TL: Moonlit

After the two returned, Ji Rong noticed that their boss was acting strange, and something seemed off about him.

Xiao Hen said, “We’ll accompany you. He Lin and the others haven’t come back yet. Waiting indefinitely is not a solution.”

Ji Rong: “…”

Who was it that said earlier that Old He and Old Shi might be in trouble? Why the sudden change to “waiting indefinitely”?

Wen Qingling remained indifferent, thinking that the more people they had, the more help they would have in capturing mutant livestock. Free labor shouldn’t be wasted.

The large truck they were in was loaded with ropes and cages, all prepared for capturing mutant livestock.

Ji Rong and Xiao Hen drove their off-road vehicle behind the truck as they left the city with a rumbling sound.

Ji Rong made a hissing sound with his mouth, catching Xiao Hen’s attention. He squinted and gestured, “What’s going on with you guys?”

Xiao Hen leaned back in his seat, looking at the truck in front of them with a helpless expression. “I feel dirty.”

Ji Rong slammed on the brakes, almost throwing Xiao Hen out of the car, and exclaimed in shock, “Boss, you, you, you, you, you were violated?!”

Veins popped on Xiao Hen’s forehead as he kicked out, “Just drive properly!”

Ji Rong, after being kicked, didn’t give up and asked, “No, what do you mean by ‘dirty’?”

Xiao Hen felt hopeless, “I was bitten by ‘General,’ and Qingling thinks I’m dirty.”

Ji Rong: “…”

Ji Rong: “…”

Ji Rong: “…”

He silently started the car, silently drove away, and silently closed his mouth.

Ji Rong decided that he didn’t want to talk anymore.

Calling him “Qingling” and saying there was no issue.

Ji Rong glanced at his boss’s lower region and covered his eyes. It felt like his eyes were going blind. No wonder he thought their boss walked strangely. No matter who rode a wooden saddle, they couldn’t walk properly!

Xiao Hen slapped him, “Drive properly! Do you think you’re Qingling? Can you see the road without eyes?!”

Ji Rong banged his head on the steering wheel and said helplessly, “Boss, you can’t vent your anger on me. If you have the guts, go find Dr. Wen to vent, don’t beat me.”

Xiao Hen took a deep breath, realizing that his anger was indeed too fierce. That’s why he wanted to go out and kill zombies to vent.

The large truck headed north, followed by the off-road vehicle. Old Zhou was constantly looking for a gas station as the truck’s fuel was running low. They found the first gas station, but it was empty, without a drop of fuel. He had to detour to find the gas station he remembered, taking several turns before finally finding a relatively large one.

The convenience store outside the gas station was surrounded by zombies, frantically scratching and banging against the glass door. There seemed to be survivors inside the convenience store. The crazed zombies were attracted by the roaring engines and turned to pounce on the truck and off-road vehicle.

As they leaped onto the truck, all the zombies were horrified and howling, dodging away. However, the following off-road vehicle suffered. A small group of zombies attacked it ferociously, and Ji Rong abruptly turned the steering wheel, causing the vehicle to swerve and send a few zombies flying.

Xiao Hen was ready to vent his anger on the zombies. With his long knife in hand, he began his performance as Xiao San Dao (Third Blade). However, it didn’t even take three strikes to kill these ordinary zombies. He moved freely among the zombie horde, one slash per zombie as if cutting vegetables.

The front truck had already stopped, preparing to refuel. Everyone in the vehicle got off. Jiang Lan looked at Xiao Hen, who was killing zombies alone, and nudged her son, whispering, “Aren’t you going to help?”

Wen Qingling glanced at her and said, “No need.”

Less than twenty ordinary zombies were no match for Xiao Hen.

While Xiao Hen killed zombies up front, Ji Rong followed behind and dug out crystal nuclei, their cooperation seamless.

When the zombies were finally eliminated, Xiao Hen flicked the blood off his knife and sheathed it gracefully.Xiao Hen looked at Wen Qingling and the others, who were completely ignored by the zombies, and remembered that they were not human.

Ning Ning took Feng Tongtong and happily skipped to the convenience store, looking for snacks. Children, regardless of whether it’s the end of the world or before the end of the world, have no resistance to snacks. When Wen Qingling’s spiritual power was weak, they couldn’t eat whatever they wanted. But now, Wen Qingling’s power has improved to the point where they can eat whatever they want.

The two children pushed the door but it didn’t budge. Feng Tongtong took out the weapon tied around her waist in a poised manner.

Ning Ning hurriedly stopped her. “Don’t move, I’ll handle it.”

Ning Ning also took out a weapon from his waist and took a few steps back with Feng Tongtong. He aimed the gun at the glass door and fired it. Ning Ning stood firmly, unaffected by the recoil.

Their physical abilities were not comparable to ordinary children, after all, ordinary children didn’t possess the strength of an evolved zombie.

A scream came from inside the convenience store, obviously startled by the sound of the weapon.

Wen Bo’s angry shout came, “Ning Ning, you brat! Using a weapon at the gas station, do you want to kill everyone?!”

