Chapter 505: Chapter 429: 1 Year

When Flora Bloom and Lex Cross told Caleb Bloom and his wife they wanted to take Polly out for a while to search for Crystal Stones, they were met with fierce opposition.

Jade went as far as to threaten Flora Bloom with her own life, saying that if Flora wanted to go gallivanting, she was not allowed to take her granddaughter with her.

So, left with no choice, the pair could only go out during the day to search for Crystal Stones. They would return by evening on short trips, but never for longer than three days before coming back to the base.

Unfortunately, aside from the green, plant-elemental Crystal Stone they’d found in the mare’s carcass in Janton, there had been no sign of any others.

Among the known, interconnected bases, there were four major ones: Argent Base, Qaymar Base, Valoria City Base, and Aethelgard City Base.

Following them were the slightly smaller bases, in terms of population and area: Aethelgard Base, Azuregard City Base, Flora Bloom’s own Morhaven Base, and Korsan Base, which was managed by Oscar Owen.

Aethelgard City Base, which had been led by a Thunder Ability User in her previous life, still existed in this one. Flora Bloom had originally thought the leader of Aethelgard City Base in her past life would turn out to be Lex Cross, but it was clearly someone else.

Additionally, Mirefall Base, where the Doctor and his laboratory were located, had not yet emerged. While it wasn’t part of the network of interconnected bases, Flora Bloom remembered its location clearly.

Over the past year, the major bases across Veridia had been developing steadily and gaining powerful momentum. Everything was heading in a positive direction. Argent, in its position as the foremost of the four major bases, demanded that Korsan Base merge with it and become one of its factions.

Oscar Owen, naturally, refused. This was just as Flora Bloom had expected. She was certain that with Oscar Owen’s ambition, he would never be content to remain the leader of a minor base like Korsan.

Sure enough, Korsan Base was not far from Argent Base—less than a day’s walk apart. A year and a half into the apocalypse, Oscar Owen began using the communication relay stations to openly recruit new members.

This move was tantamount to offending the four great families of Argent. However, there was nothing they could do. Oscar Owen had close ties with Flora Bloom, and they wouldn’t dare act rashly until they had a clearer picture of the situation.

The flight routes between Morhaven and the various other bases, large and small, had also stabilized over the past year. Intended for friendly exchanges and mutual visits between bases, some people had even started treating them as sightseeing tours.

Flora Bloom held full control over these routes; even the pilots were her own people. For each round trip, passengers who weren’t residents of Morhaven Base had to pay a fare of one thousand low-level Zombie Crystal Cores or one hundred Middle Level Zombie Crystal Cores per person.

At first, some people complained it was too expensive. But they could complain all they wanted; if you couldn’t afford it, you didn’t fly. Operating aircraft in the apocalypse was inherently risky, and the Crystal Cores powering the dispersers were consumed with every flight.

Besides, they were the only game in town for long-distance flights and transport. If you didn’t want to take the opportunity to see the world, you could just stay put in your own base.

One day, however, a panic-stricken Joel Bloom returned to Morhaven Base with his team from Orinburg and immediately sought out Flora Bloom.

"Sis! Sis! Come quick!"

One-year-old Polly could already walk by holding onto things for support. The toddler seemed to have a rebellious streak and didn’t like being supervised by Flora Bloom. So, Flora had the plants in Villa Three pay special attention to Polly Cross’s movements. As long as she didn’t leave the villa grounds, she was free to play however she pleased.

Hearing the voice of her uncle, Joel Bloom, Polly excitedly held onto the villa’s banister and tried to walk toward him.

Joel Bloom scooped Polly up and gave her a big kiss. The precocious little girl was already babbling her first words in a sweet, milky voice. The problem was, whether she was playing on the small Nightmare Beast’s back or being held by Joel, she would always shout, "Go, go!" It was hard to tell if she meant "Giddy-up!" or was trying to say "Uncle Joel."

