Chapter 187: Spirit Warding!

Chapter 187: Spirit Warding!

On a desolate road, a convoy of vehicles slowly made its way forward. Leading the convoy was a modified heavy-duty truck, followed by several minibuses, vans, and pickup trucks. The convoy consisted of over 170 people, all headed for Seoul.

At the front of the convoy were Zhao Zheng and Song Haitang.

Inside the modified truck, Zhao Zheng surveyed the luxurious interior, complete with a refrigerator, sofa, and soft bed—it seemed to have everything one could need.

"They sure know how to live it up," he remarked with a smile.

Even in peacetime, maintaining such a large vehicle would have required significant manpower and resources. Now, in this resource-scarce apocalypse, acquiring fuel was an even greater challenge.

Fortunately, the truck's fuel tank was full, and they had an extra barrel of fuel, enough to get them all the way to Seoul.

At the wheel was Han Laosan, a veteran soldier with twelve years of service under his belt, who had retired due to an injury. Everyone called him Han Laosan because he was the third-born in his family.

Han Laosan was 39 years old and had married late, only having a daughter at the age of thirty. His daughter, Han Yingying, was nine years old.

Currently, Han Yingying was also in the truck.

In addition to the one-armed Han Minna, there was also an aunt, and a young man named Han Wu, who knew how to drive. He sat in the passenger seat, ready to take over when his uncle, San Shu, needed a break.

A partition separated the driver's cabin from the rear of the truck.

At this moment, the uncle and nephew sat in silence.

The recent chaos had taken a heavy toll on their team, with many casualties. Originally, there had been thirteen members of the Han family, but now only five remained...

...

Inside the truck, Song Haitang was tending to Han Minna's injured arm.

Fortunately, they had a medical kit on board, and Song Haitang also had some first aid knowledge.

After Song Haitang's treatment, Han Minna's arm stopped bleeding.

However, the young girl's face remained pale, a common aftereffect of excessive blood loss.

Her resilience in enduring until now was a testament to her strong willpower.

Han Minna's spirits were low, not only because she had lost an arm but also because she had learned that her aunt, nephew, niece, and cousin had all perished in the previous chaos.

While losing loved ones was a common occurrence in the apocalyptic world, the sudden loss of so many family members still weighed heavily on Han Minna.

"All done. For the next while, avoid getting your wound wet or engaging in strenuous activities to prevent infection," Song Haitang instructed as she packed away the medical kit.

"Thank you, Sister September," Han Minna immediately replied.

"You've already thanked me once, no need to do so again," Song Haitang smiled and added, "By the way, my real name isn't Li Jiuyue. I'm using a pseudonym to avoid potential trouble."

Han Minna wasn't surprised by this revelation, as she had already heard Zhao Zheng call out "Haitang" several times, likely her real name.

"I understand, Sister September. I'll continue calling you that!"

"Alright," Song Haitang nodded with a smile, then said, "You should rest too. Go lie down on the bed!"

Han Minna felt weak at the moment, her mind spinning with dizziness.

However...

There was only one bed in the truck.

Han Minna was hesitant to use it, fearing she might dirty it.

That bed was meant for Sister September.

"Sister September, I'll just rest on the sofa for a while," Han Minna suggested.

Song Haitang wasn't one for formalities and replied, "Then go ahead and rest on the sofa!"

Han Minna lay down on the sofa but still struggled to keep her eyes open.

Zhao Zheng noticed this and said with a smile, "I'll go check out the roof."

The truck had a ladder leading to the roof, where a folding chair was set up. The woman who had been grilling meat on the roof earlier had used that chair.

Zhao Zheng climbed up and sat in the chair, surveying the surroundings.

After he left, the atmosphere inside the truck relaxed.

Zhao Zheng's powerful aura, coupled with his earlier godlike performance, made it difficult for ordinary people to breathe in his presence.

"San Jie.

Zhao Zheng's daughter immediately ran to Han Minna's side.

Han Minna embraced her cousin with one arm, looking into her innocent eyes filled with fear. Her heart ached for the young girl.

"Yingying, it's okay, don't be scared."

"Yingying, come here quickly, don't disturb your third sister's rest."

The aunt who was cleaning spoke up.

