Chapter 82

The other side first shot at the pickup truck’s window. However, they knew they would be raiding the southern district of Youcheng tonight, so they had already made full preparations. All the windows had been reinforced again, using the iron sheets and iron railings taken from the guesthouse.

They were lucky. The first shot hit the iron sheet, and no one was injured. It also allowed them to detect the presence of a sniper. As a result, they accelerated and sped through the remaining stretch of road.

The sniper continued attacking, shattering the rear window of the pickup truck and blowing out one of the off-road vehicle’s tires. But by then, they had already turned a corner, using the cover of buildings to leave the sniper’s range.

“Did the off-road vehicle really have a blown tire?” Shu Fu suddenly spoke.

“Yeah, it blew out, almost causing the car to flip! Fortunately, Grandma Chen is a good driver. She managed to drift and steer the car around the corner, so we didn’t end up flipping the car and ourselves into the river!” Xu Jiechu, who had been in the car at the time, still felt a bit nervous talking about it.

Shu Fu: …

So, next time when she wants to use the car, she’ll need to change the tires first…

Chen Fa knew what she was thinking. “Don’t worry, I’ll take care of it.”

Lu Zheng glanced at Chen Fa, unsure if it was just a feeling, but he thought something had changed about her after this incident, especially in the atmosphere between her and Shu Fu, which had become more closely knit.

The group, exhausted and wounded, decided to meet up with the others after a brief conversation.

Lu Zheng gestured toward the direction behind the green space, indicating that it was once a small waterfront commercial street. They had checked it out, but now there wasn’t a single person there. They found a restaurant at a street corner.

The restaurant was a pizza place with an exterior staircase that led up to the second floor. Everyone else was up there, mainly because Braid Head and Big Guy had sustained heavier injuries and were receiving treatment and bandaging.

Shu Fu and the others immediately followed, crossing through thick grass and heading toward the back of the commercial street.

The ground beneath the grass was all muddy, making it feel nauseatingly soft, and it emitted a sticky squelching sound. Shu Fu and Chen Fa walked at the back, and after only a few steps, Chen Fa suddenly stopped and turned around, looking at the dark river behind them.

Shu Fu noticed the alert expression on her face and whispered, “What’s wrong?”

“I hope it’s just my imagination.” Given the distance, and knowing that the river below Youcheng outside the city was a cliff waterfall with no access to the opposite direction, if it could spread here, there would be nothing more to say. Chen Fa squeezed Shu Fu’s hand. “Let’s go, stay cautious.”

Shu Fu had an idea of what she was warning her about and quickly caught up with the others.

**

This was originally a pizza restaurant, likely focused on family business. The interior decoration and furniture were very colorful and oddly shaped, full of playful charm.

The floor-to-ceiling windows on the second floor were shattered in large part, and everyone was now staying at the side where the windows were intact. They cleared the debris from the floor, laid out waterproof mats, and set up camping lights to treat the wounded.

In Lu Zheng’s group, Braid Head and Bald Head had more experience treating injuries, but now one was down, and the other was missing. Braid Head had a serious abdominal injury from a shard of iron, bleeding heavily. After cutting open his clothes, they found themselves at a loss with the bloody and mangled wound.

Fortunately, Chen Yuezhen remained calm and steady, taking over the wound treatment.

By the time Shu Fu and the others arrived, Chen Yuezhen had already stitched up Braid Head’s wound.

The sewing kit was found in the family-friendly restaurant. Such restaurants have to be prepared for any emergencies, and the sewing kit was one of the essentials. Items like food, water, and medicine were often taken by others, but the sewing kits were often overlooked.

In fact, a sewing kit could be very useful. In special circumstances, a little disinfecting could save a life.

Without anesthetics, Braid Head had to endure the stitching. Yue Dong and a few teammates helped hold his limbs down, while Lu Ce, though young and inexperienced, remained remarkably calm and did everything he was asked to do. He was not afraid of blood and worked well with Chen Yuezhen, like they had done this many times before, helping to complete the surgery under very simple conditions.

