Shen Feng had intended to give Franklin a gift, as the man had captured the traitor, which was a significant contribution. Otherwise, Shen Feng wouldn't have had the time to deal with the scoundrel, as he needed to return home as soon as possible.
However, after much thought, Shen Feng couldn't find a suitable gift. He had originally planned to award his golden buttons, but Yue Hengyi had found two large gold bricks on Li Gui, leaving Shen Feng without a concrete reward. His golden buttons were no longer presentable.
After pondering, Shen Feng noticed the cloth bag on Yue Hengyi's waist and quickly said, "Little Yue, quickly give Franklin a few fruits. This kind of good stuff is enough to give ordinary people immense strength for a short time. Even ability users can't compare in terms of physical fitness. Although there are side effects, they are useful in critical moments."
"Right, such good things are more than enough as a reward!" Yue Hengyi also realized it.
Franklin eagerly accepted the three fruits handed over by Yue Hengyi, never expecting such a good harvest. He had personally witnessed the fight between Yue Hengyi and Li Gui and naturally knew the effects of these fruits. For half an hour, his strength and speed had almost crushed Yue Hengyi, who was a fifth-tier ability user!
Although he would fall into a prolonged state of exhaustion after the burst of power, having a burst was better than not having one. If one needed to fight at a critical moment and lacked the strength to unleash it, wouldn't that be fatal? An occasional burst could save one's life at a crucial juncture.
With this thought, Franklin took the three fruits and quickly departed. These fruits were not juicy and tender; they contained little moisture, primarily starch, with very few seeds. He wondered if the seeds could grow into Agave plants after cultivation.
As long as they were properly preserved, they wouldn't spoil for a year or a half.
Franklin thanked them profusely and left, holding the three fruits. He knew that with this good item, his future would be boundless.
However, after Franklin left the office building, he discovered large numbers of survivors entering the city. At the entrance, people were specifically registering them. Not only were survivors entering the city, but many armed individuals were also walking in. As soon as they entered, their firearms were confiscated.
"Wood, what happened?" Franklin asked, bewildered by the sudden scene in the city.
Upon entering the city, Franklin went directly to pay his respects to Shen Feng. His subordinates, meanwhile, were inquiring everywhere in the city. For two years, everyone had only been able to live in isolated bases. Even traveling from one base to another was merely moving from one cage to another.
Now, entering the city, everyone felt a sense of familiarity, as if the bustling city of the past had reappeared. Only by living in the city did they seem to feel human civilization. Once they left the city, returned to villages, or went into the wilderness, they had to face endless dangers, and this atmosphere was oppressive.
Wood had also inquired about the situation in the city and suddenly heard that the leader of the original Luzi Base had first invited nine management personnel from other bases to a meeting. During the meeting, the distribution of benefits was uneven, leading to a brawl. In the end, this woman killed the nine leaders and forced the remaining individuals to submit to her.
The confiscation of firearms and weapons at the city entrance was actually for reorganization, to disperse the personnel of all bases. Wang Jiaoe knew this very well; it was crucial not to let familiar people gather together, as it would greatly increase the chances of them causing trouble. They also couldn't be allowed to stay in their original locations, which was not conducive to management.
Wood then recounted the day's events and asked, "Boss, what should we do now? Should we take advantage of the chaos?"
Wood knew his boss's intentions. His boss also desired a safe base, preferably one in a large city that could accommodate them. Now, the place they were in was a vast city, practically a piece of meat delivered to their doorstep. If they didn't act, wouldn't they be itching to do so?
"You're quite clever. Tell me, how can we seize this city?" Franklin had no qualms about seizing cities and immediately asked for his confidant's opinion.
Wood then whispered, "My suggestion is to contact people from these nine annexed bases. I heard that the second-in-command of these bases were all threatened. If we contact them, we can definitely make them move!"
"No, we're going back immediately! Back to our canyon base!" Franklin was not swayed by Wood's suggestion but chose an unexpected course of action.
"Go back? Boss, I'm not questioning your decision. If we want to seize this city, now is the most opportune time. People are in disarray, and we have a great chance. If we wait longer to contest the city, we'll have no chance at all," Wood quickly said.
"You don't understand anything. You think that by uniting the people of the nine failed bases, we can turn the tables, but you've forgotten one thing: these people's firearms and weapons have been confiscated. Moreover, I heard that Fissia has the help of mutated plants. Relying on the help of a bunch of failures is still too naive. To contest a city, we need stronger power!" Franklin said calmly.
Franklin could see the current situation very clearly. Uniting the nine annexed bases seemed like a good option, but these people were failures, and even their weapons had been confiscated. Could this pose any threat to the cunning Fissia? Impossible.
Therefore, Franklin had thought of a good plan.
Subsequently, Franklin led his convoy back to the northern base. The soldiers guarding the checkpoint intended to stop them, but they found that the people in the convoy had left all the supplies they had brought. These departing individuals carried nothing but weapons, so they were allowed to go.
