I Am Cultivating in the Apocalypse

Chapter 786: Once Again Setting Foot in the South Sea

After the ferry company acquired Fuel, it took on a large international order, requiring hundreds of ferries to transport goods to the Nansha Islands, almost utilizing the entire association’s fleet.

Such a big order came with a generous reward, and many shareholders and executives were uneasy, so of course, they had to make the trip themselves. Fortunately, the trip went smoothly without any issues, and both parties settled the accounts completely.

However, just a few days later, some people in the company began exhibiting a strange illness. The amount of time they spent sleeping each day kept increasing—from eight hours to fifteen hours, then to twenty hours. The more they slept, the more fatigued they became, and they couldn’t be woken up at all. They would also scream in their dreams, and even go mad; their whole bodies became weaker and weaker.

When these people reached the point of sleeping twenty-four hours a day, it meant they would never wake up again.

Even if they didn’t die, they would enter a vegetative state.

"Everyone who went to the Nansha Islands that one time, half of them contracted this strange illness.

"Most people died within a few months, and among the shareholders and executives who went, four contracted the illness. Three of them have already died, with only one still alive, but he too was left in a vegetative state.

"We sought medical advice everywhere in the country and used every kind of medicine, but it only delayed them entering a vegetative state.

"Fortunately, the strange disease is not contagious; otherwise... it’s unimaginable!"

It had been over two years since Shenyuan contracted the strange disease, and by now he was extremely weak, conscious for only an hour each day. If it weren’t for Jing Shu, he probably wouldn’t live past the next month.

Therefore, what was useful was not ordinary ginseng but the ginseng from Jingshu’s space that had been cleansed by the Spiritual Spring. After using Jing Shu’s medicine, Shenyuan could now stay awake for three hours each day.

The Nansha Islands, huh? There seems to be something very strange there! I need to find time to check it out, Jing Shu mused. It most likely involves dark energies or laws, and might also be related to dimensional spaces.

Whenever these things were involved, she got excited, because now the only way to upgrade the Magic Cube Space was through the power of dimensional spaces.

Jing Shu got the exact address from Shen Xin and planned to take care of things in the South Sea before visiting the Nansha Islands; she had the Spiritual Spring, so she wasn’t afraid.

The "Red Flag" and the "Blue Moon" were the two ferries Jing Shu had acquired.

A ferry the size of a football field, along with its manually-operated boiler room, required at least dozens of people to operate. The few individuals sent to take over were only for command and management roles. The rest of the crew were people Shenyuan had loaned to Jing Shu. She planned to hire more once people from Wu City arrived, as Jing Shu was severely short-handed at the moment.

Once the ferries were ready, Zhao Yu was busy coordinating various departments to transport the materials. They would be ready to set sail for the South Sea by midnight.

Looking up, Jing Shu could see a ferry as big as a mountain, its shadow looming six stories high, like two tall buildings constructed on a football field. The "Red Flag" was a passenger ferry, capable of carrying and housing people, with numerous cabins designed for five thousand people, but it could actually squeeze in tens of thousands.

Jing Shu, along with dozens of Hulks, went up to the deck and navigated the dark, narrow corridors and stairs to the sixth floor inside the "Red Flag"—her exclusive private quarters.

They would temporarily reside here until their villa in the South Sea was ready.

This place used to be a six-hundred-square-meter banquet hall.

Now it was completely empty, with nothing but a strong, fishy stench and some unidentifiable slippery liquid underfoot. The living conditions were truly dreadful!

Jing Shu couldn’t stand it, so she immediately set up a rechargeable lamp to light up the dim banquet hall, then sprayed Wind Oil Essence everywhere. She found a scenic spot by the window and had the Hulk King unfold from its rectangular minivan shape. Its six sides instantly became one flat surface. Then, she had a few more Hulks flatten themselves out as well, forming a thick, soft carpet of over a hundred square meters.

She then set up the sofas and dining tables that had been cramped inside the Hulk King’s body. She organized a kitchen and a bathroom, positioned the nest for the fat chicken, and settled Chongchong comfortably. Finally, she had the Hulk King command his ’little brothers’ to clean the floor.

