The car kept swaying, sometimes faster and sometimes slower, but it seemed that it couldn't pick up the speed no matter what, giving people a sense of unhurried irritability. The surrounding temperature had also dropped from unbearable heat to freezing point. The mist exhaled by several people quickly formed tiny ice flowers on the window glass. It was almost impossible to react to such a changeable weather.
Qin Yu was still driving the vehicle, while Jack leaned against the passenger door with his arms crossed, his brow furrowed. From his long breaths, it seemed he had fallen asleep. However, like Thomas Xu, who was lying on Ryan Manli's lap in the back seat, both of them appeared to be having nightmares, as indicated by the occasional twitching of their brows, suggesting that the psychological pressure they were under was far from as simple as it appeared on the surface!
Tracking a group of people driven by the zombie tide is not as simple as it seems. Qin Yu, who was driving, initially thought that by following the footprints and tire tracks, he would surely be able to find the main group of escapees. However, he quickly realized he was wrong. The massive zombie tide not only left behind a trail of overwhelming stench but also obliterated almost all traces left by the fleeing people. Even with his eyes wide open, Qin Yu could not distinguish where the human footprints were, and could only follow the general direction pointed out by Ryan Manli.
Tonight, the moon seemed to have hidden away, and there was no familiar moonlight or town lights. The surroundings were almost pitch black, with only two headlights illuminating the sandy rural road. As Qin Yu reached out to turn on the heater, he also switched on the front fog lights, adding a bit more brightness, which allowed him to breathe a slight sigh of relief amidst the oppressive atmosphere.
In the car, four people were present, three of whom were asleep. Looking at the dark and monotonous road, it seemed there was never an end in sight. Qin Yu felt as if he had fallen into hell, carrying two dimly lit human skin lanterns, pitifully searching for a nonexistent path to resurrection!
The promised time to switch drivers had arrived, but Thomas Xu in the back seat was still sound asleep, showing no signs of waking up. Qin Yu moved his mouth, wanting to wake Thomas Xu, but seeing Jack beside him also looking exhausted, he ultimately couldn't bring himself to speak. Even Ryan Manli, who was leaning on Thomas Xu, seemed to have been lulled to sleep, deeply and heavily. That profound sense of loneliness washed over Qin Yu again, and even with the heater blowing, the hairs on his back stood on end!
The electronic clock in the Hummer had already pointed to one o'clock in the morning, and Jack and Thomas Xu were probably extremely tired, as even Jack, who usually had a precise biological clock, did not wake up to let Qin Yu take a break. However, considering that the two of them had narrowly escaped from the clutches of the zombie William and broken through the encirclement of the zombie horde, even though they had a hasty rest last night, that deep-seated fatigue was not something that could easily dissipate!
Qin Yu had been driving for over six hours. Since heading west, the surrounding roads had become increasingly unfamiliar. Qin Yu had often gone out to search for supplies, but he had never been to the west. Everyone in the Jiangcheng gathering place knew that the roads in that direction were almost completely blocked by zombies. The number of living corpses that had long occupied that area was at least ten times the population of the gathering place, so any sane human would not choose to go west in search of supplies.
However, today it seemed that the living corpses in the west had collectively gone to a party. Although their numbers were still considerable, they were not overwhelming to the point of being unacceptable. This realization made Qin Yu, who had been puzzled, suddenly understand. It seemed that the main group of escapees had received news in advance that the number of living corpses on this road had decreased; otherwise, they wouldn't have collectively come here to seek death.
"Bang…"
A heavy thud interrupted Qin Yu's train of thought. A shadow seemed to rush past him, and he instinctively jerked the steering wheel, slamming on the brakes with a screech. The sturdy Hummer left two long skid marks in the sand, barely stopping before almost crashing into the roadside embankment. Qin Yu, however, stared wide-eyed in disbelief, his expression one of extreme panic!
"What happened? What happened?"
As the car came to a stop, Thomas Xu in the back seat jumped up immediately but hit his head on the roof due to the force of his jump. Ryan Manli also let out a scream and rolled off him, and Thomas Xu, holding his head, looked around with bloodshot eyes.
"Xiaoyu, what happened?" Jack raised his right hand holding a gun, while his left hand held a powerful flashlight resting on his right arm. His sharp gaze swept outside the car inch by inch as the light moved.
"Brother-in-law, I... I think I hit someone!" Qin Yu's face looked a bit pale. Before he finished speaking, he swallowed hard, but seeing Thomas Xu's angry expression as if he wanted to curse, he quickly explained, "It's not a zombie; it's... it's a human, and it seems to be a child!"
"Are you out of your mind?" Thomas Xu glared at Qin Yu with frustration and scolded, "In this dark countryside, you're telling me you saw a human child? What the hell, hurry up and drive!"
