Chapter 879

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Main Character:

Shen Yao

"Traveling on foot is pure torture!"

Wei Ran complained, mainly because walking on their legs was truly exhausting; who could have imagined there was no 'worst,' only 'worse' — they hadn't anticipated that transportation would simply become unusable when they came over before.

"Don't talk, careful you choke on the wind!"

Cheng Nan said in a muffled tone, then buried his head back inside his clothes; he was wrapped in thick layers, but even so he couldn't block the cold wind trying to seep into his body.

Aiyo

This is truly strange!

"What do we do? The mission can't be finished in a short time, our supplies won't last more than a few days," Wei Ran had already envisioned the scene of them having to slink back to the temporary camp in defeat; it wasn't that she wasn't cooperating, heaven simply wasn't giving them a break, and the other mutant creatures weren't pushovers either.

"Take it one step at a time; right now the most important thing is still finding a place to set foot," the mutant snakes that appeared on the previous hillside were terrifying enough; if they stayed put, whether the previous mutant snakes came back out to kill or new mutant creatures came over for a picnic, they would be in a passive position.

Gritting her teeth, Cheng Nan looked up at the surroundings covered in white snow, thinking that swarm of white ants still wasn't edible enough — if they had eaten the surrounding area clean, at least they could still distinguish directions now.

Now they were groping forward in the dark; no one knew where the original location here used to be.

Shen Chengyi walked in the center of the team; originally she walked at the very front, but she still had to look after the others, and considering the dangers they might encounter on the road, she could only choose to constantly switch positions to stand guard.

"This should be a position somewhat near the provincial border," when they came from Yang City before, they once passed by here.

At that time this place wasn't yet covered by accumulated snow; the surrounding buildings, the greenery — all were very obvious.

Right now, besides the white snow and the traces not fully covered that stood out, nothing could be seen.

Wei Ran huffed and puffed her way to Shen Chengyi's side, simultaneously not forgetting to hand over the map in her arms, "We've walked a bit off course."

The direction wasn't too accurate, but to say they'd deviated from the target track wasn't true either; it was more like they were circling around the original mission location.

"Then let's go here; this side has many buildings, there can be places to rest."

It definitely has to be sheltered from the wind; otherwise once night falls the temperature will drop sharply, and these people can endure a day or two, but they can't endure a long stretch of time.

Shen Chengyi circled a spot on the map — a place called Ma Dao; that place was originally a small forked path for walking, later because there was quite a bit of land around, the small forked path slowly turned into a spacious road, and then people opened farmhouse inns there adapting to local conditions, and this place gradually became lively.

That side doesn't lack houses; because of the farmhouse inns, there would also be many wild chickens and wild ducks existing there; if they go over, not only can they have a place to stay, they can also hunt some wild game to satisfy their deprived taste buds.

Wei Ran expressed agreement; Cheng Nan couldn't say any words of opposition either.

The two began to finalize the next advance route with the few team members at the front, then everyone slowly turned direction and set off toward Ma Dao.

Their legs had already walked until they had no sensation; ordinary people could only rely on ability users to help, the two sides supporting each other, forcibly turning this trek into a marathon.

"Ai ya, we've finally arrived!"

They walked for nearly a whole day; sure enough, without transportation it's impossible to move an inch.

When they saw clusters of buildings appear before their eyes, everyone let out a breath of relief.

Never mind how bedraggled they looked before; right now they've finally found a way out of the woods — not to say whether misfortune will turn to fortune, at least tonight they have a place to rest, no need to worry about being woken by cold wind and getting frostbite.

"Quick, organize the backpacks."

Including the tents used for pitching being taken out, building interiors being swept clean again; ability users with strong bodies went to other building interiors to search for wild game.

Shen Chengyi was one of those searching for wild game, and her luck was extremely good — not only did she find wild chickens and wild ducks, she also picked up quite a few wild chicken eggs and wild duck eggs.

Mutant wild chickens and wild ducks cannot be judged by normal chickens and ducks at all; in weather this cold, normal chickens and ducks would have long been unable to lay eggs and hatch, but these mutant wild chickens and wild ducks could still lay eggs normally.

Shen Chengyi moved nimbly; she didn't go together with the others, but acted alone, and when she returned her hands were carrying all good things.

Yo he!

Wei Ran and Cheng Nan were greatly shocked; others catching one wild chicken or wild duck was luck, how come on Shen Chengyi it was all of them?

And there was such a large basket of chicken eggs and duck eggs; the number of people they had could almost all eat a few bites.

