Chapter 176

Chapter 176: The Door to Rebirth in the Apocalypse – Full Book Online Novel

Chapter 176

It took a little over an hour to travel from Base One to Base Two. During this time, Gu Ning didn’t see a single zombie wandering on the road.

“Every day, numerous teams from each base go out to clear the zombies. It takes a few days to clean out an area. Drones monitor the base’s safe zone 24/7, and before any zombie horde can breach the safe zone, teams are sent to eliminate them, ensuring the base’s safety. Maybe, day after day, year after year, we’ll eventually kill all the zombies,” she said, biting into a fresh tomato, the juice bursting in her mouth, refreshing and delicious. This tomato was grown through soilless cultivation in Base One. Ji Zhaotang explained that all three bases had large areas dedicated to soilless farming, where seeds could sprout and mature in just half a month.

“Previously, Wood-type Special Ability users would accelerate the growth. After the special abilities disappeared, someone suggested using Crystal Cores to achieve the same effect. Experiments showed that while it didn’t match the terrifying efficiency of a Wood-type user who could mature an acre in an hour, a single Crystal Core could be diluted countless times and mixed into water. One Crystal Core could mature ten acres of farmland every half month. This is only the second batch, so we’re not sure how long this effect can last,” Ji Zhaotang said. “The uses of Crystal Cores are vast and beyond our imagination. These things that grow in the heads of those disgusting creatures contain infinite vitality. Isn’t the world just full of wonders?”

His last sentence was filled with sarcasm.

The car came to a stop, and Ji Zhaotang got out first, then very gentlemanly opened the door for Gu Ning before going around to open Zhuang Chen’s door.

The three of them walked to the entrance together.

Base Two and Base Three were adjacent, sharing a wall with a wire mesh separating them, managed separately. The red brick wall was much higher than Base One’s, resembling an ancient city wall. There were battlements on the wall, with a machine gun and a soldier stationed every ten meters or so. However, the soldiers seemed rather lazy, chatting or leaning against the wall, basking in the sun.

Unlike the desolate scene at Base One, a long line had formed at the entrance of Base Two, presumably people waiting to check in. They carried large and small bags, some with children and elderly, their faces filled with unconcealed excitement, eagerness, and joy.

The process for ordinary people to enter the base was quite cumbersome, requiring a lot of paperwork, all to be completed at the registration window at the entrance. Inside the gate, several tricycles waited to carry luggage for those who had completed the formalities, earning some supplies in return. As soon as someone entered, the tricycle owners would swarm, shouting and bidding, even pulling at each other, only to be scolded by the soldiers at the gate. Those who had just entered the base clearly had no experience dealing with such situations and looked bewildered.

Ji Zhaotang led Gu Ning to the entrance, showed his credentials to the soldiers, and took Gu Ning and Zhuang Chen inside.

The people in line behind them didn’t show obvious displeasure. They had been here long enough to get used to some people having privileges they envied, or perhaps they had simply become numb to it.

Under Ji Zhaotang’s familiar guidance, the three of them went straight to the Management Office of Base Two.

It was clear that Ji Zhaotang frequented this place, as the staff recognized him. Upon hearing that they were looking for someone, they immediately pulled up all the records.

However, after checking all the names of the Three-Linked Team, there was no record of them checking in. After confirming that all records were here, despite being mentally prepared, Gu Ning couldn’t help but feel disappointed.

Zhuang Chen said, “Let’s check Base Three.”

Gu Ning nodded, and the three of them headed to Base Three.

Like Base Two, Base Three also had a line of people waiting to enter.

Gu Ning and her group once again bypassed the line and went straight to the Management Office.

But the result was the same—nothing was found.

Gu Ning’s expression could no longer remain calm. She sat on the bench in the Management Office, sinking into silence. The repeated blows had started to wear her down, and she even felt a hint of despair.

Ji Zhaotang looked at Zhuang Chen, unsure of what to do.

Zhuang Chen had never seen such an expression on Gu Ning’s face before. Gu Ning had always been calm, even in critical moments, but now she sat there blankly, her face expressionless, which made Zhuang Chen’s heart ache. She knew how important Gu Ning’s parents were to her. Along the way, Gu Ning had repeatedly found hope, only to be disappointed again and again. These disappointments had accumulated to the point where they were enough to crush her hope. She walked over, sat down, and put her arm around Gu Ning’s shoulder, comforting her, “Gu Ning, don’t worry yet. There are so many Survivor Settlement Points in the Capital. As long as they’ve come to the Capital, we’ll definitely find them. At worst, we’ll search them one by one. We’ll find them eventually.”

“Zhuang Chen,” Gu Ning said softly, her face pained, “I stayed in this world because my parents were still here. If they’re gone…” She paused, “Then what’s the point of me staying here?”

