Apocalypse Chapter 95: Extra 2 – Tales of  the Spark Base (2)

Chapter 95: Extra 2 – Tales of  the Spark Base (2)

Translated by Addis of Exiled Rebels Scanlations

Editor: Karai

It was the sixth year of winter since the Spark Base had established diplomatic ties with the Sovereign Base. Finally, Gu Zefeng arrived on the Spark Base’s territory as the representative of the Sovereign base. He did not come alone; accompanying him were his teammates and an entire convoy of heavy trucks.

The trucks would be returning loaded with vehicles manufactured by the Spark Base, but for now, they were filled with local specialties from the Sovereign. Although the Spark Base was rich in resources, every piece of land had its own unique treasures.

The moment Gu Zefeng stepped off his vehicle, the three Jiang children came running up excitedly. “Uncle Gu!”

Two years ago, Gu Zefeng had received prosthetic limbs. Hearing the children’s voices, he stretched out a happy “Ah~” and opened his arms wide to embrace them. At the same time, he shot a teasing glance at Guan Shao.

Guan Shao ignored the look and signaled to his teammates. Weng Chenggang and others immediately rushed forward to greet the Sovereign convoy. “Hey, you’re here! What gifts did you bring this time? Brothers, come lend a hand—let the Sovereign brothers take a breather!”

The espers swarmed around, quickly unloading and dividing the contents of the trucks. Gu Zefeng cradled one child in his arms while another perched on his shoulders. Seeing the Spark Base people start moving toward the trucks behind him, he quickly called out, “Hey, hey! That’s not for you!”

That truck was packed full of food—thin-skinned fragrant walnuts, plump lotus roots, bright red rape flowers… All carefully chosen by Gu Zefeng as gifts for the three children.

The kids’ faces lit up with joy. “Thank you, Uncle Gu!”

After a while of laughter and play, Gu Zefeng turned serious. “I don’t want to admit it, but I have to say: your base is really well built.”

Since entering the Spark Base, he felt as if he had stepped back to the days before the Great Crisis. Though he had long heard of the Spark Base’s achievements, seeing it with his own eyes left a far deeper impression. In contrast, the Sovereign’s infrastructure was far behind. Suddenly, a sense of urgency gripped Gu Zefeng—there was still a long way to go on their path of development.

Perhaps the shock the Spark Base gave him was too great, for the remainder of the visit, he shed his arrogance. Whenever he noticed something the Sovereign lacked, he asked carefully about it.

Gu Zefeng’s main purpose for this trip was automobiles. The Sovereign had a car factory too, but the quality of their vehicles couldn’t match the Spark Base’s. This time, he brought the Sovereign’s tech team to the Spark Base to learn from the best; if they couldn’t master Spark’s techniques, the tech team would not return home.

The Spark Base car factory was near Lean Solar Electronics. On the way there, Gu Zefeng gazed out the window, silent for a long time before finally asking, “Captain Jiang, where do you get the raw materials for your cars?”

There were no mines near the Spark Base, yet Jiang Rong and his team produced so many vehicles. Where did the materials come from?

Jiang Rong smiled. “Locally sourced—we recycle discarded vehicles found along the roads as raw materials and rebuild them. The materials we recover are enough to meet daily production needs.”

Before the Great Crisis, people’s material wealth was abundant. After the crisis, with the population sharply reduced, the remaining resources, when distributed rationally, fully satisfied the needs of the survivors.

Gu Zefeng nodded slowly. “I see.” Compared to unchecked resource extraction, repurposing waste to create a better life was obviously the better path. As he spoke, Gu Zefeng’s brow remained furrowed, his gaze on Jiang Rong full of complexity. Jiang Rong asked curiously, “What’s on your mind, Commander Gu?”

Gu Zefeng smiled faintly. “Nothing much. It’s just that people like you, Captain Jiang, are very rare.”

Before coming to the Spark Base, he had thought Jiang Rong’s achievements owed everything to Guan Shao’s strength. But after visiting, he held Jiang Rong in deep respect and finally understood why Guan Shao chose to stay at the Spark Base.

The Great Crisis had magnified human greed and ruthlessness. To survive and to live better, more and more people have become fierce and violent. They fought over resources and territory, believing only the strongest had the right to speak. It seemed everyone accepted this as the natural order—until a different vision emerged in the Spark Base.

Jiang Rong shared openly. Any base that asked the Spark Base for help received it—seeds, technology, personnel—anything the Spark had was shared freely. Under his leadership, barren lands near allied bases blossomed again, and people could finally fill their stomachs with their own hands.

Who would want to wander aimlessly or fight endlessly when they could eat well and live warmly? With so few humans left, they could no longer afford to harm each other. To survive and thrive, they had to move forward together. Gu Zefeng solemnly extended his hand to Jiang Rong. “Captain Jiang, you truly are remarkable.”

