Originally, Chu Tian had planned to go with only Quan Xiaoyu. However, Bai Mingxi insisted on coming along this time, and Chu Tian could do nothing about it. He could only bring him with them as well.
Since the danger level of this mission was unknown, Li Nan was forcibly left behind at the base. With Li Nan staying behind, the two little ones naturally did not come either.
As usual, Xie Mingxuan had to be brought along. Otherwise, with Quan Xiaoyu absent, wouldn’t he turn the place upside down?
The four people got into the vehicle and quickly headed toward the site of the incident.
However, Bai Mingxi had been acting a little strangely these past few days. Normally, he was the most talkative person in the car, but today, he had made a rare departure from his usual behavior and remained silent throughout the journey.
Even someone as slow to notice things as Quan Xiaoyu had sensed that something was wrong with Bai Mingxi. Several times, he looked at Chu Tian questioningly, but Chu Tian merely shrugged each time, responding with an expression that said, I don’t understand either.
In fact, Chu Tian already had some vague suspicions. But since Xiao Bai was not saying anything, he would simply pretend not to know for the time being. He considered it a form of respect for his friend.
Soon, the vehicle arrived at the settlement where the survivors lived.
It was called a settlement rather than a base because of its size. They had simply tidied up a village that existed before the apocalypse, and a group of people who had come to know one another for various reasons had settled there. Some of them were ability users and possessed a certain capacity for self-defense. Others simply did not want to submit to a large base and be subjected to its restrictions.
They had given themselves the name Restart, and the person in charge here had the surname Zhao.
By this time, Xiao Ziran, who had already received a notification through Chu Tian’s telepathic ability, was waiting at the village entrance with Leader Zhao and his subordinates.
Chu Tian got out of the vehicle. Looking at the grave expression that remained on Xiao Ziran’s face, he knew that things were probably not looking good.
Sure enough, when Xiao Ziran saw Chu Tian, he did not even bother introducing the people on either side. He hurriedly left them with a single sentence.
“Let’s go inside and talk.”
Then he turned and walked away.
Chu Tian only had time to nod at Leader Zhao and the others in greeting before hurriedly following him.
Quan Xiaoyu also dragged Xie Mingxuan along and followed closely behind Chu Tian.
Only Bai Mingxi remained where he was for a moment, looking at Pei Qianxing, who was following behind Xiao Ziran. His expression was dark and unreadable, but in the end, he still followed the others.
After entering the meeting room, they saw a map hanging on the wall. It was clearly drawn by hand.
Without waiting for everyone to settle into their seats, Xiao Ziran stood in front of the map and began speaking.
“This is a new map drawn by the people from Restart, based on the pre-apocalypse map and the changes in the terrain after the apocalypse.”
He pointed to a location marked with a red five-pointed star on the map.
“This is where we are now. This village originally backed onto a mountain. After the apocalypse, the vegetation became even more luxuriant, and the mountain has practically turned into a primeval forest.”
“When we first chose to settle here, it was precisely because of the lush vegetation and the mountain behind us. We have quite a few people here who understand plants, so we wanted to use the vegetation to establish our defenses and obtain food from it. And in fact, things did turn out that way. We managed to settle here without any problems.”
The person who took over the explanation was Leader Zhao. His main purpose was to make sure the newcomers understood the current situation.
“However, a month ago, members of our teams who went out began disappearing one after another. At first, although we were distressed, we didn’t pay much attention to it. After all, people disappearing was commonplace in the apocalypse. But recently, even people who had been staying safely inside the village began to vanish. That was extremely strange and frightening.”
Leader Zhao continued describing the situation.
“That was why Zuo Li brought people here. This was where the first cases of missing persons occurred, and it was also the first place where people disappeared from within a residential settlement. And then…”
Xiao Ziran took over the explanation. His slender fingers pointed to a particular spot on the map.
“After entering this area, Zuo Li and his group disappeared without a trace.”
Chu Tian stared at the spot Xiao Ziran was pointing to.
“In the mountains?”
The mountains and forests of the apocalypse were extremely dangerous. No one understood this better than Chu Tian.
“They discovered some traces at the mountain entrance and decided to go in and investigate. We tried to persuade them otherwise because the forests are far too dangerous now. But Captain Zuo said that they would withdraw immediately if they noticed anything wrong. However, we waited for them at the mountain entrance for two days and still didn’t see them return.”
Leader Zhao gave a bitter smile as he spoke.
When Zuo Li first entered the mountains, Leader Zhao had been worried that something might happen, so he immediately sent someone to inform Dawning Base.
Xiao Ziran had only just received the news that Zuo Li had entered the forest when the follow-up report arrived, warning that they might have gone missing. After that came the news that they had disappeared completely.
“In other words, at least three days have passed between their disappearance and our arrival?”
Leader Zhao nodded silently.
Apart from feeling guilty for not having stopped Zuo Li at the time, he also felt somewhat apprehensive.
