Chapter 88

The official representative paused, "Oh? What are your requirements? Please state them."

Indeed, bases capable of accepting people could be selective, and the officials had no objection to that.

However, they also worried: if they only chose the most powerful Superhumans, what would become of the less capable ones and ordinary people?

Therefore, the officials also stipulated a requirement: bases must limit the ratio of Superhumans to ordinary people they accepted.

It absolutely could not fall below a certain proportion.

The official mused, perhaps Small River Base, considering its overall weaker strength, wanted to recruit more powerful Superhumans?

Just as this thought crossed their mind, Cheng Zhiyu stated, "Superhumans don't need to be exceptionally powerful, but their character must be good. The same applies to ordinary people. If anyone violates the base’s rules after arriving at Small River Base, we reserve the right to expel them."

Small River Base now conducted daily training for Superhumans, which had already yielded significant results. It had been proven that many Superhumans possessed potential that, for various reasons, remained untapped.

Many bases sought only the most outstanding individuals, neglecting to specifically train those with average abilities.

However, trained Superhumans would not be weak.

Cheng Zhiyu didn’t expect them to be extraordinarily strong; with more people, their combined combat strength would be formidable.

Conversely, powerful Superhumans with questionable character could pose problems for the base.

Their base was small, unlike larger ones where powerful Superhumans would think twice before causing trouble. In smaller bases, some powerful Superhumans might become arrogant, increasing the likelihood of conflict.

At its current stage of development, Small River Base needed people who would be absolutely obedient.

The official was initially surprised, then smiled. It seemed that despite his youth, Cheng Zhiyu was very astute.

Given Small River Base’s current scale, prioritizing character was indeed more crucial.

So, the official said, "Alright, all bases will come to select people. You can also send your representatives."

Cheng Zhiyu smiled in agreement. It would be ideal if they could send their own people.

Especially since they had Zhou Min, a human lie detector, ensuring no issues would arise.

Ultimately, it was decided that Small River Base would send people to recruit a thousand individuals. Bases like Chaoyang Base would assist in transporting them, which would also facilitate the exchange of supplies between both parties.

After hanging up, Cheng Zhiyu sent for Zhou Min.

Upon hearing the news, Zhou Min exclaimed, "A field assignment? Excellent, excellent! I’ve been so bored lately, with nothing to do since it snowed."

Cheng Zhiyu instructed, "Pick some people to accompany you."

Zhou Min nodded. His ability was support-oriented, so he needed to select a few strong individuals. Fortunately, the Superhumans had been training well recently.

In the end, Zhou Min chose Sun Yu, Han Ping, Lin Kang, and a Metal Superhuman from the Superhuman team—a woman who could partner with Sun Yu.

Lin Kang was very excited about the field assignment: "Finally, I get to go out and see the world."

Since the apocalypse, whether by choice or circumstance, he had never left Small River Base and was quite curious about the outside world.

Given the tight schedule, they departed that very day after selecting the team.

——

The temporary outpost established by the officials currently housed unaffiliated individuals who had not been accepted by any base.

Most of them huddled together in tents to keep warm.

Nights were the most grueling; in the morning, shaking the person next to them might reveal they had already stiffened.

No one cried; they had grown numb.

In such times, Fire Powers were the most coveted, almost universally sought after.

Hearing that various bases were recruiting, hope finally flickered in everyone's eyes.

"I heard Chaoyang Base, Red Sun, Dongyang... they all have people here," someone said excitedly. "We should hurry and line up. They have limited numbers and will stop once they’ve recruited enough."

"Then we need to hurry!"

"Let’s go, let’s go."

Someone passed a recruitment point and saw the sign that read "Small River Base." They muttered, "What base is this? Never heard of it."

"Who knows? Probably a small base."

"My previous base was small, and it disbanded just a month after I joined."

"Large bases are more reliable. I don’t want to become drifters again."

"But they look well-fed and in good spirits. If they can recruit in this situation, perhaps they are capable, even if we haven't heard of them."

"Maybe... should we go ask?"

