Chapter 5: The Encounter
Seeing the current situation, these people finally realized that if they didn’t act themselves, they would never get anything good. Rather than that, it would be better to take the initiative. At the very least, they wouldn’t end up as miserably as that old man earlier.
So the remaining people gritted their teeth, picked up their weapons, and rushed toward the remaining zombies.
The number of zombies had never been large to begin with, and Mo Xiu had already dealt with two of them. With seven or eight people working together to handle the last two zombies, it was actually quite easy.
However, they were far too panicked. By the time the two zombies were finally beaten to the ground and stopped moving, most of their strength had already been exhausted.
What made things even more despairing was that they still had a long way to go. They couldn’t just turn back now—otherwise the suffering they had endured earlier would all have been for nothing.
Xi Wenlin watched as Mo Xiu calmly swept his gaze over the mutilated zombie corpses. A chill ran through his body.
He finally realized that Mo Xiu had truly changed.
He was no longer someone who could be controlled or manipulated like before.
With heavy hearts, the group continued forward. Compared with the beginning, they were now much more cautious, each of them staying extremely alert.
Only the old man who had nearly wet his pants earlier from fear of the zombies had twisted his ankle again when he fell. Limping badly, he lagged behind at the back of the group.
He wanted to call his wife to help support him. But earlier he had pushed the old lady toward the zombies to save himself. Now she kept far away from him. No matter how much he shouted and cursed, she pretended not to hear.
The old man kept cursing loudly, saying all kinds of foul things in an attempt to force her to come back and help him.
Mo Xiu eventually grew irritated from listening and said indifferently,
“If you want to attract zombies here, then keep shouting.”
When the others heard this, they immediately glared at the old man as if their eyes were knives. The old man shivered and shut his mouth resentfully.
Mo Xiu led them to a small supermarket he had visited before.
Most of the supplies inside had already been taken, but if they searched carefully, they could still find some overlooked leftovers.
Carrying a large backpack, Mo Xiu checked the shelves with the same practiced ease as always.
The others eagerly searched for supplies as well, each finding something here and there.
On the way back, they encountered only a single zombie. Mo Xiu didn’t interfere and let the others deal with it themselves.
After everyone returned, the people who had stayed behind in the villa immediately gathered around them, asking what they had found.
Xi Wenlin deliberately slipped aside quietly, but some of the others were eager to show off their achievements. They opened their backpacks and showed the contents proudly.
However, when someone in the villa reached out, trying to take the biscuits from one of the bags, the man quickly closed his bag and hugged it tightly.
“What are you doing? We risked our lives to find these!” he said angrily.
“What do you mean what are we doing? Why are you closing the bag?
In the past, every time Mo Xiu went out to search for supplies, didn’t he always share them with everyone when he came back?
So the food you found should naturally include our share too!”
The people opposite spoke with complete confidence.
The returning group grew furious listening to them.
They had faced zombies and risked their lives to obtain this food. Why should they give it to others?
But clearly, the people who stayed in the villa didn’t think so.
The two sides quickly started arguing.
Meanwhile, Mo Xiu casually sat on the living room sofa, watching the drama unfold with great interest.
After a standoff, the ugliness of human nature revealed itself once again. When the returning group refused to share, some people tried to seize the supplies by force.
The first targets were the seemingly weak old man and old woman, followed by the delicate-looking Lu Pingwan. Of course, everyone else’s backpacks were also being eyed greedily.
Before long, the two who had started arguing were already fighting.
Xi Wenlin quickly reacted. Hugging his own bag, he walked over to Mo Xiu and said,
“Mo Xiu, aren’t you going to do something? They’re trying to take the supplies we worked so hard to find!”
Mo Xiu curled his lips slightly.
“Do something? When I brought supplies back before, didn’t you all take them just as confidently?”
Xi Wenlin had no response.
The people who had stayed behind in the villa were like wolves.
Only seven of them had gone out today. Excluding the old couple and Lu Pingwan, only four of them were physically strong. They were no match for the others.
Without intervention, their supplies would definitely be stolen.
What should he do?
Just as Xi Wenlin was feeling helpless, Lu Pingwan—who was about to be forced into a corner—suddenly ran toward Mo Xiu.
She shoved her small crossbody bag directly in front of him and said anxiously,
“Mo Xiu, this is what I found this time. I’ll give it to you!”
Mo Xiu raised an eyebrow.
“You mean you want to give me the supplies you worked so hard to find?”
Lu Pingwan nodded firmly.
“I only want to keep one pack of instant noodles. You can take the rest, okay?”
Her intention was obvious.
She was seeking Mo Xiu’s protection.
Her strength was too weak. As a Level 1 water ability user, her power had almost no combat capability.
Rather than letting all her food be stolen by others, it was better to give it to Mo Xiu and at least keep a little for herself.
Smart.
Mo Xiu nodded slightly to himself.
Lu Pingwan’s water ability had indeed been useful during the journey. Seeing that she hadn’t found much anyway, he symbolically took only a single sausage and pushed the bag back to her.
“The rest is yours.”
Lu Pingwan’s eyes lit up with surprise.
She immediately hugged her bag and bowed deeply.
