After Shen Feng casually killed a fourth-order mutated beast in the forest, he was warmly welcomed upon arriving at a nearby base. This was a small coastal city that used to rely on tourism for its economy. In the apocalypse, they could only sustain themselves by growing potatoes and cassava. Growing crops above ground was not feasible, as mutated birds would always devour them.
To prevent humans from going hungry after the crops were eaten by birds, they had to plant underground crops like potatoes and sweet potatoes, which yielded high quantities and grew underground. Although it was impossible to completely stop birds from eating crops, it at least helped alleviate the situation. The lord of this base was merely a second-order ability user, and his strength was quite ordinary. He was very respectful in the face of Shen Feng and Li Keyi's arrival.
The lord's greatest concern was that Shen Feng and Li Keyi might cause destruction. If these two were to do so, no one present could stop them. Their immense power was enough to allow them to do as they pleased.
Fortunately, Shen Feng was a reasonable person and did not resort to using force to seize things. Instead, he killed the wicked mutated beasts in the mountains and exchanged them for supplies, which was already commendable. In the apocalypse, order had already collapsed, and ability users could basically do whatever they wanted without any restrictions. Yet, at this moment, Shen Feng was willing to abide by the rules, making him an anomaly among ability users.
Shen Feng and Li Keyi were immediately invited to reside in a small fortress belonging to the lord. This was also the most luxurious accommodation in the entire base. Ordinary people's residences were not as aesthetically pleasing or practical. Slightly wealthier individuals could have their own detached houses, and even better ones lived in manors. However, the lord's residence was a fortress that also served defensive purposes. Inside the fortress, there was a garden, a swimming pool, and a private club. One could say that living there was akin to being detached from the world's troubles.
Shen Feng was satisfied with the place. Although it couldn't compare to the Fengshen Palace, it was still comfortable to live here. While the base had generators, there were no network base stations. Therefore, to contact Yuzhou, they could only use the most primitive method: sending a telegram to confirm his safety.
If Shen Feng had a good relationship with the headquarters, he could have used the headquarters' satellites for communication. As long as he carried a satellite phone, and was not in an extremely hazardous environment, Shen Feng could directly contact Yuzhou. However, Shen Feng's relationship with the headquarters had soured, so he could not use a satellite phone. To contact Yuzhou, he had to find a nearby base to send a telegram.
Yuzhou subsequently confirmed receipt of the telegram and sent a message to the base where Shen Feng was located: "Please return home quickly, but be careful not to bring any diseases from outside back to Yuzhou."
A strange virus had broken out in the Southeast Asian region. This virus was spread by mosquitoes and seemed to be a variant of dengue fever. It could even spread from person to person. Due to a lack of medicine, many people had died. This was why Chang Jianyi had given such a warning, to not bring diseases back to Yuzhou. Bird flu was already very troublesome and difficult to prevent. If Shen Feng were to bring back diseases from Southeast Asia, Yuzhou would truly not know what to do.
Shen Feng then instructed the lord, "When you prepare rooms for us, remember to include mosquito nets. The mosquitoes here are too venomous, and we probably won't be able to stand them."
The climate in Southeast Asia was humid and hot, making it generally unsuitable for freezing people to death. It was also a good place for growing crops, but it had its own problems. One of these problems was mosquito bites. The mosquitoes here were vicious. A single bite could cause swelling on a person's hand within minutes; the toxicity was too great.
The lord quickly agreed and inquired, "Lord Fengshen and Goddess of Light, please stay here with me. I will prepare separate rooms for you. Do you have any other needs?"
Food, clothing, housing, and transportation were the most pressing matters. The only remaining issue was food. Shen Feng then spoke, "What about food? Do you have any special local foods here? Foods that tourists often eat when they come here, do you have any?"
Upon hearing this, the lord led Shen Feng aside, away from Li Keyi, and said with a smile, "Lord Fengshen, we do have a special seafood product here, which is the meat of a certain type of snake. This meat is very nourishing. This snake is a mutated species. When stir-fried, it can greatly enhance male vitality. What do you think of such a delicacy? Are you satisfied?"
Shen Feng frowned upon hearing this and refused, "No need! I'm not in the mood to eat such things. You can keep it for yourselves. Also, find some normal food, preferably with fruits. I know there are plenty of fruits in these regions."
The lord had intended to recommend his local specialty. This sea snake was a great tonic, the fuel for men and the beauty salon for women. However, Shen Feng was not interested, and the lord was rebuffed. He had no choice but to give up and prepare normal food to entertain Shen Feng.
However, at this moment, Li Keyi said she wanted to watch the food preparation in the kitchen. Shen Feng knew that Li Keyi was worried about someone poisoning the food, so he let her go. It was good to keep an eye on things, lest he fall into a ditch.
Shen Feng began to sleep in his room. He had been using his abilities for the past few days, and there was very little to eat. Apart from catching fish, there was no other way. Yet, fish meat was mostly protein, with no fat or carbohydrates. Shen Feng felt he had lost weight from hunger and needed to rest well.
