Chapter 121: Rabbit Meat for Dinner!

“Your Highness, there’s trouble—several nests of field mice have all died, along with some of the young rabbits,” the myna bird reported as it flew up to the second-floor living room.

Su Miao hurried downstairs and stared in dismay at the stiffened corpses of three groups of field mice and three groups of young rabbits that had been fed the vegetables from group A. Silently, she affixed a “highly toxic” label onto the growth elixir she had extracted from the beautiful mushrooms.

Fortunately, the field mice and young rabbits that consumed the growth elixir derived from ordinary mushrooms and the accelerated vegetables were unharmed.

After observing for a while longer, there should be some conclusive results.

Stepping outside, Su Miao conjured a large fireball, intending to destroy all the vegetables in group A’s plot. But recalling what had happened the previous day, she instead gathered all those vegetables into her magical storage space and marked them as poisonous—just in case they might prove useful later.

Having stored the vegetables, Su Miao returned to the villa to continue her magical research.

...

“He’s dead, there’s no saving him,” Sun Rong said, shaking his head as he looked down at Luo Zhengyi’s stiffening body.

In this apocalyptic world, poisoning was an unsolvable problem. Even the most skilled doctors were helpless without proper tools and medicine—let alone them.

Guo Yixing, Yu Feng, Chu Zekai, and Sun Rong looked at their fallen comrade with heavy hearts.

“Let’s bury him,” Yu Feng said. After all, they had lived together for so long and shared deep bonds.

Without much discussion, they quietly took out the cooked meal. Originally meant to be divided into five portions, this time it was split into four.

“Luo Zhengyi, don’t worry about wasting food. We will eat your share for you,” Chu Zekai said. “And then we’ll find you a good resting place, so you may rest in peace.”

Guo Yixing, Yu Feng, and Sun Rong were speechless. Only Chu Zekai could joke at a time like this.

But under such brutal, freezing blizzards in this apocalypse, their survival was already a blessing.

The pot was full, and the four of them ate every last bit.

“Let’s just bury him in the yard,” Sun Rong said.

The others nodded in agreement.

They grabbed their tools and began to dig through the snow. Though it was just a grave pit, it took the four of them a full hour and a half to reach the earth beneath. They took advantage of the relatively loose soil to dig a shallow grave for Luo Zhengyi.

“Luo Zhengyi, this is as deep as we can get. Any deeper and we simply can’t dig,” Yu Feng said.

It was inevitable—the soil was somewhat workable when first exposed to the air, but the deeper they dug, the faster it was freezing solid, outpacing their efforts.

They placed Luo Zhengyi’s body in the shallow pit and carefully covered it.

No incense, no paper offerings; they burned a few dry grasses as a gesture of respect.

In this end-of-world existence, having someone to bury you was already a kindness.

“Everyone, let’s speak up. Don’t keep things bottled inside—overthinking leads to danger,” Sun Rong said upon returning to the villa, taking on the mantle of team leader.

Perhaps due to awakening his secondary ability, he had grown more confident, though in everyday life he remained extremely cautious.

“Could it be related to the hot water the Witch gave us that day?” Chu Zekai asked.

The Witch had once told them to harvest vegetables but never provided any food before.

“I remember feeling much lighter after drinking that cup of water.”

“Me too.”

“So do I.”

They all agreed on this point, though none mentioned their awakened abilities. In exchanged glances, they sensed each other was hiding something but respected the unspoken secrecy.

Reflecting on the earlier grave-digging, subtle clues were evident: Yu Feng and Guo Yixing displayed greater strength; Chu Zekai was sweating; Sun Rong dug silently yet with impressive endurance. After all, the cowardly Sun Rong had once been unable to carry a single cabbage, and now he could.

“From now on, whatever Her Highness the Witch requests, we’ll obey completely,” Yu Feng said. “I’m certain this is the right path.”

Everyone nodded in agreement.

Just like this time, the Witch had specifically instructed them to harvest the vegetables from plot B. They had envied the thriving vegetables in plot A and wanted to eat them.

It was Luo Zhengyi, seeking his own doom, who had asked the Witch if he could pick from plot A.

Despite the Witch’s clear warning that the safety was uncertain, he still ate a tomato—and died.

...

At the Four Seas Base,

Yu Yuangui and his brothers had been stationed here for some time.

Unlike the Fire God Base, the Four Seas Base was a ground settlement built around a small town.

Its higher elevation spared it from devastation during floods and heavy rains.

Also, it had escaped earthquake damage, leaving most buildings intact.

