After hearing Yu Renshu's explanation, Shen Feng understood that to solidify his position, he had to offer corresponding benefits.
The simplest benefit he could offer now was a medicinal herb. These people had bowed their heads because they were facing a great crisis and could only beg for help, with Shen Feng being the chosen one.
This meant that once the crisis was resolved, Shen Feng's influence in Dian Province would be insufficient, and these people might outwardly obey but inwardly cause trouble.
After all, Shen Feng's influence in Dian Province was inherently weak, a natural disadvantage that could not be compensated for in a short time. The best way was to let the common people taste the benefits, and then public support would naturally follow.
Shen Feng was also a person who listened to advice, so he immediately found a few unlucky infected soldiers and said to them, "I have an important mission for you now. Do you have the confidence to complete it?"
These soldiers had been extremely pessimistic since being infected by the mutated fruit flies, as they all felt death was imminent. The fruit fly eggs in their bodies were already developing, and they could feel worms wriggling under their skin as they walked. They wanted to dig out the worms but were completely unable to, so they could only watch helplessly as the worms moved within their bodies.
Therefore, the mental state of these soldiers was not good. Hearing that Shen Feng had a mission for them, they were surprised.
"City Lord, we are already in this state, and it will be difficult to complete a difficult mission," a soldier said tactfully.
Shen Feng quickly said, "Don't worry, I'm not asking you to complete impossible and difficult missions, but to give you a chance to be cured. Here are two herbs that you need to protect and take to Yuzhou. Once you reach Yuzhou, you will have a chance to be cured!"
When Shen Feng said this, many of the parasitized soldiers, upon hearing that there was hope for treatment, immediately rekindled their fighting spirit.
"City Lord, please rest assured, we will definitely complete this mission. Even if we die, we will deliver these two plants back to Yuzhou," they all promised.
What often gives people the hope to live is the desire for survival. When there was no hope for a cure, these people were all in a state of extreme despondency. But now that they knew they could live, their faith immediately emerged. To survive, they would do anything.
Seeing that the wounded soldiers had rekindled their fighting spirit, Shen Feng nodded with satisfaction and said, "I will contact the helicopter now. You will leave by helicopter later. You will arrive in Dali, and you must not stop. You must reach Yuzhou in the shortest possible time. Once you reach Yuzhou, you will receive good treatment. Believe me, you will be fine!"
Shen Feng's words immediately convinced everyone. Although they didn't know how important the herbs were, the City Lord's emphasis made it clear that it was something extraordinary.
As dusk approached, a helicopter soon appeared and dropped supplies at the location designated by Shen Feng. These supplies were all books, along with many pens and papers, items that Shen Feng had requested. The pilot didn't understand why these items were being air-dropped, but they simply followed orders, regardless of the matter.
The villagers were overjoyed to receive the books. Many even cried on the spot because they had hardly seen any books since the apocalypse. Although many books clearly explained the principles of papermaking, the villagers had no way to make paper, and relying on them to do so was essentially a pipe dream.
The children, seeing the adults' excitement, were bewildered. In their eyes, there was no need to be so excited, as these books were useless, couldn't be eaten, and had too many words, making them even cumbersome for wiping their behinds. They were only good for burning. They couldn't understand the adults' reaction at all.
"What's so good about these things? We live in the mountains and don't need these strange things," a child said innocently.
But the village chief said, "You little illiterates, you can't even write your own names. If you continue like this, you'll have no future. Hurry up and study, or you'll be looked down upon later!"
The village chief and the other elders were very worried about the children in the village, as they were truly uneducated. If the world became peaceful again, they might be abandoned by the times!
Therefore, upon hearing that Shen Feng was prepared to exchange supplies, the village chief immediately thought of having the children study at this time, otherwise, they would surely have no future.
The world always required intelligence to live well. Relying solely on one's physical strength meant working for others for a lifetime. This was a conclusion drawn from thousands of years of ancestral experience. If they didn't believe this, life would surely make them suffer greatly.
"You children will need to study from now on. You haven't received any education in these years, which is not good. It just so happens that we have a high school dropout in our village. This is your good fortune to receive guidance from others. If it were anyone else, you wouldn't have such good fortune," the village chief said to the children.
The children, however, were dismissive.
After passing through this village, Shen Feng also learned from the locals that to truly find the fruit flies' nest, they would need to cross the Nu River and go deep into the Hengduan Mountains, to places where no human could survive, as there were too many venomous beasts. Any slight carelessness could lead to danger.
