Rotting Land: Survive

Chapter 530 - 523: The First Stop – Refueling

Upon hearing this, Liu Fugui’s lips curled into a meaningful smile.

He looked up at the horizon; the night was growing darker. He twisted his neck a couple of times and said lightly, "I’m tired! Let’s go back and rest!"

Seeing this, Huang Yong was puzzled and quickly asked, "So, Mr. Liu, about He Lei..."

"You were the one in charge of this matter, so what do you think should be done? Of course, keep trying to contact He Lei until you get through!" After saying this, Liu Fugui walked out without looking back.

Watching Liu Fugui’s figure gradually disappear at the entrance to the rooftop, Huang Yong’s gaze narrowed slightly, and he immediately followed.

The night passed without incident, and as daylight once again spread across the land, the survivors began their preparations for going out.

Considering the team’s extended stay outside, Wang Zhongyu specially stayed up late with Yue Guishang to build a simple protective barrier on the back of the urban management vehicle.

Although these barriers were merely made from wooden strips, iron wires, and plastic curtains tied together, having something was better than nothing.

Food, drink, and lodging were all arranged by Wei Yang on the vehicle. She prepared enough supplies for the team to last five days.

Everyone wore puncture and slash-resistant armor. This gear was lightweight yet offered excellent protection against zombies’ scratches and had been tested in multiple encounters with the beasts.

Initially, Old Xu forced everyone to wear it, but now everyone did so willingly.

The whole preparation process took over half an hour. Once completed, and after a brief farewell, Old Xu immediately called everyone to board the vehicle.

Given the lengthy time required for this outing, everything that could be saved was saved. Even Old Xu himself couldn’t understand why, every time he left the base, he would feel immensely anxious, always involuntarily recalling the tragedy at Yuhuan Gymnasium.

Starting the vehicle as usual, Old Xu was at the wheel, with Tang Xiaoquan sitting in the front passenger seat, Zhang Zhicai, and Wang Qiang sitting with Li Zhong in the back row, while Hu Xiaodong and Wei Dazhuang huddled under the rain cover meticulously designed by Wang Zhongyu.

The group of six set off slowly with the engine’s roar, with their destination still being DZ county, a return to familiar grounds.

The reason they chose DZ county was, for one, its proximity to the base; for another, the population density was relatively low. Although this meant fewer resources, safety clearly took precedence.

Sitting in the urban management vehicle, Tang Xiaoquan was undoubtedly the person with the most complex emotions among them. Returning to his hometown, he couldn’t help but think of his parents, whose fate was unknown, which made his heart ache.

The first stop, the survivors aimed for a gas station on the highway. Although it meant a longer route, the gas stations on highways were in relatively secluded areas, thus considered to be safer than those in the city.

After about half an hour on the road, the survivors successfully arrived at the highway gas station.

As expected by the survivors, there weren’t many vehicles at the gas station. From a distance, other than a Jianghuai JAC and a POLO, there were no other vehicles.

"Everyone, stay alert, we’re going in!" Xu Renjie slowly drove the car into the station and stopped, getting off immediately.

At the same time, the other five people in the car also got out.

"Xiao Tang, Li Zhong, Zhang Zhicai, you three fill up the gas!"

"Xiao Hu, Dazhuang, stay on guard!"

"I’ll go check those two cars!"

With the instructions given, everyone immediately took action, all except Li Zhong, who seemed a bit lost. His attention was entirely captured by the cashier, who was incessantly banging on the window inside the station.

Stunned for a few seconds, he couldn’t help but anxiously ask Hu Xiaodong, who was vigilantly on guard, "Brother Hu, there’s a zombie over there. Shouldn’t you deal with it first?"

Frowning, ever since the locker room incident yesterday, Hu Xiaodong hadn’t had a good impression of the newcomers Li Zhong and Li Guo.

The reason being their cowardice.

One could understand being scared in the early days of the apocalypse, but over four months have passed, and even a mouse should have toughened up by now.

So now, Hu Xiaodong didn’t give him a pleasant look, sneering, "My task is to stand guard. How can I leave my post without permission? Besides, that beast is locked inside, there’s no need to waste effort killing it. If you really can’t stand it,"

With a pause in his speech, Hu Xiaodong pointed at the cleaver in Li Zhong’s hand and said disdainfully, "This thing isn’t just a fire stick. You go take care of it yourself!"

"Ah?" Li Zhong unexpectedly cried out, hesitating to go over, and now he sheepishly shrugged, "Let’s forget it then. Brother Hu is right, we shouldn’t waste time on them."

With that, Li Zhong scuttled over to the gas tank and began filling the tank with fuel.

This time, the survivors brought a total of around 15 various-sized fuel barrels, ranging from 10 to 30 liters.

And Old Xu, after inspecting the Jianghuai JAC truck and the POLO, also found two gas barrels.

Moreover, the supplies in the Jianghuai truck bed were a big surprise to Xu Renjie.

The truck bed was filled with cardboard boxes and packing tape. He randomly picked one and looked inside, and it was labeled as "Sunshine" Express.

Further inspection of the logistics slip revealed that it was a clothing item shipment from Taobao.

Lucky! That was Old Xu’s first thought after confirming the cargo, and without saying a word, he hurried to the driver’s seat to search for the keys.

Very fortunately, the key was neatly inserted in the ignition slot.

Old Xu attempted to turn the key, but unfortunately, after the engine revved a few times, it sputtered to a halt.

Glancing at the dashboard, just as Old Xu expected, the battery indicator was flashing, indicating that after more than four months of inactivity, the Jianghuai JAC’s battery was dead.

"Old Xu, what’s going on?" Seeing the engine revving, Hu Xiaodong asked inexplicably.

Xu Renjie jumped out of the car and briefed everyone on his findings. Hearing this, Tang Xiaoquan immediately suggested, "Old Xu, is there a way to start the vehicle? If not, let’s transfer the stuff from the truck to the urban management vehicle!"

The reason Tang Xiaoquan was so insistent was that he had his eyes on the JAC’s supplies, despite not knowing what the packages contained or whether they could be used.

What was certain, however, was that such a large haul of express packages must contain essential items for eating, dressing, and traveling.

Therefore, there was no reason for their group to abandon this potential "gold mine."

To this, Old Xu instinctively nodded, because he had also intended to bring along the truck’s supplies.

Without further ado, Old Xu had only one thing to do—get the truck running. (To be continued. If you like this work, welcome to Qidian (qidian.com) to vote for recommendations and monthly tickets. Your support is my biggest motivation. Mobile users, please go to m.qidian.com to read.)