Chapter 12: Wilderness

There were three maintenance workers on the bus, two men and one woman.

The passenger seat was Liu Xuan, a thin, pale-faced man. The girl in the back seat called herself Xiao Ting, and had a few freckles. There was also a man in overalls named Zhang Lele.

They haven't been able to utter a word since they got on the bus.

Qi He drove the car at lightning speed all the way to the base station.

Everything on the road, living and dead, was blurred into a mosaic.

The system was stunned by his speed: [...Are there no traffic rules in your original world?]

Qi He: "I also review racing games."

【……】

After he made a sharp turn and sent a zombie flying towards the windshield, there was a loud bang. The car was silent for a few seconds before a faint voice finally came from the passenger seat:

"Do you have to drive so fast?"

"It's going to rain heavily."

Qi He was steering with one hand and holding a gun with the other. "And every second we lose contact, the psychics outside the base are in danger."

No one spoke in the car.

Liu Xuan just silently tightened his seat belt, his face turning even paler.

The communication base station was located in the mountains, a six-hour drive from the base. Qi He's relentless driving reduced the journey to three hours. After about two hours, the car entered the forest.

At the same time, the rain fell.

Large tracts of mountain forest were covered in vegetation, towering trees with lush canopies. The road was almost entirely covered in mud and free-growing grass, entangled with the roots of various mutant plants.

Qi He turned on the windshield wipers without slowing down, and "bang bang" knocked down several vines that were blocking the road.

They finally reached the base station before the rain got heavier.

A white building comes into view.

Unlike modern base stations, the apocalypse featured technological innovation and rigorous security measures. A three-meter-high wall protected the central "tower" and the dozens-square-meter maintenance station.

Qi He parked the car at the door and three maintenance workers hurriedly got out and went in.

The roots entwined against the wall twisted and twitched, seemingly becoming more active in the increasing downpour. Qi He frowned and pointed his gun at the tree roots.

Click, the trigger is about to be pressed.

A loud scream suddenly came from behind: "Ah——"

Accompanied by a few chaotic muffled sounds.

He turned around, put away his gun and rushed in.

His gaze passed the door and turned into the corridor. He saw Liu Xuan and the others sitting on the ground. Xiao Ting ran towards him as if frightened. "Inside! Inside..."

in?

The next moment, a vine thicker than a tree trunk emerged from the main control room.

Bang! A bullet pierced through.

The vine twisted a few times and then retracted.

Qi He flew to catch up, and just as he turned to the door of the main control room, his movements paused for a second: he saw that the equipment and instruments inside were tightly entangled by several mutated vines, and thick roots broke out from the ground under the foundation.

…So this is how the base station was destroyed.

He fired several shots at the center of the root system, and the mutant plant coiled in the house seemed to have lost its vitality and stopped moving.

"It's okay." Qi He turned his head.

The three people behind him came over in shock.

Xiao Ting stared at the half-meter-wide hole and asked, "Is he dead?"

Qi He thought for two seconds, "There is still a glimmer of hope."

The three faces were suddenly horrified: Is this right?

Qi He also looked at the cave entrance without saying anything, but he was thinking about something else: the center of the base station was at least forty meters away from the surrounding vegetation, so why did these mutant plants get in here?

Like, knowing that this is important...

"Well, you guys first find a safe place—"

Boom!!!

A loud noise suddenly interrupted the conversation.

The whole ground seemed to tremble.

Qi He quickly glanced outside and changed the subject, "For example, behind me, don't leave."

After saying that, he rushed out first.

…

Heavy rain came pouring down.

Qi He rushed out the door and held his breath for a moment.

In the pouring rain, the roots around seemed to be growing wildly, waving in the sky, and all heading towards the base station.

He paused only for a moment before walking into the rain.

Looking around, the entire mountain range was shrouded in heavy rain. The downpour continued, and the sky seemed to be leaking. Qi He looked at it and sighed:

"The last time I saw such heavy rain was the day Yiping asked her father for money."

Little Genius's watch was soaked and bubbling: [Gulp... Don't talk about topics I don't understand.]

Qi He jumped onto the high wall.

He let the raindrops fall on him, the incessant downpour unstoppable. His white T-shirt quickly soaked through, clinging to his body. His tactical harness soaked up the water, damply clinging to his frame.

He smoothed his wet hair away and fired a few shots at the attacking vines: Bang, bang, bang!

Then he stopped, "Not enough firepower."

Then he put the gun back into his pocket and raised one hand.

Faint blue veins appeared on the bony back of his hand, and as raindrops fell, a water mark spread out among the frosty white.

