Xu Qian got in the car and continued her journey.
The Daying Base was quite far, and the drive would take about 4 to 5 hours.
Xu Qian switched on the self-driving mode.
By the time she reached the Daying Base, it was almost dark. The sky was a dull gray, making it difficult to see the road.
The acid rain and tornadoes had turned Province G upside down, including the Daying Base.
The Daying Base was originally made of straw houses, which would collapse under such strong winds.
Now, the entire base was scattered with straw, and while she could see some scattered daily necessities, there were no bodies.
Xu Qian let out a silent sigh of relief. She opened her live map and extended her mental power to cover the entire hillside.
She saw many small green figures halfway up the mountain.
A faint smile touched Xu Qian's lips. They weren't too foolish; they knew to hide in caves.
In truth, she wasn't overly worried. The middle-aged people of the Daying Base had survived in the apocalypse for so long; they must have their own survival skills.
She held her umbrella and slowly walked towards the foot of the mountain.
The mountain was slippery. Even for someone with her good balance, she had to tread carefully, making sure not to fall.
After searching for a long time, Xu Qian finally found a cave.
A sturdy wooden door blocked the entrance.
Xu Qian raised her hand and knocked. "Boss Wei, open the door."
Wei Daying, deep inside the cave, couldn't hear anything.
Xu Qian frowned and continued to knock.
After knocking for a while, just as she was about to smash the door, someone finally responded.
"Who's outside?"
Xu Qian replied impatiently, "Xu Qian."
With a creak, the door opened.
A familiar face appeared, his hair snow-white and his clothes neat – the perennial black shorts and white tank top.
Wei Daying couldn't help but ask, "Xu Qian, why are you here?"
Anyone venturing out in this weather was a remarkable person.
Xu Qian glanced at him and said indifferently, "Let's talk inside."
Wei Daying nodded, moved aside, and the two slowly walked in.
Candles were placed every meter along the stone walls, silent, as if no one was there.
"Where are they?"
"They're inside. This cave existed before the apocalypse, and it's large enough to house everyone from our three villages."
Xu Qian was surprised and asked, "All three bases are here?"
"Yes. Whenever there were natural disasters before, we'd hide here until they passed, then come out."
Xu Qian narrowed her eyes slightly. This was perfect for convincing them all to move to Hope Base.
She cautiously probed, "Boss Wei, have you never thought about moving?"
Wei Daying smiled and shook his head. "This place is good. Why would we move? If the straw houses are gone, we'll build new ones. Even if there's no straw, we can live in the caves."
Xu Qian raised an eyebrow and continued, "If there's no water or electricity, could you still survive?"
Wei Daying paused, then smiled. "How could that happen? As long as we pay enough core crystals, Hope Base will supply us with electricity."
Xu Qian raised an eyebrow and said flatly, "What if? The control is entirely in the hands of Hope Base. If Boss Guan has a bad day and decides not to supply you with power, what will you do?"
As they talked, they walked deeper into the cave.
At the very back was a large water pool. Looking up, hundreds of caves were neatly arranged along the surrounding stone walls.
A candle was lit beside each cave, and a ladder was placed next to each row of caves for people to climb up.
People heard the noise and looked down. Dense clusters of heads emerged from the caves.
It was a spectacular sight.
Xu Qian was astonished. She hadn't expected this remote place to have such a remarkable haven!