Chapter 50

Chapter 50

The road ahead was impassable, so Cheng Jing and Li Kaiyun went to the rescue team leader to ask about alternative routes.

Learning that this team was also heading back to Nan City Base, Li Kaiyun volunteered his situation and used the military’s satellite phone to contact his nephew.

After hearing him out, the rescue team leader invited him to stay and travel back with them.

Li Kaiyun didn’t think twice before smiling and saying no:

“I’ll stick with my friends—easier that way.”

If he were alone, he wouldn’t care. He’d even be happy to help the rescue team when needed. But with a kid in tow, he had to think twice.

Without Cheng Jing and the others, he’d have gone with the rescue team without hesitation.

But they had too many people to protect, which made things way riskier. Compared to Cheng Jing’s group, the choice was clear.

Honestly, these past few days with Cheng Jing’s crew were the safest he’d been since the world went to hell.

After ending the call with his nephew, Li Kaiyun followed Cheng Jing back to the group.

Cheng Jing didn’t press for details, and Li Kaiyun didn’t offer any. There was an unspoken understanding between them.

Before nightfall, they doubled back to the last turnoff and took another route, stopping at a development zone on the city’s outer ring.

The area looked newly started—just cleared ground, small dirt piles, and a few excavators. Nothing big enough to hide large numbers of zombies.

As soon as they stopped, the rescue team sent patrols around the perimeter and scavenged fuel from the excavators, coming back with a decent haul.

“I was just thinking about that—they’re fast,” Jiang Nian murmured, a bit annoyed. They had no use for it, but it’d fetch a good price at the base.

Cheng Jing and the others just chuckled, saying nothing.

The wind bit through the night, but the survivors—rattled from the quake earlier—didn’t dare complain. Just being alive was a win. They’d reach the base soon.

The rescue team soldiers set up camp, treated the injured, and handed out food to the survivors.

Jiang Nian’s group made a point to stay apart, handling their own supplies instead of mooching off the rescue team or inviting trouble.

Running into assholes was way more likely now, so keeping to themselves was smarter.

Since the main group moved slowly, they didn’t plan to tag along. Now that they knew the route, they could cover more ground on their own.

Dinner was a pot of noodles with eggs, sausages, dehydrated veggies, and chili sauce. They all dug in.

Worn out from the rescue op, they crashed and recharged after eating.

With the rescue team on patrol, there was no need to keep watch. They could sleep soundly for once.

...

Early the next morning, while the rescue team was still getting organized, Jiang Nian’s group was already geared up to move out.

Everyone was busy with their own tasks, so no one noticed the hassle heading their way—at first.

“Thanks for saving us yesterday. Call it fate—we’d like to come with you. We’ll swap you for our supplies.”

A somewhat awkward voice spoke up—it was the family of three that Cheng Jing and Zhao Lei had rescued the day before: a middle-aged couple and their daughter.

The father was speaking. Of average height and slightly plump, he wore a polite smile, his receding hairline and comb-over hairstyle giving him a slick, calculating demeanor—like a businessman.

"No, the little supplies you have aren’t even enough to feed yourselves. What are you offering in exchange?"

Without waiting for Cheng Jing or Jiang Nian to respond, Zhao Lei gruffly refused. "What’s your problem? Just stick with the rescue team."

After yesterday’s incident where Jiang Nian had been shaken down, he was in no mood for strangers approaching them.

The man stood there awkwardly, silenced by Zhao Lei’s bluntness. Indeed, it wasn’t easy to tag along with a Superpowered team.

Beside him, a gaunt, weary-looking woman held her daughter’s hand. Spotting the half-eaten cup noodles in Li Shuhui and Xiao Ya’s hands, she audibly gulped before smiling at Li Kaiyun.

"We can do anything—we can help each other out since we all have kids."

Teams with women and children were more likely to cut you slack.

"Nobody can do *anything*. Go back to the rescue team. They’ll provide food and safety until you reach the base."

Li Kaiyun turned away to check his vehicle, urging his daughter to finish eating quickly.

He didn’t scorn their intentions—after all, he was cut from the same cloth—but this wasn’t his call to make.

"If you let us come with you, we’ll do anything—even be indentured to you at the base…"

The woman persisted, this time addressing Huang Qian and Cheng Jing.

Cheng Jing and Huang Qian exchanged a glance. This was how many ordinary people tried to join Superpowered teams—and how many Superpowered recruited lackeys and tools.

But their team didn’t need that. Besides, this family’s motives were too blatant.

Just then, Jiang Nian walked over. Fishing out a candy from his coat pocket, he unwrapped it and popped it into his mouth, eyeing the couple for a moment before asking:

"Anything, huh? Then would you be willing to act as bait for the infected? Say, if we run into a horde, you’ll lure them away for us?"

His words left not just the family stunned, but even his teammates momentarily speechless.

Especially the Li family, who suddenly felt a deathly pall in the air.

Jiang Nian’s appearance wasn’t intimidating, but his attitude and words could send shivers down one’s spine.

Most importantly, he was the team’s leader—and when he spoke, he meant it. That was terrifying.

"Can’t do it? Then go back to the rescue team. Adults should take responsibility for their words. Talk is cheap and gets people killed."

With that, Jiang Nian turned and got into the passenger seat, his expression cold. Dragging this out was pointless—just call their bluff and let them back off.

In his eyes, refusing the rescue team’s protection to pester them was just another form of scamming.

Seeing this, the rest of the team said nothing more and boarded the vehicles one by one.

Only when the sound of the engines faded did the ashen-faced family come to their senses. Exchanging silent shakes of their heads, they slunk back to the rescue team.

...

After changing routes, the squad traveled along a highway, passing through several small towns and villages. Makeshift barricades bottlenecked their progress, but they made quick work of several infected hordes along the way, salvaging a few Superpower Cores and rescuing survivors.

They pointed out that the rescue team was hot on their heels and would arrive soon.

The convoy was delayed on the national highway for quite some time, and it wasn’t until a day and a half later that they got back on the expressway.

Thankfully, the closer they got to the base, the clearer the road got, and the rest of the journey was completely unobstructed.

By then, snow had mostly melted across the regions, causing zombies to pop up everywhere.

With the weather growing muggy, central broadcasts reported outbreaks of plagues and deadly viral infections in many areas.

They’d barely survived the extreme cold when more people started dropping dead.

Racing against the clock, Jiang Nian’s group safely reached the Southern City Base by early April—still hitting their deadline.