“Captain, why didn’t you ask him where he locked up those people just now?”
“No need to ask. That guy was likely lying. The people killed just now were probably not their full strength. This person is cautious and would likely leave half his men at their base. If we hadn’t run into them today, we might have suffered losses.”
He stroked his chin in thought and said, “Forget it, no need to rush back. We’ll scout the area. We haven’t received any news from their base yet, so their guard won’t be at its strongest. It's a good time to scout.”
Then he picked up the walkie-talkie, “Convoy, convoy, please respond if you receive this.”
“Convoy received, Captain, please speak,” it was Wang Zhihai’s voice. Wu Tian was still talking with Wu Mengyao.
After all, he had killed people with a crossbow.
“Brother Wu, you, Mighty Man, and Wu Tian, each carry two smoke bombs and meet us outside the service area. Also, get Qin Xia and bring out the Saber-toothed Tiger to join us. Let’s use this time to scout their base and aim to get on the national highway today.”
“Understood, we’re coming. Where should we meet you, Captain?”
“We’re not far from the exit, not yet at the fork in the road with the three paths.”
“Okay, we’ll be there soon.”
After turning off the communication, Wang Zhihai looked back at Wu Tian and said, “Hurry up, the Captain needs us.”
Wu Tian hummed and looked back at Wu Mengyao. Wu Mengyao was also looking at him.
“Mengyao, are you really alright?”
After all, he had killed people. He was a little worried that the child might develop a psychological scar.
“It’s fine, sister. You go ahead. I have Sister Anjing and Sister Mengmeng with me.”
Actually, Wu Mengyao didn’t feel much. She just felt a little nauseous seeing all the yellow and white. She now considered this team her family. These people wanted to destroy her home, and she was just fighting back.
“Alright then, wait for us here.”
“Yeah, I’m waiting for Sister Ziqi to come back and steal his snacks. Brother Lin Yuan is so heartless, he won’t give me any.”
Wu Tian looked carefully at his sister’s face. He couldn’t see any hidden emotions. He sighed, ruffled Wu Mengyao’s hair, and said helplessly, “Okay then, you did a good job today. When we get on the national highway, I’ll tell your Brother Lin Yuan to give you some snacks.”
“Hooray!”
“Then we’re leaving. Qingyan, please keep an eye on her.”
“Don’t worry.”
Lin Qingyan and Zhu Mingjun were left to handle matters within the convoy, along with the remaining people.
Five minutes later, Wu Tian and the other three had already met up with Lin Yuan.
“Captain, what’s the plan?”
Lin Yuan pointed to the area between the mountain path and the target road. “Here’s what I’m thinking. The vegetation between these two roads is dense and undulating. If we sneak over, we won’t be easily spotted. We’ll go this way later and observe when we get closer. Based on the current information, they have a lot of people, including the ones they captured. With so many people, there must be traces of their daily life. And in this weather, they might even have basins out to collect water.”
What Lin Yuan said made sense. Water was a rare commodity in the apocalypse. When they set out, he had asked Lin Qingyan to collect some water to boil for everyone to clean themselves. Many team members hadn’t showered in days, and most of the time they just wiped themselves with wet wipes.
“But that bamboo forest is followed by fields, with nothing to block our view. How do we get in?”
“That will depend on Sister Qin Xia. Just follow the commands on the walkie-talkie later. Brother Wang, explain to Sister Qin Xia how to use the vehicle-mounted smoke bomb launcher.”
Hearing this, Wang Zhihai realized, “Captain, you’re planning a diversion?”
Lin Yuan nodded and smiled, “Yes. Others aren’t stupid. The areas near the residential area are all fields. If we sneak over openly, we’ll just become targets. We need something to attract their attention.”
While Wang Zhihai was teaching Qin Xia how to operate the launcher, Zhao Mengnan carefully observed the open ground between the two roads. It was indeed as Lin Yuan had said, with scattered paddy fields, bamboo groves in the middle, small hills, and dense weeds. He was silently planning the route. The three people sneaking in definitely wouldn’t move together; it would be too obvious.