"Take all our supplies and prepare to depart. We must eliminate these hateful insects in the shortest possible time. Once we have a stable rear, we can fight with all our might. But don't worry, there will be enough supplies to support our battle," Shen Feng encouraged the soldiers who were on the march.
"Yes..." The soldiers responded weakly after hearing the encouraging words, as they were already very tired. No matter how much encouragement they received, they couldn't muster the energy and could only keep walking by sheer willpower.
Many soldiers carried a lot of supplies on their backs, including many high-pressure gas cylinders. These cylinders contained very dangerous toxic gas, which could cause harm to personnel if leaked. Therefore, they had to be handled with care during transport, as any impact could lead to a major accident.
Each high-pressure gas cylinder weighed at least two to three hundred jin. Fortunately, these soldiers had already used evolution enhancers and were generally first or second-order evolvers, so they could carry these heavy cylinders. If it were ordinary people, carrying such heavy objects would be almost impossible.
"These young people were originally living ordinary and peaceful lives, but they never expected to find themselves on the battlefield, and this battlefield is in the Hengduan Mountains, full of primeval forests. Even locals dare not wander around. It's really difficult for them to follow us here," Yu Renshu said later.
Shen Feng said helplessly, "If only I could deal with these insects alone. I could fly into the mountains alone, find the nest, and destroy it directly, preventing these damned fruit flies from spreading further. But I can't do that. These insects often build their nests inside tree trunks, and my strong winds have no effect on them."
As Shen Feng headed to the battlefield, he had already considered that this battle might be very arduous. While he could bear it, for many ordinary soldiers, it would be a double test of their spirit and body.
Regardless, this was still the Yunnan-Guizhou Plateau, and the altitude in the Hengduan Mountains was even higher than in other places. Many soldiers often fainted by the roadside during their journey. It wasn't that they were feigning illness, but their bodies were already at their limit.
After half a month of travel, they finally reached the bank of the Nu River. Looking at the surging, turbid water below, which seemed to be carrying a lot of silt, a sense of fear arose in their hearts. On both banks, only a single iron chain connected them.
"The nearby bridges have all collapsed. The only thing we can find is this iron chain. This iron chain is very heavy. In the past, it was a passage for people to enter and exit the Nu River. They would use ropes or other items to slide across this chain," a local guide explained the situation.
Shen Feng felt nothing looking at the river, but many ordinary soldiers were so scared their legs went weak at the sight. The surging water below was too turbid and rapid. If they fell in, they wouldn't even be able to make a bubble before being swept away by the current.
"Do we also need to build a suspension bridge and then cross here?" Yang Chang couldn't help but ask.
"We have already wasted more than half a month. If we cannot find the fruit flies' nest quickly, the local armies in the south will not be able to hold on. We must hurry. Since people were able to use this iron chain to cross between the two banks before, we can certainly do it!" Shen Feng replied through gritted teeth.
Someone in the team carried a simple radio, which could communicate with the outside world. Therefore, even in the mountains, Shen Feng could know the situation outside. It was said that many cities in the south could no longer hold on and would soon be pushed back to Fuxian Lake. This area was actually the hinterland of Dian Province.
Shi Feng was also under immense pressure because the plan was his. He had to stabilize the situation in the rear before he could fully deal with the insects in the south. If this plan failed, it would have a significant impact on the people of Dian Province.
"I understand. I will immediately find suitable items to cross this iron chain. However, I suggest we divide our forces. A small group of elites will go straight for the enemy's stronghold, while the majority will build boats on the spot and prepare to head downstream along the Nu River!" Yang Chang suddenly suggested.
"This is a good idea. We only need to bring elite veterans to fight with us, and our combat effectiveness will increase. As for the large number of new recruits, they can find a place to rest here and build rafts to sail down the river," Shen Feng agreed to the suggestion.
In fact, Shen Feng had no other choice. Many young soldiers had only recently joined the army, and even with veterans leading them, their physical strength and willpower could not keep up in the short term. Forcing them to continue marching into the deep mountains and old forests was already very difficult. If they were to proceed further now, it would waste time and potentially cause serious casualties.
When Shen Feng agreed to this, everyone was about to begin. The plan was to divide the forces. Over 2,000 veteran soldiers were chosen to accompany Shen Feng with the poison. As for the majority of the new recruits, they would stay behind with the remaining veterans to guard the area and build rafts, preparing to head south for battle.
Shen Feng thought for a moment and left Yu Renshu and Xu Xing behind. "You two will lead the army to rest here for a while and build rafts. The reason I'm leaving you two here is not because I don't trust you, but because I need you to protect these soldiers at a critical moment."