The New Captain

Outside the village, nearly two and a half hours had passed, and almost all the survivors who were still alive had returned on time.

But now, every one of them was gazing anxiously toward the village.

They had come back, but the convoy's several extraordinary leaders had yet to return.

What were they supposed to make of that?

By rights, the convoy should have set out once the time was up. Staying too late could easily lead to danger.

That was how it had always been. The convoy's extraordinary people always left as soon as the time was up.

Any survivor who failed to make it back in time could only be ruthlessly abandoned.

But this time, it was the extraordinary people who were missing.

What were ordinary survivors like them supposed to do?

Leave when the time was up anyway?

Where would they go?

Could they even leave?

In this apocalypse, without extraordinary people to lead them, ordinary people like them would all die before long.

So everyone was anxious now.

They stared toward the village, waiting desperately.

Fortunately, as everyone watched and waited, a familiar car drove out of the village.

Wait, why was there only one?

Shouldn't there have been three?

The survivors looked at one another, all sensing that something was wrong.

Soon, Chen Fan drove the gloomy man's car back to the convoy on the road and parked it at the very front.

A number of survivors behind him gathered around.

They wanted to know what had happened.

Then they saw an unfamiliar man get out of the car.

He was somewhat handsome, but his appearance was rather unkempt, and his hair had clumped into strands.

One look was enough to tell he was one of the poor wretches at the back who couldn't afford to drive.

Those gathering around now were the survivors in the group who drove cars.

They might not have been extraordinary, but they had plenty of supplies and had spent years driving behind the man in sunglasses and the other extraordinary people. They belonged to the convoy's second tier.

They were far more familiar with the convoy's extraordinary people than bicyclists like Chen Fan were.

Now, when they saw Chen Fan get out, their expressions all changed.

"Who are you? Why are you driving this car? Where are the captain and Brother Zhao? And Sister Liangzi..."

A broad-faced man with a solemn expression stepped forward and questioned Chen Fan.

Chen Fan couldn't be bothered wasting words with them. He grinned.

He swept his messy hair back.

Using the grease in his hair, he slicked it back into a tough-guy hairstyle.

Then he raised both hands, and the Ten Thousand Souls Banner appeared behind him, with ghostly souls drifting across it.

Their appearances from when they were alive were still faintly recognizable...

Chen Fan shouted, "I've taken care of all the extraordinary people in the convoy. I'm the only extraordinary person left in it now. From this moment on, I call the shots for the entire convoy. That's all I have to say. Who agrees, and who objects?"

"Ah!!"

As soon as he finished speaking, a young married woman in the crowd who still retained her charms pointed at Chen Fan, her eyes red.

"He killed the captain! You... you all, hurry and avenge the captain! Whoever avenges him, I'll nominate as the new captain!"

Chen Fan glanced at her. It was obvious she had been the former captain's lover.

He hadn't expected that, upon hearing of the captain's death, she wouldn't immediately change her tune and throw herself into someone else's arms. Instead, she was trying to urge the people around her to avenge him.

She was devoted, at least.

Chen Fan pointed at the woman. "I'd call you the most devoted person in the convoy."

With that, a ghostly soul swooped out of the Ten Thousand Souls Banner. It was Xiao Lin, who dragged the woman's soul straight out of her body and swept it into the banner to keep the former captain company.

In truth, Chen Fan didn't know whether the man in sunglasses or the gloomy man had been the captain. But it didn't matter. Their souls were both in the Ten Thousand Souls Banner anyway.

The drivers in the convoy's middle tier had already wanted to submit when they saw the terrifying Ten Thousand Souls Banner behind Chen Fan.

After all, it didn't matter who the captain was, as long as he could lead them onward.

When they saw Chen Fan casually kill the captain's lover, they grew even more afraid and backed away together. Not one of them dared look him in the eye.

"Now, who else?"

Chen Fan looked around. No one dared raise their head.

He nodded in satisfaction.

"Good. Now, I need someone to help me manage the convoy. I've just taken over, and there's a great deal to be done. A lot of things need to be reorganized. Anyone who was familiar with the former captain while he was alive and knows how they managed the convoy, step forward and become my deputy. I'll make sure you never have to worry about food or drink."

