Chapter 153: Changyingzi Caravan

Chapter 153: Changyingzi Caravan

A cold gleam suddenly shot through the crack of the opening door.

Li Yanhong's pupils shrank sharply, a bone-chilling coldness rising rapidly from her spine.

Realizing the danger, she wanted to dodge.

But her body couldn't keep up with her reaction speed.

At this moment, Barson swiftly drew his blade and slashed at the spear.

Clang~!

A crisp sound rang out.

The spear was deflected downward, and the sharp tip struck the anti-stab vest on Li Yanhong's chest.

A force pushed her back, knocking her to the ground.

Li Yanhong scrambled to her feet in a panic, hiding behind the skeleton, her hands frantically checking her neck and body for wounds.

Apparently, the anti-stab vest had worked.

There was a mark on her chest, but it hadn't been pierced through.

Yet, the lingering fear still made her spine tingle with cold.

She never thought that, while trying to help survivors, the other side would actually try to kill her.

Her gaze toward the van was filled with rage.

Inside the van.

"Damn, damn it, so close." The man with the gold chain around his neck, Mr. Chen, cursed under his breath.

At such close range, he had still missed.

The skeleton beside her had drawn its sword too quickly.

Otherwise, they would have stabbed her to death with one blow.

If she had been killed, it would have been easier to deal with, but now that she wasn't dead, it was more complicated.

His gaze swept over the others in the van.

He shoved the short spear into the hands of a young woman with a blank stare and said, "You were too nervous and stabbed her, you got that?"

The woman's hands trembled as she instinctively took the spear.

"Did you hear me?"

The man shouted.

The woman still numbly nodded her head.

"Don't forget, I'm the one who saved you all. If anything happens to me, I'll drag you down with me. So behave!" Mr. Chen snorted coldly.

Several people in the van echoed his words.

Outside the van.

Li Yanhong had no intention of communicating with the people inside any longer and retreated to the back.

A large group of skeletons surrounded the van tightly.

One order, and the skeletons would overturn the van, killing everyone inside.

Just then...

The van doors all swung open.

Six people emerged—four men and two women, led by a tall, muscular man over 1.8 meters, with a gold chain around his neck.

They didn't look at all like they'd been starving in the apocalypse.

He shouted, "We're survivors too, don't attack! Please don't attack! That was just an overreaction."

As he spoke, he pulled one of the women forward.

"Hurry up and apologize!"

The woman, her eyes avoiding contact and looking dispirited, stammered, "I'm sorry. I was too nervous just now. I apologize."

Clatter!

The short spear in her hand fell to the ground and rolled away.

Her knees buckled, and she collapsed onto the ground.

The man with the gold chain, wary of the skeletons surrounding him, carefully said, "Miss, we mean no harm. We were hiding in a farmhouse until today, and we're still on edge."

Li Yanhong said nothing, and the skeletons surrounding them remained in place, keeping them encircled.

The man glanced around, then slapped the woman on the back of her head, scolding, "Apologize again!"

"I'm sorry, I'm sorry!" The woman lowered her head, her voice trembling with sobs.

Li Yanhong was unsure of what decision to make.

They hadn't done it on purpose, and no real harm had been done.

Besides, they were short on people right now...

She glanced at the truck behind her.

Creak~

The truck door opened, and Wu Heng slowly stepped out.

A few odd-looking skeletons followed him.

Seeing another person appear, the expressions of the remaining survivors grew even stranger.

The truck had been sealed tightly, with iron bars across the windows, so they couldn't see how many people were inside.

They had assumed the woman controlled the skeleton army, but now it seemed the real commander was someone else.

Fortunately, they hadn't killed her.

Otherwise, they wouldn't even have had a chance to explain themselves.

Seeing Wu Heng approach, the man with the gold chain forced a smile.

He pulled a wrinkled pack of cigarettes from his pocket, tapping the pack as he walked over, "Brother, my name is Chen Yongdong. Thanks for saving us."

Halfway there, he was stopped by a skeleton.

Wu Heng stood a short distance away and asked, "Which area are you the boss of?"

"Hey, no boss here, just a regular survivor," the man said.

Wu Heng kept staring at him, asking, "That spear just now—you threw it, didn't you? Too scared to fight zombies, but eager to kill people?"

