Spending 500 emotion points to upgrade a coat.
It sounds like a luxury.
But in this extreme cold, it's unavoidable.
Even though Su Xing spends most of his time in the car with the air conditioning on, the low temperature could affect his combat effectiveness in a fight.
Besides, who wouldn't want to be comfortable? The temperature-
regulating
coat would at least make Su Xing more comfortable.
"Upgrade!"
[Upgrading in progress, consuming 500 negative emotion points, 1606 negative emotion points remaining.]
[Upgrade countdown: 02:29:59...]
The convoy drove slowly but steadily along the mountain road.
After crossing a mountain, two and a half hours passed quickly.
Su Xing put on the temperature-regulating coat and immediately felt incredibly comfortable.
"Tsk tsk, besides the constant temperature, the quality of this clothing is also much better, like lying in a cloud..."
Su Xing was very satisfied with it. He looked at Su Yan in the front seat and said,
"Huozi, turn up the air conditioning temperature, then take off your clothes and give them to me."
"Huh? Okay, bro!"
Although Su Yan was puzzled, he still handed over the clothes.
Su Yan's clothes were a down jacket with stains, and the lower half of the jacket was pieced together from another piece of clothing.
There was no way around it, Su Yan's body was too big.
Nearly two meters tall and weighing over three hundred kilograms, even before the apocalypse, he would have had to have it custom-made.
After the apocalypse, there was no such condition. This down jacket was taken from a dead person and then sewn together by an aunt in the convoy using a can.
It was barely wearable, but the insulation was too poor, so Su Yan rarely left the jeep.
If it weren't for his good physique, he would have gotten sick long ago in this awful weather.
Su Xing spent another five hundred emotion points to upgrade Su Yan's clothes into a temperature-controlled down jacket.
The item enhancement slot was occupied again, and Su Xing turned his gaze to the creature enhancement slot.
He had a supernatural ability he had long desired:
"Enhance the body's resistance to impact..."
Su Xing tried to recite silently.
[Current human resistance to impact: Peak human ability, can be enhanced.]
[Selectable enhancement direction: The prerequisite for enhancing "Supernatural Defense" has been met. Enhance?]
[Requires: 1000 positive emotion points]
Su Xing wasn't surprised that his own resistance to impact was at the peak human level.
This was due to the increased bone and muscle density that came with supernatural power; otherwise, it wouldn't be able to support Su Xing's current ton-like strength.
But merely reaching the peak human level was truly insufficient.
Su Xing needed a more powerful defensive measure to cope with abnormal damage.
"Enhance!"
[Supernatural defense enhancement in progress, consuming 1000 positive emotion points, 7586 positive emotion points remaining.]
[Enhancement countdown: 06:59:59...] A
new countdown appeared, and Su Xing had less than 8,000 positive emotion points left.
Positive emotion points were much rarer than negative emotion points.
Su Xing was lucky this time, killing the anomaly and protecting the convoy, which allowed him to reap a large amount of emotion points.
But he couldn't take such risks every time.
"I need to use the remaining positive emotions sparingly, and try to save up another 10,000 points."
"If I encounter suitable rare materials, I can save them to awaken my Sequence Transcendent!"
Su Xing thought to himself.
He was still very envious of Hu Dong and Fang Yuan's abilities.
After all, Sequence Transcendents truly possess magical powers, unlike him, who was just a blank Transcendent with a good body.
The convoy continued its journey without stopping, heading towards Shuanggou Town.
It wasn't until 6 PM, almost nightfall, that the convoy stopped to rest by the roadside for the night.
By this time, the enhancement of Transcendent Defense had ended, and Su Xing looked at the panel, only to be surprised to find a new notification:
[Basic Transcendent Defense: You possess three times the defense of a human body, thanks to your thick skin, significantly improving your ability to withstand blows.]
[Can be enhanced to Intermediate Transcendent Defense, requires 5000 positive emotions.] [
You have a similar path "Extraordinary Recovery"...]
[Path fusion is possible, merging Extraordinary Defense and Extraordinary Recovery into a new Extraordinary power "Extraordinary Physique"]
[Requires: 1000 points of positive emotion.]
[Extraordinary Physique: Simultaneously retains the effects of Extraordinary Recovery and Extraordinary Power, and slightly enhances both Extraordinary Powers.]
"Merge paths... Extraordinary Physique?!"
