Chapter 258 Obtaining Oil

The vehicle's gasoline reserves have been completely used up. Due to the possibility of various dangerous situations along the way, it may not be possible to stop at every gas station to refuel. Therefore, the vehicle has switched to energy-saving mode.

The carriage was dimly lit, making it difficult to even breathe.

Although it wasn't crowded with more than ten people in the truck, the air was quite stale.

Lin Xi recovered, overcame her physical discomfort, replenished her energy, and took medication. In the apocalypse, even the strongest will to survive is difficult to achieve without good physical fitness.

Xiang Xin risked his life to give her a chance to live; we cannot give up on her easily.

The journey was completely silent, with only two sounds:

The sounds of Yang Yicheng communicating with the communications officer, scouts, and driver in the front carriage, as well as Lin Xi asking about the price of the shirt.

After the dosage was increased again, Lu did not experience any further loss of control within two days, but the medication would only last a few more days.

After they left the base area, Yang Yicheng's communications officer received reliable intelligence from other bases, which reported that Lin Xi's last known location was a gas station near the checkpoint, and that several bases were now mobilizing manpower to "search and rescue" her.

However, the intentions of these teams are unclear. Even if they are conducting search and rescue operations under the guise of relevant departments, they may have other purposes.

The vehicle avoided open roads and cities, instead traveling along the mountains at night, using the woods for cover so that it could jump out and hide in the forest if pursued.

This road was difficult to travel on even before the apocalypse, and now it is even more neglected and in disrepair, making it very slow for vehicles to move forward.

Although Yang Yicheng's base is not officially recognized, his team is well-equipped and has advanced equipment. Whenever they are about to encounter a suspicious team, the communications officer can detect and avoid them in time.

After twice changing routes to avoid other vehicles, the fuel level warning came on again.

"There's only one gas station nearby, and there's a checkpoint for the Bright Base there. If we go any further, they'll discover us."

The Bright Base is located near the northwest, but at a low altitude with a suitable climate, and has developed several relatively prosperous cities. As far as Lu Wei knows, the Bright Base is about the same size as the Dawn Base, but the standard of living is not as high.

These are not what everyone is concerned about. The key issue is: "Although Bright Base is close to the Northwest Central Base, it did not participate in the war to eliminate the semi-infected from White Shield Base. This is certainly due to the distance, but it is impossible to judge Bright Base's stance."

After communicating with the liaison officer, Yang Yicheng went to the back of the car and said to everyone, "Lin Xi and Lu Wei cannot go to the checkpoint ahead, so as not to cause trouble again by being recognized by facial scanning. We will split up."

Lin Xi: "We only have one car."

How to split them up?

Yang Yicheng: "There is a small town 5 kilometers away from here. I will take people there to find usable vehicles to transport the oil back from the checkpoint."

Four years have passed since the apocalypse. Even if there are cars in the town, it's not always possible to find the keys. And even if you do find the keys, you can only use the vehicle if it has fuel and the engine can start smoothly.

During the search, they will also face zombie attacks and possible enemy forces.

Yang Yicheng's task is very difficult.

But he didn't complain or slack off. He assigned a few people to stay in the car to protect the rest and provide backup.

"This place is secluded and relatively safe. The scouts should remain vigilant at all times. In case of any emergencies, there's still enough fuel in the tank for you to travel for a while. We'll meet up later."

The people who came with the Iron Wolf Base were all elites, whose strength and courage surpassed that of the others. No one was afraid or complained, and they all did what Yang Yicheng instructed.

He swiftly led half of the team away.

Lin Xi had seen many people disappear without a chance to say goodbye along the way. She and Yang Yicheng were not friends, but the departure of these people made her feel lost.

She took out the medicine and approached Lu Wei, while another voice asked in unison, "What's the price of the shirt?"

Nine pounds and fifteen pence.

It was Li Shuyi asking along with her; Lin Xi glanced at her.

Li Shuyi: "...I couldn't hold back my words after not speaking for so long. I even started making jokes about the price of shirts. Ah...it's been so many years since the college entrance exam."

While receiving the vaccine, Lin Xi said, "'Haven't spoken in a long time'? How did you spend those years in the basement?"

Li Shuyi scratched her hair: "You have no idea how agonizing it was."

Lin Xi put away the medical equipment: "I know."

Li Shuyi didn't take her words seriously, only thinking to herself: Lin Xi and Lu Wei are like two taciturn people. They haven't spoken since Xiang Xin left. If they were locked in the apocalyptic basement, they could probably hold out for a long time.

