Relying on Luck

Lu Xi'an said it casually, but he didn't expect Yao Wei to turn the steering wheel.

But thinking about it, it made sense. In this world where everything seemed to have stagnated and was heading towards ruin, how could one drive without worrying about running out of gas?

If they didn't stop to look for gas stations along the way and refuel their tanks at any time, then like before, Yao Wei would definitely have to abandon the car in a hidden spot and carry an oil barrel to get gas, which would become a common occurrence.

And if they were unlucky, even without looking for gas stations everywhere, carrying a barrel would become a common occurrence.

Lu Xi'an originally thought that travel anxiety was something only experienced when driving an electric car, but he never expected to experience it now in a gasoline-powered car.

The refueling process was still the same: first, scout to confirm safety, then find the power box, try to connect the circuit, and finally, use the gas pump to refuel.

They were lucky. There was no one at the gas station, but the station building had also been ransacked, leaving nothing behind. This time, even the toy motorcycle was gone.

These places were probably picked clean of supplies, making them useless to people, so they generally wouldn't come here.

Lu Xi'an didn't know if there were any supplies left in Fengcheng County that hadn't been looted. As he picked up the Mechanical Dog to let Doggy connect the circuit, he wondered if they should search for supplies in the countryside or head into the city in this area.

Combining his experiences traveling south for over a year and looking at Yao Wei's words and World Atlas Volume One, he had a general understanding of this world—

That the further north you go, the more desolate it becomes, and the less suitable it is for survival.

Perhaps this world was like Earth, and beyond the planet's equator, the other hemisphere might be different, but as of now, this was the situation.

So, further north, he had looted to his heart's content while traveling south, whether in cities or villages, and hadn't encountered many people.

But when they entered Mo Zhou City before, there were the Wolf Gang and the Dog Gang.

He wasn't sure if people struggling to survive here would set up strongholds in the countryside or in cities, or neither.

Stupid!

There were locals nearby, why was he thinking so much?

"Where should we go to scavenge next?"

Lu Xi'an asked.

Doggy connected the circuit, and the "buzzing" sound of the gas pump started.

The two walked towards the gas pump, and Yao Wei replied, "Depends on luck."

Lu Xi'an asked again, "Are people generally easier to encounter in cities or in villages?"

Yao Wei still said, "Depends on luck."

Lu Xi'an: "..."

Alright.

There were four gas pumps at this gas station. After Doggy powered them up, the screens on all four pumps lit up.

It seemed they were lucky.

Yao Wei tried three gas pumps in a row, but no oil came out of the nozzles; the reserves were almost depleted.

As she approached the last one, both she and Lu Xi'an became a little nervous. But when she inserted the nozzle and operated it, the gas pump started "buzzing" and filled the car's fuel tank until the nozzle clicked off.

Out of the four machines, one actually still had oil.

So they were truly lucky!

They continued on their way. Lu Xi'an became like a navigator, guiding Yao Wei according to the map.

After driving for about twenty minutes, a village appeared before them. Lu Xi'an glanced at the map; it showed the village was called "Gao Family Village."

Yao Wei drove in slowly, cruising through the village without any intention of getting out of the car.

Lu Xi'an, having witnessed the woman's caution, immediately understood Yao Wei's thinking—

She wanted to drive around the village first to confirm that there was no one there before getting out to search for supplies.

This was the safest and most secure approach.

And this approach clearly paid off.

As the car reached the center of the village, gunshots suddenly rang out.

However, the shots seemed to be inaccurate, hitting nothing.

The gunfire came from their side. Lu Xi'an turned his head in the direction of the sound. In a two-story courtyard in the second row from the road, someone had placed a gun on a second-floor windowsill and was firing shots at them.

Heads also appeared over the wall, as if doing something.

"There are quite a few people."

Lu Xi'an warned, picking up his submachine gun.

His submachine gun was always within reach. Although he no longer needed to guard against Yao Wei, he always had to be aware of potential dangers.

—Like now.

Yao Wei didn't hesitate and floored the accelerator, driving as fast as she could.

Lu Xi'an lost the opportunity to waste bullets. He looked back and saw people vaguely visible chasing them outside the dusty rear window, then stopping dejectedly.

Yao Wei drove the car straight out of Gao Family Village, with no intention of stopping, abandoning the place immediately.

Lu Xi'an naturally understood that compared to their safety, pride was insignificant.

His marksmanship was poor, so there was no need to risk his life over a single shot. It would be a loss that outweighed the gain if, for instance, Yao Wei's car tires were shot out.

"The next stop is straight ahead, that's Wanhu Village... another Wanhu Village."

Lu Xi'an informed Yao Wei of the road conditions.

The name Wanhu Village was probably quite common; it likely earned its name long ago when the villagers numbered ten thousand and gathered there.

Thinking about how there used to be one in Dongmen County to the north, both possessing the name "Wanhu," yet now they were both deserted and ruined. The fragility of humans truly made one sigh.

Continuing straight ahead for another twenty-odd minutes, they arrived at this Wanhu Village in Fengcheng County.

As usual, Yao Wei drove around the village once, and after confirming no one was around, she stopped to explore her target.

They didn't plan to explore the entire village. When Yao Wei was driving earlier, she had already scanned through everything. The houses in the village were dilapidated, much more desolate than Gao Family Village before.

No wonder those people chose Gao Family Village as their stronghold instead of this place.

Only one house was still perfectly preserved. Lu Xi'an and Yao Wei guessed that others had already checked it, but they still intended to take a look.

Near this house, Yao Wei found a corridor where the car could be parked, making it difficult to spot at first glance. It also had access to both the front and back, so they wouldn't be blocked if a special situation arose.

After parking the car, the two brought their equipment and got out together, entering the house.

The house had indeed been explored. The courtyard wall had collapsed, the main gate was open, and after walking through the overgrown weeds in the yard, the door to the first floor of the small building had also been kicked down, smashing the floor tiles.

Inside, there was a TV and a refrigerator. The refrigerator was open, and it was empty. There were bullet holes on the refrigerator door, indicating that a battle had taken place here.

Seeing this situation, Lu Xi'an and Yao Wei quickened their search of the house.

The fact that this place was once so lively proved that many people had visited.

If many people had visited, naturally, nothing good would be left.

--It was even possible that absolutely nothing was left.

But unexpectedly, as they were rummaging through the corners of drawers and cabinets, Doggy slid onto a floor tile in the corner, and its eyes suddenly lit up.