My apocalyptic heroine has come true

"The cave is also very deep. We walked about ten kilometers, and the vertical depth of the cave is about two thousand meters."

"Based on our survey of the terrain, I don't recommend using explosives. It's winding and rugged down there. Blowing up one path will only allow the mutants to emerge from another... This would negate the safe passage we've worked so hard to find. Furthermore, I don't think simply collapsing the cave will harm the mutants."

"...If we want to inflict any real damage on them, we're probably going to have to target their nest. Follow the dense webs further in and you'll find the spider's nest. Our remote-controlled car has been there before, but unfortunately, it was attacked by mutants. The signal was lost deep inside, and we weren't able to bring back any footage."

The man stopped talking after saying this.

"understood."

He heaved a sigh of relief when Fang Ming responded to him, and finally added:

"That's all I know... Maybe the previous teams that went deeper into the cave know more, but they can't come back."

"If you want to go down the cave, you must go down at noon."

"Those mutant spiders don't need light to see around them, so the spider's lair is pitch black. Remember to bring a light source when you go down. If possible, also wear a mask, as the air down there is very stale."

"Okay." Fang Ming wrote down these key points.

Seeing that he was about to leave, the man raised his hand and waved, as if he was giving a non-standard military salute.

"Wish ya'll good luck."

Chapter 98

"Why don't you let us go?"

Upper level of Shelter 2737.

The man with a bandage on his head held the door frame and limped in front of the administrator Xiao La.

A few days ago, his thigh was pierced by a piece of metal debris, and the entire skin was almost torn off his leg, causing a lot of bleeding.

Fortunately, there were still a lot of medical kits left from the Ark Shelter. After blood transfusion, hemostasis, sutures, and antibiotic treatment, his physical condition finally stabilized.

If he only relied on the resources of Shelter 2737, Shi Si was sure that the administrator Xiao La would at most give him a few rolls of bandages to stop his bleeding, and his body might not even be able to withstand a night.

The Ark Shelter can be said to have saved his life in disguise.

At this time, Shi Si's face was pale and he looked extremely weak.

But even with his physical condition, he still worked all night to complete the excessive task set for him by Xiao La.

This is the rule of Shelter 2737.

If you want to get food and living space here, you have to obey all the orders of the administrator.

As long as Shi Si remains in Shelter 2737 for one more day, he will be exploited by the administrator for one more day.

He's had enough of this kind of life.

The poor living environment, scarce resources, incompetent administrators and his great ambition.

Shi Si couldn't see any future here.

He only saw a refuge that was slowly pushing itself towards destruction.

"I've already made smokeless gunpowder for you, just as you requested... You said you'd let me go if I did it!"

Shi Si's hands were shaking as he roared angrily. The glasses hanging on his nose were completely broken, and his severely myopic eyes could not see the expression of the man in front of him at all.

Xiao La sat on the mahogany chair with his legs crossed and took a puff of cigarette.

As for Shi Si's talent, he had indeed not discovered it before.

He heard from the residents who had gone to deliver goods with Shi Si that Shi Si had made a lot of good things for the owner of the Ark Shelter and had won the other party's favor.

No wonder Fang Ming specifically asked to keep them for a few days.

So that's the reason.

Unexpectedly, the repairman he had always used to repair sewer pipes was actually good at making gunpowder.

However, Vault 2737 was indeed short on resources. High-concentration potassium nitrate had only been obtained in recent days, and before that, the only gunpowder they could make was black powder.

Now, using the raw materials purified by Fang Ming and then improved by Shi Si...

The power of the weapons in your own 2737 shelter will be raised to a higher level.

How could Xiao La let this person go so easily?

"It's not enough," Xiao La exhaled a puff of smoke and continued.

"Look at the nitrocellulose you made for the Ark Shelter. They can shoot out a range of ten kilometers, and their power is quite astonishing... Then look at our power? I don't think you're trying your best."

"Try your best? How do you want me to try my best?"

Upon hearing this, Shi Si snorted coldly, and the multiple wounds on his body made him gasp.

"...Don't you think about the garbage your facilities are? Your 2737 Shelter is not even on the same level as the Ark Shelter. And you still dream of getting weapons as powerful as his?!"

Shi Si's words undoubtedly angered Xiao Ba.

