Warlord: volume 1

by Chen Ran

  It was just like when they met for the first time all those years ago.

  Lea realized that the original zero's eyes had never hesitated or blurred. She could see her own figure clearly in Zero's eyes.

  "Yes." Lea said gently, but nodded her head resolutely at the same time. Today, at this moment, she had placed her fate in the hands of this man!

  Chapter 27 - Shunfeng

  "Every hunt must be done as the last of life!" — Ben Douglas

  "How many times does a person have to look up to see the sky? How many ears does a man have before he hears the cry of the people? How many lives would he have to sacrifice to know how many people would die? The answer, my friend, is floating in the air. Floating in the air! "

  A green car was driving on a broken highway. It was a modified car. The steel fender with spikes all over the front of the car could easily pierce a Savage Armor Bear. The center of the tire was obviously lengthened and welded with sharp spikes that looked like wolf teeth. They spin along with the wheels, and can mince any drive of flesh and blood.

  There was even a high-speed machine gun mounted on the skylight of the car. The ammunition belt hanging from the barrel of the gun was a testament to the machine gun's performance. Although it was not a new era model, it could fire 200 rounds per minute at a speed that was enough to threaten mutated beasts and monsters.

  The car was filled with deafening music, and the '60s American country music,' Gone with the Wind ', became a bit of a treat for the solo trip. However, the music drifting on the deserted road only served to accentuate the silence of the wilderness.

  It was afternoon, and the sun was scorching the land. The surface of the ground had become a furnace. From afar, the rising hot air caused the ground to distort. On this quiet afternoon, no creature was willing to move on the surface under the sun, so it was the best time for a traveler to travel.

  In the wilderness, no matter how good your equipment was, no one would be willing to face a group of mutated organism.

  Other than the chauffeur, the car was also carrying more than a dozen passengers. There were men and women, and two children. Judging by their different complexions and faces, it was clear that this was not a family trip, but more like a group escape. This was because the shabby clothing and thin faces all showed that their daily lives were only warm enough and far from being considered rich.

  "Damn it, Teddy, if you don't turn that old record on. "Believe me, I will help you break him!"

  Unlike the drivers who were shaking their heads while enjoying the music, it was obvious that some of the passengers did not like noisy music. A burly African man who was sitting on the back seat stood up. He waved his fist, revealing his white teeth and shouted loudly.

  Teddy was also the driver. He was just a kid in his twenties, wearing a yellow checked shirt and frayed jeans. He held onto the car, and without even turning his head, he said: "Jehan, you can't just quietly enjoy the music. Buddy, Bob is a genius, this song is simply too great. "

  "Kid, I'm not in the mood for that right now. I only know that if your bullsh * t music attracts living corpse or something like that, they would be happy to dig out your heart and listen to this lousy music while they eat. " The black Jehan ridiculed, but his words were approved by the others.

  Teddy shook his head, muttering to himself, "A bunch of idiots who don't know how to appreciate music."

  "Lad, at this moment, not to mention the living corpse, even the corpse wolves are not willing to move. Otherwise, why do you think I chose the most difficult time of the day to travel? " Teddy laughed and took out a crumpled cigarette from his pocket. He held the cigarette to his mouth, then pulled his hand back and lit it. Then the bad tobacco began to smell in the car.

  The car continued on, winding roads that seemed endless. The driver was drowsy, and the passengers were all fast asleep. In turbulent times, it was a luxury and happiness to be able to sleep peacefully.

  Because there was no one smoking on the road, Teddy drove very fast, his speed reaching about 150 km/h. This stretch of road leading to Silver Tree City was still considered smooth, there would not be any unnecessary obstacles, so Teddy was not afraid of running into anything. They were from a small settlement called Darl, on the edge of Z7. The water sources in the settlement had dried up recently. If they didn't leave now, they would die from thirst.

