Bai Yaoyao raised an eyebrow at Taoist Feng Qing, looking ready to enjoy the show, but he put on a flawless display of righteous conviction.
Ignoring Bai Yaoyao's gaze, he picked up his tortoise shell and copper coins again.
He calculated and rearranged them for ages, until a sheen of cold sweat covered his forehead.
"I worked through more than a dozen options. Following my route might mean taking a slight detour.
But it will take the least time overall, and there won't be any unforeseen dangers along the way."
Taoist Feng Qing spoke with rare seriousness.
Bai Yaoyao stopped teasing him. She wanted to get there quickly too. With so many people in tow, she dreaded anything going wrong.
"Then thank you for taking the lead in the first vehicle, Uncle Master."
Taoist Feng Qing promptly jogged over, and Bai Yaoyao called out for everyone to set off.
Once they were moving again, their pace picked up.
Not only did they rarely encounter zombies or mutant beasts, even the roads were much smoother.
Occasionally, when the weather was good, they stopped for a meal and stretched their legs. Almost all the rest of their time was spent in the vehicles.
Along the way, they saw landscapes spanning all four seasons: the Gobi, grasslands, snow-covered mountains...
And the crumbling ruins of cities whose former splendor had faded away.
Bai Yaoyao studied the map and estimated the distance. They only had about two or three hundred kilometers left.
If they moved quickly, they could cover it in two days, and her mood lightened a little.
That old man Feng Qing really did have some skills. His divination was uncannily accurate.
Everyone was so bored they wanted to find a fight, but there were none to be had.
Whenever they happened to