Chapter 384

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Chapter 384: This Bag Is Really Heavy
The next day, the Red Flame Wolf Rider, who had prepared early in the morning, received a notice of increased patrol frequency. Although they didn’t know about Hachikuju’s original idea, the soldiers felt it was enough. If they had followed Hachikuju’s plan from yesterday, they would have felt strange.
As guests, the Shield Wolf Rider, led by Qizilbash, directly returned to their own sub-city.
There were some rumors circulating in the civilian area, but it didn’t have much impact. After all, the city folk saw the fully armed Red Flame Wolf Riders every day, making them feel secure.
Meanwhile, Hachikuju’s plan was quietly progressing. Of course, they couldn’t tell the young people who were out, as their fear could give them away. If discovered, the culprit would not show up.
So they quietly informed all families with young boys of that age, except for a few randomly selected households, to watch over their children, ensuring that only those selected households’ young people, forming a small group looking for supplies outside the city today, were allowed to leave.
Despite hearing some rumors, hunger was real. Even if parents warned them a little, many young people still left the city together. Due to the rumors, there were more groups forming.
The Obsidian Beetle had quietly slipped into this small group composed of six or seven young people, choosing a dark-skinned boy to hide behind in his oversized patched backpack, as it was the easiest to conceal.
Young and wanting to grab a lot of things.
After marveling at how spacious the backpack was, the Obsidian Beetle found the leather inside comfortable and promptly found a cozy position to fall asleep in!
The black youth’s backpack was so big that it slowed him down significantly and for some reason, it felt heavier today than usual. Consequently, he ended up lagging behind the group.
Even a chubby boy who normally couldn’t run as fast as him managed to sneak past him. However, since they were usually on good terms, the chubby boy slowed down to walk beside him when he noticed the black youth’s unusual behavior.
The plump boy teased, “Hey, Er Gouzi, how come you can’t even outrun me today? Didn’t your mom feed you less? You’re dragging around like a girl all day.”
The youth known as Er Gouzi glared at the chubby boy and warned, “I’ve told you so many times, stop calling me Er Gouzi. If you say it again, I’ll drop my bag and teach you a lesson.”
Unconcerned, the chubby boy replied, “Alright, Zhou Erzhu, whatever. Er Gouzi sounds better anyway. Let me tell you, I think Er Gouzi suits you more.”
Zhou Erzhu glared back at the chubby boy but remained silent. Er Gouzi was a common nickname in the village, given to children as a joke for easy care. But now, as he navigated through adolescence, he disliked being addressed with such a derogatory name and preferred Zhou Erzhu, even though it wasn’t as fancy.
“But why is this bag so heavy today? I used to carry one like it a long time ago when my dad owned it. I don’t remember it being this heavy. It’s really tough to carry now. Is it because I didn’t eat enough?”
Zhou Erzhu frowned, feeling dissatisfied with himself for being the one lagging behind today, letting even the chubby boy have the energy to joke around with him.
“Why are you carrying such a big bag? Is it because your dad specially added more stuff to it for collection? Can it not be heavy? Probably just didn’t eat enough and feeling hungry. Don’t worry, we’ll get some food later, I’ll share half with you. It’s perfect timing because I already ate at home.”
Even though the chubby boy teased Zhou Erzhu, he still felt loyal. Sensing that Zhou Erzhu hadn’t eaten enough, he generously promised to share half of the food they would get later.
“It’s all those rumors making my mom nervous, not letting me out. I sneaked out secretly. I just wanted to get more at once, store some at home for later. I’ll keep some for myself to eat and save some for my parents.
In case the wages are delayed one day, it’s not impossible, and if there’s nothing left by then, and don’t want to go hungry, I’d have to go out again, which would be troublesome.”
The chubby boy looked at him disdainfully and said, “Your mom also believes what those gossiping women say. I’ve seen things like ghosts eating people, but my dad chopped them up with a knife. It was scary at first, but after seeing it many times, it’s nothing special. If there’s really something evil, one swing of my stick can crush its head.”
As the chubby boy said this, he looked proud, unconsciously touching the baton on his waist, giving off a fearless vibe, as if nothing could scare him.
“Alright, stop showing off. You better hurry up, I’ll manage back here alone. If you walk slowly and they snatch all the good stuff, what will you have to share with me later?”
Zhou Erzhu laughed and scolded the chubby boy to hurry up and catch up with them, fearing they might not have any soup left later. He regretted bringing such a big bag, hoping to fill it up, but if he had to go back empty, those people would tease him for months.
The chubby boy realized that if he ran too slow, he might not be able to get anything at all.
Their destination was an abandoned small town, technically still part of Ejin Horo Banner Sub-city, but abandoned during its construction for many reasons.
This place was often visited by the teenagers because it had been cleared once, making it relatively safe. However, the things that could be found here were scarce. Many adults used to come here for scavenging, but they eventually gave up due to the lack of valuable items.
There was no need to compete with adults here. Zombies and mutant animals rarely appeared, making it a playground for these teenagers. They were not just playing around; if they had good eyesight and found well-hidden food or other valuable items in the ruins, they could make a fortune.
There was a lucky young man who found a very inconspicuous diamond on the floor of a house that had become a ruin. He exchanged it with a City Guard who wanted to please his wife for two big bags of food, making his companions envy him for a long time.
However, these kinds of lucky finds were rare. Usually, they could only find some expired food, but they were content with it. They would accept any food now, and their bodies had been slightly modified by evolutionary waves, giving them strong disease resistance. Basically, anything they could eat would not harm them.
The person in front had long disappeared, so the chubby boy didn’t slow down and quickly disappeared into the town.
Zhou Erzhu, sweating profusely, had just reached the entrance of the town. He found a big rock to sit on and was about to see what was in the backpack when suddenly, cries like a pig being slaughtered echoed from the town. This made him stand up immediately and look towards the town.
It was the voice of the chubby boy!
Zhou Erzhu believed he couldn’t be mistaken. Hearing his companion’s screams, he quickly put on his backpack and ran towards the direction of the town entrance.
After a few seconds, the chubby boy’s figure appeared at the entrance of the small town, running towards Zhou Erzhu without hesitation.
“Someone’s trying to harm us, Er Gouzi, run!”
In a state of urgency, the chubby boy frantically gestured for Zhou Erzhu to run back.
Zhou Erzhu didn’t pay attention to the chubby boy calling him a mean name again, he was completely stunned in place.
As the chubby boy spoke, a dark figure slowly emerged at the entrance of the town. Zhou Erzhu couldn’t make out when he appeared or see his appearance clearly, it was all quite blurry.
The figure walked slowly and steadily, matching the speed of the chubby boy running, seeming to enjoy the sensation.
The right wrist of this dark figure slowly turned up, with an elongated object attached to it, gleaming coldly.
As the dark figure approached, Zhou Erzhu finally saw what the person had in his hand.
It was a set of claw spikes with barbs, currently aimed at the chubby boy’s back.
He gritted his teeth and charged straight towards the fat man, shouting loudly.
“Yang Hao, run fast!”