Still hoarding supplies in the apocalypse? I'll just go on a killing spree and looting!

"Yes, I'm going on a long trip," Lin You said. "I'll be back in a few days."

An An thought for a moment, then rested her chin on Lin You's shoulder and whispered, "Then come back soon. Hui Hui and I will miss you."

Lin You didn't say anything like "I miss you all too." She just patted An An on the back, put him down, and took his hand to walk to Shun Zi's side.

"Eat." Shunzi had already served four bowls of porridge, one of which was placed on the edge of the stove to cool, and it was for An'an.

Breakfast was eaten quietly.

Shunzi lowered his head and drank his porridge, occasionally putting a piece of meat into An'an's bowl.

An'an held the spoon himself and sipped the porridge little by little. Huihui peeked out from behind the woodpile to look at him, so An'an secretly pushed the head out of the porridge under the edge of the table. Huihui scurried over and quickly snatched it away.

Mu Xue sat opposite Lin You, eating at a leisurely pace.

Mu Xue's gaze was fixed on a certain spot on the table. She didn't look at Lin You or anyone else, as if she hadn't woken up yet.

Lin You finished the last mouthful of porridge and put the bowl down.

"Shunzi" (a type of Chinese character)

"Um?"

"Keep an eye on the vegetable garden while I'm away. Team Leader Song will send someone to help with night patrols."

Shunzi nodded, holding the bowl of porridge in her hand, but her expression was somewhat sullen.

Lin You stood up. An An followed suit, still clutching her spoon.

Lin You bent down and kissed him on the forehead, then straightened up and walked out of the yard.

Mu Xue picked up the canvas bag, the bone shield making a slight rustling sound on her shoulder, and followed half a step behind her.

As Lin You reached the courtyard gate, she looked back.

Shunzi stood beside the stove, holding a bowl in her hand.

An'an sat quietly on the wooden stool, staring blankly at her. Finally, Huihui ran out from behind the woodpile and squatted down at An'an's feet.

Lin You gave a big smile, waved, and turned to leave.

The visitor center isn't far away.

Most of the base residents she encountered along the way were not fully awake yet. Only a few people were squatting under the eaves brushing their teeth, and some were pouring water into buckets. When they saw her coming, they all made way for her.

Fear was evident in his eyes.

Lin You walked past them without looking to either side and headed straight for the visitor center.

Team Leader Song was indeed already in his office.

The office, temporarily converted from the visitor center, was piled high with various documents and maps. Several hand-drawn topographical maps of the surrounding area were pasted on the walls, marking the areas where the monsters were active and the safe routes that had been explored.

Team Leader Song was hunched over the table, holding a nearly empty ballpoint pen, drawing something on a piece of paper.

Lin You stood at the door and knocked on the door frame twice.

Team Leader Song looked up, revealing obvious dark circles under his eyes.

He put down his pen, leaned back in his chair, and rubbed his temples.

"You've come at the right time," Team Leader Song said. "I checked the details again last night—you're going to the military base, which is fifty kilometers away and will take about four days to walk. I've already sent a small team to scout the route first. The first ten kilometers were basically safe, but they encountered a group of monsters and had to turn back. There are just too many uncertainties along the way."

"What uncertainties?"

Team Leader Song pulled a piece of paper from the table, on which were drawn several winding lines and red circles.

"Here," Team Leader Song pointed to a place marked 'Town,' "The team reported that there are signs of strange beasts gathering around this town. Not just passing through, but staying. It's like... they were attracted there by something."

Lin You looked at the red circle.

In her memory, a small beast tide did indeed break out in the town three weeks later.

But that was in the "previous life".

"I'll go around it," Lin You said.

"Taking the detour will add an extra day to your journey, and it involves a section of the mountain road that has been damaged by landslides," said Team Leader Song. "My suggestion is—weather permitting, go through the tunnel north of the town; it's a shorter straight-line distance."

Lin You nodded. "I'll remember. But you still need to take care of your health. You can delegate some of your work to others."

Team Leader Song put down his pen, leaned forward slightly, and rested his elbows on the table.

He looked at Lin You, remained silent for two or three seconds, rubbed his face, and then said, "There's no other way. The base has just been established, and there are too many things to handle. Someone has to do it."

Lin You said noncommittally, "With so many survivors, you need some people to share the burden with you."

Team Leader Song looked exhausted, but still managed a smile and said, "In a couple of days, once things have stabilized, I'll do it. Are you all ready now?"

Lin You replied, "Yes, if it weren't so dangerous at night, we should have set off last night. Is the sky safe now?"

The "sky security" that Lin You mentioned refers to the people at the Sky Surveillance Base.

Team Leader Song seemed to have arranged everything in advance. "I had people monitoring the sky long ago. It's very clean there, there's no problem at all."

"Miss Lin."

"Um."

Team Leader Song still voiced his concerns, "You're going to find people in the military this time. Do you think they'll still be there?"

"Yes," Lin You replied with absolute certainty.

"Why are you so sure?"

Lin You didn't hesitate, "Because the alien beasts haven't completely devoured this world yet. As long as the military still has a presence, they will definitely stay there."

Team Leader Song stared at her for a few seconds.

The sky outside the window was already bright, and the first rays of sunlight slanted in through the window, illuminating the map on the table with a white glow.

"We're about to leave," she said.

After a brief silence, Team Leader Song said, "I'll take good care of things at the base. As for An'an and Shunzi, I'll arrange for them to stay near the visitor center, close to the main building, so they can be evacuated immediately if anything happens."

Thank you.

After saying those two words, Lin You turned and left.

Team Leader Song, watching her retreating figure, suddenly called out to her, "Miss Lin, you must come back alive."

Lin You paused slightly, then waved and walked out of the visitor center.

Mu Xue was waiting for her at the corner of the corridor. The canvas bag and bone shield had disappeared and been replaced by a shotgun.

Seeing Lin You come out, she didn't say anything, but simply followed her.

The two walked across the open space in front of the visitor center, past several rows of low temporary prefabricated houses, and past the old, crooked locust tree.

The sunlight began to bring a little warmth, and the air was filled with the smell of dust and dew mixed together.

As Lin You walked out of the outermost barbed wire fence of the base, she stopped and looked back.

The red roof of the visitor center stood out in the morning light, with no clouds or birds above it.

"Let's go," Lin You said, turning her gaze away.

Mu Xue hummed in agreement and pulled open the SUV that Lin You used to drive, which belonged to Team Leader Song.

The reason this vehicle wasn't chosen was simply because that vehicle was far too conspicuous.

If they disappear from the base, they will be easily discovered by the spy.

The two men drove Team Leader Song's UV eastward.

The highway stretched out in front of them, and the fields on both sides were overgrown with waist-high weeds. Occasionally, a few rusted car bodies leaned to one side of the road, like carelessly discarded building blocks.

After Lin You left.

Team Leader Song continued processing the documents in his hands. These documents contained the survivors' files and some of the base's work progress over the past few days.

After an unknown amount of time, a policeman arrived at the office.

"Team Leader Song, the tasks you assigned have been arranged," the policeman said hesitantly, "but will this really work?"