It was no wonder Luo Fan thought that way.
As the leader of the Hope Convoy and someone of the Prophecy Sequence, it was no exaggeration to call Zhao Chunfeng the soul of the Hope Convoy.
In that case, it was perfectly reasonable for others to hand over a portion of the supplies they collected to Zhao Chunfeng.
But Zhao Chunfeng only collected from Sequence users, not ordinary people. If that wasn't being a bleeding heart, what was? Did bleeding hearts like that still exist in the apocalypse?
Luo Fan muttered to himself inwardly. If Zhao Chunfeng really was a bleeding heart, he would have to leave the Hope Convoy.
Although he was deeply grateful for the care the convoy had given him all this time and respected bleeding hearts, he didn't want to be dragged down by one.
It was like someone risking their life to save him. He would certainly be grateful, but if he were asked to risk his life alongside that person to save other strangers, Luo Fan didn't think he could do it.
"Luo Fan, have you ever heard this saying? My neighbors stockpile food, I stockpile guns; my neighbors are my granaries." Zhao Chunfeng looked at Luo Fan and spoke unhurriedly.
Luo Fan: "!!!"
At those words, Luo Fan raised his eyebrows and gave Zhao Chunfeng a long look. Put that way, he more or less understood what he meant.
"Besides, there's another point."
"Although my ability lets me choose the best escape route for our convoy, sooner or later, we'll encounter ferocious beasts and anomalies that we have to face."
"When that happens, winning would naturally be best, but if we can't win..."
"Sometimes, it doesn't matter whether prey on the grassland can outrun a lion. It just has to outrun its companions."
Zhao Chunfeng then added that remark.
All right, with Zhao Chunfeng putting it that way, Luo Fan understood completely.
Viewed that way, it really was necessary for the Hope Convoy to have some ordinary survivors following along.
"Reality may be a little cruel, but this is the apocalypse. Besides, they'd die even sooner if they didn't follow us." Beside him, Brother Niu looked somewhat troubled, but he spoke up anyway.
It was unclear whether he was saying that to Luo Fan or to himself.
"All right, I understand. I'll be counting on you two to look after me from now on."
Having learned the truth about the Hope Convoy as one of its Sequence users, Luo Fan nodded, indicating that he would stay.
"Yes, I also hope our convoy gets more and more Sequence users. Ideally, we'd have every kind." Zhao Chunfeng and Niu Dagang both extended their hands, welcoming Luo Fan's decision.
"By the way, Dagang, I still have a recovery potion here. I'll trade it to you for just fifty jin of rice and twenty liters of purified water. Want it?"
With Luo Fan's business settled, Zhao Chunfeng glanced at the wound on Niu Dagang's shoulder and asked.
"No need. This little injury will heal in two or three days." Brother Niu shook his head, unwilling to spend that much.
"All right, then..." Seeing Niu Dagang refuse, Zhao Chunfeng said nothing more and merely shook his head in disappointment.
Then he and Uncle Li carried the supplies Niu Dagang had given him to his off-road vehicle and left.
Luo Fan didn't leave. Instead, he looked over Niu Dagang's bus.
The inside of the bus had undergone some modifications. There was a driver's seat, while the front passenger seat had been converted into a bed.
Various supplies and materials were also piled inside.
Besides Niu Dagang, there was a boy of sixteen or seventeen aboard.
"This is Xiao Wang, my driver and mechanic. Before the apocalypse, he worked at an auto repair shop." Seeing Luo Fan's gaze pass over the sixteen- or seventeen-year-old boy, Niu Dagang introduced him.
"Hello, Brother Luo." Xiao Wang smiled as he greeted Luo Fan.
"Hi." Luo Fan nodded in response.
"Brother Niu, could you squeeze another person into this bus?" Luo Fan then looked at Niu Dagang and asked.
Yes, Luo Fan wanted to hitch a ride with Brother Niu.
After all, he didn't have any transportation at the moment. Staying on this bus would at least spare him from migrating on foot, wouldn't it?
He could also lie down among those piles of supplies to rest at night.
Whatever the case, having somewhere sheltered from the wind and rain was far better than sleeping out in the open.
"Well..." Hearing Luo Fan's request, Niu Dagang looked at the space inside the bus, his expression hesitant.
"Brother Niu, don't worry. When we collect supplies together from now on, I'll give you an extra ten percent as rent. How does that sound?" Seeing Niu Dagang hesitate, Luo Fan added.
