69: Chapter 69 The Great Escape of the Survivors

The temperature continued to drop.

Meteorological monitoring equipment kept issuing higher-level warnings.

"Turn off the machine. The noise is giving me a headache."

Qi Yin looked at the snow falling heavier and heavier outside the window, as well as the snowdrifts that had long since surpassed waist-height, and took a deep breath.

And this was only the result of them clearing it out from time to time.

You don't even need a detector; the temperature outside is definitely extremely low.

"Sister Yin, time to eat!" Jiang Yao was in high spirits.

Shaking the complicated emotions out of her head, Qi Yin walked quickly toward the dining table.

Whoa, today's lunch was her favorite Chongqing-style hot pot.

The spicy and refreshing hot pot, paired with the sesame sauce bowl that is a must-have for wide vermicelli lovers, was simply heavenly.

"Ah! That's so satisfying!"

Lu Jinwen couldn't understand how Qi Yin, a southerner, preferred northern-style dipping sauces.

"Nonsense, mine is the most delicious one."

Taking a deep sniff of her sesame oil and chili dipping bowl, she declared that this was the standard for hot pot.

The others laughed while watching them bicker, wearing short sleeves and swishing their favorite ingredients in the pot.

Unlike the steaming heat inside the shelter, the power of the cold wave outside had reached an unprecedented peak.

The temperature, like an elevator out of control, had dropped to a terrifying minus eighty degrees, though it had finally shown signs of stabilizing.

This world had completely turned into a giant, icy coffin.

Their place was brightly lit, while the city had long since lost all water and electricity, leaving behind nothing but cold, concrete blocks.

Without electrical maintenance, the former high-rise buildings had no warmth at all, making them even more terrifying than ice cellars.

Since it was still summer before the Apocalypse, most people were completely unprepared for the arrival of the extreme cold.

Thin clothing and summer quilts were like cardboard in the face of such low temperatures.

Every bite of food had to be carefully rationed.

Lacking clothing and food, with zombies pounding on the doors.

The survivors complained endlessly; how was this any different from living in a living hell?

Chen Quan had been sighing ever since they started eating.

"Uncle Chen, what's wrong?" Lu Jinwen asked.

Qi Yin didn't speak. Chen Quan had been standing on the observation tower all morning, so she could probably guess some of it.

Chen Quan lowered his eyes, his gaze filled with compassion.

"I just saw several men pushing their own underage daughters out to be traded just for a bite to eat. Tell me, is this something a father should do?"

Everyone looked at Qi Yin and fell silent.

Qi Yin stuffed a large mouthful of fatty beef into her mouth, chewed slowly, and didn't stop until she had swallowed it all.

She wiped her mouth and said, "In the Apocalypse, the biggest taboo is being a saint. Respect others' fates, and protect your own safety."

She wasn't a goddess; could she manage one person, or a whole group?

Besides, there are too many similar things happening. If you can't stand to look at this, what about the cannibalism that comes later?

The challenge of survival always exposes the ugliest side of human nature.

And strength is the only law.

The team members lowered their heads. They knew that Qi Yin was protecting them.

Sensing that the atmosphere was off, Lu Yanxiu quickly changed the subject.

"I heard that some people have realized they need to band together for warmth. The value of Ability Users is being infinitely magnified by those survivors. Everyone is spontaneously forming survivor squads with an Ability User as the leader, dividing the work to find food and resources."

"For now, this is indeed a good way to survive." Qi Yin expressed her deep agreement with this.

This also means that people have given up their fantasies and started facing reality.

Banding together is a wise choice in the short term.

But there is no gain without effort; you have to let the people in the team see your value.

Either you have the ability to find food and resources.

Or you can provide a source of fire.

Or you can provide fresh water.

Furthermore, you must be able to fight.

Never imagine that anyone will protect a useless flower that relies on others.

Such people will sooner or later become cannon fodder.

Lu Jinwen rubbed her full little belly, let out a burp, and took over the conversation.

"Look, this is the footage captured by the drone we sent out."

Qi Yin took a closer look and was shocked by the clarity of the footage.

"Ordinary drones can't capture such clear video, right?"

Jiang Yao proudly lifted his head: "That's right, this one has been modified by me."

Hearing this, Qi Yin understood. Jiang Yao's Supernatural Ability was indeed suitable for doing these things.

In the footage, many survivors had realized that the city was too densely packed with zombies, and there were no useful resources left. If they stayed any longer, the cold would take their lives directly.

Therefore, they put on everything they could wear, carried the food they had scavenged, and moved in small squads, inching their way toward the remote suburbs and deep mountains.

Along the way, they encountered many zombies, with the Ability Users responsible for covering the rear, leading the team as they moved forward in a sorry state.

In their view, perhaps the situation there would be much better, and maybe they could find some wild fruits or game.

Moreover, the terrain would be higher, so even if a flood struck again later, they would have a chance to react.

However, this was also a point of concern for Lu Jinwen and the others.

"I see that part of the direction they are moving in is toward us."

Qi Yin waved her hand: "As long as they don't provoke us, we don't need to worry about them."

If we take action now, we can't leave humanity with absolutely no way to survive.

She had always upheld the principle of not offending others unless they offended her.

In this man-eating Apocalypse, that was already kind enough.

As she spoke, she looked at everyone and emphasized again: "But don't get soft-hearted and think about saving everyone you can. Don't underestimate human nature."

"Don't worry, we know what we're doing."

Having received their assurance, Qi Yin didn't say anything more.

She knew they were people who had a sense of propriety; after all, you shouldn't use people you don't trust.

A wave of exodus from the city to the countryside formed spontaneously.

The once bustling metropolis gradually became a ghost town.

Meanwhile, Lu Yingman, whom Qi Yin thought had long since died, was thrown by a man in black in front of a mansion that looked magnificent.

When she woke up, Lu Yingman realized that this seemed to be the ancestral home of her daughter-in-law, Wang Hui.

The weakness of her body made it impossible for her to lift her head, but her desire to survive made her use all her strength to crawl up.

Lu Yingman pounded on the cold iron gate with all her might, her voice hoarse and weak.

"Xiao Hui... Xiao Hui, open the door, save me, I'm dying."

Inside the door, because of the arrival of the Apocalypse and not wanting to spend money to hire people, all the servants of the Wang family had run away, leaving only Wang Hui and her father, Wang Jianhua.

Hearing the knocking, the two of them hurriedly hid the porridge that was heating on the stove.

Wang Jianhua grabbed a baseball bat and looked out vigilantly through the peephole.

What met his eyes was Lu Yingman, dressed in rags, her face frozen purple.

But, having been a wealthy lady for many years, her face was still quite resilient.

"Lu Yingman? Why is she here?"

Wang Jianhua whispered to his daughter: "It looks like she was beaten."

Upon hearing this, Wang Hui immediately frowned, her expression of disgust undisguised.

"What is she here for? She must be at the end of her rope. Dad, don't open the door. She's nothing but trouble now."

Wang Jianhua felt an itch in his heart and hesitated a bit.

"But, looking at her like this, if we don't open the door, she's really going to die out there."