The man's pupils shrank, but he quickly forced a smile back onto his face, "No, no, it wasn't me! It was her, that woman's just too jumpy, a bit nervous."

Wu Heng looked at him and said directly, "Kill him!"

"Huh? Isn't that a bit much..."

The man thought Wu Heng meant to kill the woman kneeling on the ground.

But before he could finish speaking, the sound of something slicing through the air interrupted him.

A massive fist swung from the side.

Bang~!

The sound of a blow landed, and the man's neck snapped audibly.

His eyes widened, and blood gushed from his mouth as he muttered, "It wasn't me..."

His body fell backward, lifeless.

The few others in the distance looked on in terror.

This man was ruthless, swiftly deciding and executing without hesitation.

Wu Heng glanced at the remaining people.

Three men, two women.

"Kill everyone holding a weapon," Wu Heng commanded.

Clatter!

In an instant, the skeletons pounced on the group by the van, cleavers coming down, and within moments, the place was filled with the sound of their screams as they were chopped into pieces.

Only the woman who had been pulled out earlier remained alive.

She crouched on the ground, hugging her head, not making a sound, her body trembling uncontrollably.

Weak and helpless.

She and the men were clearly in very different states.

They didn't seem to be part of the same group.

Wu Heng didn't say much more and cast [Converse with the Dead] on one of the corpses.

The corpse sat up, its eyes staring at Wu Heng.

Wu Heng asked, "What's your relationship with this woman?"

The corpse answered, "She was staying at the farmhouse, and because of her looks, she was kept around."

Wu Heng nodded and released the spell.

The corpse lay back down on the ground.

Wu Heng looked at the trembling woman and said, "I know you weren't with them. You can leave now, or come with us."

The woman lifted her head, dazed, glancing at the bodies on the ground.

Then she looked up at Li Yanhong and asked, "Do I have to survive by using my body?"

Li Yanhong understood what she meant.

Glancing at Wu Heng, she said, "We're a legitimate shelter. If you want to come with us, no one will force you, but you'll still need to do what work you can manage."

"Then... I'll go with you."

In this world, being alone meant death.

As long as she didn't want to die, she could only follow them back.

"Should she sit in the back?" Li Yanhong asked.

In the truck, Li Yanhong drove, with Wu Heng in the passenger seat.

In the back sat Barson, Bagdong, and the Big-Head Skeleton in the middle.

The back was a bit cramped, but with the woman in her current state, sitting between skeletons might scare her to death.

"Let her sit in the truck bed. It's covered with a canvas tarp," Wu Heng said.

"Alright." Li Yanhong nodded and told the woman to take off her coat for a distance inspection, checking if she had any weapons. Afterward, they placed her in the truck bed.

She curled up in a corner, silent.

Wu Heng glanced at the van, which was filled with various supplies.

He had the skeletons load everything into the truck bed, then tore the gold chain from Mr. Chen's neck.

He got back into the truck.

The truck started, continuing down the road.

Li Yanhong gripped the steering wheel with both hands, touching the mark left by the spear on her body. "Luckily, I was wearing this, or I'd be dead."

In situations like this, even a small wound is too dangerous.

Otherwise, it would be too easy to get infected by the virus.

Considering the position and force of the strike earlier, if Barson hadn't changed its trajectory with his blade, or if I wasn't wearing an anti-stab vest, I would have died right then and there.

Just like Wu Heng said last time about Qiangzi and the others.

Not dying to the zombies, but to something trivial like this. It's a senseless way to go.

"When we get back, let's install a loudspeaker on the truck. That way, no one has to get out." Wu Heng said.

The earlier situation had startled Wu Heng too.

Who could've imagined these people were so messed up?

They just went straight for the kill.

"But using a loudspeaker might attract zombies."

"We don't fear regular zombies anymore. We'll still install one when we get back. I remember those city patrol trucks have them. We'll find one and take it."

"Alright, we'll install one when we get back."

The truck moved forward, with large numbers of skeletons still flanking both sides, continuing their advance.

...

Meanwhile.

Changyingzi District.

In a semi-underground garage.

Over thirty people, men and women alike, were loading items onto several vans.

Everyone looked gaunt and haggard, their faces full of despair and dread.

Zzz~!

