Ice Age Apocalypse: I Hoard Billions of Supplies

After contacting Liang Yue, a look of anticipation appeared on Zhang Yi’s face.

"If Liang Yue can succeed, we'll gain a huge advantage in our fight against West Hill Base!"

Yang Xinxin, sitting in the back seat, smiled and said, "The most important thing is that we can steal all their intelligence and figure out their trump cards."

"I’m also curious to see if they really have the ability to deploy missiles. In the current situation, the difference between an organization with such strategic weapons and one without is enormous!"

"The threat to us is on a completely different level, right, big brother?"

Zhang Yi nodded in agreement. "Exactly. The unknown is always the scariest. But once we know their trump cards, we’ll at least know how to respond."

Lu Keran, thinking of Liang Yue, couldn't help but feel concerned. Liang Yue had been a very caring teacher to them back in school.

"Sigh—" Lu Keran let out a long sigh.

Zhang Yi asked curiously, "What’s wrong, Keran? What are you worrying about now?"

Lu Keran replied, "I’m worried about Teacher Liang. She’s in such a dangerous place, carrying out such a risky mission. What if something happens to her?"

"If she gets discovered, won’t she be killed?"

Her face was full of worry.

Zhang Yi raised an eyebrow and thought to himself: Sorry, but I don’t really care about her life or death. We’re just in a mutually beneficial relationship; there’s no emotional attachment here.

Of course, Zhang Yi would be happy if Liang Yue succeeded. But if she failed, it wouldn’t be much of a loss for him.

From the start, it was Liang Yue who had approached him for cooperation. Even if she died, Zhang Yi couldn’t be blamed.

"Fate favors the good. Teacher Liang is such a kind person; heaven will protect her!" Zhang Yi smiled, offering some comfort.

Lu Keran, hearing this, nodded firmly. "Yes, Teacher Liang is so nice. Nothing bad will happen to her!"

Zhang Yi could barely contain his laughter inside.

Still, he didn’t say anything to shatter Lu Keran’s innocent belief. In fact, it worked in his favor to let her keep that purity. Sometimes, Zhang Yi found it comforting to be around such pure-hearted girls, reminding him of the simpler, more innocent version of himself from the past.

Before long, they arrived at Yuelu Residential Area.

After more than a month away, the snow on the ground had thickened again. However, with the reduced snowfall, it wasn’t spreading any further.

The entire city seemed frozen in time, blanketed in snow and silence, with only the howling wind piercing through the eerie stillness.

Before arriving, Zhang Yi had already informed Uncle You, so when the car pulled up in front of Building 25, he saw Uncle You and Zhou Haimei bundled up in thick coats, waiting for them.

Zhang Yi glanced around at the nearby apartment buildings.

Nothing stirred. No sign of life.

Most of the people in the neighborhood were probably dead by now.

As everyone got out of the car, Uncle You and Zhou Haimei walked over with big smiles on their faces.

Uncle You gave Zhang Yi and Fatty Xu each a warm hug.

“Hahaha, it’s been a while! It’s great to see you all safe and sound!”

Uncle You patted Zhang Yi and Fatty Xu’s backs enthusiastically, his eyes brimming with excitement.

He had noticed the explosion at Cloud Manor back then and had planned to rush over to help Zhang Yi, but Zhang Yi had refused his offer.

During this time, he had stayed in touch with Zhang Yi, ready to assist him at a moment’s notice. In his heart, he felt that he owed his life to Zhang Yi’s help. He believed he wouldn’t have survived this long without it.

Zhou Haimei was equally happy to see Yang Siyah, Zhou Ke’er, and the other women. Living in the shelter, her life had been secure, but with no one to talk to, loneliness had been eating away at her.

Now that she had some company, she couldn’t be happier. It felt like a holiday gathering rather than a survival reunion.

The group bustled with joy, and they all entered the shelter together.

Back in the familiar shelter, Zhang Yi and Zhou Ke’er’s faces filled with nostalgia. They couldn’t help but recall the early days of the apocalypse when they had witnessed too many bizarre things.

Even seeing the white walls of the shelter now felt chillingly cold.

Zhou Haimei laughed. “Knowing you were coming, I made sure to prepare all the rooms. It’s a bit crowded, but the house is big enough, so we can squeeze in.”

