Chapter 47

**Chapter 47**

The disheveled trio was still reeling, but the fight was already over.

More than two hundred zombies had been taken down—fast, precise, ruthless! Efficient and thorough!

Afterward, Huang Qian covertly used her vines to snag one superpower zombie’s crystal core and two from regular zombies, then passed them to Cheng Jing.

On their travels, they’d encountered other human groups, but none had been collecting zombie cores like them.

As Jiang Nian had explained, only a few zombies had cores right now—superpower zombies always had them, while regular zombies might or might not.

So most people didn’t know about zombie cores and wouldn’t go out of their way to collect them.

Not until later, when most superpowered folks advanced and developed their own cores, would people realize zombies were the same.

Their squad knew because Cheng Jing had obtained two while dealing with Xiao Ya’s parents.

And Jiang Nian had told them:

Superpower zombies were transformed from superpowered individuals. Their cores were located in the lower abdomen (dantian). Regular zombie cores were inside the head, formed after ordinary humans turned into zombies and evolved—they needed to crack open the skull to get them.

They’d verified this during their travels. As for how “Old Man Jiang” knew all this, nobody pressed him.

Jiang Nian had his secrets—they all knew but didn’t pry. Everyone understood it silently, yet no one ever asked.

“…”

“You saved us… Thank you…”

The older man stepped forward to express his gratitude, while the two young men supporting him bowed in appreciation.

“No problem. We had to pass through here anyway—helping you came with the territory,” said Lu Ningzhou casually, then asked about their story.

It turned out the three were family—father Li Kaiyun, son Li Liang, a sophomore, and daughter Li Shuhui, a freshman.

Originally, all four of them had been traveling with a neighbor’s family of three toward the base, but they ran into a superpower zombie, which wiped out everyone else.

Zhao Lei glanced around, noticed Cheng Jing checking the time, and quickly made a sweeping gesture.

“Alright, problem solved. Let’s move out.”

The terrified girl blurted out urgently:

“You guys are badass—can we tag along? You’re heading to the base too, right?”

She then shot nervous glances at Zhao Lei and Huang Qian.

“…”

Li Liang didn’t back up his sister’s request but instead looked at his father.

No one answered or agreed. Huang Qian and Zhao Lei instinctively turned to Cheng Jing—being too soft could get you killed in this world.

Even Jiang Nian, normally so easygoing, had turned down everyone who asked to travel with them.

Li Kaiyun realized Cheng Jing was the one calling the shots and stepped forward to make his case.

"We have our own car—we’ll just trail behind you and won’t use any of your supplies."

Seeing Cheng Jing’s expression soften, he added:

"I get how hard things are now. Unless it’s another mess like today, we won’t be a burden."

Cheng Jing wasn’t made of stone either. Since they were being decent, he cut them some slack. Looking at the worn-out dad in front of him, he replied:

"Wait a moment…"

Just as he was about to call Jiang Nian in the car to explain, he looked up and saw the man walking over with Xiao Ya, so he put his phone away.

Noticing Li Kaiyun’s surprise, Tang Yi kindly reminded him:

"We handle the fights, but Brother Nian makes the calls."

"R-right, thanks."

Though caught off guard, Li Kaiyun quickly ushered his children forward and repeated what he’d said before, along with their situation, to Jiang Nian.

Jiang Nian nodded calmly and asked:

"We’re bound for South City Base. You?"

L Base was already behind them. The nearest bases ahead on this main road were K Base and South City Base.

"No kidding—South City’s our destination too. My nephew is a soldier stationed there."

Li Kaiyun answered excitedly, glancing at his kids, their faces drained of color, then added:

"We left early ’cause South City’s a haul… didn’t expect things to turn out like this."

"Huh." Jiang Nian got it. After a quick glance at Cheng Jing and the crew, he nodded:

"Alright, since you’re also heading to South City Base, you can tag along."

He wasn’t against extra bodies, as long as they didn’t slow them down or prove useful somehow.

Like having connections at the same base? That was solid.

You scratch our back, we scratch yours—otherwise, it’s mooching.

That’s why even though they helped plenty along the way, it was only when convenient. They never bent over backward for strangers.

As long as their safety wasn’t compromised, small favors cost nothing—if the other side wasn’t a pain in the ass.

Anyone trying to guilt-trip them could go pound sand.

...

Li Kaiyun thanked Jiang Nian, gave their car a once-over, then helped his kids bury the neighbors.

Afterward, father and sons talked briefly, then approached Cheng Jing, asking through the rolled-down window:

"We want to bring my wife to the base. Can you… help us cremate her?"

Li Kaiyun’s voice cracked. His son’s eyes welled up. They held it together—barely. But Li Shuhui had already slumped against her brother, her whole body shaking with sobs.

Cheng Jing didn’t refuse and got out of the car to leave with them.

Jiang Nian felt a pang in his heart. Xiao Ya’s eyes were already red. Tragedy was everywhere, striking without warning.

Cheng Jing controlled the fire perfectly, maintaining just the right temperature. When he finished, he stepped aside to let them grieve.

The atmosphere grew heavy, with only the biting wind and stifled sobs cutting through the silence.

After placing his wife’s ashes into an ordinary box and carefully storing it away, Li Kaiyun rummaged through the car for food and motioned for his children to sit and eat. Even if they couldn’t stomach it, they had to choke something down—they were running on empty, and once they set off with the group, they couldn’t just pull over whenever they wanted.

Their supplies had originally been divided among three vehicles, but now more than half were gone.

To make it to the base, they had to ration carefully. A single pack of instant noodles was split among the three of them, and the seasoning was mixed with water and poured into bottles to drink on the road.

Jiang Nian had been watching them, especially observing how Li Kaiyun treated his children.

When he saw that Li Kaiyun had left himself only a thumb-sized chunk of the noodle block, Jiang Nian pulled out three ready-to-eat meals, some snacks, bread, and a few bandages and antiseptic ointments from the car and walked over:

“We won’t stop again until nightfall. You won’t last like this. Eat—think of it as a token for sharing the road. Once you’ve had something, patch yourselves up.”

“Thank you. We won’t forget this kindness. Once we reach the base, we’ll repay you double…”

Li Kaiyun didn’t protest. With reddened eyes, he accepted the items and passed them to his children.

“Uncle Li—I hope you don’t mind me calling you that. Like you said, these are tough times for all of us. But when we travel together, we help each other out. So don’t dwell on it… There’s no need to repay this.”

Jiang Nian looked at the tall man and suddenly felt an inexplicable ache. Li Kaiyun’s face was all hard angles and severity—he looked like a man who could cut steel with a glance.

Yet this stranger made the idea of fatherly love suddenly clear to him:

This is what a father is—no matter how cold or unyielding he seems, in moments of danger, he instinctively puts himself between his children and harm…

A real father would never reject his own child, no matter what, right?

Only he had been rejected by his own father before he was even born.

His eyes burned slightly. After exchanging a few more casual words with Li Liang and Li Shuhui, Jiang Nian returned to the car.

He truly valued the Li family’s connections at the base—and his admiration for Li Kaiyun was genuine.