Apocalypse: Last Traveler

"In that case, should we head to Pingchuan City? Or return to Mengxin City and go around to the east from there?"

Lu Xi'an asked.

Taking the route from Mengxin City is the safest. They've traveled those roads before and know the situation.

It's a bit farther that way, but it doesn't matter. They're going back anyway, so adding a bit of distance isn't a big deal.

However, if they go through Pingchuan City, it would be relatively closer, and they might encounter other people.

But taking this route, they might have a chance to reach Shanyang County, to check on Shu and Chai Xin, and take a look at Luo Ping's base.

Lu Xi'an felt a bit concerned about Shu and Chai Xin, wondering if the old and young pair had reached Shanyang County?

Were they safe? Had they moved into Luo Ping's base? Had Shu replanted the corn seeds he took and managed to produce non-toxic products?

And what is Luo Ping's base like? What supplies are hidden inside? Besides Luo Ping, what other kinds of people are there?

Lu Xi'an was also quite curious about this.

But Lu Xi'an felt Yao Wei wouldn't choose the route to Pingchuan City; this woman has always been steady and would likely choose the safer path.

Yet, he never expected that after hearing his question, Yao Wei would answer, "Pingchuan."

Lu Xi'an looked at Yao Wei, somewhat surprised.

Yao Wei explained calmly, "Luo Ping's base is worth checking out."

Is that all?

Lu Xi'an chuckled, not exposing Yao Wei's thoughts, and said, "Alright, then we'll go to Pingchuan."

There's danger everywhere in this world; retracing old routes doesn't guarantee safety.

Just like in Mengxin City, the Type C Neo-Human they killed there had recently occupied the city.

Who can guarantee that retracing their steps won't lead them to new adversaries?

And in this cold world, it's rare to have small attachments; risking a bit for them shouldn't be much.

With Yao Wei acting this way, Lu Xi'an was at ease leaving his back to her and admired her.

If this woman were cold and heartless, constantly avoiding risks, never caring for others, Lu Xi'an wouldn't dare to stick with the ride.

Yao Wei must be the same way, right?

She'd also worry about others, leaving some warmth in this cold world, making him feel safe hitching her ride.

They drove back, refueled at the gas station near the previous turn, passed through East Stone Store Village, and arrived at Zhuoshi River shortly before the day ended.

As the sky darkened, the two of them rested there for the night.

As Lu Xi'an lay down to sleep, he thought about hoping for good weather as they headed north, but swallowed his words.

Having spoken ominously once, he wasn't keen on doing it again.

The strange pressure up in the heavens north of Jianshan City was too eerie; Lu Xi'an didn't want to experience it for long.

In this view, going through Pingchuan City seemed like a good choice, so they could go east from East Mountain County, entering Pingchuan City from Xiaogang Village, cutting down travel through Jianshan City.

Pretty good.

After resting by Zhuoshi River for the night, they got out early the next day, handled some personal matters, and continued their journey.

They munched on frozen meat sticks while listening to weeds brush against the car doors, following the path north when they reached the previous junction.

If they continued along the road, they'd return to Liangcheng County.

"I wonder what happened to that person? Did he make it to Liangcheng County?"

Walking along the road, Lu Xi'an couldn't help but think of that person again.

Never having asked for his name, Lu Xi'an could only refer to him this way.

Luckily, Yao Wei understood, and upon hearing Lu Xi'an's words, replied, "No idea."

Hmm... even understanding is not knowing...

Yao Wei wasn't interested in guessing what happened to him or whether he reached Liangcheng County.

Soon, they wouldn't have to guess; as they traveled north, they quickly saw the person.

— It was under a roadside tree in the wilderness; the trunk was slender, and the sparse branches couldn't block the sunlight.

He sat quietly against the tree, eyes closed, long devoid of breath.

The sun was right, bathing his decaying body in light.

Whether due to recent cold or his recent passing, his body remained intact.

Under the sun, the terrifying appearance strangely evoked tranquility.

As if spending his final moments sunbathing, he must have felt good.

Lu Xi'an couldn't help but think this.

But feeling good is just a trivial satisfaction in the apocalypse.

After seeing the person under the tree, Lu Xi'an asked Gou to ensure safety, parked the car, and with Yao Wei, stepped forward silently to the tree.

This wasn't a world overrun by zombies; the body before them wouldn't move. They witnessed only a still scene.

Lu Xi'an sighed and said, "Let's dig a hole and bury him."

