Ch 159: The Farmer Ger in the Apocalypse

Chen Jiaxi was indeed incredibly capable. Not only did she successfully maneuver her husband and Qu Weiwei into deputy positions, but she also played the part of someone deeply dissatisfied, publicly complaining that Qu Weiwei had taken away her husband’s authority. She made a great show of distancing herself from Shen Qing’s team and acting as though she resented Qu Weiwei for dividing power.

Yet, despite how good the position seemed, Qu Weiwei wasn’t particularly eager to take it.

Reuniting with her former colleagues from the Third Farm made her more aware than ever of how much Shen Qing had helped her. To expose the hidden corruption, she had spent considerable effort tracking down a few of her injured coworkers. But far more of them had disappeared without a sound, their non-ability-user family members likely gone as well. The ones who had survived mostly had other ability users in their families who had managed to protect them.

Even so, seeing those who had lost limbs was a deeply jarring experience for Qu Weiwei.

“The boss has done so much for me, and now I’m supposed to just walk away for a better job? What kind of person would that make me…? No, I’m not going. I’ll stay in our squad and work myself to the bone for you.” Qu Weiwei made up her mind, clinging to Shen Qing and whining.

She and Tang Wenjie had become a well-coordinated team in combat. And now that the military had started building farms outside the base, the iron cage tactic relied heavily on wood-ability users to weave the final layer of vine barriers for extracting crystal cores. As a result, the value of wood-ability users in the base had skyrocketed. In Shen Qing’s team, two of the wood-ability users recruited from the outer city had already declared their intention to leave, hoping to find better opportunities with the military’s farms.

Shen Qing and the others completely understood and let them go without hesitation. But Qu Weiwei knew that if she left, finding another wood-ability user to team up with Tang Wenjie wouldn’t be easy. “Didn’t we talk about going to the wholesale market in Lan Province and the textile market near Red City? How are you all going to manage without me?”

Shen Qing, on the other hand, had personally experienced the benefits of having powerful allies after becoming friends with Lin Ning. Though he had originally befriended Lin Ning simply to experience genuine friendship, Lin Ning’s status had brought him far more security than the county registrar and Clerk Yang ever had. And having his own people in military leadership was far better than relying on outsiders. So he actually supported Qu Weiwei taking the military position.

Besides, “The military is renting out those ready-made iron cages on wheels now, aren’t they? That means Xiao Tang won’t have to manually form and control them anymore. We can just build our own version, and instead of vine barriers, Xiao Tang can use his metal ability to create solid metal walls.”

“Actually, we wouldn’t even need universal wheels,” Shen Qing added, struck by inspiration from the military’s design. “We can just weld the cage directly onto a vehicle. That way, no one has to push it—it moves with the car. Wouldn’t that be even more convenient?”

With Tang Wenjie’s metal ability, they could create even more intricate structures. And since they had storage space, they could keep these oddly shaped, impractical vehicles tucked away until needed—something other squads couldn’t do.

“Besides,” Shen Qing continued after some thought, “if you take this job, I have a feeling the military will find an excuse to recruit Xiao Tang soon, too.”

Chen Jiaxi was incredibly skilled, but the position at the Third Farm that was being offered to Qu Weiwei wasn’t low-ranking at all. Her husband was one thing—he had been a top professional even before the apocalypse and had served as a small leader on the city walls after it began, proving his management ability. But Qu Weiwei? She was an inexperienced university student being parachuted into a high-level role. If it were just a compensation package for victims, even with Chen Jiaxi pulling strings, it would be unlikely for her to get such a significant position.

Shen Qing suspected that the military had already taken an interest in Tang Wenjie and Qu Weiwei’s abilities. Their powers weren’t typical metal and wood abilities—they were rare and highly useful. The military had already attempted to “borrow” them multiple times, but that wasn’t enough. They wanted to poach them entirely.

But Shen Qing was happy to let them be “poached.” What ally gained later in life could be more reliable than having your own people rise into power?

“If that happens,” Shen Qing teased, “and you’re working on the inside while we’re on the outside, do we even need to bother with missions anymore? We’ll basically have free rein at the base.”

