Chapter 646, Tonight You Pretend to Be a Bird
If sold openly, the stockpile of these potions wouldn't be enough.
But through auctions, they could last for quite a while.
By then, using marketing tactics from the modern world here might be quite effective.
At first, Wu Heng had considered distributing corpse core potions to the zombie world's base members.
And he actually had—Li Yanhong, Qi Hancai, even Wang Chenggang and Qiangzi had received them.
But with the appearance of the Central Bureau, Wu Heng changed his plan.
Corpse cores with no side effects were second only to elixirs of immortality in terms of allure to people in the apocalypse.
If distributed freely, and with base members having radios, word would surely spread.
Eventually, various factions might target them, and use missile threats—things would become extremely troublesome.
Best to not disclose it externally at all.
Wu Heng shut the freezer and left the alchemy lab, heading downstairs.
On the first floor, several maids were chatting over tea in the living room.
Hearing footsteps, they turned their heads.
"Master..." Annette and Robe greeted immediately.
Minnie directly said, "Master, Philipa came by and asked you to go to the port—the corpses brought back are still there."
It had taken two and a half days to travel from the zombie world's munitions factory to Sanfu Port.
Philipa had also returned from her sea trip.
"Mhm." Wu Heng asked, "Anything happen on the island while I was gone?"
"Not much. Sister Veil brought back a lot of gold and silver coins. Also said many people have arrived on the island and told us to stay indoors more," Minnie said while thinking.
"What about Shanaila?"
"Sister Shanaila came by yesterday, didn't mention anything urgent."
Wu Heng nodded. "I'll go check the port."
"Will Master be back for dinner?"
"Yes."
"Okay." Minnie waved with a smile.
Wu Heng left the Island Lord's Residence with his skeleton followers.
...
He picked up Philipa on the way and together they arrived at Port No. 2.
On the warship deck, he saw corpses laid out in neat rows.
Their gear had already been stripped.
If not for the skeletons guarding the area—
The bodies would've likely drawn carrion birds to peck at them.
"The morgue couldn't hold this many, so we left them here for now," Philipa explained with a shrug.
Wu Heng didn't say much, asking, "Where's the leader's body?"
"Over here!" Philipa led him to the side.
A corpse riddled with wooden spikes lay flat like a porcupine.
"Did the examiner verify the identity?"
Philipa replied, "Confirmed. Level 17 pirate leader, Tier 2 merit. Four core members on the wanted list too—Tier 3 merits. Some of the guild members who came with us were involved."
Looks like the corpse had been sent to the guild and then retrieved by Philipa.
Wu Heng cast [Raise Skeleton] on the body.
Flesh peeled off and the skeleton slowly stood up.
[Skeleton Swordsman (Level 17)].
The intel was accurate. Too bad it wasn't Level 18.
"A swordsman, huh?"
"Dunno, he got blasted by the ship's cannon—we didn't see him fight," Philipa said.
"Alright. Let's name him," Wu Heng said.
"Me? What kind of name?"
"Up to you. Something simple and memorable." Wu Heng walked aside.
Philipa scratched her head hard. "Iron Shark okay? Like the fish."
"Sure." Wu Heng said to the skeleton swordsman, "Your name is Iron Shark. Your job is to protect her."
Hearing she'd get a Level 17 bodyguard—
Philipa's eyes lit up instantly. "Damn, Level 17 for me?"
"Keep him covered outside. Don't cause panic," Wu Heng said.
"Got it," Philipa said with a beaming smile.
Wu Heng continued toward the back.
Philipa pulled gear and weapons from her space ring and outfitted her new skeleton.
Then ran over to Wu Heng.
Looking at the corpses, she added, "I checked the harpies for you—too ugly, kinda scary, with serrated teeth. No good for you, so I didn't keep any alive."
Wu Heng frowned, seeing her mischievous grin—he knew she was teasing.
He looked at her and said, "That's fine. Tonight, you put on feathers and act like a bird for me."
