092 Eyes from Afar

The vendor thought his chance to make a fortune had finally arrived. He immediately raised the price above the market rate and hoarded several tons of salt. But the very next day, a huge supply of table salt was released onto the market. The vendor's dream shattered, and all the salt piled up in his house. Hearing this, Xue Feng couldn’t help but laugh and cry at the same time. With so much salt, the people in their base could eat for at least ten years. At least now, it was a blessing for Xue Feng—he would never have to worry about salt again.

Tang Qiqiang then gathered everyone together. This time, Xue Feng finally saw all the people in the base—over fifty in total. Among them, fifteen were adult men; the rest were women and children, with a few elderly people. Of course, none of them were particularly old—they looked to be only around sixty or so, and walked briskly and energetically. Those with weak legs had long since fallen during the outbreak of the apocalypse. Xue Feng had to admit, it was the first time he'd seen such a structure among survivors. Those without fighting ability actually outnumbered those with it by more than double. In the apocalypse, it wouldn’t be an exaggeration to call these people a burden.

Back in the shopping mall, Shen Ruyan lost control over her subordinates precisely because there were too many women around her, and others saw them as burdens. It ultimately led to a total collapse. Yet here, so many so-called burdens remained. One could only say that Tang Qiqiang managed things well. Early on, he’d scavenged enough supplies to keep everyone going. Otherwise, the group would have fallen apart long ago. When food wasn’t enough, Xue Feng doubted there would be so many men willing to support the weak, the elderly, the sick, and the disabled. After all, if their own stomachs weren’t full, how could they let others enjoy food? In the apocalypse, don’t believe in humanity. Without the constraints of law and morality, anyone could turn into a beast at any moment.

“Our… people are a bit numerous, but they’re useful too,” Tang Qiqiang stammered, wanting to prove these people weren’t just burdens, that they could help. But as he spoke, he found himself unable to continue—he was only lying to himself. “There is some use—they can help build the base, do what they can,” Xue Feng nodded. Women and children could gather and plant. Xue Feng had already planned out a planting area in the villa district. To survive long-term in the apocalypse, the key was food.

Actually, rice and flour weren’t a problem at the moment. The warehouse held enough to last a long time. What mattered now was fresh vegetables, which were easy to grow and didn’t require large plots of land. The area planned out in the villa, if fully planted with fresh vegetables, would be enough for current consumption. With more people, the area could be expanded. There was plenty of open land around the villa district to use. But for now, Xue Feng had no such plans. As for the elderly, they weren’t entirely burdens either. Urban young people had no experience with gardening and didn’t know how to manage it. After all, it’s not enough to simply plant vegetables. Some of the elderly, however, had experience in this area.

“Thank you!” Tang Qiqiang thought Xue Feng’s concern was merely about caring for them. In truth, Tang Qiqiang hadn’t initially called everyone out for Xue Feng to see, precisely because he worried that Xue Feng would refuse his request to join, seeing so many burdens in the base. Now, seeing Xue Feng’s reaction, he realized his worries were unnecessary.

“With so many people, do you have any vehicles?” Xue Feng asked. The armored car couldn’t carry so many. “We do,” Tang Qiqiang replied immediately. Two intact mid-sized buses were parked in the courtyard, kept as escape vehicles. If anything went wrong, they’d abandon the place—an option they’d only use in dire circumstances. After all, no one knew if they’d find anywhere else to go once they left. The area was surrounded by zombies, and venturing into unfamiliar territory might lead them straight into a dead end. This was why, after the outbreak, most people made their homes their base—familiarity mattered, and they knew where the supermarkets and pharmacies were.

“Let’s go, then,” Xue Feng nodded. Soon, Xue Feng’s armored car led the way, with the two buses following behind, heading toward the Riverside Villa District. What Xue Feng didn’t know was that, just a few kilometers away, several people stood atop a tall building. In front of them was a high-powered telescope—usually used for stargazing, now repurposed as a tool for monitoring the city.

“They seem to be headed for the villa district,” one said. “That’s a good place, built with its back to the Qing River—easy to defend, hard to attack,” another replied. “The key is that ability user—he took down that green, third-tier mutant this time, really strong, and took out another ability user as well.” “Heh, this is the third time we’ve seen him. That armored car is too conspicuous—every outing draws attention; it’s hard not to notice.” The group chatted and laughed, showing no sign of the apocalypse in their demeanor. Clearly, they were doing quite well in this environment.

“But that ability user doesn’t seem to have any helpers.” “No matter how strong he is, he’s still just one man.” “The next target might be that Riverside Villa—once we take it, the women inside will all be ours.” The men grinned lewdly.

…

The vehicles soon arrived at the gate of the Riverside Community. Seeing the walls at the entrance, Tang Qiqiang and the others on the bus were stunned. Not only had the walls been reinforced, but barbed wire was strung across the top. “Is that barbed wire electrified?” someone couldn’t help but ask. After speaking, he shook his head self-mockingly. How could that be? In the apocalypse, electricity was an extremely scarce resource. Their own base had only a small diesel generator, which had never been used. With so many people, there was rarely any need for it, and at night, they dared not turn on the lights, fearing that other survivors with ill intent would discover their location.

Just then, they saw several sparrows fly by. With humans no longer active on a large scale, animals had expanded their territory. Two sparrows landed on the barbed wire. Crack! Sparks flew, and the birds were instantly electrocuted, their bodies charred. The people on the buses were dumbfounded. They hadn’t expected the barbed wire to actually be electrified. How much power did that require? It was so extravagant. What kind of place was this—could it really be a paradise in the apocalypse? How many more surprises would await them here?