With Shen Qing putting it that way, Qu Weiwei finally, albeit reluctantly, agreed. She truly didn’t want to leave her familiar and comfortable squad to start over in a new environment. And she had no desire to change jobs either—where else would she find a team as comfortable and well-paid as Shen Qing’s? But if it meant becoming a stronger ally for Shen Qing, she was willing to push herself and take on the challenge.

“Fine… But even if I take the job, I’m still living in our villa. I’m still part of our squad, and you’re not allowed to kick me out! QAQ”

“We wouldn’t do that,” Shen Qing reassured her. “You’ll always be part of our squad. This is your home. We’re family.”

Qu Weiwei was so touched she nearly burst into tears. Finally, she agreed to the military’s offer, but she pushed back her reporting date as far as possible. In the meantime, she went on another mission with Shen Qing’s team—a sort of farewell trip before her job transfer.

Since long-distance missions were out of the question, they settled on Red City’s local textile market. They kept the group small—only four of them. By now, both Qu Weiwei and Tang Wenjie had advanced to mid-to-high levels in their abilities, so they felt confident enough to handle the mission themselves.

Rainbow City’s textile market was the largest fabric wholesale hub in the province. The first floor and surrounding shops mostly sold curtains, with a few vendors offering fabric scraps. The upper floors housed full bolts of fabric—everything from suit wool and cotton to silk, chiffon, and brocade. The selection was vast.

Shen Qing had been eyeing this market for a long time. In ancient times, fabric was as good as currency. But modern textiles were vastly different from those of the past. The rough linen and hemp clothes worn by commoners in the past were uncomfortable, stiff, and scratchy. Wealthier families could afford finer cotton undergarments, but those without the means simply endured the discomfort until their clothing softened with wear.

Silk and brocade in ancient times also paled in comparison to modern textiles. Weaving, dyeing, and printing techniques had been far less advanced, so silk would fray after just a few washes, and colors would fade easily. Wealthy families often discarded garments after wearing them only a handful of times.

By contrast, modern silk and brocade were incomparably superior in durability and vibrancy. They could even be tossed into a washing machine without falling apart—at worst, a few strands might snag, but handwashing would keep them pristine for years. Shen Qing wanted to stock up on fabrics to store in his space. Whether for his own use or as gifts, they would be invaluable in the future.

To reassure Qu Weiwei, they welded an iron cage onto a jeep for this mission. The frame was welded from the base of the car, with the windows set a meter away from the cage’s edges. This way, they could attack from inside the vehicle, using abilities or crossbows to take down zombies without stepping out.

Once the zombies were eliminated, Tang Wenjie could use his metal ability to enclose the bodies in a metal wall, creating a safe area for them to exit and extract crystal cores.

“This part should work with earth-ability users, too,” Shen Qing mused. “They could just build an earthen wall instead of using metal—it would serve the same purpose.”

Qu Weiwei rubbed her nose. “Looks like I’m really not that necessary anymore.” But at the same time, she felt reassured that the squad would manage just fine even after she left.

Perhaps, she thought, no one in this world was truly irreplaceable. There was no such thing as a banquet that never ended.

The trip started off relatively smoothly. Shen Qing’s team adhered to their usual cautious strategy, preferring to take more time to ensure everyone’s safety. However, they hadn’t expected to encounter a mutated zombie on the top floor—one that appeared to have wind-type abilities, capable of long-range attacks.

Their iron cage could not completely block such an attack. Caught off guard, Shen Qing’s arm was slashed by a wind blade, leaving a ten-centimeter-long gash. Fortunately, it wasn’t too deep.

Luckily, their team was large, their abilities were strong, and they had plenty of weapons. The regular zombies on this floor had already been cleared, leaving only the mutated one. With a barrage of abilities and bullets, they soon turned the creature into a sieve.

Song Kaiji, pale with fright, held onto Shen Qing’s arm. “How could this happen? Why would the zombie target you?”

“?” Qu Weiwei looked confused. “Do zombies even choose their targets? Don’t they attack randomly?”

Song Kaiji pressed his lips together, saying nothing.

Shen Qing understood what he meant and reassured him, “It was probably just my positioning. The zombie randomly flung a wind blade at us, and I was just unlucky enough to be in its path.” He recalled the scene—Qu Weiwei had originally been standing in front of him. When they realized the zombie had long-range attacks, she had stepped forward and quickly wove a vine wall to block it. That left him exposed. Most of the wind blades had been intercepted by the vines, and only a small portion slipped through, causing his shallow wound.

