Xu Duoduo conducted an ability check and found no significant changes—her speed was still 3.0, but the energy stored in her body had increased slightly, barely qualifying her as a second-tier ability user.

  However, her abilities were far more versatile than just that. The usage of her Rubik’s Cube space had many applications, and simply storing supplies didn’t consume much of her energy.

  Previously, it was because the marine creatures were so massive that they took up a lot of space.

  She had only "overeaten" because of that.

  Otherwise, storing supplies wouldn’t have used up much of her abilities, and she could have hoarded much, much more.

  On the way back, Qin Luo held her hand, but her mind was preoccupied with thoughts about the space.

  The little zombie loved organizing supplies.

  Especially counting the various items stored in her multi-faced Rubik’s Cube space.

  After hoarding supplies all this time, the several rge compartments filled with canned food from before were still mostly untouched. Since then, she had scavenged all sorts of things—useful and not-so-useful items alike.

  Particurly during the previous rescue operation in the commercial district, they had looted several streets full of outdoor activity stores, jewelry shops, snack shops, baby supply stores, pharmacies, specialty stores, and even the stocks of small eateries.

  The grain from C City’s granary remained untouched, and countless snacks were piled up in several compartments. They hadn’t eaten much of it, but it felt like they had enough to st for years.

  This time, the mutated seafood from the I City mission was even more terrifying. That giant octopus was divided by Qin Luo and stored in the space cards of the four of them, while the rest of the seafood was exchanged for contribution points.

  Xu Duoduo had hoarded even more, packing her compartments densely, yet it still only occupied less than five percent of her space. Her Rubik’s Cube space was continuously expanding.

  It couldn’t be filled, truly couldn’t.

  Looking at the abundance of supplies, the little zombie was immensely satisfied, feeling so happy she was almost dizzy.

  The multi-faced Rubik’s Cube space’s full potential wasn’t even fully unlocked yet. The newly updated functions included—Red: Strangution, White: Domain, Blue: Water, Green: Pnting, and both Orange and Yellow sides were time-stasis storage spaces.

  Xu Duoduo repeated the functions and their uses several times in her mind, memorizing them. She pnned to research them further once they returned to the base. How did the Red Strangution work? What did the White Domain mean? Could the Blue Water side sustain living things? Could the Green side be used for pnting? She needed to figure all this out while they were still at the base.

  This time, the little zombie had a big mission ahead!

  Qin Luo, still holding her hand, was mumbling under his breath, “I’m so tired. I’ll sleep as soon as we get back. By the way, why are you so likable? It’s annoying. Feels like everyone’s trying to steal you from me…”

  Oops.

  He accidentally let his true feelings slip and immediately cmped his mouth shut.

  Xu Duoduo, still pondering her space, was full of question marks when she heard his mumbles.

  Qin Luo, feeling guilty, turned to check her reaction, only to see her confused expression. He couldn’t help but ugh, “Ah, forget it. You probably didn’t understand anyway.”

  As the two of them arrived back at the community, they noticed something new—what used to be ornamental pnts had been repced with various mutated fruit trees.

  “What the hell? What’s going on? Do they have to surprise us every time we come back from a mission?” Qin Luo stared at the towering mutated fruit trees, feeling a bit incredulous. Nearby, a group of ability users was arguing, and right beside them was an enormous durian tree—yes, a real durian tree, standing straight and tall, at least ten meters high, and covered with durians.

  Xu Duoduo was equally shocked, her eyes wide with amazement. She couldn’t resist gncing at the arguing ability users—eavesdropping was one of the greatest joys of intelligent life forms.

  How could she resist?

  Qin Luo, seeing her interest, pulled her closer to listen in. As they approached, they noticed there were also several mutants involved—one with porcupine-like spikes for hair, another resembling a pangolin, and yet another with groundhog-like teeth.

  The leader of the mutants, the Turtle Brother, was also present, trying to calm the mutants down.

  The ability users, however, were in the middle of a heated argument.

  “What’s the big deal? Mutated durians don’t smell unless you open them. Why can’t they be pnted?”

  “Exactly! The base approved the pnting, so it must be fine! Besides, the mutants were just following orders to pnt fruit trees. If you’re upset, take it up with the leaders. Do you think the mutants have a say in this?”

  “We’re not bming the mutants. We’re just asking why they pnted durians here.”

  “Not everyone likes durians, right? Just looking at them makes me feel sick. Why can’t they be moved somewhere else?”

  “What if one falls down? I heard the mutated durian’s scent is six times stronger than a regur durian. If one falls and cracks open, won’t it stink everyone to death?”

  “Who’s the genius who thought of pnting durians in the community? Can’t they be moved to the pnting zone? Didn’t the base designate a special pnting vilge?”

  “I actually think it’s a good idea. In the apocalypse, nd is scarce. Why not make use of the community’s nd?”

  “Well, durians are disgusting!”

  “Only people who don’t like durians are the problem!”

  In short, it was a battle between the durian lovers and the durian haters. The mutants responsible for the construction, already timid by nature, were huddled in the corner, trembling and too scared to speak as the ability users raised their voices.

  Qin Luo, after listening for a while, finally spoke up, “Don’t you people have anything better to do? If you’ve got a problem, take it to the community staff. Why are you arguing here?”

  As soon as he spoke, the other ability users jumped in surprise. When they turned and saw him, they immediately fell silent.

  One by one, they became as obedient as quails.

  “Captain Qin!”

  “Hello, Qin-ge!”

  “Qin-ge, don’t misunderstand. We’re just having a discussion. Just talking things out.”

  “Yes, yes, we weren’t fighting.”

  “Exactly!”

  In the apocalypse, strength was everything. As members of the 3A Special Operations Team, the pinnacle of the power hierarchy, they were revered by many. People genuinely treated 3A as a team of godlike warriors.

  Moreover, 3A had a great reputation for their character and deeds. It was only natural for others to show them respect.

  Qin Luo reminded them, “Summer insects cannot discuss ice. Arguing like this won’t solve anything. Do you think convincing each other will work? Respect each other’s preferences. If there’s an issue, let the community staff decide whether the durian tree should be moved or not.”

  Look at them.

  What started as a debate over whether durian trees should be pnted in the community had devolved into an argument about whether durians were tasty or not.

  It was like someone liking sweet tofu pudding while you preferred salty tofu pudding, yet insisting they had to like salty tofu pudding too. Ridiculous.

  Qin Luo concluded that they were simply too idle. “If you have so much free time, why not take on a mission or train your physical abilities? If you keep this up and the leaders get involved, you’ll all get punished. Will that make you happy?”

  Hearing this, the others quickly backed down and took the opportunity to leave.

  “True, we got carried away. Arguing for the sake of arguing is pointless. I’ll go find the staff!”

  “Me too! I want to see if these durians can stay here!”

  With that, they left, still grumbling.

  Qin Luo sighed. This wasn’t a very satisfying piece of gossip. But when he turned to see the little zombie staring up at the durian tree with drool dripping from her mouth, he couldn’t help but ugh.

  “You’re drooling over it, aren’t you?”

  His ugh was filled with affection.

  While teasing her, Qin Luo turned to ask the Turtle Brother, “Hey, over there. Are the durians on this tree going to be sold?”

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