“Thank you! Thank you so much!”
After seeing her success, the others quickly followed her example.
They all shouted that they were willing to give their food to Mo Xiu as long as he would leave them some.
This had been Mo Xiu’s goal from the start.
But even he hadn’t expected it to go so smoothly.
Before he even had to do anything, these people were already scrambling to pay him “protection fees.”
“Fine,” Mo Xiu said calmly.
“Since you’re all so eager, I’ll accept it.
From now on, I’ll go out with you to find supplies. When we return, we’ll count everything. One-third goes to me, and the remaining two-thirds are yours.”
After hearing that Mo Xiu had spoken, the people who stayed behind in the villa didn’t dare continue fighting. They could only give up reluctantly.
After learning what had happened outside, they finally confirmed that Mo Xiu truly would no longer provide food for them.
So when Mo Xiu announced another trip to search for supplies, everyone suddenly became very enthusiastic.
Human adaptability was strong.
After several trips, they gradually grew used to this kind of life.
However, some people began to think they didn’t actually need Mo Xiu.
After all, he barely did anything—usually just walked with them. When encountering zombies, he rarely attacked unless their lives were in danger.
Since they could find supplies themselves, the food they found should belong entirely to them.
Mo Xiu only smiled when he heard this and didn’t argue.
The next time, he simply didn’t go with them.
That very day, the volunteers who had confidently gone out encountered danger.
One of them was bitten by a zombie and never returned.
Only then did they realize Mo Xiu’s importance and begged him to accompany them again.
Mo Xiu agreed.
But he raised his price.
Instead of taking one-third of the supplies, he now demanded half.
At that point, no one dared complain.
From then on, about once every three days, Mo Xiu would accompany them on supply runs.
He mostly just strolled along the road with them, stepping in only during life-threatening situations.
Every day he lived comfortably with plenty of food and drink, while the others tried their best to curry favor with him.
Compared to his previous life, this was infinitely more relaxing.
Once he had trained this group enough, Mo Xiu felt it was time to leave.
There were still debts waiting for him at Shanhe Base.
More importantly, there was someone he needed to find.
Someone he had to wait for.
So he had to go.
The journey there was long, and this time Mo Xiu had no intention of following the same route as before.
In his previous life, they had encountered a zombie horde along that road. After a desperate escape, only half the group survived.
Mo Xiu planned to change the route—not for others, but to protect his own life.
He opened the map he had prepared earlier and carefully planned a new route.
Although it would add about half a month to the journey, it was much safer.
It would also pass through a grain-producing town called An Ping, where they might find additional supplies.
After preparing everything, Mo Xiu told the group his plan.
Whether they followed him or not was up to them.
But after experiencing the terror of the apocalypse, everyone already understood that staying close to Mo Xiu was the safest option.
Since everyone had been gathering supplies together recently, their preparations were plentiful—including enough gasoline.
Mo Xiu didn’t want to crowd into the same vehicle with them, so he took a separate off-road vehicle.
The others split into three larger cars and followed behind him.
The journey went relatively smoothly.
Mo Xiu deliberately chose roads with little human activity, so they encountered very few zombies along the way.
But for some reason, the closer they got to An Ping Town, the more uneasy Mo Xiu felt.
It was as if something important was waiting for him there.
On the third day after departure, they arrived at An Ping Town.
The town had vast farmland and few residents.
Someone must have come before them—there were signs that zombies had already been cleared.
This saved them some trouble, but it also meant most supplies were already gone.
After experiencing both the apocalypse and rebirth, Mo Xiu trusted his instincts greatly.
So after everyone found temporary lodging and settled down, he drove alone around the town.
From the moment he entered, he felt an increasingly strong pull—like something calling to his soul.
Finally, when he arrived in front of a half-open grain warehouse, the sensation reached its peak.
He got out of the car and quickly walked to the door.
After hesitating briefly, he pushed it open.
The warehouse was almost empty.
Only scattered sacks and shelves remained.
Mo Xiu walked inside and soon heard faint rustling sounds.
Following the sound deeper into the warehouse, he finally saw a humanoid figure curled up in the corner, moving slightly.
A zombie?
Mo Xiu wasn’t sure.
But instinctively, he felt it probably wasn’t.
He stepped closer.
Only then did he see clearly.
Lying on the ground was actually a man—a young adult.
His hair was messy, his body thin, and he wore a dirty T-shirt and pants.
He was lying on the floor, struggling to chew a handful of raw rice.
Even when Mo Xiu approached, the man only glanced at him briefly before continuing to eat clumsily.
The young man’s face was dirty, making it difficult to see his features clearly.
But Mo Xiu recognized the eyes immediately.
Those eyes he knew so well.
Eyes that, in his previous life, had once been filled with bloodshot fury for his sake.
“Mu Tou!” (Woodhead)
Mo Xiu froze for a moment.
Then he rushed forward without hesitation and pulled the man into a tight embrace.
His eyes turned red.
In his previous life, when only his soul remained, this man had been the only one who truly cared about him.
He had thought it would take much longer before they met again.
But because he changed routes in this life, fate had brought them together earlier.
“That’s great…!”
“I finally found you again!”
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