The next moment, bang!

The vine, as thick as a bowl, was knocked down by a huge force.

Pah pah pah pah! A whole area of ​​roots was thrown to the ground, then lifted up, thrown down, and lifted up again.

One hand clenched into a fist in the air.

Qi He tied them into a knot again and hung them back on the tree trunk.

system:【……】

The three people behind him: "..."

They were clearly dealing with mutated plants, but they had the illusion that they were abusing the plants.

Qi He was knocking the mutant plants unconscious one by one and hanging them up.

The plants that had been growing and dividing wildly around them suddenly slowed down and stopped in mid-air. Then a layer of frost formed from the ground and spread upwards, freezing the entire forest.

Qi He stopped moving.

An off-road vehicle rushed out from the forest and stopped in front of the base station.

The car door opened.

Yan Chuanbai's figure broke through the rain and walked out.

Qi He was still standing on the wall.

The two looked at each other from above and below through the rain curtain. Yan Chuanbai's gaze fell on him for a moment, then turned to look at the "masterpieces" around him, and was subtle in silence for a few seconds.

At this moment, the car door behind me opened again.

Zhou Ziqian and two other A-level psychics also jumped out of the car.

Zhou Ziqian looked up and saw him, surprised: "Qi He!?"

Qi He jumped down and said, "You are here too."

"How's the base station?"

"It was destroyed by mutant plants." He turned to look at the three technicians behind him who looked relieved. "You came at the right time. We are short-handed."

Yan Chuanbai suddenly said to Zhou Ziqian, "You guys stay here."

"Ah? What about you, Brother Yan?"

"Communications were down, and we encountered heavy rain. I'm going to find the other teams and ensure their safety."

Yan Chuanbai said as he opened the driver's door.

Zhou Ziqian hurriedly, "--Are you alone?" He stopped talking and a pair of car keys flew into his hands. He looked up and saw Qi He opening the passenger door.

"I'm going too."

-

Bang! The car door slams shut.

Qi He sat in the passenger seat and fastened his seat belt.

The car door blocked out the noisy sound of rain outside. He had just put the seat belt on with a click when he saw Yan Chuanbai looking at him. Qi He looked up, water streaks winding down his forehead. He shook it off, and a few water droplets flew out. "What's wrong?"

Yan Chuanbai turned his head away and said, "It's okay."

After saying that, he turned the steering wheel and drove out.

After driving a little further, the voice came again: "There's a towel behind the backrest."

Qi He turned around and took it out.

A dry one. Before wiping it, he glanced at Yan Chuanbai and asked, "Are you going to use it?"

Yan Chuanbai's hair was shorter than his. He wiped it away, revealing a clear and focused look in his eyes. He looked straight ahead and said, "No need."

Qi He dried his hair.

Yan Chuanbai seemed to be very familiar with the routes in this area. Qi He had even asked for a list of the teams that would be going out before leaving the base. He took it out from his waterproof waist bag and just happened to mark the teams that had already returned to the base.

"I encountered these two on the way here and have already sent them back."

Upon hearing this, Qi He made a tick for them.

"On the way here?"

He turned his head and asked, "Did you receive the communication I sent you?"

Yan Chuanbai seemed to raise his eyebrows, then took out his communicator and took a look. There was still no signal. "No." He put it back. "When there was no signal, I guessed there was a problem with the base station, so I went straight over."

Two seconds later, he rested his knuckles on the steering wheel.

"You sent me a message? What did you send me?"

Qi He looked ahead and said softly, "I was really worried about you and was about to rush out of the base to find you."

“…” Yan Chuanbai.

The system was stunned by his eloquent words.

"Heh." Yan Chuanbai suddenly laughed, very gently, "Really? I really can't wait to go back to the base to take a look."

Qi He remained calm and said, "Don't worry, wait until the signal is restored, you'll be in trouble."

"I'll wait."

…

Zones II and III to the east of the base cover a large area.

Just because they haven’t encountered it doesn’t mean that everyone has gone back.

Moreover, the driving distance to and from the base is too far, and some teams will stay in the wild for two or three days.

"We'll search for two days and then return."

Qi He had no objection, "Okay."

In the end times, everything is unpredictable: extreme weather, alienated flora and fauna, this forest is full of unknown dangers.

They were heading towards Area III when they ran into two teams.

The two teams seemed to meet halfway.

The car lights flashed in the rain. When they met Qi He and his car, they all stopped and looked surprised: "Colonel Yan!"

Turning his gaze to see Qi He beside him, he was surprised again: "Mr. Qi is here too?"

Two S-class combat colleagues?