Philipa widened her eyes. "You're serious...?"
"What, scared, Captain Philipa?"
Philipa tilted her head up. "Scared? I'm just worried you can't handle it."
Wu Heng chuckled and transformed one of the harpies.
[Skeleton Banshee (Level 9)].
Not many skills remained.
Only basic attributes and flight capability were retained.
He cast [Battlefield of the Dead]—all corpses aboard the ship rose as skeletons.
"Clean this place up," Philipa ordered.
The skeletons started cleaning the deck, tossing leftover remains into the sea.
Once finished, the two took a carriage back to the Island Lord's Residence.
...
Night fell.
In the bedroom.
Wu Heng lay on the bed, Philipa crouched on his waist, arms spread wide, imitating a bird's flight posture.
After two tries, she said, "That's the motion. And the screech is awful. It's not that I didn't bring one back for you."
"Do harpies sway their hips like this?" Wu Heng gripped her waist, grinning at her.
Philipa turned her head shyly. "How would I know? Maybe those banshees are friendly with pirates on ships. Not like me, who's only good to you."
Wu Heng patted her thigh gently. "Come here."
Philipa leaned in, stuck out her red tongue, and softly said, "Daddy, you smell so good. I love you."
...
The next morning.
After breakfast at the Island Lord's Residence, Philipa returned to her tavern with her new follower.
More and more ships were arriving at the island.
Gold-Silver Island's ships had also been dispatched to patrol the sea routes.
To prevent pirates from attacking again and endangering the routes.
After wrapping things up, Wu Heng returned to the zombie world.
He had agreed with Qi Hancai to check out the hidden military port today.
Upon arrival—
Wu Heng came downstairs. The convoy and skeletons were waiting at the base gate.
He opened the door and sat in the passenger seat. "Let's go!"
Qi Hancai picked up the radio. "Move out. Have those two Koreans guide the way."
The convoy departed the base and headed out.
...
Inside the military port.
Several figures sat around a round table, holding a meeting.
At the head sat a middle-aged Western man in a U.S. military uniform. "Sanfu Port's been lively lately."
One of the men said, "Yeah. They broadcast rescue messages daily on the radio. Think they're citizens now."
"It's not all bad. I had someone check—the roads outside are cleared of zombies by those skeletons. They've got some strength."
Another man hesitated. "They're not gonna find us here, are they?"
The military man looked around. "What, you thinking of joining them? They've got a bunch of skeletons, but you think they can breach this place? The machine guns and artillery alone will shred them."
"That's true," the others nodded.
Just then, a deep voice came through the radio.
"Spotted a large group of skeletons escorting trucks toward the base."
The men, calm just moments ago, shot to their feet—eyes flashing with surprise and doubt.
Speak of the devil.
They really had found this place.
"What now?" someone asked urgently.
"No rush." The military man picked up the radio. "How many skeletons, how many trucks?"
"About three thousand skeletons. Five modified trucks."
Hearing the numbers, the group relaxed a little.
With just that force, breaching their defenses wouldn't be easy.
The military man thought for a moment and said into the radio, "Priority is identifying the ability user controlling the skeletons. If possible, eliminate them directly."
"Yes, sir!"
...
The convoy, escorted by skeletons, moved slowly forward.
Nearing the destination, a voice came through the lead vehicle's radio. "We see the port. No zombies nearby. The perimeter walls were modified—survivors likely inside."
Wu Heng looked through the windshield.
Through the gaps in the steel reinforcements, he saw walls about three meters tall, fitted with metal barbs and topped with wire mesh. Machine guns and other heavy weapons were visible.
There were indeed survivors.
"Tell the convoy to halt," Wu Heng said.
Qi Hancai picked up the radio and gave the order. Wu Heng also instructed Big Head Skeleton to halt the skeletons.
From the wall ahead, shouts came in Korean.
"This is a restricted base. State your purpose."