Outside, the sandstorm raged on, though it seemed slightly less intense than before, at least the Hummer wasn’t being lifted up again. 

But the wind was still fierce and countless sand particles and stones pounded against the car window, creating a constant banging sound. 

All that she could see was the sandstorm, relentlessly assaulting everything in its path, as if it intended to trample all creation beneath its feet. 

Even though Jiang Ning lay against the window or used her thermal night vision goggles, apart from the storm carrying yellow sand, nothing else was visible in the surroundings. 

“Bang!” 

The front windshield was heavily hit, and it looked like someone was caught in the sandstorm. 

Before Jiang Ning could see clearly, the person was blown away again. 

There were faint bloodstains left on the glass, which were soon covered by the wind and sand. 

Even though the glass was bulletproof, it couldn’t withstand the continuous assault of sandstones. Scratches had already appeared, and if this continued, it would inevitably shatter. 

Jiang Ning was anxious but had no choice but to retreat into her own space. 

Having lived two lives, she finally understood the feeling of each day dragging on like a year, nervously waiting for hours that felt like a frying fish in a pan. 

After waiting for two hours, she left her space again. 

The hope in her heart was instantly extinguished by the sandstorm and she felt like she had fallen into an ice cave. 

The wind had somewhat weakened, and Jiang Ning chose to wait inside the car. 

She couldn’t see outside clearly, but what if Huo Yishen managed to come over? 

She feared that he might notice the car was gone and search around for her. 

Wrapped in the wind and sand, the car was dark. Jiang Ning turned on the headlights and high-intensity lights, hoping that he could see. 

After all, she was probably the only one who could turn on the lights in this sandstorm. 

However, after waiting for five or six hours, Huo Yishen still hadn’t appeared, and the sand had already buried half of the car’s tires. 

If she continued waiting, soon even the car door wouldn’t open, but the raging sandstorm showed no signs of stopping. 

Jiang Ning persisted, like a lonely lighthouse standing guard in the storm. 

It was already dark at this time, and the sky and the earth were dark, with only the sandstorm still raging on. 

Jiang Ning ate some food casually. She’s feeling uncomfortable because of several wounds in her body that seemed to ache despite the medication, and her forehead was burning hot. 

The sound of the wind would not stop, and her consciousness was becoming increasingly muddled, so she had to retreat back to her space. 

Getting off the car, Jiang Ning’s legs almost gave out, and she struggled with her spinning head to climb the stairs. The next moment, she collapsed on the bed unconscious. 

She didn’t know how long she had slept. Groggily opening her heavy eyelids, she felt her mouth dry and her throat parched. 

It felt like she had dreamed about being caught in a sandstorm while trying to escape, but she failed to grab Huo Yishen… 

He’s gone!” 

Coke was gone, and Doudou wasn’t there either. 

No matter how she searched through the sea of sand, there was still no sign of them. 

She stared at the ceiling with a vacant look, and when the feeling of dizziness disappeared, she gradually woke up, realizing it wasn’t a dream. 

Struggling to sit up, she managed to eat two bowls of porridge reluctantly, then continued taking medication. 

Her fever had slightly subsided, but it kept coming back. Both of her wrists were swollen beyond recognition. 

Disinfection, applying ointment. 

The painkillers and fever reducers took effect, and Jiang Ning felt much better. 

Going downstairs and checking the floating light-shadow timer in the living room, she realized she had actually dozed off for two days. 

Two days and two nights had passed; the sandstorm should have stopped by now. 

Her body felt extremely weak, but she forced herself to eat high-protein, high-calorie food and was determined to venture out again. 

If the sandstorm had stopped, she might easily encounter some survivors. 

She put on her military boots and coat and applied a privacy film to her helmet to prevent being recognized by others. She loaded two handguns, then Jiang Ning flashed out of her space. The soft sand beneath her feet and the strong wind almost made her stagger. She quickly bent over to stabilize herself. 

The sandstorm continued endlessly, but Jiang Ning managed to stand firm. She looked around. Even through the helmet, she still couldn’t see clearly in the distance. The visibility was less than two meters. 

What kind of sandstorm is this? 

Back in her space, Jiang Ning grew increasingly anxious. If she felt this uncomfortable even with her space, could Huo Yishen survive if he was injured? 

Huo Yishen and Doudou carried their first aid kits with them, but she wasn’t sure if the sandstorm had blown it away. There were medicines, compressed biscuits, and water in them, but there were really not many. 

Sitting on the sofa, Jiang Ning stared absentmindedly at the flickering light-shadow timer. 

She set an alarm to go out every five hours. 

The first day… 

The second day… 

Until the seventh day of the sandstorm, things finally calmed down relatively. Visibility improved to about five meters, and the wind wasn’t as fierce, but the sand still danced wildly. 

The injury on her forehead was almost healed. The tendons of her wrist were bruised and still very sore, but the swelling had subsided, and the bruises were beginning to fade. 

The roads were buried under the sand, and cars were either blown away or buried. The sand felt soft beneath her feet. 

Jiang Ning searched the area repeatedly but found no trace of the two people and the dog. 

Choosing to head towards Huicheng, where the terrain was more mountainous, Jiang Ning approached the nearest mountain to seek shelter from the sandstorm. 

The mountains offered shelter from the wind, and the sandstorm was less severe there. 

Confirming there was no one around, Jiang Ning brought out the Hummer again and waited inside. 

Afraid of missing them, she did not enter the space again and stayed in the car. 

The night came and she fell asleep in a daze. 

She dreamt all night as if someone was calling her, but each time she opened her eyes to wake up, all she saw was emptiness. 

If she hadn’t met Coke, hadn’t fallen in love with Huo Yishen, she could have survived alone. But now, it seemed so difficult. 

Feeling unwell again, Jiang Ning instinctively curled up. 

“Boss, looks like there’s a car over there.” 

“Shh.” The leader gestured with his eyes to silence them. He pulled out a baseball bat from his waist. 

 The sandstorm was so intense that it swallowed the road. The cars were either buried or had their exhaust pipe blocked by wind and sand. How did this car manage to drive to the foot of the mountain and park in the middle of the wind and sand? 

Judging by the level of sand burying the tires, the car couldn’t have been parked here for more than a day. 

Whoever did this was undoubtedly skilled. 

“It’s a Hummer, an apocalypse war vehicle. We must take it.” 

A young, slender man in his early twenties from the team whispered, “Boss, something seems off.” 

The boss shared the same suspicion. “What do you mean?” 

“How did this car get here?” 

The slender man ventured an astonishing suggestion, “Could it be a space?” 

Though unsure, the boss looked completely confused. “What space?” 

The young man was barely a teenager and an avid reader of fiction books, especially male-oriented ones with colorful or harem themes. He explained what he meant by “space.” 

“Are you out of your mind?” The boss dismissed it, thinking that this youngster’s obsession hadn’t been cured even after almost nine years into the apocalypse. 

Thinking no more about it, he signaled to his seven or eight brothers to encircle and force the person out. If it was a woman, they’d have a good laugh. If a man, they’d have just as much fun. 

Getting the car was the main goal, and if they got tired after playing, they could just kill the person and still have a few meals. 

The fat meat was within their reach, and everyone was ready to fight. They each wielded their weapons and surrounded the car.