They reduced their vehicles from three to two on the road, keeping them very close together so that Sang Luoluo could easily use her Mental Power to pull any mutated animals that lunged at her into her spatial dimension and deal with them.
This greatly reduced everyone's stress.
Moreover, Sang Luoluo also gained a lot. Those mutated animals were now within her perception range. Because her perception had become stronger, they seemed to move in slow motion to her. The Crystal Core on the vehicle only needed to deal with the threat of mutated animals fifty meters away. Those that were closer disappeared almost instantly as soon as they entered Sang Luoluo's Mental Power range.
Qi Feng could tell that Sang Luoluo's abilities seemed to have improved again.
Assistant Jian witnessed it firsthand, but he knew that Sang Luoluo must have absorbed a lot of Crystal Core to evolve further.
Although Sang Luoluo consumed far more Crystal Core than other Evolver, the effects were still significant.
The car moved forward at a steady pace. Sang Luoluo kept a close eye on the area she could perceive. Some Crystal Core buried under the ice and snow could be seen within the range of her Mental Power perception.
At the end of the day, not counting those inside the mutated animals, she could collect over a thousand Crystal Core if she was lucky, and around a hundred if she wasn't. In short, the income was quite considerable. The underground, uninhabited place was also the domain of mutated animals. Some mutated animals might ingest Crystal Core unintentionally while eating, while others liked to collect Crystal Core and put them in their nests, whether for absorption or simply for aesthetic purposes, no one knew.
In short, it made things convenient for Sang Luoluo.
When Sang Luoluo is mentally exhausted, she drinks some Spirit Spring Water to refresh herself. When she is exhausted to the limit, she rests against the carriage. Qi Feng and the others take turns dealing with the mutated animals outside. Sang Luoluo used to have trouble sleeping, but now she can actually fall asleep while hugging a mutated wild orchid.
Even in his sleep, his Mental Power could sense the mutated animals active outside, but he felt no threat and slept soundly.
The mutated wild orchid had a very good hypnotic effect. Assistant Jian and the others in the same carriage were also drowsy. However, some of them had rested beforehand and were able to resist the hypnosis on their own.
Assistant Jian specifically reminded Sang Luoluo, as the effects of this mutated wild orchid were truly bizarre.
The journey was smooth, but it took five days to get back to the base.
From a distance, the base's defensive shield had a large hole in it, with dozens of other holes of varying sizes behind it.
Mutant animals could be vaguely seen along the way. The base had completely changed since they left.
There were no guards at the entrance to the base anymore, and the surrounding shantytowns were gone, leaving only collapsed, simple straw and wood structures, with some bones still faintly visible. It looked desolate.
Sang Luoluo looked out the window, secretly alarmed. "How could this be?"
Assistant Jian said, "The beast tide is terrifying. It seems that not only has the beast tide not been completely resolved, but it has become even more serious. There are no more people on duty."
As they spoke, several mutated animals appeared overhead, flying into the base and then out again. The last one circled the base once, then snatched a person out. The moment it flew out of the protective shield, it soared into the sky, appearing as a tiny dot from a distance.
Everyone in the car stared intently at what was happening outside. It seemed the base was truly in deep trouble this time.
The group was in a heavy mood, and even the joy they had felt from acquiring many mutated animals and Crystal Core along the way was gone.
The car drove straight into the base and headed directly to the laboratory.
Assistant Jian contacted Dr. Wang.
Almost as soon as they arrived, Dr. Wang came out to greet them with a team of fully armed guards.
Even through the car window, Sang Luoluo could see that Dr. Wang seemed to have aged several years in just over a month.
The dark circles under her eyes clearly show that she's been working a lot of overtime lately.
Dr. Wang was very happy to see them return safely.
"Great, you're finally back."
Sang Luoluo and the others quickly came down, and Jian Cheng handed over everything they had brought to Dr. Wang.
Dr. Wang glanced at them and quickly said, " Sang Luoluo, just bring out the vehicles and weapons. There's no need to go to the warehouse. The situation at the base is urgent; we can't waste any more time. Those weapons and vehicles need to be put to use now."
Sang Luoluo didn't waste any time and took out all the vehicles and weapon crates she had brought back from Base No. 32, placing them all at the entrance of the laboratory.
The captain of the Guard behind Dr. Wang immediately made arrangements, and soon a group of people arrived and drove the vehicles away one by one to deal with the mutated animals in the city. The weapons were also distributed to the Guard members.
