The Scavengers

November 11th Progression 1

Because the location of the new mission is not far from the Zhongshan base, and there is more time, Xiao Mo and Xue Lihong decided to go back to the base after discussing it.

Xiao Mo and his entourage finally approached the main road of the base after an hour of turbulence, and the gate of the No. [-] base can be seen in front of it, which is currently the only external entrance and exit of the Zhongshan Base.

Base No. [-] is located in the north of the entire Zhongshan base.

There are only two mountains in the entire Zhongshan base, one is in the No. [-] base, which is the center of the base.There is another one, called a mountain, rather a small mountain range. This small mountain range containing thirteen small hills is located in the No. [-] base, so the outermost walls of the No. [-] base are built against the mountain.

Machine guns and cannons are erected on the fence, just like the ancient city walls.

In the beginning, there was only one base in Zhongshan City, which is now the No. [-] base. It was originally a military region, but after the fall of Zhongshan City, it was converted into a base.

The unnamed mountain in the military area is not high, with a gentle slope, and the mountainside has been hollowed out. It was used by the military as an arsenal and a computer room, and it is still the same now.

The central building of the base is built right in front of this unnamed mountain, and behind the building is the military barracks.

The Wuming Mountain is the center of the entire base. It is a single hill, about 800 meters high. There are no tall buildings on the mountain or in the nearby open space, and the tallest central building has only five floors.

Later, when more people came, base No. [-] was not enough, so four satellite bases were gradually developed on the basis of base No. wrapped in the middle.

From the sky, the entire Zhongshan base looks like an ancient copper coin with a circle on the outside and a square on the inside. The square hole in the middle is the No. [-] base.

There are high walls between the base and the base, on which people can walk and attack and defend.

Xiao Mo looked out of the window and said: "The government and army here are the ones who responded the fastest, the management is also considered clear, the relationship between the government and the army is also good, and the base has been established in a short period of time. , People's hearts have been gathered again, tight and loose, no major disturbances, but I heard that some cities and towns have become a mess, many places have been forced to abandon, and ordinary people are fleeing to big cities. Xiaohong, don't you think more and more people have fled to Zhongshan City during this time?"

At the end, his tone could not help but sink.

Xue Lihong looked up, he was making a small object, "Are you worried that the government cannot control the situation?"

"No, I'm afraid they will give up most of them and garrison a small part."

"This is an inevitable thing. The military strength is limited. If you want to fully protect such a large country, under the current circumstances, it is not enough to fill it all in. It is better to focus on defending some important cities to ensure the foundation and high-tech of industry and agriculture. Supply, so there is hope."

"Recently, more and more refugees have fled into the base, and the temporary resettlement camps outside the base can no longer accommodate those people. I am afraid that the higher-ups will soon issue a task for people to build No. [-] base. But even if there is enough cement, what about food? If The food that can be exchanged in the base has been reduced again, what should I do?"

"Didn't it mean that the research institute is already researching a new type of food that does not consider the taste but only the production volume? Don't worry, there is no limit to the road."

"There are only one man and one woman left in the whole world, so there is no one left, but what about other people?" Xiao Mo didn't understand why he was so worried, as if there was some heavy unknown danger weighing on his heart Same.

Xue Lihong held his hand and squeezed it, if there were really only two people left in the world, he hoped it would be him and Xiao Mo.Both are men and cannot carry on the family line?That's not his problem.

About 500 meters away from the No. [-] gate, there are fully armed soldiers sitting on tanks and directing the diversion of vehicles and pedestrians.

Lei Bing and his convoy had already entered the base with full armor, Xiao Mo and the others were a little late because they were distributing first-aid kits along the way.

Xue Lihong slowed down and warned everyone in the car not to open the windows, no matter what they saw.

When Xiao Mo arrived at the door of the house, instead of relaxing, he became even more nervous.The same is true for Wang Cheng and Qian Yunkai.

Probably the tense atmosphere among the four infected several other people, and the two children stopped playing games, and they all stuck close to Lao Wu and his wife in a protective posture, which moved Lao Wu and his wife.

The base vehicle was no less than a truck, with its huge shape, cool silver-black body, and extremely gorgeous hell flowers on the body, it caused a commotion before it even got close to the base.

