Apocalypse: After Being Reborn, I Stocked Up on All Supplies
Chapter 462 - 456: Five-star Prison?

Chapter 462: Chapter 456: Five-star Prison?

"Hey, Sister Yan, look over there! What’s that?" Zhou Haotian suddenly extended his hand and pointed into the distance.

Jiang Yan looked up. Not far away, a military speedboat loaded with armed warriors was speeding toward the destroyer.

The warriors on the destroyer, who were responsible for keeping watch, had not yet called out. The other party had already swiftly raised an official flag.

Mo Jingsheng glanced at the flag and said calmly, "They’re on our side. If I’m not mistaken, it’s probably from Jinxin Base."

Jiang Yan gave him a sidelong glance. "Jinxin Base?"

Mo Jingsheng chuckled. "Yeah. Speak of the devil, and he will appear."

Even so, it was no time to let their guard down.

The broadcast transmitted a message the next second, instructing the approaching speedboat to slow down and submit to a boarding inspection.

A speedboat was duly dispatched from the destroyer, with several warriors aboard, speeding off and intercepting the incoming vessel.

Once the inspection was complete, the two speedboats then moved in tandem toward the destroyer.

Jiang Yan glanced at the lead warrior aboard the Jinxin Base speedboat, a fierce, striking woman.

Suddenly, a question came to her mind. "By the way, Captain, I always wanted to ask: At the beginning of the apocalypse, what was the purpose behind naming the five major bases after Gold, Wood, Water, Fire, and Earth?"

The Flame Base represented Fire.

The Yaoben Base represented Earth.

The Musen Base represented Wood.

The Jinxin Base represented Gold.

After the apocalypse, many smaller bases sprouted up, like mushrooms after a rain.

However, at most, they were just temporary shelters.

In terms of scale, defense level, technological advancement, and resource reserves, they couldn’t compare to the major bases.

As Jiang Yan pondered further, she grew increasingly puzzled. "It seems like there isn’t a base that represents Water?"

Mo Jingsheng curled his lips, his expression enigmatic. "The exact reason, I don’t fully comprehend. One theory is that it symbolizes the principle of the Five Elements’ mutual generation and restraint. But such matters, it isn’t for me to comment. It’s like back during the mask era when hospitals were named ’Leishenshan,’ and so forth.

Why there’s no Water? Well, at present, this planet has no shortage of water. Of course, there may actually be one—later on, you’ll find out..."

Jiang Yan exchanged a glance with Ye Qing. "And those remaining reborn individuals? Doesn’t seem like we’ve heard of them."

"They—" Mo Jingsheng’s gaze darkened. "For the country, or rather, for the future of all survivors on this planet, they sacrificed themselves."

Jiang Yan was startled. "What do you mean??"

"Not only our country has reborn individuals; other nations have them too." After Mo Jingsheng finished speaking, he swept his gaze across the group. "What I just told you—consider it as though you never heard it."

Jiang Yan glanced at Zhou Haotian and Zhao Xiaofei beside Mo Jingsheng but chose not to pursue further questioning.

Given Mo Jingsheng’s accumulating injuries over time and the amount of Spiritual Spring Water he’d consumed for recovery, if Jiang Yan pressed him further, he would likely spill everything.

However, his silence clearly meant the matter was likely classified as a state secret.

Also, some secrets being known by the wrong people may not necessarily be a good thing.

Especially for children like Zhou Haotian or Zhao Xiaofei, who still lacked the ability to protect themselves.

Half a month later, the Snapdragon Fleet departed Musen Base and officially started its journey back to Yaoben Base.

A week later, the Snapdragon Fleet returned to Yaoben Base after three years and five months.

When they set out, there was one destroyer, two escort ships, one icebreaker, one cargo ship, and a total of 368 people.

When they returned to Yaoben Base, only 198 remained.

Aside from a few elderly individuals who naturally passed away due to health and age, most of the warriors perished while performing their duties.

Additionally, some of the logistics personnel lost their lives to unpredictable natural disasters.

As for the cargo ship loaded with supplies, during one treasure-hunting expedition, it was damaged by a hurricane, exploded, and sank to the seabed.

Jiang Yan came to a stark realization—her abilities were considerable, but she couldn’t possibly save everyone.

Although Spiritual Spring Water possessed miraculous restorative powers, it couldn’t bring back those who had already crossed over into the afterlife.

