Chapter 106: Return to Base

"Boss Qin!" Ji Shuo came through the back of the crowd and greeted Qin Yu with respect.

Qin Yu nodded. "When did you get back? Where are the others?"

"We returned yesterday. We ran into some of them on the road, so we stayed together. The others are waiting at our old base. I came here to see whether you had come back to the base, Boss Qin."

"I see. All right, then. Let’s go back to the old base first. Tell me how you all have been these past weeks along the way."

"Yes." Ji Shuo nodded, then walked beside Qin Yu and began to recount what had happened over the past month.

From Ji Shuo’s account, Qin Yu learned that they had been treated much the same way as Wang Bing and the others. In the early days, people kept questioning them about where Qin Yu was, but later things settled down considerably. They had helped many people, and all the tasks Qin Yu had assigned them were completed, though a large share of the rewards had been taken by others.

Still, that had been Qin Yu’s intention. She wanted to raise her standing in the base, and handing out supplies directly at a time like this would only arouse suspicion and draw the attention of certain higher-ups. But if she quietly helped others complete tasks, that goal would be much easier to achieve.

Qin Yu smiled and praised Ji Shuo and the others for doing very well. Ji Shuo smiled shyly and said it was all because Qin Yu had made the arrangements so well. Qin Yu gladly accepted the compliment.

Before long, Qin Yu’s group arrived at their former residence. Seeing the eager faces inside the rooms, Qin Yu felt deeply gratified. These were her people, an indispensable part of the great cause she would one day accomplish.

Thinking of this, Qin Yu said loudly, "You’ve all done wonderfully. I’m proud of you."

Everyone looked up at once, nodding excitedly, some so moved they could hardly speak.

Seeing this, Qin Yu smiled and said, "Pack your things and come with me to the villa. There are some matters we need to plan again."

Everyone nodded and quickly gathered their belongings. After all, they had only just returned yesterday, and many of their things had not even been unpacked yet.

Soon, Qin Yu and the others set off in a mighty procession toward the central villa district. When the other people in the base saw them, they all stepped aside very cooperatively and began whispering among themselves.

But Qin Yu’s group paid them no mind. They accepted the praise and criticism with calm faces, and all the while their eyes remained fixed on Qin Yu at the front, filled with trust and reverence.

In scarcely ten minutes, Qin Yu and her group had moved into the villa in grand fashion. Yet because there were so many of them, and because everyone was still exhilarated by the thought of settling in, they did not notice several people stationed near the villa quietly slipping away.

Inside, Qin Yu had everyone tidy up the house, roughly assign the rooms, and let the others rest. Then she called the captains into her room to discuss the road ahead.

"Wang Bing, what do you think about our future?" Qin Yu asked, looking at the oldest among them.

"I think this base is probably the largest one in all of China. If we can secure a favorable position here, then our future life won’t be a concern," Wang Bing said.

"I agree. The key is how we’re supposed to obtain this so-called favorable position," Ji Shuo added.

"We can’t do without manpower, authority, or money. Right now, we only have a few dozen people, which is far from enough. As for authority and money, we’re even further from those," Chen Mo said.

"That’s true. Right now, we can only be considered to be on the outer edge of the base. We haven’t even reached its core. So what should our next step be?" Qin Yu asked.

"I think we should take on more difficult missions. Once our name is truly established, the military will surely begin to take notice. The other independent ability users in the base will also come seeking us out, and then our team will grow. That would solve the manpower problem. As for authority and money, we’ll still have to earn those through our own efforts," Chen Mo said.

"Mm. In that case, rest for a few more days. After that, we’ll split into several squads and start taking high-difficulty missions suited to each team’s strength. As for authority, don’t worry about it for now. We have no way to approach the military yet, so it’s best not to act rashly. And as for the money you mentioned, I still have plenty of supplies here, so there’s no need to worry about that for the time being.

"What I do see is that our team is still too small. We need to find a way to bring some of the scattered ability users in this base over to us."

Everyone nodded at that.

Qin Yu could not think of anything else for the moment, so she said to them, "That’s about it for now. We’ll talk about the rest after I remember it."

"Then, Xiao Yu, you should get some proper rest first. You’ve only just recovered, so don’t overwork yourself," Zhao Meng said with concern.

"All right. Don’t worry about me. I’m fine," Qin Yu replied with a smile.

Zhao Meng glanced at her, then took the others out with her. As for what would happen after they left, Qin Yu said she could already guess. After all, that little one was the type to become muddled with worry.

The others soon left the room. Qin Yu locked the door, lay down on the bed, and slowly relaxed. A few minutes later, she vanished from where she was.

The moment Qin Yu entered the space, a foul stench blasted into her face so fiercely that she nearly gagged herself back out. Pinching her nose, she looked around at the changes in the space.

The space was still that same barren stretch of emptiness, with nothing in it at all. No, that was not quite right. In a place not far from Qin Yu, a black pool had appeared, and the stench in the space was coming from it.

Suppressing her nausea, Qin Yu walked over and looked down into the pool. A strange light shimmered across its surface. Rather than black water, it looked more like black liquid formed by a mass of gaseous smoke condensed together.

Qin Yu knew that these were probably the black fumes she had absorbed before. But hadn’t those been absorbed by Little Blackie? Why was there still so much of it here? And most importantly, why did it smell so awful?

She roared inwardly in frustration, staring at the sizable black pool, and felt her heart grow weary.

At that moment, Little Haze suddenly sprang out from somewhere and nudged Qin Yu with its delicate flower branch. Qin Yu crouched down and looked at the little thing swaying its body, and understanding dawned on her.

She took out her dagger, drew a small cut on her finger, and dripped a few drops of blood onto Little Haze. The little flower shook itself excitedly.

In its heart, it was secretly delighted: it had not come for its master’s blood at all. It had only wanted to tell its master that the man seemed to be waking up soon, and that she should go take a look. It had never expected her to give it blood instead. So exciting. So happy. So thrilled. At this rate, it would not be long before it could evolve.

Qin Yu, of course, had no idea what Little Haze was thinking. She only felt that the little thing was especially excited today. She stroked its petals, smiled, and said nothing more.

Then she stood up and looked around, finally spotting the man in one corner of the space.