Quick Travel to the Clouds

Chapter 652 The Apocalyptic Old Lady 21

Yun Chu led the three back to the abandoned tool shed filled with the smell of rust and machine oil. When the door creaked open, Jiang Xingyu and Lin Xiaoran, who were busy inside, looked up at the sound.

Jiang Xingyu was disassembling a complex part, his face smeared with oil; Lin Xiaoran was carefully polishing a modified dagger, the cold light reflecting off her focused eyes.

When their gaze swept over the three people standing side by side behind Yun Chu, the two men showed no surprise or wariness, only an expression of almost knowing understanding.

"Aunt Yun is back." Lin Xiaoran put down the dagger and asked Yun Chu in a natural tone, her gaze then falling on Ling Yi, pausing for a moment.

It was a fleeting moment of surprise, which quickly turned into a knowing "I knew it" and a barely perceptible hint of mockery in his eyes.

“Here you are, Bi Ziqian, Ling Yi, and Xu Jingyan. We’ll work together from now on.” Her cloudy gaze swept over the five people present, and she added slowly, as if it were the most natural thing in the world: “I’m tired of looking at those ugly zombies outside every day. I found a few good-looking ones to keep around and cleanse my eyes.”

These words were like a boulder thrown into still water.

Ling Yi's already shocked face froze again.

A full stomach and a safe place to live are essential for survival in the apocalypse, but he never dreamed that the reason that finally moved this unfathomable old lady and allowed him to get rid of the guards would be so simple, crude and absurd - "pleasing to the eye".

He looked at Lin Xiaoran's familiar yet now unfamiliar eyes and brows, his expression extremely complicated.

Xu Jingyan froze instantly, her slender body almost stiffening. She had considered various reasons: strength, the value of her special abilities, and even... more sinister motives.

That's the only thing I didn't think of.

An indescribable emotion welled up inside me, a mixture of humiliation and a sense of bewilderment and powerlessness in the face of an absurd reality after surviving a catastrophe.

She noticed the way Jiang Xingyu looked at her—no longer as a fan or colleague on stage, but with a complex sense of sympathy and shared hardship.

This made her turn her face slightly away in embarrassment.

Jiang Xingyu wiped the oil off his face, grinned, and gave a tired but relieved smile: "Aunt Yun is right! Looking at you two in this apocalypse is much more comfortable than looking at those missing limbs outside! Xiaoran, right?"

He tried to break the awkwardness with a lighthearted tone, his gaze sweeping over the three of them with an air of "welcome to this bizarre shelter."

Lin Xiaoran suppressed the playfulness in her eyes, stood up, and walked to Ling Yi. She was no longer the minor actress who had to look up to the top stars; her eyes were calm, carrying a composure tempered by the apocalypse and a subtle sense of tacit understanding.

"Ling Yi, it's been a long time." She extended her hand, her tone conveying a sense of reunion after a long separation, yet completely different from the glamorous atmosphere on the film set back then, carrying a hint of having weathered hardships together. "I didn't expect to run into you here. Aunt Yun's way of speaking... you'll get used to it. Safety and food are what really matter."

These words were spoken not only to Ling Yi, but also to Xu Jingyan and Bi Ziqian, who were standing nearby, feeling nervous.

Xu Jingyan recognized Jiang Xingyu; his familiar features were faintly discernible beneath the oil stains. Jiang Xingyu met her gaze, his smile tinged with understanding and bitterness: "Jingyan... don't overthink it. Aunt Yun's place is a tough rock, but it's also a good place. At least... you can catch your breath."

Ling Yi looked at Lin Xiaoran's outstretched hand, which represented the complex emotions of reuniting with an old acquaintance, and also the initial acceptance in this strange new shelter.

He took a deep breath, suppressing the turbulent emotions churning within him—the subtle feeling of being treated as a mere "decoration" was insignificant compared to the prospect of survival.

He reached out and shook hands with Lin Xiaoran. The feeling was both familiar and strange, bridging the vast chasm between the red carpet and the pile of zombies.

"Xiaoran, it's been a long time...not to be seen." Her voice was hoarse and strained, barely concealing its strain.

The atmosphere in the tool shed subtly eased.