Moreover, it possessed a newly developed open-pit coal mine with an estimated 8.8 billion tons of reserves, a power plant, and a large river.

When the storms began, the military occupied this area, consolidating all resources to build the Four Seas Base centered around the power plant. They planned residential, agricultural, and mining zones, dug moats, and built defensive walls.

But after nearly two months of construction, the military suddenly withdrew for unknown reasons.

Before leaving, they handed the base over to local authorities.

Thus, through the struggle of interested parties, the Four Seas Refuge transformed into the Four Seas Base.

Without military support, many construction projects halted, but the military’s groundwork became the foundation for survival.

For example, heating pipes and various furnaces powered by the coal mine and power plant.

When the locals took over, many didn’t understand the military’s construction logic and even damaged some structures.

Eventually, a strict order was issued: anyone who dared damage military heritage would face execution, halting further destruction.

Though puzzled, it was not until the arrival of the freezing blizzards that the true wisdom of these measures became clear.

Now, at Four Seas Base, cement houses had heating; those without were building ice houses.

With abundant coal supplies, deaths from the cold were rare.

If any occurred, it was usually from drunken individuals who passed out outside.

Such cases were few, as alcohol was a luxury few could afford.

More common were deaths from carbon monoxide poisoning due to improper coal heating.

Currently, Four Seas Base housed nearly 50,000 people—a genuine large base rivaling many small refuges.

“Commander Yu!” Mili approached Yu Yuangui, handing over an intelligence report. “Trouble has arrived.”

Yu Yuangui glanced at the report and rubbed his brow.

After enjoying a few good days at Four Seas Base, he hadn’t expected trouble so soon. Was he to abandon the base and move again?

But he truly did not know where to move next.

The Fire God Base was certainly out of the question.

After learning of its destruction, Four Seas Base had sent scouts.

They reported that Fire God Base had been buried under heavy snow and completely wiped out.

Those who fled with Yu Yuangui shuddered at the news. Had they stayed, they’d have been buried alongside.

“Are they already this close?” Yu Yuangui set down the report.

“Yes. Command orders us to engage,” Mili replied.

According to known intelligence, Four Seas Base had already suffered significant losses.

In this context, it made sense that new arrivals like them would be ordered to fight.

“Let’s scout ahead. If things go wrong, we’ll retreat,” Yu Yuangui said, packing his gear.

Mili was surprised. “Commander, are you—?”

“I’m leading the mission myself. Do you expect me to sit here and watch you die?” he said.

Mili nodded. “Then what about supplies—?”

Yu Yuangui smiled. “Mili, I praised your intelligence just days ago. Why the sudden silliness? Tell the men to carry extra weapons and ammo—all of them.”

“Understood!” Mili replied.

When they first joined Four Seas Base, they had been met with suspicion.

But after confirming Fire God Base’s demise, the base sincerely welcomed them, even bolstering Yu Yuangui’s force with over 200 reinforcements.

Yu Yuangui quickly rose as one of Four Seas Base’s key leaders—a testament to their sincerity.

Under such circumstances, Yu Yuangui’s men received favorable treatment.

They usually handled internal defense; this was their first external mission.

That a leader of such rank personally led the mission was rare—more akin to science fiction.

...

In the warmest hall of Four Seas Base, four men sat around a conference table.

A sharply dressed, charismatic middle-aged man smiled and asked, “Aren’t you afraid Yu Yuangui will lead his men to escape?”

Across from him, a young red-haired woman replied, “With the Fire God Base destroyed and cannibals roaming everywhere, where else could they run?”

“Are you referring to the nearest official refuge?” the man asked.

“It’s too far,” said an elderly man in a Zhongshan suit.

“Don’t see conspiracies in everything. I believe Yu Yuangui appreciates our sincerity, and there’s no better place nearby,” the old man said.

“His decision to lead this mission personally is also a show of commitment,” the middle-aged man added.

“No, my real concern is the force that destroyed Fire God Base,” the man continued. “According to Yu Yuangui’s intelligence, Fire God Base was wiped out in half a day—and no news leaked afterward. That’s terrifying.”

“On the map, the Fire God Base is only two and a half days’ snowmobile ride from here. The chances of encountering them are high,” the red-haired woman said with a smile.

“To be safe, I recommend halting investigations near Fire God Base. Our greatest threat now is the cannibals—two-front warfare would be unwise,” the young man at the head of the table said.

“Lin, you should go too. If the cannibal king Da Xi appears, I worry Yu Yuangui might not manage it,” the old man chuckled.

“No problem—just my old aching legs,” Lin replied.

...

Yu Yuangui led most of his force away from Four Seas Base, advancing toward the reported cannibal location.