What she didn't know was that although the original Lin Xi wasn't as talkative and cheerful as she and Xiang Xin, she was still a very lively person with inner monologues, and she would make sarcastic remarks and jokes.

Six hours passed, and it was already dawn when Yang Yicheng still hadn't returned.

But it was time for Lu Wei to use the potion again, and Lin Xi asked him as usual, to which Lu Wei answered quickly.

This time, the few people Yang Yicheng left behind also joined the conversation.

"The listening comprehension demonstration used this question the year I took the college entrance exam."

"What a coincidence, me too."

They were quiet and had a low profile; Lin Xi didn't even remember their faces.

Looking around now, everyone is around thirty years old. Even if they are not in the same year, most of them have seen the same exam examples.

In peacetime, the college entrance examination is undoubtedly one of the most arduous stages in life.

However, four years have passed since the apocalypse, and those days, though difficult, were peaceful and tranquil, and now I cherish them all the more when I think back on them.

"We have news about Captain Yang!"

The reporter's voice pulled everyone out of their confused memories.

The communications officer continued, "Their vehicle brought oil reserves, but on the way back, they spent a long time trying to shake off the Bright Base's pursuit, which attracted zombies instead. We need to go and meet them."

No one had any objections.

Although rescuing companions from a horde of zombies is dangerous, the people inside the vehicle will not be able to escape their predicament without oil support.

Everyone here has extensive combat experience. This kind of mission is highly dangerous, but it's not impossible to complete.

Only the driver, Li Shuyi, and Lin Xi remained in the vehicle; everyone else was ready to disembark and assist in the oil rescue.

Lin Xi also wanted to go down, but she now knew the significance of her existence and could not take unnecessary risks.

Lu Wei was about to get off the bus again.

She recalled that when Lu Wei left the White Shield base, he also got out of the car to deal with some troubles. What seemed like an ordinary mission was suddenly infected by the virus.

She hesitated, but Lu Wei simply patted her shoulder and resolutely got out of the car.

The driver skillfully maneuvered the vehicle, providing support alongside several dilapidated cars. The scene was chaotic at times, with some fighting hardened zombies, others passing containers of oil, and still others being attacked and quickly shooting themselves.

After a tense standoff lasting more than ten minutes, everyone began to retreat back to the truck.

With such a large number of zombies, even the best kung fu skills may not be enough to protect oneself; anyone could be the next infected.

But Lin Xi never imagined that Yang Yicheng would also be affected.

The last barrel of oil was loaded onto a moving truck, and Yang Yicheng was left behind to cover the rear due to his combat position.

The familiar scene reappeared before Lin Xi's eyes—

The person was already near the car door, but the zombie's claws drew an arc in the air.

Yang Yicheng managed to dodge once, but he couldn't dodge a second attack from several zombies.

Lin Xi held the axe, knowing that this blow would not cut through the hardened zombie's limbs and would be useless against the zombie.

"Captain Yang!" The teammate next to Yang Yicheng didn't know how to help him.

"laugh--"

Blood was revealed the moment the clothes were torn, and then Lin Xi's axe fell heavily down.

"—!"

The gun hit the ground with a thud, and an arm also fell to the ground along with it.

Blood splattered everywhere, but without hesitation, everyone pulled Yang Yicheng up and closed the car door.

"Clang!" The blood-stained axe fell to the ground.

The moment the doors closed, the vehicle sped off, while chaos erupted inside the carriage.

Fresh blood spurted out.

Lin Xi quickly took off her coat and tried to press the wound, but then remembered that she had been with Lu Wei for the past few days and that there might be virus on her clothes.

The others also thought of this, and some people went to support Yang Yicheng, but no one dared to treat his wounds.

The moment he was grabbed by the zombie, Lin Xi's axe fell. Many people didn't know whether Yang Yicheng was infected with the virus or not.

Lin Xi quickly took out clean clothes from the clothing storage bag and applied them to the wound.

Yang Yicheng let out a heavy gasp, gritting his teeth to forcefully suppress a cry of pain, but his body was trembling uncontrollably from the pain. The pain intensified when his clothes were pressed against the severed part of his arm, and he instinctively struggled to get away, but Lin Xi could barely hold him down.

The blood quickly soaked through the clothes.

Lin Xi has such a scene deep in her memory, but at that time she was the one who was injured, not to the extent that Yang Yicheng was injured.

The incident happened suddenly. Several zombies crowded around Yang Yicheng, leaving him no room to escape. Lin Xi instinctively chose to cut off the hand that was about to be scratched and infected.

There was no time to think about the consequences, nor time to ask for other people's opinions.

A severed hand is different from a bullet wound to the arm; there are many more steps involved in the treatment.

