Chapter 18: Winter is Coming
Amelia looked at the group of people from the boarding school base in front of her. The leader is obviously to see and the rest are not weak, it can be seen from their auras they are killers. The way they carry themselves it is obvious they have military training.
These people have been asking a lot of questions. She told Mo to tell them what he wants to tell them.
The people looked at the beautiful young lady in front of them wearing a long Chinese dress not too tight but it shows the figure well. The color is light blue with golden patterns. Then there is the long slit showing long legs under white stockings.
The shoes are a small white heel with golden flowers. There is a gap showing stockings belt and the white pale skin of the woman. Just before the slit end.
She is very beautiful. For a while they looked at her without any words. Amelia poured herself a glass of cold juice from the jar on the table. They slowly came back to their senses because of her actions. One of her new secretaries poured them each a glass.
"So, what can I do for you gentlemen?" She asked looking at them.
"We seek shelter for 1311 people. 270 are elderly, 140 very young children. The remaining are people who can train and enlist on the base army." The leader said. Amelia raised her eyebrows.
"Sounds like a losing deal." She looked at him waiting for the rest of his statement.
Qin Ai looked at the girl and continues speaking. "We heard you lost most of your ability users to internal conflict but you have many resources, I will offer my and my men's services in exchange for you to allow the people to stay here comfortably."
This was his offer, he is a powerful thunder type and spirit type ability user and he has 13 men with military background and most of them are supernatural power people.
"How long are you 'offering your services?" Amelia asked with a bit of interest. Seeing her interested expression, Qin Ai became more confident. "For as long as I am able to. My men have no families and will follow my orders."
"I see, there is an orphanage for the children here the home for old people will be established in one of the outer buildings. But Mr., what else are you offering besides yourself? I heard you were a base leader, do you have no wealth at all?" Amelia asked.
Deep inside, Qin Ai is surprised by her forward question but he doesn't show it on his face.
Someone had been drinking the juice choked on it. Amelia looked at the people.
"We had only prepared 5000 crystal nucleus. We will give it all to you but I would like to monitor the situation for both the orphans and the old people form time to time. If you don't mind." Qin Ai said.
"I want four times that amount. If you are not able to give me then you can leave the 5000 and the orphans." Amelia smiled.
"Can we write and IOU? We heard you are big on contracts?"
"Is that your way of telling me you have eyes on me? Such silly games are played by men with small packers. Do you have the money or not I don't have all day." She said with a flat tone.
"We will pay 15 000." Ai said in discontent.
"If I wait another minute are you going to raise it or reduce it? Time is a resource Mr. Qin, don't waste mine." She looked the secretaries
Amelia seems to be ready to stand up and leave. Qin waved his hand and a men behind him came forward and gave her 25 000 crystal nucleus.
Amelia's secretary took the money into her space. Qin felt physical pain parting with so much wealth but he can always get it back by hunting zombies. The important thing is to get those people a safe place.
"You can use this at the entry point." She gave him a temporary honorary guest jade slip. "Good luck bringing your people here Mr. Qin." Amelia said with a flat tone. She doesn't want to risk her people on the road but ...
"I can get some people to escort you safely back. Would you like that Mr. Qin?" She asked him but he shook his head.
"They are close by all I need is to go get them it wont take a day. Thank you for accepting us." He stood up and left with his party.
"We have been robbed by a beautiful woman. I don't know whether to be lucky or angry." One of his men said smacking his lips.
"Did you notice there are no markets here?" Another one said looking at the clean street. The people here are not like outside, hopeless and hungry. On the contrary, they are lively, still have time to gossip and make gestures.
"No street kids either, the children play in that play ground and go inside when it's time for eating." Qin Ai said with an impressed tone.
"Someone said the place will open a market in the parking lot near the main gate and far away from the residents."
"I heard the same thing. The women who had left here were captured and abused outside, she avenged them that day."
"She was just killing a man who said he was taking over the base." Ai said flatly.
"So many things are being said about one incident." The boss frowned.
"Let's do the task." The boss said.
