Doomsday Allure

"Boss, I have to lie down for a while." Gao Youxiang dragged his legs with difficulty, panting, trying to catch up with the person in front who seemed to be at ease.

"Five kilometers, if we don't see anyone after five kilometers, we will rest." Shen Wei never slowed down his pace and said without turning his head.

"Boss..." Gao Youxiang wanted to fight again.

"This is an order." Shen Wei said calmly.

"Yes." Gao Youxiang staggered two steps and continued walking desperately.

Xiang Zhen, who also had heavy steps, dull eyes, and was on the verge of falling, grabbed his right arm, and the two supported each other to move forward.

Wang Zhengqing, who was at the end, didn't say a word, but moved his legs mechanically, not letting himself be left behind.

Shen Wei suddenly stopped and turned around.

When Gao Youxiang was ecstatic and thought he could finally sit down and have a rest, Shen Wei reached out and took the last bag from his back, hung it on his right shoulder, turned around and continued walking.

Gao Youxiang shouted hoarsely: "Captain, I will carry it by myself."

Shen Wei: "Shut up and go."

Gao Youxiang shut up and followed Shen Wei's footsteps.

This is a road in the desert, and being here at the moment is like being in the underworld.

There was no wind, the sky and the earth were dark, light sand and floating dust evenly filled the whole world, and the visibility was less than 30 meters.

The strange thing is that after spending six days in the blowing sand weather with a density close to the center of the sandstorm, it feels like only a thin layer of floating sand has fallen on the weathered road. The overall outline of the road is still clearly visible, guiding them as if The direction leading to hell, and the car wrecks that appear from time to time on the side of the road prove that this was and is a real road, not their illusion.

Although Gao Youxiang asked for a rest, he knew in his heart that the captain's decision was right. They had walked like this for seven days, and they were all exhausted. If they sat down now, they might never get up again.

Drowsy, Gao Youxiang and Xiang Zhen moved their legs mechanically with a belief that they didn't want to die. Gao Youxiang and Xiang Zhen walked for an unknown amount of time, when they suddenly heard Shen Wei's voice: "I feel the breath of water and vegetation, If we persist, we can see the people and find the car."

"Really?" Xiang Zhen licked her lips, her voice trembling with excitement.

"Really." Wang Zhengqing from behind suddenly walked a few steps quickly, grabbed Gao Youxiang who was already staggering, and poured water from a strangely shaped thermos cup for two mouthfuls, then grabbed Xiang Zhen without saying anything, and put the remaining A little water poured into his mouth, "You can feel that the road surface has become much firmer, and the density of blowing sand has become smaller. The situation ahead should be getting better and better."

Xiang Zhen and Gao Youxiang stepped on the ground with their feet. Sure enough, although it is not as smooth and hard as a normal asphalt road, it is no longer like walking on pulverized cement foam, and the visibility has increased a little.

The two looked at each other happily, and continued to walk forward with their arms.

Shen Wei and Wang Zhengqing exchanged a look, and continued to advance in the formation of the two young comrades scattered one behind the other.

Three hours later, they saw seabuckthorn, sand cane, holly and Haloxylon grass, and the suffocating blowing sand became a little thinner, and the visibility reached about 100 meters.

This time, without Shen Wei's order, Xiang Zhen and Gao Youxiang didn't ask for a rest. Two hours later, they vaguely saw rolling hills and shadows of trees, as well as a gas station that hadn't completely collapsed in front of the road.

Before, they had seen more than one gas station, but they were all collapsed, and the small supermarket supporting the gas station was also in a mess. It was not the chaos and mess after being looted and smashed, but many things seemed to have been corroded by strong acid. Just like the truck that carried them for a certain distance when they first entered the country, only a few things such as wood, stones, and ceramics remained, and there was no trace of the most common bottled water in the past. With the special mark of this era, they might think that they have inadvertently broken into an ancient human site.

Finally saw a place like the real world.

Xiang Zhen and Gao Youxiang lay down as soon as they entered the gas station. Wang Zhengqing smiled wryly, and sat down on a pillar of the gas station with only a one-meter-high pillar left.

Only Shen Wei was still standing straight, he accurately found the owner of the gas station among the noisy crowd lying, sitting and standing in various postures, and asked, "Is there any water?"

