The Absolute Favorite in the Apocalyptic Rebirth

Not long after the army settled in the village, a broadcast announced that those who didn't bring food could receive steamed buns, while those who did could manage on their own. Of course, they could also choose not to manage, as they would still have to hand over one-third of their food upon entering the base.

Xi Mufeng and his group didn't go to receive any buns. They had stored food in Wei Xian's space. With a month of effort and Lou Dian's guidance, Wei Xian had expanded his one-cubic-meter space to five cubic meters, allowing him to store more items. During this month since the apocalypse began, they had also collected a lot of food and stuffed it into the space. It could be said that Wei Xian's space was mainly used for storing food, while luggage and clothing were kept in the car.

Old Mo and his granddaughter also had some biscuits and other food. Although Grandpa Mo wanted to get some steamed buns, he sighed and decided to forget it.

The house was relatively clean and didn't require much tidying. Xi Mufeng asked Chen Kaiwei, Old Mo, and his granddaughter to help arrange the rooms, while the others started preparing dinner. After a whole day of driving, their bodies were stiff from the cold, and everyone wanted a warm meal.

As Wei Xian retrieved food from his space, Lou Dian also took out two large cabbages, a few cans of meat, and a pack of sausages as a treat for everyone. Wei Xian only needed to take out the rice. Seeing the canned meat and sausages, everyone's eyes lit up, and they looked at Lou Dian as if he were their savior.

Naturally, Lou Dian didn't cook this meal. The three girls took charge, while the boys helped clean up the kitchen. Lin Baobao fetched water for washing, and Wei Xian took out a clean pot from his space and began to wash the rice.

There was no electricity now, but fortunately, there was still half a canister of gas in the kitchen, so they used gas for cooking. The rice was steamed directly in the pot. As for the dishes, they made boiled cabbage with the oil from the canned meat added for flavor. The sausages were cut into sections, marinated with soy sauce, and then steamed on top of the half-cooked rice. The meat from the cans was also steamed directly.

After the meal was ready, they carried it to the living room. Grandpa Mo initially wanted to take his granddaughter upstairs to avoid being a burden, but Lou Ling and Lin Baobao stopped them. Although the others watched with indifference, seeing the two girls' cheerful expressions and Lou Dian's lack of objection, they naturally didn't say anything.

During the meal, seeing the old man's eyes welling up as he wished he could give all his food to his granddaughter, the others suddenly felt a pang of sympathy. Although the apocalypse was cruel, it wasn't an excuse to abandon humanity. Basic human morality still existed. The elderly and children, just because they lacked combat power, shouldn't be denied the right to survive.

This meal was delicious and warmed everyone's hearts.

After dinner, it was already dark. After drawing the curtains, Lou Dian took out a desk lamp and asked Xi Mufeng to charge it.

Xi Mufeng's face remained expressionless as he channeled his lightning ability into the lamp's battery, thinking that Lou Dian must have treated him as a walking power bank.

The weather was cold, and the wind howled outside, creating a sense of pressure and fear of the approaching night.

After some discussion, Xi Mufeng and Lou Dian decided to let the women, elderly, and children rest, while the four men took turns keeping watch. They agreed that Xi Mufeng and Wei Xian would take the first half of the night, while Lou Dian and Chen Kaiwei would take the second half.

While they were discussing, Lin Baobao condensed a basin of water with her ability and called everyone to brush their teeth and wash their faces before going to bed. Seeing the girls' cheerful demeanor and the two children's fondness for them, the men couldn't help but smile.

Lou Dian took out toothbrushes, toothpaste, cups, towels, and handed them to Lou Ling. He rubbed her head and told her to go wash up first. Seeing how Lou Dian always prioritized his sister, the others sighed inwardly. As expected, comparisons were odious. He was indifferent and aloof towards them, yet he treated Lou Ling as if she were the most precious thing in the world. The difference was truly astounding.

In the middle of the night, awakened by a knock on the door, Lou Dian knew it was his and Chen Kaiwei's turn to keep watch.

He gently released the person in his arms, got up cautiously, and tucked the quilt tightly to prevent any cold air from seeping in and chilling her. However, just as he put on his shoes, he realized that the person in the quilt had also sat up, rubbing her sleepy eyes with messy hair.

"Go back to sleep," Lou Dian pressed her back into the quilt.

Lou Ling was fully awake now. Rubbing her eyes, she said, "I'll keep watch with you. I need to learn; I can't always rely on you to protect me."

Seeing her insistence, Lou Dian could only agree.

After they got dressed and went out, Xi Mufeng was a little surprised to see the person following Lou Dian. However, seeing Lou Dian's indifferent expression, he didn't say anything. It wasn't their place to interfere if Lou Dian didn't mind.

Xi Mufeng and Wei Xian went to sleep. The three of them sat in the living room to keep watch. Ignoring Chen Kaiwei beside him, Lou Dian pulled Lou Ling into his arms, tucked her hand into his thick cloak's pocket, and patted her face. "Get some sleep," he said.