"We leave in the morning." That is the end of it. Some of his men are chatty but they are soldiers who follow orders after all.
"Boss, what if she can't provide a good environment for the people? What will you do?" One of his men asked.
Qin looked at the clean place and spoke. "I will take over." The men kept quiet at this moment. It means this lady's hard work is about to be taken by others. None of them thinks she has the power to resist if their boss wants to take her base from her.
"I saw their gates. There is no way for anyone to enter if they are not allowed inside."
"Yeah."
Amelia purified the crystal nucleus and put them in a storage. Knowing the family that holds the technology in the central base should be creating a smart watch that uses crystal nucleus for power.
The restaurant on the outside building has been selling the food especially the alcohol at a high price not to mention the items taken from outside are given to the base at a selling price.
The person can also rent a space to store them or keep them for themselves at their own place and sell it at the outer building. It is easy to rent space for now but soon the market will move to the parking.
Amelia is planning on making a large shelter and then separate it into stalls. One row will be for small stalls where small time businesses will be held.
The next will be where the big businesses are held. Larger space, like small restaurants or a bar some will sell furniture some will sell clothes while others cut hair and do hairstyles.
The sections will be clear so salons are not together with food. The rent is also higher for the big businesses. Security will be tighter.
The work is about to begin and the plans have been drawn. A professional builder has taken over the project. There is plumbing system involved so they will have to be very careful.
This way, more people will find work and no one will starve on the street.
Amelia woke up the next day and drove her car to look from some plants described in the novel.
Although she has mutated plans there able to be produce in large quantities. The ones she is looking forward to are the space mushrooms which will make people high when smoked.
As an alchemist, how can she not know the business of alcohol and drugs. She will just have to purify it and process the mushrooms in a way that will eliminate the additives. She can not have people unable to function without consuming a substance.
The frozen lilies, these flowers are not frozen nor are they lilies but a new species that is said to expel heat during extreme hot weather. When made into a pill, they will work immediately bring down the body temperature.
The burning wheat. It will make the body temperature worm and comfortable during winter. It is the end of the world, this up coming period of a few months will be the last normal weather the world will have. There will either be strong winds, extreme heat or ice cold temperatures. The rain pours down like a transparent curtain.
Amelia has alternatives of course, but these can be easily obtained and mass produced. All she needs to do is to find them and plant them and then figure out the Jiang Base formula for the medicine. As an alchemist how can she be inferior to normal people? She will definitely be able to figure it out.
The iron daisy is a healing plant. When these plants became known, those with healing powers became obsolete in the end times. But if a healing ability user has a high level of power, they can regrow limbs. While the daisy can not.
This is why she took al the light supernatural power users and grouped them together. Although the light power nan not fight humans in the low levels, it can do many things in higher levels. Light Is speed, light is heat, light is fire and it burns hotter than the flames. light is concentrated yin. How can it be useless?
The iron daisy just looks like metal, it is not metal. It provides grey healing juices. These can be found in places with dense devil qi or where the virus is strongest. Perhaps a zombie mass grave?
She has to visit a place where massacres of zombies were committed before she will surely find it.
What else? The weeping willow tree. It has glistening green leaves when you pinch a leaf, green liquid will come out immediately. It will grant longevity to whoever drinks it. It may not be like the elven blessed tree but it will at least give 10 years of life when drank directly.
This tree doesn't grow taller than a human teenager, it blooms by the heavy leaves. When it is ready to be harvested, the leaves will bend down with heavy juice. It doesn't have a crystal nuclei it is just a tree. The conclusion was that it probably already had rejuvenating effects and with the changes in the world, it's properties became more dominant.
It is also not very rare it just people don't know it's effect. The heroine made sure they remain ignorant in this life by recruiting the man responsible for most of these discoveries to her base.
Amelia will not stop this operation since it will benefit her anyways. In the novel, the heroine uses this juice to rejuvenate her grandmother who was sad because her husband died.
The mutated pines trees with hard leaves. The leaves are very hard and crystal. When grinded into power and sprinkled on the body, they can make zombies not be able to smell the the human smell, not just the zombies. The scent becomes non existent.