So a few people inquired about Small River Base’s size and location. After hearing the answers, they thought: That's not a base; it’s more like a village, right?

They immediately lost interest, turned, and left.

Zhou Min, who had been about to ask questions: "..."

He put down his pen, sighed, picked up his thermos, and took a sip of hot water. "Sigh, not one person has come to us."

Han Ping said, "Don’t worry, people will come eventually."

Zhou Min clicked his tongue. "If we wait any longer, we’ll only get those others passed over."

Lin Kang watched the people and sighed. "The most important thing is their character. At first, they all pick the powerful Superhumans, and some of them clearly look shady just from their eyes."

Zhou Min nodded. Fine, he wasn’t in a hurry.

Sun Yu asked, "Is it time for lunch?"

After getting familiar with these people, she had grown closer to them and wasn’t as resistant to contact as before.

Of course, she still felt disgusted at the sight of men.

Zhou Min, reminded by her, also felt hungry. "Right, let’s eat."

They enthusiastically started preparing lunch. Zhou Min took out meat, vegetables, and steamed buns from the vehicle. "Well, since we’re outside, let’s keep it simple. We’ll stir-fry three dishes."

The recruiter from Chaoyang Base nearby: "..."

He glanced at the cold, hard flatbread he was chewing on, hard as a brick. Just moments ago, many people had been eyeing it hungrily while he ate.

He had been feeling quite smug just moments ago, basking in the envious glances from those around him, thoroughly satisfied.

A Superhuman asked, "If I join Chaoyang Base, will I get to eat steamed buns?"

He rolled his eyes, "This is made from white flour—don’t get your hopes up."

The other person was disappointed, but then they saw Zhou Min and his group cooking up three dishes right then: shredded potatoes with meat, peppers fried with meat, and fried red cabbage.

Why is the cabbage red?

Zhou Min couldn’t wait to take a bite of the red cabbage and stuff it into his mouth. Soon after, he felt warm and unbuttoned his cotton coat, finally freeing himself from the stuffiness of having it buttoned up.

While they were eating, a Superhuman approached and said, "You guys are eating well."

Lin Kang looked up, somewhat wary. Was this person looking for trouble?

Then the Superhuman asked, "If I join your base, will I get to eat this well too?"

Lin Kang breathed a sigh of relief and answered honestly, "We can’t eat meat every day, but there’s plenty of steamed buns. As for vegetables, we get them every now and then."

The Superhuman was immediately interested: "I’ve brought my mom with me. She’s an ordinary person."

Lin Kang asked, "Ordinary people can get enough to eat too, no problem. By the way, what skills does your mom have?"

The Superhuman began to wonder if the people from Small River Base were just bragging. But as Lin Kang spoke, he noticed the others eating without any rush, with no sense of competition at all—clearly, this meal was nothing out of the ordinary for them.

Zhou Min exclaimed, "Damn it, who put ginger in the shredded potatoes?!"

The Superhuman thought: In weather this cold, ginger is pretty rare! And yet this guy is complaining about it!

Lin Kang glanced at the Superhuman, who had been silent for a while. The latter came back to himself and pondered hard: "My mom... my mom can cook."

After saying this, he seemed to realize that being able to cook wasn’t much of a skill and scratched his head awkwardly. But then he saw Zhou Min looking at him excitedly: "Your mom can cook? Is she good at it?"

The Superhuman was so taken aback by his intensity that he took half a step back and said, "Yes, she’s good. Before the apocalypse, my family ran a restaurant, and business was great."

Thanks to his mom’s cooking skills, his family had been doing pretty well before the apocalypse. But after the apocalypse, what good were cooking skills? Nobody could afford proper meals anymore—culinary talent was useless.

As he was thinking this, Zhou Min slapped the table excitedly: "Wow, that’s a highly skilled person! Bring your mom over quickly. Our Small River Base would love to have her."

Before coming, the cafeteria manager had made a point of telling him to recruit a few good cooks. In the past, when everyone struggled to even get enough to eat, taste wasn’t a priority. The cafeteria chefs’ cooking was just okay—not much better than homemade.

