Chapter 34: 34 Parking Lot
Four people followed Zhang Fu into the hall, where survivors now filled the space, each of them looking agitated.
"Make way, make way!"
As Zhang Fu made his way through the crowd, shouting loudly, he managed to lead Su Han to the front of the hall, where Cheng Zhenyong was peering out the window.
"Su Han, you're here, take a look at this fog."
Looking through the window, Su Han saw that the dense white fog had lightened considerably. Although it still enveloped the surroundings, it felt as if the thickness had shifted from a heavy quilt to a thin veil.
The visibility had greatly improved; from just one glance, he could vaguely make out the greenery of bushes in a residential area seven buildings away, faintly visible through the fog's veil.
The limit of visibility was around one hundred meters, where objects could be vaguely seen as shadows, becoming clearer as one drew closer.
'With this level of visibility, if we add the Lamp Tree, then the difficulty of moving will be much less, and it will also make my next Fusion easier.'
Fusion required materials, and only with the fog dissipating could he gather more materials conveniently.
"Su Han, I'm planning to search for supplies at Lihua Supermarket, what do you think?"
Cheng Zhenyong looked serious, his voice tinged with weariness, a sign of his well-considered decision. As time went on, the food some survivors had was gradually running out, so finding a solution was necessary.
Su Han pondered as well. Although he was preparing to move, it seemed like a good choice to stock up on supplies before moving.
"It's possible, but let's get this straight—outside is uncertain, and if it's dangerous, self-preservation is the top priority."
Su Han's words caused the expressions of many to shift subtly, but Cheng Zhenyong understood his meaning and nodded in agreement, "Of course, I'll make it clear to everyone."
"Then let's get ready and set off."
He went back to his room with Zhu Xiong and the others, leaving Cheng Zhenyong to organize whom would participate in the departure.
"Old Zhu, where are your two trucks parked?"
"Right near Lihua Supermarket, at Brother Niu's Auto Repair Shop. I left them there for welding railings. Both are there, so it's convenient to get to."
Zhu Xiong added, "Actually, it's not a loss for us to go there. I've dealt with the owner of Lihua before. Their supermarket should have a high-power generator capable of powering a supermarket, but it's a bit of a gas guzzler. Plus, Old Niu's place has a lot of steel, iron plates, and welding guns that can be used to modify trucks or villas."
He was well aware of what his friend had in stock. In normal times, those items were not considered precious, but at this juncture, they had become considerably more valuable.
Modifying trucks or villas was just one use; just by polishing and welding the metal properly, one could create real melee weapons.
'Generators and materials, these are pretty useful.'
Su Han felt a slight surprise and said, "Let's pick up your trucks first; then take everything we can. If your friend is also there, bring him along."
Zhu Xiong smiled bitterly, his voice dropping a few notches, "His shop is right by the road; chances are slim."
A roadside shop, combined with the heavy fog, would likely have little food inside, suggesting a grim situation.
Old Zhu's parents had passed away long ago, and although he had many friends, the current circumstances made it uncertain how many had survived, causing him an inner sense of distress.
Su Han patted his shoulder, saying, "First let's take care of our own, surviving is what matters most."
Zhu Xiong nodded gravely, while Gan Xinglei and Yan Meiyu stayed silent, their thoughts turning to their families, casting a somber mood.
The two had been working hard in South City, with their parents living even further away in Huiyuan City, making the journey back more of a wishful thinking than a possibility, so they said nothing.
The four of them didn't have much to prepare for; one was Gan Xinglei's own car, which they could retrieve with the car keys at hand, and the other was the trucks that Zhu Xiong had collected over the past two days.
This would require someone to point out where they were parked, otherwise they could only try to locate them with the keys, but the signal might not be that reliable.
An hour later, the people in the hall who wanted to go out exploring had registered.
When Su Han and his group stepped out, they found quite a number of people willing to join, mostly young, with a few in their fifties, a total of 10 people without Contracts.
