A bus was speeding above the ruins.

Passing through dilapidated buildings whose age could no longer be determined, the bus headed towards its destination relatively smoothly.

There was no light outside, and the darkness swallowed up all light, sound, and hope.

However, there was some appetizing sound in the bus.

Lu Ban simply processed the rat meat. Just as the biologist Mary said, this rat was an ordinary creature except that it liked to bump around everywhere, but it had well-developed muscles and a fat body.

Lu Ban used a knife to cut out the intact rat meat, washed off the blood foam, and cut it into thin, chewy slices.

Some oil was put into the pan, and as it heated up under the lick of the flame from the portable camping lantern, it gave off a lovely aroma.

Put the prepared spareribs into the pan and fry them until fragrant. The fatty part of the spareribs will suddenly become charred when it touches the hot oil, filling the car with a fragrance that attracts human's primitive impulses.

Lu Ban then added ginger and garlic and started stir-frying. The spices gave off a pungent smell when heated, which mixed with the aroma of the meat, enriching the flavor.

Finally, Lu Ban poured water into it, covering the ribs and forming a shallow pot of soup.

Add some tomatoes and scallions, sprinkle with salt and pepper, and cook for a while. The soup becomes rich and delicious, making it hard to suppress your appetite.

Lu Ban didn't know much about cooking, so he just cooked a pot of soup and prepared to use the rat meat for hot pot.

He picked up a piece of cut rat meat with chopsticks and put it in the pot to blanch it.

The rat meat, which was almost transparent to light, turned white in an instant and curled up. Lu Ban put the meat into his mouth and closed his eyes.

In the normal world, rat meat might have a fishy smell, taste sour, and easily become woody.

But the rats in the abandoned city are probably always in survival competition. They have such strong jumping ability and are larger in size, so their meat is firm, elastic and fat, just like high-quality beef. A rough estimate is that the protein content should be more than three times that of chicken.

"tasty!"

Lu Ban couldn't help but sigh.

The three people watching him couldn't help swallowing.

"Do you want to eat it? This rat is quite fat."

Seeing this, Lu Ban said.

"No need."

The biologist Mary returned to her seat.

"Give me some."

The left shoulder of the "Hound" was dented, and it seemed that it was broken, but he didn't care. Instead, he took out the cup he used to eat in the wild and filled it with a piece of pork ribs and a few slices of rat meat.

“Can I really eat it?”

A frightened stone is also hungry, and tension makes people tired, which also makes people hungry.

He simply caught the ribs that Lu Ban passed to him with his hands and started to eat them in big mouthfuls.

Only the fat driver, who had to drive, missed the chance to enjoy it. He could only take a deep breath and consider it a taste.

"How can we travel so late at night without eating something?"

Lu Ban chewed and swallowed the ribs that had been cooked to the point of falling off the bones, and suddenly thought of something.

"These rats are large in size and their meat is edible. Why don't we just build a high wall along their migration route so that the rats will crash into the wall and die, thus obtaining a lot of protein."

He was thinking out loud.

"Or use a net bag, which can ensure the integrity of the rat's body and allow some of the rats to pass through the mesh and continue to move forward, ensuring sustainable development."

“That’s right.”

The "Hound" ate with relish and nodded repeatedly.

“…”

Only Mary, a biologist standing nearby, seemed to be hesitant to speak.

After eating the meat, Lu Ban cooked potatoes, radishes, mushrooms and other vegetables, and drank a bowl of soup. He felt extremely satisfied both physically and mentally.

After turning off the camping light and putting the pot aside, Lu Ban leaned back in his chair, waiting for the journey to end.

He didn't think that things would end here, otherwise it would be too disrespectful of the most difficult task.

After helping "Hound" to treat its wounds, Lu Ban came to the co-pilot's seat.

He looked at the road ahead, illuminated by the high beams, stretching endlessly towards the empty horizon.

“Have you driven this road many times?”

Lu Ban spoke up.

"Um."

The driver responded, still focusing.

Lu Ban did not continue chatting and disturb the driver, but also looked forward.

These ruins are one after another, with very few open spaces. One can imagine what a magnificent civilized city this once was.

The bus journey took two hours.

After eating, Stone was overcome by fatigue and fell into a deep sleep.

The others remained spirited, especially Lu Ban.

If he didn't think it was weird to take out his phone at this time, he might have played some songs.

How can you drive at night without some background music?

Just as Lu Ban was sitting in the passenger seat, carefully studying the crowbar in his hand, he felt a sudden light in front of him.

Looking up, he saw a face pressed against the car window, cloudy eyes staring at him.

It was a face that was definitely not human.

The eyes are small, with black vertical pupils in yellow, and the head is pointed, like some kind of wild beast.

But behind the face were slender limbs and a body, like that of an ape, but pale and hairless. Its fingers were long and thin, ending in sharp claws, and they were tapping on the car window.

Crunch——

The driver was also frightened by the sudden accident. He turned the steering wheel, and the whole car lost balance, ran forward, fell down, and flipped over.

After one circle, the wheels touched the ground again, but the interior of the car was in a mess, the lights went out, and the surroundings fell into darkness.

Lu Ban gripped the crowbar tightly and looked up immediately.

But the monster in the front window of the car had disappeared.

It was not until this time that Lu Ban discovered that there was a faint light around him.

He looked out the window warily, and what he saw was not ruins, but a patch of vegetation.

These plants grew wildly and were as tall as a person. They emitted a faint green light, slightly illuminating the interior of the car.

The "Hound" stood up unsteadily, pulled up the awakened Stone, and checked Mary's condition again.

Mary was slumped over the backrest of the front seat, still recovering from the shock.

"Are you okay?"

Lu Ban turned around to ask the driver, only to find that the driver's seat was empty, the window was shattered, and the fat driver seemed to have been thrown out.

“What kind of plant is this?”

The Hound reached the front door, flung it open, and walked out.

Lu Ban followed behind him. The ground under his feet was very soft, like mud that had been soaked in water.

He glanced slightly behind the car and saw a little mark left by the giant steel object, which showed that it was not far from the road.

But at this time Lu Ban discovered that the marks left by the crushing seemed to be gradually closing.

These dark green plants sway in the wind as if they have life.

"incredible……"

Mary got out of the car and looked at the grass and trees that were taller than her and reached out to touch them.

She pushed aside a tuft.

Behind the fluorescent plants, a face suddenly appeared.