Apocalypse: Last Traveler

The seemingly unremarkable fist, not even as large as a vinegar bowl, appeared to carry the force of wind and thunder, striking the brown bear fiercely.

The brown bear's body, like a city wall soft yet firm, recoiled and counteracted with considerable force back on Lu Xi'an.

"Roaaaaar!!!!"

The brown bear let out a wretched howl, its body that had been charging towards Yao Wei's car abruptly stopped and flew horizontally off the road.

Fortunately, the fur on the brown bear, looking like reverse barbs, wasn't actually barbed. Though it pricked the fist slightly, it did not pierce through Lu Xi'an's skin.

With a "splash," the brown bear fell into the water, causing a large spray.

The splashes carried crimson blood, but it was unclear if it belonged to the Fish Rider or the brown bear.

Lu Xi'an retracted his fist and stood firm, recalling that he hadn't punched a hole through the bear's body, only knocked it flying, its eyes bulging, spittle spraying, and its scarlet tongue flopping uncontrollably.

The brown bear's mouth didn't seem to have spewed any blood.

So, looking at it this way, the blood in the water should be from the Fish Rider.

He had heard Yao Wei fire her gun earlier, but being focused on punching the bear, he hadn't paid attention to the situation in the water.

Thinking back, without any emotional fluctuation indicating the pheromone effect of the Fish Rider, Yao Wei should have hit the Fish Rider with her shot...

Footsteps sounded behind him, as Yao Wei with her gun moved to Lu Xi'an's side, still pointing at the water.

While the brown bear's body sank, showing no sign of rising back up, it was a human corpse that soon floated to the surface, spreading a pool of blood.

That person's "scales" were turned upside down, swaying with the current, missing a left arm. Who else could it be but the Fish Rider?

Seems there's no chance to ask the Fish Rider about what's going on here...

Lu Xi'an sighed.

But there was no other choice; when danger looms, eliminating the threat takes precedence, everything else comes second.

Wasn't it the same back in Mengxin City?

The Neo-Human there never told Lu Xi'an and Yao Wei his name before he died.

Upon seeing the Fish Rider's corpse, both Lu Xi'an and Yao Wei let out a sigh of relief.

To ensure safety, Lu Xi'an, ever cautious, picked up a stone from the ground and with a sharp "whoosh," he flung it, exploding the Fish Rider's head in the water.

"Why did you fire three shots just now?"

After exploding the Fish Rider's head, Lu Xi'an asked Yao Wei.

While punching the brown bear earlier, he heard three gunshots, which seemed unbelievable.

Yao Wei never wastes bullets; how could she fire three shots just like that?!

This woman lacks confidence in her shooting, needing to shoot again?

That completely goes against Lu Xi'an's impression of Yao Wei.

"I don't know."

Yao Wei said, "I accidentally fired two extra shots just now, wasting bullets..."

Her tone was somewhat remorseful, clearly pained over the wasted ammunition.

Lu Xi'an couldn't help but laugh, turning to glance at the elegant profile of the woman's face, asking, "Were you worried about me losing control?"

Yao Wei showed no embarrassment at all.

Instead, she felt it was normal and worth reflecting on. After recalling for a moment, she said, "Maybe... In the future, I should avoid doing that."

Lu Xi'an felt a warm current flowing through his heart, comforting her, "Don't worry. Train more with hidden weapons; once you master that, we'll have infinite ammo and won't need to conserve rounds anymore."

"Okay."

Yao Wei nodded, considering Lu Xi'an's words to be sensible, which lightened her mood a bit.

The two didn't go over to the riverbank; a mutant large fish was still in the water, and neither Lu Xi'an nor Yao Wei were certain if it was dangerous, so they decided against approaching.

Moreover, the Fish Rider's bare upper body, and the wet, thin, worn-out pants certainly didn't look like they could hide anything.

In that case, there was no need to search the corpse.

It's just a shame the brown bear didn't float up.

If it had floated, we could have asked Gou if the brown bear was edible.

Such a huge creature, if edible, would feed both me and Yao Wei for a long time.

Lu Xi'an thought that maybe due to the bear's sheer size, its body mass and bone density far exceeded that of a normal brown bear, causing it not to float.

Perhaps after decomposing in the water or being eaten by other fish, it might eventually surface.

—Of course, that's just his idle speculation, unsure if it holds true.

Since it's not floating now, he can only ponder idly. Considering the tumors on the bear resembling the unusual fish retrieved earlier, it probably isn't edible. Whether it floats or not, it doesn't matter anymore.

However, just thinking about that punch which, although it didn't cause the bear to explode, could send such a massive creature flying so far—how exhilarating!

Even if not exploded, the bear's internal organs were likely pulverized, hence it didn't rise?

So truly fearsome, we Type A Neo-Humans are!

It's simply a One Punch Man kind of power!

"Let's go."

Lu Xi'an said to Yao Wei.

"Okay."

Yao Wei replied, and the two turned together, getting into the car.

After a turbulent episode, they could continue southward.

Lu Xi'an got into the car, stroking the steering wheel, and sighed. Just now, the car almost got wrecked by that brown bear, quite a close call. Hopefully, on the road ahead, they wouldn't encounter more mutant freaks like Fish Riders and aberrant creatures like the brown bear and the large fish.

"Have you ever encountered such freaks, or a large fish and brown bear like that before?"

As he started the engine, Lu Xi'an asked Yao Wei.

Yao Wei's answer was just two words: "Never."

Lu Xi'an nodded, understanding that if Yao Wei had previously encountered Fish Riders, strange rains, or brown bears, then she wouldn't have been so cautious with Shu, having neither seen nor understood them.

In this world, other species are also affected by strains apart from humans, but creatures like mutant fish and brown bears are likely local to Jianshan City.

Shu and Fish Riders also seem to be unique to Jianshan City.

"Good," Lu Xi'an said, as he released the clutch and was about to press the accelerator to continue their journey.

But just then, the surface of the Liang River suddenly bulged upwards. With a "splash," something emerged.

Both were startled; Yao Wei immediately opened the car door, standing with her upper body exposed, gun aimed at the bulging water.

The water bulge was vast and when it burst, a massive fish with red eyes and tumors surfaced, spitting something out with a "phew," then quickly withdrew back into the water.

Yao Wei fired a shot with a "bang," hitting the rippling river surface but missing the fish.

The river returned to calm, the big fish seemingly having no intention to harm Lu Xi'an and Yao Wei, coming up solely to expel something.

Yao Wei and Lu Xi'an exchanged glances.