This aunt was Han Chengjun's sister-in-law and Han Minna's aunt, in her mid-forties.

"It's okay, Auntie. I'm not feeling too well yet..." Han Minna said, a hint of worry in her eyes.

She had lost an arm and was now half-disabled. What would her future hold in this apocalyptic world? With her disability, she would undoubtedly be eliminated...

At that moment, Song Haitang suddenly spoke up, "Xiao Na, a normal person with such an injury would probably have fainted by now. It's amazing that you've managed to hold on for so long."

Han Minna immediately replied, "I have to thank you, Sister September, for the Corpse Crystal you gave me. After consuming it, I found that my physique had become much stronger. Otherwise, I wouldn't have been able to last this long."

"Oh?" Song Haitang exclaimed in surprise, "The effects of the Corpse Crystal are that good?"

Earlier, while cleaning up the battlefield, the survivors had collected quite a few Corpse Crystals from the bodies of the Nomads, all of which were handed over to Song Haitang.

"It's a waste to give me such a good thing to eat. Sister September, you should have eaten it yourself." Han Minna said.

Song Haitang didn't say anything further, simply stating, "You should rest."

After leaving those words, she climbed onto the roof of the vehicle as well.

"Hmm? Haitang, you came up here too?"

Seeing Song Haitang, Zhao Zheng smiled and said, "Come sit over here."

The vehicle was moving at a slow pace, probably around thirty miles per hour, and although the weather was cold, the wind on the roof wasn't strong.

The slow speed was a safety precaution.

Everyone knew that there could be dangers ahead, and driving slowly allowed for a quicker reaction time.

Hearing this, Song Haitang sat next to Zhao Zheng.

"Zhao Zheng, are we going to take these survivors to Seoul next?"

"Yes! Isn't that your decision?"

Zhao Zheng smiled and asked, "What's wrong?"

Song Haitang shook her head and said, "When we're close to Seoul, we need to control the speed of our approach. It's best if we arrive in Seoul eleven days from now."

Zhao Zheng understood what Song Haitang meant as soon as he heard this.

They had entered the Spirit Realm ten days ago, and now, exactly ten days had passed.

In another eleven days, all the Extraordinary Beings left in this realm would become corrupted, attracting monsters to attack them.

By then, no shelter would accept them.

"Haitang, are you worried that there might be Extraordinary Beings hiding in the Thunder God Shelter, and that these survivors might reveal our information if they enter too soon?" Zhao Zheng asked.

Song Haitang nodded and said, "Your confidentiality plan has only two months left. We must try to avoid any accidents."

Although this might put the survivors at some risk...

However, to ensure Zhao Zheng's information remained confidential, Song Haitang had to take this approach.

She was kind, but she also knew when to be ruthless.

In her eyes, Zhao Zheng was clearly more important than these survivors.

If it came down to it, she would sacrifice these survivors to protect Zhao Zheng.

"Okay, I understand," she said, a determined look in her eyes.

Zhao Zheng's smile widened as he looked at Song Haitang with satisfaction.

What more could a man ask for in a wife?

"There's one more thing," Song Haitang said, taking out a small transparent bag.

Inside the bag were around twenty Corpse Crystals of various sizes.

Zhao Zheng had seen the survivors handing over these Corpse Crystals to Song Haitang earlier, and he curiously asked, "What are these? It seems to contain some kind of special energy."

Although he had been in the Spirit Realm for ten days, he had been constantly on the move and in combat, so he hadn't come across any information about Corpse Crystals.

"The locals call this a 'Corpse Crystal'. It's a type of energy crystal that forms within the bodies of Mutated Zombies," Song Haitang explained. "According to the information I've gathered, the local Psychics desperately need these. They can enhance their psychic powers, and normal people can consume them to strengthen their bodies!"

"Oh? There's something this good?" Zhao Zheng asked in surprise. "Can we Extraordinary Beings consume them too?"

Song Haitang shook her head. "I'm not sure."

"But our teacher never mentioned these to us."

"If the teacher didn't mention it, there are only three possibilities."

"First, the teacher genuinely doesn't know..."

"Second, someone deliberately concealed the existence and effects of the Corpse Crystal."

