CHAPTER 574: CHAPTER 574: HELP

Su Jiyai paced a little. "We could... bring more animals from the other dimension. Breed them here."

Qin Feng crossed his arms. "That’s dangerous. If one escapes..."

"I know," she interrupted, "but I have an idea. We’ll go back there and see how many are left. If there’s enough, we can hunt them first. Then... maybe bring a few here under control."

Qin Feng thought for a moment, then finally nodded. "Alright. Let’s go now before the next battle drains the base’s supplies completely."

The air shimmered as Su Jiyai opened the portal to the beast-filled dimension. The moment they stepped through, Qin Feng froze.

"...Whoa," he said, staring at the mountain ahead.

The slopes were covered with creatures. Not just a few, hundreds. Some were grazing lazily, others were drinking from streams, and many were fighting each other for space.

Su Jiyai’s jaw dropped. "This is... way more than before. The reproduction potion... it actually worked too well."

Qin Feng gave her a sideways glance. "You mean you didn’t expect this?"

"I thought it would double the numbers," she admitted, "not turn the whole mountain into an animal festival."

A herd of large, tusked beasts ran past them, shaking the ground.

Qin Feng took a deep breath. "If we leave them like this, they’ll eat everything here... and then go looking for more."

"That means they could enter the rivers," Su Jiyai said grimly. "And from there... spread to other nations."

They looked at each other and nodded.

"Let’s start hunting," Qin Feng said, pulling out his weapon.

.......................

For the next several hours, the air was filled with the sound of weapons, animal cries, and splashing streams. Su Jiyai moved quickly, striking down mutated beasts one after another.

"Behind you!" Qin Feng shouted, leaping forward to slash a snake-like creature with glowing scales.

Su Jiyai dodged and grinned. "Thanks. Your reflexes are better today."

"Maybe I should eat more of your meat dishes," he teased, before sending a flying kick into another beast.

They worked in sync, sometimes barely needing to speak as they cleared wave after wave of creatures.

By midday, they had already filled several massive storage containers with meat. But when they looked at the mountain again, it still seemed full.

"This is... endless," Qin Feng muttered.

Su Jiyai wiped her forehead. "No, it’s just... crowded. We’ll make a big dent if we keep going."

Hours later, the sun in that dimension dipped lower, casting a golden glow on the valley.

Qin Feng finally stopped and leaned on his weapon. "Jiyai... look at this."

She walked over and stared. They had gathered a staggering amount, towering piles of carefully stored meat, weighing in at over 2 million kilograms.

"Two million," she whispered in disbelief. "That’s enough to feed the base for months."

Qin Feng let out a low whistle. "And we didn’t even clear the whole mountain."

Su Jiyai’s eyes scanned the still-moving herds. "There’s so much left... but this is enough for now. If we take all of it at once, we won’t have space to store it."

They opened the portal and stepped back into their own dimension, hauling the massive supply of meat with them. The smell of fresh beast meat instantly made a few soldiers at the gate stop and stare.

"Is that... all from today?" one of them asked, wide-eyed.

Qin Feng nodded. "And this is just the first trip."

They brought the meat straight to the processing factory, where dozens of workers, most of them disabled veterans, were ready.

One man with a missing leg saluted them. "Boss Su, this is perfect. We’ll start preparing it right away."

Su Jiyai smiled warmly. "Good. Remember, keep the quality high. The fighters are trusting us."

"Yes, ma’am," another worker said, already setting up cutting tables and cooking stations.

The sound of knives chopping and pans sizzling filled the air as the meat began its transformation into the magical dishes that had become the pride of the base.

Later that evening, Su Jiyai and Qin Feng finally returned to their apartment. The sun was setting outside, painting the sky in soft orange and purple.

Qin Feng flopped down on the couch. "I don’t think I’ve worked this hard in months."

Su Jiyai sat beside him, leaning back. "It was worth it. With this much meat, we can keep the fighters supplied for a long time."

