Meanwhile, Zhu Rong, Zhu Juan, along with their uncle Shi Wenzhang and cousin Shi Hui, also chimed in with their pleas. They harbored no ill intentions; after all, in their eyes, over thirty thousand pounds of food was enough to sustain them for a considerable period, even if they did nothing but eat.
What's more, they had no intention of simply lazing around.
Not having daily necessities wasn't a big deal. Why risk danger? They had lived without soap or similar items in their childhoods, and life had gone on just fine.
"Stop, stop, stop! Mom, Dad, Aunt, Uncle, and cousin, all of you, please stop. Listen to me first.
You moved into the base not long after the apocalypse. Therefore, your resistance to the outside environment is probably low, and you haven't killed many zombies yourselves. But I'm different. After I left school, I didn't stay in any base. I lived outside for over a year. During that year, I was in big cities, surviving amidst hordes of zombies.
So, zombies aren't that dangerous to me. Even with the emergence of mutated zombies now, it's the same.
I have my own way of living now. I've been living this way for over a year. I'm not the person I used to be. If you make me stay at home all the time, or go work at the farming base, and forbid me from going out, that would be unbearable for me.
Therefore, you don't need to worry too much. I will prioritize my own safety. If the opportunity arises, I'll bring back the things you need. Of course, I mainly hope to have some daily necessities for myself.
Although Ding Yun had stated her case very plainly and tried her best to convey her capabilities and fearlessness towards the zombies outside, her mother remained tormented and anxious.
"Xiaoyun, haven't you heard the old saying? The ones who drown are usually swimmers. Those who can't swim don't go near the river. No one can guarantee they won't make a mistake. You don't need to push yourself so hard. Your dad and I feel that our current life is already quite good. As long as the three of us are safe and sound, we'll be happy even if we have to eat coarse grains."
"Sigh, forget it. I'll teach you martial arts. I survived outside for over a year without any issues, so I must have had some means. And my reliance was martial arts. Look at this table corner..."
To avoid further nagging and to gain more freedom in the future, Ding Yun, out of desperation, decided to demonstrate her abilities. As she spoke, she reached out and gripped the corner of the table. With a slight exertion, she crumbled the solid wood into splinters, causing everyone to either scream outright or gasp in deep shock.
"This... this is solid wood..."
"Sis, so you've become a martial arts master?"
"Is this world a bit abnormal?"
"Zombies have appeared, and even supernatural abilities have emerged. Having martial arts isn't that far-fetched."
Amidst everyone's astonishment, Ding Yun fabricated a teacher on the spot to explain the origin of her martial arts. She also declared that she could stand there now and let zombies bite her, and they wouldn't be able to pierce her skin, which was why she was fearless.
To prove she wasn't lying, Ding Yun took out the only kitchen knife in the house and hacked at her own arm several times, finally easing her parents' worries.
Then, the entire family was so excited they couldn't sleep, eager for Ding Yun to teach them peerless martial arts overnight.
Since Ding Yun wasn't tired, she agreed to teach them if they wanted to learn. To help them get started quickly, Ding Yun even directly performed a "power infusion" for each of them. Using the vast martial saint true essence within her, she cleared their meridians and cleansed their marrow, directly transforming them into acquired realm martial artists.
From then on, they only needed to accumulate internal energy. There would be no obstacles before the innate realm. After all, before the innate realm, the main task was to diligently circulate the minor and major heavenly cycles and unblock the extraordinary meridians and eight collateral vessels within the body. Since Ding Yun had already cleared their meridians, they would face no bottlenecks.
Continuously infusing power into five people took a toll on Ding Yun herself. Therefore, after the infusion, and after explaining how to cultivate internal energy, Ding Yun returned to her room to rest. The next morning, after bidding them farewell, she once again drove the empty truck away from the base.
Once she reached a secluded spot, Ding Yun abandoned the truck temporarily and, alone, leaped several hundred meters, heading straight for the nearest major city. With her current cultivation, she could seal all the pores on her body, emitting no trace of life force, and remain as silent as possible. Thus, upon entering the zombie-infested city, Ding Yun moved as if she were in an empty realm, just as she had before.
She easily entered large warehouses and other storage facilities. Enduring the stench, she carefully selected daily necessities, clothing, appliances, and other potentially useful items that were uncontaminated, undamaged, and not stained with blood, ensuring they were still relatively clean.
Since her spiritual space could easily store tens of millions, even hundreds of millions of tons of items, Ding Yun had no worries about the difficulty of transportation. With a sweep of her spiritual sense, she could collect all the desired items and then proceed to the next destination.
In just half a morning, Ding Yun had cleared nearly half the city. If the collected items had no expiration date, they would be enough for their family of six for seven or eight lifetimes. Ding Yun, however, had no intention of taking everything. What if others came looking for supplies? Therefore, she soon decided to stop, and taking the items with her, returned to where she had temporarily parked the truck to continue loading it. She loaded the items she had collected that morning, filling the truck completely before driving back.
This time, she drove the truck back to the entrance of Sunflower Base. Her treatment was different. The people from yesterday were much more polite and even invited Ding Yun to stay longer at the entrance, stating that their base leader wanted to meet her and might need her help with something. Since Ding Yun wasn't afraid of them playing any tricks, she waited at the base entrance without concern.
Of course, despite their improved attitude, they didn't neglect to collect taxes. While inspecting the goods, they muttered privately, "Finally, we see some daily necessities again. We must ask if we can buy some from her."
After about ten minutes, while their goods were still being inventoried, the base leader rushed over. After glancing at the contents of the truck, he walked up to Ding Yun and suddenly bowed deeply to her.
"Ms. Zhu, I thank you on behalf of everyone!"
"Furthermore, I have a request!"