The middle-aged man who looked like Maitreya Buddha said: "If there is, it is..., come and see, if you want to drink, you can drink whatever you want."

Shen Wei followed him and squeezed through the crowd, and then he saw several large ceramic pots lined up side by side, the kind used to raise fish or flowers, and there was water about ten centimeters deep in each of the big pots. But under the water are mud deposits.

The owner of the gas station explained: "The water pipe was inexplicably corroded and soon ran out of water. I found that the bottles of bottled water also showed signs of corrosion, so I quickly poured all the water in the bottles into these ceramic basins. The water was only saved, and the tank was almost full at first, and the passers-by and refugees drank it for a few days, and now there is only so little left."

He pointed to a large open pot with a lotus flower pattern on the outside and said, "This one is used to raise goldfish, it's a bit fishy, ​​you should drink from those pots."

"Thank you!" Shen Wei took the ceramic bowl handed to him by the middle-aged man, filled half of the bowl with muddy water, drank it in one go, brought two more bowls of water, and came to Xiang Zhen and Gao Youxiang. They all poured it down in one gulp, then returned the bowl to Shen Wei, and closed their eyes.

When Shen Wei returned the bowl to the owner of the gas station and came back, both of them were already snoring evenly.

Wang Zhengqing insisted on coming over to drink a bowl of water, and then sat down beside the fish tank filled with water.

The blowing sand that fell from the sky was terrible, and it stopped after arriving here. Most of the people who did not continue to flee eastward were exhausted and could not move a step.

After recovering a little bit, when life is not threatened for the time being, there is no motivation to continue going east.

In the past hundreds of years, human beings have become accustomed to various fast and convenient modern mechanical travel methods. Suddenly, they have to walk tens or even hundreds of kilometers on two legs and two feet, which is unacceptable to most people.

Almost all those who took refuge in the gas stations complained about the delay in the government's rescue. In the past, when natural disasters occurred, the government's rescue was very fast.

Shen Wei asked two young people who were silently staring at Yang's sofa to help, and carried his two young subordinates to a platform of anti-corrosion wood behind the gas station, where there were relatively few people.

He gave the two young men two chocolates as a reward, and under their ecstatic gazes, he went to the gas station owner to borrow a blanket.

The boss pointed awkwardly at the few people lying in front who were covered with various quilts and blankets and said, "All of them are borrowed."

Shen Wei asked: "Are there any other things to keep warm? Anything is fine, it doesn't matter if it's dirty or broken, I can buy it."

What kind of hardships did they experience when they performed their tasks?Life is the most important thing. This is a plateau with an altitude of nearly 3000 meters. When you are extremely tired, if you sleep in the low temperature, the probability of getting sick is very high.

The boss said: "I'll look for it." After speaking, he entered the room that was half a cave dwelling and half a tile-roofed house.

Soon, he came out with two things in his arms: "The old sheepskin jacket, which has been worn for many years, always said whether to throw it away or not. The military coat, worn by workers who refuel,"

Shen Wei said "thank you", and then went to get money from the small bag on his chest, but was stopped by the boss.

The boss with a kind face like a Maitreya Buddha said: "Forget it, forget it, two things that were originally planned to be thrown away."

Shen Wei did not insist.

It is impossible for them to carry too much belongings with them when performing missions, and there is no need for them. Every time they complete a mission, their superiors will arrange for someone to pick them up and return to the country. But this time, they lost the way to communicate with their superiors. After completing the mission, they had to If he doesn’t get any support, he can only find a way to return to the country by himself. The little money he has on him is about to bottom out. If he still can’t contact his superiors, his family, friends and comrades-in-arms, then they have to find their own way Go back to Zhongzhou from here.

It is thousands of kilometers away from Zhongzhou, and it is hundreds of kilometers from this place to the nearest city with trains or planes. He is worried about money.

Thanking the boss again, Shen Wei took the things, came back and threw the military coat to Wang Zhengqing who consciously lay beside Xiang Zhen and Gao Youxiang, then dragged Xiang Zhen and Gao Youxiang close to each other, and covered the sheepskin jacket horizontally Between the individual's chest and abdomen to the knees.