After checking on Braid Head’s condition, Lu Zheng also checked on Big Guy, who had cuts on his head and face. Though his face had bled a lot and looked scary, the wounds weren’t deep. A few stitches would make it heal faster. Since they already had the needle and thread from stitching Braid Head, he stitched up Big Guy’s wounds as well.

Big Guy was more conscious than Braid Head. Since it was his face, he winced in pain as the stitches were done. When Lu Zheng went over with the painkiller that Shu Fu gave him, Big Guy sat to the side, looking dazed and slightly disheartened.

Lu Zheng didn’t mention the possibility of a concussion, though he was concerned since his head was also injured. However, Big Guy waved him off, saying he was fine, just thinking about Bald Head and Skinny, which made him feel uneasy.

However, everyone was still glad that Shu Fu and the others had returned safely.

When Chen Fa saw Chen Yuezhen, her eyes lit up for a moment. It was rare for her to show such excitement, as if there was so much she wanted to say but knew it wasn’t the right time. She could only hold back for now.

Shu Fu knew that the situation between Chen Fa and Chen Yuezhen was different from that of Lu Zheng. After Lu Zheng’s awakening, he had considered telling Lu Ce immediately, but since everyone was still on the move, he was worried that Lu Ce, being so young, might not be able to hide things during the journey.

Of course, Chen Yuezhen wouldn’t be as composed as that.

However, after tonight, many things had changed. Those who crossed the river with Lu Zheng had definitely noticed the issues with the raft cabin.

As expected, before Chen Fa could find an opportunity to pull Chen Yuezhen aside, someone from Yue Dong’s team spoke up: “How did the four of you get across the river?”

Yue Dong and Xu Tingfeng, with the help of Jiang Dai and Xu Jiechu, had just taken off their clothes to check for abrasions when they heard the question. They immediately sensed the underlying meaning in the words.

Both of them turned their heads simultaneously, and the person who spoke was a member of Yue Dong’s team, also a former teammate of Chen Fa. His name was Fisher, a man who usually kept to himself. He had been a colleague of the late Old Gu and had stuck with him since then, always under Old Gu’s care.

Today, Old Gu had died in the explosion, and Fisher was already in a bad mood. Now, sensing that someone in the team might be hiding a major secret, he couldn’t help but speak out, without hesitation breaking the unspoken tension: “You… didn’t you also cross the river by raft? How many people on your raft could get into the cabin? Heh, I thought we were all on the same team, working together as one, but it turns out there are people among you with abilities beyond ordinary. Why didn’t you save Old Gu back then?”

“Fisher!” Yue Dong frowned. Some things simply couldn’t be questioned. He understood that Fisher was upset because Old Gu had died, but directly calling out others like this—what was he hoping to gain?

In Yue Dong’s opinion, it was already hard enough that others took the risk of exposing their secrets to help them cross the river. If it had been him, with such abilities, he might have left the team, taken only his wife, and gone off alone as a lone wolf, never letting others know his secrets.

“How would I know who could have saved him? Why not ask the people who could get into the raft cabin?” Fisher said as he looked directly at Lu Zheng.

Lu Zheng showed no reaction. When he realized that only he and Lu Ce could get into his raft cabin, he knew that some things could no longer be kept hidden.

But he didn’t plan to explain, even if someone asked.

Perhaps it was because more fragmented memories had surfaced in his mind. When encountering similar situations, emotions would amplify, and the personalities presented in those memories would influence him. No, perhaps it shouldn’t be called “influence,” but rather “awakening.”

For him, awakening didn’t occur the moment the panel appeared. This gradual recollection of memories was the true “awakening.”

“So, what you’re saying is, anyone with abilities must take care of everyone else, save everyone?” Lu Zheng said with a slight smile, a sarcastic smile that rarely appeared on his usually low-key face. “But why should they? Others saved you without a thank you, and now you’re blaming them for not saving your friend. Did only your friend die tonight? I lost one of my friends and another one is missing. Even if I had the ability to save, I would have saved them first.”