He was fairly certain the zombie had originally aimed at Qu Weiwei. But since she had moved, and he happened to be right behind her, he had taken the hit instead. “It was just a coincidence.”

“Enough talking, hurry up and bandage him.” Qu Weiwei urged, “Blood attracts zombies the most.”

The last time they had encountered a metal-type zombie, there had been a nearby mutated plant that worked in tandem with it. Qu Weiwei worried that something similar might be lurking around now, drawn by Shen Qing’s blood. She carefully scouted the area for a long time before confirming there were no abnormalities and proceeded to extract the crystal core from the mutated zombie.

The core was noticeably larger than the metal-type core she had absorbed before. Its color was transparent. Qu Weiwei wiped off the bloodstains and examined it under the light. “Is this a wind-type core?”

Before she could finish speaking, a gust of wind suddenly swept toward her. Instinctively, she lashed out with vines to shield herself and rolled across the ground, ending up near Song Kaiji. She tossed the crystal core to him. “Take it!”

Song Kaiji immediately secured it, while the rest of the team raised their defenses and warily turned their eyes to where Qu Weiwei had been standing.

A missed strike. Failing to snatch the crystal core, a parrot—about the size of a rooster—screamed furiously, “Give it to me! Give it to me!”

A talking, mutated animal. The sight was more than a little eerie.

“It’s surprisingly intelligent,” Tang Wenjie noted. “Despite Boss bleeding, it didn’t prioritize attacking him. Instead, it went straight for the crystal core in Weiwei’s hand.” He paused. “Could it be that every mutated zombie has some kind of accompanying creature? But it didn’t come out to help the zombie while we were fighting.”

Unlike the plant they had encountered last time. Did that mean companion creatures didn’t necessarily cooperate with zombies? Could it be that they, too, coveted the crystal cores inside the mutated zombies? If mutated plants and animals were developing intelligence while zombies were evolving long-range attacks, then humanity was in deep trouble.

Seeing that the core had disappeared into Song Kaiji’s hands, the parrot’s eyes turned blood-red. It shrieked in rage and dove at them. “Give it to me! Die!”

A flash of inspiration struck Shen Qing. He swiftly pulled a jug of oil from his storage space and doused the parrot with it. Then, he grabbed a blowtorch—the kind used for caramelizing crème brûlée—and blasted the bird with a jet of flame.

Instantly, the parrot was engulfed in fire, turning into a massive fireball.

Tang Wenjie quickly conjured a metal net to trap the bird. It slammed into the bars and fell straight to the ground, screeching as it burned. The whole area was soon filled with the unmistakable scent of roasted chicken.

This was different from a fire-ability attack. Since the parrot had been soaked in oil, every feather was saturated, ensuring the flames couldn’t be extinguished even if it rolled or flapped its wings.

The others: “……”

Unbelievable.

Who would have thought of that?!

Their boss really had an unparalleled talent for hunting! Tang Wenjie even suggested, “We should equip the fire-ability users in the outer city squads with small oil bottles. It’d be incredibly useful against mutated animals or hostile survivors.”

Meanwhile, Qu Weiwei was focused on something else. She sniffed the air, eyes shining. “It smells amazing. Can we eat it?”

Generally, mutated animals were inedible, but with all that oil, this one smelled especially delicious!

Once the flames finally died down, Qu Weiwei eagerly volunteered to dig out the crystal core and even snuck a small bite.

Ugh—

Utter disappointment.

The crystal core from the parrot’s brain was about the same size as an ordinary zombie core. However, its color had a tinge of red mixed into green, closely resembling the color of its feathers.

“What type is this?” The group huddled together, examining the two cores. This time, Qu Weiwei opted out of absorbing a core—she had already absorbed one from a mutated zombie before and had fully transformed into a mutated wood-type ability user. She figured she had no room for further evolution. Instead, Tang Wenjie and Song Kaiji could give it a try—especially Song Kaiji, who had been stuck at his current level for a long time. It was about time he advanced.

However, Qu Weiwei added, “I suggest you guys get into the right state before trying.”

