New survivors

The terrified scream was like a drop of cold water falling into a pot of boiling oil.

The once-silent night erupted into chaos.

Women screamed, children cried, and men began swearing.

Some people frantically packed their things, ready to flee.

In the blink of an eye, Chen Ye saw a streak of sword light shoot out.

An unusually large man also charged toward the source of the scream.

It was Iron Lion and Nana.

The Sequence Transcendents had already sprung into action.

The camp descended into pandemonium.

The psychological scars the anomalies had left on the survivors were nothing short of a nightmare.

The sisters, Zhou Lan and Zhou Xiaoxiao, looked nervously toward the nearby disturbance, their faces filled with panic.

Chen Ye picked up his hand crossbow and loaded a bolt coated in black dog blood, readying himself.

Beneath the blood moon, indistinct shapes flickered among the nearby trees, like sinister ghostly figures lurking in the darkness.

Looking closer, he could make out dozens of ghostly silhouettes crowded among the trees.

Chen Ye felt his scalp prickle. If all of those were anomalies, not a single survivor in the camp would make it out alive tonight.

Couldn't Chu Che sense the presence of anomalies?

How had he let them get so close to the camp?

Just then, a dark figure emerged from the shadows of the woods.

"Please save... save us!"

A low, feeble voice rang out.

A powerful flashlight beam shone onto the figure at the front.

The light seemed too harsh, and the figure raised a hand to shield their eyes.

The person standing in the flashlight beam wore ragged clothes, torn in numerous places, and had only one shoe left.

This... was a person!

Not an anomaly.

Everyone there quietly breathed a sigh of relief.

No wonder Chu Che hadn't noticed them beforehand.

As a Danger Perceiver of Guide Sequence 1, Chu Che could sense the presence of most anomalies, but his perception of humans was far less distinct.

As long as they're human.

Then a second person emerged.

Then a third.

Dozens of figures appeared before the crowd.

Their clothes were ragged, and their faces were haggard.

These... were all survivors.

"Who are you?"

At some point, Chu Che had appeared at the front of the crowd, watching these people warily.

"Sir... we escaped from Deer City."

"Deer City... is gone!"

"Waaah..."

As those words were spoken, sobs rose from the dozens of dark figures.

Chen Ye froze for a moment, then his heart sank.

Deer City couldn't compare to an international, top-tier metropolis like Shanghu.

But it was still a renowned second-tier city in the country, with a thriving tourism industry and famous cuisine.

Chen Ye had once considered taking his girlfriend to Deer City for a few days.

He hadn't expected it to be gone now.

Although he had anticipated it.

Even a city like Shanghu had become one of the world's most dangerous forbidden zones for humans. Deer City could hardly have escaped the same fate.

Still, hearing someone tell him in person was a shock.

"Deer City's gone too?"

"It's over! It's over! There's no hope left for humanity!"

"Is there really nothing we can do about the anomalies?"

"Waaah... my... my mom and dad were in Deer City... waaah..."

The camp, which had only just calmed down, broke into another uproar.

"We escaped from Deer City."

"Deer City... is full of anom..."

The situation soon became clear.

These people had escaped from Deer City.

According to the survivors, Deer City was overrun with anomalies and had become another forbidden zone for humans.

They had all been hiding in an underground parking garage.

Eventually, they couldn't bear it any longer and had fled in a hurry.

Originally, there had been more than two hundred of them.

Now only a few dozen remained.

Chen Ye quietly approached Chu Che. "Old Chu, these people won't draw any anomalies here, will they?"

Chu Che glanced at Chen Ye, wondering when he had acquired the nickname Old Chu.

Ignoring Chen Ye, Chu Che crouched down, scooped up a handful of dirt, and put it in his mouth as though savoring an exquisite delicacy.

About ten seconds later, Chu Che opened his eyes and nodded to Nana.

Chen Ye understood. Chu Che must have used his ability and confirmed that nothing had followed the group.

He had to admit, the abilities of these Sequence Transcendents were truly remarkable.

Chu Che alone could sense anomalies just by eating dirt.

And Iron Lion could regrow an arm after it had been severed.

He remembered the system saying that once he accumulated three thousand Slaughter Value, it would tell him how to awaken a Sequence.

Three thousand Slaughter Value!

Who knew when he'd manage to save up that much?

"You can join us, but you'll have to follow the rules!"

As the leader, Chu Che had no choice but to step forward and speak.

"As long as we can stay alive, we'll follow any rules you have!"

The dark figure at the front hurriedly replied.

They looked like a dark figure because they were filthy from head to toe. It was possible to tell whether they were male or female, but their features were completely obscured.

Several women with fairly attractive figures tucked their hair behind their ears.

"There's only one rule for staying alive in this convoy: fairness!"

"Since you're new, I can provide you with food for one day, free of charge. After that, you'll have to find ways to feed yourselves!"

The grimy figures exchanged glances, but none of them said another word.

After saying his piece, Chu Che walked away without looking back.

The convoy had originally had around two hundred people, but when they passed through Apricot Blossom Town, half of them had remained there, never to get out again.

With these newcomers, the convoy's numbers once again exceeded a hundred.

Chen Ye gave the soot-blackened group a long look, then turned and returned to his vehicle.

The camp became quite lively after that.

Chu Che picked out a few middle-aged women to help cook.

As the leader, he at least had that much authority.

The meal was simple: plain rice porridge and some pickled vegetables.

Soon, the aroma of porridge drifted through the camp.

Chen Ye lay in the truck bed, pulled his clothes tightly around himself, and began to doze.

They would soon reach Longevity Village.

Most places where humans had once gathered had now become forbidden zones for them.

The more prosperous a city had once been, the more dangerous it was now.

Remote villages and small towns like this were relatively less dangerous.

Still, they couldn't let their guard down.

What Chen Ye needed to do now was rest up so he could collect more Slaughter Points when the time came to scavenge for supplies.

Ideally, he would gather all three thousand Slaughter Points in one go.

Then he could get the method for awakening a Sequence directly from the system.

As Chen Ye lay half asleep, mulling over his own affairs, he suddenly heard an unfamiliar woman shout:

"This isn't fair! Why are women doing all the work? Why aren't those men doing anything? You're discriminating against women!"