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"Wow!" With Miao Jia's exclamation, everyone looked toward the rice fields on both sides of the road.
On either side of the road were the fields of suburban villages, vast expanses of ripening rice swaying in layers under the gentle breeze, a breathtaking sight.
Fu Shiwu suddenly realized that it was already autumn.
Ultimately, they were relatively fortunate; when they left the storage center, it was the season of abundant fruit, a time when they lacked no food.
Tang Xuhai had no plans to forage in the wild, so despite inadequate supplies, he wasn't worried about what to eat.
"These things can feed a lot of people," Fu Shiwu remarked, looking at the wheat fields outside the window.
"Right now, it's best not to dwell on the grains on both sides, or it's a dead end!" Tang Xuhai said.
Fu Shiwu was startled, then thought of something: "Will those people attacked by the alien tide come to harvest this rice?"
Tang Xuhai fell silent for a moment before saying, "Leaving the protection of the troops means being prepared to bear all consequences. Without Miao Jia's satellite images, we might not have been able to make up our minds to leave at this time."
Fu Shiwu fell silent.
He knew now wasn't the time for abundant sympathy for others; they themselves might not safely escape.
Miao Jia looked at the computer screen and said, "Fu Ge, relax. The alien tide won't reach the suburbs of Cloud City for another 20 hours. As long as we're not too greedy, grab some food and leave in time, there won't be any major problems."
At that moment, the car jolted, pulling Fu Shiwu out of his low mood. He looked ahead and noticed lush vegetation growing on both sides of the road, flourishing so much that it damaged the roadbed, causing stones to roll onto the surface.
Fu Shiwu coldly eyed the exuberant greenery outside, pushed his glasses, and said, "At this rate, these plants will eventually destroy the roads."
"Yeah," Tang Xuhai nodded, "So, in the future, we need to modify the vehicles into armored ones, strengthening their ability to move in any terrain."
Fu Shiwu turned to look at Tang Xuhai's determined profile and said, "Are you planning to make them tracked vehicles underneath?"
Tang Xuhai paused, giving him a wry smile. "Then it becomes a tank. Modern armored vehicles usually have reinforced tires, capable of handling most terrains. But who knows, now that I have metal control abilities, maybe I'll add metal to the outer layer of the tires, not much different from tracks."
"Wow! Hai Ge, then it truly becomes a tank!" Miao Jia exclaimed excitedly.
The people in the car chatted casually, making the journey less dull. The atmosphere in the two cars trailing behind wasn't dull either.
Horn Ting drove one car with two others, one being Ma Dong, an earth element, and the other a mutant named Liu Zhao. The remaining four were in the car driven by Olande.
Ma Dong looked back at the retreating rice fields, wearing a regretful expression.
"There's nothing to regret. Compared to these things, our lives matter more. What use is plenty of food without life?" Liu Zhao also looked outside with a tilted head.
"All along this route are villages, plenty of food everywhere, don't be so short-sighted," Horn Ting retorted, glancing at Ma Dong.
Ma Dong withdrew his gaze sheepishly, grunting in agreement, refraining from looking.
Ma Dong was just a regular worker before awakening his abilities. He had never been in contact with someone as seemingly high-class as Horn Ting. Being around him made Ma Dong feel somewhat inadequate.
Though Liu Zhao's background wasn't particularly remarkable, being a company executive, he was bolder than Ma Dong.
Liu Zhao, curious, asked Horn Ting, "Mr. Horn, how did you join this team?"
Horn Ting replied, "No need to be so formal. From now on, we're comrades. Just call me by my name. In that situation, anyone with foresight would want to leave. I simply made the same choice."
Listening, Liu Zhao couldn't help but scoff silently.
Horn Ting's thoughts were inscrutable to most. Choosing Tang Xuhai was just a temporary measure, but being here surprisingly pleased him. Seeing that car and Miao Jia, who was skilled in gathering intel, perhaps he might actually have the chance to return to the capital.
In the last car, four people were in a lively discussion about Fu Shiwu's identity.
"Mr. Fu doesn't look old, but he's quite imposing," Wu Shan commented.
"I think Mr. Fu must have some special background; otherwise, Tang Xuhai, who's so powerful with his fire abilities, and a pyrokineticist, all respect him so much," a wood elemental named Liu Peiqi speculated uncertainly.
"Isn't that good?" Wang Dan, an average-looking but elegant woman, added. With her graceful demeanor, she exuded a sense of authority. "Their backgrounds are also part of their power. People like that fear death; they won't recklessly put themselves in danger."