He glanced at her with a faint smile. "You know... you’re turning into more than just a leader. You’re becoming the person holding this base together."

She chuckled softly. "I’m just making sure we survive. That’s all."

Qin Feng reached over, taking her hand. "No. You’re doing more than that. You’re giving people hope."

For a moment, they just sat there in silence, listening to the faint hum of the base outside.

Then Su Jiyai said quietly,

"I want you to take over this job from now on. Take Xi Ping with you and make sure to hunt on a daily basis."

Qin Feng nodded.

..................

Cedar Base.

As the soldiers looked at those zombies that were on the verge of breaking the wall, they worriedly told their General about it.

One young soldier held his rifle tight, sweat running down his forehead. He shouted, "Captain! The wall can’t hold for long! These Striker-class zombies... they’re too fast!"

The General rushed back and reported everything to Leader Shi. Leader Shi listened, his jaw tight, his face turning grim as stone.

Han Zhu stood near him, waiting. Leader Shi finally asked, "Han Zhu, what should we do?"

Han Zhu hesitated. His lips trembled as he answered slowly, "Leader... if this goes on, we will fall. I think... it is better if we ask for help from other bases."

Leader Shi shook his head right away, his face pale. "Impossible. Since Admiral Ru had vanished, the alliance did not respond. They are afraid. They think if they help us, the zombies will target them next. We are on our own."

Han Zhu clenched his fists. He bit his lip, then asked carefully, "Then... have we tried to ask Boss Su for help?"

Leader Shi froze. He stayed silent for a few seconds before sighing.

"Boss Su... she is very capable. I admire her, and I am thankful. She gave us so much food, I will never forget. But still, her team is new. She does not have more soldiers than us. It is impossible."

Han Zhu shook his head firmly.

"Leader, forgive me, but that is not true. Boss Su has been giving food to so many people. Do you know how many must have been tempted by her cooking? From what I see, she already has more than ten thousand people following her. Even if not all are soldiers, at least one thousand must be trained already."

Leader Shi looked stunned. His mouth opened, but no words came out. After a long pause, he muttered, "Even so... it feels wrong. Why should I drag her into our mess?"

Han Zhu took a deep breath.

"Then do not drag her. Trade with her. Ask for help, but give something in return. We have crystals. A lot. We killed countless zombies in the past. We can offer her one hundred thousand crystals at least. That way, it is fair."

Leader Shi’s eyes widened. He had not thought of that. Slowly, he nodded. "Yes... crystals. That could work."

Han Zhu gave a small smile. "Then do it, Leader. Call her."

Leader Shi wasted no time. Because normal signals were broken, he picked up the satellite phone. It crackled loudly before connecting. After a few rings, a calm voice answered.

It was Yuan Xin. Leader Shi explained everything, his tone heavy and serious. Yuan Xin said he would pass the message to Boss Su.

When the call ended, Leader Shi placed the phone down and whispered, "Now we wait."

Han Zhu nodded. "Yes, now... we wait."

....................

At that very moment, far away, Su Jiyai was not thinking about Cedar Base at all. She was lying on a bed in Qin Feng’s room.

The room was quiet except for the faint sound of Qin Feng breathing as he cultivated. His posture was straight, his eyes closed, his body glowing faintly with energy.

Su Jiyai hugged a pillow and stared at him. Her cheeks were pink. Her heart was beating too fast, like a little drum inside her chest.

She whispered to herself, "Why... why is he so good-looking even when he is just sitting there?"

Qin Feng did not answer. He was too focused. But his calm face, his steady breathing, the way his hair fell on his forehead... it was torture for her.

Su Jiyai turned around on the bed, covering her face with the pillow, then peeked again. "Ahh, I am going crazy. I really want to jump on him."

She sat up, swinging her legs. "Should I... talk to him? Or should I just watch? No, I will talk. If I stay quiet, I will explode."

Finally, she said aloud, "Hey, Qin Feng. Are you done yet?"