Whenever they spotted a mutant earthworm, they killed it and tested it.
The beeping of detectors rang out all around them.
They put away the few edible earthworms they found. These were all food rations, and those who got earthworms looked pleased.
After Yan Lang came out, he took his people to deal with the hive.
Fatty looked at the distant hive. Other mutant animals had already invaded it overnight, so Yan Lang would have to clear them out before he could deal with the hive. With a hint of resentment, Fatty said to the others, "Well, great. We discovered that hive, and now we don't get anything. There's edible honey inside, too, and it's all going to their S16 Team. We won't get a thing."
Wei Xing immediately said, "Not quite. Sang Luoluo dug out some edible honey there, too. Yan Lang isn't getting all of it."
Sang Luoluo glanced at Yan Lang. Sure enough, nothing could be kept secret. "There's still honey on the armor, too. Quite a bit seeped inside. We can clean it out later and eat it."
Qi Xue asked enviously, "Luoluo, how much edible honey did you dig out?"
Sang Luoluo made an estimate, excluding the highly irradiated honey. "About a hundred cubic meters, I think. I don't know exactly. I was in a hurry when I dug it out."
"H-how much?" Wei Xing couldn't believe his ears.
Everyone else reacted the same way, turning to look at Sang Luoluo. Was she making this up?
Sang Luoluo recalled the enormous hive. "That hive was huge, and there was a lot of edible honey. I only dug out a little. I noticed those mutant bees arranged the honey according to its radiation level."
Fatty stepped forward and patted Sang Luoluo on the shoulder. "You've struck it rich. If you really have a hundred cubic meters, you'll become the richest one among us."
A moment later, He Fei added, "But our armor is damaged. Not only can we not use it, we'll have to pay a hefty repair bill. We've been out here for three days, and we still haven't finished the mission."
Chapter 25: A high fever. Captain Qi, I... I'm not feeling well either...
Sang Luoluo asked in confusion, "We have to pay for the armor repairs ourselves? Won't the Guard take care of it?"
We have to lose money just to go on a mission?
Fatty explained from beside her, "This armor was custom-made using each person's physical measurements. If it's damaged during personal use, we're responsible for the repairs ourselves."
Sang Luoluo thought this rule of the base's Guard made some sense. She just didn't know how much the damage would cost.
Qi Feng said, "Yan Lang and the S16 Team will take over at the hive. We'll continue our mission. Pack up and move out."
Once the dead bugs had been cleared off the tent, Sang Luoluo put the entire tent straight into her space. The next time they needed it, she could simply take it out and use it.
Qi Xue and the others had completed their support mission and received orders to assist Yan Lang in clearing out the hive and the mutant animals there.
The eight of them set off to continue their mission.
Sang Luoluo followed them onward. After the rain, the dense forest was damp everywhere, with water still dripping all around them.
She had no choice but to put a raincoat and boots over her radiation suit to make herself more comfortable.
They spread out the detectors. Captain Qi led the others in front, while Sang Luoluo brought up the rear, watching them kill every mutant animal they encountered along the way. Perhaps they were frustrated at not having completed the mission on time; they were especially ruthless when dealing with these mutant animals.
Sang Luoluo watched them destroy a cluster of squirrel nests and loot some edible food. Only then did their expressions improve. Altogether, they gathered a sack of nuts, along with squirrel pelts and teeth, which they had Sang Luoluo put away.
When they encountered snakes in the grass, they skinned them and collected their venom. Sang Luoluo followed behind and put everything away.
As she followed them, Sang Luoluo kept watching for any sign of Crystal Cores, but she didn't find a single one all day. Still, she wouldn't let the trip go to waste. Whenever she saw fallen branches or thick pieces of wood, she picked them up and stored them in her space. Once dried, the firewood could be exchanged for points, too.
They, on the other hand, had worked all day and reaped a plentiful harvest.
That evening, they camped in a cleared area.
Sang Luoluo took out the tent. All they needed to do was secure its four corners before using it.
She still wasn't quite used to not having Qi Xue and the other women around.
It was a little cold that evening, so everyone suggested building a few fires. Some mutant animals were afraid of flames and would retreat on their own when they saw fire here.
"Huh? Where's my lighter? Did I drop it?" Fatty patted himself down, unable to find anything to start a fire with.
He looked up at the others. "Does anyone have a lighter?"
A palm-sized panda with a Sichuan opera face-changing design appeared in Sang Luoluo's hand. She tossed it to him. "Use mine."
"How... do you use this?" Fatty turned it around but couldn't find where to light it.
Sang Luoluo walked over, took the little panda, and pressed its arm with a click. A flame emerged from the panda's mouth.
Watching from the side, He Fei couldn't help laughing. "That thing's pretty fun. Where did you buy it?"
Sang Luoluo replied casually, "At a street stall."