They wore every available piece of cold-weather gear: quilts, mutated animal pelts, bark raincoats—anything to keep warm.

Still, people froze to death daily. Their clothes were stripped from the dead and worn by survivors.

Those stripped bare were dismembered and boiled in pots prepared long ago, then shared among others.

Among the cannibals, resistance meant death, refusal to join meant death, uselessness meant death.

Their sole purpose was to relentlessly hunt down scattered survivors, kill, and consume them with ruthless cruelty.

Humanity no longer existed here.

After long migration, they discovered Four Seas Base and prepared to seize it.

Though intelligence indicated the base was large, hunger had long since erased caution.

The roar of snowmobiles echoed, alerting the cannibals on the move.

They scrambled to hidden spots.

“Stop!” Yu Yuangui commanded, and the snowmobiles halted.

Mili stood beside him, puzzled. “Commander, this is still far from the reported cannibal area.”

Ahead lay a vast expanse of white, nothing visible.

Was he merely wasting diesel circling here, then turning everyone back?

Yu Yuangui smiled and held out his hand. “Hand me an assault rifle.”

Someone quickly passed him one.

Yu Yuangui took it and fired a burst into the snowy forest.

Suddenly, agonized screams pierced the air. Some cannibals emerged from the snow in panic, fleeing wildly.

“The rest is up to you,” Yu Yuangui said, returning the rifle.

The squad leaders behind him were amazed—how had he found the hidden cannibals?

With the roar of snowmobiles, two squads gave chase.

After six minutes, the nearby cannibals were wiped out.

“Commander Yu, all clear,” the two squad leaders reported back.

“Keep moving forward,” Yu Yuangui ordered, leading the main force onward.

...

In a distant abandoned village, a man wearing a red opera hat sat watching minced meat simmer in a wood-fired pot.

Beside him were five muscular men, all fierce-looking.

“The meat’s almost done,” one laughed.

Everyone inside was in high spirits—the pot was filled with fresh, tender meat.

Just as the savory aroma began to drift out, a bespectacled young man hurried in to report, “Great King Da Xi, as planned, people from Four Seas Base have come out.”

Da Xi looked up. “Perfect timing. Sit and eat!”

The young man nodded.

One burly man asked, “Any news from the Fire God Base direction?”

The young man replied, “Scouts have yet to report back. According to intelligence, Fire God Base has only about two thousand people, and the base is an air-raid shelter, making it hard to locate. But news should come soon.”

...

Near the Fire God Base,

some cannibals were also searching this area.

“Rabbits, rabbits! So many rabbits!” one shouted.

“We’ve got rabbit meat to eat!”

One stumbled onto a frozen rabbit atop a hill.

Excited, he dug it out, discovering many more frozen rabbits beneath the snow.

Though unsure why so many rabbits had died here, having meat was a blessing.

“Over two thousand rabbits!”

“Lots of them!”

They finished digging out the frozen rabbits and cheered.

They happily carried the meat down the mountain.

As dusk approached, they began building ice houses, lighting fires, and cooking the rabbit meat.

By nightfall, the aroma spread far.

Even a black myna flying overhead went unnoticed by the cannibals.

“A bird that small? Not even enough to fill a tooth gap,” one man said with a laugh.

He smiled and focused on his stew.

Suddenly, a deafening sound erupted—the myna swooped down, cursing loudly.

“Who the hell are you cursing at?!”

“Look at you, beast, what’s with that gaze? Got pink eye or something?”

“As a human, why’s your mouth so foul?”

“What? Barin’ your teeth? You don’t like it? Come bite me then!”

“Trying to swallow me whole? Who wants to go in that filthy mouth?”

...

The man cooking the rabbit meat gritted his teeth at the bird. “If you’ve got guts, come down here.”

He never imagined a bird could mock him.

Damn it!

“Fine, I’m coming! Open your filthy mouth!”

Suddenly, the myna dove at him, dropping a string of “bombs” on his face.

The man had just opened his mouth to curse, perfectly catching the myna’s bombs in his mouth.

Feeling something land inside, he instinctively closed his mouth and tasted it.

“Ah!”

Realizing what it was, he lost his mind completely.

“Ha ha ha! Mess with me, huh? Just a small lesson. Next time, I’ll kill you,” the myna laughed, soaring back into the sky and heading toward the villa.

Dinner time was near.

It was certain that if he returned late, Her Highness Su Miao would definitely forget his share of the meal.

Besides, these suddenly appearing people needed to be reported to Her Highness.

These humans were unlike any they had met before.

They—ate humans...