"Keep them for extra meals; the weather's cold, how can we manage if we don't eat our fill?"

Moreover ability users also need the meat of these wild chickens and wild ducks to replenish abilities; after all daily necessities all rely on ability users raising a hand — among them water, fire, and wood systems are the most miserable; metal and earth systems are responsible for defense and protection; and Shen Chengyi is the biggest trump card — once danger escalates and others can't handle it, it's all handed to Shen Chengyi to deal with.

Wei Ran noted down Shen Chengyi's contributions, saying she'd report them when they return to the shelter, all converted into special points or important items, not letting Shen Chengyi suffer a silent loss.

Shen Chengyi: ……

Shen Chengyi indicated she didn't suffer a loss, and she also didn't hand over everything she hunted; she kept a portion and simply put it in her space, just waiting to return to the shelter for her family to secretly enjoy extra meals.

But Wei Ran's gratitude wasn't a bad thing either; Shen Chengyi didn't want to labor in vain for nothing.

Wei Ran and Cheng Nan first got people to process the wild chickens and wild ducks, then smashed the collected chicken eggs and duck eggs, used the clear water condensed by water ability users, and the bonfire lit by fire ability users, and made a pot of fragrant egg drop soup.

Only added a bit of salt; the taste was absolute perfection!

Those who drank it all gave thumbs up; it was truly an eye-opener — sure enough, wild things are hard to get hold of, but the taste when eaten is really not bad.

Shen Chengyi got the most egg drop soup; not only were egg flowers floating on top, inside there was also a poached egg; eating it was fragrant, not a trace of fishy smell.

Perhaps this is the characteristic of evolved creatures; even evolved humans, compared to previous ordinary people, have visible changes.

Finishing the egg drop soup in her hand, eating the poached egg inside clean, Shen Chengyi picked up a chicken leg sent over and gnawed on it; this was also special treatment for her — after all today's meal was thanks to her efforts, other team members couldn't pick any fault.

Eating and drinking her fill, whole body warm and cozy, Shen Chengyi comfortably closed her eyes, thinking that if every day passed like this, they could still persist for a few more days; the energy provided by mutant creatures is higher than ordinary carbohydrates, as long as people aren't starved to the point of being unable to walk, they can still survive.

…………

"Chengyi, what do we do from now on? These white ant swarms are really hard to deal with."

Both smart and knowing how to run; they chased for a very long time before cornering them; in the end burning with fire and striking with lightning wasn't easy either.

Wei Ran panted heavily, thinking that at a time like this they shouldn't be pondering any mission; the temporary camp side can't help in the slightest; the Commander-in-Chief is powerless, because casualties and losses in other directions are greater than theirs.

Wei Ran could only grit her teeth and overcome it with Cheng Nan; this isn't over yet — they still have to figure out the mission; in the end it was Shen Chengyi who proposed breaking the whole into parts, directly dispersing all personnel to strike individually; this way perhaps they could still see the possibility of completing the mission.

Wei Ran and Shen Chengyi were assigned together; naturally it was because Shen Chengyi's strength was strong enough, responsible for the most dangerous part of the mission.

Just like these white ant swarms right now — chasing and driving them, barely managing to kill them clean, but among them quite a few escaped smoothly; in a few days they'll kill their way back.

Shen Chengyi has always taken on as much responsibility as she has capability; Wei Ran felt apologetic, but Shen Chengyi felt it was no problem at all — since she could resolve it, finishing the mission quickly meant they could return sooner too.

"What did the Commander-in-Chief's side say?" During this period they had been fighting wit and courage against the termite swarm and the mutant snakes, and who knew how many mutant creatures had fallen under Shen Chengyi's blade.

"The Commander-in-Chief has already sent the subsequent missions to us via equipment; our side completed them in a middling fashion, yet we suffered the fewest casualties."

A stroke of luck amid misfortune — they had not chosen to pile up lives to complete the mission; Wei Ran and Cheng Nan were also incapable of the self-sacrificing act of sacrificing the small self to achieve the greater good.

Wei Ran sighed, thinking to himself that who knew whether after their mission was done they would still need to support other squads; only through comparison did they realize the gap — they thought their side was dragging things down, but unexpectedly their side was already in the best situation.

She withdrew her hand, jumped down from the slope, Shen Chengyi shook her wrist, and the long blade was retrieved and placed behind her back.