Ji Zhaotang’s expression changed immediately upon hearing this, thinking Gu Ning was considering giving up. He quickly said, “Zhuang Chen is right. We’ve only searched three bases. We haven’t checked the Survivor Settlement Points yet. Maybe they didn’t have Crystal Cores or supplies, so they didn’t qualify to enter the base. They must have settled in the Settlement Points. Let’s go back to Base One, get the addresses of those Settlement Points, and search them one by one. We’ll definitely find them!” Though he was a bit puzzled, it seemed Gu Ning wasn’t as strong as she appeared on the surface.

Zhuang Chen, however, understood what Gu Ning meant. She patted Gu Ning’s shoulder, about to say something, but Gu Ning had already stood up.

She seemed to have regained her composure, a flash of determination in her eyes. “Let’s go.”

Ji Zhaotang looked at Gu Ning in surprise. The pain on her face was gone, replaced by a calm determination. This girl’s emotions changed too quickly.

Zhuang Chen smiled with relief. “Alright! Let’s head back to Base One.”

Ji Jiuzhe watched the two women walking side by side ahead of him, shaking his head in bewilderment, marveling at how women were the most mysterious creatures in the world, even more so than Crystal Cores.

The three of them walked out of the Management Office and headed straight for the base’s entrance.

At that moment, several men who had just finished registering were bringing in their luggage, only to be surrounded by tricycles. The drivers were shouting and even started loading the luggage onto their vehicles without permission. One of the men yelled, “Put that down!” and went to grab his belongings.

Such scenes were common in Bases Two and Three, nothing worth paying attention to.

The three of them walked straight towards the gate without a second glance.

Just as they were about to exit, one of the men suddenly hesitated, looking at Gu Ning’s back, and called out, “Gu Ning?”

Gu Ning stopped in her tracks, and Ji Zhaotang and Zhuang Chen followed suit, turning to look.

The young man who had called out Gu Ning’s name looked delighted. “Gu Ning! It really is you!”

It took Gu Ning a moment to remember that this man was Yuan Ge, the former leader of the Survival Team, a special ability squad from the South-Central Base. He was surprised to see Gu Ning here, as her golden hair was quite distinctive. He had called out on a whim, not expecting it to actually be her.

Seeing him, Gu Ning felt a sense of familiarity, remembering how they had fought side by side against the zombie invasion at the South-Central Base. However, after just over a week, he looked much more haggard, with stubble on his chin, a far cry from the confident figure he had been at the South-Central Base.

“What? Yuan Ge? Do you know her?” A man accompanying Yuan Ge put his arm around Yuan Ge’s shoulder, eyeing Gu Ning and her companions. Both Gu Ning and Zhuang Chen were neatly dressed, clearly well-fed, and Ji Zhaotang was even wearing a military uniform, indicating he was someone of importance.

The way he spoke to Yuan Ge carried a condescending tone, and Yuan Ge’s slightly awkward expression made Gu Ning understand the situation. Remembering their time together at the South-Central Base and how Yuan Ge had been the first to decide to stay and fight alongside them after the special abilities disappeared, she had always held some admiration for him. Seeing him in such a state, she felt a pang of sympathy. She said to him, “I’m currently staying at Base One. If there’s anything I can help with, you can come find me there.” Her cold gaze briefly swept over the man with his arm around Yuan Ge’s shoulder, who suddenly felt a chill down his spine and instinctively removed his arm.

Yuan Ge was momentarily stunned, then a look of gratitude appeared on his face. He knew a bit about Zhuang Chen’s status—she had the authority to remove a base leader. Gu Ning, instead of avoiding him, had offered help, clearly remembering their past camaraderie. He was both grateful and a bit emotional, nodding solemnly and thanking her.

Gu Ning nodded back, then turned and walked out of the base with Zhuang Chen and Ji Zhaotang.

“Didn’t expect that, Yuan Ge! You have friends like that!” the man said sarcastically. “Don’t forget us, your saviors, if you ever make it big!”

Yuan Ge frowned but said nothing. He was about to continue moving the luggage when he suddenly remembered something extremely important. He dropped the luggage and sprinted towards the gate where Gu Ning had just left!

The man was momentarily stunned, then cursed angrily, “F*** you, Yuan Ge! I saved your ass for nothing!”

“Gu Ning! Wait! Gu Ning! Wait!” Yuan Ge shouted as he ran towards the car, seeing Gu Ning about to get in.

“What is it? Do you need something?” Gu Ning opened the car door and stepped out, showing no impatience.

Yuan Ge caught his breath and said, “Did you get separated from Third Brother and the others?”

Gu Ning was momentarily stunned, then suddenly realized something. “Have you seen them?”

Yuan Ge nodded vigorously. “Yes! And they’re in the Capital right now!”