Volume One: The Apocalypse Descends Chapter 21: The Future Base, An Unexpected Intimate Encounter

He Wan looked at her son’s disheveled appearance with a mixture of worry and tenderness. She hurried over without hesitation, ignoring the various grimy, sticky fluids covering him, and carefully examined his body.

Xiang Chenguang smiled and said, “Mom, I’m not hurt. It’s just that I killed quite a few of those monstrous insects earlier, so some of their secretions splattered on me.”

But He Wan still checked him thoroughly herself, only letting out a sigh of relief once she was sure he had no injuries.

Xiang Xiaoxiao had been watching her mother’s expression closely; seeing her relax, she too breathed easier. Then she wrinkled her nose and turned away from Xiang Chenguang, as if the smell emanating from him was overwhelming.

Back at home, the first thing Xiang Chenguang did was take a shower.

His body was sticky and uncomfortable from the mixture of various monster secretions and sweat, and the smell was sharply sour.

He spent nearly half an hour in the bathroom, scrubbing every inch of himself meticulously, and emerged feeling refreshed and invigorated.

To make sure he ate lunch promptly, He Wan prepared noodles for the midday meal.

After devouring two large bowls, Xiang Chenguang picked up a chilled cup of mung bean soup and took a sip, feeling the coolness spread through him.

He let out a contented sigh, then asked Xiang Dongliang, who had already finished eating and was in the living room using the rebar Xiang Chenguang had brought back to craft a new weapon for him, “Dad, do you have any promising locations in mind for our new base?”

Xiang Dongliang, who was binding three finished pieces of 20-millimeter diameter threaded steel into a triangular formation with number 6 steel wire, looked up with some puzzlement and asked, “Did something unusual happen on this trip?”

Xiang Chenguang recounted the situation at Jianxin Street, and Xiang Dongliang’s expression immediately grew serious.

He Wan, tidying up the dishes, glanced at their home where they had lived for more than twenty years with a touch of melancholy; this place held so many memories for their family.

Xiang Xiaoxiao was visibly shaken by the scene he described—the countless black ants swarming like a tide and the white skeletons stripped clean—her face turned pale.

Xiang Dongliang said, “I’ve actually been thinking these past couple of days about where would be most suitable for us to move.

“First, the place must have some defensive capability. Then, it needs convenient access to water for daily use, and ideally an independent power supply that doesn’t rely on the electrical grid.

“Lastly, it’s best if there’s farmland nearby. Even if we can’t grow grains immediately, we should be able to cultivate vegetables and fruits.

“And it can’t be too far from us. Given the current situation, moving too far carries too great a risk.”

Combining all these requirements, he actually thought of a suitable place: the county militia training ground, which basically meets all these conditions perfectly.

Moreover, the training camp’s armory holds some firearms and ammunition that might come in handy in emergencies.

Xiang Dongliang’s words reminded Xiang Chenguang that their county militia training camp truly was an ideal base option.

Because of Xiang Dongliang’s work, Xiang Chenguang had been familiar with the militia camp since childhood.

The camp is located on the eastern outskirts of the county seat, not far from the Li River that runs through the town, less than five kilometers from their residential area. The entire camp is surrounded by red brick walls two to three meters high.

The camp covers a considerable area and can accommodate up to 300 militiamen training simultaneously, equipped with a shooting range, drill ground, and other basic training facilities.

Though a militia camp, it is a military facility. When it was first built, they dug a very deep well on the premises, providing an independent water supply system.

There is also a diesel generator to ensure some equipment can keep running if the power supply fails.

A few years ago, the county strongly promoted photovoltaic solar power, and the camp took advantage of this by installing solar panels on the barracks’ roofs, replacing the old diesel generator.

Nearby is a village surrounded by extensive farmland, making the county militia training camp a perfect post-apocalyptic base.

With a clear target and the looming threat of giant marching ants, it’s imperative to prepare early.

In the afternoon, the family busied themselves with their respective tasks.

Xiang Xiaoxiao stood by the living room’s security window, resting her steel ball crossbow on the windowsill as she watched outside, especially the monster spawn points along the concrete path beside the building.

As the saying goes, wielding a deadly weapon awakens a murderous intent; she was eager for a monster to appear so she could test her new weapon.

Xiang Chenguang worked alongside Xiang Dongliang on his new weapon, which could be described as a triangular steel baton.

They arranged three finished pieces of 20-millimeter diameter rebar, each one meter eighty centimeters long, into a triangular shape and tightly bound them together with number 6 steel wire twisted into circular clamps.

He Wan was nearby, cutting an old bedsheet into strips about two finger-widths wide.

Before long, the triangular baton was complete. In addition to three closely spaced steel clamps binding each end of the steel rods, the approximately eighty-centimeter shaft was bound with a steel clamp every two centimeters, with the joints twisted tight by pliers and facing outward.

This section of the baton, serving as the striking end, was covered with a dense array of “steel nails,” greatly increasing its destructive power.

The gripping end had a steel clamp every ten centimeters, with joints hammered flat, then tightly wrapped with the fabric strips He Wan had cut, providing sweat absorption, grip, and palm protection.

After finishing, Xiang Chenguang tested the weapon’s feel in his hands and was very satisfied.

The triangular baton weighed nearly fifteen kilograms, and with Xiang Chenguang’s current physical strength rating of fifteen points, wielding it felt effortless.

Against the low-tier monster insects they had encountered, a single light blow from this weapon would crush any one of them.

Suddenly, the sound of a crossbow being cocked came from nearby, followed by Xiang Xiaoxiao’s triumphant shout: “Got it!”

Xiang Chenguang moved to the windowsill and saw that a spider monster had just spawned at the side of the building. It was immediately struck by a steel ball fired by Xiang Xiaoxiao, who had been waiting patiently.

The steel ball crossbow, with over sixty pounds of draw weight, shot a ten-millimeter diameter steel ball with considerable force, puncturing a hole directly in the spider’s round abdomen.

The attacked spider monster became furious. Hearing Xiang Xiaoxiao’s cheer, it quickly locked onto its target and lunged toward them.

Xiang Xiaoxiao swiftly cocked the crossbow again, but facing the fast-moving spider, she missed.

By then, the spider had climbed outside the security window. Seeing the fierce spider rapidly approaching, Xiang Xiaoxiao instinctively stepped back, bumping right into Xiang Chenguang’s arms.

Xiang Chenguang reached around her, re-cocked the crossbow, adjusted her aim, and steadied the weapon. “Shoot it,” he said.

Hearing the voice so close to her ear, Xiang Xiaoxiao instinctively pulled the trigger. This time, the steel ball pierced straight through the spider’s head.

As the system prompt sounded, Xiang Xiaoxiao finally realized how intimate their posture was at that moment. She hurriedly shoved the crossbow into Xiang Chenguang’s hands, her cheeks flushing bright red, and ran back to her room.