"Su Han," Cheng Zhenyong exchanged a greeting with Su Han, who went straight to the point, "We have four people on our end, what about you?"
Ten ordinary people joined the operation together, and Su Han had no objection, but with so few people, there was no guarantee of safety.
"Four from the security team, plus Xia Ning and Guo Gang."
Ten versus ten, making a total of 20 people.
Su Han nodded and looked over the crowd, saying, "Those who can drive, who have a car, raise your hand."
With that, a man with a square face raised his hand: "I can, my sedan is parked in the open-air parking lot in front of the building."
"Me too, but mine is an SUV."
Immediately, three people raised their hands, two men and one woman. Su Han pointed them out directly: "Later, you will drive your own cars and take everyone, it'll count as a contribution."
The three were pleased with the arrangement and nodded right away: "We understand."
"Let's set off, head to the parking lot first."
The sound of "clicking" arose as Zhang Fu slowly opened the steel front door, outside of which lay the white fog. Though it had dispersed a bit, the hazy appearance still sent chills down one's spine, almost as if it was the gaping maw of some nameless monster.
Su Han was equally serious in his expression; he knew the fog might conceal more than just corpses like the monsters they had already encountered. He vividly remembered the traces of the monster that had been devouring corpses.
However, there was no avoiding the issue, whether it was to search for supplies or to relocate, they had to go through the door.
He held a crowbar in hand and then took out a fist-sized yellow crystal from his pocket, its light immediately causing the fog to recede slightly.
"What is this?"
Cheng Zhenyong's eyes shone with shock, recognizing the crystal in Su Han's hand as the fruit from the plant.
'I didn't expect him to truly find a use for that plant.'
He halted his impulse to ask questions, took a deep breath, and asked, "Su Han, do you want your Four-armed Corpse and my Angel Envoy to walk in the front?"
Cheng Zhenyong's Angel Envoy had also advanced to First-level Intermediate rank; its strength had improved, and he felt it was his responsibility to scout ahead.
"Yes, let's head to the parking lot first."
The Four-armed Corpse and Cheng Zhenyong's Angel Envoy took the lead, with Su Han and Cheng Zhenyong following behind, weapons in hand. Only after they stepped outside did the light from the Lamp Tree Crystals begin to serve its true purpose.
The light spread out to all sides, and with it, the glow from the fist-sized Lamp Tree Crystals illuminated an area of about twenty meters or so, clear of fog. Beyond that range, the light gradually faded and the fog persisted, but visibility was noticeably better, increasing from about one hundred meters to about one hundred and fifty meters.
With the mist no longer around, the oppressive feeling in everyone's hearts lessened, and they couldn't help but breathe a sigh of relief, especially the ordinary people.
"Captain Cheng and I will lead the way, Old Zhu, you guys bring up the rear with the corpses flanking to the left and right. Don't fall behind, and make sure not to leave anyone behind," instructed Su Han.
"Understood."
The ten Angel Envoys took positions in front, back, left, and right, forming a protective circle around the group, much like security guards would.
The group walked through the silent fog, searching for the direction of the parking lot with their steps echoing clearly and producing a rustling rhythm, inadvertently causing a sense of nervousness.
The parking lot was not far from Building No. 7. Due to design reasons, the entire Happiness Community lacked underground parking, with all parking spaces being outdoors.
They were distributed around the community next to this set of buildings or that group.
Building No. 7 was relatively close to the parking lot, and after walking through the fog for over two hundred meters and taking a couple of large detours, they began to see the shadows of vehicles emerging through the mist.
"My car is on the outermost side, I'll go—"
"Roar"
The square-faced man was about to go to his car when suddenly a low roar erupted from within the fog, as if bellowing right into his ear. He stiffened abruptly and looked in the direction of the sound.
In the haze of white fog, there were numerous distorted figures swaying slightly in the parking lot, uttering low groans.
All at once, he felt a blood-curdling excitement in the roars.
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