Jiang Rong calmly reached out, though inwardly he was baffled—Did Gu Zefeng take some medicine? Why suddenly so formal? It felt strange.

*

After touring the car factory, Gu Zefeng fell into gloom. Standing on the office building balcony, he chain-smoked one cigarette after another until the ground below was littered with butts.

Technically, the Spark Base’s production line was still inferior to the Sovereign’s. Spark’s cars were good because every part was strictly controlled, and assembly was meticulous. More importantly, every factory worker was responsible—any dissatisfaction meant redoing the work without complaint.

The people of the Spark Base took pride and passion in their roles. Whether esper or not, everyone felt a deep sense of belonging. They all wanted to stay at the Spark Base, firmly believing the base would only grow stronger—and that their own lives would improve alongside it. This only intensified Gu Zefeng’s sense of crisis. The cohesion within the Sovereign base was far weaker than that of the Spark base. If things continued like this, what would become of them?

Guan Shao’s voice broke through his thoughts. “Stop smoking.”

Gu Zefeng glanced sideways to see Guan Shao opening the window for fresh air. He was about to retort sharply but thought better of it, and remained silent instead. Guan Shao stood beside him. “Feeling down?”

Gu Zefeng gave a dry laugh. “How could I be down? You guys treat me well—good food, good drink. I’m happier than I deserve.”

Guan Shao’s calm gaze swept over him. “If you’re tired, take a break. Don’t push yourself.”

“Tired?” Gu Zefeng said stubbornly. “I’m a Level 5 esper too. Master Guan, don’t forget—you almost lost your powers to me.”

Guan Shao said nothing, quietly watching him. Gu Zefeng turned his head to look out the window again. “I guess I’m just a little bitter. I feel like my luck’s been terrible. The Sovereign was way stronger than the Spark Base in the beginning, and now we’re completely outpaced. Why? Fate? Timing? Is this just my destiny?”

After muttering this, Gu Zefeng sneered, “What’s the point in telling you? Master Guan’s all fired up now—how could you possibly understand my pain?”

Guan Shao stared at him for a long moment before speaking. “If Xiao Que were still alive, seeing you now, he’d be heartbroken.”

Gu Zefeng’s body stiffened. The smile on his face faded, his eyes slowly reddening. “If he truly cared, he wouldn’t have left me alone back then. My life’s a tragedy—people I wanted to keep slipped away, things I wanted slipped from my grasp. I watch others succeed, no matter how hard I try, I can’t catch up. Master Guan, tell me, why wasn’t I the one who died?”

Guan Shao sighed softly. “Once someone’s gone, they’re gone. Regrets won’t bring them back. What I want you to know is—you’re still here. Your brothers are still here. If you’re tired, want to talk, or just drink, the doors of the Cang Lang squad are always open.”

Gu Zefeng was silent for a moment, then took a deep drag of his cigarette. “Hmph. Who cares. What fun is there hanging with a bunch of old bones like you guys? I’d rather hang out with your kids.”

A faint smile tugged at Guan Shao’s lips. “That’s fine. Xiao Hao, Xiaoheng, and Yuan Yuan talk about you all the time. If you stayed longer at the Spark, they’d be thrilled.”

Gu Zefeng snorted twice. “Of course—I’m their grandpa.”

Jiang Rong glanced up to the second floor, noticing Guan Shao and Gu Zefeng standing close together. His heart thumped anxiously. “I hope those two don’t start fighting… No, if they do, I’ll have to send them somewhere else. So many expensive, delicate machines in this factory—if those two break anything, it’d be a disaster.”

Chiang Jinhu waved his hands repeatedly. “No worries, Captain Jiang. If they wanted to fight, it would’ve started long ago—not waited till now.”

Weng Chenggang was even more confident. “No way. The Sovereign tech team told us before coming, Feng Zi ordered them to focus on learning, not embarrassing themselves. As the boss, Gu Zefeng wouldn’t lead by example, right? After all, his tech team is still working in our factory.”

Jiang Rong nodded slowly. “Alright. But if they do get into it, you must stop them.”

*

Winter had arrived, and the Spark Base’s hospital was especially busy. A heavy snowfall a few days prior had led to a spike in patients with fall injuries. If this had been before the Great Crisis, many would have been bedridden for the season. But now, with several treatment espers on staff, doctors swiftly healed the injured so they could return home quickly.

Wang Chunlan wiped her hands and stood, smiling warmly. “Alright, the bones are healed. Be careful on your way home.”

The patient thanked her profusely. “Thank you, Doctor Wang! Thank you so much!” Without people like Wang Chunlan, who knew how this New Year would be.

After the last patient left, Wang Chunlan prepared to pack up and head out. She planned to help at the Chu family’s place, as the elders were getting ready for the festival, buying lots of meat to fry into meatballs and steam buns.

