Beginning with the Ubume Bird Chapter 276

Chapter 276: Chapter 2: Level 1 Modification Potion: Dual Gun Savior

Night fell.

In the Gobi Desert, scattered iron sheet shacks, wire fencing, and old pickup trucks covered with black grime and rust marked the landscape. A cloud of dust erupted over the long, desolate land.

The bursting sound of an engine tore through the night sky as the rugged body of the Dodge Tomahawk rolled over the sporadic sesame and salsola plants. Under the murky sky, the man wearing goggles had a thin, bluish chin, with an orange carrot dangling from his mouth.

In the desolate terrain devoid of human life, the Dodge Tomahawk, undeterred by the challenging landscape with its lightning-fast speed, performed to its full potential.

The tremors of the frozen ground caused countless sand worms to break out of their shells and scatter.

The silver giant motorcycle sped through the abandoned highway and torn wire fences, finally screeching to a halt at the edge of a cliff.

Li Yan gazed down at the apocalyptic scene below the night sky. Beneath the cliff, everything was covered by windblown sand and darkness, with occasional faint bioluminescence — those were the compound eyes of various giant arthropods that had become extremely ferocious due to radiation.

Right before Li Yan's eyes, a spider with legs covered in white fur, big as a car, plunged into the soft sand with a puff. It disappeared without even having the chance to let out a cry.

Li Yan bit off the carrot in his mouth, “Finally got out.”

Although the land ahead was still desolate and the temperature difference was increasing, without the barrier of dense sand and dust, the intense ultraviolet radiation unabashedly scorched the earth's surface, making the environment even more hostile. Nevertheless, Li Yan still felt lucky because the desert contained too many terrifying predations like the one he had just witnessed. If not for his naturally keen senses and the Dodge Tomahawk's unmatched speed among ordinary insects, he really wouldn't have known how he would have died.

His eyes searched in the darkness, then suddenly, he caught a glimpse of red firelight and, listening closely, he could even hear the roar of a crowd.

“Huh~”

Li Yan turned the motorcycle around and sped off in that direction.

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One thing particularly worth celebrating was that when Li Yan stored the 240 tons of water with the ability of Calamity Wave, he had the foresight to choose drinkable fresh water instead of the seawater that could be casually collected from Lantau Island. This was crucial. Moreover, with the properties of Smith's coat and the reserves in the Seal Space, Li Yan wouldn't have to worry about food and water for a long time, especially the latter. Li Yan had traveled through the desert for two days and found several wells, but the water within them was colorful and obviously contaminated, no longer safe for drinking. This illustrated just how scarce water was in this world.

“I need to find a settlement first, then I might have a chance to inquire about the location of Shuishu Park.”

Withered grass concealed the rusty blue warning sign which was barely visible beneath the red paint scrawled with a large skull. Moreover, a skeleton, with rags hanging from it and picked clean by vultures, hung above, looking hideous and fierce.

In the ominous night, it was clear that not everything was so quiet.

Huddled hovels and torch-wielding thugs with eyes full of almost distorted desire guarded the area; their bloodshot eyes reflected the delicate face of a woman who seemed so tender that you could squeeze water from her cheeks.

“Don't, don't come any closer.”

The voice was hoarse, with a hint of hysteria.

The woman appeared to be about twenty-five or six, holding a bundle in her arms and trembling with a shotgun in her hands. Her torn and smelly jute cloak couldn't hide her shapely figure. Starting from her slender neck, a large area of smooth white skin was exposed, glaringly bright.

The baby in the swaddling clothes seemed completely unaware of its situation, still wide-eyed and blowing bubbles, its little hand clutching a silver badge.

“Pant~pant~”

The woman breathed heavily, with a sob in her throat. She glanced at the swaddling clothes, which seemed to give her endless courage.

“Don't come any closer!”

She repeated, steadying her spirit, articulately, “My husband is a senior officer of Black Star's armored vehicle. If you're willing to help me…”

“Stop pretending…”

A gaunt old man cackled eerily. His body was covered in festering sores, and as he moved, pinkish morsels of flesh fell from his wounds, adding to the horror.

“You're just a mule~”

He took a step forward, and the woman, startled, shook the gun in her hand and shouted, “If you dare come any closer, I'll kill you!”

