When He Jin and his party had arrived at the mountain forest, Lin Wenbo's helicopter had also flown to the garrison battalion and quickly pa.s.sed over it. Due to the darkness of the night, the situation on the ground could not be clearly seen. They didn't dare hover over the camp nor dare shed the light columns on it. They were afraid of attracting zombies and put the supposed people there in danger. Instead, they had to turn on the heat source scanner to scan the building.

"Wenbo, there are no living beings below!" said the special force's soldier sitting in the pa.s.senger seat and staring at the scanner.

"n.o.body?" Lin Wenbo's heart was tight as he stared at the scanner screen, hoping to see the expected red spots. However, the helicopter pa.s.sed several times over the battalion without any result.

"They must have seen that the camp was deserted and left." The helicopter pilot a.n.a.lyzed: "Would you like me to keep flying around here and searching with the scanner?"

"No, the noise of the helicopter will lead a large group of zombies to our location. If they are on the ground and we can't find a suitable landing spot in time to rescue them, it would be equal to harming them. Unless we can identify their exact position, there's no use to keep searching," Lin Wenbo calmly a.n.a.lyzed.

The more he couldn't find that person, the more he warned himself not to panic. He had a hunch that he was getting closer to Xiaoxin.

Everyone was silent and thought about other possible solutions. Lin Wenbo rubbed his temples to ease his headache when suddenly, a flash of insight came to his mind. He quickly took out the satellite communicator, connected the technical department of the boot camp, and asked them to find the specific location of the Hummer H6. The car had been modified and there was even a satellite positioning system installed in the car which he should have thought of from the beginning.

Although the waiting period was only a short minute, to Lin Wenbo, it felt extremely long.

It seemed as though almost a century had pa.s.sed by - his hand holding the microphone had started twitching slightly and was slippery from cold sweat - before there was finally a response.

"North lat.i.tude 31 degrees 01 minutes and 56.07 seconds, East longitude 121 degrees 13 minutes 31.89 seconds, there's currently no sign of movement? Alright, information well-received." Lin Wenbo repeated the geographical coordinates while indicating his comrades to search on the map.

"Found it. They're in the mountains, 20 km away from the front of Qingshui Town, close to 306 National Road. It seems that they were heading to our base location." The special forces soldier pointed to a place on the map.

"No, Xiaoxin doesn't know where our base is. I guess they want to take the highway. They're not moving right now so we better hurry." Lin Wenbo patted the pilot's shoulder and urged him on.

"Yes." The pilot immediately turned the helicopter towards Qingshui town and sighed: "Really, the son of the head of Gong family. Not only did he leave the safety of the city but he also traveled so far. I really don't know how he did it! I heard he was just 16 years old this year?"

"Yes! That kid is amazing. Even a dozen of us could not hold up against him. I'm not surprised that he could survive by himself!" The special force's soldier in the pa.s.senger seat immediately revealed the truth of his admiration towards Gong Lixin, half of it said to put Lin Wenbo's heart at ease. Although Lin Wenbo didn't show it on his face but the way his body tightened to the extreme clearly showed how his strong emotions had an effect on him.

Sure enough, after listening to their conversation, Lin Wenbo's frown slightly eased and his wildly beating heart also calmed down. Only his pair of dark eyes stared at the night sky outside the window, as if he was trying to see through it, straight to the place where Gong Lixin was.

*****

Close to the wild forest near the 306 National Road, the group who had finally escaped and had finished eating was sitting in a circle around the small campfire.

Gong Lixin licked the straw, rubbed his wet lips, and sipped the milk into his small mouth. At present, the food was still abundant so he did not have to take out the Bugu Dan. He Jin, who sat beside him, pulled up the thin blanket that had slipped down to his waist before looking around at everyone.

He chose to speak then.

"Tonight, we'll still follow the old rule, taking turns to keep watch in the night. Two people per watch and each group keeps watch for two hours. Any questions?"

"None!" The crowd answered in unison, shaking their heads.

