Care Guide to Raising a Max Level Leaf in Apocalypse - 57
Little vinegar essence
They made it back one and a half days earlier than when they left. Two hunters stationed at the coast waiting for them were so excited it seemed like New Year’s.
Hunter A with teary eyes: “Congratulations on coming back safely. The days at sea must have been tough!”
Hunter B, equally moved: “You’ve been through a lot.”
They took a step forward, wanting to say more, but as the words reached their lips, they suddenly couldn’t continue. They stared dumbfounded at the group still on the ship, eating seafood barbecue. There seemed to be no hardship as they had imagined. Instead, it looked more like they went on vacation to Hawaii and just returned.
On the contrary, the two who stayed behind at the coast, living on nutrient liquids and facing a large number of mutants invading daily, were in a more dire situation.
Yu Feichen, with one foot on the rail, held a skewer of grilled fish and waved it towards the two hunters. “Want to eat some?”
The mutants in the sea were no less than on land, and most of the sea creatures that mutated retained their taste, some even becoming more delicious.
The aroma of the grilled seafood was mouthwatering.
The two hunters exchanged glances and saw the unwavering determination in each other’s eyes.
They simultaneously said, “Let’s eat!”
They boarded the ship gracefully, even bringing their own bowls and chopsticks.
One of them took out a precious bottle of pre-apocalyptic wine, saying, “This was the last sip I kept for myself in case I met with an accident outside the base. I planned to drink it just before my last breath.”
However, the seafood on the ship looked irresistible, especially the large mutated crabs and prawns. It was hard to resist the temptation, so they decided not to save the wine for a final moment.
The wine was excellent, and as soon as the bottle was opened, the fragrance filled the air.
Ji Jiu remained very vigilant, watching his owner. He hadn’t forgotten the day his owner got drunk and bullied him, only to wake up the next day without any memory of what had happened.
Since then, he was determined not to let his owner near alcohol. Fortunately, Si Yin Yuan wasn’t interested in it. He kept his head down, concentrating on grilling the fish.
Yu Feichen, casual and open-minded, pointed to the two barbecues on the ship. “We only have two grills. You decide which side you want to eat at.”
The two hunters didn’t need to choose; they quickly opted for the grill where fewer people were dining.
Yu Feichen saw them approaching Ji Jiu’s grill, and his eyes revealed a hint of sympathy.
Ji Jiu didn’t react to the two newcomers; he sat obediently next to his owner, holding his own milky white bowl and patiently waiting for the meat to cook. He looked like a docile little cat, waiting for food to be served.
It wasn’t until half an hour later that the two hunters finally understood the source of sympathy in Yu Feichen’s eyes.
Half an hour! A whole half hour!
Not to mention eating seafood barbecue, they couldn’t even get their chopsticks close to the meat on the grill.
Ji Jiu ate both swiftly and gracefully, with seamless bites and no breaks.
With his agile little tongue, the fish’s flesh slipped off the bones, and he spat out the whole fish skeleton.
No wonder the others would rather squeeze around one barbecue grill than join Ji Jiu for a meal. The two hunters fell into deep thought.
Around Ji Jiu, a pile of complete fish skeletons had accumulated. When his master wasn’t paying attention, the black mist slowly climbed onto the table and devoured the fish skeletons.
Si Yin Yuan seemed to have noticed and raised his head. He saw that half of the fish skeletons were already gone.
“…”
Ji Jiu silently retracted the black mist and put on an extremely obedient smile, like a little fox caught in the act, wagging his furry tail to please the person in front of him.
Si Yin Yuan decided not to grill fish for him. Instead, he started grilling crabs. Crab meat was tender, white, and delicious even without seasoning.
After a while, Ji Jiu fed three crab shells to the black mist, eating as he fed.
But when he tried to feed the fourth one, he was caught.
Si Yin Yuan: …
He took the grilled crab, peeled the meat by hand, and then disposed of the crab shell.
As the dignified chief of the guild, he took care of people meticulously, to the point where he would probably spoon-feed them if needed.
The two hunters who hadn’t eaten much seafood but had been fed dog food were left with a case of the hiccups.
…
After leaving the island, Chen Zhaonian witnessed that the outside world was even scarier than he had imagined. When they passed by the “Waste City,” the exterior of the once towering skyscrapers had been overrun by vegetation, and all sorts of grotesque mutants would occasionally burst out from the roadside.
Inside the sewers, there were mutated rats and some mutated insects. They would come out to attack pedestrians during the night, and it was easy to encounter danger if no one stood guard during sleep.
There were even tree-like mutants as large as a building, and compared to as it once was, humans were truly minuscule.
Chen Zhaonian gradually became reclusive. He would hold a stone and follow people around. As soon as someone left his line of sight, he would become extremely anxious.
Ban Tang had a good temperament and had essentially become his companion these days. Wherever they went, he was always with Chen Zhaonian. Si Yin Yuan decided to assign Ban Tang to supervise him.
The matter about the church and the seed still needed discussion. Chen Zhaonian, as an important witness, needed to ensure his safety.