Su Xing pondered for a moment, estimating that this Extraordinary Physique was a superior alternative to Extraordinary Recovery and Extraordinary Defense.
Not only could it take care of both Extraordinary powers, but it also provided a slight improvement. "
Not bad!" "
Originally, it required 5000 points of positive emotion to go from a beginner Extraordinary to an intermediate Extraordinary, and I was a little reluctant to spend them..."
"But this Extraordinary Physique with 1000 points of emotion is definitely worth a try!"
Su Xing chose to strengthen it without hesitation.
[Extraordinary power fusion in progress, consuming 1000 points of positive emotion, 6586 points of positive emotion remaining.]
[Countdown: 10, 9, 8...]
Su Xing was stunned.
Within seconds, his body underwent a dramatic transformation.
Su Xing felt a surge of heat, his skin covered in a fine layer of sweat, followed by an overwhelming sense of relief:
like finally having a large bowel movement after a week of constipation…so satisfying!
Once the enhancement was complete, Su Xing eagerly checked the panel.
[Superhuman Physique: Due to comprehensive genetic optimization, your defense, immunity, self-healing, stamina, and energy recovery abilities are five times that of an average person.
This process can be accelerated through eating and sleeping. You possess moderate resistance to toxins, and a special membrane has appeared under your skin, helping you become immune to damage.
You're practically a monster in human skin!]
Upon seeing the description of Superhuman Physique, Su Xing had only one thought:
Powerful!
Compared to Superhuman Defense, the increase from three times the damage resistance directly to five times, nearly doubling!
And it also added poison resistance and a membrane that reduces damage!
"This enhancement was totally worth it!"
"With this physique, even if I get injured while fighting anomalies, I won't have to worry about recovery!"
Su Xing was extremely satisfied with his extraordinary physique!
Medical care was the most scarce resource in the apocalypse, and with this extraordinary ability, he had basically said goodbye to the pain of injury.
"Great!"
Su Xing was in a good mood. Seeing that it was almost lunchtime, he prepared to go to the bus to distribute food and collect some emotional points.
Su Yan also put on his down jacket. He hunched his shoulders and walked towards the outside of the bus, but was surprised to find that he wasn't cold at all.
"Brother!"
"What... what's wrong with this jacket? I'm suddenly not afraid of the cold anymore!"
Su Yan was as happy as a 300-pound child, even grabbing a handful of snow from the ground to feel the low temperature.
Su Xing tapped Su Yan on the head and said,
"Shh! Keep your voice down!"
"This is your brother's ability, don't let anyone else know, otherwise I'll have to make you warm clothes every day... I don't have that kind of time!"
"Hehe~" Su Yan chuckled twice, winking,
"I knew my brother loved me the most!"
[Positive emotions from Su Yan +100]
Su Xing boarded the bus and snatched the job of distributing food from Zhang Chao. He
then skillfully started accumulating positive emotions.
Unfortunately, he seemed to have taken too much food these past two days; after distributing it all, he only gained less than a thousand positive emotions.
Just then, at 7 PM, the announcer An An's voice came over the bus:
"Attention all compatriots in Henan and Anhui provinces! A convoy has reported an extreme weather event, the 'White Hair Wind,' in Henan province."
"This weather event is expected to last for a week and will travel from Henan to Anhui province. The specific path is as follows..." "
Within the White Hair Wind area, temperatures may plummet to minus sixty degrees Celsius, and visibility will be extremely low."
"Please be careful!"
Upon hearing the announcement, the once bustling carriage fell into a deathly silence.
"Captain Hu... Captain Hu, the natural disaster mentioned on the broadcast, could it be on our route?"
asked Uncle Liu, the bus driver. Everyone turned to look at Hu Dong,
hoping he would say, "No."
However, Hu Dong frowned, his voice bitter,
"Yes, it's the only way to Shuanggou Town... unavoidable!"
Hearing this, everyone's hearts sank.
A whiteout is a natural disaster that occurs in Northeast China, when the entire world is covered in snow.
Besides the sudden drop in temperature, visibility is almost zero.
A convoy would have a very difficult time traveling in such conditions, and might even be wiped out!
But that was before the apocalypse.
Now that the apocalypse has occurred, the climate and disasters have changed.
Appearing in the mountains of central China, who knows what kind of terrifying events might occur!
Even Su Xing, upon waking, didn't want to contend with such a natural disaster. He frowned and asked,
"Captain Hu, can't we take a detour?"
