They had originally assumed Liu Yang went to the end of the street because he didn't want to share. Seeing his actions now, the truth hit them like a sack of bricks.
He had already looted every other shop. This was the last one left!
They couldn't fathom how he had accomplished it. There were thousands of tons of supplies along this wholesale street.
How could it all vanish in just a few short minutes?!
Liu Yang looked at the group and said, "Sorry. You guys were a bit too slow-haven't even filled your backpacks yet. I've already taken everything on this street, so you'll have to search somewhere else."
One survivor's face fell. "This market had the most supplies in the whole area. We've searched everywhere else clean. Without this place, how are the hundred-plus of us supposed to survive?"
When the apocalypse broke out, the local survivors had banded together to form a small settlement of over a hundred people.
They were led by the burly man with the ability.
Given enough time, they believed they could have built a thriving survivor base around this market.
But now that all the food was gone, they didn't even know where their next meal was coming from, let alone how to build a base!
Another survivor lamented, "Yeah, we're going to starve! Out of our whole group, only Brother Wang has an ability and can actually fight. The rest of us are old, weak, sick, or disabled-we're no match for zombies! We're finished!"
"This wholesale market was the only place for miles with tons of food and few zombies. We spent days clearing them out!"
"Other places like supermarkets are way too crowded. They're crawling with zombies now. With our strength, we wouldn't dare step foot inside!" another survivor added helplessly.
They had lost several companions while clearing the zombies on this street.
They never expected Liu Yang to waltz in and sweep up all the food, reaping all the rewards without doing any of the heavy lifting.
Yet Liu Yang was far too powerful. Though furious, none of them dared speak out.
They could only vent in low grumbles.
Brother Wang, the burly leader, turned to his group and barked, "Blame yourselves for being too slow, not him! Keep your mouths shut!"
He knew better than anyone the sheer gap between himself and Liu Yang. As an ability user, he understood Liu Yang's overwhelming strength even more clearly.
Just standing near the man sent chills down his spine.
Liu Yang could probably wipe them all out with a flick of his finger. Complaining in front of someone like that was practically asking for a death wish!
Besides, there were no rules in the apocalypse.
When it came to food, the strong took what they wanted.
If someone had the power to empty an entire street, of course they would.
Put in the same position, who wouldn't haul away an entire street's worth of food?
Who would leave anything behind for strangers?
Only an idiot would do that.
Understanding his situation completely, the burly man showed no anger on his face.
Only total resignation.
Liu Yang listened to their complaints, thought for a moment, and asked, "Your settlement has over a hundred people?"
"Yes," the burly man answered respectfully.
Liu Yang said, "Tell you what. About twenty kilometers from here is the Jinxiu Garden Villa Area. You've probably heard of it?"
"That's my base. You can bring your people there. As long as you make it inside, food won't be an issue."
The burly man's eyes lit up. "Jinxiu Garden Villa Area? I know it! I used to be a taxi driver-that's a rich neighborhood!"
Liu Yang nodded. "Exactly. Now it's a secure survivor base. No zombies can break through."
"As the leader of the base, I'll make you a deal: every survivor you bring will receive ten jin of grain for free."
"Spread the word in this area and along the way. The more people you bring, the greater your reward. I'll give you one jin of rice for every person you bring over. Bring a thousand people, and I'll give you a thousand jin!"
The burly man was instantly thrilled!
Their settlement already had over a hundred people.
If he brought all of them to Liu Yang's base right now, wouldn't he immediately get over a hundred jin of rice?!
In the apocalypse, a hundred jin of rice could keep a person alive for three months!
That was no small sum.
They had spent days clearing out the zombies in this wholesale market, only finishing today. They hadn't even filled half a backpack before Liu Yang swept through, and none of them had seen a hundred jin of rice since the outbreak!
The burly man asked excitedly, "Are you serious?!"
Liu Yang replied, "Of course. You've seen my strength. I just cleaned out this entire street-do you really think I can't afford a reward like that?"
The burly man nodded in agreement.
It was true. An ability user like Liu Yang, who could fly and haul massive amounts of supplies, gathered food at a speed tens of thousands of times faster than theirs.
Even a Level 2 zombie wouldn't pose a threat to him. He didn't even need to clear out zombies to loot a place!
No matter how many zombies surrounded him, he could grab whatever he wanted.
Forget what he had accumulated previously-just this wholesale street alone had hundreds of tons of rice!
After a brief thought, the burly man nodded firmly. "Alright, it's a deal! I used to drive a taxi around here, so I know these roads inside out."
"While searching for food these past few days, I've come across several other survivor camps! I'm confident I can convince them. I can bring at least a thousand people to your base!"
Ever since the apocalypse hit, wandering survivors had begun grouping together into small camps.
This burly man knew the local geography well, and after awakening his ability, he no longer feared ordinary zombies. He had scouted far and wide for food over the past few days, noting the locations of several small settlements.
Most contained anywhere from a few dozen to a hundred people, never exceeding two hundred.
They were scattered and disorganized like loose sand, lacking a powerful leader to unite them into a proper base.
Liu Yang's offer was the perfect opportunity.
The burly man was confident he could persuade them to join Liu Yang's base!
Doing so would net him over a thousand jin of grain!
If he rationed it carefully, that amount could keep him fed for two whole years!
"Very good. I'll await your good news," Liu Yang said with a nod. He turned and left the completely emptied wholesale street, heading toward his next destination to gather more food.
Liu Yang knew that by sweeping up all the food in the surrounding area into his Dark Space, these survivors would be left with no choice but to join his base.
Offering ten jin of rice now to recruit them would pay off massively later-a year from now, their labor would yield hundreds of jin of potatoes for the base!
Scavenging resources from the outside world would eventually hit a limit.
Only self-sustaining agriculture could provide a endless supply of food.
Since twenty percent of all food produced in the base had to be handed over to him, the more people he had, the richer he would become.
After Liu Yang departed, the remaining survivors huddled together to discuss.
One asked the burly man, "Brother Wang... are you really going to do what he said? Is his base actually that good, or is he just tricking us over there to harvest our organs?"
"Yeah, Brother Wang! It sounds way too good to be true. A base safe from zombies, plus ten jin of grain just for showing up? Is he running a charity?"
Another added, "Maybe we should head back and think this over?"
Brother Wang shook his head firmly. "You idiots don't get it! I'm an ability user-you know how strong I am. None of you combined can stand against me."
"But if my combat power is a 100, his is at least 5,000!"
"Do you understand what that means?"
"Even a thousand of me couldn't scratch him!"
"If he wanted to kill us, he could do it with a wave of his hand. Why would he bother lying to us?"
"Don't project your petty paranoia onto someone at his level."
"You're not strong enough to comprehend how a true powerhouse thinks."
"So just do as he says. This is our best shot at landing a powerful backer. Don't throw it away!"
The survivors had never seen Brother Wang so grave and serious.
Realizing the weight of the situation, they quickly nodded in agreement.
"Alright, if Brother Wang says so, we'll follow him!"
"Yeah, we only survived this long thanks to Brother Wang. If he says we're joining that base, then let's go!"