RIACMET chapter 51

 

The overall structure of Apocalypse Bases was similar, and South City Base was no exception.

Built in the shape of a massive circular fortress, it was divided into four concentric areas:

The central area, the inner area, the outer area, and the wasteland area.

In addition to the protective perimeter walls, isolation walls and guard posts separated each zone.

As the name implies, the wasteland area was a large stretch of undeveloped land inside the base. It could also serve as a buffer zone in case of a zombie attack.

Most people were initially placed in the outer area when they entered the base. They could only rent or buy a house in the inner area after earning enough points.

There were many ways to earn points:

Taking on various assignments, working for the base, or trading one’s own supplies for points were a few of the ways. Additionally, points could be transferred voluntarily.

The main access route into the inner area was a checkpoint. In the early days, most inner-area residents were military dependents.

Over time, the inner area gradually became a gathering place for groups of people with strong abilities.

After all, paranormals were powerful and could more easily accumulate enough points.

However, the requirements for entering the central area were far stricter and had nothing to do with points.

First, only special personnel, such as scientists and doctors, and their families were permitted entry.

Next were relatives of the base’s military leadership and people recruited under exceptional circumstances.

In short, the criteria for entering the central area were known only to the base’s management, and no official standards were disclosed to the public.

Of course, the entire base was under martial law, so as long as you didn’t wander outside, safety wasn’t an issue.

The base’s management system was also very thorough. As long as you followed the rules, you could file complaints and request protection from the base in the event of a rights violation.

…

Li Kaiyun’s nephew, Li Sheng, worked at the base. He was 27 years old and not an ability user. He currently served as the head of the central area’s security management team.

After Li Kaiyun contacted him via the rescue team’s satellite phone, he made all the arrangements before they arrived.

As soon as they parked the vehicle, a tall young man with a neat and serious demeanor stepped forward to greet Li Kaiyun.

After hearing about their experiences on the road, Li Sheng comforted his uncle and the others with a somber expression and expressed his gratitude to Cheng Jing and the rest.

Cheng Jing didn’t know exactly what Li Kaiyun had told his nephew. Li Sheng not only accepted the letter of recommendation but also took Cheng Jing aside for a separate health screening.

Ultimately, they were all accommodated in the same dormitory building in the central area.

The dormitory offered single rooms and suites. Li Sheng assigned two- or three-bedroom suites depending on how many people were in each group.

Compared to how other newcomers to the base were treated, this could only be described as “fast-tracked.”

This was thanks to the letter of introduction and to Li Kaiyun himself.

Of course, it was mainly because of Cheng Jing and his team. Before they arrived, the base had probably already received their information and reported it up the chain.

As Li Kaiyun said, a team of eight trained, experienced ability users would be welcomed at any base.

After spending time together, Xiaoya, who was quiet, gradually became close to Li Shuhui and no longer wanted to be a third wheel between Huang Qian and Lu Ningzhou.

With the approval of their two guardians, the two girls moved in together so they could look after each other and have someone to talk to in their daily lives.

Regarding Xiaoya, Cheng Jing told the Li family the whole truth when Li Shuhui proposed they live together.

Like everyone else, Li Kaiyun acknowledged Xiaoya’s past mistakes, yet was willing to accept and guide her.

At the same time, they finally understood why Xiaoya was so withdrawn around lively people. Guilt made her feel inferior, and that sense of inferiority would likely stay with her for the rest of her life.

Cheng Jing was with Jiang Nian, Huang Qian was with Lu Ningzhou, and Zhao Lei was with Liao Yu. Jian Cheng, Tang Yi, and Zhou Rongbin were together. Xiaoya stayed with Li Shuhui’s family.

The dormitory was equipped with basic necessities for living, but electricity and water usage were restricted throughout the base.

After Li Sheng patiently explained, everyone learned that:

Across the entire base, only the research institutes in the central area, the hospitals and clinics in each district, and certain special offices had a 24-hour power supply.

Everywhere else, each household could use electricity for only four hours a day, and the power used in residential areas could not exceed 1,000 watts.

For now, additional electricity was not available for purchase.

You could choose when to use your daily electricity quota. However, once used, the time would not carry over or accumulate. Once the daily usage limit was reached, the base’s monitoring system would automatically cut the power.

Those with electricity-type abilities could use specially modified batteries to store and release energy at will, buying and selling it as they pleased. The base would not interfere.

As for water, each person could collect three liters of top-quality drinking water and twenty liters of standard domestic water each day from designated stations in each district.

If you exceeded the quota, you had to pay to purchase more points.

In the non-prefabricated dormitories of the inner and central areas, there were running water pipes, and residents could use water cards for free household water usage.

The number of points required depended on the water’s quality level.

Of course, aside from the basic water allotment, people could trade with water-type mutants.

Water and electricity were extremely scarce resources in the base. This is why nine out of ten water- and electricity-type paranormals were wealthy in the apocalypse.

…

After settling the new arrivals into their dorms and explaining the base’s basic rules, Li Sheng left them dinner and mentioned that he would bring them some supplies the next day.

Of course, these were his personal supplies—not all survivors arriving at the base received them.

After dinner, Jiang Nian evenly distributed the leftover provisions from their vehicle among everyone.

Cheng Jing handed Li Kaiyun another cigarette, and no one objected.

Technically, they didn’t need Li Sheng to provide supplies, but it was better not to stand out right after arriving.

Besides, Li Sheng was simply expressing gratitude for taking care of his uncle and younger relatives—a small gesture of goodwill.

They had reached the base just as dusk was falling. By the time they had moved their luggage and gear into the dorm, settled in, bathed, and cleaned up, it was late at night.

Although their journey had gone relatively smoothly, everyone still felt uneasy.

Now that they had arrived and were staying in a central dormitory, they finally relaxed and fatigue set in.

Jiang Nian and Cheng Jing were assigned a small, two-bedroom apartment.

There was a combined living and dining room, bedrooms, a utility room that doubled as a storage area, a bathroom, and a small kitchen. The kitchen looked quite tidy after they put things in order.

“I’m so tired. All right, let’s just leave it here. Tomorrow, we’ll sort through the extra supplies and trade them for points…”

Lying in bed, Jiang Nian spoke to Cheng Jing about plans for the coming days, his voice trailing off as it grew lower.

Cheng Jing patted his back.

“All right, sleep. It’s late.”

They would be living here for a while, so they would make gradual improvements as needed.

First, they had to reinforce the doors and windows again. The base was safe, and the central area was safer. However, if they wanted to be absolutely sure, they had to handle it themselves.

They also needed to add more furniture and other items. The place was small, but they had to make it as comfortable as possible.

There’s no such thing as a free lunch in this world.

The South City Base management placed them in the central area, and they would negotiate terms sooner or later.

For now, though, they could sleep peacefully and discuss the rest later.