Ice Age Apocalypse: I Hoard Billions of Supplies Chapter 1235: Centipede Breeding Ground

Zhang Yi along with his companions made their way back to their base, where they simply took it easy and relaxed throughout an entire day.

……

As the following morning dawned, Zhang Yi at last started organizing and distributing the treasures obtained from their journey into the Qinling mountains.

Naturally, his initial task involved analyzing the makeup of the violet gem that Totoro had retrieved.

The significance of this item was obvious, yet upon pulling it out for a thorough inspection, Zhang Yi detected absolutely no unusual qualities.

It resembled nothing more than a commonplace gemstone; in a artisan's store, it might sell for just a few hundred yuan at most.

With no other options, Zhang Yi passed it to Lu Keran, requesting her assistance in determining its true nature.

Lu Keran accepted the violet gem and scrutinized it extensively, yet she reached no firm conclusions.

Thus, she employed her Divine Machinery Manipulation skill to delicately probe its inner makeup.

Her eyes shut tight, and in that moment, her frame shook intensely.

Subsequently, twin rivulets of tears streamed from her closed eyelids, dripping steadily onto the ground.

Zhang Yi felt a surge of astonishment, though he refrained from uttering a word, wary of interrupting her focus.

Shortly after, Lu Keran gradually lifted her lids, her expression carrying a hazy quality, like emerging from a vivid reverie.

Only then did Zhang Yi venture to inquire softly, “Keran, what’s wrong? What did you find?”

Lu Keran’s focus slowly sharpened, though a trace of bewilderment lingered.

She shook her head. “I don’t know either. I just sensed a very complex set of emotions. The joys, angers, sorrows, and pleasures of the world seem to be fused together inside this strange crystal.”

Zhang Yi found himself utterly at a loss for words.

Emotions?

Was it possible this served as a memory crystal designed to gather human sentiments?

Lu Keran dried her cheeks and then stated gravely, “Besides that, I also sensed an extremely powerful and precise force contained within it.”

Zhang Yi let out a relieved exhale. “See, a treasure that had Shengjing Region scheming to get it can’t be that simple.”

Lu Keran shook the violet gem in her grasp. It spanned about an arm's length and carried considerable heft.

“Brother, the outer layer is a container; it should be something that holds the internal energy. Only by opening it can you access the power inside.”

Zhang Yi rubbed his chin while observing it intently.

“You mean the Serpent-folk used a formation to gather energy and then used this to collect it?”

“But how would you use it? You can’t just smash it open first—too dangerous.”

Lu Keran fixed Zhang Yi with a determined stare.

“Brother, leave this to me. I’ll figure out a way to release the internal energy.”

Zhang Yi remained uncertain about Lu Keran’s exact intentions.

Nevertheless, the armed forces had already advanced in energy storage methods, and Zhang Yi’s weapons incorporated such mechanisms.

“All right then. But this thing could be dangerous. I’ll help you.”

From Zhang Yi’s judgment, the power sealed within was undoubtedly immense.

Should it be mishandled and detonate in this spot, the whole Shelter might be obliterated.

Lu Keran welcomed Zhang Yi’s support wholeheartedly.

Zhang Yi declared, “But we’ll handle this later. First let’s take care of the other things.”

Near Lu Keran’s workshop stood several vacant rooms; typically, some served as repositories for her supplies.

Zhang Yi unlocked a spacious chamber and promptly unloaded a vast quantity of elemental ore.

“I collected a lot of elemental ore this time. You can study it and see how to use it. As for machines, I’ll leave everything to you. You take care of it.”

Lu Keran nodded. “That’s easy. I’ve studied elemental stone fragments before; I know how to extract energy from them.”

Zhang Yi smiled. “No rush, research it slowly. There are also other things I need to give you!”

Zhang Yi guided Lu Keran into the lounge and summoned the rest of the group.

Next, he accessed his Dimensional Space and extracted a ground centipede cadaver, depositing it on the ground.

This specimen stretched over five meters, and even in the lounge, it delivered a striking visual punch.

The onlookers couldn’t shake off their discomfort toward this grotesque underground beast.

Yang Siya clutched her full bosom and chided, “Zhang Yi, why did you bring this thing out?”

Zhang Yi chuckled. “Take a look and see if this thing can be cooked into a couple of dishes.”

Yang Siya promptly rolled her eyes. “Its shell is too hard; bullets can’t even penetrate it. How could anyone eat it?”

Zhang Yi settled onto the couch with a grin. “I’m not joking. This creature has swallowed a lot of elemental ore veins. Unlike humans, it can directly devour energy bodies. To be honest, I have an idea.”

Upon hearing this, the quick-witted Yang Xinxin swiftly discerned Zhang Yi’s scheme.

“Brother, you want to raise these worms? Like raising pigs?”

The group showed baffled looks.

“What would raising these things be for?”

Yang Xinxin gestured toward the ground centipede remains.

“It’s like how we eat mutton. Sheep eat grass, and we eat sheep. Humans can’t directly eat grass, so the sheep fill the gap in the food chain.”

“And if superhumans want to increase their power, they usually have to devour other superhumans or super beasts’ origins. They can’t directly obtain energy from fossil fuels or food and convert it.”

As the explanation unfolded, comprehension dawned on the others.

Zhou Ke’er’s gaze sparkled with enthusiasm. She eyed the ground centipede body before her and exclaimed with thrill:

“So what you’re saying is, we could raise ground centipedes and make them strong. Then we harvest their origins to strengthen ourselves, right?”

“As long as we have enough elemental stones, we can keep harvesting the centipedes’ origins continuously.”

“Even…”

Her tone quivered with eagerness.

“Even cultivate a powerful army of superhumans!”

Zhang Yi nodded with a smile.

He crossed his arms and propped his chin on them, uttering calmly, “That’s what Shengjing Region did. Otherwise, why do you think their superhuman numbers exploded?”

With that revelation, realization struck the assembly.

Zhou Ke’er gave a gentle nod; this insight resolved the doubts in her thoughts.

Superpowers are also a form of energy.

Humans eat food and become stronger. Burning coal gives off heat.

Energy is not created or destroyed, only transferred.

So why hasn’t anyone found a way to convert other energies into superpowers?

There must be a method; Zhou Ke’er just hadn’t found it yet.

The appearance of the ground centipede filled that gap.

“Of course,” Zhang Yi went on, “the higher the level you want, the lower the conversion efficiency. To get an Epsilon-level ground centipede, eighty percent of the time you’ll need some special substance, like Divine Source.”

Or something from the underground world.

“But if we raise these things, making you and those superhumans in Tianhai City I selected rapidly grow to squad leader level won’t be so difficult.”

Zhang Yi’s lips curved faintly.

The revelation of the ground centipede represented a major windfall for him, rivaling the discovery of elemental ore in value.

Author's Note