Chapter 242 - 232: Aftermath
Chapter 242: Chapter 232: Aftermath
"I was just passing by, so I helped out."
Tang Mo was telling the truth. It really was something she’d done on the side, without much effort.
"Dad, there are still over thirty girls there! We have to rescue them quickly! And that Qi Heng—we absolutely can’t let him get away!"
"Don’t worry. I will absolutely not let scum like that go!"
Listening to the father and daughter, Tang Mo simply ate in silence with her head lowered, not saying a word.
’This time, I was only able to bring out this many kids. There was no way to rescue all of them.’
But now that she had taken these people, trying to save the rest would be next to impossible.
That Brother Hu surely had plenty of spies in Huaxi City, so what happened to Qi Heng couldn’t be kept secret unless the base acted quickly enough.
"There’s no time to lose. We should get moving soon."
This was the last thing Tang Mo could do for those left behind.
When the men Gu Feng sent arrived at the gang’s hideout, only a little over two hours had passed since Tang Mo and the others had escaped.
But in those two short hours, the place had already been completely cleared out.
Brother Hu and all his men had vanished.
Even the thirty-odd girls were gone.
It’s hard to say what determines a person’s fate. Sometimes, the line between heaven and Hell is drawn by a single decision.
Take Xiao Yi, for example. Because she had mustered every ounce of courage she had in her life to pass along a single note, her fate became completely different from that of the other thirty-odd girls.
Sometimes, you have to fight for yourself. If you do nothing, you can only passively fall into the abyss.
Tang Mo only stayed in Huaxi City for one day before preparing to leave. She had other business to attend to and had already been delayed here long enough.
Before her departure, Gu Feng insisted on presenting her with a medal exclusive to Huaxi City.
"What’s this medal for?"
Tang Mo looked curiously at the small medal that had appeared next to her ID. Including this one, she now had two.
"Not just anyone can receive this medal. Strength and status are irrelevant; only those who have made immense contributions to the base are eligible. With this medal, you will hold supreme authority within Huaxi City. Should you ever run into trouble in the future, Huaxi City will also use all its power to help you. You saved so many children for us and eliminated a major menace. You deserve this medal!"
The medal represented an immense contribution to the base, marking the bearer as its benefactor.
Each medal was also a promise that if the benefactor ever needed help, the base would naturally provide its full support.
’So that’s what it is.’
Tang Mo looked at her other medal, which had the letter "S" on it.
’Looks like that’s the medal from S Base.’
This medal wasn’t something Qin Ling had just given her by casually abusing his authority for personal reasons.
Rather, it had appeared on her ID after the last mutant beast siege.
’I guess it was a reward for my contributions to S Base back then.’
’Qin Ling just never told me.’
It made sense, thinking about it. Qin Ling knew Tang Mo’s personality all too well. She didn’t care about these things, and he was probably afraid she’d feel indebted, so he never brought it up.
"Miss Tang, where are you headed next? Huaxi City is a small base, so we don’t have any helicopters, but I can arrange for a car to take you."
At this point, Gu Feng held the utmost respect for Tang Mo.
"Thank you, then."
After a moment’s thought, Tang Mo agreed.
She had already been delayed here for several days. She was worried that any further delay would interfere with her own plans, so taking a dedicated car was for the best.
When Tang Mo and Jingjing got into the car, Gu Feng, Gu Yirou, and Gu Yining were all there to see them off.
"You have to come visit me in the future!"
Gu Yirou didn’t have many friends and was sad to see Tang Mo go.
"If fate wills it, we’ll meet again."
In the post-apocalyptic world, you had to take every farewell seriously, because there was a good chance it would be the last time you ever saw that person.
Once inside the car, Jingjing pawed at Tang Mo, begging for several Crystal Stones. It only felt better after getting them.
Ever since the day Tang Mo had encountered those men, it had followed Momo’s instructions and fled into the nearby jungle.
Jingjing originally had no offensive power; it was a Spirit Attribute mutant beast.
But after wandering alone for the past few days, it had been forced to learn how to project its spiritual power to attack, hunting for its own Crystal Cores to eat.
It seemed that both humans and beasts had to be pushed to their limits to unlock their true potential.
But Crystal Cores were nowhere near as tasty as Crystal Coins. Jingjing nestled in Tang Mo’s arms, happily clutching the Crystal Coins and beginning to absorb them.
Huaxi City wasn’t very far from Donglin City to begin with.
The place Tang Mo was headed was on the outskirts of Donglin City—a small, seaside fishing village. So, after the car had taken them as far as half a tank of gas would allow, she and Jingjing walked for another two days and arrived.
One of the hardest things to get used to in the post-apocalyptic world was how distances, once conquered by modern technology, had been restored to their former, daunting scale.
Even meeting someone in an adjacent city was no longer a simple matter.
Not just anyone could afford to drive a car in these times. Fuel was now a vital and scarce resource, nowhere near common enough for widespread use.
"Wow, this place is so beautiful!"
The closer they got to the coast, the cooler the air became, carrying the salty tang of the sea breeze.
Having lived in the jungle since birth, Jingjing had never seen the ocean before. It was so excited it refused to even blink, sniffing the air with all its might.
Tang Mo took in the scene before her. Small houses were scattered here and there across the sandy, earthen ground.
A few plainly dressed people sat on outdoor benches, cleaning their catch from the sea—their source of food.
Children chattered and played to one side. Looking up and farther out, she could see the boundless ocean, with a few small boats moored where the water met the sand.
This place seemed to be blessed by the heavens, as if the apocalypse had no connection to it whatsoever.
"You are...?"
Seeing a newcomer, the people of the small fishing village instantly grew wary. An older woman with an unfriendly expression on her face walked over.
"Excuse me for intruding. I ended up here by accident and I’m a bit exhausted from my long journey. I was wondering if it would be convenient for me to stay here for a short while."
Tang Mo spoke very politely.
According to the pictorial information she had obtained, one of the images was located in this very fishing village in Donglin City.
She needed time to figure things out, so staying here for a while was her best option.
"It is not."
The woman’s reply was blunt, without a hint of hesitation.
"The world has really changed. More and more freeloaders are showing up trying to get a free meal."
"That’s right! The last person we took in even made off with a string of dried fish I had on my roof!"
"And the one who came before that..."
Life in the small fishing village was simple. At the arrival of an outsider, everyone quickly gathered around and began chattering all at once about past incidents.