Chapter 164 - 152: Stuffed and Digesting

Flora Bloom raised a delicate eyebrow and said, "You don’t look that old, and you’re quite handsome."

"See? I told you I don’t look that old." Morgan Sterling breathed a sigh of relief, but he felt like he was forgetting something.

’He’s just not very bright,’ Flora thought to herself. Still, this Morgan Sterling had gotten their group out of the quarantine zone and even treated them to a lavish breakfast. A breakfast of this caliber would be nothing special in the modern world, but in the apocalypse, it was something you couldn’t get no matter how much money you had.

Staples like flour and millet could be stored for a long time. Many granaries had good dehumidification and pest-control measures, so even after more than a month of the apocalypse, you could still find plenty of grain if you went out scavenging.

But eggs were precious. Not everyone had a personal dimension like hers, where things could be kept fresh and would never spoil.

Eggs were fragile and had a short shelf life. They could last longer in winter, but Morhaven’s climate was still very hot. These eggs were likely freshly supplied.

Just then, Bai’s satisfied thoughts came through their mental link.

’So many Crystal Cores, so many Crystal Cores! I’m eating, I’m eating!’

Beads of sweat formed on Flora Bloom’s forehead as she mentally communicated with Bai. ’You little glutton, leave some for them! Otherwise, your master is going to get thrown out of here!’

Just then, Morgan Sterling seemed to remember what he wanted to say and suddenly asked, "Flora Bloom, I know you’re new here, but I won’t hide it from you. There’s another reason I called you here."

"You just want us to join your team, don’t you?"

Flora Bloom didn’t like to beat around the bush. Her directness delighted Morgan Sterling, whose eyes lit up as he gazed at her. "Does that mean you agree?"

On the screen, Michael Lynch was performing an incantation to subdue a demon. Flora Bloom sat up straight and looked at Morgan Sterling seriously.

"I can’t join your team."

Morgan Sterling’s face fell. He frowned and said, "You have to understand, you’ve offended the other two major powers in the base the moment you arrived. Without my protection, they could come after you at any time."

Flora Bloom gave him a wry smile. "Do you think I’m afraid of a little trouble?"

Morgan Sterling suddenly let out a self-deprecating laugh. "I’ve never seen anyone with the Thunder Element in Morhaven before. With a little white tiger that has a Thunder Ability, you truly have the power to fear no one. I was being presumptuous."

Faced with Morgan Sterling’s frank admission, Flora Bloom’s lips suddenly curled into a grin, revealing two small dimples.

"I can’t join your team. However, I’m sure this base is rife with scheming and backstabbing. I’m not afraid of them, but I am afraid of a hassle."

Flora Bloom’s words made Morgan Sterling’s eyes light up again.

"So, you mean?"

"Let’s cooperate. Besides, even if I don’t join you, those other two teams will assume I’m one of your people anyway. So, it’s a win-win situation."

It was only then that Morgan Sterling became certain in his heart: the woman before him was not as innocent as she appeared. She had the naive look of a young girl with a sweet and beautiful face, but she possessed a mind sharper than anyone’s. Moreover, she was thick-skinned and had a cute sort of shamelessness.

"Cooperate? You don’t mean you plan to ’cooperate’ by coming here every day to freeload off me and feed your pet, do you?"

Flora Bloom gave an awkward laugh. "How could that be? Besides, you were the one who offered to treat us to breakfast. I was just being kind by not refusing, letting you save face."

"Well, cooperation is an option, I guess. Lend me your little white tiger." Morgan Sterling was only half-joking, but he never expected Flora Bloom to agree on the spot. He’d only said it as a way to refuse her offer to cooperate.

He felt that with someone like Flora Bloom, if she couldn’t be one of his own, cooperating with her would introduce too many uncertain variables. He was the type who liked to have everything under his control; an unpredictable element like her could easily make his carefully laid plans spiral out of control.

At this point, Morgan Sterling was starting to regret inviting Flora Bloom’s group back here. In the eyes of the other two factions, Flora was already considered his subordinate. They wouldn’t go after her group directly, out of consideration for him.