"But... shouldn't we go check on him? What if he's a child who got separated from his family?" Qin Yu looked at Jack with some difficulty, and to his surprise, Jack gently shook his head and said seriously, "Qin Yu, you need to understand that this is an apocalypse overrun by zombies. Whether you really hit a child or not, we shouldn't get involved. If you want to stay alive, you must put away your curiosity and compassion at critical moments. After all, the chance of a child being here is just too small!"
"I understand, brother-in-law!" Qin Yu nodded dejectedly, but just as he was about to reverse the car, a disheveled figure suddenly appeared in the left side mirror. Qin Yu's eyes widened in shock as he pointed at the rearview mirror and shouted, "Look, that person is still alive!"
"That's not a child; it's an adult!" Jack frowned and looked back at the car. Although the red taillights illuminated the person in a bright red hue, when he saw the person's sturdy limbs, he immediately dismissed Qin Yu's definition of a child. This person was just short, and the stubble on his chin was definitely not something a child would have!
"Is that a human or a ghost?" Thomas Xu pulled out his gun, frowning as he looked at the short figure behind the car. The person seemed to have been hit hard by Qin Yu, staggering several times before steadying himself against the car. His face, covered in hot blood, looked like a vengeful spirit from hell. He seemed to have noticed the people in the car were looking at him, and a spark of excitement flashed in his eyes as he hurriedly pounded on the car and shouted, "Help... help me, please save me!"
"Damn! It really is a living person!" Thomas Xu grabbed his scalp, staring in shock at the short man at the back of the car, then turned to Jack and asked, "Lin Ge, what should we do?"
"First, ask him who he is. Does he know the whereabouts of the people at the gathering place?" Jack said quickly.
"Hey! Where did you come from?" Thomas Xu slowly rolled down the car window a bit, just enough to talk to the short man, who immediately leaned against the window with tears of gratitude and shouted, "Big brother, I'm just an ordinary survivor. I got lost, please take me with you! I know a place with plenty of food that I can use to repay you!"
"Come on, come on, you are lost, and you don't know anything." Thomas Xu immediately exposed the lie that the other party had suppressed, but the other party's face was covered in blood and he didn't know whether it was red or not. Thomas Xu continued to ask, "Where did you come from? If you don't tell the truth, just wait here to die."
"No, no... Big brother! I'm telling the truth! As long as you can give me a map, I can find that place for you!" The short man shouted urgently, seemingly afraid that Thomas Xu still didn't believe him. He hurriedly added, "My wife and child are still there! My son has a fever and is sick. I got lost while looking for medicine. We have plenty of food where we are hiding, enough for us to eat for several years. If you come with me, you'll see I'm not lying!"
"Give him a towel and let him come up!" Jack cautiously scanned the surroundings with a flashlight. After confirming there were no potential dangers, he tilted his head at Thomas Xu, who nodded in agreement. He opened the car door and casually tossed a rag to the other man. The short man gratefully accepted the towel and wiped his face hurriedly before climbing into the car.
"What's your name? Tell us about your situation!"
The car started again, and Thomas Xu leaned against Ryan Manli's voluptuous figure, glancing sideways at the short man, who was about 1.5 meters tall. The short man seemed to have suffered no serious injuries. After wiping his face, he cheerfully said to Thomas Xu, "Big brother and sister, my name is Ryan Haotian. I used to be a worker at a meat processing plant, specifically responsible for slaughtering pigs. Hehe~ I hope you don't find it funny!"
"Oh? Haotian? I can't believe you're short, but your name sounds quite powerful! Why not call yourself Ryan Tianyi? That would be even more impressive!" Thomas Xu smirked, lazily pulled out a pack of cigarettes, tossed one to Ryan Haotian, and asked, "What's the deal with that place full of food you mentioned?"
"Oh! It's like this, big brother…" Ryan Haotian put the cigarette in his mouth, pulled out a plastic lighter from his pocket, and lit it up. His eyes briefly scanned Ryan Manli's white thighs without showing any unusual expression, then he smiled and said, "I've always been a person with a strong sense of crisis. When the doomsday theory started spreading, I began preparing survival equipment and supplies. I don't know if you've seen the news, but the first 'Noah's Ark' in the country was designed and built by me. However, the flood never came, so my ark became useless. But I had stored a lot of food in the warehouse where the ark was kept, which turned out to be very useful. I prepared dozens of tons of rice, and there are plenty of clothes and fresh water as well. If it weren't for my son suddenly getting sick, I wouldn't have risked coming out to look for medicine! Alas, I was too careless and forgot the most important medicine; I didn't even prepare any cold medicine!"
"Ha! Noah's Ark? You mean that round big iron ball?" Ryan Manli scoffed, reaching over to take half of the cigarette from Thomas Xu's mouth and putting it in her own. She looked at Ryan Haotian with disdain and said, "Since we saved you, you should share half of your supplies with us, right? With so much stuff, it'll go to waste if we can't eat it all!"