“You—so you admit it?”

“I don’t need to explain anything to you. I’m saying this just to let you know that who I choose to save and who I don’t, that’s my right, and there’s no reason behind it.”

“You selfish bastard! How dare you—”

“Fisher!” This time, both Yue Dong and Chen Fa spoke up. Their brows furrowed as they stopped him from continuing, and Yue Dong even coldly told him to apologize to Lu Zheng immediately.

“Why should I apologize? I was just asking what everyone wanted to know!” He stood up, puffing out his chest, trying to seek validation from the others, but when he scanned the group, all he saw were disapproving glances.

“Fine, fine, you all want to pretend, huh? Well, then keep pretending. Since we’re not on the same team, we won’t be in the same squad anymore!” He said, gathering his backpack. He also stated that since Old Gu was his friend and he had died, he should take Old Gu’s backpack as well.

Backpacks represented supplies, and although Yue Dong’s group hadn’t planned on taking Old Gu’s supplies, Fisher’s actions made the remaining people feel uncomfortable.

No one stopped Fisher. He left the pizza restaurant, went downstairs, and walked into the rainy night, heading south.

Finally, Shu Fu spoke up, “He’s just leaving like that?”

Her comment was mainly to remind Chen Fa and Lu Zheng that letting him go like this might have future consequences. However, Jiang Dai clearly misunderstood and thought she was worried about Fisher. She quickly clarified that before Shu Fu and the others arrived, Lu Zheng and Gengzi had already checked the surroundings.

They had also found it strange that the south bank was pitch black, so they had looked for a taller building nearby, climbed up quickly, and checked the surroundings.

Their findings showed that the people from the southern part of the city and the civilians should still be there, but not in the city, likely in the southern outskirts of the city, near the foothills.

“They said they saw lights there—besides the constant lights, there were also searchlights sweeping around.”

Searchlights were usually used for patrols, and the presence of searchlights indicated that there were organized patrol teams. Usually, such patrols were either official or military.

Afterward, they checked the map, and there was a military school nearby, which was quite large, with air-raid shelters and high walls. It was built on a hill, and from any angle, it felt far safer than the unprotected urban area.

They had originally planned to rest here for the night and set off to the suburban military school as soon as the sun rose.

Now, Fisher dared to break off from the group because he knew their destination and had already gone ahead.

Lu Ce also misunderstood, looking at Shu Fu with a sigh and shaking his head. “Fufu, I know you’re kind-hearted, but this is the end of the world. Being too kind won’t help you survive. You need to be a bit more ruthless!”

Shu Fu, who was known for her kindness, looked a bit uncomfortable: …

Luckily, Chen Fa understood what she meant. “He has broken off from the team once or twice before, but he always came back quickly afterward.”

Shu Fu nodded. Both of them looked at Lu Ce and thought of the tabby cat that had saved them not long ago. Lu Ce probably still didn’t know the cat had died.

Eventually, Shu Fu hesitated but still reached out and pulled him aside, leading him toward the stairwell. “By the way, Lan Lan—it…”

“Lan Lan?” Lu Ce’s expression was puzzled. “What happened to Lan Lan?”

Just as Shu Fu was about to speak, she suddenly heard a familiar sound coming from Lu Ce’s backpack. Whenever they went out, he always carried this waterproof backpack, which was almost empty except for where he had placed Lan Lan.

Hearing that sound, Chen Fa, who had been leaning against the wall nearby, froze.

The zipper of the backpack popped open, and a familiar cat’s head poked out—a tabby with a hint of silver-brown fur and beautiful blue eyes.

The tabby cat that was supposed to have died in the northern part of Youcheng—it had appeared again, alive and well in the southern city, standing right in front of them.

At the same moment, Shu Fu felt a vibration on her wrist.

When she had disembarked from Lixiang Pier earlier, her wristband hadn’t given any signal, and she had been wondering if she should have stayed at the pier longer.

She had even decided that if there was still no signal after everyone rested tonight, she would go back to the pier area and wander around again. But now, the wristband signaled that the mission was complete.

