The speedometer instantly hitting 130 made those in the back seat dizzy. After finally adjusting, everyone was on high alert.
"Are they following us?"
"Will this lead the zombies to B City? Are there still people there?"
Zhuo Lian asked calmly, "How far are we from B City?"
A researcher picked up the map. "Thirty-four kilometers."
The person next to him breathed a sigh of relief. "Over thirty kilometers, they shouldn't be able to chase for that long."
After all, those things couldn't keep up with a car, and they would likely give up soon.
Another researcher said, "There's a small town around here with so many zombies. We don't know how many we'll encounter once we get into the city. Don't celebrate too early."
A bucket of cold water doused the hopes of all those who were being侥幸.
After driving a few kilometers, the zombies were left behind, but one of the cars that was supposed to follow hadn't caught up. Zhuo Lian had to slow down and wait for them.
As they got closer to the north, the terrain became increasingly flat. Due to the dying trees and reduced rainfall, any slight breeze would kick up a sandstorm. Only in places with tall buildings, like near cities, was this phenomenon slightly better.
Someone rolled down the car window, looking at the scene of yellow sand filling the sky. They sighed, "I thought scenes like this were only in movies."
On their journey from Shanghai to H City, there had been dangers, but these ability users hadn't truly suffered. The south wasn't like this. Seeing the cities that humans had spent so long building reduced to this state, no one felt good about it.
Someone tried to find humor in the grim situation. "Art comes from life."
"They're catching up. Let's keep going."
The two cars continued forward, not far apart. When they passed a fork in the road, they saw a road sign above. The sign indicated that they would enter the city in just over twenty kilometers.
Looking at the scene of yellow sand filling the sky outside the guardrail, their hearts tightened. This barren landscape was a perfect match for the apocalypse, easily inducing negative emotions.
Half an hour later, they were stopped at a toll station.
"Who's there!"
Zhuo Lian opened the car door and got out. The others also alighted. Upon seeing Zhuo Lian, someone whistled with a slightly frivolous tone. Zhong Yan, who had just gotten out of the car, charged forward with his long sword, directly slamming the person to the ground.
The person who was hit was somewhat dazed.
The weapons of the others immediately aimed at them.
Two soldiers drew their pistols. "Freeze!"
"What are you doing! Are you robbing us!"
A group of people sitting not far away got up and walked over. A burly man with a full beard, his brows furrowed menacingly, glared at them. "Who are you people?"
"We're from the south. We need to pass through B City to get to Central City."
"You're acting so arrogant just passing through. Tell that pretty boy to let my brother go right now."
A soldier stepped forward, asking Zhong Yan to release the man. He snorted, pointed his long sword at the person on the ground, his gaze even more unfriendly than the burly man's.
"It's a misunderstanding. Our young brother here has a bit of a temper. Comrade, which district are you from?"
The burly man was also a soldier. This identity quickly dissolved the conflict that had just arisen. The group sat down under a sunshade. When the burly man learned that his subordinate had whistled first, he immediately called the man over and made him apologize to Zhuo Lian.
The man was clearly unwilling but was forced to apologize.
Zhong Yan glared at him fiercely, still seemingly unsatisfied.
"I didn't expect you to leave so early. Fortunately, you left early. All the coastal cities have fallen now. I heard only a small portion of ability users managed to survive. It's good that tens of thousands of people managed to escape."
"We got out, but there's danger everywhere now. We finally settled down in H City, but we're short on food and water. We only decided to head to Central City after hearing the central message. We actually thought B City was also... it's great that you're still here."
The burly man said, "B City's military district hadn't been completed before the apocalypse, and there weren't many people. However, a lot of heavy weapons were brought in. Relying on our weapons, we managed to push those monsters to the north. We could still manage people before, but later, with more and more ability users, everyone had their own ideas. This place is also close to Liangjiang, and monsters often come here to eat people. It's probably going to be chaotic soon."
"Then what are your plans?"
The burly man chuckled. "Originally, we were just going to hold on as long as we could, doing our duty. If we couldn't hold on, we'd let them do as they pleased. Now that I've heard what you said, I'll go back and tell the commander to see if we can bring our people to defect to you."
They hadn't expected the other party to say that.
"Why don't you go to Central City?"
A soldier in somewhat tattered camouflage next to him said, "We've driven those zombies and monsters to the north of B City, and they can't get past. You won't be able to leave either."
The person was stunned, then looked at Zhuo Lian.
Zhuo Lian said, "Let's go take a look first."
Seeing his action, the burly man was confused. "This, is this your ability user?"
The soldier named Yang didn't know Zhuo Lian's true capabilities. What Zhen Jie had said earlier became unreliable after his subordinates mentioned that they felt a scorching temperature when Zhuo Lian made her move.
However, having witnessed her perform multiple times, they all acknowledged her strength.
"Yes, these two are senior ability users in our team. Miss Zhao here is a water ability user, and her boyfriend is a space ability user. They are also inheritors of ancient martial arts families, and they are very powerful."
The burly man recalled Zhong Yan's earlier action of rushing forward and slamming someone to the ground with his sword, so he was more inclined to believe he knew martial arts.
However, a water ability user could hardly be considered a powerful ability.
He sized up Zhuo Lian with a scrutinizing gaze.
Then he was glared at by Zhong Yan multiple times.
"We don't recommend you go north. It's really dangerous there. You'd be better off going through Li City. No one has ever come from the north here."
The researcher said, "We didn't know the situation here at the time. It's too late to say these things now. Let's go take a look."
Seeing that their persuasion was in vain, the person thought for a moment and then proposed to find his superior to help them get through. If they were going to H City, closer ties with Central City were essential, and at the same time, necessary sacrifices should be made.
Having someone help was always a good thing, and they had no reason to refuse. So, they followed the burly man into the city and met the commander of the B City military district, which had not been completed before the apocalypse.
He was a man in his thirties, with a rugged appearance and a steady demeanor, a tough guy similar to Zhou Chuan. He lived in a small apartment with his wife and children. His young wife was taking care of several children, who were clearly orphans rescued by the army.
After hearing the burly man's account, he agreed to help them, but expressed difficulty. "However, most of my subordinates are ordinary soldiers, and some of the awakened ability users have already defected. I'm afraid I can't help much."