Sang Luoluo asked, puzzled, " Dr. Wang, why has the base changed so much? What happened while we were gone?"
Dr. Wang led them towards the laboratory, explaining succinctly as they walked, "After you left, several more severe beast tides arrived. The base's protective shield was breached. These mutated animals are stronger than before; they are constantly mutating and growing stronger. Many mutated animals have stormed into the base, devouring many people. The underground city is now in chaos. The official forces sent to exterminate the mutated animals have suffered more than half their casualties, and even the Guard has suffered heavy losses, not to mention the ordinary civilians. The casualties are even greater, and the base's population has drastically decreased."
Sang Luoluo felt very sad after hearing this, and so did everyone else.
Assistant Jian reported on their journey, including their encounter with two enormous Meteorite Crystal Core, and also recounted the portion that Sang Luoluo had submitted.
Upon hearing this, Dr. Wang was naturally delighted and said, "This is good news, Sang Luoluo. Thanks to you, however, those two Meteorite Crystal Core don't have much energy. Our people who went out instead discovered several large Meteorite Crystal Core, which we may need you to bring back. Alternatively, you can recharge your account directly. I hope you can help the base purchase as many supplies as possible as possible as soon as the Farm App's goods are listed."
Dr. Wang thought that entrusting this matter to Sang Luoluo was the most suitable option.
Given the current dire situation at the base, he couldn't afford to worry about much else and directly granted Sang Luoluo the highest level of access within the organization, allowing her to act and coordinate freely.
" Dr. Wang, I will do my best."
Dr. Wang nodded.
Sang Luoluo was thinking about how she could give the base as many supplies as possible.
Dr. Wang is already busy with other matters; now that there's a major mess at the base, many things have come his way.
Remembering the mutated wild orchid, Sang Luoluo picked a branch with a few flowers on it, put it in a box, and handed it to Assistant Jian next to Dr. Wang. Sang Luoluo briefly explained the origin of the mutated wild orchid and her discovery.
Dr. Wang became interested and immediately ordered it to be sent to the lab for study as quickly as possible.
Speaking of which, Dr. Wang had something even more important for Sang Luoluo to do. "I have one more thing to tell you. When you're purchasing through the Farm App, try to buy as much bottled water as possible. Although there are purchase limits, I've heard that the managers of other farms have already contacted the mysterious Farm Owner to see if they can sell us more bottled water."
"After several days of research, we discovered that the mineral water produced by the Farm App contains a special energy. Although I haven't figured out what it is yet, its attraction to mutated plants and animals is enormous. Experiments have shown that it can reduce the radiation levels in mutated animals and plants and increase the probability of them awakening and evolving."
Sang Luoluo exclaimed in surprise, "What? It has such an effect?"
At the same time, she wondered, "What are the benefits of lowering radiation levels?"
Dr. Wang explained simply, "High radiation is actually a negative mutation trend for mutant animals and plants. It poses a great threat to them, hindering their subsequent evolution and ultimately leading to their elimination by the environment. Lowering radiation levels allows them to evolve in a more favorable direction, surviving longer, adapting more easily to the environment, and becoming more resilient."
"That mineral water is amazing. Current research has only made preliminary progress. There are still many experiments to be done. To fully understand the special properties of the mineral water, it will require a long time and a large number of samples to provide data support."
Sang Luoluo nodded, and Dr. Wang turned around and went to attend to other matters, not getting any rest at all.
Before leaving, he instructed Sang Luoluo, "Go home and get some rest tonight. Go to work first thing tomorrow morning. Report the mission progress to me separately. Also, please be careful. Your safety is paramount. Remember that?"
"Understood, Dr. Wang."
After leaving the laboratory, Sang Luoluo, Qi Feng, and Lei Qi went straight home.
Chapter 191 If we get married and have children, we can afford to raise them.
On the way back, Sang Luoluo could sense the presence of mutated animals. Qi Feng and Lei Qi, carrying Crystal Core, instantly killed any mutated animals that showed themselves.
Sang Luoluo can also collect the mutated animals along the way.
Free Crystal Core, why not take them?
Lei Qi: "There are just too many mutated animals now. They're everywhere in the base. There weren't this many last time I came back."
Qi Feng pursed his lips and said in a low voice, " Lei Qi, don't go back for now. Let's stay at Sang Luoluo's house together. I have a feeling this beast tide won't end so quickly."
Lei Qi had complete faith in his boss's judgment, but he was a little worried. "Is it really that serious? We've only had a few days of peace and quiet."