Chapter 397: Chapter 397

Not to mention how happy Lu Ting was about his successful advancement, early the next morning, Gu Jun, having received the news from her son, personally came to visit with gifts.

Sitting obediently beside her mother, An Ning looked up:

The woman before her was approximately 1.7 meters tall, wearing a simple beige short-sleeve paired with pure black straight-leg pants that gave her a sharp, capable appearance. When not speaking, she naturally carried an air of cool elegance.

Undoubtedly, she was a stunning beauty of the bright and striking type.

Yet at this moment, facing the Shen family elders and the family of her sister-in-law beside them, her expression was exceptionally gentle, with even the habitual coldness at the corners of her eyebrows fading significantly.

Following closely behind were Uncle Shen and Shen Muyan, each carrying several bags of items.

Perhaps knowing they had wood-type supernatural abilities here and didn't lack fruits and vegetables, Gu Jun brought mostly dried meats, canned goods, and some nutritional supplements she had obtained earlier while going out with the city's supernatural ability teams.

It seemed this family was currently living quite well.

But that wasn't surprising. Sensing her energy, An Ning roughly estimated that Ms. Gu's supernatural ability was around upper second tier, only slightly weaker than Dad Lu, making her one of the base's notable experts. Being a combat-oriented metal-based supernatural ability user with intelligence, she naturally wouldn't struggle anywhere.

She treated Uncle Shen with less warmth than she showed toward her lively and bright sister-in-law Shen Qing, and An Ning, her clever and adorable niece.

Seeing this couple, the elderly pair exchanged glances and sighed inwardly once again.

However, besides the courtesy visit, Gu Jun brought some rather bad news this time.

"A while ago, when Captain Liao and several others went into the city to search for supplies, we encountered a high-level zombie. It was extremely fast, and its body's durability was exceptionally strong. Ordinary firearms, bullets, even explosives couldn't harm it at all, and even our supernatural abilities..."

"If Captain Liao hadn't had powerful weapons brought back from his military days, plus several of us working together to trap it, we might have..."

Even so, they directly lost two second-tier ability users.

As if recalling some unpleasant experience, Ms. Gu slightly frowned at the dining table, her originally cool and elegant features unconsciously showing some worry.

The key issue was, no one knew how many such zombies currently existed.

But they genuinely didn't have many such weapons, or rather ammunition, left.

Due to the massive radiation earlier, electrical circuit suspensions, and extreme dryness and heat, many known armories and factories had been destroyed, or large numbers of zombies gathered and lingered nearby. What they currently had was obtained earlier when their commander took great risks to retrieve them with considerable effort.

Otherwise, they wouldn't have been able to clear this area so quickly and establish a base.

In short, with Ms. Gu's words, the joyful atmosphere from Lu Ting's advancement that morning quickly dissipated completely.

An Ning, however, had anticipated this. Not to mention the original body's memories, even in the original world, zombies' evolution speed was slightly faster than that of top-tier supernatural ability users.

Moreover, the higher the tier, the clearer the zombies' instincts, or primary consciousness, would become.

This was also one reason why major bases later faced such difficulties.

But in a way, it was fair? Or some kind of balance, An Ning thought to herself. After all, humans, no matter what, did have the advantage in intelligence.

However, for everyone present, this was nothing but terrible news.

The survival environment was far harsher than they had imagined. Even the usually optimistic young lady Shen showed some worry between her eyebrows.

Frowning in thought for a moment, Lu Ting soon spoke, addressing Ms. Gu directly:

"If you need to go out for supplies again, could your team add one more person?"

Of course, that wouldn't be a problem. Although she couldn't discern his exact level, supernatural ability users did have certain senses about each other.

Gu Jun knew that this brother-in-law's ability must be above hers.

Even her sister A-Qing wasn't weak. But what puzzled Ms. Gu most was when she glanced at her niece who was quietly discussing games with Muyan.

Such a young child, yet she couldn't gauge her depth at all.

This family was truly...

After brief consideration, Gu Jun quickly nodded in agreement.

"I'll inform Captain Liao about this later. Don't worry, Captain Liao is a good person - at the very least, no one in the team can criticize his fairness."

Not far away, Shen Qing also hurriedly spoke up:

"I can go too! I have spatial ability and can help carry lots of supplies!"

Their family of five would eventually consume even the most abundant supplies. But more importantly were the crystal cores. With zombies evolving so quickly, relying solely on Ning Ning's father made advancement difficult for their family of three!

As for An Ning, her small attempt to volunteer was promptly suppressed by both parents, including her aunt.

Given her small stature and currently precious wood-type supernatural ability, no one in the base was willing to let her take risks.

Since the apocalypse began, not a single drop of rain had fallen. Never mind planting, even drinking water was problematic. Supplies would eventually run out, and without wood-type ability users for replenishment, what would all these people eat?

Due to her good impression of this aunt, before Gu Jun left, An Ning specifically gave her a large bag of fresh greens and an extra-large watermelon.

Though Ms. Gu's expression at that moment was quite peculiar.

Bending down to gently touch her niece's bun hairstyle, Ms. Gu couldn't help but marvel, "Our Ning Ning is truly amazing!"

Though this watermelon was rather too large.

In the evening, after seeing off Uncle Shen's family, the family of five sat together in the small courtyard shaded by cooling vines, munching on the freshly chilled watermelon.

No matter how difficult things were outside, at least for this moment, they should still enjoy what they could.

Suddenly, as if remembering something, Shen Qing said with a gossipy expression:

"By the way, Ting-ge, do you know who that Captain Liao that sister-in-law mentioned is? What's he like?"

Most importantly: "Is he handsome?"

Shen Qing looked excited and curious. Although Brother Shen tried hard to conceal it, as someone fond of gossip, young lady Shen still noticed his momentary discomfort.

Especially when sister-in-law mentioned that Captain Liao - her brother's expression, tsk!

Immediately guessing her thoughts, Lu Ting spoke helplessly.

"Liao Jun, military background, around thirty years old, not yet married, appearance... well, quite decent..."

With the family in an unfamiliar place, Lu Ting naturally needed to gather various intelligence, which was also why he spoke up today.

Familiarity with Sister-in-law Shen was one aspect, but this Captain Liao did have a good reputation.

But what was with her such enthusiastic interest?

As if thinking of something, Lu Ting subconsciously asked: "Aren't you worried about big brother and sister-in-law?"

After all, the apocalypse destroyed not only order but also previous social classes and other differences. The existence of supernatural ability users was particularly significant. Moreover, with survival as the priority, a partner's ability was crucial for ensuring quality of life.

In their current base, from what they knew, many people had already changed partners...

Unfortunately, Shen Qing's response was both expected and somewhat indifferent:

"What's there to worry about? Sister-in-law is so outstanding, she naturally has the freedom to be pursued, or even start over!"

"Besides, did big brother do particularly well before?"