“This cat, how could it be here?”

“Lan Lan has always been here,” Lu Ce replied calmly, looking at them.

---

In the late night, Chen Fa, unable to sleep on the camping blanket, took out his phone, typed a message, and handed it to Shu Fu.

Shu Fu couldn’t sleep either. She was wrapped in a thin blanket, looking at her black mini-notebook.

[Youcheng Lixiang Pier check-in task completed. Gained 4th level raft with 10% progress; additional 10% progress bonus; gained 3 chances for the wheel of fortune. (Current progress on raft 4th level: 95%)]

Her hopeful heart sank again. She had thought the progress bar would immediately reach 100%, but now it was stuck at 95%. Was there any meaning in it being stuck here? How long had it been since she saw a task with only 5% progress?

Would pushing the progress bar to full kill her?

Thankfully, there were still 3 chances for the lottery, though she still planned to save them. After so many lottery attempts, she had a good sense that the more attempts there were, the better the rewards would be. She planned to finish another task later and use all the chances when the raft reached level 4.

But looking at the 95% progress, and thinking about the question Chen Fa had asked her earlier, her mood lifted again.

Since the raft hadn’t reached full level 4 yet, it meant there was still work to be done. And if there was a task, it meant she could continue traveling with Chen Fa and the others. Now that Chen Fa had also awakened, besides Lu Zheng, the three of them could sit down for a little meeting to discuss things.

It would be best to find an empty space with no one around, lay out their rafts, and have a raft exchange meeting. She could also try and see if Chen Fa and Lu Zheng could enter her drifting island house.

Lu Ce had entered Lu Zheng’s small house, meaning he might have gotten some direct information from Lu Zheng. At the same time, it meant that Chen Yuezhen could enter Chen Fa’s raft house.

By this calculation, there were already five members who knew each other well enough. After the meeting, if they were tired, having a barbecue together wouldn’t be a bad idea—especially since she had drawn ten barbecue packs…

After tonight, others also vaguely understood some special situations.

Except for Fisher, who had just thrown a tantrum and broken off from the group, the other teammates were actually quite reliable. Especially Yue Dong and Xu Tingfeng, who had traveled with them tonight. They didn’t need to be brought into the raft exchange meeting, but they could certainly be invited to the barbecue…

For a moment, Shu Fu’s thoughts were running wild.

It was at this point that Chen Fa’s phone was slipped under her thin blanket. On the dimmed screen, a message read: Did she make a mistake? Was it not Lan Lan who died?

Shu Fu put away the black notebook, pulled down the blanket, and typed a reply: If you really thought it wasn’t Lan Lan who died, you wouldn’t be asking me this question right now.

After showing Chen Fa the reply, she added one more line: Don’t doubt it, it was Lan Lan who died. I was behind you, and I saw clearly.

She suspected that this was the big secret Lu Ce had hesitated to tell her earlier.

So, was this the third bug?

---

The two of them couldn’t hold back much longer. Before the team set off the next morning, they took Lu Ce to a private room on the third floor of the restaurant.

“I thought you two would ask me last night,” Lu Ce said with a proud look. Ever since he had entered the other people’s small cabin on the raft with Lu Zheng, he had completely shed the pressure of keeping secrets.

It turned out that not only was his Lan Lan abnormal, but his own older brother was also abnormal!

Later, without them asking, he confessed everything himself.

“Lan Lan won’t die. It was a random discovery, that time was to save me. I can’t say it will never die, but even if it dies, it will come back to life in a new body after a short while and appear by my side again. You know those games where a character respawns at a set location after being killed? Lan Lan is like that.”

Shu Fu: …

Hearing this description, doesn’t that mean—

“A cat version of Tomie?” Shu Fu suddenly remembered something from a long time ago, back when she was still in Suicheng. After a thunderstorm, she had gone downstairs for a mission, and on her way back, she had seen a dead cat by the building. She only caught a distant glimpse, and with the branches blocking the view, she couldn’t see it very clearly.