“What if we find their base?” Wu Tian looked at the cluster of buildings shrouded in heavy rain.
“If we find it, we’ll approach and observe. If there’s a chance to sneak in, and we discover that the situation is as Liu Mengmeng described, then we won’t hold back,” Lin Yuan’s voice became increasingly cold towards the end.
However, he turned and said gently to Wu Tian and the others, “Does anyone else have any other ideas? If not, then this is the plan.”
Everyone shook their heads. This was the best possible plan. They couldn’t just charge through the checkpoint, as who knew if they had set up tire spikes or other blocking devices.
“In that case, let’s assign tasks. Wu Tian, Mu Qingtian, you’ll be responsible for sniping from a distance. I, Wang Zhihai, and Zhao Mengnan will be responsible for searching and infiltrating. Jiang Ziqi, you’ll be responsible for protecting Wu Tian and Mu Qingtian. Sister Qin Xia, after you hear the instructions on the walkie-talkie, drive the armored vehicle towards them and fire smoke bombs from the front of the buildings towards the middle road, making them think we’re trying to break through. Do you understand?”
“Understood!”
“Let’s go!!!”
Six figures wearing black hooded raincoats instantly merged into the rain.
Their feet landed on the soft ground soaked by the heavy rain, not only making their shoes very dirty but also making the ground slippery and difficult to walk on. Fortunately, Lin Yuan and the others didn’t care about their shoes. Every step they took was very deliberate, and they soon reached the bamboo forest, which was more than 500 meters from the houses. The six people lay down behind a small hill. Wu Tian and Mu Qingtian had already set up their guns between several bamboo stalks. From here, they could see most of the houses on their side.
“See anything?”
“There are people in the three-story building with red tiles on the left. We haven’t found anything else yet,” Mu Qingtian said first.
“Can you see where the people are distributed?”
“Yes, there are three people with guns guarding the top floor. I haven’t seen the others; they should be inside,” Wu Tian continued Lin Yuan’s question.
“Then the people in these houses should be here. Notify Qin Xia. She can drive the vehicle over. Qingyan, give your bulletproof vest back to Brother Wang to wear. Ziqi, you also give your bulletproof vest to Mighty Man.”
“Wait, Captain, I still have a question,” it was Jiang Ziqi speaking. This was quite unusual. This girl had always obeyed him. Today, she even raised a question. It was something to be happy about.
He raised an eyebrow, “Ziqi, quickly state your question. We’re running out of time.”
Jiang Ziqi also looked serious, “Captain, what if their base isn’t the only one? And how do you know if there are any zombies here? Isn’t this too dangerous?”
“So that’s the problem,” Lin Yuan looked at her and sighed, “Ziqi, I understand you’re worried about us. I’ll explain later. Time is critical now, and we have no other choice. We can’t have the convoy charge through gunfire, can we? We only have one armored vehicle; the others are not bulletproof.”
The tallest buildings here were no more than three stories. This entire village belonged to Brother Yun’s people, a gang. They always kept weapons at home and were prone to fighting. When the apocalypse arrived, their leader was still alive, and the signal hadn’t been cut off, allowing them to quickly consolidate their emotions and organize resistance. With buildings like these, as long as two people guarded the entrance, or one person guarded the bedroom door, using some obstacles, they could kill them one by one like in a game. With hundreds of zombies, as long as they cooperated well and didn’t attract a large group at once, they could also be eliminated step by step.
“Then take me with you. I’m not afraid of bullets,” Jiang Ziqi waved her tentacles, indicating that she was at least half a zombie and felt no pain.
“Not now. You haven’t fully mastered your current strength. Sending you out would be sending you to your death. Be good and give the bulletproof vest to Brother Meng Nan.”
Seeing Lin Yuan’s serious gaze, Jiang Ziqi reluctantly handed the bulletproof vest to Zhao Mengnan.
Lin Yuan also opened the walkie-talkie, “Sister Qin Xia, you can set off now.”
“Understood.”