Hu Dong shook his head and said,
"It's impossible. If we detour, we'll have to go back east, then north and south. All told... it'll take at least half a month to reach Shuanggou Town!"
Hearing this, Su Xing fell silent.
Half a month might be enough for the supplies in his vehicle.
But what about the others in the convoy?
Everyone on the bus would probably starve!
"Are there any other supply points? Do we really have to go to Shuanggou Town?" Fang Yuan suggested.
However, Hu Dong just looked at him like he was an idiot.
His eyes clearly said: Are you kidding me?
Indeed, Shuanggou Town was a supply point Hu Dong had searched for a long time before deciding on, as it was less dangerous.
In this apocalypse, most areas were occupied by anomalies; safe supply points weren't so easy to find.
Su Xing still recognized Hu Dong's professional skills; the dense markings on the map were proof.
So Su Xing asked,
"Captain Hu, what do you suggest we do?"
Hu Dong took a deep breath and made up his mind,
"Go to Shuang Gou Town! Not only do we have to go, but we have to go as soon as possible!"
"Everyone, go to bed early tonight. We'll set off at dawn tomorrow morning, without wasting a single moment on the road!"
"If we're fast, maybe we can reach Shuang Gou Town before we encounter the white blizzard?"
After hearing this, everyone had no further objections.
Su Xing also returned to the jeep without saying a word. At this point, he could only choose to trust Hu Dong.
The next day, the convoy set off at the crack of dawn.
Braving the snow and slippery roads, the convoy sped along the highway.
Several times, the bus almost skidded and fell off the cliff beside the road.
Fortunately, the bus driver, Uncle Liu, was highly skilled, and although the journey was thrilling, everything went smoothly.
Although Su Yan's driving skills were average, the snow tires that Su Xing had reinforced beforehand came in very handy, making him the most relaxed driver in the convoy.
Until it was completely dark and the red moon appeared.
The convoy had no choice but to stop and temporarily camp on a leeward slope.
Traveling at night was too dangerous, so they could only rest for the night.
On the bus, Su Xing distributed food to the survivors, feeling slightly relieved as he listened to the continuous notifications of his emotional points.
Hu Dong also seemed more relaxed, laughing,
"Looks like our luck isn't too bad; we've already covered two-thirds of the distance today."
"As long as we get through tonight, we'll reach Shuanggou Town by noon at the latest!"
Upon hearing this, Su Xing, who was eating, became furious.
"Stop! Stop!"
"You shouldn't have said that! Now you've ruined everything!"
"We're almost there, why are you setting such a flag?"
Hu Dong was taken aback; at nearly fifty years old, he didn't know what a flag was.
But he could tell that Su Xing wasn't being kind.
[Negative emotions from Hu Dong +76]
After finishing his meal, Su Xing returned to the bus to rest.
In the middle of the night, Su Xing, who was resting with his eyes closed, suddenly woke up, feeling the bus vibrating.
"Holy crap, an earthquake? What's all this noise?!"
"Huozi, wake up!"
Su Xing pressed his face against the car window to observe, and what he saw gave him goosebumps.
In the distance, a fierce wind was blowing, and two enormous tornadoes were hurtling towards Su Xing.
The sky instantly turned white, and the snowflakes, under the red moonlight, looked like blood-soaked goose feathers.
"Damn! This whiteout is like a typhoon?"
"Huozi, get to the bus!"
Su Xing and his brother got out of the car, finding that Hu Dong, Fang Yuan, and Yong Ge's passengers had also run off.
"Captain Hu, Captain Fang..."
Before Su Xing could finish speaking, he caught the steel cable Fang Yuan threw to him.
"Stop dawdling! Tie all the cars together, or everyone's cars will be flying!" Fang Yuan shouted.
Su Xing immediately reacted, driving the SUV to the bus.
Everyone used steel cables to tie the four SUVs and the bus together.
Such a powerful tornado could blow even a one-ton car into the air.
"Roll down the windows! The windows definitely won't hold up and will shatter!" Fang Yuan warned. *
Crack! Crack!*
Before he could finish speaking, the bus windows began to shatter one after another.
The windows on these buses couldn't be rolled down.
Su Xing quickly rolled down the windows of the SUV, then tore a sheet to cover the seats and interior, securing it tightly with rope.
Large items were thrown into the trunk, and the food inside was packed into a backpack, held to his chest.