  Thus, the people from the residential area left in a group. The hundred or so people each got on seven or eight of these modified cars and went to different places. In this era, though, as long as there was no virus and no physical disability, it would be acceptable in other settlements or bases. However, apart from the headquarters of a large base or company, it was impossible to accept hundreds of outsiders at once, so Darl's men could only try their luck in a few batches.

  Teddy and the others were going to use the Silver Tree City to head 3000 kilometers away to a medium-sized gathering area, which occupied a corner of the city. After many years of development, they had already restored quite a few facilities in the city, and it could be said to be the ideal place to stay. Teddy and the others hoped that the Remot would be able to accept them, otherwise the next settlement would be very far away.

  There were a dozen or so people in the car. It was unknown how many of them could survive until they were taken in elsewhere.

  In the wilderness, life could wither at any time.

  As he turned a bend in the canyon, the sultry air in the carriage made Teddy's eyelids darken. But it did not stop Teddy from seeing that there was someone on the road. Of course, the soldier dressed up and wearing a hat, the traveler who was wearing it did not look like a monster no matter how he looked at it. As for living corpse s who were extremely similar to humans, Teddy believed that they didn't want to live under the sun.

  The car went straight for the two travelers.

  "Damn it!" Teddy pressed on the horn frantically as he desperately stepped on the brakes.

  Lun Tai let out a sharp shriek as he rubbed against the ground. However, the car that was moving at a high speed did not stop at all. Even though the brake system had been activated, the car still crashed into the passersby.

  The car screamed and cursed at the same time, but Teddy clenched his teeth and continued to stare ahead. The car and the traveler quickly approached, and the man in the military uniform quickly threw himself on his companion. The two of them rolled off the ground and just brushed past the car.

  The car finally stopped by the side of the canyon. Teddy stopped his car, immediately opening the car door, he shouted to the two of them: "Are you two okay?"

  The soldier who was patting his knees and supporting his comrade up from the ground shook his head coldly. But when he looked at Teddy and the others' cars, he walked over with his comrades.

  As he walked closer, Teddy could finally see the appearance of the soldier clearly. He was a yellow man, with a determined, knife-edged face. I don't know if my right eye was injured, but it had a black patch over it. On the soldier's shoulder lay a strange creature. The head and body were indistinguishable, and the round, unidentified creature had a pair of Z-shaped ears. It was lying on the soldier's shoulder, and the sun's heat made the creature appear weak.

  The companion of the soldier was actually a petite girl. Although the cape's hat hid the woman's face deeply, the elegant blonde hair that hung down from the hat made people believe that she was a beauty.

  Arriving in front of the car, the soldier asked in a slightly hoarse voice: "Are you going to the Remot?"

  "Go, we were just planning to go there." Teddy nodded.

  "Then please give us a lift. I'll pay." The soldier took his wallet out of his pocket and took out twenty dollars.

  Teddy's eyes lit up. Twenty yuan was not a small sum, it was enough for the people on the carriage to drink clean water for three days. He was about to agree when someone behind him objected, "Sorry, we won't let anyone of unknown origin get on the bus."

  Chapter 28 - Fatal
Stars

  "Yes, she has to leave. But I will go with him! "

  Walking on the road that was emitting an astonishingly high temperature, Lea thought of Zero's words.

  They had already left Z7 base and were walking towards the Silver Tree City. Originally, Zero didn't need to leave. Lea believed that he would be able to develop his base even more. With his grandfather Jack dead, the Parkland's valve would definitely send new managers over. Furthermore, when all the soldiers were dead, there was a large chance that Zero would take Zog's place and become the base's new head.

  However, Zero gave up on its great future and accompanied it into the unknown wilderness.

  Lea didn't know where they were going, but when she heard those words from Su Ling, she had already decided to leave her fate in the hands of this man. Heaven or hell, she would not regret it.

  The destination of zeros was not heaven nor was it hell. It was a place called Remot.