What's going on?

Yan Chuanbai didn't explain, "The signal is temporarily interrupted, return to base as soon as possible."

The two teams looked at each other.

In fact, they felt that it would be safer to follow two S-level psychics...

Yan Chuanbai said, "We still have to search in the wild for two days."

The two team leaders could only give up and say, "Yes."

Qi He suddenly said, "Send a team to the base station."

It’s not that he doesn’t trust Zhou Ziqian and the others, he’s just being cautious.

Yan Chuanbai paused, then said, "Send a team with enough strength to the base station."

The two teams glanced left and right. "Yes, Colonel."

The two parties parted ways. With the car window rolled up, Yan Chuanbai asked, "Are you always so cautious?"

Qi He sighed: I’m scared of being cheated in some games.

"I have paranoid delusions."

Yan Chuanbai understood, "That's why you always take the initiative."

System Translation: [He said you are a disaster.]

Qi He closed his eyes calmly, "How could that be? I never hurt anyone."

-

He closed his eyes for 20 minutes.

When I opened my eyes again, it was getting dark outside and the sound of rain had become quieter.

A voice drifted down beside him: "Did you sleep well?"

“…”

Qi He suddenly woke up and sat up straighter.

He had never thought that he would fall asleep in such a dangerous environment. This was irrational. Then he felt his body and found that it seemed to be a little hot.

Probably not hearing his response, Yan Chuanbai turned around and said, "Oh. You haven't woken up yet, you're still sleepwalking."

Qi He took a breath and said, "I have a fever."

“…”

The hoarse voice mixed with the crackling sound of rain outside, making it a little unclear. Yan Chuanbai's eyebrows seemed to jump, and he carefully considered it for a second, "...You have a fever again?"

Qi He raised his hand and touched his forehead. "Maybe the body feels warm because it feels your care."

The car braked in the middle of the road.

Yan Chuanbai turned on the interior lights in the car, turned sideways and looked at him carefully.

Qi He's hair was almost dry, and her T-shirt was still half-transparent and stuck to her body. Her eyes were bright, her lips were pale, and there was a slight blush on her cheeks.

Of course, it can also be understood as getting enough sleep.

Yan Chuanbai frowned for a moment and stretched out a hand.

His arm passed over the middle of the seat, casting a shadow against the warm light. He lightly touched Qi He's forehead with the back of his hand, then withdrew it and pronounced his verdict:

"You have a fever."

Qi He sighed softly, "It happened the same way last time when I got caught in the rain. Am I going to become stronger again?"

Yan Chuanbai praised, "No wonder your name is Qi He."

System supplement: [Qihe, a kind of apocalyptic plant. Although not a mutant plant, it is a perverted plant.]

Qi He tolerated its taking advantage of the situation.

The lights were turned off and the car started again.

Yan Chuanbai glanced at the sky that was gradually darkening in the rain and said, "Your condition is not good. Find a place to rest first."

…

This area is all mountain and forest.

After driving for a while, we finally found a place to stay.

Huge rocks were piled on the slope, with one piece sticking out, forming a moderate depression. The car was parked on the outside, providing ample shelter from the wind and rain.

Yan Chuanbai stopped the car and Qi He opened the door and got out.

Then, Yan Chuanbai went to the trunk to get some spare firewood. He lit the tinder and threw it into the pile of wood, and a fire suddenly ignited.

A light was reflected on the surrounding rocks.

Yan Chuanbai brushed off the dust on his hands and said lightly, "Sometimes, fire-type mutants are indeed convenient in the wild."

Qi He praised, "Your ice ability is also quite good."

"What's good about it?"

At least I can get a basin of water for a bath.

He swallowed his most honest and simple thoughts and looked at the heavy rain outside. "In theory, large-scale cooling can be used to prevent the water vapor in the air from reaching saturation, thereby reducing the growth of the rain."

Yan Chuanbai raised his eyelids and looked at him.

System alert: [I told you not to appear too smart! ]

Qi He: "I said it was theoretical, but I didn't give any practical solutions. How can it be so smart?"

【%&^#*<@……！】

He is standing in the right place at the moment.

As the cold wind blew, the wet T-shirt stuck to his body. With his rising body temperature, Qi He felt uncomfortable all over.

He sighed: "System, I can't stand it anymore."

system:【? 】

The fire swayed a little in the wind.

Yan Chuanbai was silently looking at Qi He's back when he suddenly turned around, raised his hand, and took off his half-wet clothes.

The author has something to say:

Yan Chuanbai: How to dodge from zero frame.

Qi He: What's wrong?