She had a hunch. When she absorbed her core last time, she had been in an extreme state of exhaustion. Whether it was due to her weakened condition or something else, she had felt a looming sense of zombification, surviving only through sheer willpower. Maybe if she had been in better shape, the risk wouldn’t have been as high.

Hearing her words, Song Kaiji and Tang Wenjie became even more cautious. They had been fighting the entire morning and were already quite fatigued. So, after sealing off the top floor’s passage and carefully inspecting their surroundings, they sat down to eat and rest.

Eventually, they decided that Tang Wenjie would absorb the parrot’s crystal core, while Song Kaiji would take in the mutated zombie’s core. To be safe, they would absorb them one at a time so the other could assist if anything went wrong.

Thinking about this, Tang Wenjie looked down at the crystal core in his palm.

If only Qi Zhan were here. If something went wrong, Qi Zhan could help him regulate the energy.

But Tang Wenjie quickly shook his head with a smile. He hadn’t been in contact with Qi Zhan for a long time now. And even if they were still on speaking terms, without any benefit involved, why would Qi Zhan accompany him on a mission?

That person, huh…

He glanced at the crystal core again and finally said, “I’ll wait until we get back to the base to absorb it.”

The others were curious but didn’t press him. Maybe Tang Wenjie was just extra cautious?

Song Kaiji, after fully adjusting his state, proceeded to absorb the crystal core. As expected, his process was much smoother than Qu Weiwei’s—he didn’t feel any zombification at all. The absorption went seamlessly, and his ability directly leveled up.

When he opened his eyes, a faint blue gleam flashed across them. With a casual flick of his wrist, he released a blade of energy, slicing through the metal cage that Tang Wenjie had just crafted.

Tang Wenjie: “…Couldn’t you have aimed at something else?”

It seemed that the zombie had truly been wind-type. The blade Song Kaiji conjured had properties resembling both a spatial blade and a wind blade—some sort of hybrid ability. It appeared to be more powerful than a standard spatial or wind blade.

After testing it out a few more times, Song Kaiji joked, “Why don’t we call it the Wind Rift Blade?”

“Sounds like you’re living a pretty comfortable life,” Qu Weiwei quipped.

Then, a sudden idea flashed in Song Kaiji’s mind. He turned and scooped up Shen Qing. In the next instant, the two of them reappeared ten meters away.

“It worked!” Song Kaiji was more thrilled about this than his long-range attack—he could finally teleport with another person. That meant the next time they encountered a real danger—especially in a fight against humans—he could grab his teammates and escape.

A coward’s delight.

Although there had been some risks, the mission was ultimately a great success. However, on their way back, they unexpectedly encountered another mutated zombie.

This one also had long-range abilities—clearly fire-type—but it was noticeably weaker than the one they had fought at the textile market. They searched for a long time but didn’t find any accompanying mutated animals or plants.

Shen Qing and the others speculated that perhaps once a zombie mutated, it attracted nearby mutated plants or animals—either as competitors for the crystal core or as potential allies. This particular zombie, however, seemed to have only recently evolved into a mutant, meaning no creatures had discovered it yet.

However, encountering two mutated zombies in a single mission was far from good news. The team felt a heavy sense of unease. The base had finally developed the iron cage system to protect most zombie hunters, but if zombies started evolving long-range attacks on a large scale, this strategy would become obsolete. Even behind the cage, ability users could still be hit, and the casualty rate would inevitably rise again.

They reported their findings to Shao Nan. The military had actually noticed similar trends, but what could they do? Biological evolution—or in this case, zombie evolution—was inevitable. Just as humanity had been powerless when the initial outbreak occurred, they were equally powerless to stop zombies from evolving. The only solution was to strengthen defenses and warn weaker ability squads not to overestimate themselves by venturing too far.

Qu Weiwei kept delaying and delaying, but eventually, the day came when she had no choice but to report to the Third Farm. Returning to the farm, even though her position had changed, her mood had not improved. Seeing the same mid-level staff who had once oppressed her now grinning at her ingratiatingly brought her no joy.

She really hoped Shen Qing’s prediction was correct—that the military only saw the Third Farm as a stepping stone and would eventually promote her elsewhere. She had no desire to stay in this place filled with bad memories!