  Before leaving, he had already looked at the map. Three thousand kilometers away from the base, there was the words "Intermediate" clearly written on the sign of the place where Remot lived. An intermediate settlement means having relatively sophisticated living facilities, as well as a weapon platform to defend against enemies. At the same time, it also meant that was the first stop for Zero and Lea. If nothing went wrong, Zero would stay there for a while.

  The virus that Lea was infected with was extremely strange, no matter how she thought about it, she could only think of one possibility. The origin of the virus should be Hans. This was something abnormal that Lea had come into contact with in the past ten days. It was just that Zero did not understand that after coming into contact with Hans at the same time, they had become even more "intimate" than Lea. But how could she,, feel that he was completely fine, while Lea was the only one who detected his virus.

  But that's not enough. Z7 has no equipment or professional personnel to test and treat viral infections. As an intermediate gathering ground Remot, he might have this kind of resources. At the very least, they should have laboratories capable of detecting viruses. Su Yun decided that no matter what, she had to cure Lea. It was not only because of Old Jack's request before his death, but more importantly, it was because she did not wish for Rita's misfortune to happen again in front of him.

  After taking the necessary equipment, dry food and clean water. They set off as soon as the sky brightened, hoping to reach Silver Tree City before dusk.

  To Silver Tree City, zero was not unfamiliar. There, he would be able to reach the first stage of strength and defense enhancement. Furthermore, he would be able to obtain an additional evolution point. And recently, after the battle with Hans, the strengthening of Zero's agility had reached the level of a Level 2, moreover, there were two additional evolution points. Due to the lack of potions, the two evolution points remained quietly within his body, without any new abilities.

  Right now, with the strength and defense of the first stage, the second stage Agility Strengthening Technique was no longer effective on Silver Tree City. As long as he did not encounter monsters like the butcher, Zero could guarantee Lea's safety in Silver Tree City.

  They would rest there, then hurry to the Remot.

  The journey was monotonous and boring, Zero was not good with words, but Lea also knew that rather than wasting his strength on meaningless chitchat, it was better to just use them on the journey. As a result, they rarely chatted during the journey, and only rested twice during the journey.

  As they were walking along the highway through the canyon, Zero was surprised to hear the sound of an engine. When he looked back, a modified green car had already crashed into them. Zero could see the stunned look on the young driver's face, which made him realize that the driver didn't mean it. So he only threw himself towards Lea, and then, he rolled to the side. He didn't reward the car with bullets after it became safe.

  After the thrilling encounter, the car stopped diagonally on the shoulder of the road that led to the cliff face of the canyon. The car door opened and the young driver asked about their situation. Zero pulled Lea and walked towards the car.

  "Are you going to the Remot?" Zero asked, after indicating that both of them were uninjured.

  This was the outskirts of the Mainland China, the closest residential area was the Remot. But Zero did not think that the car's fuel capacity was enough for them to head to a distant base, so the probability of these people heading to Remot was more than 90%.

  As the driver nodded, Zero knew he guessed right. He took out his wallet and said to the driver, "Please take us on a ride. I can pay for it."

  He poured out twenty coins, and from the look in the driver's eyes, Zero knew he was tempted.

  But at this moment, someone in the car objected. It was a black man.

  "We don't meet strangers of unknown origin." The black man shook his head.

  Zero frowned. If it was just him, he wouldn't mind going on foot and enjoying the scenery along the way, even though there really wasn't much to see in the wilderness. It was just that he still had Lea with him.

  "Don't be like that, Jehan. It's not easy for either of them, especially this young lady. Don't you have any sympathy at all? " The young driver complained as he smiled at Lea. It was obvious that this young man had a good impression of Lea.

  The black man snorted and said, "In this day and age, compassion is worth a few dollars. How do you know that they will not harm us? I just want to safely arrive at Remot, I don't want anything to go wrong while we're on the way. "

  The driver looked at the other passengers inside the car, they seemed to have the same thought as the black Jehan. No one said a word. The driver had no choice but to shrug his shoulders and say, "Sorry, buddy. I'm afraid you'll have to walk. "

  Zero looked at him and put his wallet away.

