After Apocalypse, I Got Rich With Superpower

Chapter 42: Chapter 40 Homecoming

Chapter 42: Chapter 40 Homecoming

The return journey was smooth. Li Pan had rested for a while and was gradually recovering. He could walk on the ground, but they moved slowly, fearing that Li Pan could not endure the fatigue.

Along the way, everyone focused on hunting and killed a few large mutant animals to take back. They also killed several wild boars, mainly because they startled a herd of wild boars and were chased by it, which was quite embarrassing.

When they arrived back at the base, Li Pan felt as if he had been in another world. Traveling through the primeval forest made them forget the time, and returning to the city felt somewhat surreal.

The Base Commander heard about their return and hurried over to see them.

“Boss, we’re back, and we’ve brought everyone back safe and sound as hoped,” Wen Bin said with a silly grin.

The Base Commander glanced at him but also laughed happily, “You’ve worked hard. I’ve prepared some food for you; let’s go to the kitchen.”

“Boss, we brought some game back. Let’s weigh them first,” he suggested.

“Alright, weigh them first and then store them in the cold storage.”

This time they brought back a lot of game, thanks also to the Star Tree. The Wood Element was very sensitive to the environment, and the Star Tree could direct them to where there was movement, ensuring their hunts were fruitful.

When all the items were placed on the ground, the Base Commander was surprised, “Woah! What a great harvest this time.”

“The Star Tree was especially helpful; it gave us a lot of help.”

“How are Pan’er and Xue Dong settling up? I’ll count you two together.”

“No need, we’ve kept some meat to take back for the wolf pack to store for the winter. Just a few points are enough for us; the rest should go to the brothers. After all, we have a farm and can raise poultry and livestock, so we’re not short of meat.”

“Alright then, I won’t be polite with you two. Just speak up if you need anything.”

The Base Commander looked quite pleased, as the brothers would have meat to eat for a while.

Just the wild boars alone amounted to six or seven, and there were also five to six wild buffaloes. They specifically targeted large animals for hunting. Wild boars and buffaloes were not as dangerous as tigers, so they were manageable; anything stronger would be beyond their capability and deadly.

There were also plenty of other animals like pythons, leopards, and deer.

The meat reserved for Li Pan was already set aside and stored in her space.

“Boss, we dug up some ginseng, and these medicinal herbs are positively mutated; their effects are quite remarkable. You should take them for testing,” she said.

All valuable items were left at the base, and the remaining poisonous plants were declined by the Base Commander as they held little value to everyone. Li Pan took them back to plant on the farm.

Finally, they settled the accounts together. The medicinal herbs Li Pan picked also earned her contribution points and money, which Wen Bin and the others declined, as they were straightforward people and did not covet such small gains.

The ginseng was distributed evenly among everyone for contribution points and money.

The ginseng was highly valuable. After it was tested, they would set a price, and contact them by phone.

After eating and resting for a while, Xue Dong took Li Pan to buy some necessities for the farm.

They bought a few small-scale, single-person farming tools and ploughing equipment.

“Brother, I want to buy some iron frames to set up greenhouses so that later, we can grow greenhouse vegetables or medicinal materials,” she suggested.

“Alright, we have the money this time, let’s buy everything and take it back. Coal has already been delivered to the farm. I called Jianzhong; he has taken care of everything.”

“Then let’s also buy some sugar and some spices for cured meat; let’s make our own cured meat for the New Year.”

“Sounds good.”

After shopping, Xue Dong, Li Pan, and Liu Qian hopped onto an electric tri-car and headed home together.

“Brother Qin, Yu, Qi, we’re back!”

Qin Jianzhong and Zhang Qi peeked out from the house, grinning broadly.

“You’re back; did everything go smoothly?”

“Very smoothly. Yue Xin, Yue Ying, I’ve brought back lots of meat for you two.”

The wolf cubs circled around them non-stop, rubbing against their pants. It had been a long time since they had last seen them, and the reunion was affectionately fragrant.

After chatting briefly, he went back to his room to take a bath and change clothes before coming down.