Yao Wei asked, "But didn't he want to sunbathe?"

She actually still remembered the words of this dead person.

Or maybe the posture of this person now made her recall those words she once heard?

Lu Xi'an smiled and said, "You're right, he looks quite comfortable sitting like this, why should we move him?"

Let it peacefully slumber here.

As Lu Xi'an spoke, he bowed to the deceased under the tree to express his condolences.

Yao Wei didn't understand why Lu Xi'an did this, but somehow felt something, so she followed Lu Xi'an's actions and bent over to bow to the tree.

After that, the two of them returned to the car and continued northward. All the way to Liangcheng County, they drove along East Ring Road, refueled at a gas station, and turned onto the road by the Liang River.

Lu Xi'an and Yao Wei smelled a strong odor of decay, which wasn't there when they passed by the Liang River before.

But they quickly found the source of the smell—

Above the Liang River, there was a large, rotting corpse quietly floating.

The corpse's bones were exposed, its flesh was rotting and bitten off quite a bit, with chunks of fat floating out, polluting the river beyond recognition.

"That should be the brown bear, right?"

Lu Xi'an looked at the river and asked. He could only guess based on the roughly discernible shape of the rotting floating corpse.

"Hmm."

Yao Wei also looked at the corpse, seemingly making the same guess.

Unexpectedly, the brown bear's corpse, which had sunk to the riverbed earlier, only floated up now.

The corpse is already rotten, not worth salvaging.

Lu Xi'an continued driving east. Yao Wei pulled Gou over from the back and placed him on the dashboard in front.

Moving forward, they would reach the reservoir. When they passed there before, dense fog covered the view, making it somewhat troublesome to drive.

Yao Wei and Lu Xi'an didn't know if there would still be fog now, but better safe than sorry, they let Gou squat on the dashboard, ready to help navigate if fog came.

However, the fog did not appear.

Lu Xi'an couldn't figure out if the previous fog was due to environmental changes or the Fish Rider's actions, and because the Fish Rider was dead, the fog was gone.

But if it was the Fish Rider's doing, wouldn't it be too outrageous?

Fish Rider was just a Type D-1 Neo-Human who had injected with Type D strain, and then with Type C strain, it was impossible to manipulate the weather!

As far as Lu Xi'an knew, none of the Type A, B, C, or D Neo-Humans could control the weather.

If controlling the weather were possible, wouldn't the people of the old world have considered Type D Neo-Humans directly manipulating the weather to turn warm?

— Of course, creating fog isn't the same as controlling hot or cold weather. Nonetheless, Lu Xi'an felt such Neo-Humans were quite outrageous, exceeding the scope of any known strains.

The car continued and reached the reservoir shore.

Suddenly, they saw waves surging in the reservoir, and a large fish surfaced.

The big fish swam freely in the water, its scales opening and closing, releasing white mist rhythmically as if greeting Lu Xi'an and Yao Wei.

Is this the fish?!

Lu Xi'an was slightly taken aback.

Has this fish become distinct under the influence of the strains?!

Moreover, the effect on humans and fish from the same strains was entirely different?

Or maybe this isn't entirely the effect of the strains?

The fish releasing mist from its scales, is it related to that eerie thing in the sky and the green water now?

But Lu Xi'an carefully looked, feeling that the fish's scales released mist easily, yet spreading so wide and far seemed somewhat incredible.

Can this fish do that? Release so much mist, covering the reservoir and extending far to the shore, does it have such great power?

But soon Lu Xi'an thought of the Fish Rider and its abilities.

If the Fish Rider stimulated it, using pheromones to excite the fish and unleash its potential, achieving this should be reasonable, right?

Just unsure how Fish Rider sent pheromones to the big fish, since sweat couldn't be released in water, there should be no way to use this technique on a fish.

Yao Wei also looked at the fish, holding a gun, a bit tense.

Lu Xi'an carefully observed the big fish, confirmed there was no danger, and then said to Yao Wei, "No need to be nervous, I think this fish is just greeting us."

"We helped it get rid of the Fish Rider, which was a big help."

"Hmm."

Yao Wei nodded but remained cautious.

"Besides, we're about to reach the intersection, and once we head north, we'll be away from this big fish, it's okay."

Lu Xi'an said, honked the horn, as a response to the big fish.

It seemed the fish heard the horn, its scales opened wide, releasing a vast expanse of white mist, almost like speaking to those driving on the shore.