Everyone around him turned to look at the young woman, now a corpse.

The corner of Chen Fan's mouth twitched, and he looked helpless.

"Other than her."

The people around him looked at one another. Quite a few looked tempted, but few actually stepped forward.

Chen Fan had been far too fierce. The moment he acted, black energy had billowed and ghostly souls had filled the air.

They were terrified that if their performance failed to satisfy him, Chen Fan would rip out their souls too.

At that moment, the broad-faced man from earlier stepped forward.

Braving the pressure, he looked at Chen Fan and said, "I was fairly close to Old Zhao before, and I know a bit about the convoy..."

Old Zhao was the gloomy man, while the man in sunglasses had been the convoy captain.

Only now was Chen Fan gradually getting things straight.

Seeing the broad-faced man step forward, Chen Fan sized him up and asked, "What's your name?"

"Yan Kuan."

"All right, come with me. Everyone else, disperse."

Some of the remaining people looked at Yan Kuan enviously, while others stole fearful glances at Chen Fan. Then they all returned to their cars.

Although they belonged to the convoy's second tier and lived better than the cyclists, they weren't extraordinary in the end and had no security.

If the day came when they couldn't find gasoline and their supplies ran out, they would still be back to square one in an instant.

That was how it had been for Chen Fan before.

And as everyone knew, becoming extraordinary was difficult.

So the best thing to do was to stay close to an extraordinary person and cling to their thigh.

That gave them another chance to stay alive.

Unfortunately, not everyone could seize such an opportunity.

Chen Fan led Yan Kuan toward the SUV. Before leaving, he remembered to summon the black coffin to devour the woman's body.

That gave the people nearby another fright.

On the way, they passed a bus, and Chen Fan took a liking to it at once.

He was an extraordinary person now. How could he drive a small car?

He had to switch to something bigger.

He went straight to the owner.

"Let's swap vehicles. You take my SUV, and I'll take your bus. I'll have Yan Kuan coordinate the move with you in a bit, and I'll also compensate you with a batch of supplies."

The owner was a round-faced, chubby man with a buzz cut. He froze at first, then hurriedly put on an ingratiating smile. "Captain, if you've taken a fancy to it, just requisition it. No need to swap cars. But a vehicle this big isn't easy to drive, and I imagine Brother Yan will have plenty of work to do at your side. Let me take the driver's job.

"Rest assured, I've been driving buses for over a decade. I guarantee I can drive both fast and smoothly. And all the supplies on this bus are yours as well. As long as you're comfortable riding in it, that's enough."

Chen Fan's eyes lit up, and he took a closer look at the man.

"What's your name?"

"Sun Hong. You can just call me Little Sun." Sun Hong's smile grew wider.

Chen Fan patted Sun Hong on the shoulder and pointed at him with a smile. "Good. Hong, you've broadened your road."

Sun Hong smiled too.

The two of them chuckled together.

"All right, I'll take you on as my driver. Go move the things from the SUV over here."

With that, Chen Fan led Yan Kuan aboard the bus.

Chen Fan picked a seat at random and sat down. Looking at Yan Kuan, who stood beside him, he said, "Old Yan, I don't ask much of the people who follow me. Just one thing: no divided loyalties. Work diligently. Be sharp, and get things done properly. Also, I don't like to settle for less. Make a note of these habits of mine so you don't make mistakes later..."

Yan Kuan said, "...Okay."

Then he silently took out his phone and opened the notes app.

After the apocalypse, many places had gradually lost electricity, water, and internet access. Their phones still worked now purely because they charged them in their vehicles and used them offline.

After briefly listing five, six, seven, or eight points for Yan Kuan, Chen Fan finally brought up the matter he cared about most.

"Old Yan, there's something you need to tell me honestly."

Yan Kuan nodded solemnly.

"How did the convoy predict danger and determine which direction to go before?"

Yan Kuan stared intently at Chen Fan for a moment before finally squeezing out a sentence.

"You don't know?"