There is also the green moss. If one takes the type of moss grass that is found in the wild and planted on the base soil, the moss will multiply very quickly and purify the soil so the base can plant crops quickly.
She went to the first forest she saw. She really doesn't want to go where the heroine found all these things.
There is also that one herb that will cut the menstrual cycle for women for one day when one leaf is eaten. The base female soldiers don't have to worry about periods since they get that pill for free and it's for six months. But normal people will not not afford it.
Then there is the mutated meat. Very delicious just dangerous to hunt.
Amelia stopped walking inside a forest and looked at the main road in front of her. It seems she had come to an opening without getting a single herb she was looking for. But she did find the medicine for common cold and fever.
Nausea and bad stomach. Period pains and high blood pressure. It's just she didn't even find the shrooms.
Coming out of the forest she saw a place she had almost forgotten, a while back she heard the soldiers of her base made it here three weeks into her cultivation and rescued all the people. Now this place should be abandoned but her soldiers should have taken everything that can be taken.
She entered the gate and saw the green moss. Really...
She took out a bottle and put it in. After checking again she found the flu medicine. A while later she picked up that crystal pine and she will plant it in the base.
She will just write down all the things she wants people to find and release missions. She had just wanted to stretch her legs.
Amelia decided to walk back to the base but a fast moving car went past her and then stopped. The car reversed back and stopped next to her. A group of people with bloodied clothes looked at her clean outfit and that face. How in the end times can anyone be walking in the road in such a leisurely pace?
They had brought a group of zombies with them from the city so if they left her, these zombies will go after her. In fact, It is very kind for them not to use her as bate. The door opened and she entered looking around the car. This car is not very big but it can actually fit 8 people?
"Thank you. Kind sir." Amelia said to the driver.
The people are wearing bloody clothes, they also seem malnourished as well. The driver is a young man with a tan skin and a pair of shrewd black eyes. "What the hell are you doing on the road by yourself for? Are you just asking to be kidnapped?" One of the men who is holding tightly to a girl asked with displeasure.
"Umm, I am sorry. I don't understand stupid." Amelia said with a smile.
"We let you in the car and you still have such a poisonous mouth!" The girl in his arms wanted to jump on her.
"Why don't you continue grinding against his member with your flat bum and stop trying to be heard." Amelia said in an amused voice.
"What did you say to me?" The woman got angrier.
"Eh? You are hard of hearing too? Hehe." Amelia likes this type of people the most.
"Alright enough! Lady, where are you going?" The driver said looking like he will get a headache.
"To the Jiangkang hospital base." Amelia said with a polite tone.
"There really is a base in the hospital? Tell us about it." The driver, happy to change to subject said to Amelia.
"The base leader makes everyone work." She said lightly.
"Do they live well? Do they get paid? What's the highest paying job?"
"Are there enough jobs?"
"For now. The soldiers get more benefits than other workers." Amy answers unconsciously.
"What are the benefits?" The driver asks intrigued.
"Free housing, electricity and water with two family members. They get resources to help them get stronger and basic health kit for when they go to hunt zombies. Almost forgot, free healthcare."
"Sounds good." Someone said.
"So what happens when the base runs out of jobs?" The deriver asked.
"The base with close it's doors." Amelia answered honestly. ¹
"The base leader sounds evil." The woman commented.
"I agree." Amelia said.
"So why not riot and get a new leader?" Another man asked.
"Because everyone inside has what they need." Amelia answered.
"But what if you have friends outside?" The woman asked with annoyance.
"Go and be homeless with them." Amelia said as a matter of fact.
The car reached the gate and Amelia is the first to come out. "Thank you, kind sir." She looked at her dirtied outfit and walled inside.
"Hey! Wait." The driver came after her.
"Can you help us with the procedures? We are new here." The driver said without any expression on his face. Good guy! Such a straight face.
"Are you here to stay or..?" Amy asked looking at the handsome young man. Wei Jin has met very few women who were not impressed by his face. He was born very handsome so he is used to women throwing themselves at him.
