Chapter 357 - 357: Attacked!
[Mission completed. Reward: 50 Technology Points.]
Upon hearing the completion of the task, Zhao Yu finally relaxed.
These aliens were too terrifying; they seemed to have a way of transmitting information among themselves.
Killing one alien meant that the same method would hardly work on another.
Fortunately, his subordinates were fearless and they managed to take down all five aliens in the shelter.
“Nine people dead…”
Nine soldiers meant a loss of nine technology points but fortunately, they managed to save four people along the way, slightly offsetting the loss.
This expedition was quite fruitful, yielding a total of 120 technology points and the loss of nine soldiers.
Additionally, various weapons, equipment, and a quantity of food were acquired. The food found in the shelter alone was enough to sustain a thousand people for a month.
“The indoor cultivation technology of this world is still decent…”
Zhao Yu looked at a large expanse of indoor farmland before him.
This level was dedicated to cultivating food, designed to sustain a thousand people for an extended period.
This place was indeed a rare find for him.
“It would be a waste to just abandon it…”
Zhao Yu hesitated as his initial plan was to develop his power around a base.
But now, he found it hard to give up this shelter, yet relocating his base here didn’t seem appropriate.
Who knows when the Re Zhao Corporation would release another batch of aliens?
Zhao Yu gradually formed a new idea.
“It seems unnecessary to always stay and develop around the base. Before, it was because 1 was weak and needed to protect my safety…”
“But now that I’ve grown stronger, I can also dispatch some troops to occupy some resource points…”
In recent times, Zhao Yu’s understanding of this world had deepened.
Food, weapons, manpower, and enhancers were all essential for a force.
Having a base meant that he needed various other resources unless he didn’t want to grow and expand, content with just surviving.
Thus, every resource would be it mineral or oil was critically scarce.
Especially oil, essential for making gasoline and diesel. Without it, tanks and planes would be useless scrap metal.
According to his understanding, there were only two sources of oil currently available on the market.
One was scavenging from gas stations in abandoned cities from the old era.
Over the past few years, scavengers had picked clean most of the safe gas stations, leaving only the dangerous ones surrounded by mutant beasts or radiation creatures.
The second source of oil was purchasing from Black Rock City, but the prices were exorbitantly high, beyond the reach of ordinary people.
Zhao Yu pulled out a map drawn with a ballpoint pen from the backpack of a soldier.
This map represented the area where he had been active recently, along with the marked territories of surrounding forces.
The scope was not large, just over a hundred kilometers, and it wasn’t comprehensive, only showing the places he had visited.
At the top of the map, two marked points indicated the 12988 shelter and a nearby county town.
The southernmost part of the map showed a farm where he had previously completed a mission, marked as 119 kilometers from his base.
To the east was Black Wind Stronghold, marked as 133 kilometers from the base.
The central area of the map showed thirteen locations with survivors, as gathered from soldiers and other factions’ information. Most were small gatherings of about ten to twenty people, marked by Zhao Yu as villages.
There were two locations with over a hundred people: Meng House Village, near the base, and Black Wind Stronghold.
Zhao Yu contemplated the marked points on the map.
“A hundred kilometers from the base isn’t too far, especially now that 1 have an off-road vehicle. It would take two to three hours to reach these places…”
This was considering many roads were in poor condition. If his power grew, he could build a proper road.
“I could occupy this place, leave some people here, and have messengers travel back and forth every day for communication and support…”
Zhao Yu couldn’t bear to abandon the shelter, especially captivated by the fourth level’s food production.
“Let’s do it!”
He made up his mind and selected ten soldiers to stay and clean up the shelter.
The resources in the shelter were well-organized, except for the corpses scattered everywhere.
He planned to send a large truck to transport the bodies back to the base’s recycling furnace.
Hundreds of corpses could provide enough raw material to create several hundred soldiers.
Zhao Yu then began to assess the resources. There were over five hundred tons of food, no need to transport ail back to the base. This place could serve as a granary, with supplies fetched every few days.
He also planned to send engineers to see if they could repair the shelter’s main gate, making it more defensible against aliens, mutants, or even zombies.
He instructed his men to gather scarce resources like gold, silver, and copper.
After busy preparations lasting over three hours, the vehicles were fully loaded.
“Five of you will continue to guard here…”
Zhao Yu left five soldiers originally guarding the surface, making a total of fifteen staying at the shelter.
Looking at the vehicles loaded with resources, Zhao Yu waved his hand and ordered the return.
This expedition was a huge success.
“Let’s go!”
The troop restarted, heading back to the base.
“Hmm?!”
Ten minutes into the drive, Zhao Yu’s left eyelid twitched violently, as if sensing an impending event.
As he rubbed his eyes, about to say something, sudden gunfire erupted.
“Da da da—!”
“Plak!”
A bullet shattering the glass, barely missing Zhao Yu’s ear.
“Enemy attack!”
“Enemy attack!”