Not far away, the termite swarm already burned pitch-black left only ashes with no discernible form; Shen Chengyi walked over to look, confirmed the escapees could not be caught up to, then called the others to regroup quickly.

As for the ashes, pack them up and take them away — these are all excellent fertilizer; bringing them back can grow edible grain.

Wei Ran helped hold the bag to pack; Shen Chengyi kept watch around the perimeter, during which she smoothly dealt with a small group of termites, letting them meet those turned to flying ash ahead of time.

Once this side was cleaned up, Wei Ran stood and urged Shen Chengyi to leave quickly; today they could eat meat again on the way back, all thanks to the team members being hardworking, simple, and willing to toil — although the food they brought was long since nearly gone, they couldn't resist the many farmsteads around with ingredient reserves, eating all kinds of meat in varying styles every day to replenish energy; this truly was a sweet burden.

Wei Ran's good mood lasted until they returned inside the building.

"What? Injured? Is the person alright!"

Wei Ran stared at Cheng Nan's pale face, thinking to himself: just separated for such a short while, how did you wreck yourself like this?

Cheng Nan waved her hand, leaned weakly against the wall corner with a face full of weakness saying she was fine — just bad luck, ran into a small pack of mutant wild wolves; they were no match, could only fight while retreating, and in the end her arm was bitten.

"Took the medicine; as long as no fever tonight it's fine." Outdoor activity — when is there not injury? Cheng Nan was just puzzled how mutant wild wolves appeared; that side clearly had no conditions for wolf pack survival.

Cheng Nan couldn't figure it out, the others couldn't either; Wei Ran had never encountered mutant wild wolves at all, let alone knew what was going on; only Shen Chengyi listening quietly on the side felt a vague unease — they probably still had to leave here and continue guerrilla warfare elsewhere.

"Why?"

Wei Ran was puzzled — just because Cheng Nan was injured? But with so many of them, the mutant wild wolves' individual aggressiveness was strong but their numbers held no advantage; they feared the termite swarm and mutant snakes because those belonged to group-attack range, and once encircled they fundamentally had no way to run.

As for mutant wild wolves… hadn't they previously persuaded a pack of wild dogs to leave?

"Different — this wolf pack attacks humans; they have a very clear preference." This meant the wolf pack had once gained an advantage on humans.

Bitter cold, food sources difficult; Shen Chengyi couldn't help but associate this matter more deeply.

If their position were targeted, and isolated people caught? A dead end.

Wei Ran pursed her lips. "Would it, be this serious?"

Shen Chengyi didn't speak; she had already said in advance everything she could think of — actually staying wasn't much of a problem either; even if the dog pack really came, they could survive, just ordinary people would most likely be injured.

Strength can ignore this trouble; Shen Chengyi indicated she still had to go out on patrol — this was her mission today; Wei Ran could think more for himself; regardless of whether they ultimately left or not, it wouldn't affect their relationship.

In the end they still left; Wei Ran couldn't afford the gamble; when all pressure fell on her shoulders, her former decisiveness vanished without a trace.

The night after Cheng Nan was bitten she ran a fever; by the time everyone began to transfer, Cheng Nan was still suffering recurrent infection — all the medicine in hand was used to no effect.

Perhaps this was also one of the reasons Wei Ran ultimately chose to leave — Cheng Nan was different in her heart; Wei Ran could not possibly watch Cheng Nan come to harm.

Could not return to the temporary camp, but they could slowly approach the temporary camp's direction; their remaining supplies were practically nonexistent; daily food relied on hunted wild chicken and wild duck; under such harsh conditions still having to earnestly complete the allocation mission, Wei Ran almost every day had thoughts of giving up; the thoughts in her heart pressed on her whole brain, as if a light push would cause collapse.

"Captain, where are we going?"

"This is the direction back to camp, but walking will still take several days."

"No nonsense; mission not complete, definitely must wipe out the ant swarm first."

"..."

Wei Ran didn't speak, just silently hurried along until before nightfall they arrived at their chosen landing point — an abandoned building long deserted, nothing inside, bare and bald exterior not attractive in the slightest.

As usual organizing her own backpack and luggage, choosing where she wanted to stay to rest; Wei Ran, heart-tired, helped Cheng Nan lie down properly, then as usual took out the communication device to check the messages on it.

The temporary camp would every three or five times send reminder messages, among them involving mutant creatures, but more still about temperature changes.

This time was the same; the temporary camp received official confirmed news — these two days would welcome an unprecedented major temperature drop; the masses who had not yet returned to the shelter urgently needed to huddle together for warmth.