Chapter 253: Snow Cave

The gale was still swirling in the mountain valley of the ice plains, whipping up snow foam and striking the rock walls,

emitting a wailing sound. Lu Ran's footsteps did not pause in the slightest; his enhancement ability supported his overdrawn body, his hands tearing at the zombies pouncing on him alternately,

his fingernails full of sticky blood and minced meat. His throat had long since gone hoarse from shouting,

yet he still squeezed out A-Nian's name over and over, the sound shattering in the wind and snow, so much so that he couldn't even hear it clearly himself.

The ice-blue-skinned zombies grew more numerous, their claws carrying a biting chill, continuously opening wounds of varying depths on Lu Ran's body.

Fresh blood seeped out, instantly frozen into ice shards by the low temperature, sticking to his skin, feeling both painful and numb.

Lu Ran was completely unaware; his eyes were fixed straight ahead, his field of vision filled only with vast white snow and zombies continuously pouncing,

his mind repeatedly echoing with A-Nian's appearance, that thin, small figure huddled next to the heating vent hugging the signal receiver.

Time passed second by second, and the hands on his watch turned one circle after another. When the third circle's mark passed, Lu Ran's footsteps stopped suddenly. He sniffed hard, and in the gale, besides the fishy stench of the zombies,

there was also a faint trace of blood—that smell was very faint, but mixed with the medicinal scent on A-Nian's body, it was a scent he was familiar with.

Lu Ran's eyes lit up, and he accelerated suddenly, rushing toward the direction the bloody smell was coming from.

The zombies blocking his path were torn apart by his bare hands, their bodies thrown away,

hitting the snow and emitting a dull sound. The further forward he went, the thicker the bloody smell, and the corpses of the zombies on the ground grew denser; their wounds were all very neat, as if cut by some sharp weapon, clearly traces of resistance by the team members beside A-Nian.

Finally, beneath a protruding rock wall, Lu Ran saw a snow cave surrounded by zombie corpses. The cave entrance was not large, only big enough for one person to bend over and crawl in,

and around it lay more than a dozen zombie corpses, each with its head smashed to a pulp, clearly someone had defended this place to the death.

Lu Ran's heart beat wildly; he rushed over in a few steps, tearing away the zombie corpses blocking the cave entrance with his bare hands,

accumulated snow and blood splashing all over him. He bent over, shouting toward the inside of the cave entrance,

"A-Nian!

A-Nian, are you inside?"

There was no response from the cave, only the sound of the wind passing through the cave entrance like a sob. Lu Ran's heart sank violently,

and he didn't dare to think more, bending over and crawling into the snow cave. The light in the cave was very dim,

filled with a thick bloody and medicinal smell. He felt his way forward a few steps, his toes kicking something soft.

Lu Ran hurriedly squatted down, brushing away the accumulated snow on the ground, and touched a familiar anti-freeze suit. His heart was filled with joy, and he hurriedly helped the person up, borrowing the faint light from the cave entrance to see the pale face clearly; it was indeed A-Nian.

A-Nian's eyes were closed tightly, her brows furrowed tightly, as if she were enduring huge pain. She was still clutching that signal receiver tightly in her arms, the screen already shattered, yet still emitting a faint light spot. Lu Ran reached out to probe her breathing; it was very faint, yet still beating, and his hanging heart dropped instantly.

"A-Nian, wake up, I'm here." Lu Ran's voice carried a trace of tremor, and he reached out to pat A-Nian's cheek.

A-Nian's eyelashes trembled, and she slowly opened her eyes. When she saw that the person in front of her was Lu Ran, tears instantly surged out, and she opened her mouth, her voice hoarse to the point of being unrecognizable.

"Team Leader Lu... I thought... I would never see you again."

"Don't be afraid, I'm here, it's okay." Lu Ran's heart felt a pang of soreness, and he hurriedly helped A-Nian up, wanting to take her away from here.

Just as his hand touched A-Nian's leg, A-Nian suddenly cried out in pain,

her body curling up violently. Lu Ran's heart skipped a beat, and he hurriedly lifted A-Nian's pant leg,

borrowing the faint light to look, only to see a black bite mark on her right lower leg.

The bite mark was very deep, and the skin around it had already turned blue-black,

still spreading toward the surroundings at a speed visible to the naked eye, faintly able to see black patterns moving under the skin, exactly the same as the patterns on Sister Chu Yao Yao's arm.

Lu Ran's expression turned pale instantly, and he reached out wanting to touch the bite mark,

but retracted his hand violently, afraid of hurting A-Nian. His brain was blank, leaving only that black bite mark and the terrible consequences of the secondary infection virus

"Team Leader Lu... I've been bitten by a zombie."

A Nian's voice carried despair. She looked down at her leg, her tears flowing more and more, "Am I... also going to turn into one of those monsters?"

Lu Ran came back to his senses. He gritted his teeth and reached out to wipe the tears from A Nian's face, his tone firm,

"You won't. I won't let you turn into a monster. Sister Chu Yao Yao can cure the secondary infection virus, so she will definitely be able to cure you too. We're going back to find her right now."

He carefully picked up A Nian. A Nian let out a muffled groan from the pain,

but she bit her lip tightly and didn't make another sound. Lu Ran bent down and crawled out of the snow cave.

The wind and snow outside were still heavy, and the roars of zombies could be heard faintly; clearly, there were still quite a few that had slipped through the net.

Lu Ran shielded A Nian in his arms, his gaze becoming incomparably fierce.

His enhancement ability was pushed to the maximum once again, and the muscles all over his body bulged high,

his skin glowing with a bronze luster. The zombies blocking his path were torn to shreds by him one by one,

and fresh blood stained his cold-weather gear, as well as the snow beneath his feet.

A Nian leaned in Lu Ran's arms, watching his desperate, fearless back,

and tears welled up again. She reached out and grabbed Lu Ran's sleeve tightly,

her voice weak but clear: "Team Leader Lu... the signal receiver is still lit... the Human Alliance headquarters... is just ahead."

Lu Ran's footsteps paused. He looked down at the signal receiver in A Nian's arms; the light on the screen was still glowing,

flickering toward the depths of the valley ahead. He gritted his teeth, held A Nian, and walked in the direction the light was flickering. The wind and snow hit his face,

feeling like knives cutting into him, yet he was completely unaware. He had only one thought in his heart: take A Nian to survive, find the Human Alliance headquarters, and find a way to cure her.

In the valley ahead, dense gunfire and roars could be heard faintly,

clearly indicating that more danger was waiting for them. Lu Ran's gaze became even more determined; he held A Nian tighter in his arms, quickened his pace, and walked into the depths of the valley.