Chen Mo rubbed his eyes.
Had he seen it wrong?
When he looked again, the Barbie Doll lay quietly in the girl's arms.
In the sunlight, it looked perfectly normal, with nothing unusual about it.
It couldn't have looked more normal.
But Chen Mo knew what he had just seen wasn't an illusion.
That feeling of being watched.
The fear still lingered in his body...
Chen Mo discreetly withdrew his gaze.
He couldn't afford to mess with this little girl.
-The unknown meant extreme danger.
Both groups soon assembled, splitting into two crowds in the clearing.
"Starting today, the two convoys will merge."
Lin Lu spoke first, his face covered with white cloth, his voice utterly emotionless.
"The new convoy will be called Spark!"
Su Qian took over, her gentle voice tinged with exhaustion.
"A single spark can set a prairie ablaze. We want to lead everyone in burning a path toward survival."
Spark?
Chen Mo had no interest in the name.
It didn't matter what they called it.
What mattered was whether he could survive.
Xiao Liu took over, raising a megaphone to announce the new rules.
Yes, announce.
"The new convoy has rules."
"First, all Transcendents will form the decision-making body, responsible for every major decision affecting the convoy!"
"Captain Lin, Captain Su, Big Niu, Old Yang."
Xiao Liu turned toward the little girl behind Su Qian and paused.
"And Xiao Ya."
Su Qian said it for him.
She nudged the timid little girl behind her forward.
Gasps rose from the crowd on Chen Mo's side.
This girl, barely ten or so, was a Transcendent too!
Chen Mo's suspicions were confirmed.
That Barbie Doll that could turn on its own was the best proof.
"Second, anyone in the convoy without transportation, as well as the elderly and children, can ride on the Bus!"
"The Bus has thirty seats, which is enough for now. Everyone who boards must take turns gathering supplies. Whatever you bring back will be pooled and distributed!"
"Anyone with a private vehicle who doesn't want to ride on the Bus is responsible for all their own supplies. The convoy will provide no provisions!"
As soon as the rules were announced, the crowd immediately divided.
The people who had been riding on the Bus lit up. This meant they could keep riding it.
Some who had vehicles but lacked fuel or fighting ability exchanged uncertain looks, weighing the pros and cons.
Chen Mo wasn't surprised. These had been the convoy's rules before.
The added provision for the Bus was probably just a concession to Su Qian and her people.
"One final rule."
Xiao Liu's voice grew stern.
"Within the convoy, you may settle disputes privately."
"Private trading is allowed."
"But! Killing is forbidden."
"Disrupting order during group operations is forbidden."
"Forcibly seizing other people's supplies is forbidden."
"Anyone who breaks these rules will be expelled from the convoy!"
After speaking, Xiao Liu cast a discreet glance at Brother Dao.
Brother Dao's scalp prickled under that look, and he gave an awkward smile.
With the rules announced, the new convoy had clearly split into three groups.
The "decision-makers," consisting of Lin Lu and the other Transcendents.
The "bottom tier" on the Bus, who banded together for survival and received small shares of supplies.
And the "independents," like Chen Mo and Brother Dao, who owned private vehicles and chose to fend for themselves.
As long as they had supplies and made it back alive.
An independent with plentiful supplies.
Was practically a king among the convoy's ordinary people.
Of course, first they had to venture out alone and return alive.
"Half an hour to rest, refuel, replenish water, and check your vehicles. Then we move out!"
"Our destination is the village ahead!"
"Prepare for the operations to come. If anything changes, be ready to pass through Apricot Blossom Town at any time!"
The convoy set off again.
Chen Mo's Dump Truck kept an unhurried pace in the middle of the column.
Leading the way was still Lin Lu's black pickup Command Vehicle.
Big Niu's black off-road vehicle and Su Qian's white SUV followed close behind.
Three vehicles and five Transcendents formed the convoy's absolute core.
Next came Brother Dao's two off-road vehicles, clinging to the vehicles ahead as if terrified of losing them.
Brother Dao and his wife sat in the back, while his underling Yellow-Hair drove.
Two other underlings rode in the second vehicle.
Chen Mo's Dump Truck and three sedans traveled almost abreast, forming the convoy's middle section.
It was a relatively good position, allowing them to react immediately if something happened up front.
If trouble came from behind, the Bus and the motorcycles brought up the rear.
A black Mercedes-Benz E300 was right beside Chen Mo.
Chen Mo's gaze happened to sweep across it.
Its window was half-open, revealing the delicate profile of the woman in the driver's seat.
Her hair was tied in a high ponytail, and she was talking to the person beside her.
