Chapter 295 Hope base is still very poor

Erick and Justin soon arrived at Hope Base, and from the moment they approached the entrance, the two young men couldn’t help but stare with their mouths hanging open.

The place where Hope Base’s gate had once stood was no longer there. Since the base had been expanded, the entrance had been pushed much farther outward. Erick didn’t even have to drive for long before reaching Hope Base’s new gate, something that left him completely bewildered.

"What the fuck is going on?" Erick asked, his confusion written all over his face. "Am I hallucinating right now or what? I used to drive for two hours before reaching Hope Base, but I don’t think I drove for thirty minutes before getting here."

"That’s exactly what I’m thinking too," Justin chimed in, his brows furrowing as he looked around in disbelief. "Is this some kind of magic trick? Or did we somehow take a shortcut without realizing it? Maybe we’re both going crazy."

He let out a disbelieving scoff and shook his head.

Just then, the massive door leading into Hope Base’s territory slowly opened, and Elliot stepped forward to usher them inside.

"Come in," Elliot called out, motioning for them to drive forward.

The moment Justin and Erick drove into Hope Base, both men fell silent once again.

As the vehicles moved deeper into the territory, Justin’s eyes widened.

"That’s..."

He stared through the window, unable to finish his sentence.

Stretching as far as the eye could see were vast fields covered with neatly arranged crops.

There were no abandoned patches of land or chaotic vegetable gardens like those found in most survivor bases. Instead, the farmland was divided into organized sections, each one carefully cultivated and maintained. Large machines moved steadily between the rows, working the land with astonishing efficiency.

Large mechanical farming equipment continued harvesting crops, while other machines plowed the soil and prepared it for the next round of planting.

Everything operated in perfect coordination.

There was no wasted space, no neglected farmland, and no sign that the apocalypse had ever managed to disrupt the place.

Erick’s expression gradually became serious as he stared at the enormous fields.

"Just how large is this farmland?" he asked, his voice filled with disbelief as he glanced back at Justin and Elliot, who were both seated at the back of the truck.

"More than ten thousand acres," Elliot replied immediately, keeping a straight face as though the enormous number meant nothing.

Both Erick and Justin froze.

"More than ten thousand..." Justin repeated blankly, his voice trailing off as his gaze swept across the endless farmland once again.

Even though he had already prepared himself for Hope Base to be prosperous, he hadn’t expected this.

This was no longer simply a survivor base.

It looked more like an independent agricultural city.

Most bases struggled to produce enough food to keep their residents alive. Yet here, food wasn’t merely being produced at Hope Base. It was being grown, harvested, processed, and distributed on an industrial scale.

"This place..." Erick murmured, still staring at the farmland in disbelief. "How did she manage to build all this?"

Neither he nor Justin had an answer.

And their shock only increased when they entered the residential area and eventually got off the truck.

People were walking through the streets carrying baskets filled with fresh vegetables.

A woman passed by them carrying several pieces of freshly butchered meat, while children ran past with bright smiles on their faces, some of them holding fresh fruit in their hands.

There was no desperation on the residents’ faces.

No one looked as though they were wondering whether they would have something to eat tomorrow.

Instead, the people of Hope Base went about their daily lives with a sense of peace that Erick and Justin hadn’t seen in a very long time.

Justin stared at one of the baskets being carried past them.

"Fresh vegetables?" he blurted out, unable to believe his own eyes. "Like, actual fresh vegetables?"

The question came out before he could stop himself.

"Yes," Ivy replied as she approached them, a light chuckle escaping her lips when she saw the disbelief written across both men’s faces.

She folded her arms lightly across her chest and glanced toward the vast farmland behind them.

"Why do you both look so shocked?"

Justin opened his mouth but found himself unable to answer immediately.

"Greetings, Captain Ivy."

Justin and Erick greeted her immediately, each giving her a slight bow.

Ivy responded with a simple nod before continuing to walk with them.

"People here eat fresh vegetables every day, as well as fresh fruits and meat," Ivy explained, her tone serious. "They don’t have to worry about whether they’ll have enough food for the next day."

Justin’s expression immediately became complicated.

Some bases couldn’t even guarantee their people enough staple food to survive, and his base was among them. Yet here, people were eating fresh vegetables and meat as though the apocalypse had never happened.

It was almost difficult to believe.

Erick remained silent on the other hand, but the way he looked around had already changed. His eyes moved constantly from the vast farmland to the machinery operating throughout the fields and then toward the survivors moving around the base.

It was obvious that he was silently taking everything in.

Ivy noticed their expressions and couldn’t help laughing.

"What? Don’t tell me you’ve already regretted coming."

Justin immediately shook his head.

"Regret?" he repeated incredulously. "I’m wondering if you’re secretly trying to torture us."

Ivy couldn’t help but laugh again.

"Hope Base is still very poor."

Both men turned toward her at the same time.

"Poor?" they asked in unison.

Ivy nodded solemnly.

Justin’s mouth twitched as he glanced toward an enormous automated machine harvesting crops less than ten meters away. He then slowly turned his gaze back to Ivy.

He stared at her for several seconds before finally letting out a laugh.

"You really know how to joke. If Hope base is poor then I don’t know what to call Antelope Base."