  However, he did not intend to leave. Instead, he charged forward like lightning. He grabbed the black man's neck with his free hand and lifted him up with great force, so that the black man's head was at the top of the car door. The African man howled and was about to counterattack, but the muzzle aimed at his forehead caused the African man's anger to disappear without a trace.

  A few men stood up, but when they saw the M500 revolver in Zero's hand that could be called a lethal weapon, none of them dared to step forward to stop him.

  "Hehehe, don't get so excited, man. Perhaps, we can discuss this matter. " The driver waved his hand and said anxiously.

  Zero said in a cold voice, "There's no need to discuss, just let us go. Or give me the car. "

  In times of turmoil, violence might be another way to solve problems if there was no way to communicate with words.

  Cold sweat trickled down the back of the black's head.

  Anyone who dared to bring a woman wandering in the wilderness was either a brainless or a strong person. From the look of it, Zero didn't look like someone with a screw loose. To be able to lift an 80 kilogram adult male with one hand, the strength was definitely not something that a slender body like zero could possess. In other words, most of the elements that belong to the latter are zero.

  Jehan suddenly realised that perhaps he had provoked a fiend.

  Chapter 29 - Couples

  Just like a huge fireball, when the sun dropped to the horizon, a green modified car drove into Silver Tree City.

  Jehan felt as if he was sitting on pins and needles as his gaze unavoidably drifted towards the soldier sitting opposite him. Jehan would never forget the way the fellow had lifted him up with just one hand. There was no anger, no contempt, no brutality, no pity. There was only calmness, like the autumn waters.

  This meant that in the heart of the owner of these eyes, Jehan was no different from a corpse on the side of the road. At that time, as long as the thumb and forefinger that was pinching his throat lightly closed, Jehan believed that it would definitely be able to easily crush his Adam's apple. He even broke his neck.

  But such a terrifying person, after letting him
and his young female companion get into the carriage, had instead handed over twenty pieces to Teddy as promised, even if Teddy didn't dare to accept it.

  In turbulent times, there was no law. In the wilderness, there was even less order. Whoever had the strongest fist would be the law. The force that Zero displayed could easily drive them out of the car or even kill them, then snatch the car and drive away. But he didn't. He just silently pulled his girlfriend into the car and then chose a seat near the window and sat down quietly.

  Even so, no one was willing to approach zero. Sitting next to him was not as easy as sitting next to a corpse wolf.

  When the car drove into Silver Tree City, Zero looked out the window. The Silver Tree City was no different from two years ago. The streets of the city were filled with cracks, and the street lights or some other station signs were stained with blood from either a human or a wild beast. There was no vegetation left in the city, and the grass in front of the houses was now dry sand. And in those dark windows, Zero felt a sense of danger.

  It was just that the feeling of danger was much weaker than two years ago. It could be seen that the monsters and mutated organism in the city had decreased by a large amount.

  This reminded Zero of those migrating corpse wolves. Most of the monsters in Silver Tree City had probably already left this abandoned city. But even so, entering the city with great thorns did not strike Zero as a good idea. Even if the car was modified, the machine gun on the roof of the carriage could easily rip apart monsters that dared to provoke them, and the reinforced windows could be used to handle the attacks of nimble creatures like the living corpse.

  The car finally stopped in front of a gas station by the side of the road. Jehan and a few other men with hunting rifles and pistols got off the car. Su Yun asked Lea to stay in the car while he got off.

  Although it was late in the evening, the temperature on the ground was still terrifyingly high. One could tell from the heat rising from the soles of his feet. Jehan and the other men subconsciously distanced themselves from Zero. However, it was Teddy, the young man, who did not have much fear towards Zero. The young driver took off his cap and shook his head. "Hell, there's not a drop of gas in the gas tank."