Several people took off their oxygen cylinders, and the heavy cylinders hit the snow, making several dents. Several people in the team immediately stepped out and carried the three cylinders to the off-road vehicle.

"Aren't you going to get on the bus? We plan to go to the midpoint station in the west and take a look. We can take you to the junction station along the way." The burly man in the lead shouted in the wind and snow.

The flying squirrel turned on the public radio: "Hasn't the junction station issued a notice? No vehicles are allowed to approach!"

"Yes, we'll take you to the edge of the range. The road behind will be difficult to drive on, so you'll have to rely on yourself." The strong man replied, "Since you helped find them, this time it's free!"

Hearing these two crucial words, the three of them immediately nodded in agreement. They placed their belongings on the roof and tied them up, then climbed into the SUV. The two exoskeleton warriors took up too much space, so they had to split up and each took a separate vehicle. The unlucky one who had to give up his position had to squeeze into the leader's vehicle with Jiang Ling.

"I should have walked!" Jiang Ling thought to herself. She was squeezed against the door of the car, which was seriously overloaded.

"We'll be there in a moment. I heard the border station is under militarized management. What on earth are you going there for?" A man in the back seat started a conversation to ease the awkward situation in the car.

"Me? Just passing by." Jiang Ling replied. But telling the truth directly blocked the topic, which made the atmosphere in the car even more weird.

"Okay, stop making a fuss. Hold on, we'll be there soon!" The leading strong man sitting in the co-pilot seat muttered in his protective suit.

The car quickly fell silent, its only sounds being the breathing of the crowd and the hum of the cold-weather gasoline engine. The view outside the window was unremarkable. It was already pitch black, and the film on the windows made it even harder to see. Only the occasional headlights from the cars behind allowed Jiang Ling to briefly see the snow on the road.

After a while, three SUVs passed through a gate-shaped building, somewhat resembling an old toll booth. The burly man in the lead immediately congratulated them, "Congratulations! You've reached the Green Zone!"

The people in the car immediately cheered, making strange noises like "oh," "ah," and "ho," as if it were some kind of ritual. One person even placed his right hand on his chest, making a strange gesture and praying, "May Hou Tu be with me."

Jiang Ling was somewhat surprised to hear this; she still remembered her dream from the previous night. After the apocalypse, superstition had spread faster than expected. Of course, it might also be that these seekers, with their heads hanging on their belts, truly needed some spiritual sustenance. So she asked the praying man, "When did you convert?"

"Huh?" The guy didn't seem to understand. After Jiang Ling repeated the question, he finally realized, "There are quite a few people like this in my station. I thought they were worshipping their ancestors, so I followed suit and did a few of their own. It turned out to be quite useful later. Those people thought I was a follower of a certain sect, and I received a lot of preferential treatment in certain areas."

"It's strange, isn't it? The interim government not only didn't stop it, but actually gave it some green lights." The leader also became interested. "They say this is the only way to develop. When the rules of the world collapse and the unknown outweighs the known, only faith can restore the passion for survival. However, they have also brought religious sects under their control. It is said that the religious sects' philosophy is just a different path to the same goal as theirs."

"They can preach freely now?" Jiang Ling was a little bit unbelievable. Isn't this a step backward in history?

"No, but people have the freedom to choose whether to believe in religion or not. They allocate an area for believers to use, and in return, the sect needs to make due contributions to the urban area, including paying taxes, joining the army, etc." he replied.

It seems this term is quite good, and they have some courage in their execution. Often, it's not about picking a good method from several, but rather choosing the least harmful one from several bad methods. Jiang Ling is relieved. It seems this society has successors, and there seems to be some hope for returning to the surface. (Let's discuss this rationally, please don't get involved in politics)

The convoy was moving very quickly, certainly much faster than walking. After about half an hour, the convoy stopped in an open field. It was already midnight, the dark clouds were still rolling in the sky, and the wind and snow were still blowing. The three of them got out of the car, packed their luggage, and prepared to embark on their journey again.

"We're here. You'll have to rely on yourselves to find the road ahead!" The leader of the search team returned the map with the location re-marked to the mole.

They were now in a field on the edge of the Green Zone—or rather, a wasteland. The fields had been overrun by stubborn weeds, perhaps even mutants. In a world where all life was mutating, this presented a crisis for some and an opportunity for others. The world's overall ecological niches hadn't changed much; it was simply a matter of shifting roles.

"These cold-resistant weeds are mutants of some kind of shrub. You know what a shrub is? It's a plant that likes to grow horizontally, with shallow roots and doesn't grow tall." The mole returned to his area of ​​expertise, treading through forty centimeters of snow as he explained, "After the mutation, they only like to grow vertically. Their woody roots can penetrate the rock layer and grow all the way to the warm underground river, but they still don't grow tall above ground. The Science Department was initially troubled by them because the growth characteristics of this mutant could even penetrate reinforced concrete. Later, we discovered they didn't like alkaline environments, so we spread some lime on the surface to drive them away."

My dear, there is more to this chapter. Please click on the next page to continue reading. It will be even more exciting later!