He sat down by himself against a big tree next to him and closed his eyes.

Feeling the sudden increase in temperature on his knees and feet, he smiled silently, and then fell into a deep sleep.

Ten minutes later, Shen Wei suddenly opened his eyes.

Seeing Shen Wei waking up, the thin and shriveled man smiled dryly, and withdrew his hands from the large forest camouflage pattern backpack: "Hey, hey, that, I am... This bag is very beautiful, I just want to Look, look."

Shen Wei remained expressionless: "Have you seen enough now?"

"Enough, enough." The man stood up with a dry smile, looked at the person behind Shen Wei, and blinked his right eye slightly.

A tall and stout man with high nose and deep eyes and a mustache walked up to Shen Wei and said with a smile, "Brothers, what do you do?"

Shen Wei still had a dull face: "Professional traveler, do you have any questions?"

"No, no, haha, I'm just curious." Mustache said with a smile, "At first glance, you are different from the people on our side. Travelers, you are very special and tasteful when you hear it, ahaha, haha."

Shen Wei stared indifferently into the eyes of the mustache.

Like his skinny subordinates, Mustache stepped back in embarrassment, and then sauntered away with a haha.

Several men surrounding Shen Wei and the four of them from a distance exchanged glances with Mustache, then they all left their original positions and returned to the crowd.

"A bunch of scum, they don't dare to do anything for now." Shen Wei said softly.

"En." Wang Zhengqing relaxed and continued to sleep.

Shen Wei also closed his eyes.

They are obviously a group of scumbags who do evil things and are used to taking advantage of the fire. It is estimated that a lot of property has been looted in this unreasonable disaster that fell from the sky. Now, they are eyeing them again because they look very weak and have a few people with them. Judging from the appearance, it is quite a bag.

It's best to come early, as night falls, you have no chance of winning, and the danger is deep in your heart haha.

But before nightfall, an accident appeared.

A man with a black face, loose and rotten skin, and sticky saliva hanging from the corner of his mouth bit his wife who was lying next to him, and then bit several other people who fell into a deep sleep due to exhaustion and were not howled by the wife in pain. A person who wakes up with a cry.

The man tore off a mouthful of flesh from the left cheek of a middle-aged man, and while gasping and chewing, he chased a woman who was holding a half-year-old baby.

People who hadn’t slept just now and saw the incident clearly yelled and pulled their relatives and friends to run into the dim yellow sand and dust in the distance; What's up.

The woman running with the baby yelled "Help" while running, the man was only one step away from him, and his fingers had already touched her scarf.

"Shuh...~boom."

A black object swirled out of the gas station and hit the man-eating man heavily on the back of his neck.

"Ow—"

With a howl like a beast, the man-eating man fell to the ground.

The bitten wife and others were still howling loudly in pain, and the petrified gas station owner turned around dumbly.

Shen Wei lightly kicked away a piece of antiseptic wood that he had picked up on his toes, and said to the boss: "Do you have trauma medicine here? Disinfect the wounds of these people first."

Boss Mu nodded dumbly: "Huh? Ah? Oh, yes, yes, I'll get it, I'll get it."

Wang Zhengqing let go of his hands, let the things in his hands fall into the bag, and asked, "Why did this happen?"

Shen Wei looked at the darkening sky, turned around and said, "Get up, we have to keep going."

Xiang Zhen and Gao Youxiang stood up, quickly put their bags on their backs, and came over with the old sheepskin jacket: "Whose is this? Do you want to return it?"

Shen Wei said: "If you don't return it, take it with you, maybe you will use it."

He said to Wang Zhengqing again: "Fill the cup with water, and everyone will be full now."

Wang Zhengqing took out the thermos cup with only a ceramic liner and lid left, and went to the flowerpot to drink water with Xiang Zhen and Gao Youxiang.

"Ah—don't bite me, don't eat me—damn it, I'm fighting with you..."

"Run, someone has turned into a zombie again..."

There were terrified cries from the fleeing crowd that had become vague black spots in the blowing sand.

Shen Wei and Wang Zhengqing exchanged glances and were about to say something when another scream came from another direction.

