314: Heading to South Island

Jiangcheng was redeveloped. Those low-level Infected didn't require Tang Ping's intervention; ordinary Talent Users were enough to clear them out. Tang Ping, enjoying a rare period of leisure, spent his days meditating and cultivating, occasionally strolling through the Xingyao Survivor Base.

The Four Seasons Lake area, the original location of the Starlight Base, would eventually become a planting and breeding zone. As for the survivors, they would gradually relocate to Jiangcheng.

Jiangcheng was vast, more than enough to accommodate the entire Star Council, let alone the tens of thousands of people from the Xingyao Survivor Base.

"It's getting colder and colder," Tang Ping said, sitting on a fishing platform by the lake. The Four Seasons Lake below was already covered with a thick layer of ice.

Currently, the Xingyao Survivor Base already had several level five shelters. While they could withstand contamination, they couldn't withstand the cold.

Crops were also difficult to grow, but it didn't matter. The Xingyao Safe Zone had previously acquired many secret realm fragments, which had now become planting bases. Large quantities of grain were cultivated, easily supplying the base's fifty to sixty thousand people.

"Tang Ping!"

Sister Wang suddenly rushed over, looking flustered.

Tang Ping put away his fishing rod. Seeing Sister Wang's expression, his own instantly became serious. Had something major happened again?

"Sister Wang, what's wrong? Did something happen at the base again?"

Sister Wang shook her head, her eyes filled with deep worry: "It's not about the base; it's a personal matter."

"Personal?"

"Yes," Sister Wang nodded. "It's about my daughter. She was studying at a university in South Sea Island before the apocalypse. Since the apocalypse broke out, I've been trying to contact her, but for months there was no news. I had originally thought she had met with misfortune, but just today, while negotiating a trade with an official base in South Sea Island, I received news that might be about my daughter."

"I had investigated before. When the apocalypse first broke out, more than two thousand students from South Sea University escaped from the school and first formed a base. I felt that my daughter might be among those two thousand-plus people, so I kept searching. But before I could find her, a powerful Calamity Beast destroyed that base, and after that, I never heard any news about my daughter again."

"But during this trade, when I showed a photo and asked the other party, I didn't have much hope. Yet, the other party actually said that about a month ago, they seemed to have seen my daughter in a small team!"

"That team was quite strong. He had even tried to recruit them, but didn't succeed, so he had a deep impression of the seven people. Since that person said this team was strong, my daughter is very likely still alive!"

"So, Tang Ping, I need to leave for a while, but the Xingyao Survivor Base cannot be without a top-tier expert in charge. Therefore, until I return, I hope you can stay here."

Tang Ping pondered for a moment: "Sister Wang, I'm not familiar with the base's affairs. How about this: I'll go to South Sea Island to look for Xiao Ling. My mount, the Great Emperor Moth, is already Level Five, and its speed is fast enough. It won't take long to reach South Sea Island."

"This..." Sister Wang was still hesitating.

"Sister Wang, don't worry. Oh, right, Sister Wang, please draw a drop of blood." A leech-like Gu worm appeared in Tang Ping's hand. "This is a blood Gu I refined. It can track people using blood. Sister Wang, feed your blood to it. As long as Xiao Ling is within ten kilometers of me, it will activate!"

Sister Wang decided: "Tang Ping, then I'll trouble you!"

"It's nothing. I'm idle anyway. Besides, the base is just getting started, and many things in restarting Jiangcheng can't be done without you, Sister Wang. Leave the search for Xiao Ling to me."

Tang Ping left the Xingyao Survivor Base that very day.

Five days later

"It's snowing."

Tang Ping rode the Great Emperor Moth, soaring through the air. Its hundred-meter body was fully spread, releasing its wild aura without restraint, its six wings tearing through the wind and snow with each beat.

Boundless gray clouds covered the sky, and even the snow was grayish-white. Tang Ping knew that after this snow, the contamination would further intensify. And this snow seemed to last for a long time; he wondered how many survivors would be buried beneath it.

Over the past five days, everywhere Tang Ping passed, human civilization had already collapsed. The land was covered with abandoned houses, and grotesque Pollution Plants rooted themselves in the soil. The land had now become a veritable Wasteland. Of course, this was only for humans; for Pollution Beasts and mutated plants, the current land was their exclusive domain.

"We should be nearing the coast," Tang Ping thought, his gaze sweeping over the land. Along the way, he had seen many struggling survivors, and quite a few people had caught a fleeting glimpse of the giant beast in the sky. But none of this concerned him.

The land seemed to have become even vaster. Tang Ping didn't know exactly how far he had flown, but judging from the city ruins below, he should be nearing the coast.

Sure enough, after half a day, Tang Ping saw the coastline. The vast, gray sea lay quietly, and just a glance at it filled one's heart with an inexplicable dread.

"I wonder what the Pollution Beasts in this sea look like," Tang Ping mused. He knew that water contamination was far higher than land contamination, and sea creatures were naturally large. No one knew how terrifying the things in it had become.

However, the expansion of the sea was even more exaggerated. He currently didn't know how many days it would take him to reach his destination.

After flying for another two days over the sea, Tang Ping spotted an island about ten kilometers across. There were clearly people on it. Worried about getting lost, Tang Ping decided to descend and ask the islanders to confirm the location of South Sea Island. Although he felt he hadn't flown in the wrong direction, in this vast sea, apart from the boundless gray water, there was only the gray sky above. A slight deviation could lead to him getting completely lost.

There were people on the island below, who must have lived there before the apocalypse. Many fishermen had an almost instinctive understanding of maritime affairs and would certainly be very familiar with the location of South Sea Island.

Small Ring Island

"Police Chief Han, I'm afraid it won't be long before there's no one left on this island," said the Stubble Man next to him, smoking a cigarette carelessly. Beside him lay the corpses of numerous contaminated sea beasts.

"Let's live one day at a time, I guess. We can't just find a rope and hang ourselves, can we?" Police Chief Han wiped the knife in his hand, his brows furrowed with an unresolvable sorrow.

"Three more people left today. They really did hang themselves. Little Mao burned them with a fire, and their ashes were just casually buried in a pit."

"It's good that they're gone. I wonder if you and I will even have a complete corpse left in the end."

"Hahahaha, dreaming! We'll probably turn into that beast's feces, not even complete feces. And you're still thinking about a complete corpse!" The Stubble Man burst out laughing, then suddenly froze. "Huh, Police Chief Han, do you see a plane in the sky?"

"Do you see a plane on my face?" Police Chief Han said, exasperated, but still instinctively looked up. He immediately froze. "There really is a plane?"