Chapter 61 Returning to the Base
Early in the morning, the sky was gray and the cold wind blew like a knife.
The convoy set off again in the frigid air.
The temperature dropped noticeably, and the white breath exhaled instantly condensed into icy fog.
It's October, and the Dawn Base in the central region of Xia Kingdom, which usually still retains the warmth of autumn at this time of year, is now bitterly cold, as if it has jumped straight into the depths of winter.
The sky was overcast, with leaden clouds hanging low, as if they might scatter snowflakes at any moment.
"This awful weather... Is it really going to snow?" Lin Yan rubbed her stiff hands and couldn't help but curse. Even with her robust constitution, she felt a distinct chill.
Zhou Min wrapped her down jacket tighter around herself: "The temperature is much lower than yesterday. Even the climate has become abnormal in this apocalypse."
Ruan Ning sat in the driver's seat, feeling the chill seeping in from outside the window.
Her water-based superpowers seemed to have a natural affinity for this low-temperature environment, making her more resistant to cold than others, but she could still clearly sense the abnormal and sudden drop in temperature.
This is not just ordinary weather change, but some kind of global climate anomaly, part of an apocalyptic catastrophe.
The convoy drove along the desolate road, the scene even more bleak than when they arrived. Most of the roadside plants were withered, and those that remained had abnormal colors and shapes.
Ordinary survivors huddled in the cargo compartments of military trucks, wrapped in whatever they could find to keep warm, yet they were still shivering and their lips were turning purple.
They huddled together, relying on their meager body heat for warmth, their eyes numb and filled with despair. For them, lacking supplies and the means to keep warm, this kind of weather was torture in itself.
The soldiers were in slightly better shape, wearing uniform winter training clothes, but they still needed to constantly move their bodies to maintain warmth, and their hands gripping their rifles were red with cold. The commander, with a grave expression, reminded each vehicle via radio to take precautions against freezing and to check the vehicles' condition, especially whether the fuel had been affected by the low temperature.
The superhumans were able to barely resist thanks to their enhanced physiques, but they all felt the pressure.
On the afternoon of the seventh day, everyone finally returned to Dawn Base successfully.
The convoy, exhausted, slowly approached the base gate.
Compared to when I left nearly twenty days ago, the crowds queuing to enter the base were noticeably thinner.
More than three months into the apocalypse, most of those who had the ability and luck to reach this place have already arrived. The rest either perished on the way, chose to settle elsewhere, or have become part of the monsters.
The base's walls have visibly been raised and reinforced, and the patrolling soldiers on the walls are now more numerous, with the outlines of heavy weapons appearing particularly cold and hard in the cold wind.
A more somber and urgent atmosphere permeated the area around the base.
The convoy stopped in the designated area. The officer jumped out of the vehicle and handed over the responsibilities to the base guards who came to meet him.
"Mission complete. Here's the list. 173 survivors. They need to be quarantined for 24 hours as required." The officer handed over the documents, his tone carrying the weariness of completing the mission and a hint of barely perceptible heaviness. Every mission has comrades who never return.
The newly rescued survivors were led by soldiers to the familiar temporary prefabricated housing area used for isolation and observation. Their faces showed confusion, expectation, and a hint of fear as they repeated the process that Ruan Ning and the others had gone through.
As for Ruan Ning and other superhumans and soldiers who went out on missions, they only needed to undergo simple identity verification and basic physical examination, mainly to check for new injuries and signs of infection. Once confirmed, they were allowed to enter the base directly without needing to be quarantined again.
Ruan Ning drove the off-road vehicle slowly through the heavy gate and returned to the base.
Nearly twenty days have passed since I left, and the base seems even busier and more crowded. Pedestrians hurry along the streets, patrol teams are everywhere, and a tense yet orderly atmosphere permeates the air.
She drove directly back to the apartment building in Block B, Building 7. In the days since she left, there seemed to be some unfamiliar faces in the hallway, but some people remembered her, casting curious or respectful glances at her.
