The Ultimate War Of The Apocalypse
Chapter 221 - 217 Chaos Everywhere

Chapter 221: Chapter 217 Chaos Everywhere

There was basically no difference before and after leaving the country.

The scenery was similar, the climate the same, the only changes were that after passing the boundary marker and getting back on the highway, the road was narrower and in worse condition, the occasional road sign had different writing, but beyond that there truly was no difference.

"It’s already ten o’clock at night and it’s still not dark."

"Exactly, it’s perfect for a night owl like me."

This conversation that had been occurring daily for the past two days came again, as Nie Erlong wrapped his coat tighter, his nose running from the cold but still unwilling to pull up the car’s canvas roof.

Xinghe, however, was feeling tired. She rested her head on Gao Yuan’s shoulder, and after finding her neck was craned too uncomfortably, she moved her seat forward, then shifted her body down a bit, leaned her head against Gao Yuan again, and after finding a more comfortable position, closed her eyes to sleep.

"Close the curtains; I’m freezing to death. There’s nothing worth seeing anyway."

They needed to follow the highway but occasionally had to leave it because following the road was sure to lead them to villages and towns, which was the same in any country worldwide. Whenever they found that the highway would pass through a village, the car would head onto the barren desert by the side of the road.

Now the truck had left the highway and was driving through the desert; the jolting caused by the wheels rolling over stones immediately woke Xinghe.

After driving through the desert for a while and bypassing a not so large village, the car took a turn onto the road, started heading south but stopped not long after getting on another highway.

Radios were to be used as little as possible. Two muffled thuds came from inside the canopy, signals from the driver in front, meaning to get out of the truck.

Gao Yuan said, "You guys stay put. I’ll go check what’s up."

Gao Yuan jumped off the truck, and by that time Zhao Qiang had already walked back to the side of the vehicle.

"What’s the issue?"

"It’s about to get dark, and ahead looks to be something like a gas station without other buildings nearby. I’d like you to scout it. If the conditions are right, we can rest here for the night."

Gao Yuan promptly said, "Okay, wait for me here for a bit. I’ll go take a look."

Now, when it came to scouting, especially in places infested with zombies, there was truly no one more suitable than Gao Yuan.

"Don’t rush, I’ll go with you. In case there’s someone, it’ll be better for me to communicate with them."

Looking ahead, at the distance of about a kilometer, there was a solitary building by the side of the road. Now that the sun had completely set and only the twilight lingered, they needed to hurry if they were going to scout.

Gao Yuan could run there in a minute, and turning to Zhao Qiang he said, "I’ll go ahead, if there’s someone, we’ll wait for you to come over and talk."

Gao Yuan started to run ahead, belly leading the way. Zhao Qiang wanted to follow but had to be able to keep up; watching Gao Yuan’s retreating figure, all Zhao Qiang could do was give a few bitter chuckles.

As they got closer, it was clear this was a gas station that combined the functions of a restaurant and a lodging house, an indispensable stop for long-haul truck drivers in the desolate desert area.

Gao Yuan slowed his pace. He couldn’t understand the text on the sign, but the gas station was too obvious to miss at a glance.

As they approached slowly, it didn’t look like there was anyone inside from the outside. Getting closer to the gas station shop, the door was closed, but on the thick layer of sand outside the door, there were no footprints at all.

Okay, there was no one inside, and maybe there were zombies, but the chance was slim.

Not daring to completely let his guard down, Gao Yuan found after pushing the door and entering that indeed there was no one in the gas station, nor any zombies. The small shelves in the shop were empty, and upon checking the kitchen, the bedroom that was slept in, and the two rooms intended for travelers, everything was barren— even the bedding had been taken.

The gas station was not big, so it only took a couple of minutes to check. Gao Yuan walked out and gestured from a distance to Zhao Qiang, then both vehicles started moving, heading toward the gas station.

Zhao Qiang walked up to Gao Yuan and asked, "No one?"

"No one, not even a ghost shadow."

Zhao Qiang nodded, then said softly, "I’ll have a look."

Gao Yuan thought there was no need for further inspection, but Zhao Qiang still searched carefully room by room. Eventually, he lingered in a room that had a bed in it.

"Boss Zhao, what’s there to look at?"

Gao Yuan didn’t see the point, but Zhao Qiang said indifferently, "This gas station should have had four people living here, two of whom were a couple. They were fine when the catastrophe struck, but later, someone forced their way in from outside. In this room, they executed at least three people in an execution-style shooting and took all the necessary supplies, leaving behind the useless clutter."

The room was indeed in disorder, but every place that had been ransacked was messy, and Gao Yuan didn’t understand how Zhao Qiang could deduce what had happened as if he had seen it.

"How can you tell?"

Zhao Qiang bent down and picked up a deformed bullet from the ground, saying, "There are traces of blood on the ground, but they’re hard to make out after this long. Looking at this bullet, it’s been left after passing through a body. There are signs of shootings in the room next door and this one, but no bullet holes. This means the shooter didn’t need to spray or fight, just aim at the person they wanted to kill and shoot them dead—executive-style killing."

"Uh, how can you tell?"

Zhao Qiang reflected for a moment, lifting the Type 81 rifle; its muzzle angled downward, then he turned around and said, "No, there were at least two shooters, one of whom aimed for the head. The bullet is a 7.62mm intermediate round, likely fired from an AK47. With two people firing at the same time, those killed didn’t struggle; they were killed instantly. One bullet passed through the body and fell to the ground, another bullet..."

After scanning the ground briefly, Zhao Qiang picked up another severely deformed bullet from the already dim floor, adding, "Yes, there were two shots fired. From the bloodstains on the ground, one can see there’s a spray pattern bloodstain, mixed with brain tissue— a headshot, and another is a simple bloodstain, likely a chest shot."

After finishing, Zhao Qiang looked at Gao Yuan and said, "This means, at least two or more bandits attacked this place, looted their supplies, and killed three people. That is to say, there must be bandits nearby, at least three of them."

Just then, the two cars had stopped. Zhao Qiang took a look outside, thought for a moment, then turned to Gao Yuan and suggested, "Let’s stay here. We’re all pretty exhausted, and there are fewer people around here, making it safer. The situation will only get more complicated the further we go. We might as well rest well here for the night."

Full of curiosity, Gao Yuan asked, "Are you not afraid of bandits nearby?"

Zhao Qiang couldn’t help laughing and asked, "Are you scared?"

Gao Yuan laughed too and said, "If some short-sighted bandits dare to come, it’s hard to say who will rob who. Alright, as long as you think we can sleep here, let’s rest. Having a house and beds is much more comfortable than sleeping in the car."