But gradually, people would start caring about flavor. The cafeteria manager had foresight: "We also need to handle the job of earning Contribution Points. Think about it—aside from employees, who eats at the cafeteria? It’s not just because they want to save a little; it’s also because the cafeteria food isn’t much better than what they can make themselves. If we hire a few good cooks, how could the cafeteria not earn Contribution Points then?"

Zhou Min took this seriously because he often ate at the cafeteria too, and honestly, the taste was just average.

So now the cafeteria was really needing cooking talent.

After listening, the Superhuman said, "...But my mom is just an ordinary person."

"Ordinary people with skills are also our priority," Zhou Min replied.

For a moment, the Superhuman wondered if Small River Base accepted anyone. But hearing that after joining, they could eat white steamed buns every day, he swallowed hard.

Although he was a Superhuman, at his previous base, he worked his ass off every day. Forget white steamed buns—just getting enough food was hard because he was supporting both himself and his mom. The base had no positions for ordinary people, so he had to provide for two.

His mom always felt like she was weighing him down and had even once tried to take her own life. Many Superhumans’ family members ended up going that route. Luckily, he happened to come home that time and stopped her, crying.

After that, his mom never tried again, but she was never truly happy, always carrying a faint sadness in her eyes.

It bothered the Superhuman deeply, but what could he do?

Now, hearing that this base actually valued his mom, the Superhuman clenched his fist and decided to give it a try—if only for her sake.

If it turned out to be a scam later, he could always leave the base. It wouldn't be the end of the world.

One advantage of joining a small base was that leaving was much easier than with a large base.

Thinking this, the Superhuman said, "Wait here."

With that, he headed toward the cluster of tents not far away. These scattered individuals had no place to live and had been living in tents these past few days.

In such cold weather, tents didn't provide much warmth. His mom, already in poor health, had recently gotten sick from the cold. That was why he was so desperate to join a base.

Any later, and his mom might not survive.

At this thought, his eyes welled up as he reached his family’s tent.

He could feel several pairs of eyes eyeing his tent greedily, but as soon as he returned, those looks quickly withdrew.

These people wanted to steal from his family because, among them, his family was relatively better off—at least they had a quilt.

Though the quilt was dirty and tattered, in such cold weather, it was a highly sought-after item.

He opened a slit in the tent and quickly slipped inside to avoid letting the cold wind dissipate what little warmth was left, though the tent offered barely any protection against the wind.

A middle-aged woman was wrapped in the quilt, her lips slightly bluish. Hearing the noise, she opened her eyes: "Wen'an, you found a base, didn’t you? …Don’t worry about me. If you found a base with decent conditions, just go…"

Ning Wen'an had heard this many times before. He said, "Mom, stop saying that. Just come with me."

Mom Ning was stunned: "Where to?"

Ning Wen'an smiled: "To a new base. They want you to join."

"Don’t lie to me," Mom Ning trembled. "I’m just an ordinary person. Why would they want me?"

Before, when Ning Wen'an went to some bases, they’d say they only wanted him once they heard he had extra baggage. Of course, Ning Wen'an refused.

Mom Ning knew she was holding her son back and had cried privately.

Ning Wen'an packed their things while saying, "It’s true. They heard you’re a good cook and want to hire you. Why would I lie? They didn’t even say they wanted me. If you don’t believe me, come see with your own eyes."

Mom Ning managed a weak smile. She didn’t really believe him, but she nodded anyway.

They didn’t have much to begin with—just a broken bucket with a hole to carry their belongings. The tent was provided by the authorities, and if they joined a base, they’d have to return it.

Ning Wen'an took down the tent and led Mom Ning toward Small River Base’s recruitment area.

Since Mom Ning’s legs were stiff and painful from the cold, she walked very slowly.

Back at Small River Base’s check-in area.

Zhou Min stared at the shredded potatoes with meat, trying to pick out which strands were ginger. But, laughably, he couldn’t tell them apart.

He glared at Han Ping: "Why did you put so much ginger in?"

