Chapter 562: Better to Join This Major Force!

The events in Weixing Village were unknown to Tianma Island; all they could do was maintain tight defenses, as the military maxim states: attack must begin with defense, and defense must begin with solidity.

Zhong Xiaoshan led people in meticulously checking for possible oversights, while in Cuileng Pavilion, two individuals had awakened from coma—Liu Tianji and Ke Zhiyu, the injured brought back by Ju Wuying.

"Little Liu, how are you feeling?"

Duan Wu looked at Liu Tianji, tightly bound on the bed, his expression odd, asking from a distance of four or five meters.

Fu Wei sat in a wheelchair beside him, wanting to move closer but held back by Duan Wu; Xie Yan stood frowning against the wall, clearly lost in thought.

"I… I…"

Liu Tianji spoke, his voice hoarse and unlike his own; he sensed something was wrong, otherwise Fu Wei and the others wouldn't be standing two zhang away.

"My eyes—I see things differently. Black and white. Everything looks black and white."

Liu Tianji didn't know his eyes had changed—like a frosted mosaic overlay had been placed over his original irises.

"Dr. Fu, am I cured? I feel strong, am I no longer going to turn into a corpse?"

Liu Tianji asked anxiously.

Duan Wu didn't answer Liu Tianji's question but turned to Ke Zhiyu and asked, "Little Ke, how about you?"

"My feeling's… similar to Brother Liu's, but my head hurts—terribly, it hurts…"

Ke Zhiyu's expression was certainly less relaxed than Liu Tianji's.

"Aside from Qiu Hui, Yu Jiaohua and Guo Fenfang, plus the four others brought back last night, all received the same concentration and dosage of the blocking agent, yet only these two woke up—individual differences are striking."

Fu Wei held a notebook, recording treatment-related data.

Xie Yan nodded thoughtfully and sighed, "Too bad we can't further study the relationship between individual differences. I examined Yu Jiaohua earlier—her vital signs were already extremely weak; she's probably…"

Yu Jiaohua had originally refused to amputate the bitten limb; after receiving the blocking agent, unlike Qiu Hui before her, she never regained consciousness even briefly—her condition was now grim.

The best responders were Liu Tianji and Ke Zhiyu: they not only woke up but showed no signs of zombification, only minor changes in appearance; other alterations remained unknown.

"Little Liu, Little Ke, I'll ask directly—did you lose consciousness? Can you control your body?"

Seeing the researchers completely ignoring the patients, Duan Wu had to ask himself—could they loosen the restraints for a clear answer?

Liu Tianji and Ke Zhiyu exchanged glances, then looked at Duan Wu and both nodded.

"Brother Duan, did we… make it through the zombification?"

Liu Tianji asked, slightly excited.

"For now, it seems so!"

Fu Wei suddenly chimed in, turning to Liu Tianji's grayish eyes, "Based on current reactions, your blocking was highly successful, but we still can't remove the restraints—need to observe for another one or two days. We hope you understand."

"Really?" Liu Tianji's face lit up with joy, nodding vigorously: "Understood, understood, totally understood! Oh my god, we're saved! Thank you, thank you all!"

"Thank you… thank you…"

Ke Zhiyu's head still ached, but he remembered to join Liu Tianji in thanking Fu Wei and the others.

"No need to thank us—we're all feeling our way across the river. Strictly speaking, you're merely…"

"Enough, enough, let them rest. Come on, let's check on the other patients. Uh, Little Liu, Little Ke, if you need anything, call out—we always have someone on duty. Lie down, lie down and rest."

Duan Wu knew exactly what Fu Wei was about to say and cut him off, pushing him away.

"Rest. We'll send food over soon. Everything's fine."

Xie Yan was slightly more human than Fu Wei—he walked to the bedside, helped Liu Tianji and Ke Zhiyu lie down, then left.

"Actually…"

After Xie Yan closed the door, Liu Tianji whispered, "I feel stronger than before. What about you? Any special sensations?"

Ke Zhiyu, struggling to suppress his headache, turned his head and gave a strange smile: "Same here—I feel energized, full of vitality."

"Could it be we weren't controlled by the zombie virus, but gained some benefits only zombies have? Haha."