A walkie-talkie hanging from someone's waist crackled to life.

A low, urgent voice came through, "A horde of zombies is closing in, and there are too many of them. If we don't leave now, it'll be too late."

Before anyone could respond, the walkie-talkie urged again.

"We really don't have time. If we don't leave now, we'll all die here."

A disheveled man in his thirties pressed the walkie-talkie and said, "Come down, we're getting ready to leave."

He put down the walkie-talkie and addressed the others, "Get in the cars, leave the rest behind. Hurry up, don't waste time!"

The people, anxious and uncertain, quickly boarded the vehicles under his orders.

"Boss, everyone's in." someone called out from the convoy.

The middle-aged man checked the time and said, "Signal Wang Dong's group."

"Got it!"

Following his command, a thick plume of smoke rose into the sky outside the garage.

Not long after.

Boom~!

A thunderous explosion echoed from a distant direction.

Then came the sound of collapsing debris and objects shattering.

The walkie-talkie crackled again.

"The zombies are being drawn away."

"Get down here."

Soon, a figure climbed down from above and jumped into a car.

"Go! Move out!"

Roarrr~!

The convoy started up, pulling out of the garage in a line and driving down a pre-cleared road, heading into the distance.

Behind them, a dense mass of zombies surged toward the site of the explosion and smoke.

Despite that, the sound of the convoy still caught the attention of a large number of zombies.

Zombies from all directions charged toward the convoy.

From the rooftops of the nearby apartment buildings, zombies smashed through windows, dropping onto the cars like raindrops.

Thud, thud.

Creak~!

As the number of zombies increased, some vehicles began to lose control, crashing into the sides of the road.

Smoke billowed as they were quickly engulfed by the zombie horde.

The expressions of those in the remaining vehicles turned grim.

Children and women quietly sobbed.

The man's voice came through the walkie-talkie again, "Keep the convoy moving. Any disabled vehicles, clear the way. Give the others a chance."

Vroooom~!

The remaining vehicles continued to press forward. The drivers took a deep breath, flooring the gas pedal.

Whether they could make it out or not would be decided here.

Meanwhile, more zombies in the rear, realizing they'd been fooled, began moving away from the explosion and toward the fleeing convoy.

They filled the entire street.

A massive, roaring horde.

Screaming and snarling.

...

Meanwhile.

Wu Heng and Li Yanhong were slowly approaching in their truck.

Li Yanhong had clearly been shaken.

She remained silent, her face looking grim.

"How are you feeling?" Wu Heng asked.

"I'm fine." Li Yanhong smiled, continuing, "I'm still a little shaken though. If it wasn't for Barson, I probably would've died."

It wasn't just that I almost got stabbed to death—even a minor cut from a weapon that had killed zombies would've infected me.

So, at the time, I was terrified. Now, I'm still scared.

The more I think about it, the scarier it gets.

"It's fine. If that had happened, I would've turned you into a skeleton."

Li Yanhong's eyes widened in disbelief as she looked at him, "Wow, thank you so much. You really wouldn't have given up on me, huh?"

"Just kidding. Be more careful next time."

"Mm!"

The two exchanged a few more words before continuing on their way.

Boom~!

Suddenly, a massive, deafening explosion echoed through the air.

The ground beneath them trembled slightly.

Li Yanhong immediately hit the brakes.

They both opened the doors and stuck their heads out, looking ahead.

In the distance, a thick plume of black smoke was rising from a building.

A dense mass of dark shapes was converging toward the site of the explosion.

"Could it be the military bombing the area?" Li Yanhong asked.

"No, it's a residential building that exploded." Wu Heng quickly analyzed the situation and added, "It was probably deliberate, to lure the zombies away."

Before he could finish speaking.

In the distance, they spotted a convoy speeding toward them.

Cars were being swarmed by zombies as they moved, crashing into the sides of the road and being overwhelmed by the horde.

Zzz~!

At the same time, the truck's walkie-talkie crackled with static.

Soon, a broken transmission came through, urging the convoy to keep moving and instructing damaged vehicles to clear the road and attract the zombies.

The frequency had been picked up.

Li Yanhong looked up at Wu Heng.

Wu Heng said, "See if we can make contact with them. We'll open up a path so they can pass through."

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