Han Ping said with a good-natured smile: "It’s cold. Ginger helps ward off the chill."

Lin Kang took a big bite: "I think it tastes great."

Zhou Min: "..."

He sighed, hoping the guy he'd just spoken to wasn't lying and that they could quickly recruit someone who could cook well and get them working right away.

It was strange; Han Ping's cooking skills were inconsistent—he could make complex dishes taste delicious, but his everyday home-style dishes were just average. Sigh. The others' skills weren't even as good as Han Ping's.

But after all, they were out in the open, surrounded by so many people who couldn't afford proper meals. If Han Ping were to cook elaborate dishes, it would be downright cruel—they’d torture everyone with envy.

Although he himself was already tempted.

Zhou Min had already noticed that the people from Chaoyang Base had been frequently glancing their way ever since they started eating.

One of them was even an acquaintance of Zhou Min's—a Superhuman named Zhang Tai, whom he’d met back at Chaoyang Base.

When Small River Base first arrived here, Zhang Tai had come over to mock Zhou Min: "Look at you—you left Chaoyang Base, such a major base, and I thought you were going somewhere better. But instead, you ended up at this... Small River Base? Tsk tsk, never even heard of it."

Zhou Min rolled his eyes and didn’t hold back: "True, Small River Base can’t compare to Chaoyang Base. But from the looks of it, you’re not doing so well either. Look at what you’re wearing—tsk tsk, ah... pitiful."

Zhang Tai was layered in several pieces of clothing, even including some tattered sleeves. Clearly, to keep warm, he’d put on every piece of clothing he owned.

In contrast, Zhou Min was dressed quite decently—a matching set of cotton clothes and cotton shoes. Though simple in style, they clearly looked warm. Zhou Min even had his wrists exposed because he was too warm.

And the other members of Small River Base were all dressed similarly, as if in uniform.

Zhang Tai’s expression immediately soured. He assumed these clothes must have been scraped together by Small River Base using their entire base’s resources, just to put on a show and attract people to join.

So what if they could wear them now? They’d definitely have to hand them back later!

But what Zhang Tai was unwilling to admit was that even if it was just for a few days, he was deeply envious.

Their clothes were not only warm but also clean. Meanwhile, he was bundled up in several crooked layers—not warm at all, plus some parts were dirty and full of holes. Standing next to Zhou Min, he felt utterly ashamed.

He hadn’t felt this way before because everyone dressed like him, and he was actually among the more presentable. He knew one guy whose pants had a huge hole in the seat, with no fabric to patch it, so he just layered up, though it did nothing to hide the hole.

After all, his underwear and outer pants were both so dirty they were the same black color—you couldn’t tell unless you looked closely.

But compared to the well-put-together Small River Base, it seemed like they were the ones from some small, shabby base.

And as if that wasn’t enough, now they were being even more outrageous—five people daring to eat three dishes, a full three dishes! Could they even appreciate such a feast?

Even their team leader was frequently swallowing his saliva.

Now, with a complex and sour expression, Zhang Tai walked over: "Zhou Min, you’ve used up all your supplies for the next few days, haven’t you? Are you that confident you’ll recruit enough people today? Just wait till you go back with no food—then you’ll be stuck."

Zhou Min looked at Zhang Tai with something close to pity and decided not to provoke him further. It was just too pitiful.

He’d already forgotten that he used to live this kind of miserable life himself.

Right after the apocalypse began, things were okay—you could scavenge for supplies everywhere. But now, basically all the available supplies had been picked clean. Plus, the land couldn’t grow ordinary seeds, so food was becoming increasingly rare.

Chaoyang Base was even worse off than when he left, and that was a major base. The smaller bases didn’t need mentioning.

Seeing that Zhou Min wasn’t engaging with him, Zhang Tai was about to say more when Ning Wen'an arrived, supporting his mother.

Zhou Min’s eyes lit up, and he quickly walked to the table and sat down: "Ah, this must be the auntie? What kinds of dishes can you cook, auntie?"

Ning’s mother didn’t expect them to really ask about her cooking. She lowered her head nervously: "I don’t know any fancy cuisines, just some home-style dishes."

