On the other side, after handing over the supplies they had found this time, Song Siyu came with Yu Sheng to the Base Chief’s office.
Just as they arrived, they ran into a woman walking out of the office. She wore a red dress and looked both pure and seductive at the same time.
“Siyu, you’re back!” Xu Mengqi’s eyes lit up the moment she saw Song Siyu, and she immediately stepped forward, wanting to grab her hand.
Song Siyu lightly avoided her touch and merely gave a faint “Mm” before walking straight into the office. However, her gaze had already turned cold.
Xu Mengqi.
Her former university classmate. Her best friend.
And now… her father’s mistress. The “Yu Ji” of the Overlord Base’s chief.
Back then, worried about Xu Mengqi’s safety, Song Siyu had immediately gone to bring her entire family over to stay with them. Who could have expected that shortly after the base was established, she would climb into her father’s bed?
And at that time, her mother had only recently died in the jaws of zombies!
Heh. Yu Ji? She really knew how to glorify herself.
“Yu Sheng, is Siyu still angry with me? But I really didn’t mean to…” Xu Mengqi looked at Yu Sheng with a pitiful expression after Song Siyu ignored her.
“I still have matters to report to the Base Chief. I’ll go in first.”
Yu Sheng interrupted Xu Mengqi before following Song Siyu inside.
Everyone in the base knew Song Siyu and Xu Mengqi didn’t get along. Song Siyu had even started hating all women who depended on men after the apocalypse because of Xu Mengqi.
As Song Siyu’s teammate—and admirer—Yu Sheng naturally knew he had to keep his distance from Xu Mengqi.
“You…”
Watching both Song Siyu and Yu Sheng disappear behind the door, the smile on Xu Mengqi’s face vanished, replaced by hurt and disappointment in her eyes.
“Xiaoyu, you’re back?”
When Song Xiangsong saw his daughter enter, he thought of Xu Mengqi, who had just left moments ago. The smile on his face became somewhat awkward and ingratiating.
The burly, intimidating middle-aged man looked fierce to everyone else, but in front of his daughter, he was merely a simple and humble father who often lowered himself.
Song Siyu stared at him calmly without speaking.
Seeing this, Yu Sheng could only step up and report the results of their outing himself, especially emphasizing Sheng Ge’s situation.
“The person you mentioned, Sheng Ge—what’s her background?” Song Xiangsong asked.
Truthfully, after hearing Yu Sheng’s report, he had not paid much attention to it. It was already the apocalypse. All kinds of supernatural powers had appeared—metal, wood, water, fire, even controlling wind and rain.
So what was strange about a space-type ability user who knew how to use talismans?
“Not sure. But judging from her temperament and those strange supplies she carries, she definitely isn’t an ordinary person. She’s very likely connected to someone high-ranking in a base. Actually… I suspect she may have something to do with Ning Yi from the official base.”
Yu Sheng voiced his speculation.
“Oh?”
Only then did Song Xiangsong become interested.
“How so?”
“Swords,” Yu Sheng replied.
Although communication after the apocalypse was nowhere near what it had been before, and information exchange between bases was limited, the name Ning Yi, captain of Team Zero at the C City Official Base, was still famous across all bases.
Not only was he a powerful lightning-type ability user, he was also known as the king of cold weapons.
Rumor had it that he came from a martial arts family and had practiced swordsmanship since childhood. At the beginning of the apocalypse, before awakening his ability, he had killed several hundred zombies in one go using only a sword.
Of course, after countless ability users began appearing, that feat no longer seemed quite as shocking.
“Whether before or after the apocalypse, there are very few people in this era who use swords. Even ordinary people without abilities mostly use knives or guns.
“But that little boy called Ah Bao specifically uses a sword. Even though we haven’t seen Sheng Ge use one, I suspect she probably knows how as well.”
“Mm, that does make some sense, but you can’t conclude it based on that alone.”
Song Xiangsong waved his hand.
“Forget it. They’re already in the base anyway. Just keep an eye on them. Although the official bases have always been unhappy with us ‘crowning ourselves kings,’ they’re still busy building safer and more reliable survival bases for humanity. They don’t have time to bother with us for now.”
Official bases were different from “unregistered” bases like theirs, which were formed simply by gathering a group of people together.
The officials had to consider the safety of all humanity. Naturally, there were far more things they needed to research and plan.
So even more than a year into the apocalypse, the official bases were still constantly improving and expanding.
