48: Chapter 48 Staying for a Day

The ordinary survivors were already physically fragile. If they kept pushing themselves like this, they wouldn't need to wait for the Anomalies to attack or enemies to make a move—they would collapse on their own. Furthermore, with the two convoys so close to each other, resting for a day would be safer.

Just then, a member of The Convoy responsible for guard duty ran over in a hurry. If Zhou Che remembered correctly, he should be one of Wang Laowu's subordinates. He looked panicked:

"Mr. Zhou, Captain Liu! An ordinary survivor from the Circus Convoy opposite us says he has a huge secret to expose and insists on seeing Captain Liu!"

Captain Liu Ruyan turned to look at Zhou Che, her eyes questioning. Zhou Che raised an eyebrow, a flash of surprise in his eyes, and nodded indifferently: "Bring him over. I want to see what kind of shameful secret he could be hiding."

Before long, the survivor was brought over by the guards. The man's name was Zhang Daqiang; he was thin, his back slightly hunched, his eye sockets deeply sunken, and his eyes filled with dense red bloodshot veins. He couldn't stop trembling, and his face was filled with panic, despair, and extreme, suppressed hatred.

As soon as he was brought before Zhou Che and Captain Liu Ruyan, Zhang Daqiang fell to his knees with a thud. He slammed his head hard against the ground, drawing blood from his forehead, his voice raspy and choked with heart-wrenching sobs.

"Captain Liu! I beg you to show mercy and save my wife! Save those poor people who are being tortured to the point where they'd rather be dead!"

Zhou Che and Captain Liu Ruyan exchanged a look, both seeing that something was wrong. Zhou Che waved his hand, signaling him to speak slowly and explain everything clearly.

Zhang Daqiang took a deep breath, suppressing the surging fear and hatred in his heart, and word by word, he spilled out all of The Circus's monstrous atrocities.

"Before the apocalypse, I was a contract construction worker at the zoo. The day the disaster struck, I was working at the zoo construction site with my wife, and we were trapped there immediately. Later, those scumbags Boss Ma and Zhu the Second awakened as Transcendents, and they didn't treat us ordinary people like human beings at all!"

"Those of us who didn't awaken became their private property. Being beaten, scolded, and ordered around at will was a daily occurrence, and if they were slightly displeased, they would kick and punch us! They even specially set up a 'Comfort Vehicle,' locking all the women they captured inside to be wantonly abused and tortured!"

At this point, Zhang Daqiang clenched his fists so tightly that his nails dug deep into his flesh, drawing blood. Tears mixed with the dust on his face as they fell, his voice filled with desperate pain.

"My wife, my wife is also locked in that vehicle! Now, her eyes are unfocused and vacant; she's no different from a living corpse! Every time I sneak a look at her, my heart aches as if it's being sliced by a knife!"

"When we were in Shancheng, someone couldn't stand it anymore and reported their evil deeds to another convoy. As a result, Boss Ma used his Prophet Sequence to escape with his people, and he even caught the person who reported them and tortured them to death in a brutal, extreme manner!"

"I hate them! But I'm just an ordinary person with no power or ability; resisting is a dead end! I watch my wife suffering, wishing she were dead, and I just can't take it anymore! I saw that your convoy has many Transcendents and your strength is far greater than theirs. I beg you, please, please save us!"

Zhou Che, Captain Liu Ruyan, and the others nearby, including Lin Wan and Luo Xi, listened to these words, their expressions instantly darkening, and a bone-chilling coldness radiated from them.

The apocalypse was cruel, and human life was as worthless as grass. They had seen too many displaced survivors who died miserably in the mouths of Anomalies. But this was the first time they had encountered something like The Circus, which had completely abandoned its humanity and treated people as playthings to be wantonly tortured and trampled upon.

Zhou Che, on the contrary, smiled, a cold glint in his expression, and the last shred of hesitation in his heart instantly vanished. He had been pondering how to find a suitable reason to take action against The Circus, fearing a reputation for being bloodthirsty and looting supplies, especially since they had always appeared polite on the surface. Now, however, these animals had handed him the evidence of their crimes themselves. Wasn't this the perfect reason to openly deal with them?

He didn't claim to be a saint, but he couldn't stand such beastly behavior. Since he had run into it, there was no reason to stand by and watch.

However, Zhou Che did not act rashly. He knew very well that to win, one must know oneself and the enemy. Until now, they hadn't figured out the specific levels or true combat strength of The Circus's Transcendents; engaging them head-on rashly would easily lead to a major loss. Either wait for the right moment, or... launch a surprise attack at night and catch them off guard!

Zhou Che rubbed his chin, secretly pondering that a sneak attack didn't exactly sound like something an honorable person would do. But thinking of the women in the 'Comfort Vehicle' who had been tortured beyond recognition, and thinking of Zhang Daqiang's despair, he immediately found a justification that put his mind at ease. When dealing with these inhumane animals, there was no need to talk about any code of honor! The means didn't matter; after all, he was doing a righteous thing!

Having realized this, Zhou Che completely let go of his reservations and began to secretly plan the night raid, waiting only for the dead of night to act and wipe out this scum.

...But he never expected that the other side's viciousness and ruthlessness would far exceed his expectations, and that they would move even faster than him!

The night deepened, and a scarlet blood moon climbed into the night sky, shrouding the entire campsite in an eerie dark red. The wind swept across the ground, carrying a bone-chilling cold, and everything around was deathly silent. Neither of the two convoys was truly asleep; each harbored their own ulterior motives, and undercurrents were surging.

Inside The Circus's jeep, Boss Ma sat cross-legged. After struggling for most of the day, the exhausted power of his Prophet Sequence had finally recovered a sliver of meager strength. His eyes were sinister, and a greedy, lecherous smile curled the corners of his lips. He immediately channeled his remaining Sequence power to begin foretelling the outcome of tonight's surprise attack.

As the Sequence power slowly surged, a clear image instantly appeared in Boss Ma's mind. He had personally taken down Zhou Che and captured the four stunning beauties—Captain Liu Ruyan, Lin Wan, Ruan Xiaoxiao, and Luo Xi—all tied up in his hands. The Convoy's supplies and strange objects all belonged to him; he was infinitely glorious and extremely smug!

The image vanished in an instant, and the power of the Prophet Sequence was completely exhausted. Boss Ma opened his eyes abruptly, his gaze filled with irrepressible ecstasy, trembling with excitement. Seeing this image, Boss Ma knew that this operation would succeed. The prophecy showed he would win a complete victory, without any surprises!

He shot a sinister look at the few Transcendents in the vehicle, and everyone instantly understood. They rubbed their hands together, their eyes filled with lechery and greed, clenching their fists. They began to quietly prepare for the sneak attack, eager to rush up immediately and seize the Dawn Convoy's supplies and women.

Boss Ma was vicious in his methods and calculated everything flawlessly. Zhou Che's RV, where the most Transcendents were gathered, was a tough nut to crack and absolutely could not be the first target.