43: Section 43

Penny smiled and reminded him from the side, “Bringing things back privately is against the rules.”

Jing Yuan shrugged. “It’s so dangerous going down to The Surface, what’s wrong with bringing a few things back? There’s no need to be so strict.”

Jing Yuan then spoke to those behind him: “If you find anything you want to take back later, hand it to me first. After we return to the Lighthouse and pass inspection, I’ll give it back to you.”

By saying this, Jing Yuan was openly covering for them.

Mo Dong quickly stepped forward and said, “Then if I find a Food Printer later, can you help me hide it?”

Jing Yuan glanced at him and said, “Do you think I can hide that thing on my body?”

Penny laughed, “If you really manage to find a Food Printer, the contribution points you’d earn would be enough for you to eat high-grade meals for a long time.”

“Exactly!”

The group chatted quietly while descending deep into the base for exploration.

Surprisingly, they didn't encounter any danger along the way.

This Survival Base was like a barrel buried underground, with 4 nodes from top to bottom that could serve as defensive points in special circumstances.

A large amount of supplies was located behind the lowest node.

Inside were energy, medicine, food reserves, and some production equipment.

Medicine and food had limited shelf lives, and after so many years, much of it was unusable, but they could still salvage some.

As for the energy, its shelf life was long, so it didn't matter. Although some equipment was damaged, it could still be used after being taken back and repaired.

Jing Yuan and the others searched almost the entire interior of the Survival Base, not only finding supplies but also encountering no danger.

Jing Yuan felt strange and contacted Chu Feng above, asking, “Chu Feng, is everything alright up there?”

“Everything is normal.”

“Everything is normal?” Jing Yuan felt that something was off. Could it really be this smooth?

“Yes! How are things down there for you?”

“We found the supplies. You and De Hai bring the other two Dust Citizens down to help us move the supplies, and leave Neil to stand guard alone.”

“Everyone comes down?”

“Yes! Otherwise, we won't be able to move it all!”

Jing Yuan's words startled Chu Feng. Can't move it all? How much is there?

After finishing communication with Chu Feng, Jing Yuan put away his weapon and began moving the supplies out.

Since he was piloting his gravity body, the speed of transport was also much faster.

“We can't believe we obtained these supplies so easily?” Mo Dong and Lin Ge happily moved the supplies.

This time, they would be able to earn quite a few contribution points again.

Penny was also very surprised. “In the two years since I joined the Wasteland Hunters, I've only encountered this situation twice. Either we run into a Phage Beast at the start, or we run into one during the retreat. At the very least, we usually encounter Spinal Gu...”

“Stop, stop, stop! Don't say that, the mission isn't over yet.” If Jing Yuan hadn't been piloting his gravity body, he would have really wanted to go up and cover Penny's mouth.

Some things shouldn't be spoken aloud; sometimes it's just that uncanny—you say it, and it happens.

Bang bang bang!

A burst of gunfire suddenly came from above.

Jing Yuan quickly contacted Chu Feng, “Chu Feng, what happened up there?”

“We ran into a Spinal Gu!”

“Don't panic, I'll come support you right away!”

“No need! Just one!”

“Huh?” Jing Yuan was also surprised.

He looked at Penny, and Penny realized she had been a bit of a jinx.

Suddenly, a rustling sound came from the distance.

Jing Yuan focused his senses and discovered a Spinal Gu appearing in the distance.

Jing Yuan drew his Heavy Pistol and fired a shot.

The Spinal Gu's body instantly burst open.

“Don't be careless. Where there is flesh soil, there are Spinal Gu. Although these little things aren't very strong in attack, they release crimson toxin.”

“Understood.”

“Ah!”

Just as the words fell, a Dust Citizen came running over, yelling, with a Spinal Gu clinging to his body.

Penny was the closest to him, but she hesitated to shoot.

Seeing that the Spinal Gu was about to release crimson toxin, Jing Yuan quickly used his Psychokinesis to control a small flying daggers to fly out, slicing the Spinal Gu's head clean off.

