Everyone was exhausted after such a day.
Especially the girls, Luo Xiaole urged them to find good rooms and rest well.
This night was one they needed to digest on their own...
Luo Xiaole and her group checked all the doors and windows.
They also found a few rooms.
She slept alone, so she put on her Strawberry Bear plush suit, wearing all her defensive gear to prevent any unexpected situations.
Then she fell asleep almost as soon as her head hit the pillow.
...
The next day, Luo Xiaole's eyes opened early.
The closer they got to Luocheng Base, the more anxious she became.
It was just like the night before an exam, making sleep impossible. She feared something would go wrong ahead, and all their efforts would be in vain.
She hadn't slept well all night, and tension and anxiety gradually crept in.
She simply got up at five in the morning.
She jogged, running a lap around the other empty rooms in the villa.
She collected a large pile of weapons she hadn't had time to collect yesterday!
[Activate Enhancement Skill: Blade of Sharpness!]
Before anyone else woke up.
[132 weapons enhanced, 26,400 Shop Coins spent, 101,235 Shop Coins remaining]
Good, she had collected all the convenient weapons here.
But her sisters only had weapons, and she still felt uneasy.
What if zombies attacked and they couldn't fight back...
She simply got up and walked to the door of the new room where the girls had rested last night.
"This room only has one entrance and no windows. If the door is enhanced, the safety factor inside will be much higher."
Luo Xiaole raised her hand familiarly.
[Activate Enhancement Skill: Blade of the World!]
[Activate Defense Skill: Shield of Iron Wall!]
[Door enhanced/defended, 2,100 Shop Coins spent, 99,135 Shop Coins remaining]
All done.
With this, not only zombies, but even if artillery arrived, as long as the door wasn't opened, they could hold out inside.
This was all she could do for now.
Luo Xiaole clapped her hands and sat on the sofa, recovering her depleted mental energy, feeling as if she had been drained of everything...
However, the large pile of weapons enhanced in the villa would surely sell for a good profit.
She was one step closer to her mission of accumulating 500,000 Shop Coins to open a pharmacy!
It was just that collecting medicine wasn't easy...
But once they entered the base, the environment would surely be better than now. She would just pay more attention to finding medicine then.
When Zhou Shoushan and Mo Chen and the others woke up.
After a simple breakfast, they all gathered by the main door of the hall.
Luo Xiaole briefly explained their next plan and reassured the girls.
"Don't worry, young friend. As soon as I return to the city, I will arrange vehicles and personnel to escort them. They won't have to stay here for too long," Zhou Shoushan said with a determined look at Luo Xiaole.
"Then thank you, Commander, for now," Luo Xiaole smiled.
The group packed up and prepared to set off.
"Luo Xiaole!" Several girls called out to her.
"Thank... thank you... Without you, I really couldn't have lasted a few more days..."
"Yes... and, I'm so envious of you!" A girl named A Ling, who had been rescued from the second floor yesterday, said excitedly.
"Envious of me... for what?" Luo Xiaole stared at her like a confused puppy.
"You have powers, and the courage to fight them... I'm so envious... I hope I can become strong too, so I won't be a burden, and won't be abandoned by my teammates and kidnapped here..." As A Ling spoke, she almost started crying again.
Luo Xiaole's nose also felt a sting. She could relate too much to being considered a drag!
"Don't forget, you have weapons now! You can fight too, you have to believe in yourselves."
"Yes! We will become stronger and make those who bullied us regret it!" A Ling's eyes immediately became firm after a surge of confidence.
"I believe you, and I look forward to seeing that day," Luo Xiaole's eyes formed crescent moons, looking very warm.
"Oh, right." Luo Xiaole paused again.
Just as she turned, she suddenly saw that among the group of girls, two of them had swirling vortexes gradually appearing above their heads.
But the color of the vortexes was hard to distinguish. It wasn't the pure white vortex of other ability users, nor the black vortex of zombies...
It was a situation she hadn't encountered before...
She wondered if they were about to awaken their abilities.
But she wasn't sure, so she could only caution A Ling, "Those two girls, you can observe them more closely from now on. I have a feeling they might undergo some changes..."
A Ling turned to look at them and nodded. She completely believed Luo Xiaole now.
"Then, see you later!" Luo Xiaole waved goodbye to them and got into the car with Zhou Shoushan and the others.
The car sped towards Luocheng Base.
...
From here to Luocheng Base, there was almost only one main road.
Cars couldn't pass through the other small roads and forks, so others generally wouldn't risk their lives by going through the small woods or bushes.
After all, there would only be more zombies hiding in the dark, and this road was safer.
The soldier also seemed eager to get back, driving the car at a fast pace.
All the desolate scenery flashed past the window.
After about half an hour.
"Gulp... gulp..."
Several non-mutated black vultures, startled by the sound of the car's tires crushing the road, flew up from a patch of grass, flapping their wings.
Why were there so many... vultures here...
Zhou Shoushan's brow furrowed. He raised his hand, and the soldier immediately stopped the car.
"Normal vultures usually have dark brown faces and lead-blue necks... The faces and necks of these few have turned bright red..." A shadow crossed his eyes.
"They are feeding," Zhou Shoushan's tone was firm.
Luo Xiaole paused, understanding his meaning.
Normally, vultures would feed on the carcasses of large animals in groups. But with so many of them here, it meant either there was a fierce beast...
Or, there were many human corpses here.
Corpses of living people who died before they could even mutate...
She started to feel a chill down her spine.
Zhou Shoushan motioned for the soldier to keep his rifle ready for alert.
Mo Chen gave Luo Xiaole a look, signaling her to stay safe in the car.
He pushed off with his long legs and got out of the car, his hands resting on the scabbards of his dual blades, ready to attack at any moment.
The three of them approached the pile of corpses.
After carefully observing their surroundings, the three of them retreated expressionlessly.
Luo Xiaole breathed a sigh of relief, it seemed there was no immediate danger around.
But their expressions were even more grim.
"..."
"What is it?" Luo Xiaole was startled.
"You didn't see... it was too gruesome... They were all naked, and their internal organs were almost pecked clean by those vultures... Intestines were in small pieces, dangling on the ground, even worse than what zombies would do..." The soldier's face had turned pale.
"Over twenty corpses, old and young," Mo Chen said.
"There was no remaining supplies or equipment around..." Zhou Shoushan's brows were deeply furrowed. "Although the bodies were broken, it was clear that there were no signs of zombie bites..."
That made sense, if they had encountered zombies, they would have been bitten from the start, and these vultures wouldn't have had a chance...
This meant that more than twenty people had all died at the hands of their own kind?
Luo Xiaole gasped.