We're Doing Very Well

As for those who ran to this side of the defensive line, they were all shot.

Two hours later, all the flying mutated monsters that had entered the base were dead.

Although only this batch of mutated monsters invaded tonight, their scale was enormous. Even though Lou Yu used his special ability to kill off one wave, the number of those that followed was still astonishing.

If it were before, in order to kill the remaining ones, humanity would have paid an extremely heavy price, with incalculable weapon consumption and casualties.

Tonight's events were nothing short of miraculous; the confrontation was only halfway through, and they had practically won without a fight.

Lou Yu ran to the temporary command post to find Lou Quan. Lou Quan must have anticipated his arrival, as he had his adjutant waiting for him at the door and then taking him inside as soon as he arrived.

Inside the room, Lou Quan and several trusted confidants were sitting around a long table. Upon seeing Lou Yu, everyone's faces showed excitement and gratitude.

Several people greeted him.

"Captain Lou, you've arrived!"

"Captain Lou, did you see that? We've completely outmaneuvered those mutated monsters; they can't even tell friend from foe anymore."

"We have to thank Mr. Tao for this; he's practically our base's savior."

"Yes, it's incredible that they can grow such a versatile crop. It's a great honor for our Yong'an Base to have him come here."

Lou Quan's expression seemed much calmer than the others, but Lou Yu could tell from his bright, shining black eyes that his heart was not at peace either.

"Have a seat," Lou Quan said. "You must be eager to know the answer."

Lou Yu sat down in the seat next to Lou Quan and took the initiative to ask, "Were those dough balls you threw out?"

He saw some remaining traces on his way here.

"Exactly," Lou Quan explained to Lou Yu, "We accidentally discovered that the crops Mr. Tao grows have a strong attraction to mutated monsters, even more so than to humans. So we extracted and enhanced the aroma from cabbage and mixed it into flour to trick the mutated monsters into eating the poisoned dough. We killed most of the mutated monsters without firing a single shot."

One of the confidants chimed in, "People have considered poisoning mutated monsters before, but even low-level mutated monsters are quite intelligent. They can smell poison. What appears colorless and odorless to us humans is clearly labeled 'poisonous' to them."

"Moreover, the mutated monsters love to eat people; in their eyes, no other food is as delicious as humans, which reduces the success rate of such schemes time and again."

"But the essence extracted from cabbage can not only lure mutated monsters, but also mask the smell of poison. The mutated monsters eat it all without even realizing it. This is simply a powerful weapon against mutated monsters!"

The truth was pretty much what Lou Yu had guessed: poison had been put in the dough.

He looked at Lou Quan and asked, "You must have been preparing for a long time, right? Before? What? You didn't tell me?"

One of the trusted men said, "To be honest, Captain Lou, we only found out about this thing after we got here, a little earlier than you."

He then looked at Lou Quan with a resentful expression. "Commander, you've kept this from us for so long."

Lou Quan remained completely calm, explaining, "I just wanted to give you a surprise. Don't you think it's a surprise?"

Lou Yu: "..."

He spoke frankly, "It was a pleasant surprise."

Lou Yu hopes to minimize deaths and property damage.

Lou Quan saw that there was no hidden anger on his face and thought to himself, "My younger brother really does have a good temper."

The surprise was just a pretense; his real intention was to prove he wasn't sure if it would succeed.

These things were only finished at noon. Although the theory makes sense, no one can guarantee that things will go smoothly when they are actually implemented.

Lou Quan didn't want to give them too much hope, lest they be even more disappointed if they failed, so Lou Quan only revealed this new secret weapon when the war was about to begin.

Chapter 102 We're Doing Great

The secret weapon was a huge success as soon as it was used. The entire army, from top to bottom, was extremely excited. They were willing to give their lives to protect the base, but of course, staying alive was the best outcome.

Because they needed to protect Tao Qiu's special ability, the existence of this secret weapon couldn't be known to their spies, so they had to clean up the battlefield before dawn.

As dawn broke, Lou Yu and the others were finally able to go home.

Lou Quan and his adjutant left half an hour early, while Lou Yu and several trusted confidants walked towards the parking area, chatting and laughing.

"Well, in the end, I still have to thank Mr. Tao. If I hadn't eaten the special crops he grew for several months, given my previous physical condition, with killing mutated monsters and staying up all night, I'd probably have a terrible headache by now."

"Who can argue with that? After enlisting, I lived a life of constant uncertainty, barely surviving the mutated monsters. But the aftereffects of various serious injuries and illnesses were truly tormenting. If it weren't for the crops Mr. Tao grew, my old, injured leg would probably be long gone."

"Although we're only in our thirties or forties, our physical condition is almost the same as someone in their fifties or sixties. I feel like this special crop has really made me look a few years younger."

