Chapter 7

Chapter 7

Turning a corner, Yan Bubu saw a long line ahead.

"Young master, they are distributing food," his eyes lit up.

"I see it."

The two joined the queue, following the crowd forward.

Two military vehicles were parked ahead, with soldiers handing down food. Everyone approaching received two bottles of water and two loaves of bread. Seven or eight soldiers maintained order, each with a gun at their waist.

Moments later, as they neared the front of the line, they noticed soldiers with scanners checking each person’s identity. Everyone extended their wrist for the scanner to extract their personal information.

In the United Republic, personal identification is stored as a biometric chip under the skin of the wrist, which can be scanned to display clear and detailed identity information.

"Wu Fan, you're a resident of Lule City. Why are you in Haiyun City?" the soldier lifted his eyes, scrutinizing the man before him.

The man hurriedly explained, "I came to Haiyun City to visit a friend and just happened to be here when the earthquake hit. Now, I have no choice but to stay."

"Your brother is Wu Xun, a sergeant in the Eastern Alliance Army from Lule City, correct?" the soldier asked, looking down at the scanner.

Surprised, the man asked, "Yes, my brother is in the Eastern Alliance Army. Are relatives of the Eastern Alliance Army not allowed to receive food here?"

"It's not that you can't. We in the Western Alliance Army and the Eastern Alliance Army both serve the United Republic; there's no distinction..." the soldier began, uttering a line that no one believed, before revealing a cold smirk, "But you also have a younger brother who joined the Anbu Jiao Church?"

The man's face changed drastically, "I... my younger brother... I haven't been in contact with him for a long time."

The soldier slowly lifted his head, his expression darkening, "Who did you come to Haiyun City to visit? Why can’t we find any travel records of your arrival in our database?"

The man looked around as if seeking help from others, but everyone remained silent, so he turned back.

"Officer, I really don't have much contact with my brother. I don’t know anything about the Anbu Jiao Church. I came along with a tour group—"

"Step aside," the soldier coldly interrupted, "You’ll be questioned later."

Several soldiers maintaining order noticed the commotion and approached warily, drawing their guns from their holsters as they walked.

The man, no longer daring to speak, stepped out of the line and stood aside.

Yan Bubu felt the hand holding his tighten and looked up at Feng Chen to see his face stern, lips pressed into a straight line.

"Let’s go."

Yan Bubu was pulled along, silently leaving the queue with Feng Chen.

The two hurried toward a nearby alley and managed to go unnoticed, but as they slipped into the alley, a soldier who was closest turned around, catching a glimpse of Feng Chen’s back.

At a time like this, nobody would leave the line before receiving their food. Sensing something amiss, the soldier quickly followed them.

Reaching the entrance of the alley, the soldier found it empty, with the winding path leading ahead, littered with broken bricks and rubble.

He touched the stun baton at his waist, then moved his hand back to draw his pistol, peering into the gaps in the broken walls.

Finding no one behind the walls, the soldier advanced slowly, gun in hand.

Yan Bubu was hiding behind a concrete slab, pressed close to Feng Chen, listening to the rustling footsteps, daring not to breathe.

He had always known there were two types of soldiers in the city: the Western Alliance and the Eastern Alliance. When his mother took him out and after being checked, the Eastern Alliance soldiers were always polite to them, while the Western Alliance ones were cold, and his mother would quickly lead him away.

Although the Western Alliance soldiers were a bit scary, they usually didn't hide from them. But now, with Feng Chen leading him to hide, Yan Bubu felt that being caught would lead to something terrible.

"Hey, I see you there, stop hiding, come on out," the soldier called from behind the wall.

Yan Bubu shuddered in fear, but Feng Chen tightened his grip on his hand and shook his head, gesturing for silence.

Yan Bubu quickly covered his mouth with his sleeve.

"No matter what crimes you've committed, we're in a crisis now. Let's get through this first, come out, don't worry, I won’t hurt you..." The soldier's voice was gentle, but the sound of a bullet being chambered followed.

Feng Chen, hunched over, peeked out from behind.

This movement caused his shirt to lift, revealing a sliver of his lean waist, reminiscent of a coiled cheetah, every muscle poised for a sudden strike.

Sensing something, the soldier started to turn around, but in that instant, Feng Chen lunged forward.

Yan Bubu trembled in fright but then heard only a muffled thud from behind the wall, followed by silence. He quickly crawled out from behind the concrete and saw a soldier lying motionless on the ground, with Feng Chen standing dazed beside him.

"Young, young master," Yan Bubu called out, his voice shaky.

Feng Chen didn't respond. He looked peculiar, staring at his clenched right fist, muttering, "I just hit him with one punch..."

"Young, young master, did you kill him?" Yan Bubu stood up and used his foot to push the gun on the ground away, cautiously moving it further away.

Feng Chen came to his senses and replied, "No, I just hit his temple, knocked him out."

