C121 The Seeds and Fertilizers Were All Taken away and the Cement Factory Was Greatly Harvested(1)

"Bing, there's a supermarket up ahead!" After moving furniture, Zhao Dagang pointed excitedly to a nearby supermarket as the car crept forward.

Tang Bing didn't even slow down, keeping the car on course. "We're not here for the supermarket," he stated.

"Oh," was all Zhao Dagang could muster before he settled back into his seat.

Glancing in the rearview mirror, Tang Bing caught the pallid expressions of Sun Meng and Qin Mengli, who looked as though they were recovering from a grave illness.

He knew pushing them might be too much, but Tang Bing felt he had no choice. Danger lurked around every corner, and without pushing them, who knew when they'd become reliable allies.

After all, necessity is the mother of invention – a truth that applied to everyone, himself included.

"Are you all rested up?"

His abrupt inquiry caused the three passengers to look up.

"I'm good to go!" Zhao Dagang announced, brimming with vigor.

"I wasn't asking you," Tang Bing replied coolly.

"Oh." Chastened, Zhao Dagang clammed up.

Tang Bing's gaze returned to Sun Meng and Qin Mengli in the mirror. "Rest or not, we've got a fight on our hands. There's a group of seven or eight zombies up ahead. Dagang and I will take the lead, and we'll leave one for each of you to handle."

"Ah! Again?" Sun Meng's voice trembled, on the verge of tears.

Qin Mengli remained silent, but her eyes betrayed her panic.

"You'll keep facing this until it becomes second nature," Tang Bing declared icily. "If you can't shake off the fear, we'll repeat this until you're desensitized."

"Tang Bing, I never pegged you for this type," Qin Mengli spat, her face contorted with displeasure. "We're women! Show us some consideration!"

"Bing, this is too much!" Sun Meng cried out in distress.

Unmoved by their pleas, Tang Bing remained stoic. "Will the zombies out there show you any mercy? If you're going to be part of my team, then trust my commands. I'll ensure we all make it through this alive, but you must follow my orders to the letter. Any objections?"

Qin Mengli and Sun Meng's faces tensed, betraying a sense of grievance as they bowed their heads.

"Out of the car!" Tang Bing's silence was taken as consent. Approaching the intersection, he brought the vehicle to a halt and strode forward, mace in hand.

Zhao Dagang was right on his heels, and sure enough, seven or eight zombies emerged nearby.

Throughout their journey, Tang Bing had a knack for avoiding large zombie hordes, opting instead to practice on smaller groups. The first encounter hadn't raised any eyebrows, but this second time—particularly when Tang Bing predicted the number of zombies before they were in sight—left the trio in the team utterly astounded. They wondered if Tang Bing's supernatural abilities extended beyond what they had seen.

Following their previous tactic, Tang Bing and Zhao Dagang subdued two zombies, then pushed Sun Meng and Qin Mengli to take action.

Despite having been through this once before, their hesitation persisted.

With no other option, Tang Bing resorted to guiding their hands in the attack, just as he had done earlier.

After dispatching the zombies, the two women were overcome with nausea, retreating to the car to recover as if they were ill.

This couldn't continue; they needed to conquer their inner terror. Tang Bing mulled over this as a plan began to take shape in his mind.

Their next stop was the town's seed station, which also sold a variety of fertilizers.

Inside, after eliminating two zombies that confronted them, Tang Bing instructed Zhao Dagang to load bags of fertilizer onto the vehicle. Meanwhile, he carefully stowed well-packaged seed packets into his virtual backpack.

System, you have discovered a bag of rice seeds!

System, you have discovered a bag of corn seeds!

System, you have discovered a bag of carrot seeds!

System, you have discovered a bag of cabbage seeds!

System, you have discovered a bag of spinach seeds...

They found seeds for all the usual vegetables, fruits, and crops—enough to alleviate any future food concerns.

The issue of meat remained, however. If they could find uninfected livestock, they could potentially capture and raise it. But so far, Tang Bing had yet to encounter any healthy livestock or pets. If any had survived, they were likely either consumed by zombies or had fled to regions untouched by the undead.

