Wen Yu stretched lazily as he yawned, a series of cracks echoing from his entire body.
He had slept well through the night. After eating some food from his space ring, he gave his little Soul Beast a Level 1 magic crystal. Seeing it jumping around, back to its normal energetic self, he watched as it swallowed the Soul Crystal in one gulp.
Although a Level 1 magic crystal wouldn’t strengthen a Soul Beast’s physical attributes, it was considered a luxury item for its daily sustenance.
Feeling a fluctuation from the 2nd Soul Realm, Wen Yu immersed his consciousness within.
Cyclops’s injury had completely healed, and it was now running around within the Soul Realm. Strangely, the Soul Realm seemed to have no boundaries. Regardless of how much Cyclops thrashed about with its enormous body, it felt no sense of confinement.
Feeling Wen Yu’s consciousness sweep over, Cyclops clearly conveyed its thought, "I want to go out."
Wild beasts should be allowed to roam free.
"Wait a bit. We’ll go out this afternoon," Wen Yu reassured it. Seeing that Cyclops showed no dissatisfaction, he headed straight for the courtyard.
In the courtyard, most of the survivors were already awake and busy with their tasks.
Sun Ruixing was idly chatting with Grandpa Sun. When Sun Ruixing saw Wen Yu emerge from the house, he approached him as if Wen Yu were a long-awaited savior. 𝒻𝑟ℯℯ𝑤𝑒𝑏𝑛𝘰𝓋𝑒𝓁.𝒸𝑜𝘮
"Did you rest well, brother?"
Wen Yu nodded in response to Sun Ruixing, who approached with a cheerful grin.
"We’re leaving soon. I need your help, Brother Wen Yu. Please look after our home for us," Sun Ruixing said, looking at Wen Yu.
"No problem. But, Big brother Sun, are you really taking these people, who have no combat ability whatsoever, out with you?" Wen Yu looked at the elderly people in the courtyard, who were packing their belongings as if they were moving. He felt a sense of helplessness, especially when he saw one woman in her seventies stuffing pots and pans into Sun Ruixing’s large truck. Are they really so sure the government has completely quelled the crisis?
Wen Yu said seriously to Sun Ruixing, "You should understand what it’s like out there. Bringing them along will not only jeopardize their safety but also significantly compromise your own."
"It shouldn’t be a problem. We’ll take the route we cleared before; it’s not that dangerous," Sun Ruixing replied hesitantly. "Besides, for some reason, there have been fewer mutant beasts these past few days."
"What you do is your business. I’m just reminding you. I’ll wait for you here until nightfall today. Until I leave, the camp will be secure. This is my promise to you, and consider it repayment for the meals," Wen Yu made a solemn promise to Sun Ruixing.
"That’s a relief," Sun Ruixing said cheerfully, patting Wen Yu’s shoulder.
Wen Yu watched Sun Ruixing organize his people and arrange the camp’s patrol team, then sat down on the steps in front of the main house’s entrance. He looked at the bustling people in the camp, a sense of loneliness welling up inside him. These people had never experienced the cruelty of the apocalypse. Everything they’re doing is a waste of time, he thought. And time was life, the guarantee of survival.
Sun Ruixing led a large group of elderly people onto the vehicles. Besides Sun Ruixing’s large truck, there was a dilapidated bus. A group of middle-aged women on the bus were chattering excitedly, as if they were going on a spring outing.
Several elderly people sat in the private cars at the rear, smiling as they saw the convoy about to depart.
They believed they were heading towards the peaceful life they knew before the apocalypse. But in Wen Yu’s eyes, the vehicles were clearly driving straight into hell.
"Goodbye, everyone! We’re going to Mudanjiang City to check things out. If the situation there is good, we’ll come back for you all! Also, Tiger Kid! Tiger Kid, where did you run off to?" Not seeing Lin Hu, Sun Ruixing shouted from the large truck.
"Brother Sun, I’m here!" Lin Hu emerged from the side, apparently having just checked the patrol team’s route.
"Look after the place. If there’s anything you can’t handle, ask that young fellow we brought back yesterday for help. He’s very strong," Sun Ruixing instructed. He then nodded towards Wen Yu in the distance, started the large truck, and drove off, taking the lead.
Lin Hu watched the convoy recede into the distance, a complex expression flickering in his eyes. He nodded to Wen Yu and then walked away.
Wen Yu watched the convoy grow smaller in the distance and sighed. He didn’t dwell on what might happen to them, instead sitting quietly on the steps and beginning to polish his steel saber.
As the convoy traveled further, Grandpa Sun, seated in a private car in the middle of the procession, looked around. The driver and the front-seat passenger were two professionists, while those in the back seat were elderly, like himself.
Grandpa Sun took out the incense stick Mayor Li had given him the previous night and a lighter he had prepared that morning. Ignoring the bewildered glances from others, he lit the incense. A pungent, unpleasant smell emanated from it, slowly drifting out through the open car window.
"What’s Grandpa Sun doing?" The young man in the front passenger seat wrinkled his nose at the foul odor, which smelled as if someone had lost control of their bowels, and frowned.
"Hehe, this is a little treasure of mine from the old days. It wards off evil spirits," Grandpa Sun said, his voice a bit strained. "We old folks know it’s dangerous going out this time, and we’re just hoping for a good outcome. So, I’m lighting some incense and saying a little prayer."
The two professionists up front muttered a few words, apparently not complimentary. They soon ignored Grandpa Sun and resumed their own conversation.
"Brother Wang, what do you think has been going on in Hualin Town these past few days? The number of zombies and those mutant animals seems to be decreasing," the professionist in the front passenger seat asked.
"How would I know? Isn’t it better that there are fewer of them? If they popped up as often as they used to, like those big dogs, wouldn’t we be in even more danger?" Brother Wang replied while driving.
"Yeah, that’s true. By the way, Brother Wang, I saw some other survivors a couple of days ago. It seems there’s still a stronghold over by the town government building. I chatted with them, and word is, there are a lot of young women there," the young man in the front passenger seat said with a lecherous grin.
"Hey, kid! We’re driving, and there are elderly folks in the back. Don’t talk such nonsense!" Brother Wang scolded with a laugh.
"Hehe, if we get the chance, maybe we can ask Master Sun to organize some matchmaking or something." The apocalypse had only begun a short time ago. Seeing Hualin Town fall into an eerie calm, the other survivors failed to realize that an even greater danger was imminent. Instead, they believed the disaster had passed and began to think about matters unrelated to survival.