How many people are looking at the base car, and many people who hate the rich are even more radiant with hatred. They believe that the person sitting in it is either a rich N generation or an official N generation. There was a flash of lightning, and the stone shattered.

This scene was seen by many people, and those who still wanted to do it were frightened.They didn't think it was the defensive function of the vehicle itself, but that there were people with supernatural abilities inside the vehicle.

No one dared to attack the vehicle anymore, but the number of abusers exploded.

If the appearance of the base car was a little more tattered and more war-scarred, it might not have aroused so much hatred, but the base car looks brand new as if it just left the factory. Who are the new car owners?No wonder the majority of refugees hate the people in the car so much.This car almost nakedly proves a sentence: the road is frozen to death, and the rich wine and meat stink.

Xiao Mo looked at Xue Lihong sitting next to him with a calm face, and sighed in his heart, he actually prefers a low-key life.

"Why do you care so much about what other people think?"

"Ok?"

"It's fine if we don't have the ability to protect ourselves. If we do, why don't you live a little more recklessly without violating your conscience and principles? Besides, isn't it the boss who said you like luxury off-road vehicles?"

Xiao Mo was silent for a while, "...Actually, you have been holding back for too long, and you want to be arrogant when you have force."

Xue Lihong reached out to pull his ear.

Xiao Mo wanted to hide or not, but he was so angry that he would bully others when he was said to be right.

The soldiers in charge of command and distribution also saw the base vehicle, and some soldiers blew their whistles.

"Whose car is this? Haven't seen it before."

"I don't know. Anyway, we don't have such flamboyant guys in our base. If there is, this car will be snatched by our Thunder team."

It seems that Lei Bing's reputation as a bandit has spread throughout the military region.

"From outside? But why is this car so new?"

"Wait! They didn't come from outside, they took the left passage."

"Hey? Could it be that I went wrong?"

Vehicles and pedestrians issued with a base pass should go to the left, and other vehicles and people should go to the right.

The teams and convoys on the left were moving faster, and those on the right were barely moving.

Soldiers sitting on the tanks can command the vehicles, but they cannot completely prohibit the humans passing through the passages on both sides.

Seeing the vehicles and pedestrians on the left keep moving forward, the people on the right can't wait anymore. Some people have been waiting since yesterday.

"Bang bang!" Someone slammed the car window, and someone asked loudly: "Brother, is there any water? Give me some water!"

Xiao Mo held down Xue Lihong's hand, not allowing him to play with electric people.

Xue Lihong's pupils suddenly split into two and then merged. Seeing Xiao Mo startled, she smiled.

Xiao Mo had a feeling that this old boy became more and more stubborn as he lived.

"Do you want to see my eyes full of pupils?" The young man leaned close to Xiao Mo's ear and asked him in a low voice.

Xiao Mo imagined it for a while, then trembled, "Don't!" It will wither, really!

"Then do you want to see me grow three mouths, each with jagged fangs?"

"I know you are in a special psychological period now, please don't make trouble!"

"Yeah, ever since I knew I could become a monster, I feel very inferior. Boss, you have to comfort me well."

Xiao Mo: "...Yes, yes, you have low self-esteem, there is no one in the whole world who has more low self-esteem than you."

Xue Lihong's eyes were full of smiles, so much so that he didn't really want to electrocute them when he saw those people slapping on the car windows outside.

"Crack!" The face of a child about two or three years old suddenly stuck to the car window, and a woman's cry followed: "I beg you, please give my child a way to survive, please take him in, as long as Give him a sip of water and a bite of food every day, just let him live! I beg you!"

The child's mouth was dry and chapped, his eyes were full of confusion, and his gray-black little fingers with nails growing out were digging at the dusty car window, leaving behind traces while making harsh sounds.

"What's going on here? Why is there such a shortage of water? Can't you drink the water outside?" Xiao Mo went out for more than a month and didn't know the latest situation. He also wondered why the people on the road looked so thirsty .

Cheng Zai was in contact with the inside of the base, and asked casually when he heard the words. After receiving the reply from the other party, his expression was dumbfounded, and he told Xiao Mo and the whole team: "It is said that the metal content in various water sources is seriously exceeding the standard. Get sick from drinking. Because the change of water source is gradual, until recently this incident broke out, the reason is that people in individual small bases and villages have all turned into monsters due to heavy metal pollution in water sources.”

