Chapter 12 – Leaving

Volume 2: Battlefield Between Two Worlds

After hearing Mayor Li's answer, Sun Ruixing felt slightly relieved. He chatted with Mayor Li for a few more moments, then turned back to his own people and announced the news.

Seeing them cheer, Sun Ruixing's emotions turned into a jumble, yet he didn't know what to say. All he could do was sigh.

"Oh right, Brother Sun-where did that young man with the Big Dog come from?"

Li Quan'an looked at Wen Yu, who was cleaning up the battlefield not far away, and asked Sun Ruixing in puzzlement.

"He's a Young Brother I rescued over by the factory a couple of days ago. But judging by his strength now, I guess saving him back then was unnecessary."

"Oh? I wonder if he can stay. With someone that strong around, our Camp's safety would be much better."

Li Quan'an asked with a broad smile.

Sun Ruixing thought briefly. "Probably not. From what I can tell, Brother Wen Yu doesn't have a good impression of the Settlement, and he's too strong-he doesn't really need the Settlement at all."

"Mm, that's true. What a pity." Li Quan'an looked disappointed, but inside he was already laughing. If Wen Yu really joined his Stronghold, could he, Li Quan'an, still be the Boss? He didn't need to think to know the answer.

Glancing at Wen Yu, Li Quan'an kept praying: please just leave already.

Fortunately, Wen Yu didn't keep Li Quan'an waiting long. Once Wen Yu finished sorting through the loot, he took the Big Dog and walked off without looking back, heading farther and farther away.

…

This was Wen Yu's first time in Hualin Town.

The infrastructure was worn down. There were only a few Residential Building of varying heights; most of the place was made up of low brick-and-tile houses.

As a small town in the Northeast, its level of economic development was worse than that of some rural areas.

Looking at the desolate, run-down surroundings, Wen Yu's bad premonition only grew stronger.

In the Settlement, people often said that the number of Zombie and Mutant Creature in Hualin Town was getting smaller and smaller. At first, Wen Yu hadn't paid much attention, but after observing for himself, something seemed off.

Zombies were one thing-Hualin Town wouldn't have many to begin with, and after being cleared out by Survivors, their numbers would only keep dropping.

But as for Mutant Creature, Wen Yu hadn't seen a single one along the way. There weren't even any corpses. That was completely abnormal.

Unless the Mutant Creature had migrated as a group, or had been gathered up-or even killed-by an even stronger existence. Either way, it was extremely dangerous for Survivors.

"One-Eye, do you sense anything?" Wen Yu sent a mental ripple to One-Eye through the power of the Soul Realm.

Animals were far better than humans at sensing danger.

"Woof…" One-Eye let out two low whines, lowered its head, and carefully sniffed the scent on the ground.

One-Eye didn't sense anything.

"Something's not right. Move-leave this place as soon as possible."

Wen Yu's unease grew stronger. Even though One-Eye hadn't sensed anything, Wen Yu would never assume there was no danger. In the Apocalypse, there was no such thing as a peaceful paradise. If anything, the quieter a place was, the more dangerous it tended to be.

Wen Yu immediately sped up. One-Eye stayed close behind, and the two of them ran at top speed toward Hualin Town's exit.

Hualin Town itself wasn't big. Moving faster than a car, Wen Yu reached the edge of town in less than ten minutes. Beyond it lay another small town under Mudanjiang City: Chaihe Town.

Silence.

On the ruined asphalt road, there was nothing but dust and bloodstains.

On one side of the road rose a massive mountain; on the other stretched an endless expanse of farmland.

The unease in Wen Yu's heart grew stronger and stronger. Even One-Eye could tell something was off. It opened its huge mouth and let out a low, whining sound, its hind legs slightly bent-an omen that One-Eye was about to attack.

"One-Eye, go scout ahead."

This was Wen Yu's best way of dealing with the unknown. If One-Eye ran into danger, Wen Yu could retrieve it into the Soul Realm as quickly as possible.

One-Eye already had no small measure of intelligence. It understood that having it scout ahead was the best option for the unknown situation before them.

"Woof, woof."

It was telling Wen Yu: "Boss, don't screw me over."

After signing the Soul Contract, Wen Yu could understand what One-Eye meant, just as One-Eye could understand Wen Yu's commands.

"Don't worry. If there's danger, I'll yank you back."

Wen Yu patted One-Eye's belly to reassure it.

One-Eye moved its four limbs and slowly headed forward. As it drew closer, nothing happened.

One-Eye's taut nerves gradually relaxed, and then it began to pick up speed.

Just as One-Eye was about a hundred meters away, Wen Yu suddenly sensed something was wrong.

There seemed to be far too much green on the mountain. In the past, the mountains around Mudanjiang City were mostly bare rock, but now they were completely covered in greenery.

"One-Eye, sprint forward! Hurry!"

Wen Yu shouted to One-Eye in the distance.

Hearing Wen Yu's order, One-Eye didn't stop to ask why-it simply burst into its top speed.

As One-Eye accelerated like crazy, sounds immediately came from the mountain and even from the farmland beside it.

It was like countless snakes slithering across the ground, mixed with the cracking of rock and soil splitting apart, as innumerable Vines sprang out from both sides.

"Mutant Plant." Wen Yu's heart sank.

The Apocalypse had only just begun. Plants didn't mutate that quickly, and for humans, plant mutation could be either good or bad.

For instance, after some crops became Mutated, they grew larger and produced higher yields; some plants could even produce treasures that could enhance Physical Attribute.

But there were also some Mutated plants that developed terrifying aggressiveness-like these Vines right in front of them.

Wen Yu didn't know whether these things belonged to a single organism or a colony. He didn't even know what species they had been before becoming Mutated. All he knew was that the exit of Hualin Town had been completely sealed off by these things.

About thirty meters ahead of Wen Yu, the Mutant Plant began to appear. All the way to where One-Eye was now, everything was filled with Vines baring their fangs and brandishing their claws.

Beyond that, Wen Yu had no idea how far the Vines spread. That was why he had One-Eye rush forward-he had to find the boundary of the Vines' distribution.

One-Eye sensed the danger. Its sharp claws tore straight through the Vines blocking the way as it charged even faster forward.

But there were far too many Vines. One after another wrapped around One-Eye, far faster than One-Eye could shred them. One-Eye's speed slowed more and more.

Until all four of One-Eye's limbs were tightly bound.

One-Eye let out a miserable howl.