Yan Ziqian’s voice soon came through: "Is Ruoruo okay?"
Su Chen was silent for a moment before replying calmly, "She’s fine."
...
「Ten minutes later.」
WHOOSH!
Two large birds, one after the other, flew over Cyan Dragon Ridge. Their backs were laden with luggage of all sizes, and they seemed to be straining slightly as they dove down the slope from the mountain peak, heading straight for the camping supply store building.
Having been contacted beforehand, the vigilant Liao Dahai and his wife weren’t alarmed; they knew their own people were returning.
The first large, cyan-feathered bird landed. A cyan light flowed around its body as it transformed into a tall, slender human figure. The leather straps tied to its back immediately loosened, and three bulging bags dropped to the ground.
"Morning, everyone."
This person was none other than Pang Peng.
His sunny, cheerful face was full of youthful energy.
"Morning!"
Su Chen stepped forward to unload the luggage from the other bird that had landed, a Golden Roc. Unlike the Cyan Bird, which was a transformed Apostle, this was a bona fide Summoned Pet.
The figures of the remaining group members appeared on the mountain peak. With the frost having receded, the slick, wet ground was treacherous for descending, so many simply activated Flying Skill and glided down. Those who couldn’t fly were cast with Light Feather Skill, following unhurriedly from behind.
"Hey there, beautiful Ruoruo. Just waking up?" Pang Peng spotted the lovely figure emerging from the RV and waved a greeting. When he realized it was Su Chen’s vehicle, his expression clearly froze for a second.
"Good morning."
Yan Ruoruo had a simple, elegant look about her. She watched the group rushing over from the distance; their numbers were just as expected.
This commotion also attracted some attention. On the rooftop of a distant inn, at least one person was observing them with binoculars, seemingly confused as to why someone would be moving in at a time like this.
「A few minutes later.」
The group, carrying bags of all sizes, had arrived in front of the camping supply store.
"It’s cold out here. Let’s go inside and talk."
After a brief exchange of pleasantries, Liao Dahai ushered everyone inside.
"Are the others okay?" Su Chen asked.
"The trio from the University of Technology accepted an offer from the Combat Defense Department. They were tempted before, but ultimately didn’t come with us." Yan Ziqian was the first to clear up a major question. It wasn’t that they had died; they were fine.
The reason they were unwilling to come wasn’t complicated. After the battles defending the city and attacking the fungus nest, all the high performers had received an olive branch from the assault squads.
Even Cao Yutang himself, who had voted in favor of accepting Su Chen’s offer, couldn’t help but sigh at the realization that there’s always someone stronger after witnessing the power of both exceptional individuals and systematized corps-level combat.
After the mystique of Su Chen’s strength was somewhat dispelled, he too had thoughts of backing out, his attitude beginning to waver.
Meanwhile, Du Rui and another girl on the team had voted against it from the start, so they were naturally swayed.
Regardless, the Jingcheng University team, with their bonds at max level, didn’t split up over this. They were still willing to stick together.
Or perhaps...
...a certain someone hadn’t entirely given up on the idea of taking Yan Ruoruo and leaving with her.
"Xue Yao also participated in both battles. She left the Jiang University archery team safely afterward. Her family owns a very large hotel in Dongfu City," Pang Peng, ever the detail-oriented one, added.
"Understood." Su Chen nodded.
Standing to the side, Yan Ruoruo’s expression was serene. She remained silent.
"It looks like you all gained quite a lot."
Su Chen scanned the group. Judging by their spirits and energy, everyone had transformed. Besides class changes and promotions, the tempering of battle was a major factor.
"We gave up official positions to come join you," said Yu Ziyuan, a biology major.
During the city siege, their group had coordinated seamlessly to kill two cyborgs and heavily wound another that got away. They also had significant gains in the subsequent victorious expedition, earning quite a few official rewards from the resource exchange for their contributions.
This naturally drew a great deal of attention from the assault corps.
Most of the members from the University of Technology and Jiangnan University who had fought alongside them had accepted official recruitment offers. After Xue Yao went to join her aunt, they were the only ones left to return, feeling a bit lost.
