Short-Term Mission Pack

It must be because of his ability.

However, this posture was truly embarrassing. Yu Jing couldn't help but want to act more natural, slowly moving her hand down from her pants.

Suddenly, she felt the chill at her waist slide down a fraction.

Her heart skipped a beat, and she pressed her hand onto the young man's sturdy forearm.

"Yi."

With the danger receding, Su Huan's mood lightened considerably, and he couldn't help but want to tease her.

His tone was casual, "It will heal faster after an ice compress. Your clothes are covering it; pull them up a bit."

"Oh, right, okay."

Yu Jing realized she had been overthinking things. Feeling conflicted and awkward, she grabbed the hem of her ginger-colored shirt and pulled it up, sighing inwardly. She was already a mother; why was she still acting so bashful over such a small matter?

"The belt is too tight, loosen it a little."

Su Huan tugged at her pants. Her full hips were straining against the denim, leaving no room at all.

Because she had misunderstood Su Huan earlier, she hesitated for a moment before loosening the belt slightly.

Watching the submissive woman, Su Huan's lips curled into a smirk.

He lifted his cold palm, leaving only his index finger in contact with her skin, and traced it upward along her smooth waist for about a dozen centimeters.

The tingling sensation and the chill transmitted from her nerve endings made Yu Jing bite her lower lip.

She felt something was off, but Su Huan's finger stopped just before reaching the forbidden zone. If he had gone even a centimeter higher, she would have called a halt immediately.

But now... he was kindly helping her ice the swelling, and she was the one being suspicious. What was there to be conflicted about? Be brave!

Yu Jing thought with a muddled mind, completely forgetting whose claws had caused the bruises on her waist in the first place.

The cold fingertip lingered for only a moment before his entire palm flattened out and moved up a little further.

"Hiss~"

Yu Jing gasped.

Was this the right spot?

It felt like it should be a bit lower...

But the conflicted woman wasn't sure; the sensations of cold and pain sometimes blurred together.

Su Huan looked down at this clumsy Auntie Yu, unable to suppress the inexplicable smile on his face.

His palm slid downward, gradually moving lower.

Auntie Yu was not only timid in personality, but her figure was also surprisingly rounded. She didn't have the sharp edges of the other women in the apocalypse—no calluses on her elbows or protruding hip bones caused by starvation.

Her pores contracted under the cold stimulus, and her skin became even smoother, like fine satin.

His palm glided over her soft waist, moved slightly past her hip, and rested on the upper part of her buttock, not crossing the line by even a hair's breadth.

But the touch here was already plenty full.

To help the bruising fade faster, Su Huan repeated the motion four or five times, expanding the area slightly each time to ensure a better therapeutic effect.

"Mom, are you still up there?"

Her daughter's voice suddenly rang out.

Yu Yue jumped in fright, suddenly realizing that her waistline and half of her rounded hip were exposed. Her cheeks flushed a deep red, and she quickly pulled her clothes down, stepping back to put some distance between herself and Su Huan.

I should have known to extend the listening range to this carriage.

She regretted it inwardly.

The scent of roasted chestnuts that had been lingering at the tip of her nose suddenly drifted away. Su Huan shook off his distraction, reined in his unusual behavior, and put his habitual fake smile back on.

Yu Yue looked up and caught a glimpse of his distant, detached eyes. For some reason, a ripple of sadness stirred in her heart.

"It's so dark up here, I can't see you clearly," Yu Jing said softly.

"A terrifying snake-like Evolutionary Beast was chasing us, but it couldn't catch up and left," Yu Yue said with a flash of inspiration.

"It's good that it didn't catch us."

Yu Jing walked over.

Su Huan squinted at the clear, bright eyes of Yu Jing, then looked back at Yu Yue, who was visibly relieved, and chuckled to himself.

She was clearly clumsy, yet she always insisted on acting composed in front of her daughter.

He raised his watch and saw that half an hour had passed.

Looking up at Yu Jing, he said, "Tell Liang Kuan to stop running and prepare to reverse. Tell Wang He and the others to get ready; we'll set off together in a moment."

Yu Jing raised an eyebrow, "Isn't there an Evolutionary Beast chasing us from behind?"

"They are aquatic Evolutionary Beasts after all. Although some can come ashore due to evolution, they are more accustomed to an aquatic environment. Once the scent of the lure dissipates, they will return."

Su Huan explained simply.

After about fifty minutes, the Armed Train finally reversed back to a position roughly one kilometer away from the Water Plant.

Compared to moving forward, reversing took significantly more time.

Su Huan planned to acquire another locomotive next time at the station to hook onto the rear, specifically for reversing.

That would make escaping much more convenient.

Perhaps he could broaden his thinking and install a power carriage every three to five or six to seven carriages.

A distributed power layout.

This way, the entire Armed Train's load-bearing capacity would double, and the armor thickness could be increased accordingly.

30mm steel armor—just thinking about it gave one a massive sense of security.

Just as Su Huan was lost in his wild thoughts, the group had already gathered in Carriage No. 2.

Glancing up at everyone, Su Huan said calmly, "The lure's dissipation time is about half an hour, while the scent of high-level Evolutionary Beasts lingers for about three hours. An hour and a half has already passed, so we have one and a half hours left."

"In other words, if we go over now, we will only encounter a few remaining Evolutionary Beasts and scattered zombies."

"I will only say this once: for all outdoor operations, no matter how hot you are, put on a jacket. No large areas of exposed skin are allowed, and your jacket and inner shirt must be separate layers."

"The rest is to follow orders; do not panic, and do not be jumpy."

When saying the last sentence, Su Huan's gaze locked onto Yu Jing.

Seeing her nod, he continued, "This mission is to transport water purifiers. The personnel configuration is as follows: Qi Xiaoba, Yu Jing, and Wan Xing will remain to guard the train; Liang Kuan, Yu Yue, and I will execute the mission. Yu Yue is responsible for sensory detection, and Liang Kuan is responsible for defense and support. Any questions?"

Listening to Su Huan's clear and logical arrangements, everyone shook their heads.

"Xiaoba, you are responsible for holding the storage carriage. Wan Xing, continue extracting Pan-Energy Crystals. Yu Jing, you need to speed up."

"Evolving within one to three crystals is considered the safe range; exceeding three Pan-Energy Crystals will significantly increase the probability of failure."

Su Huan emphasized heavily.

"I will be quick."

Yu Jing's phoenix eyes lifted slightly, revealing a hint of seriousness.

Su Huan took three palm-sized pouches from the wall behind him, unzipped them, and dumped out some miscellaneous items.

There was water, food, and a very familiar cylindrical object.

Su Huan introduced, "These are the short-term mission packs I've prepared. In the future, remember to carry your own when you go out. Each contains a 1000ml bag of saline solution and a small bag of beef jerky. But this beef isn't for you to eat; it's for luring away Evolutionary Beasts with sensitive noses at critical moments."