"But relying on someone else's strength isn't as satisfying as having your own abilities. If I were such a dual superpower user, I'd definitely make a name for myself in the apocalypse and stand up straighter in front of Xu Nuo!"
Xu Nuo nodded upon hearing this, "It's a pity she's just a low-level space user; all she can do now is store supplies, right?"
Park Su nodded, "But didn't you completely offend her upstairs? Are you sure she won't cause trouble for you as an enemy? Weren't you the one who taught me to eliminate threats entirely? How did you miss this time? Was she really that strong, or too beautiful for you to strike?"
Hearing Park Su's tone, Xu Nuo felt it was somewhat off. If he didn't know Park Su was male, he might even think he was jealous. However, he could hear the concern in Park Su's voice, so he wasn't annoyed and replied calmly.
"I didn't pay attention to what that woman looked like, sorry for not letting you see before I acted. She's severely injured now; if it weren't for those people risking their lives to help her escape, she might not even be alive. In this apocalypse, with such severe injuries, it's uncertain if she'll survive. Even if she does, I don't think she'll be a match for me.
Teleportation, I can't do it very well, but I can manage. Since you mentioned it, I think I should also improve my Taoist techniques to prepare for the future. According to you, dealing with these low-level superpower users in the early stages of the apocalypse is manageable, but if I don't enhance my skills, I might not be up to the task later on, right?"
Park Su felt a chill from Xu Nuo's words; he knew this was Xu Nuo testing him. In fact, he had already given Xu Nuo subtle hints about this before, and evidently, Xu Nuo had picked up on them but hadn't addressed it directly until now.
Now Xu Nuo seemed to be openly acknowledging that he understood the hints Park Su was giving but chose not to pursue the topic further. So, Park Su just nodded, "Indeed, the later it gets in this world, the more we need to enhance our strength to survive better."
Since Xu Nuo didn't ask, Park Su could breathe a sigh of relief. After all, confessing about being reborn was a big secret, and even if Xu Nuo believed him, there would still be some worry in his heart.
Seeing Park Su's conflicted look, Xu Nuo found it amusing. He raised his hand to pat Park Su's head but changed his mind at the last moment, instead just giving his shoulder a pat, "Alright, focus on driving! As for other things, tell me when you feel ready."
Then he closed his eyes again, leaning back to rest and hide his own awkwardness, while also sighing. His previous guesses were correct; Park Su indeed had secrets.
He didn't know how Park Su knew about future events, but since Park Su was willing to show his hand, the time when he would learn this secret was probably not far off. Moreover, he was pleased with Park Su's trust in him.
Seeing Xu Nuo wasn't pressing for more, Park Su breathed a sigh of relief, especially moved by Xu Nuo's words, and focused all his attention back on the steering wheel.
Soon, he noticed that the more they drove on the national highway, the more vehicles there were, many abandoned cars without drivers, not much less than on the highways. Some sections even required Park Su to use his wood-based superpower to clear the way with tree branches from the roadside.
Driving was indeed slower than riding a bicycle before the apocalypse, especially with zombies occasionally wandering around. In these two hours, Park Su hadn't driven far. As the sunset began to darken, he quickly found a row of houses by the roadside that seemed passable and drove into one of the yards, evidently preparing to spend the night there.
Lü Xia, who had been on high alert, naturally followed them into this small village. This village appeared much more rundown and smaller than the one Park Su and Xu Nuo had stayed in before. At least when they drove through, they didn't see any signs of people.
Perhaps everyone had left or had been eaten by zombies. Before getting out of the car, Park Su tugged at Xu Nuo's sleeve, asking him to check the situation in the village first and find a comfortable house for their overnight stay.
Xu Nuo wouldn't refuse something that would benefit him as well, and seeing Park Su act so coy was somewhat ticklish to his heart, though he tried to ignore that feeling. He immediately used his mental power to scan the entire village and, surprisingly, frowned, "There aren't many living people, but there's another convoy in the back row at a survivor's house. As for this row, it's close to the road, so there are more zombies, and no one lives here."