"Monster?" Xiao Mo hurriedly asked the system, "Is this some kind of virus again?"

The system answered him this time: "No, this is a kind of natural variation. If my analysis and deduction are correct, the earth's water and food will contain a lot of metals, and it will slowly increase until a saturation value .And people who can self-secrete alloy particles may be fine if they eat this kind of drinking water, and may naturally mutate. Those who cannot secrete alloy particles cannot eat this kind of drinking water at all.”

Xiao Mo sorted out the questions and asked Cheng Zai and the people at the base to confirm.

"Hey, I was just about to tell you about this, but I didn't find an opportunity before." Qian Yunkai pushed his glasses, signaling Cheng Zai not to ask any more, he was in the research institute and only knew more than others.

The people in the car looked at Forensic Doctor Qian together.

Qian Yunkai said: "It has been proved by a lot of facts that people who cannot secrete alloy particles will die for up to three months if they drink drinking water that seriously exceeds the standard for a long time. It is further shrinking. As for the people who can secrete alloy particles, most of them rot and mutate. Many people have brain diseases in the later stage or go crazy because they can't bear the pain. The mutants were slaughtered."

This incident made everyone in the scavenger team silent.

Xiao Mo picked up the communicator and was about to dial the satellite phone left at home.

Qian Yunkai added: "Currently, a filtering facility has been developed in the base, which can barely keep the metal content of the drinking water within the acceptable range of the human body. People in the base don't have to worry about water pollution for the time being."

Xiao Mo left his hand from the communicator.

"Where are the supernatural beings?" Xue Lihong asked suddenly.

Qian Yunkai understood what he was asking, and replied: "The ability of people with supernatural abilities to accept water exceeding the metal standard is a little bit stronger, but only a little bit stronger. , that’s why it caused so much damage.”

Xiao Mo thought that since he came out, Xiaohong has been letting him drink mineral water as much as possible, and rarely letting him contact with external water sources. Could it be that he has already noticed the changes in the water quality of the water source?

Qian Yun paused, and then said: "This is not the biggest problem. The biggest problem is the food in the future. The metal content of all water sources within the known range exceeds the standard, and the farmland irrigated with this water, do you think it will What kind of food does it grow?"

The whole car was dumb, and Xiao Mo said after a while, "I think the farmland on the side of the road is growing well."

"Actually, the batch of grains harvested in autumn across the country has been found to have drastically reduced production and excessive metal content. This batch of winter grains grows strangely well, but their stems and leaves are said to take half a day to cut off with a sickle."

Qian Yunkai's words silenced the team members again, everyone was thinking about their future and what the future of the earth would become.

Outside the car, the woman holding the child refused to leave and followed the car.

Xiao Mo looked at the child's little face, and really wanted to open the window to give the child a bottle of water, but he didn't dare.He had done this kind of stupid thing before, instead of delivering water, he delivered food. Just after delivering it, the child didn't eat, but was robbed by others, and the child's head was even broken.He got out of the car to save the child, but was relied on by the child's family, who insisted on him as a guarantee, guaranteeing them to enter the base, and helping them arrange accommodation.

There were also a bunch of people pestering him, grabbing him, pulling him, some pleading with him, some insulting him inexplicably, and some secretly kicking and beating him.

Both of his arms were grabbed, and he couldn't even fight back.Those people also came to touch his things, and snatched his dagger, watch, even belt and leather shoes, and almost didn't even keep his clothes.

His body was torn apart by wounds, his head, face, and arms were scratched, his thighs were kicked in pain, and his knees were almost kicked off.

Fortunately, he was able to control his ability at that time, otherwise, in front of those people, the wound healed and the wound healed, and the wound healed again, which not only exposed his ability, but those people might pounce on him to eat his flesh, drink his blood.

This is not some exaggerated or intimidating nonsense, but the real thing.After the state banned the arrest of people with supernatural powers, it was reported from nowhere that some people said that eating the flesh and blood of those people with supernatural powers could obtain their supernatural powers. For a long time, those with supernatural powers dared not casually reveal that they had supernatural powers.

