Hearing Ji Yizhi’s concern, Wang Jun frowned slightly. "Should we have the Liaoyuan’s escort ships turn back and support those three cargo ships?" he suggested.
"I think that’s a good idea!" Long Zhan nodded. "Even though the Xi’an Base has spotted our fleet, they probably wouldn’t dare mess with an aircraft carrier."
"Alright, I’ll have the escort ships turn back to support them immediately!" Ji Yizhi agreed with a nod.
Wang Jun had already assigned three escort ships to protect the seed freighters, but there was a fear that three might not be enough. These seeds were vital, and their loss was not an option.
"You all can sort these things out amongst yourselves. If you need my support, just tell me," Ren Yuanyang spoke up.
"Yes, Master!" Wang Jun and the other two replied in unison.
"Heh heh, the fuel support is plenty. We can handle the rest!" Long Zhan added.
"Alright. Tomorrow, I’ll have Haonan bring you some more meat. Make sure you give Captain Ji a proper welcome," Ren Yuanyang replied.
"Alrighty, thanks, Master!" Long Zhan’s eyes lit up.
Who wouldn’t want to feast on meat and drink their fill?
Alcohol was extremely rare these days. With barely enough grain for food, who would waste it on brewing?
Most of the available alcohol had been salvaged from the undercurrents, and it was in short supply.
Long Zhan was naturally thrilled at the chance to have more meat.
Ji Yizhi also cupped his hands in thanks.
Ren Yuanyang waved his hand dismissively and then went offline.
「Meanwhile」 At the Xi’an Base, Bao Mu received a report from one of his men.
"Sir, we’ve encountered the aircraft carrier from the Aircraft Carrier Base! It’s confirmed to be heading for the Dawn Base!"
Bao Mu narrowed his eyes. "What the hell is the Aircraft Carrier Base playing at? Sending a whole carrier fleet to the Dawn Base... Do they really have that much fuel to spare?"
The adjutant beside him frowned in thought for a moment before speaking. "Doesn’t this also prove that the Dawn Base must be hiding a huge secret? Otherwise, there would be no reason to station an entire carrier fleet there!"
Bao Mu nodded slightly, but his brow furrowed again. "If the Dawn Base is that important, why not just relocate it to the Aircraft Carrier Base? After all, the Dawn Base has moved before!"
The adjutant was taken aback for a second. He couldn’t figure it out either.
"Could there be something else of immense importance around the Dawn Base?" Bao Mu felt a headache coming on.
"Something else important? Fuel? There haven’t been any reports of fuel in that area, and there shouldn’t be many supplies left on the ocean’s surface now." The adjutant wracked his brain but couldn’t make heads or tails of it.
The Xi’an Base’s fast-boat teams had previously searched the area around the Dawn Base for some time while looking for the Peach Blossom Base, so they were quite familiar with those waters.
Suddenly, the adjutant slapped his forehead. "That’s it! An ally!" he exclaimed.
At those words, Bao Mu froze for a moment, then nodded in excitement. "I had a feeling we were overlooking something, but I never would have guessed it was this! If they have an ally, it all makes sense!"
The adjutant agreed. "That would explain why they kept driving off our surveillance boats—they were afraid we’d discover their ally’s location! It also explains why the Dawn Base is shipping supplies to the Aircraft Carrier Base!"
"To be able to provide the Aircraft Carrier Base with supplies... that means their ally must have the ability to produce its own," Bao Mu said, his eyes narrowing.
"Produce supplies?" The adjutant frowned. "Under the current conditions, there shouldn’t be any base capable of mass-producing resources."
"I’m not talking about industrial production!" Bao Mu shook his head.
"Sir, you mean agricultural production? But in this situation, it seems there’s no space for large-scale farming," the adjutant replied.
"Have you forgotten about the Peach Blossom Base, the one we’ve never managed to find?" Bao Mu prompted.
The adjutant faltered, his frown deepening. "Isn’t the Peach Blossom Base just some base that got lucky and harvested a few Evolutionary Plants?"
It wasn’t that he hadn’t considered the Peach Blossom Base as the ally, but based on previous intelligence, they only had a few Evolutionary Plants.
Bao Mu shot him a look and retorted, "And how many Evolutionary Plants has our base found?"
The adjutant froze again, then shook his head. "Not a single one."
"That alone shows how rare Evolutionary Plants are. Yet the Peach Blossom Base managed to get its hands on so many. Does that seem normal to you?" Bao Mu pressed.
Hearing this, the adjutant’s expression changed dramatically. "You mean... the Peach Blossom Base has a way to induce evolution in plants?"
Bao Mu nodded. "Considering they’ve been trading food for all kinds of plants and seeds, that has to be it."
"Th-that’s impossible!" the adjutant said, his face a mask of shock.
"It’s the only explanation for why the Aircraft Carrier Base would send an aircraft carrier all the way out here," Bao Mu continued.
As unbelievable as the adjutant found it, this scenario now seemed the most plausible.
"If that’s true, then the Peach Blossom Base must be somewhere near the Dawn Base," the adjutant said, frowning once more. "But our teams searched those waters for a long time and never saw any other fleets!"
"The Peach Blossom Base must also be a fleet. It’s not a landmass. It’s only natural they’d move around if they knew we were looking for them," Bao Mu replied.
The adjutant nodded slightly. "Sir, do you think they might have already merged?"
"You mean the Dawn Base and the Peach Blossom Base have merged?" Bao Mu asked with a frown.
The adjutant nodded again.
Bao Mu grew pensive. After a long moment, he shook his head. "I doubt it. If they had truly merged, the entire Dawn Base would have relocated to the Aircraft Carrier Base."

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