James and the others said in unison, "Thank you, Leader!"
While they ate, they began to whisper among themselves.
"We just tidied up our own living quarters, and the Leader still gave us a reward!"
"Yeah, I feel like as long as we work hard at Peach Blossom Base, life in the future will be wonderful!"
"That’s why we have to hurry up and learn the Dragon Language. That way, when we communicate with the base’s leadership, we won’t always need an interpreter!"
"I’ve been studying it every day! You can pull up the basic Dragon Language tutorial on any of the interactive screens in the cabins!"
"Count me in next time!"
In no time, a craze for learning the Dragon Language swept through Peach Blossom Base.
The two hundred Dragon Country People on the supply ship all became teachers, with the captives respectfully seeking their instruction.
"We were always the ones learning foreign languages. Now, it’s finally their turn to learn ours!"
"Exactly. In this world, strength is what really talks. They’ll only respect you and everything you do if you’re powerful enough!"
"That’s right. The power of Peach Blossom Base is what made them submit. Back at Dawn Base, there were foreigners too, but they never made any effort to learn the Dragon Language. They just had interpreters follow them everywhere!"
"In short, Peach Blossom Base is incredible!"
The night passed quickly. Early the next morning, Si Youqin arrived at the supply ship.
"Today, assign two hundred people to herb production. The rest will go harvest fruit!"
Upon receiving Si Youqin’s order, James immediately made the arrangements.
After several days of expansion, the Banyan Forest’s radius had reached two hundred meters. With the increased planting space, another two hundred people were assigned to herb production.
The herb shortages at the Aircraft Carrier Base and Dawn Base were still severe.
"Leader, are we sending herbs to Dawn Base today as well?" Qin Haonan asked during breakfast.
Ren Yuanyang nodded slightly. "We are. From now on, send them after lunch. They should be able to get back before dinner."
"Got it!" Qin Haonan replied. Then, looking at the rapidly melting blocks of ice nearby, he complained, "It’s just too damn hot!"
Lu Jiamei chimed in, "It is. Leader, would you like to move onto the yacht? It’s inside the Banyan Forest now, so it hardly rocks at all."
As the Banyan Forest expanded, space was naturally left open for the yacht.
The waterways in the newly expanded part of the Banyan Forest were wider, allowing the yacht to move in and out freely.
Once the yacht was inside the Banyan Forest, it was almost completely sheltered from the wind and waves outside.
In the forty-degree-Celsius heat, it was difficult to cool the air even with a constant supply of ice. Ren Yuanyang had been woken up by the heat several times the previous night, and the others were no different.
Ren Yuanyang nodded slightly. "Alright, let’s move onto it. Arrange for a speedboat to be sent to Lin Mu’s location and have the three of them live on it. As for Si Youqin and her group, check with her. See if they’re willing to squeeze onto the yacht or would rather have another speedboat to live on."
"Yes!" Lu Jiamei replied.
After finishing breakfast, she immediately went to find Si Youqin.
"The weather’s been too hot lately, so the Leader is having everyone move onto the yacht or the speedboats. He’ll be moving to the yacht, and he sent me to ask if you all would rather squeeze in there with us or have a separate speedboat to live on."
Si Youqin was momentarily taken aback, then answered decisively, "We’ll all stay on the yacht. That way, it won’t delay the Banyan Forest’s expansion."
"Alright. Get ready, then. We’ll set up some bunks in the yacht’s main lounge to make space for everyone to sleep," Lu Jiamei said, seemingly unsurprised by their decision.
"Okay, I’ll go find Ziyu right now!" Si Youqin said, turning to leave.
Lu Jiamei then had a speedboat sent over to where Lin Mu was.
At that moment, Lin Mu was harvesting crops in one of the cultivation plots.
Seeing the speedboat approach, he straightened up and wiped the sweat from his forehead.
Lu Jiamei hopped off the speedboat and said, "Minister Lin, the weather is too hot. The Leader says the three of you should live on a speedboat! Is that a problem?"
