"Gurgle... tsk..."
The heavily damaged escort vehicle finally came to a halt with an unpleasant sound, unable to bear the burden. A large cloud of white mist billowed from the engine hood, and when Jack jumped down to open it, he immediately cursed under his breath. Then he turned to the people in the vehicle and shouted, "Everyone, quickly grab your things! It looks like we have to walk!"
"What happened? Can't the vehicle be repaired?" Hu Laoda was the first to jump down and hurriedly check in front of the vehicle.
"The radiator is cracked. We should be thankful we got this far!" Jack shook his head and said helplessly.
After more than ten minutes, the girls, who were on the verge of collapse, finally got off the vehicle. They couldn't take all the food tied to the roof, especially those delicious rice dumplings. They could only take as much as possible, and each person's backpack was almost stuffed to the brim. Leaving the relatively safe environment of the escort vehicle, everyone felt a bit unaccustomed. Looking at the surroundings where one could hardly see their own hands, the girls huddled together, their slender bodies shivering helplessly in the dark.
"Cao Mei on the left, Bai Ru on the right, Hu Laoda, you bring up the rear!" Jack frowned as he looked at the women huddled together. He stood at the front, holding a flashlight, and said loudly, "No matter what happens on the way, or what terrifying things you see, you must not scream. You all know the consequences of attracting a horde of corpses. The three of you with guns should try not to use them if possible. Behind us is the county town, and everyone saw how many living corpses are inside. Alright, everyone stay alert, we're setting off!"
A group of people slowly set off, walking on a bumpy path covered with thick Marcus sand. If it weren't for the occasional kicking up of a pile of gravel, no one would have noticed that this was originally a smooth asphalt road. It was probably due to the previous tightness of Thomas that everyone noticed at this moment that the surrounding buildings, whether collapsed or still standing, were all covered with thick Marcus sand. Even the various trees that used to line the road were bent over by the Marcus sand, and upon closer inspection, only a few trees could be seen still surviving.
"This doesn't make sense. We're close to the Yangtze River, and we're not in the northwest. How is it that this place is almost turning into a desert?" Thomas said, linking arms with Jack and looking around in surprise.
"I'm also quite surprised; the environment here almost makes me think I've arrived in America. The Las Vegas buried under Marcus's sand is so similar to this place!" Jack frowned, his eyes filled with disbelief.
"Master Lin, I estimate that the situation in Jiangcheng won't be too good either!" Bai Ru approached with a gun, looking at Jack with unusual seriousness.
"...Let's take it one step at a time. When we find a good place, I'll make sure to settle you all first!" Jack waved his hand and said wearily.
A group of people slowly walked along the path covered in Marcus's sand. The warmth of their bodies huddled together couldn't bring even a bit of comfort to anyone's heart. Only by seeing the firm and broad back ahead could they feel a sense of solid security coming from there.
...
Jack chopped off the last zombie's head with a knife. He wiped the sweat from his forehead and turned to everyone, saying, "Let's clean up here; we'll rest tonight, and tomorrow morning we'll figure out how to get a vehicle!"
The crowd numbly nodded. They were extremely tired, having walked over ten kilometers after a huge scare, only to find this relatively safe two-story small restaurant. Moreover, that ten-kilometer walk was not peaceful at all. If it weren't for Jack and Michael, even if they all had guns, they probably wouldn't have escaped total annihilation, as any random gutter could have a zombie ready to take their lives.
Everyone was on edge, walking cautiously along the way. The initial excitement of traveling was long gone, and even the exhaustion they felt couldn't fully describe their current fatigue. Sometimes, the mental torment was even more painful than the physical one.
After Jack finished speaking, Hu Laoda pointed out a few girls to clean up the incomplete corpses on the ground. Although the girls were very reluctant, there were only two men here, and Jack was already exhausted from the journey. No one had the heart to ask him to do physical labor, so the understanding girls could only grit their teeth and take turns doing the hard work with the grinning Hu Laoda, throwing the incomplete corpses outside the restaurant.
The small restaurant they found was the only decent place around. The other places were either damaged and collapsed or had more zombies than people. Fortunately, after Jack took down three zombies, nothing else emerged, and what was rare was that the second floor had many rooms available for accommodation. After sleeping on the ground for the past two days, it was time to sleep in a bed.
When the girls finished cleaning and returned to the room, Jack and Hu Laoda worked together to block the main hall's door with a large table. Jack initially wanted Hu Laoda to go to the kitchen to cook something warm for everyone to fill their stomachs, but seeing that Hu Laoda was also exhausted, Jack could only sigh and say, "Just eat something quickly and rest. Save all the drinking water; it's likely to be a problem in the future. Tonight, those with guns will take turns keeping watch. Cao Mei, you and Bai Ru will go first, then me, and Hu Laoda. Each person will take a three-hour shift!"
When Cao Mei and Hu Laoda heard Jack tell them to take turns, one first and one last, they both smiled gratefully at Jack. Only Bai Ru looked at Jack with a hesitant expression. It was clear that the person on the first watch wouldn't be the most exhausted; after three more hours, they could go to sleep. In contrast, the person on the last watch would have already slept for about six hours, making it the one in the middle who had the hardest time. They would have to wake up just when they were sleeping soundly to change shifts, and when it was time for them to sleep again, they wouldn't have many hours left, and they might not even be able to fall asleep. That's why Cao Mei and Hu Laoda showed such expressions.
Everyone went upstairs one by one to find their respective sleeping rooms. Although there weren't many rooms upstairs, there were still over a dozen. However, the girls were already terrified and no one dared to sleep alone; they paired up in twos. If the beds in the rooms weren't so small, they would have preferred to squeeze three or four people together.
All the girls went to sleep, while Cao Mei and Bai Ru took out a hand-cranked camping lamp and placed it on the table. They each held a gun and sat on either side of the hall. Hu Laoda stretched lazily and followed the girls upstairs, trying to ingratiate himself by chatting with them. However, the result didn't seem good; the girls all had cold expressions and completely ignored him. Rui Enli hurriedly went upstairs with Jiao Jiao, and after entering the room, she slammed the door shut with a loud bang, nearly hitting Hu Laoda in the face. Hu Laoda could only curse a few times in frustration and found an empty room to sleep alone.
Jack gave the two women a few more instructions before turning to go upstairs. Looking at the tightly closed doors on the second floor, Jack was puzzled. Why were all the doors closed? Although he had seen the girls' bodies, it didn't seem appropriate to just barge in; what if they happened to be undressed? Should he knock on each door to check?
Just as Jack reached out a hand, the innermost door suddenly opened. He saw Thomas Hong, with her bare white thighs and only a white shirt, walking out while holding a camping lamp. Her beautiful eyes were fixed on Jack, and the expectation on her face was unmistakable!