Escape from the Deep

The Lynx All-Terrain Vehicle charged violently into the river, splashing up large swaths of water.

If it were an ordinary vehicle, it would have likely sunk straight to the bottom after this charge, but the Lynx All-Terrain Vehicle would not.

It was called an all-terrain vehicle because this type of vehicle could travel on all kinds of terrain.

Among them, fording was one of the Lynx vehicle's basic capabilities.

The high doors and deep cabin allowed this vehicle to float on the water's surface like a small boat.

Not only was it four-wheel drive, but it could also move forward on the water's surface.

The Three-Wheeled Motorcycle towed behind the Lynx vehicle could also float on the water surface.

Other motorcycles could not, but this kind of motorcycle with a huge pannier could. With the towing of the Lynx vehicle in front, the motorcycle could barely float on the surface and follow along.

Thus, the Lynx along with the pannier motorcycle noisily charged into the river and started traveling upstream in a northwest direction against the current.

Behind them, the zombies roared as they rushed to the water's edge but did not dare enter deeply.

The zombies in front were pushed by those behind and fell directly into the water. After struggling for a bit they disappeared below the surface.

They could only let out shrieks at the Lynx vehicle on the river and instinctively chase along the riverbank. But their speed was very slow. After a short while, they could only watch as the vehicle disappeared from their sight.

Xiao Fan looked back at the zombies on the riverbank. His whole body relaxed as he sat in the seat.

The plan had finally succeeded!

When he obtained the Lynx vehicle, he had thought of leaving along the river. The only problem was how to get from the hospital to the riverside.

Fortunately, the heavy rain had given him this opportunity, finally allowing him a chance to leave that hell on earth.

After leaving this time, he would not casually take risks entering big cities again. Finding a place to hide and grow stronger was absolutely the right thing to do before having formidable power.

Soon though, Xiao Fan discovered another problem.

In the river water, there were faint purplish dots of light.

He observed them closely and quickly realized they were large fish undulating in the water.

Usually there were no large fish in the water near this big city, only some small fish, mostly crucian carp and other ordinary freshwater fish.

But now, these fish had clearly grown much bigger, each at least ten or so pounds. They swam near the vehicle but did not have the ability to leap from the water to attack them.

By this point, Xiao Fan was certain that not only humans and animals like cats and dogs were mutating, but these aquatic fish had also begun to mutate.

"Phew! This world really has gone mad."

Xiao Fan leaned back in his seat and glanced at the riverbank.

Traveling along the river allowed him to relax and observe both banks.

The whole city was still shrouded in dust like he had seen before. Even though the rain had stopped, the sky remained murky gray.

He could still see many zombies on the riverbank. Some let out shrieks when they saw the vehicle.

When he first saw this, it was shocking and despairing, but after seeing it more, Xiao Fan realized he was gradually becoming numb.

He didn't know how long this situation would last, but he knew he would not watch this world sink into ruin.

There must be a way. This path was long and arduous, but he looked forward to the future.

He told Xu Qiang, "When the vehicle leaves the city and the highway is no longer congested, we'll choose to go ashore."

Xu Qiang nodded in agreement. Xiao Fan also felt reassured and closed his eyes to rest.

After an unknown amount of time, he felt the vehicle vibrate slightly below him and opened his eyes.

Looking around, he realized there were no more tall buildings, only some low buildings behind them.

"Where are we now?"

"Reporting Commander, we just passed through the urban-rural fringe area of Shenhai City. There are very few vehicles here now."

Xiao Fan nodded. He took out a map from Xu Qiang's backpack.

That guy's backpack was like a treasure trove, not only containing binoculars, rations and water, but also night vision goggles, grenades, ropes, maps, compasses and more, much richer in supplies than the Commander.

It was a map of China. Xiao Fan looked at the map and determined a general route.

The route was simple - take the highway.

With no planes now, taking rural roads the eight thousand kilometer journey would take who knows how long. The highway was faster.

Xiao Fan had many fighters who could drive, and the vehicle quality from the System was top notch. As long as they had enough fuel, driving twenty hours a day would be no problem.

If the highway went smoothly, in ten days, or even one week, Xiao Fan could possibly return home.

But there was one more thing Xiao Fan wanted - to find a large truck, something like a heavy freight vehicle.

He needed to carry a lot of fuel, food, and even cooking tools. He couldn't get by without a large vehicle.

He looked left and right and decided to go to a highway service area.

There were many vehicles on the highway. He would definitely be able to find the heavy truck he needed.

The service area also had supermarkets and gas stations, and restaurants too. It would be good to collect supplies there without wasting any time.

Thinking this, Xiao Fan drove towards the highway entrance at the urban-rural fringe.

At the entrance was a toll station, but the station booths had been smashed in and the barriers were long broken.

There weren't too many abandoned vehicles on the highway, but occasionally there would be a small car randomly abandoned on the roadside, mostly small vehicles without value to Xiao Fan.

The vehicle started racing down the highway, and the speed of the pannier motorcycle behind also picked up. Xiao Tian sat in the pannier with his long tongue sticking out, his shaggy fur blown upright by the wind.

Along the highway were golden wheat fields. It was almost wheat harvest season, but there was no one left to reap them.

After traveling nearly 100 km, Xiao Fan made a discovery - the wilderness and rural areas seemed to have barely suffered any meteor strikes. He didn't know why.

At noon, all weapons and fuel automatically refreshed. The vehicle continued onward. At three in the afternoon, Xiao Fan finally saw the first service area.

Daqingshan Service Area.

This service area had many restaurants. Relying on the mountain to eat the mountain, there were many wild mountain ingredients here, a midway stop for long distance buses with heavy passenger flow. Xiao Fan had eaten here before too.

As the vehicle approached Daqingshan Service Area, it gradually slowed to a stop.

The service area was in ruins, with many overturned vehicles haphazardly parked but not a soul in sight.

Xiao Fan's radar range was 50 meters but he didn't detect any signs of life. Instead, a strong sulfur smell rushed up.