"I want to be in Big Brother He's group!" Gong Lixin didn't wait for He Jin to open his mouth. He released the straw and looked up at the other to show his interest. After getting along with him for a few days, Gong Lixin quite liked the calm, reliable, gentle, and considerate Big Brother He. He had the most positive feelings towards him than anyone else in their team.

"Of course." He Jin reached out and gently patted the child's shoulder as deep joy pa.s.sed through his dark eyes.

"Hey! I want to be in the same group as Young Master Gong!" Lu Yun raised his hand in protest.

He Jin's cold eyes turned towards him and he immediately shut his mouth, letting the matter go. Wu Ming patted him on the shoulder and comforted him: "Young Master Lu, I'll stay up with you." Lu Yun swore but didn't protest.

The last four people also reached a consensus. One group had Gu Nan and Ma Jun, and another group had Da Liu and w.a.n.g Tao. Starting from midnight, each group would keep watch for two hours. With more people in their group, the a.s.signed task became lighter, making it so that everyone could get enough sleep.

"Actually, I can also help keep watch. I've learned to keep watch from my grandfather since I was a child." Sun Tiantian whispered softly after making sure her younger brother had fallen asleep.

"No, we have enough manpower. If there were not enough people, we won't be polite, even your younger brother would have to keep watch at night!" He Jin gave her a glance and she took note of another of his good point in her mind. He took out four daggers from his bag and handed two of them to her. "Hold on to these. Use them to defend you and your younger brother when necessary."

"Oh, thank you!" Sun Tiantian took them gratefully.

He Jin threw the other knives to Ling Yu, who was sitting on the other side of Gong Lixin, and Ling Yin, who was sitting near Lu Yun. Both of them hesitated but sorrowfully picked them up with loose hands as if they were picking up flowers.

He Jin frowned in disgust.

Ling Yin did not care, moving the knife to the side as she squinted at the straw through which Gong Lixin was drinking milk, and sweetly looked at it. "Young Master Gong, is that milk? Could you give me a sip? I'm used to drinking milk at night. If I don't drink milk, I can't sleep."

Hearing the sound of her sweet voice, He Jin's left scar couldn't help but throb, his face a mask of suffocating anger.

"Can't!" Gong Lixin's head didn't even lift as he refused.

"Why?" The sound of Ling Yin's voice suddenly rose and she couldn't believe her ears. After growing accustomed to being spoiled, she couldn't accept Gong Lixin's cold att.i.tude. She never thought that she would be rejected by the other party.

The suffocating anger in He Jin's eyes dissipated and he patted the head of the spoiled child. He was very satisfied with his reaction.

"This was given to me by Big Brother He. If you want to drink, you'll have to ask big brother." Gong Lixin's explanation was simple – He Jin gave it to him so he took it. He didn't want to share it with others and he wasn't that nice that he'd ask He Jin for her. It's not like he didn't notice at all that the previous eggs and the current milk were all prepared for him.

Ling Yin was stiff and looked at He Jin but only saw dark eyes staring at her. The anger hidden in those eyes was undisguised and the knife wound on his forehead, combined with his cold expression, made it seem as though he would bite her and split her open.

Ling Yin was not bold enough to ask. Ling Yu, who sat on the side, saw this and couldn't help but laugh. She saw it earlier. Aside from Young Master Gong, He Jin wasn't nice to anyone. Not even his employer, Lu Yun, could get him to give him face. As for Young Master Gong, he was purely an oblivious child. To try winning his favor was like throwing something at a blind person. If one wanted to seduce someone, it was better to pick someone who was more eager like the impulsive Lu Yun. That Lu Yun was Lu Zhenxuan's son was a known fact.

With such a thought, Ling Yu secretly pulled at Lu Yun's clothes, and blus.h.i.+ngly whispered: "Young Master Lu, I want to go to the bathroom, will you accompany me?"

The girl's busty chest was pus.h.i.+ng against his arms and she was well-aware of it. Looking at the other with shyness while revealing obvious intentions using body language, Lu Yun had such experience from a young age and quickly nodded.