“Wolf King, I brought some meat for you all. Should I take it to the cave for you?”

“It’s too hot. Put it in the cave. We’ll ask for it when needed.”

The Wolf King shook his head.

“Alright, I’ll put the meat in the cave first.”

Li Pan grabbed a few woven baskets, entered the cave, and placed the wolf pack’s meat in the baskets with tags on them, making it unmistakably clear to avoid any mix-ups.

After sorting everything out, he finally sat down to have a sip of tea.

“Where did you get the tea?”

“I discovered it. Brother Qin picked the tea. There’s an old tea tree at the far corner over there, and the base verified it had positively mutated.”

“That’s really lucky. We’ll have tea to drink from now on. I even exchanged some tea trees.”

“I’ll call in a few days and ask them to reserve a few more good tea trees for us. We can plant them after the autumn harvest.”

Xue Dong also smiled and nodded.

As they talked about the dangers of the forest, the two children listened with eyes wide and mouths agape. Li Pan even showed everyone the new look of his Star Tree.

The Star Tree had become much thicker. Now, barely one person could embrace it. The vines had thickened, and the leaves had turned from light green to dark green, looking lusciously green.

“Now the space barrier lasts for half an hour.”

“That’s amazing. We’ll be secure from now on.”

Upon hearing this, Qin Jianzhong also nodded frequently. Having this defensive barrier was indeed very useful. It could save lives and reduce many losses in crucial moments.

“I’ll go check on the fields.”

“Go ahead. Qi has taken good care of them. There shouldn’t be any problems.”

Qin Jianzhong knew Li Pan was worried about the crops in the fields, so he didn’t stop her. It was good for her to check.

Li Pan, as usual, went to the breeding area and the orchard, checking everything carefully. Indeed, there were no problems. Even though the farm was left with only three people after they left, it was well managed.

The crops in the fields would be ready to harvest in half a month, at a critical moment.

The Patrol Team came to patrol daily and also at night. Qin Jianzhong insisted on taking the wolf pack for another patrol late at night, staggering the times to avoid overlap, ensuring there were two patrols at night, especially during the most tiring hours around four to five o’clock, when thefts and similar incidents were most likely to occur.

“Oh, I forgot to tell you, they patrol daily. Seeing how hard they work, since they are all our brothers, I’ve arranged two meals with sugar water for them each day, placed at the farm’s entrance for them to eat on their own.”

“No problem, that’s how it should be. Prepare some meat for them to eat. Without them, our own patrols would be very tiring and interfere with our work.”

Li Pan immediately stated that it was a matter of course to do this.

“No complaints about you taking the initiative, right? We provide meals, and they patrol more often than other farms, ensuring our safety. After another Mutated Bird incident, I couldn’t handle it. It would be too painful to lose those grains again.”

Qin Jianzhong feared another attack by mutant animals on the farm, harming their grains and causing heartache.

“No problem. Now that I’m back, both Yu and I will cook. We’ll prepare some meat dishes, adding some rich nourishment. The base has never wronged us.”

“Pan’er is right. We have plenty of meat at home, so there’s no worry about eating.”

Xue Dong also nodded in agreement. These were social niceties that needed attention.

From that day on, Li Pan visited the fields three times a day to monitor the growth of the crops, adding a bit of Wood Power as needed. With Zhang Qi, another Wood Power User, there to help, her burden was lessened, and a little of her power was enough.

She planted the Poisonous Flowers and Grass she brought back around the farm for guard duty, while the Ghost Vine made its home by a lake, where it could stealthily eat fish. 𝒻𝑟ℯℯ𝑤𝑒𝑏𝑛𝘰𝓋𝑒𝓁.𝒸𝑜𝘮

Seeing its well-behaved demeanor, Li Pan instructed it could eat fish but must not cause waste or harm, and then she left it be.

The lake had an abundance of fish, set up for harvesting. The lotuses in the lake had bloomed, and they picked some lotus pods and seeds, but Qin Jianzhong was too busy. With everyone gone, they couldn’t keep up with all the work.

Zhang Yu came daily to pick some and take them back for drying.