“That’s great! The more people, the merrier! We can even set up two mahjong tables!” someone joked, and the group laughed, the women in particular enjoying themselves as if on vacation rather than fleeing disaster.

Once inside, Zhang Yi removed his winter coat and went to chat with Uncle You.

Zhang Yi pulled a pack of cigarettes from his pocket and handed one to Uncle You. They lit up, puffing smoke as they caught up on each other’s recent experiences.

Neither of them were heavy smokers, but the occasional cigarette helped ease the tension.

“How’ve things been around the neighborhood lately? Has everyone else died? No one’s tried to come over and rob you, have they?” Zhang Yi asked with a smile, leaning against the windowsill.

Uncle You chuckled. “You sure don’t miss a thing! After you left, a few people thought it was safe and came looking for me.”

“At first, they tried to appeal to my sympathy, but after that first month of the apocalypse, none of us can afford to be saints anymore, so I turned them down flat.”

“When they got desperate and tried to force their way in, I sent them all away.”

Uncle You spoke lightly about it.

Having helped Zhang Yi clear out all the troublemakers in the neighborhood, he had become accustomed to killing. It no longer bothered him.

“We’re all just trying to survive. You weren’t wrong for coming after me, but don’t blame me for taking you out.”

“But there is still one group of people alive.”

This caught Zhang Yi by surprise. “Impossible!” he exclaimed instinctively.

In an environment like this, without external supplies, no one should be able to survive in the other buildings. They didn’t have powers like Uncle You, nor did they have a snowmobile like the one Zhang Yi had given him.

Uncle You took another drag of his cigarette and laughed. “It’s true, and you know them well. It’s Li Jian’s group from Building 18!”

“Li Jian?” Zhang Yi raised an eyebrow, clearly surprised.

That building had left an impression on him back in the day.

Li Jian’s group had managed to maintain civility in the apocalypse. There was no fighting over resources, no internal killings, and no descent into cannibalism.

Remarkably, they had survived longer than anyone else in the neighborhood.

But Zhang Yi had never thought they would last this long.

He had given them some seeds, but he hadn’t expected them to actually grow crops.

“Do you know how they’re managing?” Zhang Yi asked, intrigued.

Uncle You shook his head. “I don’t know the details. You told me not to get too close to them, so I haven’t.”

“They’re scared of you, so they don’t dare come over, and I don’t want to take any risks. But I’ve seen shadows moving in their building, so I know they’re still alive.”

Zhang Yi’s curiosity grew even more.

Snuffing out his cigarette, he said, “I’ll pay that old friend a visit later.”

Uncle You looked at Zhang Yi, his dark eyes full of concern.

“What’s going on with you? Have you run into some danger?”

Knowing Zhang Yi, Uncle You was aware that he wouldn’t have left his shelter unless something serious was happening.

Zhang Yi hadn’t had time to explain everything to him earlier, so now he filled him in on the whole story.

“What? Missiles?” Uncle You’s eyes widened in shock.

Before the apocalypse, such weapons were only under the control of the highest military command. To use them, they would need direct orders from the capital.

And now, they were planning to use that kind of weapon against Zhang Yi’s shelter?

Zhang Yi rubbed his nose and said, “We’re not sure if it’s a bluff or real, but to be safe, I decided to lay low for a while.”

“It’s probably fake. We’ll go back once we’ve confirmed it’s safe.”

But Uncle You wasn’t convinced.

“I think you should stay here longer, just to be sure. You can’t afford to take chances with something like this.”

“Tell you what, you can have this shelter back, and Haimei and I will move to the next building.”

Uncle You knew his place well. This shelter had been lent to him by Zhang Yi, and he wasn’t about to act like the owner.

Zhang Yi gave him an appreciative look and smiled. “Why say that? You can stay here. Do you really think I’m short on shelters now?”

Zhang Yi was no longer the person he used to be. He was much stronger now, with plenty of capable allies.

Building a new shelter to his liking was a simple task.

With no shortage of heating resources or food, he wasn’t picky about where he stayed.

Uncle You laughed. “You’re the boss here. As long as you’re happy, we’re happy to have you!”

Author's Note