novel
| ← Ch.139 | Ch.141 → |
This bonus chapter is thanks to: Anon and Wilson
The staff responsible for opening the gates were aware that there would be no more cars, so once Luo Xun's two cars arrived, they let all the teams out.
Luo Xun's car first went to their usual spot where people coming from base would not notice them. The two cars were transformed into tattered forms and covered with snow. The team climbed into sleek sled cars. This time, in order to bring more supplies, the sleds were followed by a metal car designed to hold mushroom juice and petrol, along with all kinds of other outdoor supplies.
Three men in one, three ladies in the other. Electricity was used to automatically heat the water in the car so they no longer had to stop every once in a while for Xu Mei to heat up. Although everyone still moved slowly it was much faster than last time.
After an intersection, Luo Xun did not turn onto the road they went to each time but continued east. Yan Fei also began collecting large chunks of metal nearby and started rolling iron balls parallel to the cars.
There was no obvious sign that the snow covered ruins were dangerous, at first glance the bumps on the road might have been traps or potholes. However it was also possible that they were zombie bodies lying around.
Fortunately they had Yan Fei who could help probe the area.
Although Yan Fei could not detect the road surface or debris he knew the general distribution of metal underneath the tunnel. Generally speaking there were many pieces of metal stuff but there was little open space. Of course there were cars around but those were visible.
While Yan Fei was investigating the road, Zhang Yi was sitting on the side wearing a wool cap, down jacket, scarf, mask and goggles. He leaned against Yan Fei and began to doze off after having a sandwich.
Although Yan Fei hated the other's rude behaviour he could not shake his shoulder or throw him from the car. In fact, his only exception was sweet times with Luo Xun which he felt heartwarming. Letting another man leaning on his back was getting his nerves, not kicking Zhang Yi out was him being polite.
Luo Xun looked around, not too different from before. He stopped near a group of piles."I think this place is about right."
After his words, zombies popped from the ground disturbing the snow.
Yan Fei used the iron balls that were not more than six meters in diameter formed into a protective wall.
Similar to the first time they manufactured temporary bases, dug traps, cleared the snow. They dealt with nearest zombies and Zhang Yi blew snow away with wind. Xu Mei immediately began to melt the blown away snow. Song Lingling transferred the liquid away.
When the snow was cleared, Luo Xun judged the situation and found that they appeared to be on top of some wreckage in a shopping street. Yu Xinran walked around on metal planks - digging traps!
Digging traps, creating metal walls for their makeshift base, returning inside every once in a while. Yan Fei and Yu Xinran were dealing with the traps, Luo Xun carried boxes with Zhang Yi. They prepared to thaw the mushroom juice and the gasoline would be ready in advance.
Xu Mei and Song Lingling were responsible for sparking the fires and setting up the temporary stoves...
In fact when establishing a temporary base, Yan Fei was the one who used his power the most. Unfortunately they only had one metal user and could only wait for him to finish before continuing.
"There are a number of zombies." Yan Fei suddenly added.
Luo Xun quickly put down the task at hand and motioned at Xu Mei to take up positions. The team pointed their crossbows in several directions.
The number of zombies nearby was clearly higher compared to the usual place they hunted, many of them were also level three. A piece of snow crawled out of the ground to reveal a zombie, it shook off the ice and snow before rushing over.
"The metal box in the traps can be set up later, Yu Xinran continue to turn the area to sand." Luo Xun analysed the situation and immediately said orders.
Yan Fei rolled the metal ball into the dome in order to seal the ceiling. Then he collected as much metal as possible to reinforce the wall. Zhang Yi used Yu Xinran's sand along with Xu Mei's fire to fill the surrounding gathered zombies.
"God, how many zombies are the snow?! There are so many..." Song Lingling could not help but exclaim. Even in the urban areas where it was thought to be dense with zombies, they had not encountered so many higher zombies. This many in the snow covered ruins was unexpected.
"Who knows, whittle them down." Luo Xun sighed in relief and shot using his crossbow.
It took about two hours before the nearby zombies were finally wiped out. Of course they had also used up some of their nuclei.
Yu Xinran's bunker had become the same size of everyone's foothold. But the fortifications were not as large this time so the trap seemed relatively larger.
"There is not enough metal." Yan Fei said to Luo Xun."I'd better go out and bring some more back."