After doing all this, Su Xing heard Fang Yuan shout again:
"No! The wind is too strong… the trees…"
"What did you say?! Speak clearly!" Su Xing yelled.
In the gale, Su Xing couldn't even hear Fang Yuan clearly.
"I said! Tie the car to those two big trees with steel rope!" Fang Yuan approached, handing over the remaining section of steel rope.
With lightning speed, Su Xing quickly tied the car and rope together, making a tight knot.
Then, everyone in the convoy huddled inside the bus.
A fierce wind, carrying heavy snow, lashed at them relentlessly.
Everyone hunched over, crouching under their seats; some even lay prone.
As the snowstorm raged, the temperature inside the bus, with its windows closed, plummeted.
In just half a minute, it dropped to below minus fifty degrees Celsius.
Everyone huddled together, wrapping themselves tightly in their clothes.
"Everyone! Put on whatever you can wear, cover your mouth and nose!"
Hu Dong shouted, getting a mouthful of snow before quickly shutting his mouth.
Su Xing saw the filthy survivors huddled together, ignoring the stench, hoping only for warmth from their body heat.
Enduring such extreme cold overnight meant a high probability of hypothermia and death!
Su Xing, however, didn't feel much; he was wearing a thermal overcoat, and his body temperature remained high.
Only the wind made it difficult for him to open his eyes.
"Brother, are you alright?" Su Yan seemed fine, wearing a thermal down jacket.
"I'm fine!"
Su Xing replied softly,
"But I can't be sure about the others..."
Su Xing was incredibly grateful that he had reinforced his thermostatic suit beforehand.
This meant that he and his brother were at least out of danger.
But the situation inside the bus was far from optimistic.
How long does it take for a person to die of hypothermia in a minus sixty degree Celsius environment?
Su Xing now knew the answer:
it was measured in minutes!
As the snowstorm hit,
in the first half minute, the exposed skin on the mouths, noses, and cheeks of these survivors began to swell and turn red, as if being scraped raw with a knife.
Three minutes later, their eyes became bloodshot, and their bodies stiffened due to hypothermia.
Everyone huddled together, trying to curl up.
A dozen minutes later, a woman not far from Su Xing found her body completely stiff, a deathly smile on her face caused by muscle rigidity.
"She's not breathing!"
someone shouted, and then someone began to strip the woman of her clothes.
Cotton-padded clothes, sweater, thermal underwear…
the woman's body was stripped bare, her skin exposed and soon covered with a thick layer of frost.
Under these circumstances, no one would have any lustful thoughts.
The survivors simply covered themselves with their clothes or used them to cover their faces and heads.
Su Xing turned his head away; in this situation, no one could stop the survivors' will to survive.
Half an hour later, everyone on the bus was covered with a thick layer of snow.
Besides the unfortunate woman from the beginning, people began to die of hypothermia.
The clothes on the dead were removed to increase the chances of survival for the living.
Su Xing glanced over and saw Guan Jiajia curled up in a ball two seats away, her little face red from the cold, seemingly unconscious.
Su Xing hesitated for a moment, then stood up slightly. A gust of wind suddenly swept over him, almost knocking him away.
Su Xing quickly steadied himself, grabbed a seat, and moved closer to Guan Jiajia.
He lifted Guan Jiajia up and tucked her into his arms.
Guan Jiajia, whose consciousness was already hazy, opened her eyes. When she saw Su Xing, she seemed to feel warmth.
"Brother, am I going to lie flat?"
Guan Jiajia asked incoherently.
Su Xing, who had been worried, couldn't help but laugh after hearing her words:
"It's okay! Drink some hot water!"
Su Xing took out a thermos from his backpack and unscrewed the cap.
Guan Jiajia forced down two sips; the scalding hot water was just the right temperature when it entered her mouth.
"Brother, thank you! I feel much better."
[Positive Emotion Points from Guan Jiajia +80]
[Positive Emotion Points from Guan Jiajia +80]
Guan Jiajia felt so warm from Su Xing's body that she nestled obediently in his arms like a little deer.
Su Xing didn't have any other thoughts; he just felt that Guan Jiajia was someone he could talk to in the convoy, a friend.
Within his capabilities, Su Xing didn't mind saving her.
Not far away, Xie Yun stared intently at Guan Jiajia, her eyes filled with jealousy.
[Negative Emotions from Xie Yun +100]
Su Xing was startled and turned to look at Xie Yun.