Xiao La's mechanical fingers pinched together hard, rubbing the burning cigarette into powder.

He looked at Shi Si, the hideous scar on his forehead throbbing.

"If improving gunpowder doesn't work, then you can improve weapons for me."

"You and the shelter are already tied together. If you want to survive, you have no choice but to listen to me."

Xiao Ba's voice was almost squeezed out from between his teeth.

His left hand had already grasped a pistol, but after a moment's hesitation, he threw it back on the table.

"I didn't kill you now because you are still useful to me."

"Of course I'm still useful."

Shi Si dragged his aching leg forward two steps, sweat rolling down his forehead, the sneer on his face still unchanged:

"Do you know how to make the most of me?"

Shi Si's voice was a little hoarse, and it sounded like he hadn't had any water for a long time. His cracked lips were struggling to utter each word.

"I'll tell you a clear path. If you want Vault 2737 to survive, then put away all your schemes and plans. Your only way out is to give up your current position and join the Ark Shelter!"

Xiao La clenched his fists, and wrinkles appeared at the corners of his eyes from excessive force.

The look he gave Shi Si was still as intense as ever, as if he was going to raise his gun and smash the head of the person who was speaking into pieces in the next second.

Shi Si, under immense pressure, continued to speak:

"...and my greatest value is to serve as a 'bargaining chip' to gain more benefits for you!"

"Now, the only thing you can offer him in a deal is human resources... Hand us over to him and negotiate with him!"

……

"boom--!!"

The sound of the explosion swept across the sky, and the sand waves were shaken and spread out.

There were scorch pits of varying depths on the ground within a radius of 100 meters.

Fang Ming stopped the unmanned reconnaissance aircraft in mid-air and waited for a moment.

After the smoke and dust had cleared, he controlled the reconnaissance plane back to the Ark Shelter.

Xia Xiaochi responded to him immediately.

"Sir, those little spiders came here twice during the few hours you were away."

As he spoke, Xia Xiaochi held up a piece of handwritten paper and showed it to Fang Ming.

"The first time, they came from the west, and I spotted them in advance and killed them with machine guns."

"The second time, they attacked from the east. Because the two attacks were only a few minutes apart, I didn't react quickly enough and let them get close to the building... I thought they were targeting the walls of the Ark Shelter, but they exploded around the disintegrator. It seems their target was the disintegrator and the small module production workshop."

Xia Xiaochi held the charcoal pencil in his hand, drew a big circle on the paper, and added.

"There were obviously a lot more of them the second time around."

"Because the first attack was a feint."

Fang Ming looked at the crooked drawing made by the little heroine and summarized.

"Are they so smart?" Xia Xiaochi was stunned.

"Some time ago, when Shelter 2737 was surrounded by these mutant spiders, I strangled them using this method... I used small drones to draw fire, and then used machine guns to harvest them. They learned my tricks."

"..."

After hearing what Fang Ming said, Xia Xiaochi's expression was more of disbelief than surprise.

Genetically mutated organisms might undergo some kind of evolution, something Shi Yi mentioned last time...

But aren't these spiders evolving and learning too quickly?

Such a terrifying learning ability...what's wrong with the genetic structure?

Are they really still in the category of 'organisms'?

"Their explosions also seem to be a bit more powerful."

Xia Xiaochi's fair face reflected the light from the screen as he spoke thoughtfully.

Fang Ming quickly explained this conclusion: "They are likely carrying extra energy crystals."

"……what?"

Fang Ming's words completely shocked Xia Xiaochi.

So Fang Ming relayed the information Xiao Lai had just told him to Xia Xiaochi.

The mutant spiders had a clear division of labor: the small black spiders were responsible for self-destruction, while the spiders that evolved into larger ones were responsible for killing other mutant species and extracting the energy crystals from their bodies.

Those sharp spears are not as dexterous as human hands, but they can still perform some simple movements.

For example, use its front two legs to pick up an energy crystal and then place it on the body of a small spider.

Small spiders carrying more energy crystals will be more powerful when they explode...

The former was witnessed by Xiao La himself, while the latter was a guess made by Fang Ming based on the current situation.

To be honest, with the current evolutionary capabilities of these mutant species changing day by day, Fang Ming would not be surprised even if they invented cold weapons tomorrow.