Chapter 59: Rumors

Some of the survivors were hesitating, some were eager to go out, and the rest were lowering their heads and pretending to be invisible.

Lian Tianci scanned the survivors for a while without speaking. Seeing that nobody dared to cause trouble, he turned to the soldiers and said, "Inform me when the teams are ready."

Saluting him, the soldiers responded in unison, "Yes, Captain!"

After giving the order, Lian Tianci jumped down from the roof of the abandoned car.

When the survivors saw him walk away, they quickly gathered around the four soldiers.

Surrounded by them, one of the soldiers shouted with a hint of annoyance in his tired voice, "Line up! Line up! Those who don’t follow the rules will be blacklisted!"

The second they heard this, the survivors stopped pushing each other and obediently lined up in front of the four soldiers.

While they were busy registering the names, Liu Yun sat on the roadside and took out Gu Zhenwei’s, Lan Zuancheng’s, Qiu Sixun’s, and Ye Xuan’s backpacks from her Dimensional Space.

"Elder Brothers, here are your backpacks," she said as she distributed the backpacks. Liu Yun then took out her own backpack and asked, "Do you guys want some supplies?"

Qiu Sixun checked Ye Xuan’s and his own backpack for a moment, then shook his head. "I still have some water and food here. There is also the medicine you gave me this morning. This should be enough for a few days."

"I still have two bottles of mineral water and three packs of compressed biscuits," Lan Zuancheng added.

Turning to Gu Zhenwei, Liu Yun asked, "What about you, Elder Brother Gu?"

Gu Zhenwei closed his backpack, then replied, "I also still have enough water and food for a few days."

Since none of them needed any supplies, Liu Yun carried her empty backpack, then stood up. "Let’s go. We need to register now, or the spots will be gone."

"Alright."

Standing up, Gu Zhenwei and Lan Zuancheng followed Liu Yun to queue in front of the soldiers.

Leaning against an abandoned car, Ye Xuan watched as the three of them joined the long queue.

Left alone with two patients, Qiu Sixun took out a pack of compressed biscuits and mixed them with some water. When the compressed biscuits turned into a mushy paste, he carefully fed the unconscious Ru Jianxiao.

While queuing at the back of the line, Liu Yun listened to the survivors’ low whispers and secret conversations.

"I heard that Lie Huo Military Base is ranked third in Fudi Province. I hope that place is large enough to accommodate us," said a thin, dirty man standing in front of Liu Yun.

Leaning back slightly, his companion asked, "Have you heard about that matter regarding Lie Huo Military Base?"

"What matter are you talking about?" the man asked curiously.

Becoming curious, Liu Yun took a step closer to the man. She perked up her ears as she patiently waited for the man’s companion to spill the news.

Looking at the man, his companion asked in shock, "Brother, you really didn’t hear about that?"

Shaking his head, the man explained, "I only joined this convoy four days ago. Although I heard about Lie Huo Military Base through the official channel broadcasts in the past, this is the first time I have left my village."

Nodding in understanding, his companion said in a low voice, "Well, since you came from a village, it’s not strange that you didn’t hear about the news."

Becoming more curious, the man whispered, "So, what happened at the Lie Huo Military Base?"

His companion glanced around vigilantly for a few seconds, then replied, "I heard that the Lie Huo Military Base changed its base commander a few weeks ago. The new base commander is a young man in his twenties and is rumored to be a member of an elite family from the capital."

Listening to his words, the man commented in a voice filled with admiration, "That base commander must be very strong to become a base commander at such a young age."

Noticing that his companion didn’t look right, he asked, "Why do you look like that? Isn’t having a strong base commander a good thing for us?"

When asked this by the man, his companion whispered, "It would be a good thing if this new base commander were a normal person."

Hearing this, the man blinked and curiously asked, "Are you saying that he isn’t normal?"

The man nodded as he replied, "I heard that this new base commander hasn’t eaten or drunk anything since he arrived at the Lie Huo Military Base, and that’s already been three weeks!"

The moment his words fell, not only the man but even Liu Yun took a sharp breath.

’Hiss! Is he still alive after starving for three weeks? I wonder how he survived without food and water.’

Looking at the man’s shocked expression, his companion added, "This isn’t even the worst news. I heard that people who came out of the Lie Huo Military Base said that this new base commander also never appears in public and drinks blood."

"Another rumor says that a kid accidentally saw him from a distance when he first arrived at the base, and the kid disappeared a few hours later. Now, those who are still living at the Lie Huo Military Base are secretly leaving the base."

Clenching his hands, he said worriedly, "I don’t know if going there is the right choice. What if this new base commander is really a monster?"

After listening to the news, the man also fell silent. After a long moment of thought, he patted his companion on the shoulder and let out a long sigh.

"Those are just rumors. Let’s focus on finding supplies today. If we fail to find something to eat, we will starve to death before we even reach the Lie Huo Military Base."

Hearing this, his companion sighed, then muttered, "Mhm. Let’s find supplies first."

While the two of them were shrouded in a gloomy atmosphere, Liu Yun took a step away from the man, then scanned her surroundings.

Seeing that a long line had formed behind Gu Zhenwei after only a few minutes, she turned to the other survivors queuing in the other lines.

Standing in the line next to her, a young woman who looked like a high schooler sensed her gaze. Raising her eyes, she met Liu Yun’s gaze and smiled.

Staring at her innocent, smiling face, Liu Yun nodded slightly at her, then looked away.

Seeing this, the young woman’s smile faded as she lowered her head dejectedly.

Standing behind her, a tall man with similar features to hers asked, "What’s wrong?"

The young woman shook her head, then replied softly, "Nothing."

Frowning slightly, the man turned to the side and saw Liu Yun. Seeing that she was busy looking around, the man retracted his gaze.

However, his small movements were clearly noticed by Lan Zuancheng, who was standing between Liu Yun and Gu Zhenwei.

Observing the man and the young woman, Lan Zuancheng’s eyes flickered for a second. Frowning slightly, he stared at the man and thought, ’... Why is he here?’