Xie Yun's face was already stiff from the cold, but she still smiled and said:
"Brother Su, can you hold me~ I'm so cold..."
Her voice wasn't loud, but Su Xing still heard her.
But Su Xing pretended not to hear and turned his head away.
What a joke!
He was being kind by not killing this woman.
Save her? No way!
[Negative emotions from Xie Yun +99]
Xie Yun bit her lip, thinking Su Xing hadn't heard her, and tried to squeeze towards him.
She stepped on several people along the way; some cursed, others didn't react at all.
Xie Yun stubbornly stuck close, feeling warmer as she approached Su Xing.
Su Xing glanced at Xie Yun but didn't chase her away.
This woman was still useful.
"This isn't working!"
"Captain Hu, do you know how long this wind will blow?"
Su Xing shouted.
Hu Dong was considered to have the worst physical condition among the superhumans, even worse than Su Yan.
He was shivering from the cold, but still shook his head and shouted,
"I don't know… but now… we can only endure!"
So everyone began to endure, hoping to survive the white-haired wind and outlive death.
Some people, their legs stiff with cold, tried to stand up, but as soon as they peeked out, the gale swept them into the sky and disappeared into the blizzard.
The remaining survivors, witnessing this, were terrified and clung tightly to the bus seats and handrails.
After an unknown amount of time, when Su Xing's legs were numb from squatting, the blizzard seemed to have subsided somewhat.
Su Xing poked his head out, shaking off the heavy snow. Fortunately, his thermal coat was waterproof, so he wasn't completely chilled.
Hu Dong, however, was in a worse state. He managed to shake off the snow, which settled on his neck and collar, making him shiver and sneeze incessantly.
Suddenly, Su Xing saw two yellow lights approaching the bus in the distance through the blizzard.
They looked like the eyes of a wild beast.
Su Xing shuddered and quickly said:
"Captain Hu, Fang Yuan! Look!"
The two looked up and saw two bright, large eyes.
In an instant, the hearts of all the survivors on the bus pounded. In
such a night, a creature still walking in a blizzard...
what else could it be but something unusual?
Su Xing took a deep breath, took the axe from his waist, and held it in his hand.
"Huo Zi, hide well later. If things get bad, run first, I'll catch up with you!"
Su Xing had already arranged an escape route. He slowly stood up and stood side by side with Fang Yuan and Hu Dong, the two superhumans.
The three of them held onto the bus, staring intently into the distance.
Two round eyes slowly approached, stopping a few meters away from the bus.
Only then did everyone realize that they weren't eyes, but a pair of headlights.
And what they thought was a beast was actually a modified Raptor pickup truck.
But Su Xing didn't let his guard down. How could survivors approach in a blizzard so late at night?
And find them unharmed!
Click—
the door opened, and a hooded girl jumped out.
Upon seeing her clearly, Su Xing's first thought was how long the girl's legs were.
She wore a black windbreaker and jeans, which made her legs appear even longer and thinner.
Wasn't this woman cold?
Su Xing couldn't help but wonder.
Then, Su Xing noticed a huge gourd on the girl's back.
The gourd was almost as big as her entire back, and its surface was a smooth, white jade.
The moment he saw it, Su Xing knew it was definitely a rare item!
This meant the girl's identity was—
a transcendent!
Sure enough, the girl stopped beside the bus, approached the shattered window, and called out:
"My name is Zhao Yue, I'm a transcendent of the Sword Immortal sequence!"
"Does your convoy have any medicine? Could you share some with me?"
"Who is the captain of your convoy?"
Su Xing saw the girl's delicate face under the hood; she looked to be only eighteen or nineteen years old.
Su Xing, Hu Dong, and Fang Yuan exchanged a glance, understanding each other perfectly.
This girl was definitely not weak; otherwise, she wouldn't dare to travel alone in the snowy night.
"My name is Hu Dong, I'm a guide, and I'm the captain of this convoy!"
Hu Dong waved and added,
"If it's convenient, let's talk in the car?"
Hu Dong prepared to open the car door to let Zhao Yue in for a chat.
Zhao Yue shook her head, then leaped two meters high, like a nimble fish, and slipped through the broken car window.
She landed steadily on the car, making barely a sound.
"Such skill!"
"She claims to be a Sword Immortal, which sounds like a combat-type extraordinary being..."
Su Xing's heart stirred slightly.
Su Xing didn't lower his guard just because the other party was an extraordinary being; on the contrary, he became even more cautious.
