Xu Qian looked up at the dim sky and narrowed her eyes. The weather in the apocalypse was always like this, neither hot nor cold, eternally overcast and gloomy, much like everyone surviving in this era, filled with despair yet powerless to change it.
Every year, the apocalypse had a month of deep cold. She remembered the first year, when the deep cold arrived suddenly, dropping to minus twenty degrees Celsius, killing many people.
Ability users could still survive, while ordinary people had to endure.
By the second year, G City base had begun stocking firewood in every household, to prevent the remaining survivors from perishing.
The weather was gloomy, with wrecked cars and zombies wandering the streets. A slender girl stood in the ruins, a faint halo of light surrounding her, preventing the zombies from getting close.
A sentence flashed through Yan Huai's mind: she was the only light in this desperate world.
He paused for a moment, brushed past her, and strode onto the bus in front of her.
Xu Qian narrowed her eyes, staring at his tall back, and said, "Where's the fat guy?"
"Dead."
Gu Fan was his savior. From childhood, he had stayed by Gu Fan's side, helping him with everything, be it deception, trickery, murder, or arson, because Gu Fan had saved him.
On the second day of the apocalypse, he went to find Gu Fan. He saw his savior sitting in a wheelchair, reduced to a pile of bones gnawed by his subordinates. Since his savior was dead, his debt was repaid, and he decided to flee F City. However, he encountered a zombie attack on his journey and was saved by the Cyclone Squad, after which he stayed to help them, as they had saved his life.
Xu Qian smiled. It was good that such a person was dead; keeping him alive would only cause more harm.
The RV drove up to Xu Qian. She got into the passenger seat and opened the navigation. The RV was quite intelligent, with an offline map.
She selected a general location and said, "It's around this area. Remember to stop when we pass Poly Villa."
"Okay."
The RV drove up to the two buses, with the Cyclone Squad's van bringing up the rear.
Ye Yunzhou came downstairs and saw the leading RV, estimating it to be Xu Qian's. He raised his hand and tapped on the window.
The window slowly rolled down, revealing a delicate, cold, and beautiful face.
His eyes curved into a smile as he said, "Be safe."
Xu Qian's eyes flickered, and she nodded.
Mei Yuebai bit his lower lip and said, "If he wasn't a whole generation older than you, I'd think he was hitting on you."
She laughed out loud, "How do you know he's a generation older than me?"
"Everyone good-looking is my love rival."
"Oh? Then why don't you suspect Gu Qing?"
He raised an eyebrow and said, "Is Gu Qing good-looking? He looks like a woman!"
Xu Qian gave him a faint glance. Fine.
The convoy set off.
With the RV leading the way, the cars behind followed with little obstruction.
Xu Qian instructed them to ram directly into any cars or zombies they encountered, and they sped along the highway, successfully reaching B City.
Upon entering the outskirts of B City, a man was seen on the roadside waving a red flag.
Xu Qian narrowed her eyes and ordered, "Go over there."
Mei Yuebai looked at her in surprise. She had never been one to meddle in others' affairs, and even when a mother and daughter had blocked their path last time, she had ignored them.
He turned on his hazard lights and pulled over to the right.
The window rolled down, revealing the man's yellowish but honest face. Dressed in a firefighter's uniform, he saw a pretty young girl and harbored no ill intentions. Instead, he pleaded,
"Excuse me, can I hitch a ride? I'll get off in the city."
He had been trying to flag down cars for a long time; this was the first one to stop.
A flicker of surprise crossed Xu Qian's eyes, and she said in a cool tone, "There are many zombies in the city. Are you sure you want to go?"
The man's expression was resolute, and his tone firm, "Yes, I'm sure. I'm a firefighter, and I must return to my unit to assemble."
She pursed her lips and smiled, "Alright. Go to the bus behind. Tell them we agreed, and have the driver check you for any wounds before you get on."
"Okay, thank you."