Qin Shilei raised his beer and smiled, "A toast to us all still being alive!"
Everyone raised their glasses in response, "A toast to us all still being alive!"
"A toast to our friendship!"
"To this damn apocalypse, a toast!"
"To the unimaginable power we now possess, a toast!"
"To our certain survival in the future, a toast!"
The group clinked glasses repeatedly, and soon the table was littered with empty beer bottles.
Their physiques had all been strengthened by absorbing crystal cores, so a few bottles of beer only made them slightly tipsy.
After venting their emotions, they shifted to small, leisurely sips and began discussing the future.
Zhang Cheng was the first to suggest, "The Heshan District in Xizhuang City, not far from here, has been pacified and a large base has been established with preliminary order. I think we could temporarily settle there."
Zhang Qiang and Xie Haimei said indifferently, "Xie Haimei and I have no family left in this world. You are our comrades in arms, our brothers and sisters in life and death. If we can be together, that would be best."
An Qian and her mother looked at Qin Shilei.
Qin Shilei thought for a moment and said, "I'm alone here, with no particular place I want to go. Uncle Zhang's suggestion is worth considering to see if it's suitable."
He paused and added, "In this apocalypse, there are no truly safe places yet. Only by becoming stronger can we better survive. I will mainly be going out to hunt zombies and mutated beasts to become stronger."
"I want to become stronger too. You don't mind adding me, do you?" An Qian asked, looking at her mother with some worry.
"Qian'er, go ahead, I support you," He Yuyao gave her daughter an encouraging look.
"Brother Qin, can you take me too?" Zhang Xiaoli quickly chimed in.
Zhang Cheng and his wife's gazes flickered between Qin Shilei and An Qian, and then to their own daughter, sighing that their daughter had finally grown up.
Faced with the hopeful gazes of the two girls, Qin Shilei felt a headache coming on.
He voiced his concern, "If you all go out with me, what about your parents?"
"This..." The two girls were immediately speechless.
Zhang Cheng said, "I heard that the military in the base is also recruiting city defense members. My wife and I will probably join. In this world, it's better to survive with an organization."
Zhang Qiang suddenly said, "Brother Qin, have you considered establishing a faction? While being alone offers freedom, having a powerful faction has many advantages, at least for delegating trivial matters to subordinates."
Qin Shilei frowned, "I'm too lazy to manage things. The highest official position I've ever held was a group leader in elementary school. I have no idea how to establish a faction."
Although establishing an organization had many benefits, it also meant worrying about countless things. Qin Shilei didn't want an organization to trap him.
Zhang Qiang suggested, "We could start by forming a small team, just us. We just need a unified name."
Qin Shilei considered it for a moment and nodded, "That's a possibility. But what should we call our team?"
"Panshi."
"Annihilation Thunder."
"Phoenix."
"Nirvana."
Everyone offered their ideal team names.
In the end, they chose the somewhat ordinary name, Panshi.
They hoped their team would stand firm on Earth like a massive rock.
The next morning, after breakfast, they drove the armored vehicle towards Heshan District in Nanzhuang City.
After traveling two or three kilometers, they noticed a few dozen zombies attacking four people on the road ahead.
"Captain, should we go around or rescue them?" Zhang Qiang asked from the back of the vehicle.
"Let's rescue them. Just drive straight through them. We can also earn some crystal cores," Qin Shilei glanced ahead and said calmly.
The group of ordinary zombies ahead were no match for the armored vehicle, a metal behemoth.
In one pass, thirty to forty dismembered zombies lay on the ground.
"Stop! You stop right there! No stealing kills!"
Seeing the armored vehicle preparing for another charge, He Kaige quickly shouted.
Stealing kills?
They were trying to help, and now they were being accused of stealing kills.
Zhang Qiang felt annoyed and stopped the vehicle, intending to watch the show.
As he watched, he realized they might indeed have appeared to be stealing kills.
The four people were surrounded by zombies, but they were not in disarray. Instead, they cooperated closely and quickly killed the remaining zombies.
Qin Shilei said to Zhang Qiang, "Let's go. We don't need to dig out those crystal cores."
Just as Zhang Qiang was about to put the car in gear and leave, He Kaige suddenly blocked the armored vehicle and shouted, "Stop, buddy, come down and let's talk about something."
"What is it?" Zhang Qiang jumped down from the vehicle. "We don't want the crystal cores, are you still going to blame us for stealing kills?"
"That's not what I meant," He Kaige quickly waved his hands and asked, "Where did you get this armored vehicle?"
Zhang Qiang replied indifferently, "That doesn't concern you, does it?"
He Kaige licked his lips and said, "Brother, I want an armored vehicle like this too. Will you sell it to me?"
He had been a military enthusiast since childhood and had an extraordinary passion for military products.
Upon realizing that the two people in the driver's cabin were not soldiers, he eagerly hoped to acquire such an armored vehicle, which would be very useful in the apocalypse.
"Not selling," Zhang Qiang said coldly and turned to get back into the car.
He Kaige quickly stopped Zhang Qiang, "I'll give you a thousand catties of rice, cured meat, ham sausages, and a lot of other things."
"Boss, it's not worth it. There are good cars everywhere now. We can find a heavy truck and still ram through them," a skinny young man said with a pained expression. "These supplies are enough for our people to eat for three or four months."
Another young man with tattoos on his arm whispered, "Boss, how about I call up some brothers and we just rob them?"
"Shut up."
He Kaige glared at his subordinate and then turned back to Zhang Qiang with a smile, "Supplies are getting harder to come by. The price I'm offering is quite high."
If it weren't for the pre-apocalypse mindset still influencing him, and the possibility that the other party might be connected to the military, he would have resorted to robbery.
"Not interested, move aside," Zhang Qiang pushed him away.
"Plus a green metal elemental bead," He Kaige said, his face contorted in pain.
"Oh." Zhang Qiang was somewhat surprised that the other party was willing to pay such a high price.
An armored vehicle was ultimately an external tool, only effective on roads and for long-distance travel, offering good protection to its occupants.
However, elemental beads and crystal cores were tangible items that directly enhanced one's strength.
Given that they didn't know if the machine guns and cannons on the armored vehicle still had ammunition, their willingness to exchange such valuable items suggested they were truly fond of the armored vehicle.
Seeing Zhang Qiang's expression, He Kaige thought there was a chance and was about to continue persuading him.
His subordinate quickly pulled him aside and advised, "Boss, this is not a good trade."
At this moment, Qin Shilei also walked out of the cabin. "Not trading."