"I'll go with you." Luo Xun immediately got up but was pushed back down.
"I can do it myself." Yan Fei smiled as Luo Xun was about to interrupt, "I won't go far, close to where I found the other metal. Rest assured I will take a charcoal stove to stay warm on the road."
The so called charcoal stove was made by Yan Fei with copper with lit coals from home, similar to an ancient furnace, but more crude. It was Luo Xun who brought then - in case it was too late for them to prepare other heating methods. Plus if they split up they could have something to warm them up.
"Would it be better for him to stay at home? You might as well tie him to your belt if you are so worried." Zhang Yi rolled his eyes at Luo Xun's hesitance."You be careful."
"Don't worry." Yan Fei smiled and touched Luo Xun's head.
Yan Fei opened a hole in the wall and walked out. Luo Xun stood at the window and looked on with fear at his back.
Zhang Yi went to his side and mockingly smiled."Not only are you afraid for him, if something happens to us, who can get out?" He hung over Luo Xun's shoulder and shifted all his weight.
Luo Xun was too lazy to pay attention, but after three tries to shake Zhang Yi off, "Do you not have any bones?"
"Ah, aren't we gay comrades? You are here with your boyfriend but I am alone, do you not sympathise?" Zhang Yi said teasingly.
Luo Xun sent him an annoyed look."You and I are not'comrades'!"
Xu Mei and Song Lingling covered their mouths and chuckled, the melted mushroom juice had been set aside. Yu Xinran stared curiously at the two. With her big scarf and hat, only a pair of curious eyes could be seen.
Yan Fei was walking towards the makeshift base when a long range zombie was attracted by the delicious scent of human flesh. They had been blocked by snow before, but now? Everyone was coming out to eat!
A zombie burst out of the snow as Yan Fei walked away collecting metal. The rolling balls grew larger and larger as zombies followed. A large, round iron ball followed Yan Fei and behind that there were a bunch of slow zombies... the scene was actually quite funny.
However there were still some long range zombies, or speed types that could attack him. The good news was that Yan Fei had collected a lot of metal that could be used for defense. A huge metal shield behind sped up his efforts to return to the temporary base.
"Quick! Get in!" Seeing that Yan Fei was back, someone shouted.
A gap that could only fit one person appeared, which turned back to normal after said person returned.
"Come sit next to the fire!" Luo Xun pulled Yan Fei over to the fire for warmth.
As for outside... the big iron ball was still outside and all the zombies had to get around the obstacle.
Yan Fei sat next to the fire on the metal sofa. Song Lingling filled the inside with water while Xu Mei heated the metal chair.
Zhang Yi stood near the window to use the sand which had not been moved yet in order to strike at the zombies, round after round. After Xu Mei took care of the water sofa, she hurried over to help.
Luo Xun put the bag of crystal cores next to the pair before picking up his crossbow for headshots.
It should be said, do not think that Li Tie and the others were not strong in combat, they could help move things and attack. But now a few of them were away and the team was busier.
Fortunately, Yan Fei recovered quickly. As the zombies hurried forwards, feeling returned to his limbs. The metal ball turned into plating where there was no sand and sharp thorns appeared at the pit bottoms.
When this was done, there was metal left in the ball, enough to spread around. Yan Fei immediately put the metal deep underground adding a layer to the temporary base.
Semi-circle above and below, the entire temporary base had been formed by Yan Fei. He returned to the fire and sat on the sofa to absorb nuclei - he had more work to do.
Zhang Yi and the others had to recover some power from their previous attack. After the zombies scattered, crossbows provided cover fire.
Now the trap had been settled, Luo Xun let Yan Fei control the metal box with blood after resting. Before quitting the hospital, Zhang Yi brought some blood bags to freeze which could be used. Song Lingling covered the metal box in warm water. The aroma once again attracted a wave of frenzied zombies.
Luo Xun waved as a zombie without ranged attacks fell head first into the trap. Some of the ranged zombies were pushed in because the area was too crowded."Ready to pour mushroom juice!"
Everyone had saved a lot of mushroom juice. The last time they went out, they only carried a prt of it. There was still around half of their stores at home!
White smoke poured from the trap like silk, as if someone was boiling water. *Dong, dong, dong* A large zombie slowly approached - the battle kicked off again!