Though he hated to admit it, compared to the official bases, the Overlord Base really was like a little brother.
Their overall scale and vision simply couldn’t compare.
Song “Present-Day Overlord” Xiangsong silently burned with envy and jealousy inside.
“And didn’t you say she injured that child, Shuang’er? Feng Tai definitely won’t let that slide. With him keeping an eye on things, there’s even less to worry about.”
This matter truly wasn’t urgent for them at the moment.
What was urgent was—
“Dad, why did I hear that you handed the planting zone over to the Xu family?”
Song Siyu’s voice was filled with barely restrained anger.
“Ah, well… about that…”
The moment the topic came up, Song Xiangsong looked guilty.
“Your Uncle Xu used to work at a research institute. He said he wanted to help study ways to increase food production.
“You know our base only has one plant-type ability user. The amount we can grow is limited.”
“So you handed the plantation over to the Xu family?!”
Song Siyu slammed the table as she stood up in fury.
“Dad, don’t tell me you can’t see what the Xu family and the Second Base Chief are trying to do. Over the past few months, they’ve been recruiting ability users all over the base and expanding their own influence. Do you seriously think they’re just cherishing talent?”
The Overlord Base had long since lost its original harmony.
Once the initial chaos of the apocalypse passed and the base stabilized, everyone’s selfish desires began surfacing.
First was Second Base Chief Feng Wen, who had once been Song Xiangsong’s boss before the apocalypse and now resented being beneath him.
Then came the Xu family. Because Xu Mengqi had climbed into Song Xiangsong’s bed—and because Professor Xu came from a research institute—they gradually gathered many ability users to their side as well.
The Overlord Base had slowly split into three separate factions.
Yet her father still remained so naive, believing these people were loyal to him.
“If the frozen storage building and the plantation hadn’t always been under our control, do you really think they’d still obediently let you remain Base Chief?”
“Xiaoyu!”
Song Xiangsong raised his voice sharply.
“They’re all your uncles! They were my good brothers even before the apocalypse, and later they risked their lives helping me establish the Overlord Base. How can you think of them like that?”
“Heh! Right, they’re all your trustworthy brothers, while your own daughter isn’t trustworthy, is that it?!
“I think Xu Mengqi has completely muddled your brain! Yu Ji? You really think you’re Xiang Yu now? That everyone is absolutely loyal to you?”
Did her self-righteous father even realize that this was no longer the beginning of the apocalypse, when everyone relied on his brute strength for protection?
Ever since all kinds of powerful abilities began emerging one after another, people had gradually become dissatisfied with him—a Base Chief whose only power was enhanced strength.
If she herself hadn’t awakened an ability and taken control of the food supply, how could the people below possibly still behave obediently without causing trouble?
Song Xiangsong’s face darkened from being scolded so hard.
…What was wrong with him?
From appearance to abilities, wasn’t he extremely similar to the Overlord? Why couldn’t he be the Overlord?
“Xiaoyu, how can you talk to your father like that?!”
What was wrong with him? From appearance to abilities, he resembled the Overlord in every way possible. Why couldn’t he be the Overlord?
Seeing father and daughter about to start a full-blown argument, Yu Sheng quickly stepped in to mediate.
“Base Chief, Siyu doesn’t mean it that way. It’s just that plant-type ability users are extremely important. If someone with ulterior motives controls the food supply, it will definitely become a threat to us.”
Yu Sheng did not directly state who those “ulterior motives” belonged to, which made Song Xiangsong feel a little better.
“But I’ve already handed the plantation over to your Uncle Xu. I can’t just take it back the moment you return, can I?
“Besides, the base genuinely doesn’t have enough food. If I refuse to let Uncle Xu research improvements just to maintain my authority, what will the people in the base think? Wouldn’t that only make them riot even faster?”
Song Xiangsong wasn’t truly stupid.
He simply had no better choice.
“Siyu, this really can’t all be blamed on the Base Chief,” Yu Sheng tried to persuade her.
Song Siyu clenched her fists tightly and took a deep breath before finally suppressing her anger.
She also understood that things had already reached the point of no return.
Still—
“The plantation can be handed over to the Xu family for research. But my people must also participate in managing it.”
“Alright, no problem.”
Song Xiangsong immediately agreed.
Meanwhile, at the base clinic—
Second Base Chief Feng Wen was walking toward the hospital ward. Before he even entered, he heard his daughter crying and screaming from inside the room.