Apocalypse: After Being Reborn, I Stocked Up on All Supplies
Chapter 441 - 437: Impressive Boat Skills!

Chapter 441: Chapter 437: Impressive Boat Skills!

The indicator light for the power button on the amphibious vehicle’s display panel lit up red.

Hua Bao sensed something was wrong, and with a swift leap, plunged into the icy water, conveying through telepathy, "Mom, the propeller is entangled by the South Pole Worm!"

Recalling the pale, slimy creature she had seen before, which looked like intestines, Jiang Yan couldn’t help but utter, "yue."

"How annoying!" Hua Bao grumbled, as Xiao Yezi transformed into a metallic blade form and sliced through the worm mess like yarn, severing them effortlessly.

The motor at the back of the boat started to "putter putter" again.

As for the backflow at the drainage valve, Jiang Yan guessed that the valve must have been frozen with ice.

Before Hua Bao could get there, she took a thermos filled with hot water out of Space and poured it directly over the valve.

After several cups of hot water, the boat sailed on once more.

This time, Jiang Yan learned her lesson and steered clear of areas with floating ice.

Although her ship was equipped with an icebreaker at the bow.

Soon, as they approached the base of the Observatory, a "rustling" sound came from around the vessel.

Hua Bao poked its big head out for a look, exclaiming excitedly, "Mom! It’s crabs! Lots of colorful crabs wearing knitted pants! Probably attracted by the shredded worm pieces just now!"

Jiang Yan: "..."

This was the first time after the apocalypse that she’d heard about the crab species, and they were still alive.

She set the boat to low-speed self-driving mode and popped her head out for a glance.

One look was enough to give her a fright.

A mass of densely packed, partially decayed crabs were desperately clawing their way into the cabin with their huge pincers.

These crabs were bigger than mature king crabs, with thick black bristles lining their legs and their bodies covered in dense patterns.

The patterns weren’t colorful, more like gravel or crushed stones, deceiving to the eye.

Most importantly, these crabs’ abdomens seemed to have magnetic-like properties, all firmly clinging to the boat’s exterior.

Jiang Yan involuntarily gasped.

Under normal circumstances, with so many crabs landing on her doorstep, she would have thought it’s a feast delivered to her.

But now, thinking of the corpses and acid snow in the water, and those disgusting worms, all she felt were her hairs standing on end.

A gust of wind blew, carrying a fishy stench with it.

Only then did Jiang Yan notice that the bubbles being blown by the crabs out of the water were tinged with pathological blood streaks and yellow-green pus.

"Mom, should we catch all of them?" Hua Bao was raring to go, extending Vine towards the crabs.

Jiang Yan shook her head, "These crabs have issues, we can’t take them."

"Okay, then I’ll just fling them away~" Having said that, Hua Bao sent twelve vines whizzing towards the crab legs.

However, unexpectedly, the crabs, which seemed easy to pull away, were firmly clinging to the boat.

Although it wasn’t a big deal for it, it was a bit more effort than anticipated.

More crabs continued to crawl onto the boat.

Jiang Yan furrowed her brows slightly, and with a thought, pulled out a Flamethrower from Space, sweeping it over the crabs’ backs.

Under the heat, the crabs, with reddened legs and shells, "plopped" into the water one by one.

Soon, the tempting aroma of roasted meat wafted through the air.

*

By the "shore," Li Haoyang and Li Li, who were responsible for driving, eagerly awaited with their telescopes.

Li Li, observing the calm water surface, expressed some worry, "Brother Yang, that Miss Jiang just drove the boat out on her own, won’t there be any problems?"

"No problem." Li Haoyang initially wanted to say that even if the two of them ran into problems, she wouldn’t have any, but he held his tongue, fearing it might be jinxing it.

"Crack—" a sound of ice breaking came from their feet.

Li Haoyang frowned, glancing at the ground, "Maybe we should move the car a bit further back."

"Okay." Li Li got into the car, drove back a distance, and then stopped.

At this moment, a small black dot appeared on the shimmering water surface not far away.

Li Haoyang quickly grabbed his telescope, "It’s Jiang Yan, she’s back!"

"Let me see." Li Li didn’t know what Jiang Yan went out to do and didn’t dare to ask.

But since Li Haoyang personally escorted her, it meant it wasn’t a small matter.

"Nice." After saying this, Li Li touched his head self-consciously, then shielded his eyes with his hand to take a look at the sky, confused, "Brother Yang, have you noticed something off about the sun today?"

"Hmm, it feels warmer, especially now, like there’s a nice warmth on the body." Li Haoyang, halfway through his sentence, extended his palm outward, "No, it’s not just warm, it’s kind of prickly."

Hopefully, it’s not an issue with the atmosphere, Li Haoyang thought to himself.

Li Li nodded, "I thought it was just my imagination."

Li Haoyang’s brows furrowed, planning to relay this observation to Song Haitao once they returned to the base.

However, there should be a specialized team in the base’s research unit responsible for monitoring external weather and environment, and they should notice such changes.

As he was thinking this, Jiang Yan’s boat had approached nearby.

She drove swiftly.

Before long, upon reaching the shallow water area, the wheels of the amphibious vehicle were lowered.

Although Jiang Yan was usually quite good at driving cars and boats, she wasn’t skilled at navigating on shallow icy surfaces.

This amphibious vehicle had only three wheels, and the ground was wet and slippery, making it quite challenging.

From the perspective of Li Haoyang and Li Li, it looked as though Jiang Yan was clumsily driving an uncooperative tricycle.

Li Li felt a bit anxious.

"Maybe I should go give her a hand."

"Okay, the water near the shore has ice pits, and the ice is very thin, be careful." Li Haoyang, saying this, took out a rope for him to tie around his waist.

On the boat, Jiang Yan saw Li Li was about to tread in the water to come to her aid, and quickly said, "You all stay there, I’m almost there."

Saying this, she stomped on the gas, sending the boat soaring towards them like a loach.

Li Li was startled and hurriedly retreated several steps.

"Miss Jiang drives quite assertively."

Li Haoyang remained silent, smiling.

Jiang Yan stopped the boat, which then skidded on the ice surface a bit due to its momentum.

Li Li sincerely praised, "Miss Jiang, you have impressive boat skills."

Though it wasn’t pretty, given that this was an icy surface, it was indeed quite challenging for most people to manage.

"Thank you." Jiang Yan silently thought that if it weren’t for having to return the same way and with two people watching, she would have had Hua Bao effortlessly lift both her and the vehicle "ashore."

She jumped down from the cockpit, and Li Haoyang stepped forward to greet her:

"Did you encounter any incidents along the way?"

Saying that, he couldn’t help but sniff the air.

Everywhere was icy and brisk, highlighting the distinct aroma of scorched protein on the boat.

Li Li performed the same action, even swallowing secretly.

The two exchanged glances for a second, "Miss Jiang, did you smell the crab’s aroma?"

"What I smelled was the scent of spicy crabs."

Jiang Yan laughed out loud, "The two of you have some sharp noses there."

Li Haoyang: "..."

Li Li: "..."

Jiang Yan: "Get in the car first, I’ll explain in detail to you guys later."

Attaching the amphibious vehicle, Jiang Yan got in the car and recounted to them the incidents with the worms and crabs that she encountered.

However, she omitted her mighty Flamethrower from Space, only mentioning that she used oil and cotton to make a makeshift torch to fend off the mutated crabs.

Returning to entrance number four of the base, Jiang Yan returned the metal detector to Li Haoyang.

Li Haoyang disembarked, intending to open the car door for Jiang Yan, but a young, tall, and handsome figure got to it before him...