Luo Xun reclined against the metal sofa, wrapped in a quilt resting his head against Yan Fei's thigh. The advantage of less people was no one stealing space...
Luo Xun rubbed his eyes and looked out towards the wall where ringing sounds could be heard."Still burning?"
Yan Fei lowered his head and pinched Luo Xun's somewhat confused face."Burn out soon, the fires have dimmed."
Luo Xun yawned and rubbed his face."I'll go see if anything is caught in the traps, then we have to clean up the battlefield..."
The fire started yesterday evening has not yet been fully extinguished. There were a few tall figures in distance grabbing things and aiming at them. Luo Xun looked around and nodded in satisfaction - today's harvest was definitely better than last time!
Wait..."I think it's better for us to finish and get home as soon as possible."
"What's the matter?" Zhang Yi stretched.
"Bad weather, it might snow!" If the snow blocked half the road... he was afraid they would have a hard time getting back alive. Even if they had several strong ability users, how much food did they have?! It was impossible to find any food amidst the ruins of the city.
After Luo Xun leapt from the sofa, quickly grabbed the crossbow and shot at the remaining zombies.
Once the battle was finished, Yan Fei formed a metal sieve and was responsible for collecting the dead zombies inside the pit while Yu Xinran manipulated sand to pick nuclei from nearby scattered zombies. The rest began to clean up their supplies and pack.
After Yan Fei picked up the nuclei and the traps, he left a part along the road as an emergency weapon.
Song Lingling once again made ice to act as snow and Zhang Yi blew it around. Although it was likely to snow, but if it didn't? Need to clean up lest they get targeted.
*Woosh* As Zhang Yi spread the snow around then turned to Luo Xun."Okay, we are ready to go."
Everyone prepared to climb into the sled. Song Lingling suddenly asked, "Huh? Why is the snow still blowing?"
"Still blowing?" Everyone looked at Zhang Yi who had his hands in his pockets.
In the gray sky, snowflakes were fluttering through the air. People were more than a little worried - who knew when the wind picked up?
"Get back to base!"
Seeing the state of the sky Luo Xun loudly ordered the team. It was not just snow, there seemed to be strong winds. If it turned into a snowstorm, it would be dangerous if they were blocked halfway back.
The group of six quickly climbed into the sled and started the engine before driving back the way they came.
It was good that Luo Xun's sense of direction was excellent. Otherwise in this ice and snow, it would not be easy to find the way back to town.
There was no chance to place traps. Then again, how many zombies would the traps attract anything? Who knew how long the blood bags would last in the cold. They were afraid that after the blizzard, the traps would be blocked by heavy snow.
The wind grew larger and wilder, the snowflakes turned into dense snow. Luo Xun sped up but unfortunately the sled could only reach their current speed, not even equal to a car's speed.
"Don't worry we still have time." Yan Fei patted Luo Xun's shoulder in comfort.
Luo Xun nodded and fired off instructions."Form a sort of metal umbrella over us or the snow will be too heavy to bear." Yan Fei's metal umbrellas did not tilt in the wind like regular ones.
Yan Fei collected metal from around them to form semi-circle cover over the sled cars to guard against the snowstorm.
Zhang Yi muttered from inside the quilt."Summer so hot, winter so cold. After the end even a blizzard, what kind of freak weather is this?"
Right? What about global warming before the apocalypse? Bizarre phenomenon of not seeing snow in a year? How did everything turn so strange after the end of the world?
Well, perhaps snow in winter and hot summers were normal things before the end - of course it would depend on the geographical location.
With Yan Fei's metal cover, they felt much better when moving. Especially when the wind blew from behind them, their hoods blocked the cold.
The wind and snow outside become more and more severe. Yu Xinran was sandwiched with Xu Mei in the sled. Fortunately the sleds were joined with ropes and one was weighted down with supplies, otherwise they might be blown away.
"What time is it?"
"10:30." Yan Fei glanced at the time and loudly said to Luo Xun.
Luo Xun nodded. It was before noon and estimated the distance to where they stashed the cars. It would be nice to get there in the afternoon.
In though, Luo Xun felt a chill down his spine and whipped towards a metal panel. Yan Fei felt something too but their view was blocked. The two had not said anything when *Bang* something smashed into the metal plate!
| ← Ch. 139 | Ch. 141 → |