"Of course, of course! That's only right!" Ryan Haotian nodded repeatedly, looking quite anxious, then rubbed his hands together and said, "Well... big brother and sister, let's go there now. My wife and child are still waiting at home, and the sooner we get the food, the sooner we can have a nice meal, right?"
"How far is it from here? If it's far, we won't go. We're not short on food!" Jack in the front seat turned to glance at Ryan Haotian and asked casually.
"Not far, not far. Just a few more kilometers ahead... uh, I should be able to tell the direction then!" Ryan Haotian paused for a moment, smiling ingratiatingly at Jack, but Jack seemed unconvinced. After giving Ryan Haotian a thorough look, he turned back and said nothing more.
"Yo! Big brother, you guys have a gun here, that's impressive!" Ryan Haotian noticed that the people in the car seemed uninterested in him, so he started making small talk, just like he had just seen the handgun at Thomas Xu's waist, with a face full of surprise as he asked, "You must have even more powerful stuff, right? No wonder you guys are living so comfortably!"
"Hmph~ it's not bad!" Thomas Xu arrogantly pointed to the open trunk of the SUV, where a rifle was leaning against it. That was one of the problem guns that Qin Yu had given them earlier; the firing pin would break after just a few more shots, making it nothing more than a bluffing piece of junk.
"Wow! There really is a rifle!" Ryan Haotian exclaimed in admiration for Thomas, but a glimmer of intrigue flashed in his green bean-like eyes.
"Hey, hey~ I know this road, turn left here!"
The car drove for about half an hour, and Ryan Haotian excitedly patted the back of the seat, pointing to the road on the left. Without saying a word, Qin Yu turned the steering wheel and drove onto the dirt road he indicated. The surroundings were very spacious, with only a patch of low, dead trees visible in the distance, and a few burnt-down, dilapidated brick houses could still be seen, filling the air with a desolate atmosphere; there were hardly any living corpses in sight.
"Brother Ryan, I'm really sorry, I bumped into you just now. Are you okay?" Qin Yu looked apologetically at Ryan Haotian through the rearview mirror, appearing quite embarrassed, but Ryan Haotian waved his hand generously and said, "It's fine, I've been strong since I was a kid. Look at me, I'm still full of energy, right?"
"Hehe~ you pig killers are tough, of course, you won't die so easily!" Ryan Manli covered her mouth and chuckled lightly. As a former white-collar elite, she seemed to look down on someone like Ryan Haotian, and arrogantly said to him, "You better take the initiative to move your stuff out later; we still have to hurry, don't waste our time!"
"Okay, okay!" Ryan Haotian immediately nodded with a smile. Looking at Ryan Manli, who was only wearing a big T-shirt, he cautiously asked, "Sister, I still have some nice outfits over there; why don't you go in and pick a couple?"
"Ha! Outfits? What real outfits do you country folks have?" Ryan Manli immediately mocked disdainfully, then proudly twisted her body and said, "But I'll go take a look; I hope your country folks' taste isn't too bad, not everything is bright red or bright green!"
"Hey! You'll know when you take a look; those clothes are from the truck I got the clothes from, and there are quite a few brand names!" Ryan Haotian grinned foolishly, not caring at all about Ryan Manli's mockery. He then turned to look out the window, excitedly pointing at a half-collapsed house in the distance, saying, "Do you see that half-collapsed house? All the good stuff I've collected is in that big yard in front; you can just drive in!"
"Okay!" Qin Yu nodded without hesitation, but JackHe said it casually.:"Don't drive in, just park the car at the door!"
"Go ahead and drive in. My yard is big enough for parking, and besides, there are so many supplies inside. It would be exhausting to move them one trip at a time..." Ryan Haotian immediately looked at Jack. He wanted to persuade him a bit more, but seeing the indifference in Jack's eyes, Ryan Haotian couldn't help but swallow hard, ultimately not saying a word.
"Creak~"
The armored vehicle came to a steady stop in front of a large courtyard of a residential house. The structure here is somewhat similar to the traditional courtyard houses in the capital, with three red brick houses topped with black tiles surrounding a spacious courtyard. These houses not only remained intact but there wasn't even a shadow of a living corpse around.
"Brothers, this is the place. Come down and take a look. Just tell me what you want to eat, and I'll load it onto the truck for you!" Ryan Haotian opened the car door first to invite Thomas Xu and the others out. Thomas Xu casually picked up the problematic Type 81 rifle from the trunk and slung it over his back, waving his hand at Ryan Haotian, saying, "Just bring a bit of everything. Manli is right; if we don't eat the food soon, it will spoil sooner or later! Haha..."
"Yes, yes, yes, Miss Ryan is right!" Ryan Haotian gestured for them to follow, nodding and bowing as he led the way. Meanwhile, Jack, who was in the passenger seat, jumped out of the car and took a few steps forward, shining his flashlight around the environment. But just as Thomas Xu passed him and stepped onto the first step of the courtyard, Jack's expression suddenly changed dramatically, and he shouted, "Come back, it's dangerous..."