The top floor of the base’s artisan department was packed with staff, all applauding as they came down.

“You’ve worked hard!”

“Come rest! We’ve already prepared a welcome-back meal for everyone.”

There was definitely going to be a reward for this mission. Aside from the 150 million points, who knew what else they’d receive?

Xu Duoduo was still fast asleep.

By the time she woke up, she was back in Qin Luo’s private apartment.

The room was dimly lit.

But, worried that a certain zombie wouldn’t be able to see well at night, a small nightlight was left on.

Xu Duoduo’s brain slowly caught up. She checked her space—everything was still there. However, the headquarters’ space card had been emptied.

That must have been Qin Luo handing over the mission items when they returned to the base.

No big deal.

The whole point of the mission was to collect power stones. Handing over supplies as soon as they returned was normal.

Xu Duoduo glanced at Qin Luo’s face. His arm was still wrapped around her waist, a little heavy but reassuring. The fresh scent of mint mixed with his body wash lingered in the air.

It smelled nice.

Most importantly, the big wolf ears on top of his head were completely unguarded—thick, fluffy, and inviting.

Xu Duoduo’s eyes lit up at the sight. Instantly wide awake, she stole a glance at the sleeping big dog. Good, still sleeping soundly. She reached out and lightly touched his tall nose before sneakily diverting her hand to his wolf ears.

The big, furry ears twitched at her touch, the soft fur brushing against her palm.

Ticklish.

She nearly jumped.

But Qin Luo must have been really exhausted—he didn’t wake up.

So, her courage grew.

Squeezing and kneading the wolf ears was a must! She paid no attention to how his breathing was gradually getting heavier.

She even sneaked in a pinch of his human ear, finding it warm, and then rested her hand on his neck for a while.

To warm her hands.

Then, she slowly reached down to his waist, and, without a care for her life, went to tug at his tail.

That was Qin Luo’s limit.

He grabbed her restless wrist and, in a hoarse voice, asked, “Xu Duoduo, have you touched enough? Why are you messing around instead of sleeping?”

Whose wife stays up in the middle of the night to cause trouble like this?!

He opened his eyes and met her bright silver gaze. Her white eyelashes were really beautiful.

Xu Duoduo nervously peeked at him. After getting caught red-handed, she guiltily tried to inch away and withdraw her hand, but Qin Luo didn’t let go.

In the end, he pinned her wrist against the pillow, and the little zombie was left sprawled under the big dog, getting kissed.

The blanket was warm.

The little zombie was also left dazed by the kisses, her mouth full of mint. Qin Luo must have washed up before bed—his hair smelled nice and felt silky, and his lips were fragrant too.

The only issue was that he kissed too fiercely, nibbling at her without stopping.

The little zombie was kissed until she turned soft.

The big dog’s energy was really overwhelming. He simply pulled the blanket over them both.

And kissed the little zombie inside and out.

After a while, Xu Duoduo started feeling like it wasn’t fun anymore. Whenever she met Qin Luo’s deep gaze, she got a little scared.

She kept feeling like he was going to eat her.

So she tried to escape.

Just as she turned over, he pressed her back down and kissed her shoulder blade.

The next place to fall was her lower back.

Xu Duoduo immediately tried to burrow out of the covers.

She barely got out when he grabbed her by the waist and pulled her right back, pinning her down completely again.

—

When she woke up again, the outside of the base was bright.

They had only been out on a mission for a few days, yet this familiar lighting felt almost surreal.

H City Base kept the lights on during the daytime to help regulate everyone’s biological clocks.

Xu Duoduo was covered in marks—a consequence of teasing the big dog last night.

Getting into this state just from touching his ears and tail? Too unfair.

The little zombie kicked at the blankets in frustration.

Outside, in the living room, she heard movement. It was Qin Luo, Chen Xiaofei, and the others discussing their recent mission abroad.

Bai Shu looked at a tablet and said, “The strange thing is that we didn’t encounter any high-star monsters. The strongest mutated creature we saw in the Wa Nation was only a three-star.”

Wang Weihu said, “Maybe the higher-ranked monsters are more sensitive to extreme weather and left early? Or they could be hiding in advance.”

Chen Xiaofei shouted, “That makes a lot of sense! We don’t even know if we were lucky or unlucky. That tsunami was terrifying! I can fly and carry one person, but what about the other three?!”

It had been way too dangerous.

They were discussing better ways to handle such situations in the future.

Qin Luo suddenly snapped his fingers and said, “Climbing higher could work, but there were too many mutated insects. Still, Xu Duoduo’s spatial ability is useful—she could create a barrier to buy us time. Lao Wang, if you have enough earth stored, you could build a tower. My ability can clear out the insects. If we combine all three, survival shouldn’t be a problem.”

The key was that Wang Weihu needed enough soil stored in his space card.

Without soil, his ability would be useless in barren areas.

Bai Shu suggested, “That’s a good idea. Next time, we should have the squad leader stockpile more dirt before we leave the base. That way, her space ability can supply Lao Wang with what he needs, and he won’t be restricted.”

But this strategy was only viable in team missions. If Wang Weihu went out alone, he’d still need to be careful.

Qin Luo, Chen Xiaofei, and Wang Weihu all turned to Bai Shu and let out a collective “Wow.”

“Xiao Bai, you’re amazing!”

“Old Bai, you’re a genius!”

“This plan could work!”

Bai Shu sighed. “I should’ve thought of this sooner.”

Qin Luo was still grinning when he heard movement from the bedroom. He immediately knew a certain little zombie was awake.

“Oh? Our little treasure is up. I’ll go check on her.”

Chen Xiaofei cheered, “Squad leader is finally awake! I want good food!”

Wang Weihu scolded him for only thinking about food.

Bai Shu said, “The mission points have already been distributed. Since we saved a lot of other teams, in addition to the 150 million points, there’s also an extra reward. Our weapons can now be upgraded significantly.”

Aside from the power stones, they had also brought back rare minerals. The artisan department was thrilled, saying that the base’s warriors would see a huge boost in firepower, making their attacks much more formidable.

Their chances against the Lizardmen would be much higher now.

Xu Duoduo was carried out by Qin Luo, wrapped in a blanket. She was dressed in thick, fluffy pink bunny pajamas.

Before coming out, she bit Qin Luo’s arm in anger over how he had held her down and kissed her nonstop last night.

Qin Luo looked so wronged. Hugging her, he muttered, “Who was the one who couldn’t stay still last night?! And now you’re mad? Fine, fine, it’s all my fault.”

He grumbled the whole time.

Chen Xiaofei and the others were already used to seeing Qin Luo carry their squad leader around.

So, to them, nothing seemed out of place.