After clearing out nearly all the merchandise from the seed station, Tang Bing returned to the car to find Qin Mengli and Sun Meng still looking quite ill. Handing each of them a bottle of mineral water, he said, "All done throwing up breakfast? Take a sip of water, settle your stomachs. Rest up now; you'll need your strength for what's coming!"

Qin Mengli and Sun Meng grimaced as they accepted the water. Despite their mental preparation, the reality was tougher than expected. Yet, they understood Tang Bing wasn't being deliberately harsh. He was simply holding them to their word—they didn't want to be a burden and had expressed a desire to contribute. To be of help, they needed to be ready to take on zombies!

Even if they had once been the kind of girls who needed protection, in this zombie-infested apocalypse, they had to learn to stand strong.

"Bing, what's our next move?" Zhao Dagang was focused on the destination. "We've got the furniture, seeds, and fertilizer. What else do we need?"

"We're heading to a cement factory on the east side of town. We need to haul as much cement as we can!" Tang Bing floored the accelerator, plowing through a horde of zombies.

"Cement? What for?" Zhao Dagang inquired, puzzled.

"As long as I know, that's enough. You don't need to worry about the details," Tang Bing replied, eyes on the road ahead. "Just know it's vital for reinforcing and securing our base."

"Got it," Zhao Dagang said, dropping the subject.

The vehicle barreled on, dodging wave after wave of zombies, until they reached the cement factory gates. Tang Bing, using his Ocean Heart ability, detected a significant number of zombies inside and became vigilant. "The factory's probably crawling with zombies. Stick close to me once we're in there and don't get separated."

"Ah?" Qin Mengli's anxiety spiked at the mention of the zombies. "Maybe... maybe I should stay here and watch the car?"

Sun Meng had intended to offer that herself, but with Qin Mengli beating her to it, she shot her a disgruntled look.

"This isn't like before; we could have more zombies roaming around at any moment," Tang Bing cautioned, turning to them. "Staying in the car isn't safe—if you get cornered, I might not reach you in time. It's safer to stay close to me."

"Guess I'll stick with you then!" Qin Mengli blurted out.

One by one, the four of them stepped out of the vehicle.

Tang Bing led the way, with Zhao Dagang right on his heels, while Qin Mengli and Sun Meng brought up the rear.

Approaching the guardhouse's side door, they were suddenly charged by a group of zombies clad in worker uniforms, their growls piercing the air.

"Dagang!" Tang Bing shouted, swinging his spiked mace and taking down a zombie with a crushing blow.

Zhao Dagang seamlessly backed him up, toppling another undead assailant.

Together, the men leveraged the narrow doorway to their advantage, dispatching the nearby zombies with efficient brutality.

Qin Mengli and Sun Meng had little to do but watch; the cement factory was teeming with zombies, demanding their full attention and constant vigilance.

"Head to the office and open the electric gate!" Tang Bing commanded Zhao Dagang as he crouched to search the fallen zombies.

"On it!" Zhao Dagang darted into the guardhouse to carry out the task.

[You have obtained a wrench (Normal)]

[You have obtained a shovel (Normal)]

[You have obtained an iron pickaxe (Normal)]

The worker zombies seemed to have a high chance of dropping tools, and just like that, three different ones were secured. They were all of normal quality, but that was still better than nothing.

With a clatter, the search ended just as the cement factory's electric gate slid open.

"Bing, we're all set!" Zhao Dagang emerged from the guardhouse, flashing a triumphant thumbs-up and a grin.

"Good!" Tang Bing signaled as he finished his search, "Everyone, back on the bus. Let's drive in!"

Without a moment's delay, the group followed the order and swiftly boarded the bus.

Tang Bing maneuvered the bus around the corner and sped into the expansive grounds of the cement factory, heading straight for the production workshop.

"Roar~!!" No sooner had the bus entered the grounds than a horde of zombies burst from a nearby building, their relentless roars filling the air.

"Bing, there's so many!" Sun Meng gasped, her body shaking with fear at the sight of at least thirty to forty zombies swarming towards them.