C24 Chapter 24
Having learned from past experiences, I couldn't recklessly entrust my teammates' lives to fate. To me, their safety is paramount; my own hardship is of little consequence," Faang Yu said, gripping his fists tightly. He was resolute in his conviction to never abandon his brothers, regardless of whether they ever developed special abilities.
Jiang Ruan gave a nonchalant shrug. "It's good that you see it that way, but you might want to consider everyone's input. Not everyone has the same level of determination. You and your team are not the same as Zeng Qiang and his group."
"Let's head down for breakfast. We'll set out shortly," Jiang Ruan said, seemingly indifferent to Faang Yu's reaction. She had said her piece; the decision was now up to Faang Yu and his companions.
As Jiang Ruan walked away, a voice in Faang Yu's heart urged him to protect the girl before him at all costs.
Breakfast remained the humble fare of potatoes and water. Jiang Ruan's daily routine involved providing a basin of water for everyone to drink, morning, noon, and night. Yet the mood at the table was oddly tense due to Lu Ming's presence, casting a shadow over Zeng Qiang's face, devoid of any trace of joy.
Jiang Ruan had an inkling about what was going on. Lu Ming, with his sharp intellect, surely needed to witness failure firsthand to decide whether to use the crystal nucleus to awaken his own abilities. Clearly, he was scared.
"After we eat, let's quickly pack up. Soon, we'll head out on foot to retrieve the car we stashed outside the forest, and make sure to take all the supplies with us," Jiang Ruan instructed, her words met with a hushed silence.
Lu Ming, astute enough to grasp the situation, kept his dissatisfaction with Jiang Ruan's leadership to himself.
The dining table was charged with an eerie silence as everyone hurried through their meal. Jiang Ruan wasn't satiated; she longed for meat, a craving that even haunted her dreams. Yet, subsisting on potatoes daily, though tasteless, allowed her to sustain her strength, and for that, she was grateful.
Once breakfast was over, the group packed up and set out. Faang Yu took the lead, while Zeng Qiang, with his defensive abilities, brought up the rear to cover their tracks. Jiang Ruan walked in the center, the heart of their makeshift family.
Emerging from the forest without encountering any zombies, they located the car concealed within a haystack and loaded it with their belongings. Soon after, they were cruising along the national highway toward A City.
As they traveled, they occasionally encountered stray zombies, which Liu Dajun and his group dispatched with ease.
The rest of the journey passed without incident, and by noon, they pulled over to strategize their approach into the city.
"There's a stadium in A City," Jiang Ruan proposed. "It's tall and situated on the outskirts, making it less populated and easier for us to handle. Once we pass through the toll station, we'll head west. When we get to the stadium, we can figure out our next move."
No one contested her plan, and despite Zeng Qiang and Lu Ming's reservations about Jiang Ruan, survival was the priority.
Post-lunch, they set off for the toll station, but Jiang Ruan could sense zombies nearby—around sixty of them. She chose not to alarm Zeng Qiang, feigning sleep as they drew closer, the looming threat becoming unmistakably evident.
"This is bad. Zombies ahead. Miss Jiang, what's our move?" Zeng Qiang's voice trembled upon spotting the horde, his courage faltering, while Lu Ming looked equally unsettled.
Before Jiang Ruan could respond, Faang Yu stepped forward with his men. "Miss Jiang, there's a group of fifty to sixty zombies ahead. We could take them head-on, possibly breaking through, but if we detour down the back roads, it'll take us two days just to clear the outskirts, not to mention the increased danger in the woods."