If it weren’t for Yan Ruoruo staying at the campsite, it’s hard to say if their conviction to return would have been shaken.
"We got back so early thanks to the Second Assault Brigade. They happened to have a troop rotation, so we hitched a ride with them early this morning from the Rune building all the way to Cyan Dragon Village," Pang Peng explained.
Going from the south of the city to the east was a truly long journey.
The gas tanks of the stalled fuel-powered cars on the streets had long been siphoned dry. There really weren’t many private vehicles still running. In a way, the assault brigade had certainly done them a favor.
"Hasn’t the campsite been invaded by the Bloodthirsty Fungus?" At this moment, the usually quiet Gong Jun asked curiously.
One unusual thing was how perfectly preserved the buildings here were.
"Yeah, have the fungus-modified people and that insect swarm never visited this place?" Cao Yutang also found it strange.
At this mention, Liao Dahai, who was most qualified to speak on the matter, laughed unabashedly. "You might not believe it, but ever since you all left, this campsite has been completely peaceful. We’ve barely seen any monsters."
Huh...
Hearing this, several people’s gazes simultaneously turned to Su Chen, clearly asking what was going on.
Su Chen said in a calm and casual tone, "Maybe it was scared."
’What kind of answer is that?’
The group looked at each other, a sense of absurdity rising in their hearts.
Although the Bloodthirsty Fungus had indeed shown indignation when its main nest was destroyed, it never seemed to display clear fear or avoidance of a single individual.
After a moment of silence, Yu Ziyuan smiled gracefully. "Then we definitely made the right choice coming back."
Cao Yutang froze for a moment, then couldn’t help but smile wryly to himself. ’Looks like Big Bro is still as unexpectedly powerful as ever.’
...
After some more pleasantries, the camp’s upgrades and renovations began.
The four RVs were all driven out to bask in the sun. Gong Jun used Separation Refining Skill on an abandoned vehicle by the roadside. The metal components were instantly and perfectly separated from it, with useful metals like iron, copper, and aluminum being extracted and condensed into flowing streams.
Under the subsequent application of a Shaping Skill, the metal components were rapidly compressed and extended, forged into a flat, thick steel plate in the blink of an eye.
"We’ll use these to cover the windows at night, completely blocking out phototactic insects and mosquitos," Gong Jun said.
This would definitely improve their living experience significantly.
For the past two days, Su Chen and Liao Dahai had been staying inside their respective RVs. The first floor of the camp building was kept pitch black, not just to save generator fuel, but also to prevent light from shining through the glass windows and attracting unnecessary trouble.
Phototactic insects like the Iron-Eating Insect were no longer a threat to Su Chen, but if they started harassing him, it would be endless.
"We also need to install a track system by the windows."
Gong Jun clearly had a plan: he wanted to make movable iron panels. They could be retracted during the day so as not to block the light, and then easily slid shut at night.
A large, unused solar panel from the first-floor warehouse was effortlessly moved to the rooftop by Su Chen using his Gravity Skill. How to connect it to the building’s existing electrical system without an instruction manual was a topic of discussion for Pang Peng and Cao Yutang.
"There are some more solar panels at the campsite."
Su Chen informed them. Just as the store owner couldn’t take everything, many photovoltaic panels could also be salvaged from the roofs of abandoned RVs at the foot of the mountain.
However, many people, operating under the mindset of "if I can’t take it, nobody else gets it," had inevitably destroyed them.
"Gong Jun just learned a Repair Skill. When we have time, we can have him take a look at the damage," Pang Peng said with a smile.
"There’s definitely a chance," said Cao Yutang, the mechatronics expert. He knew that photovoltaic panels contained a lot of metal components, but the semiconductor silicon wafers would be very difficult to restore.
They would have to investigate the actual situation on-site.
Su Chen didn’t delay either. He went straight to scavenging a host of appliances from the surrounding shops. A large oven, a refrigerator, and a welding machine left behind by the mechatronics department were all brought back by him to the camp’s first floor.
Hard work pays off.
In less than an hour.
Joyful cheers erupted from the rooftop. A solar panel had been successfully connected to the building’s power system.
Given the abundant daylight, the building would be able to power quite a few appliances at night.

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