After arriving at the base, Si Yin Yuan had Chen Zhaonian registered with the guards.
Ban Tang nodded as he followed. “I’ll keep an eye on him.”
It was easy for an S-ranked hunter to watch over someone, and even if the church tried to cause trouble, Ban Tang would be able to react promptly.
However, it was strange that the church had not immediately sent anyone to inquire about the situation after the mission. It seemed like they were not very concerned about this matter.
The most excited person was undoubtedly Hu Yan. He had heard about Si Yin Yuan’s return and rushed straight from the laboratory where he had been in seclusion for several days. His disheveled appearance made it seem like he hadn’t slept for days.
After listening to their account, Hu Yan pounded his chest and stomped his feet. “Why didn’t you observe more closely when dismantling the projectors?”
Si Yin Yuan waited for him to finish his outburst, a habit he had developed. After Hu Yan calmed down and returned to normal, Si Yin Yuan asked, “Has the church been quiet recently?”
Hu Yan shook his head. “I’ve been in the lab all this time, so I’m not sure.”
In fact, the research institute could be considered the most peaceful force within the base, and Hu Yan, as well as the previous dean, were not inclined to get involved in the disputes between other forces.
Inside the institute, most of the people there have decided to dedicate their lives to the great cause of scientific research, to uncover the truth of the post-apocalyptic world.
Hu Yan thought for a moment and said, “But recently, they seem to have reduced their activities significantly, especially after the warehouse theft.”
Thinking about this, Hu Yan felt a sense of relief.
“The church hired a correctional officer to investigate, and so far, they haven’t found any issues. The church leader is quite interesting; he firmly believes it couldn’t have been the believers’ doing, absolutely the work of outsiders. But they’ve practically turned the entire base upside down and still haven’t found out where those supplies went,” Hu Yan shrugged. “But who else could have entered the warehouse except their own staff?”
The little grass that had consumed the half-year worth sacrificial offering quietly played with a starfish on the side.
Living mutants from the outside had no reasonable grounds to enter the base. So, the little grass provided a highly reasonable excuse for the starfish: reserve food. After thorough inspection, it was determined to be a harmless, mildly mutated creature and was allowed inside.
Hu Yan didn’t realize the true culprit was right next to him. He had merely mentioned this topic in passing, but the more pressing issue wasn’t about that.
His expression turned anxious. “Without the most critical evidence, it will be very difficult to prove the church’s involvement solely based on the person you brought back from the island.”
Si Yin Yuan raised an eyebrow. “No need to alert the enemy; if they are hiding something, they will inevitably leave a trail.”
Seeing Si Yin Yuan’s confident demeanor, Hu Yan knew that his friend had already thought of a way to resolve the matter.
Si Yin Yuan understood him very well. In the eyes of outsiders, he might appear as a straightforward leader, but he was actually the one who often played his cards in the most unpredictable ways.
Seeing that they were about to conclude their conversation, Ji Jiu asked the question he was most concerned about, “How is Luminous Lilly doing lately?”
In reality, what he wanted to know was if Luminous Lily had reverted to its original form.
He had no interest in the humanoid form of Luminous Lily. If it had changed back, he would have to consider the possibility of adding Luminous Lily to the reserve food option.
Unfortunately, Hu Yan’s answer was bound to disappoint the little grass.
Hu Yan seemed like he had triggered some sort of strange mechanism and suddenly became excited. “He’s indistinguishable from a real human! In fact, in terms of intelligence, he might even surpass ordinary humans. He learns things quickly. Do you remember how he was a blank slate when you left?”
Si Yin Yuan, who was also intrigued by this shape-shifting mutant, nodded slightly.
Hu Yan received a response and became even more excited. “But now, he has already learned quite a few words, and his responses to external stimuli are becoming more normal.”
“What about other aspects?” Si Yin Yuan inquired. “Has he shown any unusual abilities or characteristics that differ from regular humans?”
Hu ayan became calmer and pushed up his golden-rimmed glasses. “Not really, that’s the strangest part. In every test, his physical abilities are almost indistinguishable from those of a regular non-powered human, but his stamina is slightly better than the average adult male, though still within normal bounds.”
Si Yin Yuan asked, “No superhuman abilities?”
Hu Yan affirmed, “None.”
The idea of a mutant transforming into a human with absolutely no superhuman abilities like an ordinary person left Si Yin Yuan contemplating.
This topic had originally been brought up by Ji Jiu, but he felt a sudden surge of anger upon seeing how concerned his owner was about other plants.
To think that he cared more about other plants than himself! What’s so great about that particular plant? The little grass was way more impressive, both in terms of learning speed and its powerful abilities. Unlike that plant, who was only capable of transforming into a human.
The little grass felt wronged.
Ji Jiu grew more and more angry as he thought about it, and he huffily hugged the starfish, turned around, and walked away.
Bad owner!
Meanwhile, Si Yin Yuan, who hadn’t done anything, remained bewildered, not understanding why the young man who had been sitting peacefully with him just moments ago suddenly left.