When Dawning Base had sent Zuo Li and an elite squad here, it had demonstrated how seriously they took the matter. Leader Zhao had been quite pleased about that.
But after Zuo Li and an entire elite squad disappeared, the situation began to take a different turn.
Xiao Ziran, the person directly in charge of Dawning Base, had rushed over as soon as he received the news. Leader Zhao’s heart had been trembling with anxiety.
The more seriously Dawning Base took this incident, the more it indicated just how serious the matter was. An entire elite squad, including its captain, had disappeared on his territory. How was he supposed to account for that?
At present, the two largest survivor bases in J Province were Tianze Base and Dawning Base. Watching one big shot after another arrive had left his heart trembling.
They were merely a small settlement that did not want to attach itself to a powerful faction. Although Dawning Base had been tolerant toward them and offered them assistance, maintaining a friendly relationship all along, Leader Zhao knew very well that if Xiao Ziran ever decided to eliminate them, it would take no more than an instant.
And that was not even considering the people who had arrived today. Just by looking at them, one could tell that they were extremely powerful and held high positions. Even the squad Zuo Li had brought would have been more than capable of wiping their entire settlement off the map.
However, neither Xiao Ziran nor Chu Tian was concerned about any of this. They were more focused on the safety of the missing people, so they did not notice Leader Zhao’s private worries at all.
“Then let’s go in too. We can’t afford to delay.”
Chu Tian made his decision. No matter how much they discussed it, they would have to go inside and take a look before they could understand what was happening.
Chu Tian had originally intended to bring only Xie Mingxuan and Quan Xiaoyu with him. After all, during the period when they had been searching for Chu Tian, Quan Xiaoyu had also gained a great deal of wilderness survival experience.
However, Xiao Ziran insisted that he had to go this time.
For one thing, he had gone too long without any real combat experience. For another, both he and Pei Qianxing possessed plant-type abilities. In a mountain forest filled with vegetation, they naturally had their own advantages.
Everyone had initially planned to leave Bai Mingxi behind at Restart to wait for news, but he absolutely refused. He was no longer making a fuss or shouting about it. He simply maintained his dark expression and stubbornly insisted on going.
Xiao Ziran found it difficult to say anything. Deep down, he had some idea of whom Bai Mingxi’s expression was directed at.
Chu Tian was also at a loss about what to do with Bai Mingxi in this state. He could only agree to bring him along as well. However, he secretly instructed Quan Xiaoyu to pay extra attention to Bai Mingxi’s safety throughout the journey.
Although Quan Xiaoyu did not know the reason, he had also noticed that Bai Mingxi was acting strangely. Naturally, he nodded in agreement and kept a constant eye on him.
Thus, Xiao Ziran left two members of the guard team who had accompanied him earlier behind. Then the group followed the route Zuo Li and the others had taken when they departed and entered the mountain forest.
Watching yet another group of people disappear into the distance, Leader Zhao felt as though not only his heart but even his liver was trembling.
If these people also went in and never came back, wouldn’t everyone in our entire settlement have to pay for it with their lives?
Inside the mountain forest.
The mountain cave should have been cold and damp, but now, illuminated by the firelight, it appeared bright and warm.
As wisps of cooking smoke drifted away, they carried waves of meaty fragrance with them.
Outside the cave, several pairs of eyes glimmering with fluorescent light flickered among the trees. Drawn by the smell of meat, they had gathered nearby. However, a terrifying aura emanated from inside the cave. Although they were hungry and salivating at the thought of food, they did not dare approach in the slightest.
Occasionally, the sounds of human voices drifted out from the cave. There was laughter and cheerful conversation, as though the people inside were celebrating something.
Following the tantalizing aroma of meat, one would find a large pot filled to the brim with simmering meat soup, its fragrance spreading in every direction.
Three or four people stood around the pot. Their eyes were fixed greedily and longingly on the food inside. They rapidly twitched their noses, greedily inhaling the delicious aroma wafting through the air.
At one point, one person finally could not resist any longer. He reached toward the scalding pot, quickly snatched out a piece of meat, stuffed it into his mouth, chewed, and swallowed it. His face was filled with pure enjoyment.
The man beside him immediately slapped him across the face. The sound was crisp and loud.
“Are you fucking starving to death? The leader hasn’t eaten yet, and you dare touch the food first?”
The man who had been struck fell to the ground. The attacker then stepped forward and kicked him twice more.
Yet the man who had been beaten showed no fear or resentment whatsoever. It was as though being beaten was only what he deserved. With a flattering smile plastered across his face, he said, “I… I was just… helping the leader check whether the meat tastes good today.”
The attacker snorted coldly but did not bother with him any further. He returned to staring at the pot of meat.
In a corner behind those people, beyond the reach of the firelight, several more people were crouching.
Among them, a young man was now clamping one hand tightly over his mouth while pressing the other hard against his stomach. His throat worked painfully as he struggled to swallow, and his entire body trembled.