The crowd of thugs around them buzzed with action, breathing heavily, eager to strip the woman bare right then and there.

Curses and greedy laughter surrounded the woman when suddenly, from the crowd, a shrill voice yelled, “Her gun has no bullets!”

Perhaps some thug was deceiving his pals to send them to their deaths, cheated the woman out of her bullets, hoping to enjoy the spoils himself. But as soon as he spoke, the woman's face turned pale. She glimpsed the skull dangling on the sign, swinging non-stop.

The ruffians in tattered clothes almost charged at her, but abruptly, a fierce roar of an engine sounded, the trembling of the ground, and the wild noise of the engine hit like a sledgehammer, silencing the crowd. A dust cloud raced towards them.

The tires grinding against gravel, the Dodge Tomahawk rolled in under the sign, the wind it raised knocked down the flimsy skeleton, shattering it on impact. Pieces of yellow bone scattered everywhere.

The dust of the Four Flags stirred, and the smooth, hefty silver body of the vehicle slowed to a stop. Li Yan, clad in a black trench coat, removed his goggles with one hand and surveyed the crowd, “Excuse me, can anyone tell me how to get to Shuishu Park? I have clean water to offer for the information.”

To the tattered crowd of rioters, Li Yan, in his attire, looked like a god descended from heaven.

No one answered.

“I know!” A woman called out anxiously.

“Kill them!”

A burly man in the mob had barely spoken when a bullet pierced his forehead, creating a bloody cavity as the smoke lingered.

In Li Yan's hand was a Luger Pistol he had pilfered from a man in a steel helmet. To intimidate a disorderly mob, this thing was more directly violent than a large gun, a Han Sword, or even an ice ability.

Before the woman could feel relieved, Li Yan turned the gun's barrel toward her, “I can save you, and it won't take much effort, but I don't like being taken for a fool. I'll give you another chance. Do you know where Shuishu Park is?”

His index finger rested on the trigger.

The woman's lips trembled; indeed, she didn't know where Shuishu Park was, but nobody wanted to let go of a lifeline, even though the man had said he would save her unconditionally.

“Save me, my husband is…”

“You don't know.”

Li Yan cut the woman off, his eyes narrowing.

The woman stuttered for a moment, then gritted her teeth and pulled a syringe from the swaddling clothes, shaking it at Li Yan, “I have a reward for you! Please, save me.”

Li Yan focused on the vial, and information flooded in from A Fleeting Glimpse.

[First-order Genetically Modified Agent: Dual Gun Savior]

Category: Consumable

Quality: Fine

Chance of becoming a first-order ability user upon usage: Dual Gun Savior: 80%.

Increases specialization in firearms to 70%; ineffective if over 70%.

Gains the expansion skill [Fearless], which temporarily enhances all bodily functions, greatly boosts reaction speed, and increases firearms firing rate by 150%.

Note: At the beginning of the harsh winters, almost all genetically modified agents were developed by researchers from the original Germany, America, and the Soviet Union. Caucasians almost monopolized all the ability users, and the discourse power of the winter was firmly dominated by companies led by Pompeii Armaments.

Until the emergence of the Dual Gun Savior.

Despite being a first-order ability agent with a singular effect, it was cheap to make – one-thirtieth the cost of other first-order agents at the time, making it to date the most cost-effective genetically modified agent.

Its inventor was none other than Lin Sanyuan, one of the founders of the Black Star battleship.

A single spark can start a prairie fire.

—-Black Star Battleship

“I beg you.”

The woman pleaded softly, her helpless expression would stir sympathy in anyone.

Li Yan pondered for a while before nodding, “Get on.”

The mob stirred, but a look from Li Yan froze them in place.

The fluctuation of murderous intent, though an almost imperceptible skill retained only because it hinted at the lineage of “Yuzi,” was akin to the might of thunder to these people.

The woman, cradling the swaddled bundle, got onto the motorcycle and wrapped one arm around Li Yan's waist.

Li Yan took one last glance at the mob fixed on him, then started the Dodge Tomahawk. The old man in the lead took a step forward, and without hesitation, Li Yan shot him. The bullet flipped the old man's skull, spewing white brain matter as the engine roared to life, and the silver beast sped away…

Chapter end