Alliance

At the center of the square, the key figures from several convoys gathered. Night was approaching, and many armed survivors had taken it upon themselves to patrol the perimeter.

The people who had just stepped out of the military jeeps were local survivors from North Bay Town. Their leader, a middle-aged man named Tang Hai, had once been the stationmaster of Beiwan Station. According to him, after the apocalypse began, he had led stranded passengers and some townspeople into an air-raid bunker at a nearby military outpost. They had held out there for quite some time.

The fog in North Bay Town had not appeared at the start of the apocalypse, either. It had arrived after the first Polar Night. One group among them had planned to flee east, but because of the fog, those who ventured out had been killed or injured. Gradually, everyone realized they were trapped in this damned place. The sun still rose as usual, yet it felt as though they were still living through the Polar Night.

"You're saying this fog has been here for over ten days?" The speaker was a fat man who led a small convoy. It had originally numbered more than thirty people, but in just two days, half were gone.

"That's right."

"Then why did you risk leaving the air-raid bunker to find us?" Qian Yu studied Tang Hai and got straight to the point.

"What other reason could there be? To save you, of course!"

Before Tang Hai could speak, a somewhat roguish young man beside him said loudly, "There's a back road south of town. I've checked it out. It's fairly clear. With trucks and armored vehicles leading the way, we can definitely break through."

The square fell silent. The other convoy leaders gave him strange looks, and some even scoffed.

Qian Yu snorted and glared at him.

"Do you think we're stupid? If there's a way out, why didn't you take it yourselves? Why come all this way to save us?"

He had voiced what everyone was thinking.

In the apocalypse, everyone was looking out for themselves. The convoys distrusted one another. Even a little girl like Lou Shasha would not believe a claim like that.

"Yuming, let me explain." Tang Hai raised a hand, signaling for everyone to calm down. "To be honest, we all want to get out. Our goals are the same. We want to join forces. More people, guns, and vehicles mean a better chance of survival."

That made Tang Hai's intentions clear. Banding together in a crisis was only natural.

The convoys might scheme against one another and fight to the death over supplies, but under the circumstances, even a fool knew they stood a better chance of surviving together.

Of course, each of them was thinking that as long as someone else died first, it was fine. The more people there were to take the brunt of the danger, the better their own chances.

No one said it aloud, but they came close.

Tang Hai swept his gaze across the group and said earnestly, "We know the route, and we have plenty of equipment. If we work together, our chances should improve. Besides, you have Espers here."

At the mention of Espers, everyone suddenly remembered. They exchanged glances, then looked toward the corner of the square.

"That brother and sister, and those other two, don't seem ordinary," someone said.

"Who's that woman? How is she so powerful?"

Qian Yu stood and looked toward Lin Xian. "Nearly forgot about that." With that, he headed over.

The other convoy leaders hurried after him.

"Yuming, what kind of power does that woman have? She's incredible." Tang Hai followed with his nephew, Feng Yuming.

"Uncle, it looks like some kind of telekinesis. It's pretty damn powerful," Feng Yuming said with a frown.

Delight flashed in Tang Hai's eyes. "With someone like that, we have a good chance of getting out!"

Feng Yuming glanced at him. "Uncle, she's a threat to us, too."

Tang Hai's expression darkened.

On the other side of the square, Lin Xian spotted Qian Yu and the others approaching from afar. He had already guessed what they wanted.

"That attack took a lot out of you, didn't it?"

Kiki hurriedly put a finger to her lips. "Keep your voice down, idiot!"

Lin Xian's eyes flickered. Kiki looked tired, and he knew she was running low on strength. At least she had not had a nosebleed today. That eased his mind a little.

Qian Yu's group came toward them in a crowd. Lou Shasha, who had been eating canned food, saw them and immediately jumped down from the pickup's passenger seat to stand in their way. "Hey, what do you want?"

Lou Hua quickly got up and stood beside her.

Qian Yu looked over the group. His tone was less sharp than before. "Relax. We're not here to cause trouble."

"Right, right!" another convoy leader chimed in. "We'd like you to join us so we can work together."

"With you two, we'll surely have a chance to break out."