"Third, the energy within the Corpse Crystal conflicts with the energy in our bodies as Extraordinary Beings. Consuming it would result in poisoning and death."

"I personally lean towards the third option."

"I believe that over the years, there must have been Extraordinary Beings who obtained Corpse Crystals in this world. Perhaps they couldn't resist the temptation to become stronger and ingested the Corpse Crystals, leading to their poisoning and death, which is why the news never spread."

Zhao Zheng nodded in agreement, "Haitang, your analysis makes sense."

"It's just a wild guess," Song Haitang humbly replied, then asked, "What should we do with these Corpse Crystals?"

Zhao Zheng thought for a moment and smiled, "The nomads we encountered earlier weren't particularly strong. Since they have been consuming Corpse Crystals for a long time to achieve their current level, it suggests that the enhancement from the Corpse Crystals isn't significant. Given that we have the Spirit Realm to enhance our strength, there's no need to risk whether these things are truly toxic. So, my suggestion is to treat them as waste!"

Song Haitang fully agreed with Zhao Zheng's attitude.

She thought the same.

"I'll give these things to little Na later!" Song Haitang said.

Zhao Zheng, who already knew the names of the survivors in the vehicle, smiled, "It seems you and that child get along well!"

Song Haitang nodded, "I admire her tenacious character and am willing to lend her a hand."

Zhao Zheng smiled; he also found the girl to be very strong-willed.

As for how Song Haitang handled the Corpse Crystals, he didn't care much.

"By the way! Haitang, I want to show you something."

As Zhao Zheng spoke, he focused his mind, and a small, unknown object appeared in his hand.

The object was tiny, about the size of a fingernail, with a silver-gray color. It looked very much like a finger bone.

Song Haitang, with her keen senses, immediately felt an invisible force field emanating from the object, though its range was small.

"This thing..." Song Haitang asked, "Is this what you obtained after killing the Aberration?"

Zhao Zheng smiled and nodded, "Yes, it's called the 'Spirit Warding Fingernail.' It's a Paragon Artifact that can be carried. It has excellent effects, enhancing resistance to mental attacks and making the user immune to Illusionary Attacks."

"Haitang, take a look."

Song Haitang took it and examined it. Her left eye displayed a prompt, indicating that it was indeed a Paragon Artifact.

Then, she returned the "Omen Bone" to Zhao Zheng and said with a smile, "My mental power is sufficient. This item is perfect for you. With it, you won't have to fear mental-type Aberrations if you encounter them again."

Zhao Zheng nodded and accepted the finger bone without hesitation.

"Haitang, I plan to gather some information on Aberrations and hunt more of them. Who knows, I might find more valuable items."

Song Haitang had a different opinion.

"Aberrations are very dangerous. It's best not to push it."

"That's why I need to gather information first!" Zhao Zheng smiled. "I won't seek out those troublesome Aberrations. I'll only target the easier ones."

Song Haitang still had some reservations, but she knew Zhao Zheng was very decisive. Once he made up his mind, it was hard for others to influence him.

"Alright, then. Safety first."

...

The two sat on the roof of the vehicle, chatting. The survivors in the back were secretly watching them, mainly focusing on Zhao Zheng.

Seeing the powerful man, everyone's eyes were filled with awe!

For the rest of the day, everything was peaceful.

They didn't encounter any monsters.

When night fell, the convoy pulled over.

Nighttime was when monsters were most active, so it wasn't safe to travel. The convoy formed a circle in the wilderness, and everyone gathered in the center to start a fire and cook.

Rice was long gone, so they mainly heated processed food and dehydrated soup.

After eating, they extinguished the fire and arranged for people to take turns on night watch while the others rested.

This, of course, didn't concern Zhao Zheng and Song Haitang.

They slept in the RV, sharing the same bed.

However, in the middle of the night, Han Chengjun became anxious.

His daughter had a high fever, and it was quite severe.

"Nine Nine, Nine Nine..." Han Minna called out to Song Haitang in a worried tone, "Yingying has a high fever. Can you help her?"

Song Haitang got up immediately and went to the sofa in the RV.

She first touched the child's forehead and confirmed that the fever was indeed severe.

However, it didn't seem like an ordinary high fever...

(End of Chapter)

Chapter end