Now thinking about it, could that dead cat have been…

“Huh, now that you mention it, it really does sound like that,” Lu Ce said, reaching to scratch at the cat’s head sticking out of the backpack again. “But besides that, it has another ability. Have you—last year, did you guys see that end-of-the-world theory video online? The one that mixed the live stream of that suicidal guy from Suicheng with disaster footage from all over the planet?”

Shu Fu and Chen Fa exchanged a glance. Of course, they had seen it. That video had pushed the concept of “reincarnators” into everyone’s face, causing a stir across the country. It had eventually given rise to the two factions—the Westward Migrations and the Stationary Faction. How could they not have seen it?

“Mm.” Lu Ce nodded, already reading their expressions. He puffed out his chest with pride, making the backpack with Lan Lan stick out more. “It was made by it.”

Shu Fu: ??

Chen Fa: !!

The two of them looked at the backpack, where only Lan Lan’s cat head was visible, and their expressions were complicated.

“Can it talk?”

Lu Ce shook his head, looking puzzled by the question. “No, Lan Lan’s a cat. How could it talk?”

“I mean, inside it… could it be… a human’s…?” Chen Fa voiced what they had both been thinking.

“You mean, Lan Lan is actually an adult, and its soul somehow ended up in the body of a cat?” Lu Ce answered calmly. “But I don’t think so. Even ordinary adults, even if they know about computers, how could they have that kind of supercomputer ability? That video of the reincarnator taking a selfie was its work too!

I’ve been with it for so long, I know it best. Rather than saying there’s a person inside, it’s more like it’s an extraterrestrial intelligent life. Haven’t you heard? Cats are originally from space! Of course, it’s also possible that it’s some kind of cat-shaped mechanical intelligent life. Why does it have to be a human soul? The universe is so vast, and humans aren’t the only life form…”

Although Lu Ce had strayed a bit off-topic, Shu Fu and Chen Fa had to admit, it did make sense.

But if this really involved advanced civilizations and extraterrestrial life, then things were getting more and more complicated.

---

By the time the sun rose, Fisher still hadn’t returned.

Shu Fu was a bit worried, though it wasn’t so much about herself. Her main concern was that he might have gone ahead to the southern suburbs and spoken recklessly to the troops, which could cause trouble for Lu Zheng and Chen Fa.

Chen Fa also found it strange. Fisher was usually very timid, always being looked after by Old Gu. Even the two times he had thrown tantrums and left the team, Old Gu had brought him back.

Now, he was alone, in a dark, rainy night, in a completely unfamiliar, empty city, and he had been gone for an entire night? Something didn’t seem right…

After a simple breakfast, the group was ready to head out to the southern suburbs of Youcheng, to the place they had noticed lights the previous evening.

Shu Fu took out some painkillers from her backpack and gave them to the injured Braid Head and Big Guy, urging them to take them before they set off, so at least the journey wouldn’t be as painful.

Braid Head insisted he could walk on his own, but his wound had just been stitched, and walking would definitely tear it open again. If they were running for their lives, that would be one thing, but now the situation wasn’t urgent, and they had a long way to the southern suburbs, so he had to listen to Xu Tingfeng’s advice and lie down in a tricycle they had found behind a commercial street.

The tricycle was powered by foot pedals, and the cargo area had a hole in it. They took a long table’s tabletop to cover the hole and placed a waterproof pad and camping blanket on top for Braid Head to lie on. They then found an umbrella from a nearby restaurant, set it up, and used a waterproof tarp to cover the umbrella, creating a makeshift rain shelter.

Besides Braid Head lying on it, they could also fit their larger supplies on the tricycle. Big Guy took the painkillers, and the pain in his head and face lessened a lot, so he volunteered to pedal, since no one else could pedal with Braid Head’s weight.

Pedaling while sitting was actually a bit easier than walking.

Braid Head felt that lying down like this was a blow to his usual tough guy image, so after lying down, he kept his eyes closed and pretended to be unconscious the whole time.

The group of thirteen headed down the main avenue of the city center, towards the southern suburbs of Youcheng.