Olande smiled as he listened to the three.
At this point, Wu Shan diverted the conversation to Olande: "Mr. Olande, how did you end up in Cloud City? Frankly, seeing a foreigner suddenly was quite surprising. Your Mandarin is so standard."
Olande, despite being addressed as 'Mr.,' didn't mind. His full name, Olande Parille, replied with a smile, "I was sent to your country. When the incident occurred, I happened to be in Cloud City for business negotiations. Things happened abruptly; I couldn't return home and had to stay here. Fortunately, the people of Cloud City are very friendly and have taken great care of me."
"That's because you're a foreigner. Most locals don't want to expose any shortcomings in front of foreigners," Liu Peiqi muttered under his breath.
"Tang is quite responsible, driving his car ahead," Olande admired.
"If they don't drive that kind of car ahead, should they let us in these fragile cars go first?" Wu Shan remarked.
Wang Dan glanced at him. These people gathered hastily; everyone had their own character and thoughts. Wang Dan, particularly, looked down on Wu Shan, not for any specific reason but simply observing that while Tang Xuhai's car seemed intimidating, it was, in fact, modified by themselves, showcasing their skill. Wu Shan's attitude, seemingly entitled, was particularly irksome.
Different from Wang Dan's interest in Tang Xuhai, Olande found Fu Shiwu's abilities impressive. Being an archer himself, he admired Fu Shiwu's skill with a gun. Olande was one of the people who noticed Fu Shiwu's remarkable marksmanship that day.
Unlike the kind of marksman who could shoot someone in the head in one shot, although Fu Shiwu fired multiple shots, he cleverly achieved his intended goal, earning genuine admiration from Olande.
Unlike the confident duo, Prince Ping felt overwhelmed by the impromptu gathering
of people.
More people meant more strength, that was his reason for actively rallying people.
However, when they left the storage center, driving in cars barely sufficient, and hurriedly followed Tang Xuhai's group, disputes emerged continuously.
"Why are we going this way!" someone angrily spat, spraying saliva on Prince Ping's face. "Didn't the soldiers say that direction has an alien tide?!"
"Then where isn't there an alien tide?" Prince Ping yelled impatiently. "In this world now, which direction doesn't have an alien tide? If you know, tell me and we'll head there! Do you know?!"
Of course, that person didn't know, so they reluctantly asked, "Why stubbornly go in that direction?"
Prince Ping, suppressing his anger, said in a calm tone, "Trust me, I have my judgments. You've all followed me for so long; when have you suffered?"
True enough, the mutants simmered down, reluctantly complying and continuing on their journey.
Prince Ping's confidence stemmed from Tang Xuhai's boldness in taking that direction, signifying it was undoubtedly safe. They needed to follow quickly to break through and reach a safe place.
Ideas were beautiful, but reality was cruel. When they exited Cloud City and saw the abundant landscape on both sides of the road, the people erupted!
Who would want to eat poorly every day!
Though they hadn't missed a day of food during this time, no one had eaten their fill. A vast expanse of golden rice fields in front made everyone's mouths water.
This was all food!
Immediately, someone stopped Prince Ping's car, insisting on grabbing food before continuing.
"No! Absolutely not!" Prince Ping sternly declared. "The priority now is to break out, and once outside, we can naturally find food!"
"Where do we find it?" The person retorted, "Once out of Cloud City, it's all mountain roads. Where's the food?! Rushing out, no one brought food. Do you want people to gnaw on tree bark?"
Prince Ping was momentarily speechless, feeling frustrated. If this person hadn't been a mutant, quite powerful, he would have dealt with them quietly.
At this moment, his family approached, saying, "Let's get some food; I don't want to go hungry."
Prince Ping glanced at the only national road, sighing inwardly. "Act quickly; we also need to hurry on the road."
The crowd cheered and rushed into the rice fields like starving wolves among sheep. With no tools, they used their hands.
Not just them, even the teams that belonged to other factions couldn't resist and joined the foraging.
If Prince Ping had been an influential leader with persuasive abilities, perhaps stopping for food wouldn't have led to any issues. Unfortunately, as his power grew, some mutants within started vying for power against him, causing a decline in his credibility. Greed took over at this point when the timing to halt was crucial, leading to harm for everyone.
Fu Shiwu's group was unaware of the tragedy behind them, merely following their planned route toward the target.
"How far until the fork in the road?" Tang Xuhai asked.
"Just a moment, I'm checking," Miao Jia replied, focused on the computer screen.
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