Meanwhile, in the kitchen, Li Keyi found the chef and said, "I heard you have a specialty sea snake here. I'd like to try it, but I hope this dish doesn't look like a sea snake. Can you do this?"
When Li Keyi said this, the chef naturally had to comply. However, doing such a thing made the chef a bit worried. He couldn't help but ask, "The lord just instructed us not to prepare sea snake. If I make this dish now, won't I be going against the lord's wishes?"
"That's because Shen Feng doesn't want to eat it, but I do. Do you understand? Make all the sea snakes you have, understand? Otherwise, I won't spare you." Li Keyi said coldly. She wasn't as law-abiding as Shen Feng. At critical moments, Li Keyi was accustomed to speaking with her fists.
After speaking, Li Keyi seemed to want to demonstrate her strength. She summoned a laser knife and cut through a nearby ox spinal bone with one stroke. When the ox spinal bone was cut, the chefs were startled. After witnessing the power of an ability user with their own eyes, they knew that offending an ability user would have dire consequences. If they were cut, they would be instantly severed. Thus, they could only comply.
"We have a hundred sea snakes here. If all of them are made into dishes, most people won't be able to handle it, because the effects of this snake are very potent. If ability users eat it, they will likely find it difficult to tolerate," the chef reminded Li Keyi at the last moment.
Li Keyi calmly replied, "It's fine, make as much as you have for me. Remember my request: it must not look like snake meat, but it must be delicious."
The chefs were helpless and began their preparation. It wasn't too difficult to make it not look like snake meat. As long as the snake meat was filleted and mixed with other meats, there would be no problem. Next, they used various cooking methods like pan-frying, stir-frying, and deep-frying. Finally, they finished preparing over a hundred sea snakes. This snake meat was incorporated into many dishes, such as in the Four Joy Meatballs and Black Chicken Soup.
Therefore, when it was time for dinner, Li Keyi enthusiastically invited Shen Feng to eat. The lord had intended to host Shen Feng and Li Keyi, but Li Keyi used the excuse of travel fatigue to send the lord away.
The meal was held in Shen Feng's room. Li Keyi explained, "This is to ensure that the food is not tampered with. Don't worry, I personally watched the chefs prepare these dishes, and there will be absolutely no problems. I don't know if the food suits your taste, try it quickly."
Shen Feng's appetite was whetted. There wasn't much good food at sea, and Shen Feng had lost weight from hunger. Now, with a sumptuous feast before him, he was naturally going to eat heartily. After all, he had survived the previous battles, so he should eat more to celebrate.
"Hmm, this Four Joy Meatball is a bit strange. The taste doesn't seem very authentic. It seems the chefs here still need to improve their skills," Shen Feng's palate had actually become quite refined over the years in Yuzhou. After trying the Four Joy Meatballs, he noticed something was wrong. It seemed the meat here wasn't very fresh, otherwise, why would there be a strange smell?
Li Keyi quickly explained, "Really? Then try some of the other dishes. I don't think there's anything wrong with them. Could it be that your sense of taste is off?"
After trying the other dishes, Shen Feng also felt a strange taste. This taste was too peculiar and hard to describe, but ultimately, Shen Feng trusted Li Keyi. The reason these dishes were so strange was likely due to the chefs' issues.
Shen Feng no longer cared about the taste of the food. If it was a bit strange, so be it, as long as it was edible.
Thus, Shen Feng began to eat with gusto. Li Keyi ate slowly, her eyes constantly fixed on Shen Feng, as if observing his changes.
While eating, Shen Feng began to notice something was amiss. After eating the food, his body felt hot all over. This was a normal phenomenon, as after consuming a large amount of nutrients, the human body accelerates metabolism, and metabolism generates heat. Feeling warm after a meal was within reason.
However, this heat was different. Shen Feng could feel that it wasn't due to his body's metabolism causing him to feel hot all over, but rather some other ingredient was at play.
Shen Feng put down his chopsticks and said sternly, "No, there's something wrong with these dishes. My body is heating up, this isn't normal!"
But as Shen Feng said this, Li Keyi calmly served him a bowl of chicken soup and said, "This is very normal. I asked the chefs to add medicinal ingredients to many dishes, such as ginseng and deer antler. It's normal to feel hot after eating them; it's the medicinal effect kicking in. Here, have a bowl of soup."
Only then did Shen Feng relax upon hearing it was the medicinal effect at work. However, he couldn't help but criticize Li Keyi, "Just eat your meal properly, why bother with supplements? Our bodies as ability users are already very good; we don't need to supplement them."
Shen Feng obediently drank the chicken soup that Li Keyi handed him. After the meal, Shen Feng felt his blood boiling, and Li Keyi was dressed quite lightly. Shen Feng couldn't help but steal glances at her.
"I'm going to take a bath. You should also go back to your own room quickly. It will be dark soon. If you're in my room, I won't be able to explain it if it gets out," Shen Feng said, and then entered the bathroom, turning on the faucet to cool himself down with cold water, but it had little effect.
Shen Feng spent a full half hour showering before he felt his body recover somewhat. Otherwise, the heat in his body was completely unbearable. After walking out, Shen Feng muttered, "What kind of supplement is this? The medicinal effect is so strong?"