Hearing Shen Wei's words, the few victims who endured pain and waited for someone to treat their wounds also ran away screaming like crazy when they heard the cry.

The owner of the gas station just came out, and there was no smile on his naturally smiling face at the moment: "It's gone, iodophor, alcohol, everything is gone, the bottles are gone, only cotton swabs and gauze are left."

Wang Zhengqing said: "It just so happens that you don't need it anymore, so you don't have to worry about it."

At this moment, apart from the few of them and the zombie man who was knocked unconscious by Shen Wei's board, there was no one else in the gas station.

Shen Wei said, "Boss, which direction is your home?"

The boss said puzzledly: "East, Jimen, have you heard of it?"

Shen Wei said, "We're going to Jiman too, come with us."

About [-] kilometers south of Jiman, in the mountains on the south bank of the Wula River, there is a small air force base. Shen Wei stayed there for several months when he entered the military academy, so his current goal is also Jiman. The communication can be restored. In that case, after I get in touch with my superiors, I can return to Zhongzhou as quickly as possible.

The boss looked at the dilapidated gas station reluctantly: "Our whole family is counting on this gas station to live."

Shen Wei said: "Your family members definitely want you to be safe."

The boss is a bodhisattva-hearted person, but if the situation continues to deteriorate, the mustaches will not let him go. The boss has been operating here for many years, so he must have some savings, and he should also save some things that can be used now. Those few people will not give up their greed just because the boss has taken them in and given them a few bowls of water and food.

The boss withdrew his gaze: "I'm leaving, if I become like that person, my parents, wife and children will not be able to live."

Shen Wei said: "Pack up your things, at most 15 minutes, we have to go on the road."

Suddenly there was a little flame in the distance, and someone shouted hysterically: "Burn you, burn you, I'll burn you..."

"Burn him, burn him quickly..."

Shen Wei looked up.

Xiang Zhen and Gao Youxiang ran to the place where the voice came from: "Let's go and have a look."

Shen Wei said, "Be careful."

"Yes." Xiang Zhen and Gao Youxiang had already run away after talking.

Shen Wei and Wang Zhengqing came to the man who was knocked down.

Shen Wei was thrown from behind by a plank, so the man fell forward. Shen Wei and Wang Zhengqing turned him over, and he was still breathing.

Wang Zhengqing looked at Shen Wei: What should we do?

This man didn't kill anyone and they had no right to execute him.

Shen Wei said, "Find something to tie it up."

The two searched around, but couldn't find a single rope. Nylon ropes are commonly used now, and many of these ropes have been inexplicably weathered into pieces in the past few days. There are still two unweathered ropes in Shen Wei's bag. climbing rope, but in this special period, they will not use the rope on this person.

In the end, the two broke a bundle of red willows, found a torn bed sheet, twisted and twisted the man's hands and feet, gagged his mouth, and threw them behind the collapsed toilet of the gas station.

The little beard and the others had already disappeared, and Shen Wei didn't have the heart to think about them at this moment, even if he wanted to, he couldn't kill them if the little beard and the others didn't kill and set fire in front of him.

Xiang Zhen and Gao Youxiang came back, both excited and terrified: "Captain, Lord Dao, yes, it is the kind of supernatural power mentioned in the novel, a man who turned into a zombie chases the other to eat, and that man can't escape , turned around to fight him, and suddenly flames appeared in his hand, and the zombie is now running towards the mountain over there in flames."

Shen Wei and Wang Zhengqing looked at each other in astonishment: "Extraordinary ability?"

Xiang Zhen and Gao Youxiang nodded repeatedly: "Supernatural ability, fire-type ability."

Does that also mean that the end of the world is coming?Shen Wei looked at the increasingly dark sky and thought to himself.

"Let's go." Shen Wei tightened his travel backpack, staring towards the east.

If the end of the world is coming, they have to rush back to Zhongzhou as soon as possible. No one knows what will happen to anyone in this unprecedented catastrophe. They are all worried about their family members and comrades-in-arms.

Wang Yongnian—that is, the owner of the gas station—just came out. He was very reliable, and he only carried a bag of about [-] liters, which was not burdensome with the large and small bags of ordinary people when fleeing.

Shen Wei took the lead, and the five of them set off immediately.