He even considered his chances of defeating this girl.
Zhao Yue seemed somewhat anxious, and immediately said after getting into the car:
"Captain Hu, hello. I'm from another convoy, but I got separated from them in the snowstorm."
"My sister in the car is sick and urgently needs cold and fever medicine... I wonder if you can provide some?"
"Don't worry, I won't take it for nothing! I'll exchange it for supplies!"
Hu Dong considered for a moment, then nodded:
"Of course! We're all human; it's fate that we met here."
Hu Dong gave Su Xing a wink.
He knew Su Xing had a lot of medicine in his car, especially since Su Yan had searched the town for a large quantity of it.
"I have medicine, but it's in the car. Do you want to come with me to get it?"
Su Xing asked.
After Zhao Yue agreed, the two walked towards the jeep.
The wind and snow outside were still very strong, strong enough to blow an ordinary person away.
Even Su Xing was struggling to walk, taking each step cautiously.
Zhao Yue, on the other hand, walked lightly, occasionally turning back to urge him on.
Su Xing opened the trunk, took out the medicine, and followed Zhao Yue to the pickup truck.
Zhao Yue patted the car door, and the specially designed window slowly rolled down, revealing the delicate face of a little girl inside.
The little girl looked to be only twelve or thirteen years old.
"Lingling, here's some medicine... take it quickly!"
Zhao Yue handed her the medicine, and the little girl obediently took it.
After doing all this, Zhao Yue said gratefully,
"What's your name? Thank you so much!"
"Su Xing," Su Xing replied succinctly.
[Positive Emotions from Zhao Yue +100]
Zhao Yue nodded and took out a box of Snickers bars from the car, containing more than a dozen.
"Can I have those two boxes of medicine? I'll trade you food for them!"
Su Xing thought for a moment, felt it wasn't a bad deal, and agreed to the trade.
[Positive Emotions from Zhao Yue +100]
"Lingling, are you resting in the car now?"
"Sister is going to the bus, I'll be back later, okay?"
Zhao Yue pinched the little girl's doll-like face tenderly.
Then he turned to Su Xing and said,
"Um... Brother Su, could you put away the axe you're carrying?"
"I know you're also a superhuman, I have no hostility towards you."
Su Xing awkwardly withdrew his hand from his chest and put the skull axe back behind his waist. He
then silently put his hand in his pocket and gripped the rune spear.
Zhao Yue's face fell, somewhat speechless.
"I told you I meant no harm!"
"I'm a Sword Immortal, do you know what an immortal is?"
"My senses are very sharp, your little movements can't hide from me..."
[Negative Emotion Points from Zhao Yue +60]
Su Xing silently put away his gun and nodded.
"Ahem, I'm used to it."
Back on the bus, Hu Dong laughed.
"You're pretty lucky. You dared to drive in such a blizzard, the bus didn't break down, and you even found us."
Hearing this, Zhao Yue's face stiffened for a moment, but he still laughed.
"I'm lucky, otherwise I wouldn't have been able to get out of Shanghai and still be alive."
Upon hearing that they came from Shanghai, Hu Dong's eyes lit up, and he hurriedly asked,
"Really? Do you know what the situation is like in Shanghai now? Have they formed any large-scale settlements?"
Not only Hu Dong, but all the survivors in the convoy craned their necks, their eyes full of anticipation.
Initially, this convoy had two destinations.
One was Kyoto, and the other was Shanghai.
After all, Shanghai was the second most important city in the country.
However, there were too many anomalies along the eastern coast, so the convoy dared not go there and had to detour to Kyoto.
"As for Shanghai..."
Zhao Yue said with a bitter smile,
"Shanghai has already fallen!"
"In the two days following the outbreak of the apocalypse, 99% of the city's population died, turning into nourishment for the anomalies."
"Now I estimate that Shanghai is one of the most dangerous restricted areas in the country."
"I only managed to escape because I lived in the suburbs."
After hearing this, everyone fell silent.
Shanghai is the largest economic city in the country. Although densely populated, its armed forces and scientific research capabilities are second to none.
Originally, everyone had hoped that they could muster a team to try to fight the anomalies.
But now, Shanghai is the most miserable.
This meant that humanity's technological and intellectual achievements before the apocalypse were utterly vulnerable to anomalies…
Seeing everyone's silence, Zhao Yue forced a smile and said,
"However, I heard that Kyoto has established the Firewood Shelter and is recruiting superhumans and survivors."