"Of course not!" Lin Mu replied at once with a smile. "Please thank the Leader for his consideration!"
"Okay, we’ll leave this speedboat with you. If you need the interior cabins modified, find Jin Ziyu and the other Gold-Type Evolvers yourself," Lu Jiamei said, pointing to the nearby speedboat.
"Alright, thank you!" Lin Mu replied.
Lu Jiamei waved a hand and turned to leave.
After finishing breakfast, Ren Yuanyang and the others immediately moved their frequently used belongings onto the yacht. Naturally, the office was moved there as well.
The yacht had already been modified by Jin Ziyu. She had built new partition walls and installed bunk beds, managing to fit sleeping quarters for everyone into a very small amount of space.
Each small cubicle had its own central air conditioning vent, and the tops weren’t fully sealed, so it wouldn’t get stuffy. At the same time, everyone could enjoy the refreshing cool air!
"So comfortable. This AC is a lifesaver!" Qin Haonan said, collapsing directly onto the lounge sofa.
Ren Yuanyang shot him a look and said, "If you’re so comfortable, why aren’t you getting your laptop out to study?"
Qin Haonan’s expression immediately soured. He reluctantly pulled out his laptop and began to review his materials.
Ren Yuanyang turned to Xin Wan, who was standing nearby, and instructed her, "Keep an eye on the personnel working outside. Don’t let the intensity get too high, make sure they’re taking measures to prevent heatstroke and cool down, and remind them to shower every day to maintain hygiene."
"Understood!" Xin Wan replied.
The working conditions at Peach Blossom Base were, without a doubt, the best of any base.
Even for those working outdoors, large blocks of ice were placed all around their work areas, and there were various supplies like mung bean soup and iced watermelon available for them to eat as they pleased.
This was the first time James and his group were working inside the Banyan Forest. The day before, they had only been transporting fruit from the oil-producing crops and hadn’t spent an extended period inside the forest.
Today, a portion of them would be working inside the Banyan Forest. Although it was incredibly hot and humid, they didn’t find the work arduous. With delicious fruit to eat their fill, they felt like they could keep going indefinitely!
But every two hours, the overseer would have them return to the supply ship to rest for half an hour. They couldn’t help but marvel—what kind of dream job was this?!
Other bases didn’t have such good conditions. After incubating for two days, the virus finally erupted with full force.
Many bases couldn’t hold out any longer and began pleading for help in the regional channel.
"We’ve had our first deaths! Can anyone spare some medical supplies?!"
"Yeah, it’s totally uncontrollable. All we can do is let it run its course and leave it up to individual luck!"
"We can’t hold on anymore! @Wang Jun, Captain Wang, everyone from our Divine Lamp Base wants to seek refuge with your Aircraft Carrier Base. Is that possible?"
"Captain Wang, us from Hope Base, too!"
Seeing himself tagged in the regional channel, Wang Jun considered for a moment before replying, "You can come, but I can’t guarantee we’ll have medicine to treat all your sick. I can only say that I’ll do my best to help as many people as possible survive."
"Captain Wang, we’re out of fuel. Can you arrange for ships to come pick us up?"
Wang Jun shook his head and replied decisively, "We can’t do that. Our own fuel supply is tight right now. You’ll have to try and hold out on your own."
"Sigh... I guess we’ll just have to tough it out."
"Thankfully, our base has just enough fuel to make it to the Aircraft Carrier Base. Otherwise, we’d just be sitting here waiting to die!"
"Floods, toxins, high temperatures, viruses... One thing after another. It’s like they’re determined not to let us live!"
"If it’s really Aliens doing this, I’m begging them to just give us a quick death. Use a Star Destroyer Cannon and just blow up Blue Star already!"
"It’s obvious these Aliens don’t want to kill us off in one go. They just want to torture us to death slowly!"
"Damn it, just let me get my hands on them! If I do, even if I can’t win, I’ll take them down with me!"
"The guy above me, you’re dreaming. When the power gap is that huge, you don’t even qualify to take them down with you."

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