Upon arrival, someone led her to her office. Her new accommodations were quite luxurious—her office was at least fifty square meters, spacious and well-lit, furnished with classic mahogany desks, chairs, a sofa, and even a full tea set. Clearly, some high-ranking official had been removed, and she had inherited their office.

Behind the main office was a small private room with a bed and a bathroom for resting.

“Deputy Director Qu, the director is out inspecting the farm. Deputy Director Wang’s office is right next door. He and his wife are both in at the moment—would you like to go over and introduce yourself?” The staff member leading her offered a polite suggestion. It was either a reminder or a subtle attempt to put her in her place, making her seem subordinate to Deputy Director Wang as soon as she stepped foot in the farm.

A freshly graduated university student might not understand the workplace politics at play, but Qu Weiwei had a simple solution—violence. Since Wang’s deputy position belonged to Chen Jiaxi’s husband, and since Chen Jiaxi was playing the part of a distant acquaintance, Qu Weiwei decided to go along with it. She snorted coldly. “Why should I go greet him? The director is one thing—I’ll report to him when he’s back.”

She wasn’t entirely sure what benefit there was in pretending to be unfamiliar with Chen Jiaxi, but Chen Jiaxi was smarter than her, so she figured it was best to follow her lead.

The staff member immediately backpedaled, smiling awkwardly. “You’re right. Perhaps it would be best for the director to make the introductions when he returns.”

Qu Weiwei gave a dismissive nod and sat at her desk, pretending to examine the documents piled on it. In reality, she couldn’t understand most of them.

Help! I only know how to make plants grow, fight, and weave vines! Why am I being put in charge of management?!

Her head ached. Now that Song Kaiji could teleport with others, could she ask him to sneak her to Chen Jiaxi’s place at night so Jiaxi could teach her what to do?

However, before she had the chance to seek out Wang’s office, someone from next door came looking for her first.

Outside the door stood not only Chen Jiaxi and her husband but also a stranger. Since there was an outsider present, Qu Weiwei did her part and acted like she and Chen Jiaxi weren’t familiar at all, regarding them with suspicion and wariness. “What do you want?”

The unfamiliar man flashed a warm smile and strode into her office as if he owned the place. “So this is Deputy Director Qu? Truly impressive—young and capable. I’ve heard the military holds you in high regard. I hope to rely on you in the future.”

Qu Weiwei glanced at Chen Jiaxi out of the corner of her eye but noticed that Chen Jiaxi didn’t even dare to raise an eyebrow. The only thing she did was subtly signal her wariness toward the man.

Hopefully, Qu Weiwei wasn’t misinterpreting it.

Still, Chen Jiaxi’s reaction was odd. Qu Weiwei became even more alert, deciding to be extra cautious around this man. She no longer looked at Chen Jiaxi and focused entirely on him.

The stranger casually strolled around her office as if inspecting the place, eventually stopping by the window. Looking outside, he watched as a few distant figures slowly disappeared from view, moving further away from the farm.

They were Shen Qing’s squad, who had escorted her here with the same reluctant energy as parents sending their child off to kindergarten.

“Deputy Director Qu has a great relationship with her former teammates. I hear it was thanks to them that you became the only wood-ability user to fully recover from the mutant willow outbreak, without any lasting injuries.”

On the surface, he was chatting about Qu Weiwei’s past, but in reality, he was fishing for information about Shen Qing’s squad.

Shen Qing had secrets. Qu Weiwei didn’t know what they were, but she clearly remembered the day he took her in, warning that anyone in his team had to keep their mouths shut. She had kept that in mind ever since.

Frowning, she immediately put on a temperamental act. She didn’t know who this man was, but she instinctively disliked him. “Hey, who the hell are you? Did I invite you in? You just waltz in here, rambling on and on like it’s your place. Do you have any manners?”

Despite being scolded, the man’s expression didn’t change. Instead, he smiled apologetically and extended his hand in greeting. “My apologies for being so abrupt. Let me introduce myself—I’m Feng Hao, a biomedical engineer from the research institute’s vaccine research department.”

◦°˚(*❛‿❛)/˚°◦

Thandar: Oh no, did they get any info that Shen Qing is prone to zombies? This isn’t good.