Zhang Tianyuan turned to Bai Xu and the other four, who had been listening nearby.
"Do you think there are still people alive in the survivor bases?"
The convoy moved slowly forward as the six of them discussed things in the command vehicle.
Bai Xu said, "Ultraviolet radiation is strong on the plateau. Even staying indoors should be very uncomfortable for Darkseekers. I think survivors would have an easier time surviving there."
Instructor Yin also offered his analysis. "On the grasslands, as long as you're outside the cities, there's practically nowhere to shelter from the sun. Darkseekers probably can't survive there."
"I think so too," Zhang Tianyuan said thoughtfully. "As for the desert, although there's likewise nowhere for Darkseekers to survive, humans would also have a hard time surviving. Survivors are least likely to have gone there."
Wu Yisi suggested, "We'd better find a survivor first and ask about the situation before deciding where to go."
A fog of gloom hung over the vehicle.
Only after driving for more than an hour did Zhang Tianyuan and the others leave the urban area, find an open space in the outskirts, and stop.
The roads had been clear the entire way, mainly because, by the final stages of the KV Virus outbreak, everyone had stayed home and stopped going out. Naturally, their cars had been properly parked rather than blocking the roads.
The advance team set up a simple camp, and those responsible for supplies handed out ready-to-eat food to everyone.
The communications team continued monitoring all radio signals, both domestic and foreign. They also began tinkering with their equipment to broadcast a signal from the Parallel Spacetime Mutual Aid Society, calling on any survivors who heard it to gather at their location.
The nuclear, biological, and chemical team continued measuring the airborne dust.
The other teams were busy with their own work, either keeping watch or checking the vehicles. Those who genuinely had nothing to do rested to conserve their strength...
Zhang Tianyuan and the others switched on their headlights and ate military rations outside to replenish their energy, while gathering all the key personnel for a meeting to discuss where to go next.
There were probably only twenty thousand survivors in the entire Imperial Capital. Judging by the current situation, those people had either fled or been eaten by Darkseekers.
The chances of someone surviving in hiding in the city for a long time, alone or in a small group like the film's protagonist, were slim.
After everyone discussed it, they unanimously decided to check the grasslands first.
Compared with the plateau and the desert, the grasslands had a climate and environment more suitable for human survival.
Besides, the grasslands were closest to the Imperial Capital, making them the most likely destination for its survivors.
Once that was settled, Zhang Tianyuan turned to the supply personnel and asked, "With our current supplies, could we drive straight to the grasslands?"
The supply team leader shook his head. "President Zhang, I just
looked at the map from our spacetime. Assuming there aren't major differences in terrain between the two spacetimes, our current supplies could indeed get us into the grasslands."
"But," he said gravely, coming to the key point, "our supplies would be nearly exhausted by the time we got there. At that point, I'm afraid both gasoline and food would be difficult to replenish on the grasslands."
Zhang Tianyuan thought about it and agreed.
It was perfectly normal to travel dozens of kilometers across the grasslands without seeing a soul.
Even in later years, delivering takeout on the grasslands meant riding a motorcycle dozens or even a hundred kilometers. Where would they find so many places to replenish their supplies?
"Let's do this." Zhang Tianyuan came up with an idea.
"Tomorrow, we'll go back into the city to gather information and supplies. The Imperial Capital is huge. If we replenish most of our supplies here and top them up a little along the way, that should be enough, right?"
Zhang Tianyuan looked at the supply team leader.
The man nodded, indicating that the plan was sound.
"What about everyone else? Any objections?"
Everyone shook their heads, indicating that they would follow Zhang Tianyuan's lead.
"Then it's settled."
Leaving sentries on watch, everyone returned to the vehicles to rest.
The next day.
Zhang Tianyuan led everyone back into the Imperial Capital's urban area.
Unlike their low-key departure the night before.
This time, Zhang Tianyuan and the others entered with loudspeakers blaring.
The convoy played several DJ dance tracks from the world of "2012" on repeat. Their pounding rhythms and noisy music could be heard across more than half the urban area.
The noise even kept the Darkseekers in one building from resting, and they roared together in the darkness in a show of defiance.
When Zhang Tianyuan heard them...
He immediately told Bai Xu to turn the volume up another notch.
He intended to enter the city making as much noise as possible.
Only then might survivors hear the commotion and come looking for them.
Besides parading through the streets with their loudspeakers blaring, Zhang Tianyuan and the others also had people toss leaflets out of the vehicles as they advanced.
These leaflets had been printed in "2012" and brought over. They were waterproof, sun-resistant, and durable.
Taking into account what the survivors of this spacetime could handle, Zhang Tianyuan had not directly written his origins in a parallel spacetime on the leaflets.
Instead, he had presented a selective account, concealing his origins. Otherwise, he feared people might mistake his group for an apocalyptic cult.
Zhang Tianyuan only said that his group was helping the public and had ample food and medical resources. People could notify them to come pick them up through radio broadcasts, smoke signals, or other specified methods.
The leaflets also featured a national map. Some advance team
members had worked through the night to mark a dot on the grassland province they were about to visit, indicating their next destination.
After entering the city, Zhang Tianyuan immediately had someone find a computer, plug it in, and boot it up.
Thanks to the button battery on its motherboard, a computer could keep track of the passage of time even if it had not been switched on for years.
And so, Zhang Tianyuan and the others finally learned the current date-
October 9, 2010.
Ten months had already passed since the KV Virus outbreak.
"After all this time, it looks like everyone in the city who could leave has already left. Those who couldn't leave won't be able to go anywhere now."
Zhang Tianyuan sighed and waved his hand. "Everyone, go gather supplies. Get ready to head north to the grasslands."
"Remember, don't approach unlit houses or rooms. Be careful before opening doors..."
Supplies were plentiful in the Imperial Capital.
In other apocalypses, survivors would beat each other's brains out over a slice of bread.
But that logic did not apply to "I Am Legend."
There were simply too few survivors in this world, and far too many supplies.
Not only were supplies plentiful, they were also easy to obtain.
Darkseekers only came out at night, and during the day, they needed complete darkness. They would not stay in rooms with glass windows.
In other words, once daylight came, most supplies in the city were there for the taking. Anyone could take whatever they wanted.
Supermarkets, convenience stores, shopping malls...
As long as there were glass windows letting light inside, people could safely enter for some zero-dollar shopping.
Supplies originally intended to sustain hundreds of thousands or even a million people in a city now only had to support a few hundred to a few tens of thousands.
All one could say was that the survivors were living comfortably in the apocalypse.
If survivors from Resident Evil came here and saw this kind of apocalyptic life, they would probably burst into tears!
Outside the Imperial Capital.
A man rode a motorcycle along the highway. A skinny boy sat behind him, clutching his waist tightly.
Several cars packed with people followed behind the man.
The people in the cars gazed toward the distant city and listened to the radio, filled with hope and longing.
The car radios kept blaring, their sound already beginning to distort-
"To all our surviving compatriots, the Mutual Aid Society has arrived in the Imperial Capital. We are making every effort to search for and rescue all survivors, and expect to head north to the grasslands within a month. If you hear this broadcast, please contact us immediately."
"The following is the location of our base..."