What? You ask how Hulks clean? That’s simple: they just lick everything clean where they pass, and you can be sure not even a single mosquito will be spared.

The spacious apartment of over a hundred square meters was instantly tidied up, letting Jing Shu, who had been cramped inside a Hulk for months, breathe a sigh of relief.

Third Aunt, who had bought tens of tons of Xuwen pineapples, immediately got busy cooking. She said she had eaten too many rice noodles and fried rice these past few days and wanted some variety—today she was going to prepare a pineapple feast.

Third Aunt remarked, "I need to find something economical yet delicious to serve as the employee meal for the Cigarette Factory in the future."

"Okay, Third Aunt, you take care of it," Jing Shu said, sitting in a rocking chair sipping milk tea and looking down at the "Blue Moon," which was a freighter with ample internal space. It used to be able to haul trains and also carry dozens of cars.

Trucks and off-road vehicles lined up, boarding from the deck, seeming so tiny in comparison. Cranes hoisted containers one by one. Shouts, whistles, and the blare of horns filled the air—the dock was truly bustling with activity.

As the last truck of Xuwen’s specialty pineapples boarded the ship, the Blue Moon emitted a series of CHUGGA-CHUGGA... WOOO-WOOO sounds. It was finally ready to depart!

By the way, Xuwen pineapples were quite low-key before. If it weren’t for the ban on Taiwan’s pineapples, no one would have known that Xuwen produces seven hundred thousand tons a year, nearly half of the country’s total annual output.

So, upon arriving in Xuwen, Third Aunt, as the chief procurement officer for the Cigarette Factory, immediately went to buy pineapples for the employees’ welfare.

After the apocalypse, several new varieties of Xuwen pineapples had mutated. The Black Gold pineapple was the rarest and most valuable. It had a sweet and sour taste with rich, juicy flesh and sold for one hundred Virtual Coins per half-kilo. The White Gold pineapple, in contrast, was more abundant. It had a tart flavor with a hint of sweetness but was prized for being cheap and plentiful, selling for only 5 Virtual Coins per half-kilo. Third Aunt wholesale purchased tens of tons at 2 Virtual Coins per half-kilo. As for the pre-apocalypse varieties, probably only the Township Government kept some seed samples.

As soon as the ferry moved, it was like tons of gold in motion.

The journey, though only about thirty miles, caused countless dried rotten corpse insects to crackle and burn.

Jing Shu watched the dock fade into the distance. The black seawater surged tumultuously. Smelling the aromatic food, her mouth wouldn’t stop watering.

Dragon Rising Pineapple Sea, Splendid Pineapple Lobster Balls, Exotic Seafood Pineapple Pie, Splendid Fragrant Pineapple...

Third Aunt asked, "How is it? I learned from a renowned local chef. How does the Golden Soup Pineapple Abalone taste?"

Jing Shu gave a thumbs up, her mouth not idle as she quickly finished another dish. "This Cheese Baked Pineapple has truly opened the doors to a new world; it’s too delicious! You just skimped on the cheese, Third Aunt. You should use it like it doesn’t cost anything."

Third Aunt laughed and scolded, "Lucky your grandma isn’t here; otherwise, I wouldn’t dare to use so much."

"I still like this Pineapple Jade Liquid Bowl the most," Uncle, who had rushed back for the meal, said.

In the end, they discussed for a long time and agreed that only the Honey Pineapple Sweet and Sour Pork was suitable for the employee meal, as the conditions didn’t allow for the other dishes.

At two in the morning, the "Red Flag" and the "Blue Moon" finally arrived at the South Sea. Everyone rested for the night, and the next morning they began unloading goods early.

Ten years later, Jing Shu set foot in the South Sea once more. Before her rebirth, she had arrived as bedraggled as a drowned rat. But this time, after her rebirth, she arrived in style with two ferries of her own, countless resources, and had even rescued innumerable people along the way...