"Don't you want to find a way out for so many people under your command?" Wang Luo asked.
"A way out? If there truly was one, I'd naturally lead them there. But where is your base located? Anluo City! That's an even larger city than Changlong City. Imagine the number of zombies there. I'm afraid this trip wouldn't be a way out, but a path to death!"
"And I suspect your base is already surrounded by zombies, on the brink of collapse, which is why you've come out searching for reinforcements, right?"
"Apologies, but the 'way out' you speak of is a dead end in my eyes. Therefore, I refuse!" Ma Chengfu looked at the people before him. Although he was angry that these people had barged into his base, they were all strong, vigorous, and full of spirit. His own people were thin and gaunt. If it came to a fight, they might not be able to win. Moreover, fighting consumed a lot of energy. Wouldn't it be better to lie flat and conserve energy?
"You're actually not entirely wrong. Our base is indeed surrounded by zombies, but we're not on the brink of collapse. We can probably hold on for a few years at least!"
"The reason we're looking for survivors is for the long term. After all, fighting zombies will inevitably result in casualties. If new strength isn't replenished, it will become a troublesome issue!"
"However, our base has a very low mortality rate. We're all quite strong. I can say without exaggeration that an awakened person from our base can fend off dozens, even a hundred, zombies without issue!" Wang Luo said calmly, without a shred of exaggeration in his words.
In fact, saying they could hold on for a few years was a conservative estimate. Given the current situation of the base, there was no significant danger. Finding survivors was for sustainable development. The base's population of over a hundred thousand was simply too small, resulting in too few newborns each year. Coupled with humans' long growth period and the probability of awakening at age twelve, this would be detrimental to the base's development in the long run. If they didn't start searching for survivors and expand the population base now, there would be a demographic gap in a few years.
Shen Lei and the others behind him nodded in agreement. The mortality rate in their area was indeed very low. Normally, casualties only occurred when the zombie side experienced major changes. Once awakened individuals leveled up, major casualties were almost non-existent.
"Hahahaha!!!" Ma Chengfu let out a few loud laughs. "Alright, you don't need to waste any more time with us. If you can hold on for a few years, would you still need to come out looking for reinforcements now?"
"Low mortality rate? Who are you trying to fool? As if we haven't fought zombies before!" Ma Chengfu sneered. They had been forced to hide in this dark mountain cave because they couldn't resist the zombies. If they could have held on, would they be living such a dark and sunless life?
"So, you're not going to agree?" Wang Luo's gaze sharpened.
"Forget it. It's not just me who disagrees; go ask those people lying flat outside if they're willing to go."
"We finally managed to escape the city. Now you want us to go back? Back to our deaths?"
"To be frank, when we saw the countless powerful zombies crawling out of the volcano, everyone's hope died. The era of humans as rulers is in the past. The zombies are too powerful for us weak humans to resist!"
"So, my friend, try to look on the bright side. Whether you die sooner or later, you'll still die. Why make things so difficult? Isn't it better to just lie flat while you still can?" Ma Chengfu said, then raised his hand to dismiss them.
"Boss, what do we do?" Shen Lei asked, frowning, after leaving Ma Chengfu's stone chamber.
"The current situation is that they simply don't believe our base has the ability to resist zombies, so no one is willing to leave with us!" another person chimed in, his brow furrowed. This was indeed the reality; anyone would find it hard to believe.
"Since I'm here, I won't return empty-handed!" Wang Luo said in a deep voice. Since persuasion failed, he would have to resort to his own methods.
After a while, Ma Chengfu felt something was amiss. Why was the base so unusually quiet today? When he walked out of his room, he was stunned. All twenty thousand-plus people in the base were gone!
"Where are they? What the hell, where did they go?" Ma Chengfu roared, his face contorted in rage. Despite searching the entire base, aside from a few unconscious guards at the waterfall entrance, not a single living soul was found!
"Ah! Dammit! Could they have done it?" Ma Chengfu thought of Wang Luo and his group, but it seemed unlikely. How could they have convinced tens of thousands of people to leave so silently and all at once? And all without him noticing?
"Ah! What in the world is going on?" Ma Chengfu bellowed. At this moment, a few guards also woke up. Upon learning that only they remained in the base, they widened their eyes in disbelief, and then became ecstatic!
"Why are you so happy?" Ma Chengfu demanded angrily.
"Boss, they're all gone! Doesn't that mean all those supplies are ours?"
"With those supplies, we'll have enough to survive for a long time!" one guard exclaimed excitedly. Ma Chengfu thought about it and realized it was true! However, with only a few men left and no women, what was the point of living? Should they engage in swordplay?
"No, my supplies!" Ma Chengfu suddenly gasped and rushed to the warehouse. The entrance to the base's warehouse was within his stone chamber. To access the warehouse, one had to pass right under his nose.
"Thank goodness, these supplies are intact!" Ma Chengfu breathed a sigh of relief. As long as the supplies were fine! But he was still incredibly curious. Where had so many people gone?
On a mountain peak outside the base, Wang Luo and his group were enjoying lunch. Even when out in the field, their meals were still lavish, including meat, vegetables, and various fruits, drinks, and beer.
"Hahaha, will the boss's move make that Ma Chengfu die of anger? All his subordinates just disappeared?" Shen Lei said with a laugh.
"He won't die of anger. We didn't take their supplies; he should be happy about that!"
"However, he should be a little depressed. After all, so many of his subordinates left without a word, leaving only him as their boss. He must feel a bit lost," Wang Luo said, taking a sip of beer. Those people had naturally been taken into the Eternal Space by him. After understanding Ma Chengfu's attitude, Wang Luo didn't say anything further. He took forceful action and abducted them. Once the deed was done, they would have no choice but to accept it.
"Haha, that's true! Their base's supplies should be enough for them to survive for a long time, though they might get a little lonely."
"Hahahaha!!!"