"These special crops are truly amazing. After the strong young men in their teens and twenties in the army ate them, they seemed to have inexhaustible strength during training, and their physiques have become much stronger. Tonight, when I saw those mutated monsters with murderous intent, they were all incredibly brave."

Lou Yu listened to their praise of Tao Qiu's special abilities, and felt happy for his lover, a smile unconsciously creeping onto his face.

When he got home, before he had even parked the car, Tao Qiu and the three children all ran out.

The children pulled him out of the car and carefully examined him from all angles to make sure he wasn't injured before they breathed a sigh of relief.

Lou Yu smiled and said, "Thank you for your concern, my darlings. I wasn't lying to you, was I? I'm back safely."

The kids nodded happily. "We knew Daddy Lou Yu was super awesome!"

Lou Yu looked at Tao Qiu, reached out and hugged him tightly, and Tao Qiu hugged him back tightly.

Neither of them spoke, but the embrace spoke volumes.

Because the poisoned dough was so effective, the entire Yong'an Base survived the spring defense battle with the lowest casualty rate and property loss in its history.

Almost no mutated monster can resist the temptation of the aroma of cabbage. Because the attacking mutated monsters are almost wiped out, this strategy has not been leaked, so the mutated monsters always fall for it.

Lou Quan, who came up with this plan, saw his reputation in the army rise to a new level. He earned the respect and admiration of the soldiers through his own abilities.

Tao Qiu, who successfully grew cabbages, was treated like a god by those in the know. They were so eager to indulge in feudal superstition that they wanted to build a temple and erect a statue in his honor.

He and the researcher who extracted the fragrance were both rewarded with a large sum of money.

Tao Qiu was pleasantly surprised to receive money while lying at home, but she accepted it readily.

The Lou Family's informants have been restricted from moving around for the past month. They realized that Lou Quan had kept this from them so well this time, and won the battle so easily, that he must have used some special means.

But now their power has been severely reduced, and without the cooperation of other factions, investigating the truth is no less difficult than punching a high-level mutated monster to death.

They reported the truth to their superiors. The old folks in the Lou Family also tried to subtly probe Lou Quan, but he kept beating around the Lou Quan and wouldn't tell the truth, which infuriated them.

This time, less firearms and ammunition were used, and there was still stock in the warehouse, so Lou Quan didn't need to worry for the time being that the old man's men would use this as a reason to threaten him.

As for the grain Lou Quan borrowed from the Lou Family before, believe it or not, if Lou Quan says he'll return it to the old man today, will the kids still be unhappy?

The old men only have this one card left, and they're reluctant to use it unless it's absolutely necessary.

After the battle, the people in the base returned to normal life, and men, women, and children all got busy.

The planting area had also started work early, and the seeds that Tao Qiu had given them for testing had been planted.

Lou Quan and several leaders of the planting area knew that Tao Qiu's superpower could accelerate crop growth, so they did not urge him to come to work on time, mainly because they dared not urge him.

However, Tao Qiu was very conscientious. After receiving the news that she was going back to work, she drove her child to and from work every day on time, and she did her job very well.

Whether it's rice, wheat, vegetables, or even fruit, whatever the leaders say they want to produce, he does it without hesitation, and always achieves excellent results.

Tao Qiu is so dedicated not only because he doesn't want to let down the high salary Lou Quan pays him, but also because he still has a batch of crops in the valley that he needs to plant.

He already promised Green Python and the others; he can't go back on his word.

Lou Quan said he hoped to produce a batch of crops ahead of schedule to supply the army, so Tao Qiu hurriedly accelerated the growth of the crops to half maturity before asking Lou Quan for leave and taking her husband and children to her old home in the valley.

To those unaware of the situation, it still appeared as if Lou Yu had gone out alone.

Lou Yu drove the car, Tao Qiu sat in the passenger seat, and the three children were in the back.

The three kids were very excited at the thought of seeing Little Snake, Black Rabbit, and the others soon, and were chattering away in the back seat.

Lou Yu was going out to collect fox materials this time. Tao Qiu asked him, "You've collected so many mutated monster materials, has the base research institute only successfully developed one reagent?"

Lou Yu said, "We only heard about it once. The conditions for the reagent to succeed were extremely demanding, so it's possible that it hasn't been successful since. Perhaps there were successes, but Lou Quan kept them a secret because having the reagent meant that the awakening experiment was about to begin."

Tao Qiu seemed to understand but not quite. "Lou Quan doesn't want to do another awakening experiment?"

"It should be said that he doesn't want to repeat the awakening experiment like last time." Lou Yu's expression was also somewhat solemn. "Last time, they sent out elites, but in the end, only Zhao Tao survived. Lou Quan must be under a lot of psychological burden."