"Just leave the supplies behind. As for these poor souls, let them go if they want to leave!" a soldier at the checkpoint muttered to himself.
Upon returning to the canyon base, Franklin immediately started making phone calls. He wasn't contacting other survivor bases but the ability users of mainland Australia!
Australia was the closest continent to the former Divine Realm, so it was the most affected. Zombies first appeared here, and it was only after other countries discovered Australia's situation that they began their earliest precautions. Although the preventive measures were merely sending text messages to their subordinates, it was still better than countries that knew nothing.
Besides the earliest appearance of zombies, ability users also appeared earliest in Australia, even before the zombies. Although Australia's population was not large, it was possible to gather twenty ability users.
Franklin had been flattering Australia's ability users all along. Whatever these ability users wanted, he would try his best to satisfy them. If an ability user was lustful, he would willingly send his own women to their beds. If they liked wealth, he would offer countless gold and silver. If they liked food, he would even have chefs from various countries prepare delicacies.
To describe Franklin's decision in one sentence: "Mobilize all the resources of the base to please the various ability users."
The thousands of people in the canyon had lived in poverty, also due to him. The base's wealth had basically been plundered by Franklin.
Franklin was not flattering ability users for nothing; he always had his own plans. Currently, Australia was leaderless, with zombies and mutated beasts everywhere. Wealthy people had long ago fled to North America or Europe. The remaining strong individuals were only the ability users. As long as he had the support of ability users, he could gain assistance at critical moments and occupy important locations!
"Mr. Grayne, I'm not lying to you. A large city in southwestern Australia has been recaptured. This city is now controlled by a female ability user. Yes, she has no combat ability! I would like to request your help," Franklin said respectfully into the phone.
Soon, a reply came from the other end of the phone. This ability user named Grayne agreed to Franklin's request.
Next, Franklin continued to make calls, summoning all the ability users he had successfully contacted. With enough ability users on his side, wouldn't it be easy to capture a city?
Two days later, eight ability users had gathered at the canyon base, all male and combat-oriented.
Upon arriving at the canyon base, the ability users immediately inquired, "Fremantle is ours! Originally, we wanted to occupy Sydney or Canberra, but unfortunately, a tsunami occurred half a month ago. So, how much danger is there in Fremantle now?"
Grayne was a burly man and was now sitting casually in the hall. The other ability users also inquired about the situation in the city.
Franklin quickly replied, "In Fremantle, there is currently one ability user, and the rest are ordinary people. There are not many evolved individuals. Additionally, there are two ability users from outside the region, but they will be leaving in a few days. We can wait until these two ability users leave before making our move. Oh, and we need to be wary of mutated plants! They eat people."
"Hmph, aren't they just two ability users from outside? We have eight ability users here, all capable of fighting. Are we afraid of those two?" Grayne sneered, completely looking down on ability users from outside.
"Exactly. I heard that the ability users who were previously on the naval fleet and stranded on islands were forced into such a situation by sea mutated beasts. How ridiculous!" the other ability users chimed in.
A ball of flame appeared in Grayne's hand, and the temperature around him instantly rose. He was very confident at this moment, believing that no matter what kind of ability user it was, they would be burned to death before his eyes.
Franklin quickly persuaded, "I heard that the ability users who went to salvage meteorites at sea before were elites. We must not underestimate them. Besides, there's no need for us to confront them head-on. We'll make our move after those two leave, and then it will be foolproof!"
"Nonsense! I am already a fourth-tier ability user. Who in this world can be more powerful than me? If I had been at sea before, no matter what kind of sea beast it was, I would have killed it in the end! Moreover, who are those two ability users you mentioned?" Grayne was very confident at this moment, and his arrogance was evident. He didn't believe anyone could be more powerful than him.
At this moment, the other ability users also spoke up, "That's right, Grayne is the strongest ability user. If it weren't for the tsunami before, we would have recaptured Sydney first! Unfortunately, the tsunami appeared suddenly, and too many coastal buildings collapsed, so we had to stop temporarily. Otherwise, we would have been the first to recapture an Australian city!"
The group of ability users present did not take the two Chinese ability users seriously at all. Franklin watched this scene unfold, unsure how to persuade them. At this moment, he was also having second thoughts, thinking, "Perhaps, our Australian ability users are stronger. Perhaps, I don't need to pay attention to Shen Feng and Yue Hengyi!"
Seeing that everyone agreed with his view, Grayne waved his hand and said, "Since the city's defenses are weak, let's all go together and kill the main management personnel in the city. From now on, Franklin, you will be the city lord here. Continue to show us your filial piety as you should!"
"Okay, I will definitely ensure that you gentlemen have a wonderful life and get whatever you want, as long as I become the city lord!" Franklin was overjoyed. The time for harvest had arrived, and his hard work had not been in vain!