Instead, they would secretly send people to cause trouble and put pressure on him, creating all sorts of problems.

It was a miscalculation.

Yet, a voice in his heart told him that choosing to be on friendly terms with Flora Bloom would be all benefit and no drawback.

Listening to Flora Bloom’s clear, lilting voice, he found his reasons for refusing to cooperate slipping away. Sometimes, beauty truly is a blade hanging over a great man’s head. Despite knowing the risks, he still wanted to take a chance. Just like now.

"Alright! It’s settled. We’ll cooperate, and I’ll lend you Bai."

"Huh?" Morgan Sterling suddenly felt like he had just dug a hole for himself. He didn’t know why, but the feeling was incredibly strong. "You’ll really lend Bai to me?"

"Of course!" Flora Bloom nodded without hesitation. ’Bai has an unbreakable connection to my personal dimension. Even if I ’lend’ it out, it’ll never truly belong to anyone else.’

A few minutes later, Quinn ran over, drenched in sweat. He looked utterly helpless and was on the verge of tears as he stammered, "Leader, th-that little tiger and the big white goose... they went into the storeroom, and... and they won’t come out!"

"What?" Morgan Sterling shot to his feet, agitated, and immediately turned to look at Flora Bloom.

"What’s in that storeroom?" Flora Bloom asked curiously. ’What could possibly make those two little critters refuse to leave?’

"The storeroom for our Crystal Cores." Morgan Sterling was speechless but had no choice but to answer. If he went and threw the two animals out right now, it would likely cause a huge scene. But if he didn’t, his only option was to ask Flora Bloom to retrieve the two little menaces from inside.

Flora Bloom now finally understood why Bai had been so excited in their mental link. It had stumbled into the Crystal Core storeroom.

For evolved creatures, the need for Crystal Cores was a natural, physiological urge, just like how humans need to eat when hungry and sleep when tired.

"Let’s go, lead the way. I’ll go get them back!" Flora Bloom glanced at Caleb, gesturing for him to follow quietly.

When they arrived at the storeroom, they saw the tiger and the goose lying motionless on their backs atop two mountains of Crystal Cores.

Flora Bloom and Caleb hurried forward to check on them.

Morgan Sterling and Quinn were also startled to see the tiger and goose lying motionless on the Crystal Cores.

’Please don’t let them have eaten themselves to death,’ Morgan Sterling thought, his heart pounding with anxiety.

He had a large reserve of Crystal Cores, so he didn’t care about the loss. But if the pets had eaten themselves to death, he was afraid the young woman before him would not let it go so easily.

Besides, he had a hunch that this Flora Bloom was nowhere near as simple as she seemed.

Flora Bloom examined Bai and found that its body was enveloped in energy. The energy, centered on its abdomen, was compressing and slowly seeping into the bones of its beastly frame.

"It’s fine. It just overate and is digesting now."

"Sister, Big White is okay too, but..." Caleb trailed off, his face filled with worry. He was terrified that if Big White evolved again, it would break free of his control.

Flora Bloom knew exactly what Caleb was worried about. She patted his head to reassure him, then turned to Morgan Sterling. "I’m so sorry that my two little pets ate so many of your Crystal Cores. Why don’t you see how many are missing, and I’ll reimburse you."

Morgan Sterling quickly waved his hands. "Forget it, forget it. As long as they’re okay. But... are you sure they’re fine like this?"

Flora Bloom nodded. "Don’t worry, I know what I’m doing."

After the commotion caused by Bai and Big White, Flora Bloom felt too embarrassed to stay in the villa any longer. Morgan Sterling kindly asked where they lived and offered to have someone escort them home.

Flora Bloom didn’t know the address, as she’d just gotten out of quarantine, so Caleb Bloom answered, "We’re in the mid-rise district, on the fourth floor on Eastbright Street. Leader Sterling, you’re welcome to visit anytime you’re free."

"I’ll definitely take you up on that!"

After watching Flora Bloom’s group leave the villa district, Morgan Sterling finally let out a sigh of relief. He never knew trying to recruit a single team could be this exhausting.