Just as she was about to leave the clinic, a nurse’s voice called from outside. “Director Wang, could you come? We have a patient who just fell and hit his head—he’s delirious now.”

Wang Chunlan set down her things again. “I’m coming.”

Arriving at the neighboring clinic, she saw a huge dog. Wang Chunlan reached out to pet its head. “Ba Wang, what are you doing here? Where’s your owner?”

Ba Wang whimpered and lowered his body. Wang Chunlan immediately understood. The Spark Base’s mutated animals patrolled their territory daily. Since winter began, they often found injured people; today’s patient was discovered by Ba Wang.

The patient was a man in his forties, with a large bump on his forehead. He was a strength-type esper. The nurses couldn’t restrain him, so he was tightly bound to equipment. Seeing Wang Chunlan, he shouted, “Let me go! I’m from Ark Base’s Fifth Squad! If you delay my mission, I’ll make you pay!”

Wang Chunlan frowned. “Ark Base?” Which base was that? Among all the known bases, none went by the name “Ark.” Yet the patient insisted with unwavering certainty, “I don’t care which base you’re from—let me go right now!”

Wang Chunlan smiled gently. “Master, please calm down. You hit your head badly; I need to treat you first. No matter which base you belong to, let’s start with treatment, alright?”

Only then did the patient relax. “You’re a healing esper? You seem reasonable. Come here—I’ll allow you to treat me.”

Wang Chunlan sat down beside the equipment, placing her hands on the patient’s head. Silver-white esper energy flowed softly from her fingertips. She casually asked, “Where exactly is this Ark Base of yours?”

The patient gave her a sideways glance. “Southern New Humans, Northern Ark—don’t you know those are the two biggest bases in the south and north? If you don’t know about the Ark, surely you’ve heard of our strongest esper, Guan Shao, the Commander Guan?”

Wang Chunlan paused, her hand still on his forehead. “Guan Shao? You mean… Guan Shao, the lightning esper?”

The patient grinned proudly. “Who else? He’s the most badass esper around. With a snap of his fingers, he can call down millions of volts of lightning. Who could possibly stand against him?”

Wang Chunlan nodded with admiration. “Wow, that’s incredible.”

The patient closed his eyes in satisfaction. “That’s right. Our base doesn’t just have Commander Guan. There’s also General Chiang Jinhu the Golden Tiger, Beast Speaker Zheng Zhanqing, the fastest Weng Chenggang, the genius Meng Weixian, and the elusive King Wang Ting… How many bases can boast a team like that? As for the Southern New Humans? A couple of ice and gold espers—Ruan Hanyu and An Ran—and the rest are just rabble. Not worth mentioning.”

Wang Chunlan’s healing hands moved gently over the patient’s scalp, her power seeping deeper. “Oh? Have you heard of the Spark Base or the Sovereign Base?”

The patient’s voice lowered. “Sovereign? Didn’t we wipe them out three years ago? Their leader Gu Zefeng was roasted to a crisp by our Commander Guan. That fight was something else—I was there.”

Wang Chunlan raised her brow. “And the Spark Base?”

The patient muttered, “The Spark Base? Never heard of it…”

With that, he tilted his head and fell asleep. Wang Chunlan touched the bump on his head. “He’s got a bad concussion. We’ll admit him for observation. Oh, and he’s an esper—make sure he’s placed in the special esper ward. And no falling again, understood?”

The nurses hurried to move the patient off the bed. “Understood, Director Wang.”

After tidying up, Wang Chunlan wrapped her scarf tighter and stepped outside. Leilei, dressed in sky-high heels and showing off her midriff, complained, “Mom, why so slow? Grandpa and Grandma have called three times already. Hurry up—I’m starving!”

Wang Chunlan smiled, pulling her scarf closer. “There was a heavy snowfall; the hospital’s busier than usual. Wear more clothes, and ditch the heels. I just treated a patient with a head injury—he’s stuck here for the New Year. If you don’t behave, you’ll end up just like him.”

Leilei rolled her eyes and climbed into the car. “Alright, alright, stop nagging. Let’s go!”

Wang Chunlan glanced up at the sky, her lips tightening slightly. That patient hadn’t just suffered a concussion—everything he said was true. Because it was real, Wang Chunlan was especially cautious.

Maybe, in a parallel world, their bases really didn’t exist. In that world, everyone had torn each other apart, and she and Leilei were just casualties of the Great Crisis. Leilei rolled down the window. “Mom, stop daydreaming—get in already!”

Wang Chunlan smiled, walking toward the car. “Coming.”

But so what? At least now, she and her daughter were here. Everyone was still here. The Spark Base was still the brightest spark. The car rolled forward, and Leilei’s voice floated back, “Mom, I want your braised pork belly later. Make some, okay? Please?”

Wang Chunlan’s warm and firm voice answered, “Mmm~ okay~ Make plenty!”

 

 

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