Penny knew it was Jing Yuan's doing, but she didn't know what method he had used.

Jing Yuan quickly said, “Don't be afraid. Even if your shot misses, he can still be saved. But if you let him get infected by the crimson toxin, he's doomed.”

Penny felt guilty; she was indeed worried about accidentally injuring the man. But Jing Yuan was right—when choosing between two evils, pick the lesser one. She should have fired instead of hesitating.

Chapter 44: Support

The sudden appearance of two Spinal Gu did not affect the team's operation.

They encountered Spinal Gu while moving supplies, but Jing Yuan easily dealt with them all.

Because the entire base was shaped like a barrel, there was enough space in the middle of the base for hoisting, which greatly increased the speed of their supply movement.

They quickly moved the supplies up to The Surface.

Even when it was time to evacuate, they did not encounter any Phage Beasts.

This mission was simply too smooth.

“Lighthouse, we have completed the mission and are ready to return. Please prepare for reception!”

“Lighthouse received! Hmm...” The Lighthouse replied as usual, but then the Communicator, without closing the communication channel, said, “Commander-in-Chief, Jing Yuan's team reported mission completion and is ready to return!”

Why be so surprised just because we're returning? Jing Yuan asked curiously, “Are we the first team to return?”

The Command Room did not respond; instead, another voice came through.

“Jing Yuan!”

Jing Yuan suddenly heard someone calling his name over the communication channel, and the voice sounded familiar.

Was it Jing Nan?

“Jing Yuan, do you currently have the spare capacity to go support other teams?”

Jing Yuan found it strange. Jing Nan didn't even ask why he returned so quickly, or if they encountered Phage Beasts. Instead, she immediately asked if he had the capacity to support other teams!

What Jing Yuan could deduce was that the situation for the other teams must be terrible, so much so that Jing Nan desperately needed someone to provide support.

The situation might be so bad that even if Jing Yuan had encountered a Phage Beast, as long as he had any remaining capacity, he would still be required to provide support.

Considering this, Jing Yuan didn't waste words and replied directly, “Yes.”

“Good! I have opened your communication frequency and synchronized the locations of the other teams to you. Choose the nearest one to support.”

“What is the situation with the other teams right now?”

Because communication between groups was blocked during the mission, Jing Yuan couldn't know the situation of the other teams.

“They were attacked by Phage Beasts and are currently surrounded...”

“Stop the vehicle!” Jing Yuan immediately told Mo Dong to stop, and then said, “You guys head back to the Lighthouse first. Something happened to the other teams, I'm going to check it out!”

“Then we'll go! Give me the coordinates!” Mo Dong didn't hesitate and immediately prepared to drive there.

“No! You take the supplies back to the Lighthouse, I'll go alone! According to the rules of the Wasteland Hunters, the priority is bringing the supplies back.”

“How can you go alone!” Penny said worriedly. “I'll go with you!”

Jing Yuan looked at Penny, hesitated for a moment, and then shook his head. “No! I'm going alone.”

After speaking, Jing Yuan went outside. He put on his gravity body alone, activated the gravity body's Flight Device, and flew straight away!

Seeing this, Penny became even more worried: “How much energy will he have left if he flies over like that!”

Penny's concern was not unfounded. The gravity body's energy was limited, and the Flight Device could only provide short bursts of flight.

If he forced long-duration flight, the energy might be completely consumed before even reaching the destination, let alone controlling the gravity body for combat.

Jing Yuan certainly knew this.

However, the reason he dared to do this was twofold: first, the situation was urgent; second, Jing Yuan possessed a trump card that others did not.

After Jing Yuan absorbed the life source essence of that Lizard-type Phage Beast last time, his Psychokinesis greatly improved.

He could now not only control three flying daggers but also lift larger and heavier objects.

He was currently using Psychokinesis to lift the gravity body into the air.