She had once collected a batch of lighters in all sorts of shapes: axes, pliers, crab claws, little pink pigs, kettles, toilets, cola, and all kinds of other oddities.
She had collected a whole pile on a whim back then, but later they had all been left gathering dust in her space's warehouse.
Fatty genuinely liked the lighter. He came over with an ingratiating smile and asked, "Could you sell it to me?"
Sang Luoluo nodded. "How many points are you offering?"
"An ordinary lighter only costs three points. Yours has an unusual design, so I'll give you five."
Sang Luoluo nodded. "Deal. Transfer it."
As she spoke, she held out her wristwatch for him to transfer the points.
Fatty immediately transferred five points. He Fei came over and insisted on snatching it away to play with it for a while.
Sang Luoluo shook her head helplessly.
She glanced at her balance: 1,511.
Huh? Why is it 1,511? I remember having only six points left after my last purchase. With what Fatty gave me, it should be eleven. Where did those 1,500 points come from?
She hurriedly checked her spending and transfer records. Two days earlier, there had been an anonymous transfer with the notification hidden. In other words, 1,500 points had inexplicably appeared in her account.
Who was it? Who sent me money? Could someone have transferred it by mistake? She couldn't figure it out, so she stopped thinking about it. If someone had made a mistake, they would contact her.
Everyone had nutrient solution for dinner again. Of course, since they had found nuts this time, they could take some out to roast and supplement their meal.
They were even kind enough to give Sang Luoluo two palm-sized walnuts.
Sang Luoluo ate one to try it. The moderately irradiated walnut tasted all right. Its flavor was slightly different from the walnuts she used to eat, but that didn't affect the taste. She put the other one away and used the nutrient solution as a cover while secretly eating two hamburgers.
That night, before going to sleep, Sang Luoluo immersed her consciousness in her space and harvested a batch of ripe apples from the ten-mu apple orchard, filling an entire warehouse. She could harvest another batch of the remaining apples in a few days. There were blueberries, too. Sang Luoluo harvested them all and piled them in her space's warehouse.
Once she was done, she leaned against a soft pillow and fell asleep.
Before dawn, Sang Luoluo was startled awake by the roars of a mutant animal. The S17 Squad members had already gone out to deal with it, and gunshots rang out incessantly. Sang Luoluo watched the seven of them work together perfectly to kill an enormous tiger.
The tiger was as massive as two elephants. Just looking at the dead mutant tiger's body, Sang Luoluo could feel a sense of pressure.
The seven of them weren't in much better shape. After the fight, they were a bedraggled sight, with scrapes and bruises of varying severity.
Captain Qi immediately said, "Retreat, now. The smell of blood will bring more mutant animals here any moment."
The others immediately went to deal with the tents, while Sang Luoluo went to collect the mutant tiger first. As she approached it, she discovered two Crystal Cores inside its body. Unfortunately, they were the ones who had killed this mutant tiger, so she certainly wouldn't get them. She could only silently lament the missed opportunity.
She turned and went to collect the tents.
She hurried after them as they ran.
There was no way Sang Luoluo could keep up with their running speed. Running too fast and too hastily, she missed her footing and fell into a shallow pit covered with grass.
The fall fractured her right leg, and her blood spilled all over the ground. There were assorted branches in the pit, one of which had stabbed straight into her calf. The exoskeleton had protected most of her vital areas, but a sharp piece of wood had pierced the one spot it hadn't covered. With the exoskeleton's protection, even a fall from a height wouldn't normally cause much injury. But the exoskeleton couldn't detect danger from a trip on level ground.
Sang Luoluo burst into tears.
It hurt. It really hurt. Normally, she could bear a fall and a scraped knee, but this piercing pain left her unable to move. It was killing her.
The seven people running ahead heard the commotion and doubled back.
Standing above the pit, they looked down at her, rather speechless.
"I can't get up. Boohoo..." Sang Luoluo was in unbearable pain, but she still held back her tears. If they left her here, she really would be done for.
Hu Tian was utterly speechless. "You managed to fall into a pit that shallow!"
Captain Qi frowned and said quietly, "She hasn't had any training. I overlooked that. Pull her up first and treat the wound. Lei Qi, you'll carry her."
They were deep in the forest, and all their equipment cases were with Sang Luoluo. Without her, things would be very troublesome.
Sang Luoluo took out the medical kit.
She steeled herself and pulled out the wood. Blood flowed without stopping.
Captain Qi was fairly skilled at treating wounds. He took a wound stapler, closed the wound, and applied hemostatic spray. The entire process took less than ten seconds. Finally, he wrapped the wound in a bandage and said quietly, "I can only give your wound some basic treatment. You'll still need to go to the hospital to have your leg examined. You'll have to cover the cost yourself."
Sang Luoluo nodded. "Oh, understood."
Lei Qi carried Sang Luoluo on his back and caught up with the others.
They had been out for so long that the supplies they had brought were nearly used up. It was time to head back.