The soldier's walkie-talkie crackled to life: "Li Ben, where are you? Li Ben, respond immediately if you receive this."

Feng Chen's expression tensed, "We need to go, they'll be looking for him soon. We must leave quickly."

He picked up the backpack from behind the broken wall and started running towards the other end of the alley with Yan Bubu. As they emerged from the alley, they heard the sound of hurried footsteps approaching from the other side.

Yan Bubu wasn’t a fast runner, so Feng Chen simply grabbed the back of his collar and started sprinting, holding him so that Yan Bubu was half-suspended in the air, his toes just skimming the ground.

The oversized suit caused Yan Bubu to gradually sink down, with only his eyes peering out from the neckline. Worried he might slip out of the collar, he frantically kicked his legs, trying to keep pace with Feng Chen, while looking around anxiously.

To their left, a row of collapsed bungalows lay ahead. The last house on the edge still stood, precariously leaning at a dangerous angle. The front door was blocked, but there was a small hole at the base of the right wall, just big enough for a person to crawl through.

"Young master, young master," Yan Bubu yelled urgently, pointing at the hole, "Look, quickly."

With their pursuers nearly catching up, Feng Chen didn’t hesitate. He rushed over, stuffing Yan Bubu through the hole.

Yan Bubu was agile, quickly crawling in, with Feng Chen following close behind. Once inside, Feng Chen stretched out his hand to find two pieces of broken stone to cover the hole.

The sound of chaotic footsteps stopped nearby, followed by several voices.

"Where did they go? Didn't see anyone outside, and there's nowhere to hide."

"There's a house, let's check it."

"The front door is blocked, and it looks like it could collapse any time. Don't get too close."

"Okay."

Yan Bubu and Feng Chen pressed against the wall, listening as the footsteps got closer, rustling around the house before stopping at the hole.

The stones blocking the entrance were lifted, letting in a beam of light, followed by a shadow as someone crouched down, attempting to peer inside.

Yan Bubu clutched the corner of Chen Feng's clothes tightly, watching him carefully remove his backpack and place it in a corner, covering it with something nearby, her heart pounding as if it would leap out of her throat.

Just then, the house began to shake violently, creaking all around, while flakes of wall plaster started falling from the entrance.

"Damn, there's an aftershock! Get back quickly, this building might collapse," someone shouted from not too far away.

Another person loudly agreed, "Let's go, maybe the person is still in the alley and hasn't come out. Let's go back and look."

The person at the entrance responded and then walked away, allowing light to flood back in.

Yan Bubu remained breathlessly focused until the voices of those people completely disappeared, then tugged at Chen Feng's clothes and whispered, "Young Master, they are gone."

Chen Feng didn't respond. When Yan Bubu looked at him, he saw Chen Feng staring up at the ceiling with a solemn expression, as if he had discovered something extraordinary.

He also looked up, but only saw a few cement slabs hanging precariously, nothing else.

"Young Master," he called out, bewildered.

"Hmm, wait a moment," Chen Feng replied, still looking upward.

The cement slabs above were illuminated by the light coming through, revealing several dark lines. These weren't straight lines, but rather curved vines attached to the slabs, some of which had embedded into the cement, as if they were growing from within.

"Flashlight," Chen Feng extended his hand.

Yan Bubu quickly opened the backpack in the corner and took out a flashlight, handing it to him.

Chen Feng illuminated the cement slab, revealing that what appeared to be thin ropes were actually deep green vines with dark, heart-shaped leaves.

It seemed to be Devil's Ivy.

Devil's Ivy meandered everywhere, tightly entwining several large pieces of broken stone. Following the thickest stem with his flashlight, he saw a cracked flowerpot by the wall, its roots having grown deep into the ground.

He tried to pull at the vines, but found them incredibly tough and firmly attached; despite several attempts, they wouldn't budge. An incredible thought struck him – could it be that the house didn't collapse during the major earthquake because it was held up by the Devil's Ivy?

But that earthquake happened in an instant, unless the Devil's Ivy could extend its vines in those few seconds.

He immediately dismissed the idea, realizing that such a scenario, though plausible in movies, was clearly impossible in reality. Still, there was something eerie about these vines, sending a chill down his spine.

"Let's go, time to leave," Feng Chen said to Yan Bubu.

Yan Bubu, who had been intently watching him, though not understanding everything, felt an inexplicable tension. Upon hearing Feng Chen's instruction to leave, he immediately turned and crawled out of the hole.

"Young master, where are we going now?" Yan Bubu asked once Feng Chen had also emerged from the hole.

Feng Chen shouldered his backpack, looked around, and said, "We can’t get food at the distribution point since they scan identity chips. We have no choice but to look for food elsewhere."

"Okay, let's go find some food," Yan Bubu said, patting his empty stomach.

He never questioned where to find food; as long as Feng Chen said so, he would follow.