"Click."
The door opened!
Two nearby survivors had also wandered over. Seeing that Yang Yong had already claimed the vehicle, they did not dare object and slunk off to look for other vehicles.
Yang Yong picked up the empty fuel cans in the cargo bed and headed straight for the tanker truck. He soon returned with several cans of fuel and poured them into the tank with a steady glug.
He climbed into the cab, inserted the key, and gave it a gentle turn-
"Vrr... vroom, vroom!"
The engine gave a deep, powerful roar.
"Hahahaha!" Yang Yong could not help laughing.
He finally had a vehicle of his own!
No more cramming onto the bus with everyone else!
He filled the Farm Vehicle's tank and looked at the others.
Among the survivors, only one small group of four had managed to secure an Off-Road Vehicle that still ran.
One of them knew how to pick locks and had started it with a homemade "master key."
The four stood guard beside the vehicle with fierce looks and expressions that said "keep away," afraid someone would take it.
The people around them could not be bothered to fight them for it.
Apart from them, no one else had found a vehicle they could drive.
Either the keys were missing, or the vehicle had been wrecked.
Soon, everyone gathered the usable supplies from the other vehicles at the crash site.
They carried everything back to the bus, mainly food left behind, tools, unopened bottled water, and the like.
Yang Yong also found several intact empty fuel cans in other vehicles. He smashed the windows, took them out, and put them on his Farm Vehicle for later use.
Next, they needed to figure out how to get the tanker truck out of that heap of scrap metal.
Naturally, Cao Xianming would never do this sort of physical labor.
Wang Ying also tossed her head haughtily and returned to her Off-Road Vehicle.
Now that Yang Yong had his own vehicle, he also wanted the convoy to get its fuel quickly, so he took command and ordered the survivors:
"You lot, get over here! Push all these useless wrecks into the ditch beside the road!"
After this round of orders, the survivors were angry but dared not say anything.
Of course, a few of those called over eagerly ran up to work.
After all, this was a chance to get noticed by a Transcendent.
What if they left a good impression, and Mr. Yang lent them a hand the next time they were in danger?
That "what if" alone was worth putting in the effort.
With everyone working together.
Before long.
The obstructing vehicles were moved aside, and the tanker truck was successfully driven out.
Then they cleared a path for the convoy to pass through.
The tanker truck's keys were also inside it, and it was in good enough condition to drive.
Their luck really was good.
Yang Yong was also planning to direct everyone to pull out a few more vehicles that looked usable and expand the convoy.
Just then, Cao Xianming's voice came over the loudspeaker with a rare note of urgency:
"Everyone! Get in your vehicles immediately!"
"We're leaving right now!"
Only after he shouted did Yang Yong realize.
The sun had already sunk in the west, leaving only a bloodred glow on the horizon.
Night was coming.
Cao Xianming must have calculated that some danger was approaching, which was why he had ordered an immediate evacuation.
Countless brushes with death had taught them all one thing:
When their leader, Old Cao, said, "Get in immediately, we're leaving now," the safest thing to do was to get in and drive without any hesitation.
No one hesitated.
They climbed in, started their engines, and pulled away in one smooth sequence.
Wang Ying's Off-Road Vehicle led the way, followed by Cao Xianming's vehicle, then Zheng Xiaofeng's Off-Road Vehicle.
Speaking of Zheng Xiaofeng, this was already the third day, and he still had not recovered. His injuries really did seem serious.
Next came Yang Yong's red Farm Vehicle, followed by the bus, with the tanker truck and the four brothers' Off-Road Vehicle bringing up the rear.
The convoy sped along as Cao Xianming kept calculating, directing Wang Ying to change routes over the walkie-talkie.
They drove and stopped, twisting and turning, all the way until the next morning.
Only when the sun rose did the convoy stop beside a stretch of abandoned farmland.
This also fit the current pattern of "Eerie entities mostly being active at night." The convoy gradually settled into a rhythm of "resting by day and traveling by night."
Yang Yong got out and looked around.
There were no villages or shops anywhere nearby, only abandoned fields.
"Old Cao, what's the plan? Does the group have enough supplies, so we don't need to gather any for now?"
Yang Yong was happy to take it easy.
He retrieved his personal supplies from the bus. Now that he had his own vehicle, he could cook for himself.
The pile of assorted grains he had obtained from the battle at Mo Family Village would last him over a month if he ate sparingly.
Since Cao Xianming had chosen to stop here, that meant it should be relatively safe during the day, without attacks from Eerie entities.
Yang Yong pulled up some dried weeds, cooked himself a small pot of mixed-grain porridge, slurped it down, then reclined his seat and went straight to sleep in the truck.
Outside, sunlight spilled over the desolate fields, temporarily dispelling the night's chill and fear.
But everyone knew this peace... was only temporary.
"Wooo-"
Without warning, a shrill whistle sounded.
It sounded as though it were right in front of them.
Every sleeping member of the Survival Convoy jolted awake.
Saber in hand, Wang Ying leaped straight onto the roof of her Off-Road Vehicle and stared warily into the distance.
Yet she saw nothing unusual.
Yang Yong also jumped out, the One-Yang God-Sealing Banner in his left hand and the Little Golden Flood Dragon Scissors in his right, circling constantly, ready to strike at any moment.
But he too looked around without finding anything.
The thing was, that whistle kept drawing closer.
Then came a rhythmic "chuff, chuff, chuff..."
Why does that sound like one of those steam trains in old movies? Yang Yong thought.
Then he focused intently on his surroundings, searching for where the sound was coming from.
At that moment, even Old Cao got out of his vehicle and looked around, a Data Model in his hand constantly running calculations.
The sound drew closer and closer.
It seemed to be right before their eyes.
But there was nothing around them, was there?
With so many pairs of eyes in the convoy, not one of them could see a thing.
This was fucking ridiculous.
Finally, the ground trembled.
In a field not far from the convoy, the entire plot began to glow, forming a light screen.
The light screen was murky. A dark shape inside seemed to draw closer and closer, as though it would come rushing out at any moment.
What was it?
Yang Yong tightened his grip on his magical artifacts, his knuckles straining.
Wang Ying placed her right hand on her saber's hilt and assumed an attacking stance, ready to draw at any moment.
Yet...
An enormous steel monster emerged from within the light screen.
"What's that?"
Before anyone could voice their questions.
A large section of that steel monster had already emerged from underground.
It was actually... a locomotive?
The "chuff, chuff, chuff..." of the train's turning wheels kept coming.
Behind the locomotive were carriage after carriage. It took a full ten minutes for the entire train to emerge from underground.
Then, without slowing, the train continued across the ground into the distance. Almost nothing in its path could stop its advance.
For instance, it actually drove straight onto the highway in the distance.
In any case, whether it was woodland, grassland, or water, the train could travel across it.
Then.
The sight that astonished Yang Yong most appeared: the train charged straight toward a distant mountain peak.
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