In the end, Xue Lihong got out of the car, rescued him from the crowd and stuffed him into the car, finally returning to the base.

He knew that Xue Lihong could get out of the car earlier to save him, but he didn't move because he wanted to teach him a lesson and see if he would dare to soften his heart casually in the future.

And that lesson really made him dare not soften his heart casually.

The people in the car did not open the windows, and everyone ignored the pleas of those outside. Soon, the pleadings turned into shouts.

The sound of beating on the window became more and more intense, and some people directly smashed the glass window with a stick.

Wu Xiaoyuan frowned fiercely, and moved his little finger, wanting to release the power grid.

Lin Xiaofei was also very angry, but he held Wu Xiaoyuan's hand in a sensible way, and patted him on the back lightly, "Don't be afraid, they are not bad people, they are just suffering from pink eye disease. The captain didn't tell us to move, Let's not move."

Wu Xiaoyuan looked up at him, and nodded reluctantly.

Old Wu rubbed his son's head, but Wu Xiaoyuan shook his head and refused to let him rub it.Old Wu Fan was sad.

The soldiers standing on the tank saw those people smashing the car windows, but no one took care of them. They dared not do so because they were afraid of causing public anger, so they could only raise their loudspeakers and kept shouting: "Those who don't have a pass for the Zhongshan Base, don't leave!" Passage on the left, please turn back immediately when you reach the blocking net in front. Anyone who tries to enter will be disqualified from entering the Zhongshan Base, and at the same time will not be able to receive the most basic living water and food! Those who refuse to listen to the advice and insist on forcibly entering , will most likely be wounded or killed! Please cherish your life, you have already come here, please wait a little while, and wait for the base to make arrangements for you in turn."

Shouts were recorded electronically and repeated endlessly.However, it is still impossible to completely eliminate people who want to take shortcuts and fast roads.

The soldiers silently prayed for the people sitting in the car, hoping that the glass of their car would be strong enough to allow them to get inside the base.

After going forward for another 100 meters, the left and right sides of the road are separated by a net made of thick plastic ropes.

More soldiers stood guard on the stone wall at the crossing on the left, their guns pointed at each other.

A banner was hung on the wall, with eight large characters written in bold red fonts: Undocumented forced entry, kill!

The same shoutout is playing on roll here too.

Some people clearly saw the banner hanging on the wall and heard those shouts, but they still followed the vehicles without fear of death.

But vehicles and pedestrians must stop at the gate for inspection, and those without a pass will be immediately forced to leave the vehicle with a gun, even if you get under the car, you will be found out.

Someone didn't believe in evil, and gathered a dozen people to charge forward together, and the result was a burst of shooting.

Bullets kicked up dust before their toes.

These people screamed, you pushed me back in a hurry.

Anyone who dares to do it a second time, the bullet will hit his leg.

If Xiao Mo still had some sympathy for those who patted his car window before, he really didn't have any sympathy for these people.

Those who dare to do this are not bold, but firmly believe that "the law does not blame the public". These people are usually rarely the real weak, but mostly strong bastards.

These people are gangsters in peacetime, and they are even more at home in this chaotic moment when the legal system has been reduced to the edge of danger. They even wish that it would be more chaotic.

After driving away these people who followed the car, the car was finally quieter.

And here is the real first hurdle.In the past, everyone crowded here, resulting in extremely poor daily work efficiency, and there were several large-scale conflicts and casualties. Later, the cordon was stretched a little bit, until it is now 500 meters away.

There were two more cars ahead of them, both off-road vehicles.

But the two off-road vehicles stopped in front and didn't go in for a long time.

Xue Lihong got annoyed by waiting, she simply opened the door and got out of the car, Xiao Mo also followed.

I only found out after asking in front that neither of these two cars had a base pass, but they were lucky enough to see that the left passage was much faster than the right, and if they wanted to pass through here, the owner might have thought that they would be fine as long as they paid a security deposit or had a guarantor for entering the city. Can be accommodated.

But since the rules are established, people must abide by them. If everyone has such an idea, there is no need to create two channels.

The two car owners were still yelling that they wanted to see so-and-so because they had supernatural powers.

Two teams of soldiers came out of the checkpoint, pointed their guns at them, and forcibly pulled the people out of the car. The vehicles and supplies were confiscated, and all the people were detained.

