"I have one. No problem." Xu Huo chimed in, then looked at Dai Song. "As you said, we'll reach Tiantian Orchard to rest before midnight."
Dai Song was at a loss for words.
The next leg of the journey was much the same as before. Every so often, they had to deal with some strange mutant flora or fauna. It drained both their items and their energy. The long hours of constant vigilance and fighting had left everyone exhausted. Fortunately, Xu Huo had warned Cao Qinglin beforehand not to get involved, and to sit tight like Dr. Dorr.
They finally reached Tiantian Orchard just before one in the morning.
The orchard was naturally quite large. Dai Song said it had a U-pick garden that had originally been built for visitors' entertainment. A few years ago, when Gemini City explored Heaven's Ladder, they had reinforced the garden, so it should be safe to take shelter there for a while.
"If you still need it," he added.
"My location item isn't very high-level. It'd be much better if we can get into the U-pick garden." Xu Huo had the housekeeping robot drive the car into the garden.
But Dai Song had made it sound far better than it was. The so-called "reinforcements" amounted to iron bars added over the glass windows and a few haphazard things nailed to the walls. They seemed more likely to offer psychological comfort than real protection. The fence around the garden had already been completely destroyed, and part of the accommodation block's wall had collapsed. Only a relatively spacious dining hall had escaped being badly damaged by the Aliens.
Location items worked best in spacious places. The Sole Entrance also had a dining hall and kitchen, so Xu Huo chose a spot in front of the U-pick