Chen Mo was rather surprised to see such a beautiful woman in this apocalypse.
Driving a luxury car like that, she was already the most conspicuous sight around.
He withdrew his gaze and stopped looking.
Curiosity killed the cat. That look from the Barbie Doll earlier,
Still had Chen Mo's heart pounding...
Toward evening, the convoy gradually slowed.
A village slowly came into view.
The lead vehicle stopped.
Xiao Liu's voice soon rang out.
"Rest here. Get the campfires going before dark."
"The village ahead is Wugui Village."
"Captain Lin sensed a faint, eerie Tide Cry response. There may be something unnatural in there."
"Anyone who needs supplies can form their own groups. You must return before dark."
"Big Niu will lead this operation. Participation is voluntary!"
As his voice faded, the convoy fell briefly silent.
Wugui Village.
The name alone sent a chill down their spines.
And the mention of something "unnatural."
Extinguished the greed in many people's eyes.
Chen Mo felt the same. He had no intention of going in.
Although he didn't have many supplies left in his truck.
He still had a potato or two and a small handful of rice,
Which would easily last two or three days if he rationed them.
The Eye-Eating Old Woman from last time still sent chills down Chen Mo's spine.
Knock. Knock.
Someone knocked on the Dump Truck's window.
Chen Mo turned to look.
It was Old Yang.
Chen Mo slowly lowered the window and waited for Old Yang to speak.
"Not going in?"
"No. Too risky."
Chen Mo answered crisply, without the slightest hesitation.
Was he kidding? Couldn't he wait until they found a less dangerous supply point?
It wasn't like he had to take the risk this time.
Old Yang sighed and lit a crumpled cigarette.
Ever since the old fellow had gotten into Lin Lu's vehicle, he'd been smoking nonstop.
"Captain Lin plans to pass through Apricot Blossom Town, then turn north and keep going until we've shaken off the Spectral Bear completely."
"You should know Apricot Blossom Town. It's the biggest town around."
"I'm afraid there won't be much chance to gather supplies there."
"According to Captain Lin and Captain Su, it's an 'eerie city.'"
Chen Mo gripped the steering wheel and asked patiently,
"So? Surely you didn't come over just to tell me that?"
Old Yang was part of the inner circle now.
Much of what he knew was information that "independents" like Chen Mo couldn't access.
"Farther north is Camel City. The climate there is too cold. You know how bizarre the weather has become everywhere."
"Once we reach Camel City, gathering supplies will probably be even harder."
Old Yang blew out a smoke ring and looked straight at Chen Mo without saying anything more.
If he didn't go, he might starve on the road.
If he went, something eerie might kill him-or he might return fully stocked.
Chen Mo remained silent, lowering his head in thought. After a long while, he slowly spoke.
"Understood. I'll go."
Old Yang nodded, seemingly unsurprised.
This young man always managed to make the right choice.
Rational and cold-blooded in everything he did. People like him survived the longest.
"Old Yang, you're a Transcendent now. Do you have any way to deal with those things?"
As Chen Mo spoke, he raised the Mountain-Cleaving Blade in his hand.
"This thing works pretty well against people, but it falls short against eerie things."
Old Yang smiled, as though he'd expected the question.
"Wait here."
With that, he turned and headed toward the Command Vehicle at the front.
He greeted Xiao Liu.
Then took a strange, palm-sized box out of the trunk.
"A half-finished prototype I cobbled together today. I was just wondering when I'd get a chance to test it. Attach it to the knife's handle and press it."
Old Yang handed the box to Chen Mo, anticipation gleaming in his eyes.
Chen Mo took the box, aligned its mounting slot with the handle, and pressed it into place.
Click.
-Bzzzz.
Blue arcs immediately shimmered across the blade.
They didn't flicker like electricity. Instead, they looked like a thin, pale-blue film of water coating it.
Old Yang looked at Chen Mo, his expression turning serious.
"Let's make a deal for this thing."
"If you make it back alive, return it, tell me how well it works, and give me forty percent of the supplies."
"Deal. That's fair."
Something that could fight back against the supernatural in exchange for forty percent of the haul-not a bad deal.
"If you don't make it back..."
Old Yang paused and patted Chen Mo on the shoulder.
"Then at least I'll have lived up to those words: we're still friends."
Chen Mo said nothing, only nodded.
"I'm off."
Chen Mo pressed the accelerator and slowly drove toward the village entrance.
In this fucked-up apocalypse.
A friendship built on mutual interests was far more reliable than anything else.
Four or five vehicles had already gathered at the village entrance.
There were also a few young men on motorcycles.
"Heh. Daredevils."
As it happens, I'm one too.
Before you continue