The supernatural beings wanted to do something, but after seeing the military supernatural beings easily cut off the weapons they were holding, they all let the soldiers take them away honestly.

There were several women and children in the two cars crying, but none of the soldiers showed any sympathy for them.

It was much worse than these people. If the two cars lined up honestly on the right side, they would be able to enter the base quickly as long as there was no problem with the physical examination under the condition of someone's guarantee, but they insisted on challenging the rules of the base. , the result hit a wall.In troubled times, if the punishment is not severer, everyone will not take the base rules seriously.

This is not the first case. Even if the soldiers in front of the diversion repeatedly warned, some people still tried to take shortcuts.

Seeing that the matter was settled, Xue Lihong and Xiao Mo got into the car, pressed down the window, and showed the base pass, which is their team's mercenary card, to the soldiers at the checkpoint.

The vehicle passed the first checkpoint smoothly.

After passing this stone wall level, the next 300 meters will be much easier to drive.

There is another inspection at the gate of the base, the inspection is more detailed and cumbersome, but there is no one blocking the road or blocking the road, on the contrary, it is faster than the first checkpoint.

The first checkpoint checks for base passes, and the second checkpoint checks for live, dangerous creatures brought in, and checks that people who leave are not infected.Infections include the known bulimia virus and angel virus, and now a living dead virus has been added.

Xiao Mo opened the door according to the regulations and let the soldiers get in the car for inspection, and they got out of the car for medical examination.

The physical examination is not as troublesome as imagined, that is, to take off their clothes to check whether there are any particularly rotten wounds on the whole body, and then each person contributes a drop of blood to check whether they are infected with several known viruses.

After the two soldiers got into the car, they were very envious when they saw the spacious and comfortable interior of the car, but they did not fumble around, let alone take things randomly.I only carefully opened the boxes and cabinets and checked them again, and found that the water had not been moved.

A soldier walked to the back of the car and saw two closed doors. He opened the left one first and looked at it. He saw a small storage room. There were two boxes of instant noodles, two boxes of mineral water, and a large bag. Toilet paper, and a few stray bits of food.

The door on the right is pushed open, and there is a small bedroom inside, and the rear window can be seen from the door.The things in the bedroom are also very simple. There are some toys and quilts for children on the bed.There are some steel pipes and other weapons under the bed, and there is a cabinet for clothes behind the door.

The soldiers went in and simply looked through it and came out after finding nothing special.

The two soldiers got out of the car and told the inspector that the car was an ordinary off-road RV without any special items inside, and naturally there were no monsters hidden in it.

And Xiao Mo and his group also passed the physical examination. Cheng Zai and Lao Wu were newcomers, and they came to the base for the first time. In addition to the inspection, they had to do registration, but with the guarantee of the scavengers and Lei Bing, they passed without any delay. , Base passes with their mugshots were issued on the spot.

There is an electronic chip embedded in the pass. In addition to the name and number of their mercenary team, there are also their personal details and contribution points. These are also their mercenary cards, which can also be used in other bases. The main reason is this With the mercenary certificate, they can take over the missions in the mercenary mission halls in various places.

The contribution points are related to whether they can buy some base-limited items, such as ammunition, gasoline, purified water, etc.

At this point, we can finally enter the base.

Most of the newcomers entering through the right passage still have to wait for arrangements at the reception desk, and they don't just walk around after entering.

After entering the base, Xue Lihong changed the car to manual driving and drove along the main road to Taibao Mountain on the right.

Arterial roads do not allow pedestrians to come onto the driveway and can go straight unimpeded.But on other non-arterial roads, cars have to honk their horns desperately if they want to move forward. Some roads are so crowded with people that it is impossible for vehicles to even enter.

Fortunately, there are not many people who can afford gasoline or diesel, and a large number of cars are left outside the base. Except for some relatively powerful teams and individuals, the main means of transportation in the base is currently manpower.

Base No. 200 has a total of thirteen small hills, the highest of which is no more than [-] meters. They are numbered for the convenience of management, and they are called Thirteen Taibao Mountains.

The army occupied the last and highest three Taibao Mountains, the first to six Taibao Mountains in the front were used to grow crops, and the four Taibao Mountains from seven to ten were divided up by more than a dozen large and small forces.

