Chapter 258 Old Ji, hurry up, run...
On He Zhuo's side, he, Gu Wan, and Ji Xian were crawling out of the pile of dirt, covered in dust.
When the earthquake struck, He Zhuo and Ji Xian were the closest to each other.
Seeing that Gu Wan was about to fall into the crack in the ground, the two jumped down after her and managed to catch her in time...
The three were saved from being buried alive only thanks to the two layers of earthen shields provided by He Zhuo and Ji Xian...
Once he was sure the tremors had completely stopped, He Zhuo put away his earthen shield and used Ji Xian's earthen shield to support his head and feet.
He Zhuo then carefully manipulated the soil above his head, causing it to roll and move away in all directions.
Fortunately, two of the three are earth-type ability users.
He Zhuo and Ji Xian worked together to shape the soil on the side into steps for climbing, and they managed to climb out.
The three of them collapsed to the ground, their backpacks carelessly tossed aside, gasping for breath and coughing violently—choked by the dust in the air.
Surrounded by complete darkness, He Zhuo abruptly stood up and called out in a hoarse voice, "Brother Yan!"
"Little Sister—"
Gu Wan also stood up: "Nan Nan!"
"elder brother--"
Their shouts echoed through the ruins.
Ji Xian took out the walkie-talkie and tried it, but only heard a harsh electrical noise.
He then pulled out He Zhuo and Gu Wan's walkie-talkie, but the result was the same.
"Stop shouting." He took water out of their backpacks and gave some to the two men: "Warm your throats first. The walkie-talkies are useless; let's look for them as we walk towards the city exit."
He Zhuo took a sip of water, his voice strained: "Old Ji, Wanwan... do you think everyone's still alive?"
Gu Wan: "The three of us weaklings survived, so they'll definitely be fine."
She clutched the water bottle in her hand and nodded: "That's right, everything will be alright... definitely!"
"Yes, yes, yes!" He Zhuo suddenly jumped up: "We need to find A Ye and Shi Xu quickly! One has short legs and can't run fast, and the other is a bit dim-witted..."
He hurriedly slung his bag over his shoulder: "Hurry, hurry! What if they're alone..."
Gu Wan and Ji Xian roared simultaneously, "Shut your jinxed mouth!"
He Zhuo immediately made a zipping motion to seal his mouth, his eyes as resolute as if he were joining the Party, and nodded: "Yes, they're definitely safe and sound..."
......
When the earthquake struck, Gu Qi was heading towards Gu Wan's location.
Just as he ran out, the ground beneath his feet suddenly cracked open, and at the critical moment, Chi Yi's vines suddenly wrapped around his waist.
When they were pulled up, only Chi Yi and Luo Xingyou were left with them.
When the houses by the roadside collapsed toward them, Luo Xingyou reacted the fastest, instantly deploying a golden shield that firmly covered the three of them.
The air inside the shield grew increasingly stuffy and difficult to breathe.
Only after the tremors finally stopped did Luo Xingyou remove the golden shields on both sides.
The three of them gasped for breath, the fresh air filling their lungs.
Chi Yi's vines, like flexible tentacles, took more than ten minutes to gradually remove the pile of pebbles and clods of earth above.
Luo Xingyou used her metal-based superpower to conjure a simple metal ladder. Chi Yi nimbly flipped up it, with Luo Xingyou in the middle and Gu Qi bringing up the rear.
After the three climbed onto the road, the surroundings were deathly silent, as if the only sound in the world was their breathing.
Luo Xingyou rubbed her sore nose: "The walkie-talkie is broken... I can't contact Nan Nan and the others at all..."
Gu Qi: "Nan Nan and the others are more clever than us, they'll definitely be fine. Let's head straight that way, even if we can't find them along the way, we'll always meet up at the destination..."
Chi nodded: "Even if we split up, everyone has food and water in their backpacks, so we shouldn't have any problems making it to the city gate to meet up."
Luo Xingyou: "I wonder if Aye is with Nannan. He only has some candy in his small satchel..."
Gu Qi: "A-Ye can protect himself. Besides, he was with Nan-Nan during the earthquake, so he'll be fine."
Luo Xingyou walked around, looking around, and every now and then she would call out, "Aye, Nannan..."
......
The earthquake split Lu Nange's group into three teams, and everyone was heading towards the pre-arranged eastern exit from the city.
Along the way, survivors kept crawling out of the ruins.
In the darkness, only the searchlights with their curled branches provided the sole source of light.
These survivors spontaneously followed behind Lu Nange and the others, forming a silent procession as they moved slowly forward.
Lu Nange and her group walked and stopped frequently. Whenever a survivor crawled out of the ruins, they would stop to check, but they never saw Gu Qi and the others.
Because of the previous earthquake, even when drinking water or eating, Lu Xici would hold Lu Beiye tightly, as if afraid that her younger brother would disappear if she let go.
Lu Beiye leaned on his brother's shoulder, munching on bread while glancing at the survivors following behind him.
"Nan Nan." Shen Mianmian suddenly stopped and took a bite of her bread. "I haven't run into Shen Yanyi or Uncle Hao along the way. I'm not going with you."
She looked towards the other side of the city: "The earthquake was so severe, the base must have been damaged too... I need to go find my parents."
Lu Nange nodded: "Be careful. We'll head to the eastern exit of the city. If..." She paused, "You can come find us."
Chen Mianmian wrapped herself tightly in the windbreaker that Lu Nange had given her—the hem of which reached her knees, making her look exceptionally petite.
She waved, turned, and disappeared into the darkness: "Take care."
......
He Zhuo and his two companions groped their way forward in the darkness. Whenever they heard a sound from the ground, they had to stop and check—they would only continue if it was a survivor, and deal with the zombies immediately if it was one.
After walking for more than two hours, the three of them were so hungry that their stomachs were practically sticking to their backs, so they found a relatively safe corner to rest.
He Zhuo munched on a compressed biscuit, sighing, "Without Mei Bao, what's the difference between us and refugees fleeing famine?"
Gu Wan took a sip of water and nodded in agreement: "Without Nan Nan, we don't even know if we'd have enough to eat on our way north..."
Ji Xian...
He Zhuo chewed on the biscuit, feeling increasingly heartbroken and sorrowful with each bite...
Why eat compressed biscuits?
Is it because they are poor?
Is it because there are no supplies?
No...it's not that—it's because Meibao isn't around!
Ji Xian: "Although you are right, but..."
"Shut up!" The two men shook their fingers and said in unison.
Ji Xian: "I mean... if we walked faster, we might be able to see Nan sooner..."
Before he could finish speaking, two figures darted past him—He Zhuo and Gu Wan had already disappeared into the distance.
"Old Ji, what are you daydreaming about!" He Zhuo shouted, turning around. "Hurry up! Run!"
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