Joining the Convoy

"This was a real pain!"

An Xi sank into the passenger seat, her whole body going limp.

"To think we'd run into a zombie!"

The thought of the zombie left An Xi feeling helpless.

"My attacks couldn't even break through its defenses. Luckily, it was an Armored Zombie. Its defense was strong, but neither its movement nor its attacks were fast. Otherwise, we would've been in real danger."

The girl driving said nothing when she heard that.

She wasn't a Sequence Adept and knew little about battles between Sequence Adepts and supernatural horrors. Everything she knew came from the bits and pieces An Xi had shared with her.

Since she had no answer, she simply kept quiet.

An Xi seemed to understand what the girl was thinking and said no more. Before long, though, she noticed another vehicle up ahead and gave the girl driving a puzzled look.

"A Xin, why is someone riding a motorcycle up front?"

The vehicles belonging to the few Sequence Adepts had always led the convoy. No ordinary person had ever dared venture to the front.

It wasn't forbidden, but the convoy occasionally ran into supernatural horrors blocking the road even while traveling. For ordinary people, being up front was asking to die.

At An Xi's question, A Xin replied, "I don't know the details, but apparently that person awakened a Sequence. That motorcycle used to be a bicycle, then it suddenly turned into a motorcycle."

"We'll probably have to ask the captain once we stop to find out more."

An Xi nodded at that and fell silent.

If he was a Sequence Adept, that made sense.

She'd known an ordinary person wouldn't dare head to the very front.

The convoy never stopped along the way. Chu Sheng kept close to Brother Hui's vehicle, staying beside him the whole time.

After upgrading his bicycle into a motorcycle, Chu Sheng had a much easier time.

Once they left the Small Town, the convoy drove another forty or fifty kilometers before stopping beside a river, seemingly to keep the zombie from tracking them.

Brother Hui got out and surveyed their surroundings, frowning slightly as though he didn't like the place. Then he took a few copper coins from his pocket and tossed them onto the ground. Only then did his brow relax, and he called out to everyone around him.

"We'll rest here today, but stay away from the river!"

At his words, those who had spent the entire journey chasing the convoy on foot finally breathed a sigh of relief.

After the convoy stopped, some of those who had fallen behind without vehicles gradually caught up.

But Chu Sheng quietly counted the people and found that the convoy was missing six or seven.

When they left the Small Town, the convoy had numbered 286.

Now there were only 279.

Here, falling behind meant death.

If someone hadn't been left behind for long, they might still catch up with the convoy and regain its protection, but it all came down to luck.

Supernatural horrors followed the traces of life, and the roads the convoy traveled along...

Were thick with those traces.

Everyone in the convoy knew that.

Chu Sheng found a spot away from the ordinary people and close to the Sequence Adepts. Just after he set up his tent, Brother Hui came over.

He tossed Chu Sheng a can of gasoline before saying, "You probably don't have much gasoline stored up. Consider this a gift to congratulate you on awakening your Sequence."

"You're a Sequence Adept now, too. We're about to discuss what comes next, so join us."

Chu Sheng looked at Brother Hui, then nodded.

"Sure!"

He hadn't expected to receive gasoline, too.

It was the kind of can sold at gas stations for keeping a reserve of fuel for a family car.

Twenty liters.

It wasn't full, though. Chu Sheng shook it and made a rough estimate. There were only about ten liters inside, but that would be enough for the time being.

Chu Sheng put the gasoline can inside his tent, then followed Brother Hui to the campfire at the very front.

By then, the sky had darkened. The blood moon rose overhead, its pale red light spilling across the earth as though everything had been stained with a bloody glow.

As they walked, Brother Hui said, "It may be a while before we reach the gas station. If you run out of gasoline before then, you can trade things with me for it, or trade with the others."

Chu Sheng nodded silently.

He knew "the others" meant the other Sequence Adepts.

By the time the two reached the campfire, everyone else was already there. Brother Hui and Chu Sheng were the last to arrive.

Once they found somewhere to sit, everyone turned to look at Chu Sheng.

As though he hadn't noticed their stares, Chu Sheng gave them a shy smile.

He looked as honest and harmless as could be.

Zhu Qing shuddered at the sight.

He had personally witnessed this guy kill someone at the slightest provocation.

Who in this convoy doesn't know how ruthless you are? Why are you acting so honest and harmless now?

No one knew what Zhu Qing was thinking. Brother Hui glanced around and said, "Let me introduce a newcomer."

"You've probably all heard a little about him already." He pointed at Chu Sheng and introduced him. "This is Chu Sheng. He's just awakened his Sequence. We don't know its name yet, but it seems to involve modifications, so he should fall under support."

With that, Brother Hui gestured for Chu Sheng to introduce himself.

Chu Sheng went along with it. "My name is Chu Sheng. I don't know what my Sequence is yet, but I can modify and upgrade items. If any of you need something, you can come to me."

He even slipped an advertisement into his introduction, but none of those present minded. If anything, they were rather pleased.

"That's good. That's a good ability!" Old Man Li praised him repeatedly.

"Exactly." Brother Hui nodded as well. "We were just worrying about what we'd do if the vehicles broke down. There aren't any mechanics in the convoy."

"Now that you're here, that problem's as good as solved."

Zhu Qing and An Xi said nothing, but their expressions showed that they were pleased, too.

The corner of Chu Sheng's mouth twitched. Thinking of his nearly depleted survival points, he hastily added a caveat. "My ability is very difficult to activate. Don't pin your hopes on me."

"We still need to find a mechanic. I don't know my Sequence's name, but I can sense that my ability is about upgrading, not repairing."

Chu Sheng paused, looked around at everyone, and continued, "I can use upgrades in place of repairs, but it's not worth the cost."

Brother Hui gave him a long look but said nothing more about it. Instead, he nodded. "That's still good. At least we have a fallback."

He continued pointedly, "The convoy runs on trade. Now that Chu Sheng can upgrade items, anyone who needs his help can work out a trade with him."

At that, Brother Hui looked at Chu Sheng again. "We met during the day, but I should still introduce myself properly and tell you a little about the convoy while I'm at it."

"My name is Zhang Hui. You can call me Brother Hui, Captain Hui, Captain-whatever works. My Sequence is Eight Trigrams. I can use divination to predict good or bad fortune, as well as locate places with supplies and the like. That's what the convoy's route is based on."