"Home-style dishes are great! If you make them well, that’s exactly what we need." Zhou Min hadn’t forgotten that this auntie used to run a restaurant. If she could open a restaurant with home-style dishes, that meant her cooking must be really good.

The cafeteria really needed someone skilled at home-style cooking. They weren’t at the point yet where they could make elaborate dishes every day.

"I... my home-style dishes are delicious." Ning’s mother had already observed Small River Base. Although her son said it was a small base, these people had rosy complexions, dressed better than those from other bases, and cooked generous meals with plenty of oil. They didn’t seem to care at all, which suggested they usually ate quite well.

Ning’s mother used to run a restaurant, so her observation skills were sharp. She quickly assessed the general situation of Small River Base.

Maybe they’d really stumbled upon a lucky find. She tried her best to sell herself.

"Alright, you can give it a try later." Zhou Min saw that the auntie looked sickly and didn’t dare to ask her to cook right away. Better to let her rest.

Anyway, he was a human lie detector—he knew she wasn’t lying.

"Congratulations, you’ve been accepted into our Small River Base." Zhou Min smiled. Sun Yu, standing nearby, heard this and glanced at Ning’s mother before getting up and heading to their truck. Soon, he returned with a bag of mutant cotton and fabric, handing it to Ning’s mother: "Auntie, when you have time, make yourself some clothes."

The base didn’t have many finished products, so giving out ready-made clothes wasn’t an option. Instead, they decided to provide mutant cotton and fabric for new members to make their own.

They needed to get into clothes made from mutant cotton as soon as possible. Otherwise, if someone caught a cold or something before returning, it would be troublesome—they’d need medicine, and Small River Base didn’t have much to spare. Luckily, they could trade for more this time.

Ning’s mother was shocked, her eyes wide as she looked at her dirty hands, not daring to take it: "This is for me?"

"Yes, everyone who joins the base gets some." Sun Yu was quite patient with women. Seeing how nervous Ning’s mother was, he said: "As long as you stay with the base, these are yours. Of course, if you leave, you’ll have to return them."

After all, Small River Base wasn’t a charity. What if someone tricked them into giving supplies and then left?

As it turned out, they were overthinking it. With such generous treatment for new members, who would ever want to leave Small River Base?

They’d rather die in Small River Base!

People around were watching the scene intently, staring fixedly at the mutant cotton and fabric.

Ning’s mother swallowed hard, quickly wiped her hands on her clothes, and carefully took the fabric-wrapped cotton. It felt warm to the touch.

"This... why is it warm? And why is the cotton red?" Ning’s mother instinctively hugged it tighter—it was so warm.

Sun Yu also noticed many people watching and said deliberately: "This is mutant cotton. It generates heat. You don’t need much—just a thin layer stuffed into your clothes will keep you very warm. What we’re wearing is made from this."

Whoosh—it was like water hitting hot oil. Everyone erupted in excitement.

Mutant cotton that generates heat! Even ordinary cotton was already rare enough, but this was mutant cotton! Other bases fought over such supplies, yet Small River Base gave it out upon joining.

Damn, if that’s the case, why join a major base? They might as well go to Small River Base!

People exchanged glances, and those who had been lining up at other bases rushed over to Small River Base.

In an instant, the Small River Base reception point was crowded with people.

Zhou Min was grinning from ear to ear. Although their requirements for Superhumans weren’t high, he didn’t want to settle for leftovers. Since they were offering such good conditions, they could afford to be picky too.

Lin Kang maintained order: "Line up properly! Those who don’t queue won’t be accepted."

The authorities had organized this recruitment effort and naturally sent Superhumans to maintain order, so there was no need to worry about chaos.

Someone tried to cut in line, but Lin Kang asked the official personnel to shoo them away. Those behind saw this and behaved themselves.

Ning Wen'an was still in a daze when Ning’s mother poked her foolish son: "Hurry up, go register!"

Only then did Ning Wen'an snap out of it. Luckily, he was already in front of the reception desk, so he quickly went over to register.