They accepted a mission to search for supplies. The base had been experiencing a shortage recently, so such missions were frequent.
Although the guards were curious why they brought ordinary people, they only cast a few extra glances. They left the base smoothly.
"Xingwen, do you know the way to Taoyuan Base?" the person in the passenger seat asked.
"Yes, they told me very clearly. And I heard them say that the road between the two bases has been largely cleared, so there isn't much danger," he said, carefully discerning the road ahead.
"Really? That's great. After all, our ability levels aren't high, and we're bringing ordinary people. If it were dangerous..." He didn't finish the sentence. After all, these ordinary people were their family, and he couldn't bring himself to abandon them.
"It's alright. Once we go a bit further, we should run into people from Taoyuan Base. If we do, they'll escort us," he said, seemingly very confident in the people of Taoyuan Base.
"Xingwen, why do you trust them so much?"
"You'll trust them too once you meet them," he replied enigmatically.
The three young boys and girls sitting in the back row had been listening to their conversation, filled with uncertainty about the road ahead. Although Xingwen sounded very confident, could they really awaken their abilities and become ability users?
There were over a dozen people in their group, all of whom had helped each other in that base. Xingwen had quietly discussed it with them after getting the news, so they had agreed to come together.
Just as Xingwen had said, they didn't have to travel long before they saw people from Taoyuan Base. After Xingwen greeted them, they sent someone to guide them.
They could tell that the person sent was chosen at random, yet this individual's ability level far surpassed theirs.
If such a high-level ability user were in their base, they could only look up to them.
He moved to the passenger seat, and the person who had been sitting there moved to the back to squeeze in with their younger siblings.
"What should I call you, little brother? Is it someone you know?" he asked Xingwen, who was driving.
"You can call me Akang. I don't know him. But since you're going to our base, I'll guide you. It's not a big deal," Akang replied.
This person looked older, but he was probably only a year or two older than the youngsters in the back.
Xingwen, seeing that Akang was so capable at an age not much older than his sister, felt a pang of shame.
"You're here to buy ability awakening potions, aren't you? Do you have crystal cores?" Akang asked him.
"Yes, yes. I've exchanged quite a bit. This thing is only collected by the base and has no other use," Xingwen said. He had been collecting them ever since he learned that crystal cores could be exchanged for potions.
"How can it be useless? Don't you absorb crystal cores to enhance your abilities? How else would your abilities improve?" Akang sounded very surprised.
"Crystal cores can be used to enhance abilities?" the people in the back were very surprised, and everyone else in the car looked at Akang in astonishment.
"You don't know? Our base has known this for a long time. We've been using crystal cores to enhance our abilities, which is why they've improved so quickly," Akang said, not thinking he had revealed anything significant.
But at this moment, everyone in the car was experiencing a seismic shift in their understanding. No wonder Commander Wen's team's abilities improved so rapidly. No wonder they collected crystal cores, saying the commander liked shiny things.
So that was the kind of liking it was! But why, why didn't they tell them?
At that moment, they felt no lingering attachment to their original base.
"Thank you, Akang. We really didn't know before," Xingwen said sincerely.
"It's nothing. It's common knowledge. Why thank me? Once you get to our base, you might not want to leave, and then we'll be from the same base. No need to be formal!" Akang said cheerfully.
The people in the back row finally understood what Akang had said earlier: if they met people from Taoyuan Base, they would trust them.
They truly felt out of place in this apocalypse, but interacting with them warmed their hearts.
Upon reaching Taoyuan Base and knowing they were there to buy ability awakening potions, the guards at the entrance did not require them to undergo quarantine. After registration, they were directly sent to the clinic.
The clinic now had two additional buildings and nearly a hundred wards, with many people coming to awaken their abilities every day.
Seeing the steady stream of people eased their minds considerably. The ordinary people in their group were taken to the isolation wards here.
The ability users went to queue up to exchange for potions. Someone also told them to send someone to the administrative hall to apply for housing.
Everything was orderly, and their group was clearly arranged. They could only follow the arrangements here.
A few hours later, those who returned with housing keys saw their former ordinary family members experimenting with their newly acquired abilities.
They were as amazed as children, with smiles on their faces that hadn't been seen for a long time. Although they were covered in sweat, their expressions were more relaxed than ever before.
"The line over there was very long, and it took me a long time to get everyone's passes and the keys to our temporary accommodation, but I missed your most important moment."
His eyes were filled with tears. Seeing his wife gain her abilities, he regretted not being able to witness that moment.
"It's okay. We all know you were busy with the procedures on your end, and besides, I was quite disheveled just now and didn't want you to see," his wife said, placing her sweaty hand into his.
"Yes, Brother Chen. We're all here, and you had to go queue up alone over there," the others chimed in to comfort him.
"Since you've all awakened your abilities, let's head back to our assigned housing. The administrative hall said we can stay there for free for ten days. If we decide to stay permanently, we'll be reassigned.
I heard from others that there's hot water for showers. You're all sweaty, so let's go back and wash up and rest," he quickly relayed the information he had received.
"Then let's go quickly. I wonder if it's far," Xingwen said.
"Don't worry, there will be vehicles at the entrance to take us. Our own car will be driven to a unified location later. This place... is truly wonderful. Once you've rested, we'll explore it together."
Brother Chen had already familiarized himself with the basic situation here during this time. Now, he was waiting to explain everything to them in detail.