The tension brought by the three newcomers was somewhat alleviated by Lin Xiaoran and Jiang Xingyu's calm attitude of "already knowing".

After staying at the base for a few days, Yun Chu left the base with the four of them.

After leaving the base, Yun Chu captured some mutated beasts to serve as mounts for the three newcomers, Bi Ziqian and his companions.

This completely shocked the three newcomers.

Xu Xiaoran comforted her, "You'll get used to it. It's nothing."

Half a year has passed in the blink of an eye, and spring is drawing to a close, yet the earth remains shrouded in the deathly stillness of the apocalypse.

Yun Chu led this unusual team—whose core consisted of Jiang Xingyu, Lin Xiaoran, Ling Yi, Xu Jingyan, and Bi Ziqian, plus five newly recruited "eye-catching faces"—to advance southwest and arrive at an abandoned metropolis.

The city's former hustle and bustle has long since vanished, skyscrapers have collapsed like the remains of giants, abandoned vehicles on the streets are rusty, and the stench of decay seeps from broken shop windows.

Thick smog hung in the air, like a lament for the end of the world.

The zombie hordes in the city are particularly ferocious: they are not simply wobbly walking corpses, but variants that have evolved bizarre features.

Some joints are twisted into a crawling posture, with bone spurs and scales growing on their backs; some have their mouthparts split open, dripping fluorescent green saliva.

The air was thick with the smell of rusty metal and the stench of decay, and every step had to be taken with caution—around the corner might be a horde of wandering corpses, numbering in the hundreds.

Yun Chu took the lead.

She stood atop the ruins like an ancient rock, her five supernatural abilities intertwined and glowing: her mental powers spread out like an invisible net, locking onto the nearest horde of corpses;

With a gentle summoning of earth-based superpowers, the rubble on the street rose up to form a temporary barrier;

Lightning energy crackled at his fingertips.

The most eye-catching creatures were the mutated beasts beside her: three enormous mutated black panthers called "Night Shadows," their fur like starlight in the night sky, their eyes scarlet yet revealing a tacit loyalty.

After Yun Chu tamed them, they became loyal companions—Nightshade was the size of a calf, with sharp claws and teeth, and moved with lightning speed. A low, hoarse command was issued: "Clear the East District!"

Night Shadow roared as it leaped into the sea of ​​corpses.

One of the zombies lunged at the bone spikes, its claws tearing through its spine. Lightning-based superpowers flowed in, and the horde of zombies trembled amidst crackling electricity.

Another Night Shadow circled behind, using its speed to avoid the acid spray. Wood-type healing energy seeped into Yun Chu's fingertips, repairing the beasts' minor injuries.

The coordinated efforts of the mutated beasts made the cleanup efficient and devastating; the zombie horde fell amidst the rolling earth and thunderstorms, turning into dust.

At the same time, Jiang Xingyu led a ten-person team to collect crystal cores.

After the team expanded, it became even more distinctive: the five newly recruited members were named Xia Luo (wind-type ability), Luo Lian (healing-type ability), Du Lei (strength enhancement type), and Li Lu and Liao Yun were ordinary people.

Each person had a clear role: Xu Jingyan used her water-based abilities to condense thin ice blades to cut open the zombie's skull and extract the core; Bi Ziqian manipulated earth and rocks to pry open the hard shell; Ling Yi used his fire-based abilities to incinerate the remains and prevent the smell from attracting enemies. The new members collected the crystal cores.

The collection process was slow but orderly.

Jiang Xingyu chuckled encouragingly, avoiding alerting the distant horde of zombies; Lin Xiaoran whispered her experience, her gaze sweeping over the crowd with a hint of soft satisfaction honed by the apocalypse.

Crystal cores are a team resource—each crystal with a pale purple fluorescence entering the bag signifies a supply replenishment at the next refuge.

As darkness fell, the hazy afterglow of the setting sun peeked through the smog.

The cleanup was complete: the mutated beast returned exhausted from its victory and lay down at Yun Chu's feet; Jiang Xingyu counted the crystal core bags and found a rich harvest.

Yun Chu glanced around at the group, a barely perceptible smile curving her lips—these “good-looking” faces were so vibrant amidst the ruins, making this filthy world seem somewhat worthwhile.