The patter of raindrops fell on the ground, splashing up a white mist of water.

The blackened soil was already a muddy mess, with puddles of water everywhere in the low-lying areas.

Selma and his companions drove a dilapidated multi-purpose vehicle, weaving through buildings abandoned for who knows how many years.

"Damn it, I can hardly see the road!" Selma stared ahead, lightly tapping the steering wheel.

The vehicle's wipers worked hard, but could only keep the windshield clear for a second.

"Let's find a place to take shelter from the rain," Sandro, in the passenger seat, suggested. "You know that the wasteland is always prone to extreme weather, and it's summer now."

This four-person team lived off the wasteland as relic hunters, often ventured here, and were no strangers to similar situations.

"Alright," Selma sighed. "I thought we could make it to the river tonight and head back to the city tomorrow morning."

Although you didn't have to worry too much about car accidents when driving in the North Bank Wasteland, with its population density and vehicle density, even in a downpour with extremely low visibility, hitting someone was a low-probability event, as a "mid-level hunter," Selma was well aware that the danger didn't lie in that.

In such extreme weather, the North Bank Wasteland itself meant trouble.

You never knew if the ground ahead would suddenly collapse, and you couldn't be sure how deep the seemingly harmless low-lying areas were. In the torrential rain, your car might disappear as you were driving, and everyone would drown in the water-filled old-world culverts or buried former riverbeds.

Besides these, there were also natural disasters like landslides and mudslides.

Selma used the headlights to barely make out the surroundings.

This area belonged to the suburbs of the old world, but at that time, many wealthy people in the Red River region liked to live in this kind of place, with detached houses, lawns, and gardens. So, at a glance, Selma saw many buildings, some of which had already collapsed, while others were still well-preserved, just covered in snake-like green vines.

In the dim sky, in the raging wind and rain, the trees, weeds, and houses all gave a feeling of being on the verge of collapse.

Following his memory, Selma drove the vehicle towards higher ground.

Along the way, they were looking for a place to take shelter from the rain, as they couldn't always stay in the car, which would increase energy consumption, and they only had one can of gasoline left.

As relic hunters with considerable experience, Selma and Sandro knew that they couldn't just pick any house to take shelter in. Although these buildings left over from the old world seemed to be in good condition and could stand for many years, some of them had long been dilapidated, and being enveloped by the wind and rain for a few hours might cause them to collapse completely.

Countless relic hunters thought they had found a safe place to take shelter from the wind and rain, let down their guard, and were buried alive under bricks, wood, and cement.

Scanning past the houses, Sandro pointed to the highest place, saying:

"That one seems alright. It has the best terrain and no major damage, except that there are a lot of snake vines, and big striped mosquitoes love this kind of place."

"We have insect repellent," Dennis, sitting in the back row, responded with a smile.

They quickly agreed and had the vehicle drive towards the house at the highest point from the back, under the dark sky and against the raging wind and rain.

The broken and muddy road caused them a lot of obstacles, but fortunately, there were no deep puddles, so there was no need to detour.

About ten minutes later, they arrived at their destination and turned towards the front of the house.

Suddenly, Selma and Sandro's eyelids twitched at the same time.

Inside the house, a yellowish light was spreading outwards, illuminating the area!

"Other relic hunters?" Dennis also saw this scene.

This was the most reasonable deduction given the current situation:

Other relic hunters had also chosen a higher location to take shelter because of the wind and rain.

They didn't think about whether the house in front of them was still inhabited, because that was impossible - the farmland in the surrounding area was severely polluted, and the things grown there were inedible. In other words, it was impossible to form a settlement of a certain size nearby. Relying solely on hunting could only support a few people, and when faced with natural disasters, "Mindless," mutated creatures, and bandits, it was difficult for a few people to resist.

Of course, it couldn't be ruled out that this was just a temporary shack for some hunters.

"Should we still go over there?" Sandro asked in a deep voice.

Encountering fellow hunters in the North Bank Wasteland wasn't necessarily a good thing; it was the same for both sides.

Selma was about to answer when he saw the situation clearly.

The rusty iron gate of the house in front of them was open; the overgrown garden had been flattened by the wheels of vehicles; outside the main building, under the stone roof that provided shelter from the rain, were parked a gray-green jeep and a dark-black off-road vehicle; inside the entrance hall, a fire had been lit, with a portable stainless-steel pot simmering something; around the fire, there were six people in total, three men and three women.

Two of them were responsible for guarding, two were tending to the fire, and the remaining two were curled up in the chairs and armchairs they had brought, trying to get some sleep.

What Selma, Sandro, and the others were most concerned about wasn't the number of people, but what weapons they were carrying.

