As soon as they arrived at the villa, they could already see the survivors gathered outside.

The moment Ivy’s car came into view, excitement spread through the crowd. Smiles immediately appeared on their faces as they hurried toward the compound entrance.

The car eventually came to a stop inside the villa’s compound.

Ivy, Darren, and the children stepped out one after another.

"Welcome back, Captain Ivy!" the survivors shouted in perfect unison, their faces overflowing with happiness and gratitude.

"It’s wonderful to see you again, Captain," Mr. Smith greeted warmly.

"Welcome back," Mrs. Smith added with a bright smile.

Without wasting another second, Mrs. Smith stepped forward and carefully took Hope from Ivy’s arms.

"I’ll take her inside," she said gently. "She should be more comfortable resting indoors."

"Thank you," Ivy replied with a grateful nod.

Mrs. Smith smiled before carrying the sleeping baby into one of the villas, making sure Hope remained undisturbed as she settled her comfortably inside.

Meanwhile, Aria and Lila had already disappeared into another villa with Pearl.

The three girls had been separated for months, and they clearly had no intention of wasting another second before catching up and playing together.

Left behind were the adults.

As they talked, Ivy’s eyes slowly wandered across the entire settlement.

She couldn’t take her gaze off the harvest.

Large woven baskets were completely filled with freshly harvested sweet potatoes, tomatoes, spinach, onions, maize, peppers, and several other vegetables. The produce looked fresh and healthy, evidence of months of dedication and hard work.

It was obvious that nearly every survivor had been harvesting before her arrival.

Even the supermarket was thriving.

People continuously walked in and out of the building carrying baskets, exchanging supplies, organizing shelves, and helping one another.

A small smile slowly appeared on Ivy’s face.

"This is..." she began before pausing, searching her mind for words worthy enough to describe what she was seeing.

After a few seconds, she finally found them.

"This is incredible."

She slowly turned toward the survivors.

"You’ve all done an amazing job."

Her voice carried genuine admiration.

The survivors exchanged proud smiles before answering together.

"It’s all thanks to you, Captain!"

"No," Ivy replied with a gentle shake of her head. "I only gave you all the opportunity. You’re the ones who worked tirelessly every single day to make this happen. Every single harvest here is the result of your own efforts."

The survivors couldn’t help but smile even more proudly after hearing her praise.

Just then, Darren walked over to the car and opened the rear compartment.

Inside were several healthy pigs.

One after another, he carefully helped guide them down onto the ground while Ivy stepped forward to address everyone.

"These pigs are for all of you. I’m giving them to you to adopt them," Ivy announced.

The survivors immediately looked at one another in confusion before returning their attention to her.

"I’ll be distributing them among your families," she continued. "From today onward, each family will be responsible for raising and taking care of the pigs assigned to them."

She gently stroked one of the pigs as she continued explaining.

"I want them to reproduce."

"The more they reproduce, the larger your livestock will become. Eventually, you’ll have a steady supply of fresh pork whenever you need it."

She looked around at every single survivor before continuing.

"I don’t want us to depend solely on crop farming. Agriculture shouldn’t stop with vegetables and grains."

She pointed toward the pigs.

"We also need animal farming."

"You all deserve access to fresh meat as well. There’s nothing wrong with eating the frozen meat stored inside the supermarket, but you shouldn’t have to rely on it forever."

Her tone remained calm yet firm.

"Now you’ll have another sustainable source of food."

She smiled warmly.

"You can enjoy fresh pork whenever you want, and any extra meat can be preserved in the freezers for future use."

For a few moments, complete silence filled the compound.

The survivors simply stared at the pigs with their eyes widened in disbelief.

Many of them looked as though they couldn’t believe what they had just heard.

Then...

"Thank you so much, Captain Ivy!" the survivors cried out together, their voices filled with overwhelming gratitude.

Before Ivy or Darren could react, every single survivor dropped to their knees.

They lowered their heads deeply until they touched the ground, offering Ivy a respectful kowtow.

The unexpected gesture completely caught both Ivy and Darren off guard.

Neither of them had anticipated such heartfelt gratitude.

Ding!

{Congratulations, Host. Prosperity Level has exceeded 500 and has now reached 1,000.}

{Congratulations. You have earned the title: Urban-Rural Transitional Zone.}