Seeing that there was nothing happening, Lou Ling leaned against him and closed her eyes, pretending to sleep.

Chen Kaiwei watched them, speechless. Couldn't they show off their affection somewhere else? He was single!

However, Lou Ling didn't close her eyes for long before she suddenly felt the person holding her tense up. She abruptly opened her eyes.

"Brother…"

Lou Dian patted her back, looked towards the darkness outside the window, and said to Chen Kaiwei, who was looking over because of Lou Ling's voice, "Something's approaching. Be careful."

Shortly after Lou Dian finished speaking, a scream came from the distance. This scream seemed to have opened the curtain of the night, followed by more screams, waking up the entire village. Then came the sound of gunshots, animal howls, and people shouting in terror.

By the time Xi Mufeng and the others rushed out, Lou Dian was already standing by the window, observing the situation in the village. "It's mutant beasts attacking," he said to them.

Hearing it was mutant beasts, everyone's faces turned grim. Although there weren't many animals in the city, there had been cases of domesticated pets mutating after the apocalypse, some even becoming zombified. Xi Mufeng and the others had encountered a zombie dog before. Fortunately, it had just begun to zombify and wasn't very powerful. Still, it took all their strength to kill it and escape. Therefore, they had no good feelings towards zombie animals or mutant beasts.

As they were talking, the iron gate outside was slammed with a loud bang, the sound alone terrifying.

Lou Dian's eyes narrowed. A sharp Tang sword appeared in his hand. He opened the door and went out, looking back at them. "Be careful!"

Soon, the iron gate was knocked open by the mutant beast. What broke in was a local dog, but its size was much larger than an ordinary dog, like a calf, with a powerful physique and incredibly fast speed.

Before everyone could react, Lou Dian's figure had already flashed to the yard. Two figures intertwined in the darkness, indistinguishable. Xi Mufeng condensed lightning in his hand, the light barely illuminating the surroundings. Soon, they discovered another mutant cat the size of a dog eyeing them covetously. Xi Mufeng's lightning struck the mutant cat directly.

The few men with combat abilities all rushed out. Lou Ling, holding a Tang sword, and Lin Baobao guarded the door, while Huang Zhilian and Grandpa Mo each held a child, their teeth clenched tightly.

In a blink of an eye, Lou Dian had already dealt with the mutant dog. The calf-like body crashed to the ground with a heavy thud. Meanwhile, Xi Mufeng and the others were still entangled with the mutant cat, struggling to cope. Lou Dian retreated to the door, not intending to intervene. Seeing this, Xi Mufeng and the others knew they could only rely on themselves. The three of them could only summon their spirits to deal with this mutant cat.

"Senior Xi, use lightning to strike it!"

Lin Baobao shouted. She condensed a ball of water and accurately hit the mutant cat. Her control over her ability was excellent. Xi Mufeng's lightning struck the mutant cat. Because water conducted electricity, it amplified the power of the lightning. The mutant cat was quickly electrocuted, convulsing and falling to the ground. Then, Chen Kaiwei's ice spike pierced its throat.

After the battle ended, Xi Mufeng and the others were exhausted. Huang Zhilian came out of the house, holding Chen Luofeng, and hurriedly helped them back into the house to rest.

As the battle here ended, the fighting outside also came to a close. Soon, several soldiers came over to check on the casualties. This mutant beast attack was unexpected. When the army initially entered the village to investigate, they didn't find any mutant beasts and assumed it was safe. Who knew these mutant beasts would be so cunning, lurking in the woods outside the village and only launching their attack after nightfall? There were five mutant beasts in total, two of which came directly to their location, probably because this house was the first target at the village entrance.

The soldiers were surprised to learn that they had killed two mutant beasts here. After knowing that there were several ability users among them, they understood. However, when they went to examine the corpses of the two mutant beasts, they quickly noticed something different.

The mutant cat was obviously killed by an ability, with burn marks from being struck by lightning. However, the calf-sized mutant dog was killed by a sharp weapon, a single sword thrust through its throat.

"Who killed this dog?" A soldier asked.

Everyone looked at each other and then at Lou Dian. Lou Dian smiled gently. In the light of the flashlight, his voice was gentle and clean. "I killed it, with a sword." He raised the Tang sword, still stained with blood.

The strong are always respected. The soldiers' eyes changed slightly, and one of them quickly said, "You have good skills, sir." Only those with strength could survive in the apocalypse. For such a person, they should show respect and avoid offending him if possible.

After a brief exchange and confirming that no one was injured, the soldiers left, taking the corpses of the two mutant beasts with them. They needed to bring them back to the base for the researchers to examine and see if the meat of mutant beasts was edible. After the apocalypse, food production had ceased, and food had become scarce. They had to find ways to study other plants and animals to see if there were any other food sources for humans, lest humanity truly face extinction.

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