"Short-neck"…assault rifle…"United 202"…After quickly confirming these aspects, Selma said cautiously:

"It wouldn't be good to just leave like this. If they take advantage of us going downhill and fire a few cold shots, blowing out our tires, that would be dangerous."

In this kind of weather, on this kind of road, a flat tire would have unimaginable consequences.

"Yeah, it wouldn't hurt to go over, say hello, flex our muscles, and then leave," Sandro agreed.

Dennis added:

"Maybe we can even exchange some useful information."

With the support of his companions, Selma drove the vehicle towards the gate of the house and stopped when the patrol of the opposing relic hunter team raised their guns and aimed at them.

"Where did you come from?" Selma rolled down the window and shouted loudly.

"Initial City!" Shang Jianyao responded before his companions, shouting even louder than the other party. "What about you?"

Taking shelter from the rain while preparing dinner were the "Old Task Force" and Han Wanghuo and Zeng Duo who had successfully escaped from Initial City. At this time, Jiang Baimian and Shang Jianyao were tending to the fire, heating canned food, Long Yuehong and Bai Chen were patrolling the surrounding area, guarding against accidents, while Han Wanghuo and Zeng Duo, who were not in great shape and had been traveling for a day, were taking the time to rest.

As for Genaeva, since he had nothing else to do, he was exploring every floor and every room of the house to see if he could find any books, newspapers, or materials from the old world.

"North Anheford," Selma's voice penetrated the wind and rain, reaching the ears of Jiang Baimian and the others.

North Anheford referred to a certain area of the wasteland on the north bank of the Red River, derived from a similar place name in the old world.

This kind of regional division had no clear boundaries and was purely a product of empiricism.

Before Shang Jianyao and the others could respond, Selma shouted again:

"Can we chat for a bit?"

"You can park your car over there and then come over," Shang Jianyao stood up and pointed to a place on the side of the house.

From there to the entrance hall, there was shelter from the rain along the way.

Selma carefully drove the car to the designated location, and then, they each took up their weapons and got out of the car.

One of them was using a "Trong" assault rifle produced in Initial City, one was carrying a "Sour Orange" submachine gun, one was carrying a light machine gun, and one was carrying an "Eagle Eye" sniper rifle. Their firepower was quite fierce.

This was one of the reasons why they were always treated kindly.

Before they got close to the entrance hall, they smelled a strong aroma of food at the same time, feeling that the scent had entered their hearts through their lungs.

"Stewed beef and potatoes…they have a lot of supplies…" Selma and the others perked up and walked towards the entrance hall.

By the light of the fire, they finally saw the faces of Jiang Baimian, Shang Jianyao, and the others clearly.

Ashlanders…gene modifications? They have a background…While Selma’s eyes lit up, multiple thoughts flashed through his mind.

As experienced relic hunters, he and his companions had dealt with members of the "White Knights" and knew the various manifestations of gene modifications. Shang Jianyao and Jiang Baimian perfectly fit the corresponding characteristics.

This made Selma and the others even more solemn.

"You came from North Anheford?" Jiang Baimian, sitting cross-legged by the fire, raised her head and asked.

Zeng Duo's Chunchun Town was in that area.

"Yes, the pollution there isn't as serious, so you can stay there for a relatively long time…" As Selma answered, he felt the aroma of stewed beef and potatoes flood his mind again and again, almost distracting him.

They had been risking their lives in the North Bank Wasteland for nearly two weeks, and they were already tired of eating dry rations and game with tough meat and a strange taste.

Jiang Baimian didn't get up to greet them, glanced at them, and said with a smile:

"If you don't mind, you can eat with us.

"Of course, I can't give you any beef or potatoes; that's for my companions. But you can dip your dry rations in the broth."

Selma, Sandro, and the others exchanged glances, thinking that this didn't seem like a bad thing.

The other party was also going to eat these foods, so they just needed to stay vigilant.

While Sandro and Dennis each held their weapons, guarding against accidents, Selma and Toler sat down by the fire.

"How are things in North Anheford?" Jiang Baimian asked casually.

Selma recalled for a moment and said:

"It's no different from before, except that…it seems like an army from Initial City is conducting exercises. If you get too close to certain places, you'll encounter them and won't be able to go any deeper."

So that’s how it is…Jiang Baimian turned her body and glanced at Zeng Duo on the armchair next to her.

The lady had already opened her eyes.

Selma took the opportunity to ask:

"Has anything happened in the city recently?"

Jiang Baimian pondered for a few seconds, "Hmm," and said:

"The 'Hands of Order' are hunting down a group of people, making a lot of noise in the city."