Apocalypse: Last Traveler

After putting the oil drum back in the car, Lu Xi'an didn't get in the car.

Yao Wei asked, "Then what? What should we do?"

Lu Xi'an replied, "Stay here for a moment and see if we can find a usable pipe.

"Let's first check the station building. If there isn't one, we'll look elsewhere."

There wasn't a pipe in Yao Wei's car, otherwise it would have been much easier.

After answering Yao Wei's question, Lu Xi'an walked into the station building.

Yao Wei followed, still frowning, and asked, "Can we use the hose from the pump? Should we take it off?"

Lu Xi'an glanced at the pump and said, "Probably... it's too thick, won't fit into the bottle."

Yao Wei couldn't understand, "What do we need the bottle for?..."

Lu Xi'an turned back and smiled at Yao Wei, saying, "Of course, it's not for direct use. Let's find it first, and then we'll see.

"If we can't find one, we'll have to go with your suggestion.

"If we do find one, then we'll need to use a mineral water bottle.

"We need to make a manual water pump, or rather, an oil pump."

"An oil pump?"

Yao Wei asked curiously, "What's that?"

Lu Xi'an said, "When we find the pipe, I'll make it and show you. Otherwise, I'm afraid I can't explain it clearly."

He could actually explain what the oil pump was like and how to make it.

But even if he explained the structure clearly, Yao Wei still wouldn't understand the principle. And without seeing the finished product, it would probably be impossible to visualize how to use it.

So Lu Xi'an simply didn't explain, only telling Yao Wei what was needed to make a simple oil pump.

Even so, Yao Wei became very interested in what Lu Xi'an was talking about.

She once again felt that Lu Xi'an was really amazing, just like Gou.

Gou could generate electricity and see many things clearly, while Lu Xi'an could figure out many things and even make things.

She couldn't help but think to herself that perhaps only Lu Xi'an was worthy of Gou; it was indeed the best decision to let Lu Xi'an onto the vehicle in the first place.

But now, they needed to quickly find a pipe.

She and Lu Xi'an entered the station building one after the other, carefully searching. Lu Xi'an also checked the restroom within the station building, thinking that if this gas station had pipes, the restroom was the most likely place.

Unfortunately, after looking around, there was nothing in the station building.

Everything here had already been moved out. The only remaining table and hardboard bed were also completely empty.

Lu Xi'an even let Gou come in for a search, but didn't find any hidden compartments.

This gas station was thoroughly abandoned, with nothing left.

"If there's nothing here, we'll have to go into town to look,"

Lu Xi'an said after coming out of the station building empty-handed.

"Can we find anything?"

Yao Wei, trailing behind Lu Xi'an, asked as they both exited the station building.

This time, Lu Xi'an didn't give a definite answer, just shook his head and said, "Who knows?

"This village isn't big, but it's still a village, so it's not small. When people died or left here, it's possible some pipes were left behind.

"Pipes might not be of much use to some people, and someone carrying a heavy load might've left pipes behind."

He also had other guesses, for example, that after so much time had passed, even if pipes remained, they might have aged, hardened, and become unusable.

But he didn't want to dampen the mood by voicing this guess, he merely said to Yao Wei, "Of course, it's also possible that we won't find anything.

"We've already checked many places in East Mountain County and Ox Head County's townships, and resources are always hard to find.

"Who knows what we'll find here in the end?"

"Hmm."

Yao Wei nodded, not disappointed. For her, a fruitless search was just a usual occurrence; she had seen it often enough on her journey, this small setback was hardly anything new.

Lu Xi'an continued, "However, I think we should still try to look.

"If we can make an oil pump, I feel we'll find it useful in the future.

"Encountering usable gas stations along the way has been our good fortune.

"This kind of thing might happen again in the future. After all these decades, it's normal for the pumps to be completely defunct."

Yao Wei pondered a question for some reason, asking, "What if one day, all the gas pumps are destroyed, and we run out of fuel?"

Lu Xi'an thought for a moment and said, "Then we'll stop driving, of course.

"It's been decades, and still living muddle-headedly, sinking into this apocalypse without looking for or reclaiming past glories, or rediscovering old technologies.

"In such a case, we'd deserve to have nothing to drive in the future. Not just that, it would also serve us right if we run out of scavenged materials and can't find food in the future."

Yao Wei gave Lu Xi'an a quirky look.

Lu Xi'an asked, "What's up?"

Yao Wei said, "Nothing... just that it sounds strange coming from you. It sounds more like something Luo Ping would say."

Lu Xi'an laughed, "That's because Luo Ping was right before, and my words share the same reasoning..."

He paused briefly, then sighed, saying, "Actually, I always feel that with the level of technology of the old world, and the social organization that should have existed..."

He was making a judgment about this world's social organization based on the situation in his past life.

Anyway, he had traveled from far in the north to here, discovering many 'relics', seeing many things, always feeling some similarity between this world and his previous one.