Chapter 133: Departure

Lone Wolf was stunned.

What was going on? He hadn't even asked for money yet, and here was Fang Xia seizing the initiative?

"What's wrong? Still thinking about it? Just show some sincerity; a hundred or two of those Tier 3 upgrade crystals will do. We’re all brothers, I won't overcharge you."

Lone Wolf stammered for a long time, unable to get a word out.

"Commander Fang, I, Bai Yi, rarely admire anyone, but you truly earn my respect. A small token of help—I hope you succeed."

Fang Xia never expected Bai Yi to actually hand him fifty Tier 3 upgrade crystals.

"I lack your courage and have chosen to shrink back into Dawn City. I hope that one day, you can uncover the truth behind this apocalypse and save all the surviving humans."

Fang Xia didn't know how to respond. To be honest, he didn't have such grand ambitions about saving all of humanity. His instincts simply told him that if he didn't fight, he would die anyway. But in truth, the outcome was the same; if Fang Xia could make it to the end, it would effectively mean saving everyone.

So, Fang Xia nodded solemnly and accepted the crystals Bai Yi handed over. After tucking them into his storage space, he turned back to look at Lone Wolf.

"You can't refuse now, can you? Look at Bai Yi—what a grand perspective. Then look at yourself. I’ve done you such a huge favor, yet you're still being all hesitant."

Lone Wolf was now caught in a dilemma. His only regret was coming to stir up this muddy water today; wouldn't it have been better to just stay home and watch Fang Xia leave? Seeing that Lone Wolf still didn't move, Fang Xia took a step forward, and Lone Wolf was so startled he retreated two or three steps.

"Alright, alright! I'll give them, okay?"

Fang Xia touched his face in bewilderment. Was he really that scary? Forget it; since he was paying up, he wouldn't make things difficult for him. In the end, Lone Wolf also produced fifty Tier 3 upgrade crystals.

He was different from the other two. Chen Gang had long since reached Tier 5, and Bai Yi, who hadn't hit Tier 5 by New Year's Eve, was now a Tier 5 as well. Only Lone Wolf was still struggling to gather the crystals needed to reach Tier 5. Although there were many more Tier 3 zombies now, fifty crystals still represented many days of hard-earned harvest.

"I'm off, gentlemen."

Fang Xia cupped his hands in a salute to the three of them and led Bai Xing back to his team.

"Move out!"

At Fang Xia's command, the force of over two thousand people began to march out of the city in the formation they had rehearsed. The logistics team traveled in the center with Fang Xia and his core group, while the combat units surrounded them. The Tiger-Leopard Unit, led by Guo Yu, marched at the front. It wasn't to use them as cannon fodder; they would rotate duties once they were out of the city.

The three men stood silently in the city, watching Fang Xia’s group of two thousand until they disappeared from sight.

"Brother Fang, according to our scouted route, it’s best to take the highway. It’s shorter and less prone to getting lost. Without GPS, following the highway is the safest bet."

They had already traveled over ten miles out of Dawn City, following the general direction toward their destination, Magic City. If they took provincial or national roads, they risked getting lost at intersections or encountering severe road damage. The highway didn't have that worry; even if there were some damaged sections, the path remained clear.

Fang Xia agreed with this assessment and relayed the order to Guo Yu up front, directing the main force toward the highway entrance. There were hardly any zombies along the way, mostly just stragglers that the team dispatched without any effort.

Trouble only appeared at the highway toll station.

"Brother Fang, there are quite a few zombies at the junction."

Even from a distance, everyone could see them. A large cluster of zombies had gathered at the toll booths.

"Guo Yu and his team can handle it."

Fang Xia didn't worry. Unless the cluster was full of Tier 2 zombies or higher, Guo Yu shouldn't have any trouble. As they spoke, Guo Yu’s team had already engaged the zombies. The toll gate wasn't very wide, so they wouldn't be surrounded; the danger wasn't high, as long as they watched out for high-tier zombies within the horde.

After watching for a while, Fang Xia frowned. The quality of these zombies was a bit high—they had already encountered five or six Tier 3 zombies in such a short time. This suggested there was at least one Tier 4 zombie in the mix.

Guo Yu at the front had noticed the same thing. He pulled back from the direct fighting, keeping a watchful eye on the movements within the horde. Among his thousand-plus men, Guo Yu was the only Tier 4 fighter. It was simple logic: Tier 4 fighters were already elite in Dawn City and didn't need to come along and take such risks.

Except for Fang Xia’s own inner circle of women—those women had been brainwashed, and their ultimate dream was basically to climb into Fang Xia's bed—most of those willing to follow Guo Yu out were Tier 1 and Tier 2 fighters. However, after they left the city, Fang Xia had provided a batch of upgrade crystals to raise all the Tier 1 fighters to Tier 2, fulfilling a promise he had made to Guo Yu. Such small change was nothing for Fang Xia to part with.

Ten minutes later, as the battle neared its end, the Tier 4 zombie finally revealed itself, wounding three people in quick succession. Just as it prepared to attack a fourth, Guo Yu locked onto it. Within twenty seconds, the Tier 4 zombie was finished off by Guo Yu.

Fang Xia, watching from afar, nodded in approval, while the young women around him were visibly astonished. No wonder the commander insisted on bringing him along, even though he had a mother he needed to have cared for. Even though Dawn City had one or two hundred Tier 4 fighters, fewer than twenty could likely kill a Tier 4 zombie that quickly in a one-on-one fight. Even within Fang Xia's own team, probably only four people could accomplish such a feat.

With the Tier 4 zombie dead, the battle quickly concluded. Guo Yu’s men gathered the spoils and continued forward.

Whether in his previous life or this one, this was the first time Fang Xia had traveled this far from human settlements; he was just as blind to the outside world as anyone else. However, once on the highway, he realized the situation wasn't as dire as he had imagined. It was far less intense than the zombie sieges, or even the times he had led teams out of the city in the past.

He concluded that in places devoid of human life, zombies were also relatively sparse. This only served to prove one thing: all of this was premeditated.

Were they keeping humans captive, using zombie crystals to raise human strength, only to use that strength as energy to further increase the power of high-tier zombies? This was the only theory Fang Xia could come up with for now. Perhaps there were even deeper reasons, but his current strength was simply not enough to touch upon them.