Ling Yin saw them walking towards the darkness and she gritted her teeth in silence for a while before she looked up at Gong Lixin. She plumped up her chest and approached Gong Lixin, placing her hands on his lap. As she was about to speak, she was interrupted by He Jin's cold voice. "You want to go to the bathroom, go by yourself." [1]

When he said this, He Jin's blade found the back of Ling Yin's neck, ready to easily end her in a single stroke.

Gong Lixin held the straw in his mouth and with bulging cheeks filled with milk, looked up at the two of them with a confused look on his face. He Jin bowed his head and looked at him. The cold expression on his face slightly dissipated. With a gentle expression, he wiped the trace of milk from the corner of the other's mouth.

Ling Yin only felt the sharp blade at her back, her bones cold and stiff. After a long time, she regained her voice and twitched as she said, "I don't need to go," and expressed with her pleading eyes to let her go.

He Jin took a look at her, his coldness no different from earlier, and slowly removed the blade. Ling Yin immediately used her other hand to hold the back of her neck where the knife had been, feeling as if the rest of her heart had floated away. Because of these two, she was almost killed so she did not dare think to try again.

"Miss Ling Yin, let me go with you?" Ma Jun carefully opened his mouth, his face red and his eyes full of expectations.

"No, thank you." Ling Yin smiled stiffly and refused.

Ma Jun shut up and felt too embarra.s.sed to ask again. For a while, aside from the subtle noise coming from the burning bonfire, the quiet murmur of the wild forest was heard.

After a few minutes, the Hummer which was parked on the side of the road suddenly rocked up and down, accompanied by groans and a woman's moan. The people nearby were all stiff as a board except for Gong Lixin who had a strong mentality. In the underground palace, he saw many such scenes and was used to it.

"Sister, how is the car moving?" Sun Jie, who had just woken up not long ago, pointed at the car not far away and asked curiously.

Sun Tiantian's face was red and she blocked both of Sun Jie's ears. The sound coming from the car was getting louder and louder and was mixed with the low groans of a man. It was really not suitable for the ears of children.

w.a.n.g Tao's dark skin had a red and purple hue under the bonfire and the clothed area covering his crotch started to form a tent. He quickly crossed his legs to try and cover up this physiological reaction. Gu Nan and Ma Jun also crossed their legs, their faces perfect masks of calmness. Only the tips of their ears were red.

After being a follower of Young Master Lu, this scene had become normal to Wu Ming and thus he had no strange reaction. He resembled an old man as he sat and tended to the burning bonfire. Gong Lixin finally finished drinking his milk and after throwing the milk carton into the fire, he inadvertently glanced at the vibrating car.

He Jin already had a dark face as he ground his teeth back and forth. If he wasn't afraid of having Gong Lixin see something he shouldn't have to, he would have pulled open the door of the car and dragged out Lu Yun. Sure enough, because Lu Yun was protected even after the commence of the apocalypse, he was able to enjoy his days in a leisurely manner and this time, even managed to find a woman.

"There's nothing to look at, don't look at it." He Jin whispered as he put his arms around the child and brought him close to his chest, blocking his line of sight and his ears. The child was still young, it was not good for him to get exposed to this so early. Tomorrow, he would get rid of these two restless women! He Jin thought as he gnashed his teeth.

"Hey, Brother He, let me go. I heard a helicopter coming over." Gong Lixin said as he patted He Jin's hands.

Helicopter? He Jin heard the words and immediately let go as he tried to listen. The surrounding people all had expectant looks on their faces as they stared up at the dark sky.

After a long while, everyone grew disappointed and withdrew their gaze. They didn't hear anything except for the sound of the bonfire and the wind.

"They're still 30 minutes away," Gong Lixin faintly explained.

The frustrated look of the people immediately turned into surprise. There was no need to convince them of Young Master Gong's hearing ability. Gu Nan and Ma Jun quickly added firewood to the fire, trying to make it bigger and more noticeable. Wu Ming got up and ran up to the shaking car, calling Young Master Lu in a hurry so that the people on the helicopter wouldn't see him with his pants down. [2]

[1] Wuxian: Behold, the power of a jealous ML. Alas, the poor girl didn't even stand a chance..

[2] Wuxian: What would Lu Yun's life be if Wu Ming weren't around to constantly try and keep him in line?