The convoy grew longer, attracting more zombies. Fortunately, Lin Yan had the system to help her find the most convenient and fastest route.
This route had significantly fewer zombies compared to others. However, Lin Yan also discovered that the zombies in this city were indeed at a higher evolutionary level than those in their town.
Lin Yan led this group of people out of the city and then pointed them in two directions.
"A small base has been established in a town to the south. There aren't many people, mostly from the surrounding towns. Further south, in Z City, a larger base has been built, reportedly housing tens of thousands of survivors. You can decide where you want to go."
The open space where they had parked was a village road. Although not very wide, it was free of people and zombies.
"Can't we follow you?" a middle-aged woman asked anxiously.
"Yes, can't you take us with you? You're definitely going to a base too!" another person quickly added.
They had witnessed the young girl's strength along the way and believed that following her would be far safer than going alone.
"I'm going to another city, and the journey will be dangerous. If I take you with me, I might not be able to protect you." Lin Yan had already been delayed for several days, and besides, any base they went to was not on her way.
"Then can't you at least take us to a base? A good deed should be seen through to the end," one man shamelessly said.
"Yes, take us to the base. It's so dangerous out here. What will happen to us, the old, weak, women, and children, if you leave?" an older woman tried to grab Lin Yan's hand.
Lin Yan sidestepped her hand. "I'm very sorry, but it's really not on my way. Besides, there are quite a few of you. If you stick together, you can deal with dangers quite well."
As she spoke, Lin Yan took out some weapons from her spatial storage. These were made from some metal she had collected in the city. Although the weapons created by her special ability were not as finely crafted as those forged through traditional methods, they were still very sturdy and sharp.
"I'll leave these weapons with you. You can use them to defend yourselves. I also have maps in my car; I can give them to you later."
The weapons Lin Yan gave them were mostly long, such as staffs and spears. Such weapons could prevent them from coming into direct contact with zombies, and a longer weapon offered greater reach. Moreover, she feared they might injure themselves if given overly sharp weapons they didn't know how to use.
Seeing that Lin Yan was truly unwilling to take them, some people's expressions soured. However, most people understood and took the weapons Lin Yan had prepared, testing them in their hands.
"Classmate, is your family running a martial arts school? How do you have so many weapons?"
Lin Yan smiled and didn't answer the question. Instead, she took out the maps from her car and marked the locations of the two bases for them.
Afterward, Lin Yan got into her car and bid them farewell.
Sui Sui, who had been silent and remained in the passenger seat, turned to look at those with unhappy expressions, some of whom were even grumbling.
"Sui Sui, don't look," Lin Yan said, sensing Sui Sui's displeasure towards those people.
"Sister, will they go to our base?" Sui Sui didn't like the way they looked at her sister.
"Maybe, maybe not. But if their supplies are sufficient, they'll likely want to go to the larger base, as Taoyuan is too small."
"Then let them go to the big base. Sui Sui doesn't like them," Sui Sui said with a huff.
Lin Yan didn't think much of it, as it was understandable human nature. They had expected her to take them all the way to safety. Instead, she was leaving them halfway. If they hadn't been silent and if she hadn't possessed superior combat ability, they might have all pressured her into taking them. Even without superior strength, they could have resorted to emotional blackmail, thinking that as a young girl, she would be too shy to refuse. Thankfully, some among them were reasonable and didn't join in.
She had already rescued them. They had transportation and the weapons she provided. As long as they were a little braver, they could survive longer in this apocalypse. If they could adapt to this new world, they could even live better lives, at least better than being trapped in their homes.
Lin Yan had collected a lot of supplies and obtained many crystal cores along the way. She only took the food with a short shelf life, leaving behind the food with a longer shelf life. This longer-lasting food could be useful to anyone who came by later. As for the crystal cores, Lin Yan gave them all to Sui Sui, as her own abilities were progressing relatively quickly, but Sui Sui's abilities needed to advance to the next level faster. However, Sui Sui's current ability was her bedroom, and she wondered what direction it would evolve in after leveling up.
As Lin Yan was heading to the city where her parents lived, Wen Yi Tong finally made up her mind. She contacted some less fortunate ability users, especially those who had recently awakened their powers, and also found some strong ordinary people. Although Wen Yi Tong didn't approve of Lin Yan's methods, she had to admit that extending a helping hand to others in their most difficult times could indeed earn their gratitude.
Thus, under the watchful eyes of the base's leaders, she slowly built her own influence. As a spatial ability user, all her supplies passed through her space, so she was never lacking. With these, she could win over more people. Of course, she didn't do it too obviously, as her current capabilities were not enough to contend with the entire base. They relied on their abilities and treated her courteously for now, but if she truly harmed their interests, they would surely abandon her. Although she did withhold some supplies during every collection, she did it very discreetly, hoarding only inconspicuous items. It was precisely because of this approach that those people trusted her more. However, her previous discovery made her realize that her opportunity had arrived.
Wen Yi Tong had been going on missions more frequently recently and had collected more crystal cores. Her ability had leveled up to second grade without anyone noticing. Her spatial blade, which could only be maintained for three seconds before, could now be held for five seconds. She could previously only unleash one at a time, but now she could emit three simultaneously, though these three were shorter than the single one. Her spatial capacity had also expanded significantly, which was why she could operate covertly. When she arrived at this base, the people in charge had already figured out the size of her spatial storage. Although they appeared to trust her on the surface, in reality, they had merely assessed her situation.