Early the next morning, after breakfast, Noah and Liu Xiaoyu set out again. Their objectives for the day were twofold: first, to find a tanker truck and fill it with oil for backup, and second, to search for other awakeners to replicate abilities.
The two found a motorcycle and sped toward the city center. Compared to yesterday, the streets were more densely populated with zombies, including a greater number of evolved types. The previously most common ordinary zombies had become the minority.
Level 2 Hardened types made up the majority, with the obese ones being particularly prevalent. After three days of apocalypse, most people had come to the realization that no rescue was coming.
They left their shelters to search for supplies, but for ordinary people, starting to gather supplies at this point was somewhat late. Zombies had evolved to higher levels, and with Bloodthirsty Crows picking off individuals, venturing out meant facing the possibility of death. But they had no choice but to risk searching for food.
With each passing day, zombies would advance a level, making every day more dangerous than the last. Hesitation today could mean losing any hope of survival tomorrow. This day was destined to be anything but peaceful.
Many survivors risked their lives scouring the streets for supplies. The lucky ones might find enough to feed themselves, but many more became victims of zombies. Conflicts over resources also broke out among survivors.
The zombies became more agitated, and the entire urban area plunged into noise and chaos. Screams, cries, curses, and the growls of zombies echoed through the streets. Noah and Liu Xiaoyu arrived at a gas station where several survivors inside the mini-market were desperately fighting over the goods on the shelves.
Seeing Noah and his companion, the group became wary, with one person, holding a fire axe, standing at the entrance of the mini-market, vigilantly watching them.
It was clear these survivors were together, fearing that Noah and Liu Xiaoyu might compete for the resources, so they had assigned someone to guard the entrance. Noah paid them no mind, focusing instead on checking the fuel reserves at the gas station.
The fuel reserves were plentiful, but unfortunately, there was no tanker truck available, so transporting the oil immediately wasn't an option. Soon, the few survivors inside the gas station finished scavenging, carrying several parcels as they hurried out and gathered together.
"We only found a box of instant noodles and some bottled water, which won't last us long. What should we do? Should we look elsewhere?"
One middle-aged man thought for a moment and said, "You guys keep looking around here; I'll take these supplies back first. The kids haven't eaten in two days."
"Okay, make it quick," they agreed.
After discussing, they decided to split up. The middle-aged man, responsible for taking the supplies back to their base, noticed Noah and Liu Xiaoyu's motorcycle and was immediately intrigued. Riding the motorcycle would allow him to return to the base faster and come back to search for more supplies sooner.
He started running towards the motorcycle. However, Liu Xiaoyu was casually sitting on the motorcycle, swinging her feet. The middle-aged man waved his fire axe at Liu Xiaoyu and barked, "Get lost if you don't want to die." Liu Xiaoyu, unfazed, cheerfully responded, "Uncle, you're so fierce." Seeing her reaction, the man's face darkened completely. "Don't force me to chop you, little girl."
He then reached out to grab Liu Xiaoyu, thinking she was just a naive girl, unaccustomed to the harsh realities of the apocalypse, spoiled and sheltered all her life. But to his surprise, Liu Xiaoyu swiftly kicked out, sending the middle-aged man flying unexpectedly. He tumbled several meters away, lying on the ground and howling in pain. With that kick, Liu Xiaoyu had broken several of his ribs.
Seeing this, his companions rushed over to help him up. "Ah... damn it, I think my ribs are broken."
The group looked at Liu Xiaoyu in astonishment, unable to believe that a girl who appeared so frail could kick and break the ribs of their companion with a single blow. "Grab her and drag her inside to deal with her," one of them said, licking his lips as he eyed Liu Xiaoyu's delicate features. The rest exchanged glances and nodded in agreement. This was the apocalypse, after all, where one could do as they pleased, not knowing if they would survive to see another day. All notions of morality and law were thrown to the wind.
They quickly surrounded Liu Xiaoyu, setting down their weapons, intending to overpower her with their numbers. As for Noah, busy inspecting the fuel tank at a distance, he was completely disregarded by the group as just a green kid, a coward who wouldn't even check on his companion when she was surrounded.
Liu Xiaoyu remained smiling, showing no sign of panic. Noah, for his part, ignored the situation, continuing to check the fuel tanks on his own. He had already assessed the situation; these were just ordinary people, posing no threat to Liu Xiaoyu. Not to mention unarmed combat, even if they were armed, they wouldn't stand a chance against her. Liu Xiaoyu's strength enhancement was also at max level; she could kill a bull with a single punch, and her initial restraint was already showing mercy.
Surviving an encounter and yet unaware of their luck, they still thought to capture Liu Xiaoyu, clearly not understanding the direct path to their demise they were choosing.
With a 'whoosh' and a 'thud,' a knife, gleaming with a cold light, pierced through the head of one of the men. He died instantly, falling straight to the ground. Then, the roar of engines filled the air as several motorcycles sped into the gas station. The riders were all young men in their twenties, about a dozen at first glance.
The youths were making strange yelling noises, pulling out machetes they had prepared in advance and slashing at anyone they saw. The group that had been surrounding Liu Xiaoyu, seeing this, didn't have time to think and turned to run in terror.
However, their legs couldn't outrun the motorcycles, they were quickly overtaken and slashed to the ground. The young riders dismounted, surrounding the howling men and hacking at them indiscriminately, deliberately avoiding lethal blows and targeting limbs and fleshy parts for their amusement.
Screams of agony soon filled the gas station. "Alright, stop playing around. Check how much fuel is left in the tanks," a bald man shouted in dissatisfaction. Hearing this, the youths reluctantly ceased their assault but didn't spare the men on the ground, decapitating them one by one and kicking their heads around like soccer balls.
The bald man's gaze then shifted to Liu Xiaoyu, and his eyes lit up. "We're in luck today, found a beauty too."