Ning Ning waved his hand dismissively. “It won’t explode, don’t worry.”

Ning Ning entered the convenience store with Feng Tongtong, walking on a floor covered in glass shards. This area was relatively remote, and there were still many things in the store that hadn’t been looted. Ning Ning grabbed two bottles of mineral water from the shelf and walked out. “Auntie, big brother, have some water.”

Ning Ning handed the water to Jiang Lan and Wen Qingling.

Jiang Lan took it and praised him for being a good boy. Suddenly, a scream came from inside the convenience store. Everyone turned their heads to see that Feng Bin had already rushed over but was slowly retreating—one group of people came out from the convenience store, with a young man at the forefront, holding Feng Tongtong’s weapon against her head. Feng Tongtong still clutched a pile of snacks in her arms as she was being held hostage.

Xiao Hen and Ji Rong walked up to Wen Qingling. Wen Qingling calmly drank the water without even sparing a glance at the survivors.

“Throw all the weapons you have on you! Give us the car keys! Hurry up!”

Such a familiar voice. Wen Qingling didn’t expect that after more than two years in the apocalypse, he would encounter a high school classmate here, especially one with whom he didn’t have a harmonious relationship.

Wen Qingling gulped down a bottle of water in one breath and then squeezed the empty bottle, finally giving them a glance. “And if we don’t?”

Among the people who came out, Jiang Lan, Old Zhou, Feng Bin, and Wen Bo all had automatic weapons on their backs. Xiao Hen had a knife in his hand, and Ji Rong was a supernatural ability user. He didn’t carry weapons and relied on his abilities to fight. But if he really needed a weapon, Xiao Hen would give him one. However, Ji Rong was a regular soldier, so he had the habit of carrying weapons. Even if he didn’t have a gun on him, he definitely had short-range weapons like a military knife.

Among all the people, the one who truly had no weapon was Wen Qingling. He only had a backpack, and inside the backpack were the blood anemones that he never separated from. From top to bottom, he didn’t even have a self-defense dagger.

With so many weapons, it was enough to make the survivors jealous, especially with Feng Tongtong being a ready-made hostage inside the convenience store. It would be abnormal if they didn’t take action.

Feng Yi, who was holding Feng Tongtong hostage, was stunned. “Wen Qingling, you’re still alive?”

And not just alive but doing so well!

Looking at this group of people, their clothes were clean and neat, weapons were standard equipment, and even the children had weapons. How affluent were they?!

Jiang Lan sneered, “It’s truly a case of what kind of person produces what kind of child. If you can survive, why can’t our Qingling survive? You’re being a bit too domineering with your words.”

Jiang Lan called out to a middle-aged woman hiding in the crowd. “Am I right, Sang Qin? Don’t hide, I see you. You’re actually still alive, truly surprising.”

The middle-aged woman’s clothes were relatively clean, but her hair was a bit messy, probably scattered while fleeing. Her face was slightly gaunt, maintaining such an appearance in the apocalypse was quite good overall, but compared to the radiant Jiang Lan, she seemed dull and lackluster.

Sang Qin adjusted her long hair, proudly raised her chin, and walked forward. “You’re still alive, so I definitely can’t die.”

Jiang Lan grabbed Wen Qingling’s arm and pulled him over. “Qingling, let me introduce you. This is Sang Qin. Back when we were young, she was my best friend. We could even share a dress. But she betrayed me, stole my boyfriend, and had a shotgun wedding with that despicable man! I absolutely couldn’t tolerate such a grudge, so I had a shotgun wedding with your father too. Your father had been pursuing me for many years with unwavering devotion, and now we’re living so well together. There’s a saying that goes, ‘When three people get involved, the situation becomes complicated.’ How about it? Are you satisfied with the man you dug out from under your best friend? Did you find a few mistresses for him?”

Sang Qin could hardly maintain her composure and gritted her teeth in hatred. “Jiang Lan, you’re as venomous with your words as ever!”

The man she had truly loved started cheating on her within two years of their marriage. She cried, fought, and scolded, but in the end, she had to accept it. She couldn’t leave that man and could only endure his repeated infidelity. In order to show off in front of Jiang Lan, she would deliberately bring her man to class reunions, flaunting their affection and provoking Jiang Lan.

Jiang Lan sighed deeply. “You don’t know, during our annual class reunions, how much I wanted to laugh when I saw you deliberately flaunting your affection in front of me. Maybe you don’t know, but our classmates knew about your husband’s infidelity even before you did. His first affair was with a distant cousin of his. A classmate deliberately told me the news. Congratulations to me for having good judgment and dumping that scumbag early, and you conveniently took over. Isn’t that great news?”

Sang Qin’s face turned pale and red alternately, and she was on the verge of losing her mind. She had been striving all her life, but she fell into a trap with a despicable man. But she refused to admit defeat. She worked hard to educate her two children, comparing them to Jiang Lan’s children in every aspect. Whatever Jiang Lan’s children had, her children had to have it too. Whatever school Jiang Lan’s children got into, her children had to get into the same school. She was determined not to lose to Jiang Lan.

