Su Yao didn't dare to joke after all, so the group set off smoothly again the next day.
Before setting off, Banxia glanced at the thermometer hanging outside the tent; it was minus thirty degrees Celsius.
Perhaps due to the increasingly harsh weather, when they passed through the city, some survivors, after inquiring about their destination, spontaneously followed them. The group then grew larger and larger, forming a long convoy of more than ten vehicles.
At noon, Zhao Xuan parked the car and prepared to eat and rest.
"It's so cold," Su Xiao rubbed her hands together. "I want something hot to eat."
Banxia released the tent she had set up and casually said, "Let's have stew then. I have several big pots of braised pork with potatoes and stewed chicken with mushrooms."
Daju cleverly slipped into the tent and brought out a table and chairs. Banxia and Zhao Xuan then set the dishes on the table.
They had only been eating for less than five minutes when they heard gasps and swallowing sounds coming from outside the tent.
The group listened without changing their expressions, because this wasn't the first time.
They had no shortage of food and were able to protect themselves, so when they ate, they did not choose to eat cold steamed buns or flatbreads like other survivors in order to fit in. Instead, they ate whatever they wanted, just like before.
At first, some people tried to rob them or pretend to be pitiful to get food from them, but Banxia and the others didn't even have to lift a finger. Yinzi, Daju, and Lihua were enough to give them a good beating.
Therefore, the survivors following behind knew that these few were not to be trifled with, and no one dared to covet the food in their hands anymore.
So, some people thought, if we can't eat the food, we can at least enjoy the aroma, right?
Once the first person tried to sample the aroma, a second and a third quickly followed. Before long, whenever it was mealtime, almost all the survivors would spontaneously gather around the tent where Banxia and the others were eating, imagining themselves enjoying a feast.
Banxia and her companions tried to chase the group away several times, but the group would spontaneously reappear after being driven away one meal. They weren't about to kill someone over such a trivial matter, so they could only helplessly let it go.
After lunch, the group took out a map and planned their route for the afternoon.
Banxia pointed to a light blue pattern on the map and said, "Let's take a shortcut from here; it'll save at least two hours."
She was pointing to a freshwater lake, which was now covered with a thick layer of ice due to the cold weather, making it easy for vehicles to pass through.
*
"Snap—"
A faint cracking sound was heard. Nanxing honked the horn three times to signal the cars following behind to stop, and at the same time stepped on the brakes: "There's something wrong with the ice!"
"Snap!!!"
As soon as he finished speaking, a huge cracking sound rang out, and the ice surface shattered into many small pieces like a spider web. Several cars were unable to avoid it and fell into the icy water.
Banxia and her companions weren't so lucky either. Although they didn't fall directly into the icy water, both front wheels of the car were hanging in the air. Once they lost their balance, it was only a matter of time before they plunged into the water.
Nanxing took a deep breath: "Lihua, get out of the car and freeze the water in front of us."
Pear Blossom obediently jumped off the carriage, freezing the water within a two-meter radius of the carriage into ice blocks. To be on the safe side, Half Summer released gold from her spatial dimension to reinforce the area.
Su Yao wiped the cold sweat from his forehead: "How could the ice suddenly crack?"
“There’s something in the lake,” Banxia said, unbuckling her seatbelt. “Get out of the car quickly.”
As soon as the group got out of the car, huge waves suddenly appeared on the water.
"Splash!"
A huge, smooth, oval-shaped body emerged from the water, with two bulging compound eyes on its head and dozens of tentacles with suckers writhing and twisting like a giant python beneath it.
Mutant octopus!
"yue~"
Everyone gagged simultaneously.
Perhaps their disdainful voices were too obvious, for the mutated octopus suddenly turned its head to look over, its two compound eyes flashing with a bloody, cold light.
Banxia silently put the car into her spatial storage, then hid behind Nanxing, not out of fear, but because she was disgusted by the ugly tentacles.
Her dodge enraged the mutated octopus, which charged at them, brandishing its tentacles.
Silver suddenly grew larger and flew into the air to fight. Banxia sighed in disgust and released the mutated eagle couple and the five mutated swans out of her space: "I'll go first."
After saying that, he leaped onto the back of the mutated male eagle and shouted, "Charge!"
The mutated octopus narrowed its eyes, raised its tentacles high, and countless palm-sized octopuses spewed out from its suckers, shooting into the air like bullets.
The little octopus was covered in a slightly greenish mucus, which was highly poisonous and would corrode anyone who touched it. Banxia patted the mutated eagle lightly: "Fly higher."
At the same time, he pulled out a rocket launcher from his spatial storage and fired a shot at the mutated octopus's eye.
The mutated octopus seemed to have anticipated this, and suddenly sank into the water. The cannonball missed its target and exploded in the water, creating huge waves.
As the water moved, the suspended ice blocks also began to move, and the survivors lying on the ice surface panicked, with some unable to help but shout for help.
The mutated octopus was quite intelligent; knowing that the people in the air were not to be trifled with, it simply chose to prey on the weak. Its nimble tentacles dragged the screaming survivors into the water to feed, and the surface of the water quickly turned red.
The remaining people dared not utter a sound, and looked up at Nanxing and the others sitting on the bird's back with pleading expressions.
Nanxing and the others exchanged glances and directed the mutated white swans to approach the person who had called for help.
Seeing that the meat in its mouth was about to fly away, the mutated octopus, which had been starving for many days, became restless.
This time it learned its lesson and didn't surface. Instead, it exposed its tentacles above the water and launched a barrage of baby octopuses at anyone who dared to approach.
Fang Yunyun conjured lightning balls with both hands to attack the tentacles, but as soon as the lightning balls touched the slime on the tentacles, they disappeared with a "poof" sound, without causing any damage. Su Yao and the others' abilities also failed.
For a time, neither side could gain the upper hand, and the situation remained deadlocked.
"Nanxing," Banxia approached Nanxing, "you command, I'll fight."
"Hmm," Nanxing released his psychic abilities, and the scene on the water surface immediately appeared clearly in his mind, "Two o'clock, five o'clock..."
Banxia attacked in the direction he pointed, and violent explosions rang out continuously, quickly turning the water blue.
The mutated octopus screamed and suddenly shrank, escaping into the water beneath the ice. Su Yao and the others seized the opportunity to rescue the survivors and bring them ashore.
"Wife," Nanxing looked at Banxia, "shall we pursue her?"
Banxia jumped off the mutated eagle's back: "No need."
Mutant animals possess an extremely strong sense of revenge; as long as they have a breath left, they will find their enemies to the ends of the earth for retribution. Rather than relentlessly pursuing them, it's better to wait for them to come to you on their own.
As the two were talking, Su Yao and his companions, along with the survivors, started arguing for some unknown reason.
Banxia took the mutated eagle couple back into her spatial dimension, then took Nanxing's hand and went over to check on the situation.
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