Apocalyptic Hoarding Diary

Wang Yuming strongly agreed, saying, "That's right, we hope to find a temporary base or evacuation point for the troops."

Although the hope was slim, it became an important goal that supported them to keep going.

Having determined their general direction, the two of them did not hesitate any longer and stepped into the even darker night.

The journey through the darkness was exceptionally difficult. The beam of the flashlight flickered on the muddy, broken road, visibility was extremely low, and every step was fraught with hardship and uncertainty.

Xu Xiaoyan and Wang Yuming walked silently, one after the other.

Exhaustion and cold made their conversations extremely brief, limited to necessary warnings:

"There's a collapse on the left, go around to the right."

"This road is slippery."

"Take a five-minute break"

The so-called rest was just standing still, catching one's breath, and moving one's frozen toes.

Xu Xiaoyan's physical strength was not as good as Wang Yuming's, and her breathing became heavier and heavier.

On several occasions, Wang Yuming had to stop and wait for her.

There was no hint of complaint on his face. He simply used the time while waiting for her to observe the surrounding terrain features and then used his expertise to point out some potentially safe routes forward.

"Look over there." During a brief rest, Wang Yuming suddenly pointed to the blurry ridgeline to his right:

"The vegetation there is relatively well preserved, which means that the main body of the mudslide did not pass through there."

"If we can find a way to cross this eroded valley, the road there might be easier to travel, and it would be easier to find relatively dry shelter."

Xu Xiaoyan looked in the direction he pointed, but could only make out a rough outline in the darkness.

"How do we cross the valley?" she asked.

The turbulent river before us, formed by torrential rain, roared loudly, its muddy waters carrying broken logs and debris as it rushed downstream, making it seem impossible to wade through.

"Go downstream and see if there are any remnants of bridges that have been washed away, or places where the river narrows and the current becomes relatively calm."

Wang Yuming suggested that this would undoubtedly increase the distance and uncertainty, but it seemed to be the only option at present.

The two changed direction and struggled downstream along the valley.

Fortunately, after walking for about half an hour, they found a place where the scenery was still intact.

An old stone arch bridge miraculously survived without being completely washed away.

Although the bridge deck is severely damaged, with even a huge gap in the middle, the piers at both ends and parts of the bridge deck are still relatively stable.

"We have no choice but to take the risk," Xu Xiaoyan said after observing the situation. The bridge surface was slippery, and the gap required jumping over it. Below was a surging river, which was extremely dangerous.

This time, Wang Yuming went first, carefully testing the stability of the bridge surface.

When he reached the gap, he nimbly jumped across.

Xu Xiaoyan hesitated for a moment, looked at the dizzying rapids below, and finally, she jumped with all her might and safely leaped across the gap.

After crossing the river, the two breathed a sigh of relief; they had finally stepped into the area with well-preserved vegetation that Wang Yuming had mentioned.

Although the road here is still muddy, it is much easier to walk on, and occasionally you can find some large rocks under which you can take shelter from the rain and catch your breath.

They walked for an unknown amount of time, until they were almost at their physical limit.

Xu Xiaoyan, who was walking ahead, suddenly stopped and said in a low voice, "Look!"

Wang Yuming looked in the direction she pointed. At the bend in the valley in the distance, there seemed to be a faint light shining through. It wasn't natural light, but more like... lamplight.

In this devastated wilderness, a faint glimmer of light instantly drew their full attention.

Is it a gathering place for survivors?

Or is it a temporary military base?

They exchanged a glance, both seeing wariness and caution in each other's eyes.

"Approach slowly and assess the situation before making a decision," Xu Xiaoyan whispered.

Wang Yuming nodded.

The two stopped talking, tiptoed, and, guided by the gradually brightening daylight, cautiously made their way towards the faintly visible lights in the distance.

As the distance closed, the bright outline gradually became clearer.

It wasn't a single light source, but rather a few scattered ones, seemingly coming from the windows of some low-lying buildings built along the mountainside.

These buildings look like a long-abandoned mountain forest or a small village.

Some houses show obvious signs of damage, but the overall structure is largely intact, much better than the completely destroyed Qingshui Villa.

Even more surprising is...

On a relatively flat open space at the edge of the village, they could vaguely see the outlines of several dark green tent-like structures, as well as the shadows of huge vehicles covered in camouflage netting parked to the side!

"It's the army!" Wang Yuming said in a low voice, his tone filled with barely suppressed excitement.

"Judging from the vehicle type, it looks like a military transport vehicle or communications vehicle!" Xu Xiaoyan's heart was pounding, but she forced herself to observe calmly.

There were no soldiers patrolling with live ammunition as expected, nor were there any busy and orderly rescue scenes; the entire village was unusually quiet.

Only the sound of drizzling rain and the occasional suppressed cough coming from a room could be heard; the few lights in the dim morning light seemed weak and listless.

"Something's not right," Xu Xiaoyan said, pulling Wang Yuming back as he tried to quicken his pace. The two of them hid behind a huge rock.

"It's too quiet, and look over there," she pointed towards the village entrance, "if it were a proper military base, there should be clear sentry posts and signs, but there's nothing here."

Wang Yuming calmed down after being reminded by her.

Upon closer inspection, the entire camp gave off an unsettling feeling; there were no flags, no sentries, only a deathly silence.

"Maybe they're too tired? Or maybe the main force went out for rescue?" Wang Yuming guessed, but his tone was no longer so certain.

"In any case, it's better to be cautious." Xu Xiaoyan took a deep breath. "Let's approach slowly and try to find out what's going on by asking around among the people on the outskirts."

Using the ruins and sparse trees as cover, the two crouched low and cautiously approached the nearest stone house that looked relatively intact.

The air was filled with a damp, musty smell, mixed with a faint odor of disinfectant and an indescribable, stifling atmosphere, similar to that of a place where wounded and sick people gathered.

Just as they were about to reach the back window of the stone house.

A weak voice suddenly called out from a narrow alleyway nearby, "Who's there?! What are you doing?"

A figure wearing a filthy raincoat, its original color almost unrecognizable, shakily walked out from the shadows at the alley entrance.

The man's face was covered with a dirty cloth, revealing only a pair of bloodshot, wary, and tired eyes. He held a sharpened twig in one hand, pointing it in the direction of Xu Xiaoyan and Wang Yuming.