She parked the car, climbed the familiar stairs, and opened the apartment door. A faint smell of dust wafted out, but this was still a rare private space in the apocalypse where she could temporarily relax her guard.
Ruan Ning locked the apartment door, drew all the curtains, and then used her mental energy to carefully scan every corner of the room. After confirming that it was absolutely safe, she finally relaxed completely.
With a thought, her figure vanished from the spot and entered the jade bracelet space.
The space remained warm and spring-like, filled with spiritual energy, a stark contrast to the biting cold of the post-apocalyptic world outside. Ruan Ning took a deep breath of the air, which carried the sweet scent of grass and spiritual spring water, and felt much of her fatigue from the past few days dissipate.
She walked straight to the spring, took off her combat uniform, which was stained with blood and dust and whose original color was no longer visible, and immersed herself completely in the bathtub filled with clear, cool spring water.
"Mmm..." She couldn't help but let out a satisfied sigh. The spiritual spring water gently enveloped her, washing away all the dirt, blood, and fatigue clinging to her skin and hair, and even the smallest wounds were healing at a speed visible to the naked eye.
This feeling was incomparable to any form of cleaning or washing. She closed her eyes, letting her thoughts drift, enjoying this rare moment of tranquility that was entirely her own.
After an unknown amount of time, she got out of the bathtub, dried her body and long hair with a clean, soft towel, and changed into a set of comfortable and soft pure cotton loungewear that she had stockpiled before the apocalypse.
Simply wearing clean clothes and feeling the soft touch of the fabric has become a luxurious enjoyment.
Next up is the long-awaited food moment.
She walked to a corner of the space, where various supplies she had frantically hoarded before the apocalypse were neatly stacked. She took out a portable gas stove, an exquisite barbecue grill set, and several well-sealed food containers.
She opened the box and found neatly arranged, bright red slices of beef and pork belly, marinated Orleans chicken wings, crisp lettuce, enoki mushrooms, and sliced potatoes... all the ingredients were as fresh as when they were first brought in. She then took out several cans of chilled cola and beer.
The portable gas stove and grill pan were placed on the open space and lit. Blue flames licked the grill pan, quickly heating it up.
She picked up a piece of pork belly with her chopsticks and placed it on the hot grill pan.
"Sizzle—" A pleasant sizzling sound rang out, the slices of meat quickly curled up, the edges turned golden brown, and the rich aroma of meat and oil instantly filled the space.
The familiar sounds and smells almost gave Ruan Ning the illusion of returning to the pre-apocalyptic world. She skillfully flipped the slices of meat, watching them gradually turn golden and crispy.
Once the meat was grilled, she wrapped the pork belly, which was dipped in sauce, in lettuce leaves, added two cloves of garlic, and popped it into her mouth.
The crispness of the lettuce, the rich aroma of the pork belly, the salty and sweet flavor of the sauce, and the spiciness of the garlic cloves all exploded in her mouth at the same time, giving her taste buds ultimate satisfaction! She squinted her eyes contentedly, chewing slowly and savoring the comfort that the food brought.
Next came the tender sliced beef, the marinated chicken wings... She grilled and ate slowly, occasionally taking a sip of ice-cold cola, the stimulating fizz making her involuntarily exhale softly.
There was no danger, no scheming, no enemies or mutants to be constantly on guard against. She was all alone, enjoying the brief but real peace and satisfaction of her appetite as she watched the sizzling meat grill.
She ate for a long time until she felt her stomach was full, and her body and mind were greatly relaxed and comforted. After cleaning up the dishes, she did not leave the space immediately, but drank a few more mouthfuls of spiritual spring water to aid digestion and at the same time consolidate her newly broken through to the second-level advanced cultivation.
Once her mental and physical strength had recovered to their peak, she changed into a clean combat suit and flashed out of the space.
The brief rest is over. Now it's time to get down to business—absorbing crystal cores, gathering information, and… finding the right opportunity to settle old scores. After the enjoyment, it's time to move forward with even greater determination.
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