"Hey, Polly! Did you miss your Uncle Joel?" Joel held his niece, lifting her high one moment and swinging her around the next, making her giggle endlessly.

Flora Bloom was napping upstairs. Lex Cross had taken a team to a nearby smaller base to provide combat support. Ever since Polly was born, Flora was still the person with the most free time on the entire base.

"What’s wrong? You’re being so dramatic. You’ll scare Polly."

"Sis, I’m just saying... ’Polly’ sounds like a name for a parrot. When she gets older, she’s going to get teased!"

Flora Bloom glanced at her younger brother. After a year of training, Joel was no longer the scrawny, unreliable teenager he once was.

He was lean but powerfully built, all sinewy muscle. He no longer approached people and problems with his former flightiness and superficiality. Now, he had a scrutinizing gaze; he didn’t trust anyone easily, aside from his own people.

’But hey, it’s the apocalypse. A personality change like that is actually a good thing for him.’

"There’s a saying that a humble name makes for a hardy child. We’ll worry about a full name when she’s older. Anyway, what did you need me for?"

"Sis! I need to borrow the Golden Crow."

Flora Bloom blinked. "Huh? Why would you borrow that poor sap? He’s getting lazier by the day. I think all that egg-sitting has addled his brain."

Joel Bloom sat on the sofa and sighed. "Sis, the zombie minions I control have been acting strangely lately. They’re all swarming toward one location, and a huge number of them have already broken free from my control."

"I did some preliminary scouting, and it looks like that place is surrounded by a massive number of zombies."

Flora Bloom’s expression grew serious. "How massive?"

"Far more than any horde we’ve ever seen before!" Joel’s expression was graver still. Polly looked like she was listening intently to their conversation, her little brow furrowed, though she clearly didn’t understand a word.

Bored, she immediately struggled out of Joel’s arms. After a few seconds of babbling, a gust of white wind swept in through the doorway.

The wind subsided, revealing the Nightmare Beast standing beside Polly. It had long since grown out of its house-cat-sized form, now possessing the magnificent build of a divine white steed.

The furniture in Flora Bloom’s villa had been rearranged. Because Polly so often summoned the Nightmare Beast, they had moved all the furniture from its usual path, clearing a wide corridor to make it easier for the creature to come and go.

As soon as Polly saw the Nightmare Beast, she excitedly flopped onto its back and was carried away.

The black pads on its paws, shaped like auspicious clouds, generated elemental energy that merged with the nightmare power in its body, lifting its four hooves from the ground to glide smoothly and swiftly through the air.

"Polly’s still just a baby. You’re just going to let her run wild like that?"

Flora Bloom nodded. "If I try to coop her up, she just turns the whole house upside down." ’The Polly from my past life wasn’t nearly this mischievous,’ Flora thought. ’She never caused any trouble.’

But this life’s Polly seemed determined to make up for all the mischief she’d missed out on before. If she wasn’t allowed to play outside, she was liable to tear the roof off the house.

Luckily, Villa Three had plenty to keep her occupied. One moment she’d be climbing a tree or the wisteria trellis to get at the honey, the next she’d be riding the Nightmare Beast, playfully chasing swarms of bees.

At some point, a few swallows had begun flying around above the wisteria trellis and fruit trees. With Flora Bloom’s permission, the villa’s plant-based defense system didn’t block or attack them, allowing them to come in and build their nests.

And these swallows’ nests became a favorite target for Polly to "visit" while riding the Nightmare Beast.

Fortunately, while Polly was only one, she seemed to understand that she shouldn’t misuse her superpower. Apart from occasionally bringing back a single bird’s egg, she never destroyed the nests.

These swallows had been living in Villa Three for over half a year, feeding on culled bee larvae and honey from the hives, and drinking the spiritual water Flora Bloom sprinkled on her plants.

As a result, the dozen or so swallows that hatched in the second generation all became evolved creatures. What’s more, they possessed rare dual superpowers: sonic and speed.

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