Relying on the good cooperative relationship with the military, under Xue Lihong's strong request, Xiao Mo gritted his teeth and took out all his contribution points, and insisted on buying the right to use one and a half acres of land in Eleven Taibao Mountain for 30 years.

The Eleventh Taibao Mountain is only 180 meters high and covers an area of ​​only fifteen and a half acres. Because it is close to the city wall, it is relatively dangerous.

But even if it is the most dangerous place, in the base, you can’t occupy such a large place if you want. At present, no mercenary force dares to occupy the entire mountain, because except for those who have to pay a lot of contribution points to buy land The right to use must be strong enough to hold the property.

Other large mercenary forces are busy guarding their territory, but because Xiao Mo and his team set up their home in the military territory of the Eleventh Taibao Mountain, although they spent a lot of contribution points at the beginning, it has to be said that it was worth the money. For example, when they usually go out on missions, there are some ordinary people at home, so they don't have to worry about someone coming to trouble them or grab their territory.

"I'm home." Xiao Mo looked at a concrete courtyard house at the east end at the foot of the mountain, let out a long breath, and obviously relaxed.

This area is all military family homes, and they are the only mercenary team.

There were still soldiers standing guard when they entered the foot of the mountain, but when they saw Xiao Mo coming out to say hello, they let them pass with a smile without even checking.

Xiao Mo didn't give them anything either. Zhong Shan base was strictly controlled, as long as they didn't get discovered in private, it was fine, but on the surface, people from all checkpoints and work departments were absolutely not allowed to accept any bribes, and they were not allowed to ask for cards. .

And such strict requirements did make the Zhongshan base show a different spirit from other bases, at least most of the people who could live in could sleep peacefully at night.

The concrete building belonging to the scavengers was built in a concave shape, three floors, with a flat roof, and a large courtyard in the middle.The cement building did not have external wall tiles, but was painted with a waterproof coating, and there was no shape. It just squatted there squarely. It looked earthy and ugly, but those who knew it knew how strong it was.

"Captain, is that the home of our scavenging team?" Lin Xiaofei took Wu Xiaoyuan's hand and ran over to ask.

Xiao Mo rubbed the two children's hair with a smile, and replied: "Yes, don't worry, the place is big enough for you to live in, and you are guaranteed to have a room for each of you."

Cheng Zai looked at the house not far away, and honestly commented: "It's ugly."

Xue Lihong's mouth twitched.

Wang Cheng and Qian Yunkai laughed.Now the two of them also live here, Wang Cheng's family is also there, and Qian Yunkai's parents have research work in the base and live in another place, but they also keep a house here.

"Don't think it's ugly, it's our Boss Xue's design. The engineer team is constructing it. There's a lot going on inside. And the most precious thing is that we have a Ganshui well in our yard. The water source is abundant. Just filtering it can satisfy all of us. This is much more cost-effective than many people who need to use contribution points, alloy particles and bases to buy water." Wang Cheng introduced proudly.

Qian Yunkai also flattered secretly, "The location of this house was chosen by Boss Xue himself. He said later that he could dig a well, but everyone didn't believe it, but later it was really dug out. You don't know that Lei Many people in the army and the military regret it, and they have been clamoring for a price increase."

Cheng Zai quickly changed his words: "The ugly is the ugly, it should be very practical. Are those reflectors on the roof solar panels?"

Xiao Mo saw that Xue Lihong was not interested in answering, so he nodded with a smile, "There are also facilities to collect rainwater, dewwater and snowwater, which can be used after filtering. It is all the idea of ​​your snow team. A boiler is set up in the basement, and the house Heating pipes were laid in the interior, and we brought back so much coal this time, no matter how cold the winter is, we are not afraid of it.”

Qian Yunkai sighed: "This is the south, but there are not many houses with heating pipes. Boss Xue said at the beginning that he would lay heating pipes and get a boiler back. We all felt that he was superfluous. Thinking about it now... Boss Xue still had the foresight ah."

Xue Lihong doesn't look at others, he only looks at Xiao Mo, and looks at him with the expression "Boss, I'm so capable, can you not raise my salary".

Xiao Mo stood up, covered his face with his hand, and pressed down hard.