Natural Disasters Strikes: I stockpiled like crazy!-Chapter 259: A swarm of Mosquitoes

To make up for the earlier disturbance, Nanzhi gave the bees a bowl of Bingdi Lotus Tea. The bees eagerly swarmed the bowl, sipping greedily and momentarily forgetting the chaos from before.

She then went to the outhouse she had built near the cottage and finally enjoyed the long-awaited bath.

Afterward, she rested a little before replenishing and packaging her stocks for tomorrow’s big sale.

Ah, the life of a company with only one employee! Even a CEO had to work overtime. Sigh.

Meanwhile, in Pearl City, Wang Chul’s convoy had camped near the college dormitory, just a street away from the water production plant. Everyone had been cramped in the vehicles for hours, their muscles sore and stiff. The rising night temperature made sleep unbearable.

Even at night, the air remained warm. The soldiers were wearing the armors Baoyin and Xuan Li had crafted from mutant ant shells and alien beast hides. It was hot, and sweat poured down their faces, but no one dared remove them. The armor had saved countless lives during the mission. So far, the convoy had suffered minimal losses, no fatalities at all.

Wang Chul strode in, voice booming, "Alright! We’ll split into three shifts. First shift starts now. The others, take a rest."

Though exhausted, smiles appeared on their faces as they counted the spars and jade collected. Some were civilians joined the mission because base jobs were full and the population had grown. The surrounding areas had been cleared of alien beasts, and the jades carefully collected. Now, alien beasts appeared only sporadically.

Civilians had little choice but to try their luck joining military missions—like Lao Song, one of the villagers rescued during winter, and Ma Guosheng, Little Dan Dan’s father and Auntie Yang’s husband, who lived across from Nanzhi’s unit in the Empire Hotel and had once helped her in her past life.

By the end of winter, both had awakened powers.

They were among the first shift group.

Lao Song stood near the parked vehicles, Ma Guosheng beside him. Lao Song’s wife had taken a job in tailoring, growing close to Auntie Yang. The two families had grown even closer after sharing the underground shelter during winter’s peak.

"Not a bad harvest today. Twenty spars just from the hunt. Coupled with mission rewards, I can buy enough food, water, and milk to last a month," Lao Song said with a smile.

"Don’t forget medicine and cotton. The weather’s getting hotter," Ma Guosheng reminded him. Clothes made from the cotton sold in the vending machine were lighter, cooler, and more comfortable than pre-apocalypse clothes. They were also absorbent and had been adapted into bandages by the military. The civilians also followed suit. Even Ma Guosheng carried a few of these bandages, made by his wife.

Lao Song tugged at his wolf-hide collar, feeling the heat. "Yes, it is warmer. My wife and mother have been nagging me to get containers to store water..."

Stocking up early was wise. Once the heat truly hit, venturing outside would be dangerous.

Meanwhile, Wang Chul was on the first floor of the dormitory, speaking with Colonel Tang on a call.

"We’re almost there. Don’t worry, I checked for mutant frogs and tadpoles along the way—so far, nothing..."

Suddenly, a faint buzzing reached them.

Outside, Ma Guosheng froze. The sound grew louder, sharper. Other soldiers on duty noticed it too.

"What’s that?"

"Did you hear that?" Lao Song asked.

"I thought I imagined it... but no, definitely buzzing," Ma Guosheng confirmed.

They swung their flashlights toward the sound coming from the right side of the dormitory building. At first, nothing appeared—but then shadows appeared, small and dark, flying fast toward them.

"Bzzzzzz."

"Mosquitoes!" Lao Song shouted, drawing his machete. Ma Guosheng grabbed his dagger.

The entrance erupted into chaos. Soldiers unleashed abilities while retreating, trying to warn others. Some mosquitoes fell, but there were far too many. Their efforts barely made a dent.

Lao Song wasn’t fast enough to dodge; a mosquito bit his neck. Luckily, the wolf-hide collar offered slight protection. Only a small scratch drew a trickle of blood—but that was enough. The swarm became even more aggressive.

Even armored soldiers weren’t fully protected. Exposed areas were quickly bitten.

"Ah!" Chaos spread.

"Stick close to me, Lao Song!" Ma Guosheng shouted, helping him. He launched a fireball at the nearest mosquitoes, killing several, then quickly bandaged Lao Song’s neck and pulled him inside for safety.

"Commander!" Wang Chul’s conversation with Colonel Tang was interrupted by the noise. He ran outside and froze at the scene.

"Wake the others! Rescue the injured and evacuate them to the cars!" he ordered, unleashing wind blades to strike the mosquitoes attacking the most injured men.

Colonel Tang’s heart raced. "Wang, what’s happening there?"

By 5:00 a.m., Lin Weihao’s satellite phone began ringing. It was an emergency call from Colonel Tang.

"What? When did this happen?" His voice dropped. Hei Qian and Bingwen sensed the urgency and turned.

"Brother Lin, is something wrong?" Bingwen asked.

Lin Weihao pinched the bridge of his nose as he listened. "Wang Chul ran into trouble," he said.

Hei Qian and Bingwen froze, too far to help.

Lin Weihao reassured them, "Don’t worry. Wang Chul survived a month in the desert without supplies and escaped a sandstorm. He’s resourceful—I’m sure he’s alive."

"Once he makes contact, I’ll inform you," Lin Weihao continued. The two nodded.

Moments later, Nanzhi awoke from a dream of swimming in piles of jade and spars. She noticed Lin Weihao’s dark expression. He didn’t hide anything and explained the situation: of 120 soldiers and civilians on the mission, only 35 returned. Ten were sick with high fever and dizziness. Wang Chul remained behind; his situation unknown.

Lin Weihao’s mother, Lin Daxia, was outraged, wanting to lead a rescue, but Lin Weihao stopped her until they had clearer information.

"A mosquito tide?!" Nanzhi thought. In her past life, there had been no mosquito tide—only locusts, appearing at the peak of a heat wave, devouring everything in their path, including alien beasts and unlucky humans.

Lin Weihao had anticipated such dangers, which was why he built the greenhouse underground. Now, with this swarm emerging, he feared it might reach the base if not dealt with promptly. The casualties could be countless.

Nanzhi’s thoughts immediately went to the little sweet boy left at the base. She remembered the buzzbane plants she harvested at dawn. Unfortunately, she hadn’t begun concocting serums yet. She used the remaining Game Lobby time to package rice, flour, dehydrated vegetables, and other stock for the Longmen Base’s sale and the vending machine.

Nanzhi clenched her fists.

The trip back to Longmen Base would need to be delayed.

An hour later, during breakfast, Uncle Wang, Wang Ziqing, and the others were informed of obstacles on the road ahead. They would need to clear them before continuing. Lin Weihao withheld the full truth.

"It’s no problem for us. Whatever you decide, we’ll follow your arrangements," Uncle Wang said.

He looked around but didn’t see Nanzhi. "Where is Xiao Nan?" He asked Weihao.

"She went out. She’ll be back shortly," Lin Weihao said. In truth, Nanzhi was in her Game Lobby, preparing her insect-repelling serum.