She even wanted to have one more child than Jiang Lan. Having both a son and a daughter would make her better than Jiang Lan!

Except for her poor judgment in choosing men compared to Jiang Lan, Sang Qin believed she was not inferior to her in any way. But today, in this post-apocalyptic world, their true colors were revealed as soon as they met.

She lost to Jiang Lan.

But how could she admit it?She firmly refused to admit it!

Sang Qin sneered, “As they say, what goes around comes around. That despicable man turned into a zombie at the beginning of the apocalypse. How about your precious Wen? Is he still alive? Did he turn into a zombie?”

Jiang Lan burst into laughter, her stiff face almost cracking. “My precious Wen is doing just fine. He’s still handsome as ever. Our base is so big that there are always people to take care of things. Are you having your old habit again? Fantasizing about my precious Wen?”

“Watch your mouth! Your inability to keep a man is your own fault. Don’t blame others for snatching them away! Besides having a weapon, what else do you have to be proud of?” A bold eighteen or nineteen-year-old girl spoke out, her attitude unusually arrogant, directly confronting Jiang Lan.

Jiang Lan was amused by her provocation. “Sang Qin, is this your daughter? Truly following in your footsteps, with the same twisted values and shamelessness!”

“Shut up!” Feng Yi couldn’t bear it anymore. He gritted his teeth and said, “I’ll say it again, hand over the weapon and the car keys!”

Wen Qingling calmly replied, “I’ll say it again too, forget about it.”

Feng Yi tightened his grip on the trigger. “Don’t you care about this child’s life?!”

Yang Mengyu came forward from the crowd to stop him. “Feng Yi, let her go. She’s just a child. We’re all classmates. Don’t make things so tense.”

Feng Hui pulled Yang Mengyu aside. “Are you crazy? It’s the apocalypse now. Can we survive on classmates? Look at how many weapons they have. If we can get them, it’s enough to rebuild a base!”

Yang Mengyu didn’t agree with her. She walked over, picked up Feng Tongtong from the ground, and faced Feng Yi’s weapon. “Do you want to kill me too?”

Feng Yi remained silent, feeling a great deal of pressure. At this moment, none of the people on Wen Qingling’s side raised their weapons against them. They weren’t scared or threatened by his actions. He leaned weakly and let them go.

Yang Mengyu returned Feng Tongtong to her brother, Feng Bin. “Sorry, our base was destroyed by zombies. We barely escaped. If we hadn’t encountered you, we might have died here.”

Wen Qingling said, “The weapon.”

Yang Mengyu looked at Feng Yi, who clenched the weapon tightly, reluctant to give it back to the child.

Yang Mengyu said, “Feng Yi, give it back to them.”

Feng Hui became furious. “Yang Mengyu, whose side are you on?!”

Ignoring Feng Hui’s shouting, Yang Mengyu looked directly at Feng Yi. “Give the weapon to them.”

Feng Yi gritted his teeth and threw the weapon into Wen Qingling’s hands.

Wen Qingling caught it and handed it over to Feng Tongtong. “Keep it safe. How can your own weapon be taken away by others?”

Feng Tongtong blinked her big eyes. “Brother said I can’t bite or scratch people. They attacked me.”

Wen Qingling patted her little head. “That’s right, you can’t bite or scratch, but you can bump into people. You’re quite strong. You can try it next time.”

Feng Tongtong nodded obediently. “I’ll remember.”

Xiao Hen had been observing Wen Qingling’s actions all along. Although he didn’t get close to humans and didn’t actively cause trouble, he was still tolerant towards humans. This could be seen from the infected people he had saved. Whether it was for the sake of earning crystal cores or not, his actions had proven his choices.

Taking advantage of the fact that the gas station had fuel, Xiao Hen had Ji Rong fill up the fuel tank.

As for Old Zhou, not only did he fill up the tank, but he also brought several large oil drums and filled them with as much fuel as they could carry.

After more than two years in the apocalypse, most gas stations were empty. If things continued like this, in the future, people would have to rely on their own legs and bicycles for travel. All fuel-consuming vehicles would be exhausted.

After returning Feng Tongtong’s weapon, Wen Qingling no longer paid attention to them and followed Jiang Lan into the convenience store.

Jiang Lan was thrifty and frugal. Seeing so much food, she naturally couldn’t waste it. She found a shopping basket and swept everything into it, preparing to take everything with them.

Wen Qingling said, “Mom, don’t take so much. We can’t carry it all.”

Jiang Lan continued without stopping, “With such a big truck outside, are you feeling guilty saying we can’t carry it?”

Xiao Hen walked beside Wen Qingling. “You can put it with me.”

He was a spatial ability user. He could carry many things.

Wen Qingling glanced at him. “No need.”

Xiao Hen: “…”

Yang Mengyu approached. “Wen Qingling, can we talk?”

Xiao Hen had a deep understanding of this “talk,” but unfortunately, he had failed at it.

Wen Qingling nodded slightly, indicating for Yang Mengyu to go outside and talk.