Although the people who came back with Yang Yicheng held down Yang Yicheng's other healthy side, they dared not go forward to help Lin Xi press the wound, because they had just fought against the zombie horde, and each of them carried the virus to some extent.

Lu Wei couldn't go forward either, as he was a virus carrier himself.

Lin Xi looked at Li Shuyi, who was staring in disbelief, and said, "Come and help!"

Li Shuyi suddenly snapped back to reality, glanced at Lin Xi whose face was covered in sweat and whose hands were stained with blood, and quickly replied: "How can I help!"

Lin Xi: "Bring the first-aid kit and a clean set of clothes. Please hold him down for me."

Hearing the urgent voice, Li Shuyi immediately carried out Lin Xi's instructions.

The moment she changed Lin Xi's clothes, the garment she was holding onto Yang Yicheng's arm almost fell off. Her strength was no match for Lin Xi's, and she almost made Yang Yicheng subconsciously break free of the restraint. It took all her strength to hold down a person who was subconsciously struggling due to severe pain.

Although Lin Xi's area of ​​expertise is pathogeny, her medical foundation is better than average, and she is able to perform basic trauma care.

After a long and busy wait, Yang Yicheng's wound was finally treated, using up most of the bandage reserves.

Li Shuyi was also exhausted and covered in sweat. She let out a sigh of relief and sat down on the spot.

Yang Yicheng's lips were bloodless due to sudden blood loss, and his eyes were struggling to focus.

But the people from the Iron Wolf base still held Yang Yicheng down, preventing him from moving.

Lin Xi knew what they were thinking—

Yang Yicheng lost his hand because it was scratched by a zombie, but they couldn't see clearly whether Yang Yicheng was scratched first and then his hand was cut off, or whether his arm was cut off before it was scratched.

If it's the former, even a short period of time will result in viral infection.

Like most toxins, the zombie virus spreads through blood, but it spreads extremely quickly. Once blood is drawn, infection is inevitable, and even immediately cutting off the infected limb is useless.

Their Iron Wolf base has always adhered to the principle of efficient combat. Long ago, when the Iron Wolf team was first established, members would consciously or have their injured limbs cut off by their teammates when they were wounded in the process of fighting zombies. However, all of these people were later infected and turned into zombies.

Their Iron Wolf base values ​​strength and efficiency, and everyone agrees that if you get infected with the virus, you should commit suicide so as not to burden your teammates.

And now it is their captain, Yang Yicheng, who is injured.

The zombies outside are hardened zombies. If Yang Yicheng gets infected and turns into a hardened zombie, that's terrifying enough. If he's a special zombie who retains his fighting skills, it's hard to imagine how dangerous this elite soldier zombie would be.

One of them held Yang Yicheng's left hand firmly, swallowed hard, and asked, "Captain Yang, are you infected with the virus?"

Yang Yicheng was regaining consciousness from the excruciating pain when he suddenly heard this sentence, and he was also somewhat dazed. He saw the zombie's claws about to grab him, but the intense pain overwhelmed him, and he couldn't make out what was happening.

Another person said, "Didn't you say that if you get infected with the virus, you should just commit suicide?"

Yang Yicheng took a deep breath and gritted his teeth, saying, "I don't have hands."

One hand was severed, and the other was held down and unable to be freed.

The man who asked the question looked anxious; he seemed convinced that Yang Yicheng was infected with the virus. He touched his gun with his other hand, waiting for an opportunity to strike.

Seeing this, Lin Xi quickly took out a test strip from the medical kit compartment and performed it on Yang Yicheng, which temporarily showed a negative result.

She showed the test results to everyone.

But the man who was about to draw his gun had bloodshot eyes: "I don't believe it. He must have been infected before you cut off his hand! We can't let such a threat stay by our side!"

Lin Xi: "I have been researching zombie viruses for many years, and the test results have never been wrong."

After all, she had watched Lu Wei's test result gradually change from weakly positive to positive, indicating that the viral load in his body was increasing.

How could a test strip that can detect such minute differences be wrong!

The man still seemed uneasy: "What if..."

Lu Wei, who had been quiet to the side, suddenly spoke up: "There's no 'what if.' Even if there is, I can handle him."

He and Yang Yicheng were originally evenly matched in combat strength, but after Yang Yicheng developed hardened bones, he could no longer defeat him. Even though Yang Yicheng became a hardened zombie and happened to retain his fighting skills, he was still a hardened zombie with reduced combat strength due to the loss of an arm, which Lu was unable to resolve.

Yang Yicheng closed his eyes and didn't say anything.