The whole nation is trying to survive on the cable car; I'm choosing one of three options at ea

Guild members would glance at her during reloading breaks, solo groups would whisper about her while resting, and hastily assembled teams would unconsciously gravitate towards her when their formation was broken by monsters...

It's not because she's helpful, but because her very existence acts like a stabilizing force, providing a stable point of reference for those around her amidst the chaos.

"What a pity."

Behind the defensive line, a middle-aged soldier with rank insignia on his shoulder put down his binoculars and said to the person next to him, his voice not loud but with a genuine sense of regret, "Military regulations do not allow interference with survivors, otherwise, we really would like to take this person in."

The young soldier beside her looked in Lin Xiaohe's direction and nodded: "I've never seen anyone grind monsters so relentlessly. From morning until now, for several hours, she hasn't stopped. Others would step down to rest when they're tired, but she doesn't. Others would drink water or eat when they're exhausted, but she doesn't. Others would breathe a sigh of relief when the monster tide recedes, but she doesn't. She's like... she doesn't know fatigue."

The middle-aged soldier didn't reply. He raised his binoculars again; the figure in the lens was still moving, still killing monsters, still repeating the same action on that chaotic battlefield...

Dodge, draw, sheathe, dodge, draw, sheathe. Like a machine programmed with a set routine.

"She's not grinding monsters." The middle-aged soldier put down his binoculars, his voice carrying an indescribable quality. "She's struggling against something."

Lin Xiaohe had no idea how many people had noticed her.

She doesn't care.

All she knows is killing monsters, killing monsters, and killing more monsters.

Her experience bar was increasing, her skill proficiency was increasing, but she didn't look at those numbers.

Those numbers meant nothing to her. What mattered was... that she was still moving, that she hadn't stopped, that she hadn't collapsed.

As long as she is still alive, she will not think of that person.

As long as she's still killing monsters, she won't think about that place... that place engulfed by flames and thick smoke, that place she turned and ran away from, that place she never looked back at again.

"Hello there."

A voice came from the side.

Lin Xiaohe didn't turn her head. She was dealing with a level-five mutated wild boar. She plunged her short knife into the boar's eye socket, twisted her wrist, and pulled it out. The boar's body crashed to the ground, kicking up a cloud of dust.

"Hello, I am..."

"Not interested." Lin Xiaohe's voice wasn't loud, but it was cold, like a knife without warmth. She didn't look at that person; her gaze was already locked on the next monster.

The man opened his mouth, as if to say something, but the person next to him pulled him back, shook his head, and whispered, "Don't bother. That's just how she is. Don't mess with people from President Zhou's guild."

Similar scenes have occurred several times in the past hour or two.

Some guilds offered generous terms, promising to provide equipment, shelter, and upgrade resources, but she didn't even glance at them.

Someone tried to get close to her by saying, "We have a very good relationship with the Zhou Zhenguo Association," but she left without even listening to the whole thing.

A few newcomers, unaware of her true abilities, saw her standing there alone and thought she was easy to bully. They approached her, intending to "teach her the rules"... but were then grabbed by the people next to them.

"Are you crazy? Those are Zhou Zhenguo's men."

"Zhou Zhenguo? The one who led a group of ordinary people and made a name for himself in the military?"

"She got to work in the military, that's her skill. Don't worry about it, just don't mess with her."

The newcomer glanced at Lin Xiaohe, swallowed hard, and swallowed back the words that were about to come out.

Lin Xiaohe overheard the discussions. "A member of Zhou Zhenguo's guild..." That label had been attached to her from the very first day she arrived.

She didn't care.

She didn't care what others thought of her or what they talked about her.

She didn't even care whether Zhou Zhenguo was really "protecting" her or not.

All she knew was that when she ran here that day, Su Mu told her to just find Zhou Zhenguo.

Now, all she needs to do is one thing... kill monsters, kill monsters, and kill more monsters.

She kills until she has enough experience to level up, until her skills are proficient, until her body memorizes every dodge angle and every strike of force, until when that person returns, she can stand in front of him and tell him... I didn't hold him back.

"Do you know who that girl is?"

In the makeshift rest area behind the defensive line, several soldiers huddled together, munching on compressed biscuits and peering in Lin Xiaohe's direction. Their uniforms were stained with blood and mud, clearly indicating they had just been relieved from the front lines.

"I don't know. But I've seen her grinding monsters by herself since yesterday, without stopping."

"Yesterday? I noticed her the day before yesterday. She was alone, not teaming up with anyone, and not talking to anyone."

"I heard she's one of Zhou Zhenguo's people? You mean the one who came down from the cable car and organized a group of ordinary people?"

"Yes, that one. When she came to see Zhou Zhenguo before, I overheard a few words. It sounded like a guy told her to go first, that he was trapped somewhere and told her to leave first."

"Trapped..." The soldier murmured the words, then stopped speaking. Everyone knew what being trapped meant in a place like this.

"So she's been grinding monsters here all this time?" another soldier chimed in, "waiting for her boyfriend to come back?"

No one answered the question.

An old soldier walked over from the side, not wearing a bulletproof vest, but only a military green T-shirt, his arms covered with scars.

He squatted down, broke off a piece of compressed biscuit from the soldier's hand, put it in his mouth, chewed it twice, and swallowed it. Then he glanced at Lin Xiaohe's back in the distance, his voice not loud, but very firm.

"She's not waiting. She doesn't believe."

Several soldiers were watching him.

"That boy let her run first, while he covered her retreat. This kind of thing happens all the time on the battlefield."

The veteran spoke calmly, as if discussing something unrelated to herself. "She knew perfectly well what the chances were of the one who stayed behind surviving. But she didn't believe it."

So she relentlessly farmed monsters, desperately trying to become stronger. Not to wait, but for the future... for a future where no one would need to cover her retreat.

There was silence for a moment.

"This girl..." a young soldier began, his voice hoarse, "has she been traumatized?"

The veteran glanced at him but did not answer the question.

He stood up, dusted off his pants, took a few steps, then stopped, and without turning his head, said, "That kind of trauma can't be healed by just talking about it. She's stuck in a rut right now, and no one can persuade her otherwise. But people like that deserve respect. And her boyfriend is definitely a loyal and devoted person."