Liu Tianji lay on the bed, laughing at the thought.

"Brother Liu, you're so optimistic…" Ke Zhiyu, infected by Liu Tianji's laughter, forced a smile.

In the next room, Fu Wei nodded: "They've undergone unknown changes—need continuous observation. At least wait until reporting to Mr. Zhang before deciding."

…

On Tianma Island, people were busy with their duties; below, in Weixing Village, it was equally lively.

Having decided to climb the mountain, Meng Changwei wasted no time, organizing eighteen armed fighters, leaving some men and a few older women and young wives behind to finish cleaning up, then set off with Fei Lang Gang.

On the way out of the village, the thirty-person group fell into eerie silence, each lost in their own thoughts, no one speaking.

"Hey? Boss, over there—movement! Looks like… vehicles!"

Just leaving the village, where the terrain opened up, Shouhou was the first to notice vehicles emerging from behind buildings blocking the southern view.

The group halted instantly, faces showing varied expressions.

Fei Lang Gang members exchanged glances, thinking: Could they be this unlucky? They'd just fabricated a lie that Zhang Su was dead, and now he was returning?

Daqiaobao villagers grew wary—not just of Fei Lang Gang, but of the approaching convoy.

From the initial dozen or so vehicles, the number grew to over twenty, then thirty, continuously increasing—as if endless…

"Out in the middle of nowhere, only Tianma Island could muster such a scene. Qi Dabin, don't you think you owe me an explanation?"

Meng Changwei stepped back, glancing at Qi Dabin beside him, his micro-submachine gun already in hand, safety off—or rather, never turned on since leaving the village.

Seeing their boss armed, tension exploded instantly—both sides split apart, tense and alert, except one middle-aged man with a limp, who shuffled slowly forward, then stopped right between the two groups. "This… Old Meng, don't misunderstand!"

Qi Dabin broke into cold sweat—Fei Lang Gang had only two guns: one hunting rifle belonging to Xie Guangfa, one firelock, both without ammunition. The other side had half their fighters armed, and he knew their ammo was plentiful.

If conflict broke out, his side would be slaughtered.

"Then tell me, what am I misunderstanding? Isn't this Master Zhang's convoy? Hmm…"

Meng Changwei pointed toward the provincial road, but as he spoke, even he grew doubtful.

Shouhou noticed Meng Changwei's expression change, followed his gaze, and instantly understood.

Thirty or forty vehicles were explainable, but as time passed, like counting trains from a roadside as a child, there was no end—within moments, the convoy stretched hundreds of meters, over a hundred vehicles, and still no tail in sight! "Oh my god, this is a misunderstanding! Boss Meng, look—there must be over a hundred vehicles! And… how the hell is there a tank? This can't possibly be Master Zhang's convoy!"

As Shouhou spoke, the entire several-hundred-meter convoy finally emerged from behind the obstructing buildings, rolling northward—vehicles of every style and type, the lead vehicle a battered cargo truck, unimpressive, but the rear tank was brutally imposing.

Tanks weren't rare—Meng Changwei knew Tianma Island had one, acquired from the Qinglong Army—but that was a heavy tank. The one in the distance was clearly a light tank; though not a military enthusiast, he knew the difference was nearly twenty tons—by size alone, they were nothing alike, even if blind in one eye, he could tell.

Even if Tianma Island somehow acquired another light tank, the sheer number of vehicles here was absurd—one driver per vehicle required over a hundred men, and every roof was tied with zombie corpses—this was clearly a large survivor settlement on the move!

"In my view, this is definitely not Tianma Island's convoy."

Qi Dabin, seeing the massive convoy, breathed a silent sigh of relief—his thoughts mirrored Meng Changwei's: this must be a major faction relocating.

"Judging by the direction, they're heading toward Qincheng. Can't be the Zhengdao Society from Tangcheng—too far, hundreds of kilometers. Could it be… something happened in Qincheng?"

Someone from Daqiaobao asked—the first reaction of most.

Meng Changwei frowned, slowly reholstering his gun, shaking his head—he didn't know.

"Rather than fighting those few groups on Tianma Island for territory, why not try joining this bigger force? Old Meng, what do you think?"

