About 1.5 kilometers away from Hongfu Restaurant, there is an ordinary small street hotel named "Yuelai Inn".
In the narrow standard room, the curtains were tightly closed, allowing only a little dim light.
Zhang Hao and his girlfriend Xiao Xi were huddled beside the bed against the wall, their eyes dull and mumbling something.
Zhang Hao is a college student from Xuetong City next door. After passing the final exam and saving a few hundred yuan frugally, he happily came to Helu City to meet his girlfriend.
Xiao Xi is a student at a local university. The two are in a passionate relationship and want to stay together every day. In order to stay a few more days, they chose this affordable small hotel.
Yesterday at noon, after the two of them had been affectionate and affectionate, they were discussing going out to find a delicious restaurant to treat themselves, when disaster struck without warning.
Loud noises, terrifying roars and human screams outside the window instantly shattered the charming atmosphere.
They locked the door in fear, and soon, there were blood-curdling screams, running sounds, and the sound of some sharp object frantically scratching the door from the corridor outside.
Not long after, the official text message came to remind them. They followed the official reminder and hurriedly blocked the door panel with chairs, bedside tables, suitcases, etc. in the room.
During this period, Zhang Hao desperately called and sent WeChat messages to his parents, but luckily he was able to get through. His mother's anxious voice made him feel a little reassured, but soon the signal became extremely unstable and was eventually completely interrupted.
The last WeChat message from my father was "You hide! Don't come out! We're hiding at home, it's okay!"
No more news after that.
Xiao Xi's situation is similar. Her home is in the old city. The last message sent by her parents said that they had also taken shelter and the doors and windows were blocked, so she was told to take care of herself.
Despair and worry flooded the two of them like a tide.
This was just an ordinary special-price room without any food reserves. As day and night passed, hunger and thirst began to torture them crazily.
Although they immediately filled up the kettle and glass with tap water after receiving the alarm text message, plus the water from the bathroom sink and the water in the toilet tank, they were not going to die of thirst for the time being, but the burning hunger in their stomachs could not be relieved.
"Haohao. I remember, there seems to be a box of popping candy in the bag." Xiao Xi's voice was weak and hoarse, with a cry, "I bought it before. I bought it by the way. I'm really hungry and have a stomachache. Let's just eat a little, okay?"
"Why did you suddenly think of buying that? Isn't that what children eat?" Zhang Hao was a little strange, but he didn't think much about it, because his throat was also dry and painful, and his stomach was also protesting wildly.
Now I suddenly heard that there was a box of candies, and that box of candies suddenly exuded extremely alluring magic.
However, he still hugged his girlfriend tightly and shook his head, "Xiao Xi, please bear with me, it's only the first day. The official said, we need to save our energy and wait for rescue. We still have water, drink more water to stave off hunger."
He paused, looked at his girlfriend's pale and haggard face, felt distressed, and added softly, "If. If you are really hungry and can't bear it anymore, then. Eat a few pills, or add some sugar. But it's best. It's best to wait."
Xiao Xi Looking at her boyfriend's equally weak and tired face, she felt sour and almost shed tears again.
She was silent for a few seconds, then finally shook her head and buried her face in Zhang Hao's arms. "You're right if you don't want to eat, we have to save. If we really have to go out to find food on our own, this box of candy may be the last bit of energy we use."
Just when the two of them were clinging to each other, barely resisting hunger and despair with their body heat and words.
"Boom, boom, boom."
A clear and restrained knock on the door suddenly came from outside the blocked door.
The two of them jumped up like frightened rabbits, their hearts suddenly raised to their throats. They subconsciously grabbed each other's hands and stared at the door in horror.
What hit the door just now?
Immediately afterwards, a calm and clear young male voice came through the door. The voice was not loud, but it was very penetrating.
"Can you hear the people inside? I've cleared up the scattered monsters outside."
Zhang Hao and Xiao Xi looked at each other suddenly, and both saw incredible ecstasy and shock in each other's eyes.
Someone!
Someone was knocking on the door just now, and they also cleaned up the monsters?!
"Someone, someone! If you can hear it, we'll open the door right now."
Zhang Hao was so excited that he was shaking all over. He quickly responded loudly, jumped up, and quickly moved the heavy object blocking the door.
The voice outside the door continued, "I have a mission and will not stay. You have about half an hour to go out and search for food. Then you must return quickly and pay attention. If you hear the movement of a large army passing by later, you can try to come out and join up after confirming that it is safe."
After the voice finished speaking, it paused for a moment, as if to confirm that the people inside had heard it, and then the footsteps gradually faded away.