"I think it should be able to protect us, right?"
Hearing this, everyone's hope was rekindled.
The Firewood Shelter had always been the driving force that kept the convoy going.
"Yes, yes! Kyoto is the capital of the country, with so many troops and weapons."
"It'll definitely be fine! It will definitely be!"
Many survivors muttered.
Hu Dong thought for a moment and asked,
"So what are your plans next?"
Zhao Yue hesitated for a moment and said,
"Can I stay with you for a while?"
"If we can find my previous convoy, then we'll talk about it…"
Hu Dong quickly agreed:
"Of course! We're going to Shuanggou Town tomorrow."
Having finally encountered a wild superhuman, Hu Dong had a good impression of Zhao Yue and naturally hoped to recruit him into the team.
After all, the Blade Immortal sequence sounded like a very prestigious combat sequence!
The group chatted for a while on the bus, exchanging a lot of information.
As dawn broke, the blizzard gradually subsided.
Hu Dong glanced at the wrecked bus and said helplessly,
"Let's take a headcount and prepare to head to Shuanggou Town!"
The casualty count for the previous night was quickly completed.
Twenty-three survivors had died that night!
At the same time, no fewer than forty others suffered from limb damage, illness, and fever due to the low temperatures.
This was the largest casualty convoy had encountered since Su Xing's arrival.
Not from anomalies, but from the merciless apocalyptic disaster.
Hu Dong ordered his men to dig pits near the bus, bury the bodies, and erect tombstones.
The tombstones only roughly listed the names of these people.
Most of the people in the convoy didn't even know their occupations or families before the apocalypse.
They were forced to huddle together for survival.
The vehicles in the convoy, ravaged by the night's snowstorm, all had varying degrees of malfunctions and problems.
Fortunately, Fang Yuan was a mechanic and quickly repaired the vehicles.
Uncle Zhang, limping, cooked two large pots of hot soup, and after the survivors warmed themselves, they continued their journey.
The convoy continued westward, crossing another mountain peak.
Around noon, Su Xing finally saw the solitary town nestled among the rolling "snow-capped mountains."
Shuanggou Town—we'd arrived!
Shuanggou Town is located in Henan Province.
It gets its name from being surrounded by rivers on two sides and mountains on the other two, resembling a town encircled by two deep ravines.
There are only two large bridges leading into the town.
Perhaps because the town is poor and sparsely populated, it hasn't suffered much from the apocalypse.
Therefore, in Hu Dong's perception, it belongs to the safe category. Crossing the bridge into the town, the
most
conspicuous building is a somewhat old-looking Western-style church.
"Look! Aren't there people standing at the church entrance?" Uncle Liu's voice came through the walkie-talkie.
"How could that be! It's the apocalypse... how can people still live in a town?" Su Xing subconsciously retorted.
But when he looked towards the church,
he actually saw two elderly people with white hair standing at the church entrance!
They looked like old-fashioned cotton-padded jackets, their faces covered in wrinkles, but their spirits seemed quite good.
Before Su Xing could speak, Fang Yuan's voice came through the walkie-talkie:
"Get a few people off the bus and go check on the situation."
Soon, Zhang Chao led two survivors off the bus and headed towards the church entrance, his tense expression barely concealed.
Su Xing watched the church entrance quietly through the front window, ready to respond to any unexpected situation.
Dozens of meters away, Su Xing couldn't hear the conversation between Zhang Chao and the two elderly men.
But from their expressions, he could tell that Zhang Chao was initially very tense, but then relaxed considerably.
A few minutes later, Zhang Chao waved to the convoy, indicating that he hadn't detected anything unusual.
"Nothing's wrong?" Fang Yuan muttered through the walkie-talkie.
Hu Dong reminded them, "Although I haven't sensed anything unusual, everyone should still be careful."
It's said that old people are wise, and Hu Dong, as the oldest superhuman in the convoy, was always very cautious.
Su Xing didn't speak, simply tucking his rune pistol into his pocket.
Hu Dong and Fang Yuan got off the bus, and Su Xing also headed towards the church.
Upon reaching the church entrance, Hu Dong greeted him with a friendly smile,
"Uncle, are you from Shuanggou Town?"
The old man standing at the church entrance paused, glanced at Hu Dong, and said irritably,
"Brother, who are you calling 'uncle'?"