That or they pretend to not care but they are actually trying to get his attention. This girl however is very beautiful, he has never met someone with such good skin. Especially during times like these.
Her movements are all simple and her words don't leave a way out for people but he finds his heart beating out of his cheat whenever she smiled. He is in that village with his younger brother who is silly and cute. But he had decided to abdicate his inheritance to his younger brother.
Wei Jin looked at the girl, remembering he hadn't asked for her name. "I'm Wei Jin, what is your name?" The cold eyes looked at Amy.
"Amelia Bold. Nice to meet you." Amelia extended her hand to him and he shook it lightly before letting it go.
"We are here to meet with the leader, don't see us dirty like this, we were ambushed by humans and robbed." The driver said scratching his head.
"Is the leader expecting you?" Amelia asked blinking.
"No, but we have a lot of survivors back in the mountain villages and we were hoping the base can provide security and transport." The driver said in response.
"Please wait a moment."
Amelia took out a walkie looking at the youngsters in the car she couldn't help saying. "You guys come from the village, no wonder you would let a stranger into your car. Don't do that in the future. Folks out here are not honest people."
"We took the other girl who had been silent the entire time into the base administration office. When she enters the gate, the access point where a jade slip is inserted glowed a bright white light.
The soldiers pulled out their guns and pointed to the group. When they saw the base leader they quickly lowered their guns. Someone wanted to come to her but she shook her head. Amelia put her own jade slip into the access point and the glaring light subsided. She then took the girl to the office.
The glowing lights will continue until someone with a higher access jade slip comes or the one infected goes out of the base sensing inscriptions. The good things is that if those with these jade slips allow the infected beings to enter, the red lights will keep glowing from all access points inside the base for as long as the infected body in inside the territory.
The entire base will be in alert. If someone tempered with the white light, the red lights will keep going until the place where the white light came from is settled.
This will prevent someone from smuggling infected people and tempering with the entry access point.
When they got to the admin office, Amelia walked in and everyone became alert. The entire place became shrouded in a serious atmosphere.
"Bring me a physician." Amelia said and someone came. Before he can say anything with his flattering smile on. Amelia pointed at the other girl in the group, one who didn't antagonize her in the car.
"That girl has a growing stomach bacteria she must have eaten something unclean. Watch her closely. It has a virus although minimal, if she can't fight it she'll turn." The doctor took the girl who has been silent for a long time in a car.
The team mates looked at the girl. This girl has been isolated in the village ever since her parents died and woke up as zombies killing a lot of people. In truth, none of them had paid too much attention to this young lady on the way.
"Little girl, what did you eat?" The nurse asked kindly.
"A bun. It was stale." The little girl's small voice came, it is easy to hear she is in a lot of pain. The nurse looked at the group.
"Can your friends afford medicine?" The group looked embarrassed but Amelia gave the nurse a look.
"Did they call you or did I call you? Heal the child." Amelia's voice became colder.
The nurse was just asking a question she usually asks when dealing with outsiders. Seeing she has displeased the leader, she wants to apologize but Amelia shook her head.
The nurse took the little girl and admitted her to pump the stomach and then give her the nutrients from the base. Since the girl was given by the leader, it should be okay to use the base items.
The secretary came Amelia gave her instructions. "Give them accommodations for tonight and food as well." Amelia looked at the shocked people.
"Tomorrow people will come to get you so you can lead the way for them. Good luck to you." Amelia used space to go back to clean herself.
When she left, the attention is directed to the few people in dirty clothes on the side. The secretary took them directly to a six bedroom flat and gave them points to come to eat at the restaurant when they are ready.
The few people looked at each other speechless. One person they picked up can have so much power? What kind of base is this?
"Brother, do you think that woman is some kind of important person? Will she come to me for revenge later?" The woman who argued with Amelia hugged herself in fright.
"You think too much. I doubt she remembers you." The driver said. Wei Jin agreed with the driver, that young lady didn't even spare him a glance earlier.
Weekly Power Status
-- Power
Ranking 
-- Power
stone