When they departed, every time Jiang Yan closed her eyes, her subconscious could access the locations of those who had consumed Spiritual Spring Water, appearing as faint blips in her mind.

Upon her return, she intentionally avoided thinking about where those people were.

Because, the moment she slipped up and shut her eyes, her mind would be flooded with a dense sea of luminous dots.

The remaining 198 people had all, at some point, consumed Spiritual Spring Water.

And each one was fiercely loyal to her.

*

Back at the base, Jiang Yan and Ye Qing’s group were assigned to a specific area by Yaoben Base’s current leader, Li Hao.

The entire group of 198 treasure hunters was similarly concentrated in one zone.

Mo Jingsheng, along with Song Haitao and the scientific team, promptly disappeared for a while.

Jiang Yan speculated they were likely reporting the expedition’s progress to certain higher-ups.

As the core figure of the entire treasure hunting team, Jiang Yan received the tightest protection and the highest standard of care.

Her food, clothing, shelter, and transportation were the finest the base had to offer.

But in Jiang Yan’s view, she felt more like she’d been locked into a five-star prison, tightly monitored.

After all, as Mo Jingsheng had mentioned, anything she had collected could drastically alter the course of human history.

Though enemy factions hidden within the country had temporarily disbanded, new adversaries could arise at any moment.

Additionally, storing National Treasures and advanced technologies posed logistical challenges for the base.

The current situation also made it impossible to prepare a suitable storage environment for such high-tech materials.

Jiang Yan’s room was equipped with 360-degree high-definition infrared cameras everywhere except the bedroom and bathroom.

She chose not to bother entering her spatial dimension.

Several subsequent treasure-hunting locations yielded large amounts of Gold and jewels.

Mo Jingsheng also ensured that all the Gold and jewels he owed Jiang Yan were thoroughly transferred to her.

After discreetly sending Hua Bao into her spatial dimension, Jiang Yan primarily resided outside.

Her routine consisted of visiting Ye Qing and Su Dai to chat.

Their security wasn’t as tight as Jiang Yan’s area, but whenever she visited, at least four fully armed warriors accompanied her closely.

After a few visits, Jiang Yan grew somewhat weary of this arrangement.

The feeling of being constantly watched was undoubtedly uncomfortable.

She resolved to remain in her room, taking out pre-apocalypse books she had purchased, reading them one after another.

Later, finding formal literature dull, she switched to several online novels.

These were written by a female author named Yinuo Weitian.

One of the novels was titled *Buy an Island, Raise a Pixiu, The Fake Heiress Becomes a Billionaire and Wins Easily*, a feel-good story of extravagance. The female protagonist was a fake heiress, while the male lead was an ancient deity. The plot was thrillingly indulgent, with the protagonist’s lavish spending surpassing anything Jiang Yan, once the daughter of Anming’s wealthiest tycoon, could imagine.

Another story, *Heaven-Sent Convenience Store, Becoming Legendary Across Time*, depicted a female protagonist obtaining a magical convenience store that transcended time, enabling her to travel to the Tang Dynasty and help the young Li Shimin unify the nation—a tale brimming with outlandish ideas.

Having become reborn herself, equipped with the spatial dimension and Hua Bao as her golden fingers, such over-the-top stories resonated with her, prompting her to binge-read both in just two nights.

Jiang Yan contemplated writing her own online novel one day, documenting her experiences in full detail.

Eventually, the apocalypse and natural disasters would pass, and humanity would usher in its own era of light.

When that time came, the number of survivors with either the talent or spare time to write online novels might be exceedingly rare, she thought.

But all this was something for the future.

Jiang Yan remembered the assortment of Lego sets and crafting materials she had bought before the apocalypse. She shared some with Su Dai’s group, keeping the rest for herself.

Whenever she had spare time, she assembled Legos and crafted handmade items, making her life in this "five-star prison" relatively fulfilling.

Ye Qing and Su Dai often visited her too.

A group of them would gather as they did before departing the base, cooking hot pot, playing cards, chatting the day away—moments of camaraderie.

Three months passed quickly.

One day, Mo Jingsheng, absent for many weeks, finally returned, accompanied by two pieces of news:

First: Xue Miaomiao was dead.

Both her genuine self and several duplicates were killed by Jinxin Base’s leader, Jin Ruolin.

Second: The authorities wanted to see her.