The convoy leaders now looked at Lin Xian and Kiki with eager eyes. The powers they had just displayed made them seem like saviors, offering hope of escape.

"Work together?" Lin Xian stood. "How?"

Tang Hai and Feng Yuming came over as well. Lin Xian's expression shifted slightly when he saw them.

The other survivors in the camp were all grimy and exhausted. Prolonged tension had left them looking haggard.

These two, however, looked healthy and well-rested. If not for the battle just now, their clothes might have been spotless too.

That made Lin Xian suspicious.

"My name is Tang Hai. I'm from North Bay Town and used to be the stationmaster at Beiwan Station. The survivors with me are sheltering in a military bunker at the foot of that mountain..."

At Tang Hai's introduction, Lin Xian frowned.

The stationmaster of Beiwan Station?

"Lin Xian. Kiki," Lin Xian replied, keeping his expression neutral.

Feng Yuming, the roguish young man beside Tang Hai, gave them both a searching look. When he saw Kiki, his eyes suddenly lit up with undisguised excitement.

Tang Hai repeated the plan they had discussed. It was simple enough: if Lin Xian and Kiki agreed, everyone would join forces and move together.

"But it's getting late. Wouldn't breaking out now be even more dangerous?" Lin Xian glanced at Feng Yuming, then turned to Tang Hai with his concern.

Qian Yu dismissed it. "I don't think night makes much difference anymore. Whatever's in this fog is far more frightening than the dark."

"That's not what I mean..." Lin Xian started, but Kiki stepped forward and cut him off.

"You're all so stupid! If we break out during the day, we'll at least have time to catch our breath outside. If we break out at night, are we supposed to flee through the dark for twenty hours?" Kiki's words made even Qian Yu frown.

She had a point.

"Then should we leave first thing tomorrow morning?" someone suggested.

"I have a suggestion," Tang Hai said, stepping forward. "We cleared out quite a few Strange Corpses on our way here. Why don't we use this chance to move everyone to the air-raid bunker? It'll be safer to rest there, and it's closer to the back road south of town."

Everyone thought the suggestion was workable.

At the mention of the bunker, Lin Xian exchanged a glance with Kiki. Wasn't that the military outpost she'd mentioned before?

Kiki gave him a look. Without a word, they came to an understanding.

"I think that's a good idea," Lin Xian said with a nod.

With Lin Xian's agreement, everyone perked up. Qian Yu gave Tang Hai a quiet look but said nothing. He turned to Old Eagle. "Gather everyone. Get ready to move!"

Survivor Camp bustled with activity. The survivors packed their belongings, and before long, they were ready to go. Engines roared to life.

Inside a modified heavy off-road vehicle, Old Eagle watched the military jeeps ahead and said coldly,

"Boss, there's definitely something wrong with that Tang guy."

"I noticed." Qian Yu sneered. He picked up his radio and addressed the members of his convoy. "Everyone, conserve your ammo and take your weapons off safe."

He set down the radio and glanced at Old Eagle.

"I was planning to raid that military outpost anyway. If anything seems off when we get there, kill Tang Hai immediately."

A vicious glint flashed in Old Eagle's eyes. "Don't worry, boss."

Vroom!

The convoy rolled out. Tang Hai's military jeeps led the way, followed by more than a dozen heavily modified vehicles from Qian Yu's Black Flood Dragon convoy. Dozens of vehicles from the other convoys trailed behind. Lou Ye's pickup, with Lin Xian and Kiki in the back, brought up the rear.

Sha Sha opened the rear window of the cab from the passenger seat. "Are you cold?"

"We're fine," Lin Xian replied.

"Brother Lin, watch out. They might be plotting against you." Lou Shasha was young, but she was sharp.

"Uh..."

Lin Xian paused. He had been about to say that everyone was the same, but looking at Lou Shasha, he changed his answer. "We all want to get out. If things fall apart, everyone will look out for themselves."

Sha Sha gripped the edge of the window and stared at Lin Xian. "Then... then we have to stick together. I saved you two just now."

Lin Xian nodded at Lou Shasha. "All right. We're allies."

New readers, please keep following and recommend the story!