Ren Yuanyang nodded in agreement. "Yes, you’re right. Let’s observe them for a while before deciding anything. First, have Jianghu take the newcomers on a tour of our base and explain the basics. That way they won’t be shocked by everything later."
"Understood!" Lu Jiamei replied with a nod.
"After the tour, bring Tu Chong and the other two here. I want to have a chat with them," Ren Yuanyang continued.
"Yes, sir!" Lu Jiamei rose and walked out.
「Meanwhile」
After a night’s voyage, Wang Jun and his people returned to the Aircraft Carrier Base.
Ji Yizhi was finally able to breathe a sigh of relief seeing Wang Jun and Long Zhan return safely.
"You’re finally back!" Ji Yizhi exclaimed, venting his stress. "I’m not staying at the base alone next time. I don’t care which of you two stays behind, but I’m definitely going out!"
Long Zhan roared with laughter. "Then we’ll just let you go by yourself next time!"
"Fine, I’ll go by myself. It’ll give me a chance to meet this legendary Taoyuan Yang," Ji Yizhi replied nonchalantly.
"You were under a lot of pressure this time, it’s true," Wang Jun said with a smile. "But you won’t have to be from now on. We’ve confirmed that Taoyuan Yang is on our side. As long as we maintain a normal relationship, things between us will be peaceful."
Ji Yizhi nodded.
Wang Jun continued, "There are two things we need to take care of right away. First, we need to determine the size of our cultivation area on the ocean’s surface. We’ll need that figure to order the right amount of dizzy fish grass from Peach Blossom Base. Second, we need to contact the group from River Bird Country and confirm whether the International Seed Bank was saved."
"I’ll handle measuring the area," Long Zhan volunteered, taking on the task. "I’ll leave negotiating with River Bird Country to you two. That’s not my forte."
With that, he left.
Wang Jun and Ji Yizhi shook their heads in resignation.
"Old Wang, if we want to trade for seeds from River Bird Country, we’ll have to offer something they’re interested in," Ji Yizhi said, frowning slightly.
Wang Jun nodded. "True. I imagine food and energy would interest them."
"But our base’s supply of food and energy is also limited. We can’t spare too much for a trade," Ji Yizhi said, shaking his head slightly. "In my opinion, the Evolution Potion is a better option. Since we have a monopoly on it, we can use the minimum number of potions to get the maximum number of seeds."
Wang Jun frowned. "It’s probably not the right time to start distributing the Evolution Potion."
’The Aircraft Carrier Base must maintain its advantage in both the quantity and quality of its Evolvers. If they release the Evolution Potion too early, that advantage would shrink dramatically.’
"Actually, as long as we limit the quantity, a small-scale release wouldn’t be out of the question," Ji Yizhi replied. "Of course, this is something we’ll have to discuss with Peach Blossom Base."
Wang Jun frowned, lost in thought.
Ji Yizhi continued, "Most importantly, only the Evolution Potion is a powerful enough incentive. It’s the only thing that will make them bring out their seeds to trade with us quickly."
Wang Jun nodded.
"On top of that, we have to consider the distance between us and the group from River Bird Country," Ji Yizhi continued his analysis. "If it’s too far, the trade will consume a huge amount of fuel. If the incentive isn’t strong enough, they might just abandon the deal because of the distance."
Wang Jun paused. After hearing Ji Yizhi’s thorough analysis, it seemed they really had no choice but to offer the Evolution Potion.
"Looks like we really do need to talk to Peach Blossom Base," Wang Jun said gravely.
Decisive as ever, Wang Jun immediately sent a message to Ren Yuanyang: "Brother Yang, sorry to bother you again!"
Ren Yuanyang was a bit surprised when he saw the message. ’It’s only been seven or eight hours. Has something gone wrong on Wang Jun’s end?’
Ren Yuanyang initiated a video call. "You’re too polite, Captain Wang. What can I do for you?"
"Here’s the situation," Wang Jun explained. "You’re collecting plant seeds, right? We were thinking of contacting River Bird Country to see if they managed to rescue all the seeds from the International Seed Bank. If they did, you’d be able to purchase most of Blue Star’s plant seeds from them."
Ren Yuanyang’s eyes lit up. "That’s great news! Is there a problem?"
"It is good news, but based on our analysis, we’ll probably have to offer the Evolution Potion to get them interested enough to make the trip..." Wang Jun briefly explained their reasoning.