If Niu Dagang's vehicle hadn't happened to reflect the sunlight, he would have died at the anomaly's hands in that boiled-food restaurant.
Besides, two combat-oriented Sequence users working together could indeed coordinate better.
Luo Fan felt that teaming up with Niu Dagang offered him more advantages than disadvantages. Even giving up a little of his haul would be worth it.
"It's not about the supplies. It's just that when we rest at night, I have a bed, and Xiao Wang reclines the driver's seat. But making room for you to rest in the bus won't be easy," Niu Dagang explained after hearing Luo Fan's offer.
"It's fine. Whatever the case, it's better than sleeping outside, right?" Luo Fan said unconcernedly.
"Yes, that's true." Hearing what Luo Fan said, Niu Dagang nodded, accepting him.
Then Niu Dagang generously called to Xiao Wang, "Xiao Wang, let's cook three packets of instant noodles today. I'm treating Luo Fan."
"Sure thing." After answering, Xiao Wang boiled some water in a kettle, then took out three packets of instant noodles.
Soon, the rich aroma of instant noodles filled the air.
Although instant noodles had been maligned as junk food in modern times, what was the reality? They merely lacked nutritional variety. Food high in oil and salt was extremely precious in this apocalypse.
"Luo Fan, dig in. This meal's on me." Niu Dagang pushed one of the bowls of instant noodles in front of Luo Fan and spoke readily with a broad grin.
"All right, I won't stand on ceremony." Luo Fan nodded.
But as he spoke, Luo Fan opened his storage space and took out three bottles of cola, giving one each to Xiao Wang and Niu Dagang. "Instant noodles without cola simply have no soul."
It was only polite to reciprocate. Since Niu Dagang was treating him to instant noodles, Luo Fan had no intention of taking advantage of him and took out three cans of cola.
"Huh? Luo Fan, you actually have a Mustard Seed Bag?" Seeing Luo Fan seemingly conjure three cans of cola out of thin air, Niu Dagang asked in surprise!
Someone of the Craftsman Sequence had successfully made a storage item called a Mustard Seed Bag. Although the Hope Convoy didn't currently have one, he had heard of them.
Clearly, Niu Dagang had mistaken his storage space for a Mustard Seed Bag.
With a faint smile, Luo Fan offered no explanation and simply lowered his head to eat his noodles.
Seeing this, although Niu Dagang was astonished that Luo Fan already had a Mustard Seed Bag despite having only recently awakened, he didn't press him with questions.
After all, it was the apocalypse. Wasn't it perfectly normal for everyone to have a few secrets of their own?
Especially after specializing and obtaining their own Sequence, their individual abilities became even more of a secret.
It had already been several months since the apocalypse began. The faster-growing Sequence users had long since passed the level 10 threshold and become specialized Sequence users.
After finishing a bowl of instant noodles without wasting even a drop of broth, then taking a few sips of cola, Luo Fan felt thoroughly satisfied.
After chatting a little more with Niu Dagang, Luo Fan learned that Brother Niu was a level 8 Melee Sequence user.
In other words, besides the Heavy Strike skill, he had also awakened the Overlord Body skill.
And Luo Fan? He was merely a newly awakened level 1 Assassination Sequence user.
After an hour's rest, Zhao Chunfeng's off-road vehicle started up. Then Xiao Wang started the bus and followed, and the Hope Convoy set off after them, one vehicle after another.
Under the lead of Zhao Chunfeng's vehicle, they traveled in fits and starts.
Sometimes they headed east, sometimes west, and sometimes they even circled back to somewhere they had passed two hours earlier.
But the convoy had no destination to begin with as it fled. As long as they didn't encounter ferocious beasts or anomalies, naturally, no one had any complaints.
After they had traveled like this for another three hours in the dark, the convoy stopped at the edge of a grove. Zhao Chunfeng said they could rest for six hours.
In addition, after observing the stars, Zhao Chunfeng said there would be rain tomorrow and told everyone to prepare.
Hearing that it would rain tomorrow caused a stir among quite a few of the survivors.
After being jolted around for most of the day, on top of nearly dying at an anomaly's hands that day, Luo Fan was exhausted both mentally and physically. Once the convoy stopped, he closed his eyes to rest.
But after sleeping fitfully for who knew how long, he suddenly saw a notification flash past the corner of his vision, even with his eyes closed.
Shop loading complete. Check-in: 10 yuan. Balance: 10 yuan.
Before you continue