From Xu Nuo's expression, Park Su knew he didn't want to interact with those people, and he himself didn't feel like dealing with more hassle today. So he suggested, "Then let's stay in this row. Don't you have those isolation talismans? Use them. If we disturb them, who knows what kind of trouble we might stir up. I really don't want to move anymore, is that okay?"
Xu Nuo looked at Park Su thoughtfully without commenting, just pointing at a house, "That one in this row has everything in good shape; let's rest there."
Park Su knew Xu Nuo had agreed with his suggestion, immediately showing a grin, saying, "Alright," and then drove the car into that house's yard.
Just as Park Su was about to get out to open the door, Xu Nuo grabbed his wrist, "Be careful, there are two zombies inside. They probably couldn't break through the security door, and since there's no strong scent of blood to drive them mad, they've stayed here."
Hearing this, Park Su nodded, "Alright, I'll deal with them, then you come up to help with the bodies, since your talismans are more effective."
Xu Nuo didn't refuse or stop Park Su's actions. As soon as Park Su got out, Lü Xia drove her car into the same yard, which surprised Xu Nuo. He knew Lü Xia had always been discreet and wouldn't do something so obviously opportunistic.
Lü Xia, seeing Park Su standing there, rolled down the driver's window and spoke in a conciliatory tone, "I see this house is quite big. There should be extra rooms. Would you mind if we stay in the same house? I can cook for you, do laundry, or even give you the food I collected today, just let us stay here."
Park Su hadn't expected such a direct request from her and frowned, his refusal not yet spoken when the back window was rolled down. Jingxuan, with swollen eyes, pleaded to Park Su, "Brother Park Su, please let us stay with you. My mom is injured, and I want to take good care of her if we're with you. Just for tonight, please. I'll make sure we don't ask for this again."
Turning his gaze to Lü Xia's face, Park Su noticed her poor complexion and asked, "Where and how did you get injured?"
It wasn't that he was heartless to refuse them, but he needed to know if she was injured in the supermarket, and more importantly, what caused the injury. If it was just a cut from a blade, that would be fine, but if it was a scratch from a zombie, even a small wound could lead to infection with the zombie virus since she was just an ordinary person.
There was a small chance she could awaken a superpower, but that probability was one in ten thousand, far too low. If she was indeed scratched by a zombie, she might turn into one during the night, creating trouble for them. He really didn't want any more trouble.
Lü Xia understood Park Su's concern and quickly explained, "Don't worry, it's definitely not from a zombie. Xu Nuo knows this. It was that woman; I don't know how, but she used her fingers like a knife, so sharp. That's how I got injured."
With that, she specifically rolled up her sleeve to show Park Su, "See, this is definitely from a sharp weapon, not from a zombie's teeth or claws."
As soon as she pulled up her sleeve, Park Su saw that the wound was quite significant. Perhaps because it had been some time since the injury, the edges of the wound were slightly everted, looking rather gruesome, but indeed, it was as she said, caused by a sharp object.
He didn't know how she managed to follow them for over two hours with such a severe injury, her face pale and covered in blood.
Thinking about this, Park Su felt a bit of admiration for Lü Xia's resilience, perhaps this was the strength of a mother. However, allowing them to stay here wasn't a decision he could make alone; he should discuss it with Xu Nuo first.
Just as he was thinking this, he heard Xu Nuo from behind say, "Let them stay with us tonight. You go deal with those zombies in the room quickly. I'll set up the formations. Her wound isn't from a zombie, it was caused by that woman.
But she might have a fever tonight, so she'll need someone to look after her. Besides, you like that kid, don't you? If we leave them in the house next door, given their current condition, you might not see them alive tomorrow."
Although Park Su didn't know why Xu Nuo suddenly became so kind-hearted, since Xu Nuo had spoken, he touched his nose and went upstairs.
However, he was now somewhat curious about what had happened on the second floor. He regretted not going up to see for himself; there seemed to be some big event going on. Meanwhile, Lü Xia, seeing that Xu Nuo and Park Su had agreed to let them stay, let out a sigh of relief, nodding in thanks to Xu Nuo, and then slumped back into her seat, exhausted.