Everyone was busy turning in the leftover supplies from their missions, moving crates and clearing manifests, and in return, each of them got a generous amount of contribution points added to their accounts.
Jing Shu felt like she had hit the jackpot. Not only had she managed to haul back a mountain of loot that filled every corner of her storage, but she had also earned a solid chunk of points. She was practically glowing with joy as she watched the digital numbers update. The others weren't any less excited; their smiles said it all. The haul this time was no joke.
"Welcome aboard."
The same flight attendant from before greeted them warmly as they stepped onto the plush carpet of the aisle. Her smile hadn't changed, remaining professional and bright, but everything else had. After months of blood, smoke, and constant danger, the team members who had once been strangers were now close comrades.
Still, their return came at a heavy cost. Three teammates were carried onto the plane on stretchers, the wheels clicking against the floor. One was barely alive, and an entire squad had been wiped out with only Priest surviving. No one could have imagined the mission would turn out so brutal when they first set out.
Monk wasn't there to help with the luggage this time. Both of his hands had been destroyed, the bandages thick and white against his charred skin, and he was still unconscious, his body covered in severe burns that smelled faintly of antiseptic. If it weren't for Jing Shu's medicine keeping him alive, he would already be gone.
Everyone carried their salvaged loot from America onto the private jet, the cabin filling with the scent of leather and metal. The first time they had met, Jing Shu and her group had sat in the front cabin while Zhen Nantian's group stayed in the back. Now, the wounded were arranged to rest in the rear, and everyone else gathered up front in the soft, velvet seats.
As the team's doctor, Jing Shu still had to give medicine to the three injured ones. Their conditions weren't stable, so full treatment would have to wait until they reached the capital.
When the luxurious plane finally lifted off, the engines roaring as they climbed through the gray clouds, Jing Shu and the others were officially on their way home. It wasn't that they didn't want to stay in America; it was that they didn't dare linger any longer.
Yang Yang took out his little notebook, his pen scratching against the paper as he tallied up the results. Their first mission had involved smuggling dozens of cargo ships' worth of supplies to China, all successfully delivered. The higher-ups were so pleased that they gave everyone an extra 3,000 contribution points each.
Resting her chin on one hand, Jing Shu opened her Rubik's Cube Space in its second form and began sorting through the loot from that first mission. During their mercenary task outside the black market, she had managed to sneak away with a ton of diamond ore that glittered with a raw, unpolished light. Once back home, she could either have it processed or sell it later when new energy sources became valuable.
She had also made a small fortune betting in the arena where Xiao Dou had fought. All those black-market coins were exchanged into survival goods, already shipped back to China. Her parents had confirmed that everything was stored safely with the Second Squad's Li Yutian. Even though she had burned through a lot of contribution points, those goods were all legal, meaning she could use them openly without worrying about exposure.
During the smuggling job, she had killed Peggy and claimed both of her giant snakes, plus her private vault full of alcohol, luxury food, and a whole stockpile of weapons. Jing Shu had already sorted the guns and planned to distribute some to her family once she got home.
Peggy's weapons had been a huge help afterward too. Her RPG alone had taken down an armed helicopter, and the rest of the arsenal had been put to good use in the chaos.
Oh, right. She had also "accidentally" lifted a few American specialties from that luxury cruise ship.
The ship's cold storage was now a treasure trove in her Cube Space. She had olive oil, foie gras, butter, cheese, expensive caviar, tons of tuna, crates of Iberian ham, boxes of lychee meat, top-grade Kobe beef, turkey, ice cream by the case, layered cakes, puddings, and other desserts. Just that alone took up more than thirty cubic meters. Her inventory had expanded so much that half the stuff she hadn't even tasted before.
And once she did, Jing Shu realized she couldn't resist those delicacies. Every country really had its own charm. She was already daydreaming about going to Turkey someday just to eat kebabs.
Cough cough.
Later, when she passed through the aquaculture zone, she even managed to snatch up massive live Boston lobsters, sea urchins, and king crabs. Honestly, that was her biggest win this time.
Unlike other items, these living creatures could breed indefinitely inside her Cube Space. In this dying world, species were disappearing fast. Jing Shu was doing her best to collect as many types as possible. After all, eating the same thing over and over would get boring.
It was a pity about the armed helicopter that got shot down later. That thing was worth tens of millions of dollars. If her Cube Space had been bigger, she would have snuck the entire chopper inside. One day she swore she would have her own gunship as a personal ride.
She jotted that down neatly on her planning list, the ink drying on the page.
Then there was that withered tree in the mountains, the one that almost killed everyone but produced the crimson liquid. Jing Shu had gathered a lot of it. When she found something similar in Job Sibus's manor, she suspected it might be connected to the same fourth-dimensional tree. She planned to cultivate it and find out more. Anything from the fourth dimension fascinated her.
She had also obtained the Sulfuric Acid Ant Queen in those mountains, naming her No. 3, officially her newest pet. Along with the queen came hundreds of thousands of Sulfuric Acid Ants, massively strengthening her combat power. The ants' potential was huge too. The sulfuric acid they produced could be refined into an industrial chain, basically printing money. Unfortunately, she had lost some during the explosion at the Rhine Manor.
"The second mission was also a big success. Qian Duoduo got the equipment, and we even got some oil vouchers as a bonus," Yang Yang reported while flipping through his notebook, calculating everyone's expenses and contribution balances.
Jing Shu started sorting through her loot from the second mission as well. That task had been Qian Duoduo's private commission. They had gone to Austin City and tricked Dr. B out of a pile of supplies while acquiring vegetable dehydration technology. Because of radiation issues, they had only taken the rare ores.
Her share came to about 100 tons, which was already incredible. The best part was that it was all legal and usable, and since rare ores would become scarcer as mining tech vanished in the apocalypse, this stash could be traded for nearly anything.
She had also brought back coffee seeds from Austin Castle. After planting them inside her Rubik's Cube Space, the trees were nearly mature now. It was the world's most expensive Geisha coffee, bright with citrus, lemon, and strawberry notes. It tasted more like juice than coffee, with a lingering floral aroma.
Of course, Jing Shu totally didn't plant six cubic meters of it just because she liked the taste. Definitely not.
It was obviously because the beans could resist the spread of the new zombie virus that would appear in two years, slow flesh decay, and counteract certain biohazards. That was the real reason. Obviously.
The biggest gain from that second mission, though, was forty thousand packets of seeds. Those were her personal property. She divided them into three parts: one to trade for contribution points, one to sell to Wu City—she was still negotiating the price—and one to keep for herself. All of them were legitimate goods and highly valuable.
She also took note of Zhen Nantian's power, realizing it seemed connected to dimensional energy. Jing Shu quickly scribbled that down in her notes too.