Qi Dabin, seeing Meng Changwei holster his weapon and the tension ease, felt his mind quicken.

The suggestion instantly gained support—not just from Fei Lang Gang, but even some Daqiaobao villagers nodded inwardly.

Weixing Village's weak defenses were obvious; if a better place existed, it shouldn't be abandoned.

Meng Changwei listened carefully—Qi Dabin had said "fighting those few groups," and the slip seemed unintentional, likely not a lie—something must have happened on Tianma Island.

He didn't know this was Qi Dabin's genius: to deceive others, you must first deceive yourself—only then can a lie appear truly convincing. He had no time to ponder what had happened on the mountain—the decision before him was urgent.

"You make it sound easy—a force this big, hundreds strong, just casually accepting survivors?"

Meng Changwei watched the convoy slowly approaching, his face uncertain.

"So what if it's a big force? Even the biggest is still made of people. We're dozens, all sharp and capable—any survivor settlement would welcome us. Come on, Old Meng, let's go ask first?"

Qi Dabin strongly urged Meng Changwei—or rather, wanted to pull Daqiaobao along, since Fei Lang Gang was too poor to matter…

Fei Lang Gang now had twelve men who could fight zombies, but they had almost no supplies or decent weapons, dressed like absolute refugees. Daqiaobao villagers were different—armed, well-supplied, dressed neatly! Meng Changwei watched the massive convoy draw near, moving in perfect unison, zombie corpses neatly tied to every roof, and through some un-tinted windows, he saw the interiors were completely dark—proving every vehicle was packed to the brim with people or cargo.

Regardless of firepower, this convoy was flawless in supplies, numbers, and discipline—even Qinglong Army and Tianma Island, even the major forces of Shanhai District, couldn't match it!

The sense of inferiority made Meng Changwei hesitate—he turned to his men and saw them all nodding—clearly, they wanted to go.

"Let's go ask!"

Meng Changwei made his decision, waved his hand, and everyone followed him forward.

Until they fully broke ties, Fei Lang Gang would still follow Meng Changwei's orders as long as their own interests weren't harmed…

…

"Oh? Are Master Meng and his group here?"

On the tank, Zhang Su was speaking with Zhong Xiaoshan.

"Yes, they arrived not long after we finished breakfast. I counted roughly forty people, mostly men—I didn't open the gate, assigned them to Village One."

"Forty people? I remember Meng Changwei told me his group was about that size—are they abandoning their old camp to come here?"

Zhang Su felt puzzled—like Zhengyi and Niuyazi, who'd been crushed and fled, that made sense, but if their camp was safe, why relocate?

Zhong Xiaoshan quickly answered Zhang Su's doubt, her voice echoing in the tank: "Well… Ju Wuying says it's probably not just Daqiaobao people—maybe others from different camps too. Overall, it's complicated; they're divided internally."

"Sakula said that?"

Zhang Su frowned—if anyone else said it, it'd be speculation, but Ju Wuying's words carried different weight—she had unusual abilities, making her reports more credible.

"Alright, Xiaoshan, I understand…"

"Boss! A group came out of Village One—they're not ours!"

Before Zhang Su finished speaking to Zhong Xiaoshan, the radio in the convoy crackled—Zhao De's voice boomed loudly.

"Encountered them, Xiaoshan, you just—"

"No, boss! It's Meng from Daqiaobao!"

Zhao De's voice cut in again before he could finish.

Zhang Su simply stopped replying to Zhong Xiaoshan—she'd heard Zhao De's shout and knew what was happening—he picked up the radio and ordered: "All vehicles, stop!"

Puff, hiss, creak-creeeeak…

When the order to stop was relayed, all vehicles slammed on their brakes, and a cacophony of strange, bizarre mechanical failures—along with the screech of brake pads and the groaning of overloaded chassis—sounded like an avant-garde symphony along the provincial road.

The convoy, stretching nearly two li from head to tail, came to a halt. Meng Changwei and his group, who had been carefully walking along the field ridges, froze in place, terrified. The vehicles were bumper to bumper, tail to nose; from front to back, the line was so long that turning their necks wouldn't even let them see it all—it seemed to them like a single, unbroken entity.

(End of Chapter)