"I'm only sixty-three this year, you look older than me, don't you?"
Hu Dong was taken aback, and finally said helplessly,
"Uncle, I'm only forty-eight years old this year..."
"What? You're only forty-eight years old!" The old man was clearly surprised, muttering, "Doesn't look like it..."
"Pfft..."
Seeing this, Su Xing couldn't help but laugh out loud.
This earned him a resentful look from Hu Dong.
[Negative Emotions from Hu Dong +86]
Hu Dong clearly didn't want to dwell on the painful topic of age. He asked,
"Uncle, have you been living here since the apocalypse? Is this your wife? Are you the only two people in town?"
The old man nodded and said,
"My name is Wu Feng, and this is my wife, Lingling. We've been living in Shuanggou Town since the apocalypse."
"But there are more than just the two of us in town; there are about twenty people!"
As he spoke, Old Man Wu pointed towards the church.
Su Xing looked closely and indeed saw about twenty people bustling about.
Surprisingly, everyone in the church was elderly.
Hu Dong also felt a bit strange and asked,
"With so many of you living here, haven't you been attacked by any strange forces?"
Just as Old Man Wu was about to answer, several elderly people walked towards them from the church.
The eldest man, leaning on a cane, had his silver hair neatly combed.
The old man smiled and said,
"You must be survivors of the convoy that fled here?"
"My name is Tang Zhang, and I'm the village head of Lianhua Village in Shuanggou Town. These survivors are all from our village." "
If you have any questions, just ask me!"
This Village Head Tang was clearly the leader of this group.
Captain Hu narrowed his eyes and asked,
"Village Head Tang, are you the only old folks left in the village?"
Village Head Tang seemed very polite and explained,
"Yes! To be honest, Shuanggou Town is very poor! All the young people have gone out to work, so naturally only we old folks are left."
"Right when the apocalypse first broke out, some young people did form a convoy and headed to the capital..."
"We old bones would only be a burden if we went, so naturally we stayed."
Hu Dong nodded slightly; this explanation made sense.
The older generation was attached to their homeland and didn't want to wander far; wanting to be buried in their hometown was understandable.
But Hu Dong still had a question in his mind. He asked,
"Village Chief Tang, how did you twenty people survive? Weren't there any unusual attacks?"
Village Chief Tang gave a wry smile and said,
"How could there be no unusual attacks?"
"There are several in the center of town! But they don't come to the outskirts of town."
"So our group of old buddies stayed in the church."
Su Xing listened and suddenly asked:
"What will you eat? Twenty-odd people have been living here for over a month; I'm afraid there won't be enough food."
Village Chief Tang hesitated for a moment, then beckoned,
"Come with me." He
led them to the back of the church.
There, they saw a field behind the church, planted with potatoes, sweet potatoes, and even vegetables like cabbage and eggplant.
Most remarkably, the field was unaffected by the outside snow and wind, despite temperatures of minus forty or fifty degrees Celsius.
It was warm and spring-like inside, providing an excellent growing environment for the crops.
This field was clearly abnormal!
Su Xing and Hu Dong exchanged a glance, seeing the same meaning in each other's eyes.
Su Xing immediately thought of the rice paddies outside Qingxi Town.
Those eerie, man-eating rice paddies still lingered in his mind!
Hu Dong frowned and asked,
"Village Chief Tang, don't you find this field strange in sub-zero temperatures?"
Su Xing had initially assumed that these people living in the church had never left the town and were unaware of the outside world.
Unexpectedly, Village Chief Tang stated directly,
"This farmland is an anomaly."
"However... it's not a bad anomaly, but a divine blessing bestowed upon us by the Lord!"
Village Chief Tang clasped his hands together, performing a devout religious ritual, before explaining,
"Most people in our Shuanggou Town are religious."
"When the apocalypse first broke out, we were also attacked by anomalies, and many people died."
"But we old folks who survived discovered that the anomalies in the town didn't dare come to the church."
"So we hid around the church and survived."
After a pause, Village Chief Tang pointed towards the town, saying,
"A few hundred meters further into the town, there's a grain and oil station."
"We found a lot of food there and ate for more than ten days."
"But there were more than twenty of us, and the food quickly ran out..."
"So someone suggested planting some vegetables and coarse grains in this field behind the church..."
Su Xing sensed something strange and couldn't help but ask,
"Wait, you mean..."
"These crops in the farmland matured in less than a month?"