Ren Yuanyang nodded. "Since you’ve already done the analysis, then just go ahead with it."
"If we’re going to sell the Evolution Potion, we felt we should clear it with you first. And we’d also need to discuss the pricing with you," Wang Jun replied.
Ren Yuanyang paused for a moment, then laughed. "Ah, I see what you mean. You don’t need to discuss it with us. You can set whatever price you see fit. Our own transaction will still use the same exchange rate as before. How much profit you make on your end is all down to your negotiation skills."
Wang Jun was stunned by this response. After a moment, he hurriedly said, "Thank you, Brother Yang!"
’He knew Ren Yuanyang was intentionally letting the Aircraft Carrier Base take the profit.’
"Don’t mention it. If you can get those seeds from River Bird Country, that’s incredibly important for me too," Ren Yuanyang said with a wave of his hand.
"Even so, thank you," Wang Jun said earnestly. "Alright, I know what to do now. I’ll contact you when I have news."
Ren Yuanyang nodded, then another question suddenly occurred to him. "How are your fuel reserves holding up?"
Wang Jun paused, surprised, then immediately replied, "We still have some in stock. If you need any, we can share some with you."
’He assumed Ren Yuanyang was asking because Peach Blossom Base needed a resupply.’
Ren Yuanyang smiled. "You’ve misunderstood. I meant that if *you’re* short on fuel, I could sell some to you."
"Sell some to us?" Wang Jun was stunned. "You have a lot of fuel?"
"More than we can use at the moment," Ren Yuanyang replied.
"More than you can use?" Wang Jun’s face was a mask of shock. "Are you saying... you can produce it?"
Ren Yuanyang just smiled, not answering the question directly. Instead, he said, "Just come to us whenever you need to trade for fuel."
"Alright, I understand." Wang Jun nodded, not pressing the issue. "If we need it, you’ll be the first person I contact."
Ren Yuanyang nodded and ended the video call.
Ji Yizhi, who had been standing by Wang Jun’s side the entire time, was frowning in thought.
"Peach Blossom Base has more fuel than they can use?" Wang Jun was still in disbelief. "Did they find an oil well?"
Ji Yizhi shook his head decisively. "I doubt it. With the sea level having risen this much, the original oil wells are completely inaccessible, and drilling new ones is impossible. I think Peach Blossom Base must be playing to their strengths again."
"What strengths?" Wang Jun asked, confused. ’What kind of advantage would give them an inexhaustible supply of fuel?’
"Their advantage with plants," Ji Yizhi said gravely.
"Their advantage with plants? What does that have to do with fuel?" Wang Jun was still puzzled.
"There are certain oleaginous crops, like the Diesel Tree," Ji Yizhi explained. "If Peach Blossom Base could genetically modify the Diesel Tree, they could get a continuous supply of diesel simply by planting it!"
It dawned on Wang Jun. "I never would have thought of that!"
"However," Ji Yizhi’s brow furrowed, "as far as I know, the oil from these crops needs to be refined before use, and the refining process is quite complex. The return on investment is usually not very high."
"Perhaps their modified version produces oil that can be used without any refining," Wang Jun mused. "The plants from their base can’t be judged by common sense."
Ji Yizhi paused, then nodded in complete agreement. "That Peach Blossom Base is truly something else."
Tu Chong and his group, who were currently touring Peach Blossom Base, were in a similar state of shock.
Walking on the Round Duckweed felt just like walking on solid ground.
After Jianghu’s introduction, Tu Chong, refusing to believe the Duckweed alone could support their weight, reached his hand underneath it, trying to find some hidden support structure.
"There’s really nothing there!" Tu Chong’s eyes went wide.
Jianghu just smiled and continued, "Our entire base is built upon the Banyan Forest and the Duckweed. The Banyan Forest protects us from wind and waves, while the Duckweed provides us with a platform to live on..."
As Jianghu continued his tour, Tu Chong and the others remained in a constant state of shock, until they finally just grew numb to it.
"So, that’s the basic rundown of our base. Any questions?" Jianghu asked, looking at them with a smile.
Tu Chong and the others shook their heads instinctively.
It wasn’t that they had no questions; they just needed time to process everything they had just been told.
"If there are no questions, then Tu Chong, Gao Dian, Aiti, you three come with me. The rest of you can take a break," Jianghu said, calling out the three names and gesturing for them to follow.
The three of them immediately acknowledged and followed him.
"Lord Jiang, is there something you need from us?" Tu Chong asked curiously.

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