searchlights seemed to soften considerably, no longer so glaring, but rather like warm sunlight.

The vines swayed gently, as if thanking the friends who had come from afar.

"We at Starlight are willing to stay!"

"This is troublesome. We'll leave our Blades behind too!"

"Excuse me, but Longteng Base is also willing to rest and recuperate here!"

......

Lu Beiye raised his hand and opened several doorways for Jin Dun, large enough for vehicles to enter...

The convoys from various bases began to drive into the open space in an orderly manner.

Chi Yanzhou: "Chi Yi, Chi Si, Chi Qi, arrange for people to guard the remaining sentry posts... He Huaijing, He Huairang, Xie Linlin, Xie Lin'an, you lead your teams on patrol."

A response came through the walkie-talkie: "Roger!"

Chi Yanzhou: "The rest of you should all retreat and rest. You've worked hard tonight."

Soon, most of the Flameheart ability users left their posts, leaving only the necessary guards behind.

Lu Nange, Lu Beiye, Luo Xingyou, Gu Wan, and Yu Wei remained standing on the watchtower, observing the movements below...

Chi Yanzhou, Lu Xici, Shi Xu, Gu Qi, He Zhuo, and Ji Xian, along with dozens of superhumans, pushed open the side door of the base.

The group lined up and neatly arranged the food that Lu Nange had taken from her spatial storage in front of the Flame Heart Gate...

Boxes of compressed biscuits, various canned meats, canned fruits, instant noodles...

Several large insulated containers were filled with hot water, and next to them were even several baskets of fresh, juicy fruit—apples, oranges, strawberries... which seemed especially precious in this apocalyptic world.

Lu Xici cleared his throat and called out to the convoy that was setting up camp in the open space, "Thank you all for coming to our aid so late at night! We have prepared some food; anyone who needs it can come and get it!"

Upon hearing this, everyone at the various bases was stunned.

Lin Shuang, Wang Xi... several people who had dealt with Lu Nange and her group quickly waved their hands.

Lin Shuang: "How could I accept this! Supplies are so precious right now, and we haven't been able to help at all. How can we take your things for nothing!"

Lu Xici: "Everyone risked being attacked by zombies in the dead of night to come here; this sentiment is more precious than any material gift."

Duan Yi from the Dragon Soaring Base stepped forward and said seriously, "Captain Lu, we can't just take it for free... If the Flame Core supplies are plentiful, we're willing to exchange them for crystal cores or other resources. Is that alright?"

"Yes, can we switch?"

Lu Xici turned to look at Chi Yanzhou, who nodded slightly: "Of course!"

People at each base sprang into action.

Everyone spontaneously formed a long queue to exchange their own crystal cores or supplies with Flame Core.

The night was deep, but the open space in front of the Flameheart Gate was brightly lit.

People from different bases sat together, eating instant noodles, other food, and fruit with hot water...

He Zhuo, holding a can of fruit, nudged Ji Xian's shoulder beside him: "Old Ji, don't you think this looks like a night market before the apocalypse?"

Ji Xian smiled and took a bite of the apple: "Even better than the night market."

Lu Nange and the others stood side by side on the watchtower, watching this rare scene below.

Yu Wei: "These people risked their lives to help us, what are they after? They give us supplies, and they even want to trade with us?..."

Luo Xingyou: "That's indeed rare..."

Lu Nange: "Because there are always people who believe that mutual support brings more hope than fighting alone."

At this moment, they were no longer individual survivors acting independently, but rather, in a sense, companions...