--
Leaving the small hotel where the pair of college students were staying, Lin Yi's figure continued to shuttle efficiently through the dead city ruins Relay.
The light blue light curtain of Portable Source Energy Detector is his most reliable field of vision, accurately marking the location of scattered Abyss Wolf. Every flash of the cold light of Abyss-Splitter Spear means the end of a Abyss Wolf.
Lin Yi Try your best to clean up Abyss Wolf along the way, and at the same time help the trapped survivors, giving them more opportunities to breathe and the hope of waiting for help.
As time went by, the closer he got to the old city, the more dense and eye-catching the traces of human resistance became.
The dense bullet holes on the walls, the blackened potholes left by the explosion, and the hastily built temporary roadblocks made of sandbags, abandoned vehicles, and furniture debris silently tell the story of the fierce battles that took place.
After walking some distance, Lin Yi clearly sensed that he was about to enter the officially controlled "safe zone".
Or the periphery of "Nest Gap Zone".
Because, he had already seen a grand and rough defense circle.
This is not a neat city wall, but a circular lifeline built with all available materials based on existing streets, buildings and topography.
Abandoned buses and buses were dragged horizontally and connected end to end to form the base of an intermittent barrier. Machine gun nests built with flood control sandbags were scattered on it. Explosion-proof horses, barbed wire, and construction site steel plates and scaffolding roughly welded together filled the gaps.
Several armored vehicles painted with armed police camouflage were parked next to key nodes of the defense line. Next to the armored vehicles, soldiers in camouflage uniforms were running past carrying ammunition boxes. Some people were hitting the armored vehicles with wrenches. It looked like they were repairing something. The sound of metal collisions was particularly harsh in the quiet city.
On the inside of the defense line, on the temporary watchtower, the sentry held a telescope, his body stretched straight, his eyes scanning the distance like an eagle, and occasionally he raised his hand and spoke quickly into the intercom.
This is the outer defense line of the Helu City settlement. It is stronger and more "vital" than any temporary shelter he remembered in his previous life.
The main roads adjacent to the settlements were forcibly cleared to serve as a "lifeline" connecting the outside world with the settlements.
There is constant traffic on this road, giving it a battlefield atmosphere.
The heavy-duty modified bulldozer covered with mud and dark red stains started, followed by wheeled armored vehicles and military trucks, which rumbled out of the defense line. The carriages were filled with soldiers and volunteers with resolute faces and guns clutched tightly.
Other trucks dragged their tired bodies back, and their carriages were filled with survivors who had just been rescued, looking frightened and confused, or valuable supplies that they had searched for.
Lin Yi took a deep breath, disarmed Flowing Cloud Light Armor and returned it to its belt form. Abyss-Splitter Spear also shrunk and retracted it, then straightened out its slightly messy collar and walked towards the entrance of the defense line.
At this moment, except for some dust and inconspicuous dark stains on his clothes, he looked like an ordinary student who had escaped from a dangerous area by chance, but his eyes were too calm, and he was somewhat out of tune with the panicked crowd around him.
This is a checkpoint consisting of two buses and sandbags.
"Stop, go over there and register first!"
A young man with a volunteer armband on his arm and a tired face shouted, pointing to a registration point not far away.
The registration point is very simple. There is a desk with a registration book and a bottomed bottle of mineral water on the table. A staff member is busy taking notes.
Three or four people are queuing up.
Lin Yi walked over as instructed, and soon it was his turn.
"Name, age, original address, are you injured? Do you have special skills? Medical, engineering, welding, etc." The staff member didn't even raise his head, his voice was slightly hoarse, but he spoke very fast.
"Lin Yi, 18 years old, original address West District Minghua Street, no injuries, skills... um. Does having some knowledge about Source Energy count." Lin Yi answered calmly.
???
"Source Energy?"
The registration clerk's hand holding the pen suddenly paused, and he raised his head almost subconsciously. His bloodshot eyes carefully looked at Lin Yi's face, with a look of uncertainty on his face.
"Source Energy. Wait, you just said your name is Lin Yi?"
"You are the Lin Yi of Hongfu Restaurant in that video?"
Lin Yi knew that his video had been circulated among officials and survivor groups, so he was not surprised when the staff member recognized him.
"It's me. Can you please help me meet with the senior management of the settlement? I have important things to report."
He nodded, took out the brand-new, steel-stamped ID from his pocket, and handed it over.
The registration clerk took it hesitantly, opened it, and was startled.
General Staff Department Special Technical Staff Officer, Lin Yi Major!
The bright red seal was like a bolt of lightning that struck his brain, which was a little confused due to overwork.