Natural Disasters Strikes: I stockpiled like crazy!-Chapter 278: Alien Beast Tide (2)
Nanzhi still hadn’t found her Master! Not to mention, Zhao Lin and the Iron Gale Squad were also there. Naturally, she wouldn’t turn a blind eye.
But a huge fire alone wouldn’t cause an alien beast tide.
There were several reasons why a tide occurs. The first and most dangerous is when a higher-ranked Alien Beast commands the tide. The second is during seasonal migration. During this time, alien beasts attack people and bases along their migration route. The third reason is the presence of a strong stimulant, such as excessive noise or the smell of blood. But for a tide this big, the stimulant must also be of the same magnitude.
The second reason could be ruled out. Even during migration, alien beasts usually move in separate species groups.
A fire like this would not act as a stimulant.
Could there be another Tier 4 or higher beast in Jade City besides the Tier 4 Parasitic Vine Frog?
It didn’t take long for her to get an answer.
"Hold on." While Nanzhi was deep in thought, Weihao noticed something unusual in the footage. "Qian, can you play it back and zoom in on that part?"
Hei Qian immediately did as instructed.
When they zoomed in, they saw a massive black swarm hovering above Longmen Base. At the same time, survivors were fleeing in all directions. Nanzhi and the others leaned closer to the screen.
A swarm of birds or bats would not look like that.
Only one possibility came to both Weihao and Nanzhi’s minds at the same time.
"Mosquitoes."
Nanzhi finally understood. With mosquitoes attacking the base, chaos was inevitable. Blood would be spilled everywhere.
That must be the stimulant.
Bingwen and Hei Qian gulped.
"What do you mean, Brother Lin? Did the mosquitoes from Pearl City find their way to Jade City too?" Bingwen asked nervously.
Weihao shook his head. "That’s less likely. But if you look carefully at the footage, the movement of the swarm and the direction people are escaping suggest that it originated from inside the base rather than outside. Though I’m not a hundred percent certain."
At the exact moment Weihao said those words, Nanzhi received a notification.
Ding!
[Emergency Mission: Save as many Longmen Base survivors as you can.
Reward: 20 EXP per survivor.]
[The degree of success of this mission will determine the Alien Beast Tide’s difficulty. The higher the number of rescued survivors, the lower the difficulty.]
[Additional Reward: If you manage to save more than a thousand survivors, the special monthly event of Double EXP will be triggered.]
[Emergency Mission: Defeat the Alien Beast Tide.]
[Reward (regardless of rating): 10,000 EXP and Upgrade Card.]
[Additional Reward (Defeat the tide with casualties lower than 10%): Unlock the System Shop, Extra Survival Points.]
Such rich rewards for an emergency mission!
It would be a lie to say she wasn’t tempted.
However, she was more concerned about the content of the missions.
"What do we do? Those mosquitoes will likely find us. They can fly and are small. They can easily slip through gaps and will be harder to target with bullets," Uncle Wang said anxiously.
"That’s the least of our concern. We have a way to deal with mosquitoes. What we should worry about now is increasing our numbers. If the tide targets us and we face it alone, with our pitiful numbers, we’ll soon be exhausted," Weihao said solemnly.
Weihao’s words about having a way to deal with mosquitoes relieved them slightly. But his next sentence plunged everyone into silence.
He was right.
Out of the blue, Nanzhi spoke.
"We need to save the people in Longmen Base."
"Roar!"
The thunderous roars and snarls from afar made Uncle Wang and the others’ hearts pound violently.
At 3-star, the mutated salacca could lure alien beasts within a range of more than 500 meters. With Hei Qian’s help, they had managed to divert part of the tide elsewhere. However, many alien beasts were still rushing toward Longmen Base.
She had only recently upgraded the fruit. There were only six 3-star salaccas left. Nanzhi couldn’t keep using them recklessly.
"But Sister Nan, there are too many alien beasts on the way!" Baoyin exclaimed.
"She’s right, Zhi Zhi," Weihao added, trying to dissuade her.
"Who said we’re moving on the surface?" Nanzhi replied calmly. "I was planning to take the underground route."
"Underground route?"
Nanzhi nodded and looked toward the manhole cover beside the drain just outside the gates of the community center.
Following her gaze, everyone turned in that direction.
The sewer?
Weihao raised his eyebrows. It was plausible.
But there were problems.
"Zhi Zhi, there are still at least six kilometers between the community center and Longmen Base. Without a map, we’ll get lost down there. Secondly, we’re not even sure if the sewer tunnels connect to Longmen Base. Third, we don’t even know if the sewer had been breach otherwise we will be trapped inside and will be surrounded by alien beasts."
Weihao knew her intuition-based locating ability mostly worked above ground. He also knew her abilities were not omnipotent. There had to be limits—range limitations and energy costs. He didn’t want her to overexert herself.
Nanzhi silently opened the Virtual Map.
"I have a way."
She had already considered everything Weihao mentioned. After all, she couldn’t continuously use her mental exploration skill—it consumed too much mental energy.
To defeat the tide, she needed to conserve as much strength as possible.
Earlier, she had asked the system about upgrading the Virtual Map and it confirmed the problems mentioned can be solved. She hadn’t prioritized it before because the system had stated that its initial upgrade benefits were lacking compared to upgrading the Virtual Farm.
But now, the situation was different.
She had two Upgrade Cards in hand—one from clearing the second dungeon and another obtained during her trip to the children’s park. If she completed these emergency missions, she would gain another Upgrade Card.
There was no reason to hesitate.
[Do you wish to upgrade the Virtual Map twice?]
Nanzhi’s eyes sharpened.
Yes.
