Apocalypse Escape: Day One of Survival

Chapter 180: Chapter 180: Dehydration Crisis

Early the next morning, while everyone was still deep in their dreams, the base’s loudspeakers blared with a major decision.

An emergency appointment had been made: Zhang Defan was now the temporary Base Chief of the Lanshan Tower Lake Safe Zone, with a probationary period of six months.

This meant that if he didn’t perform well as Base Chief, he could be removed at any moment and replaced by someone more capable.

The loudspeakers played a loop about Zhang Defan’s life, his past great achievements, and encouraged the safe zone’s residents to enthusiastically sign up to participate in building the base, and so on.

Xie Ning was jolted awake by the noise. She lay on her stomach, not wanting to move.

The block of ice at the foot of her bed had long since melted, and the room was now unbearably stuffy.

Xie Ning was covered in sweat. Squinting, she rummaged through a drawer in her portable villa’s bedroom and pulled out a small, embroidered handkerchief.

To conserve paper towels, everyone had long since switched to using small pieces of cloth cut from her grandmother’s old undershirts for wiping sweat.

Xie Ning had it better. Her mother had once bought her a whole drawer of small, colorful handkerchiefs...

It was just that before the apocalypse, no one was used to using handkerchiefs. Why would anyone bother laboring their "precious hands" to wash a cloth when a single tissue could do the job?

’How times have changed.’ Xie Ning wiped the sweat from her forehead with the handkerchief. She lay back down for another moment, but it was just too hot. Finally, she got up to wash up.

She had sealed the room’s faucet shut long ago using her Gold Ability.

It was mainly because of that human habit—seeing a faucet and getting the inexplicable urge to turn it on and wash your hands.

But now, not only would the faucet gush out yellowed, blackish water, but it might even spew out disgusting things like bugs.

After so many years in the apocalypse, Xie Ning had seen every kind of bug imaginable. She wasn’t afraid.

But she didn’t want to waste time exterminating them, either. So, she’d simply sealed off every showerhead and faucet she could.

SPIT. After spitting out the superpower water, Xie Ning tilted her head, still holding her small rinsing cup.

A loud rumble echoed from the distance, seemingly coming from the base’s south gate.

The south gate was the entrance connected to the winding mountain road. These days, almost no one left the base through the south gate, but the number of refugees fleeing *to* the south gate to seek entry was growing daily.

Considering the time, the group of people who had fled from the West City District should be arriving right about now.

Xie Ning thought of the zombie with the little pigtails on the top floor of the West City newspaper building, and a faint shadow clouded her heart.

At the south gate entrance, a long line of cars was stuck behind three barricades. The air was a cacophony of voices, arguments, and angry curses.

"All Superpower Users, please proceed to Gate Four to register. All Superpower Users, please proceed to Gate Four to register your information."

As the loudspeaker blared on a loop, a bus came swerving from the back of the line. It barreled straight into the foremost barricade, triggering a chaotic wave of screams.

CRASH! The bus smashed the wooden barricade askew. The young soldiers at the base hastily pulled a few people in white lab coats back.

Just as the bus, filled with the sharp screams of its passengers, was about to plow head-on into the main base gate, several thick, sturdy vines shot out from the entrance.

With speed and power far beyond human capability, the vines instantly wrapped around the bus from all sides, yanking it to a halt and lifting it into the air.

The wheels spun furiously, but the bus itself hovered, suspended a dozen centimeters off the ground.

The driver was slumped over the steering wheel, drenched in a cold sweat. His lips were blue; he had clearly passed out.

Everyone on site took a step back. The noise died down abruptly as they all turned in unison to look at the base entrance.

A group of men and women emerged from within.

The young man in the lead, who was controlling the vines that had stopped the bus, had a refined and handsome face.

He glanced up from behind his glasses, his eyes sweeping over the crowd without a trace of emotion.

The young soldiers guarding the gate all breathed a collective sigh of relief.

Lu Wei gently lowered the bus to the ground. He then used the vines to pry open the front and back doors, and the frantic passengers began to push and shove their way out, scrambling off the bus with their bags.

"Dad."

"Dad!" The little boy’s terrified cry was lost on the crowd, who were too busy scrambling for their own safety.

None of the passengers spared a glance for the driver slumped over the steering wheel. Only a mother, holding a little girl, stood up. Dodging the surging crowd, she called out to the boy in the front, "Nanxing! Nanxing, don’t be afraid."

The little boy looked at his father, motionless over the steering wheel, and burst into tears.

The mother holding the girl waited until the crowd had scattered off the bus before she quickly pulled her daughter over to the driver’s side.

"Nanxing, don’t be afraid. Help me unbuckle your dad’s seatbelt. We’ll carry him off the bus."

The woman said not to be afraid, but her own hands were trembling nonstop. "Master Zhu? Master Zhu!"

"Deputy Captain Lu! Captain Gu! Thank you, thank you!" Zhang Defan strode forward, laughing heartily as he moved to shake hands with Gu Chen and Lu Wei.

"It’s a good thing you were here! Otherwise, the base gate would have been done for today."

"Base Chief Zhang." Gu Chen’s lips twitched into a faint smile. "The base’s construction team is recruiting today. Aren’t you going to take a look?"

"Of course, of course." Zhang Defan smiled and nodded eagerly. "The base gate is a top priority. We will prioritize gathering Superpower Users to repair and reinforce it."

Gu Chen couldn’t be bothered to play games with the old fox. He simply led his men toward the bus.

As they reached the bus entrance, they saw a woman and two children struggling clumsily to carry a large man off the vehicle.

But they weren’t strong enough. The moment they lifted the man, all three of them collapsed in a heap.

"Go help them," Gu Chen ordered. Xue Feng immediately led two muscular young men onto the bus to help carry the driver.

"Thank you, thank you! Thank you all so much," the woman said repeatedly, pulling the two children with her as she scrambled off the bus.

"Where’s Yu Tianfeng? Where’d he run off to now? Go drag him over here!" Gu Chen barked. Immediately, someone was yanking a dazed-looking Dr. Yu, his hair a total mess, in their direction.

"Check his status."

Yu Tianfeng crouched down to examine the driver, muttering, "Dilated pupils, respiratory arrest. Start CPR."

An assistant immediately came over carrying an AED. "I’ve got it, I’ve got it."

"Dad..." the little boy sobbed, his eyes welling with tears.

"Nanxing, it’s going to be okay. Don’t be afraid, Nanxing," the woman said, hugging the boy and patting his back.

The little girl beside them also offered quiet comfort. "Don’t worry, little brother. Uncle Zhu will be okay."

The little boy whimpered, watching his father’s face turn blue.

Two people in lab coats stepped forward to assist with the CPR. Yu Tianfeng turned to Gu Chen and said, "Dehydration. It’s pretty serious."

A young soldier nearby immediately unslung his canteen.

Yu Tianfeng shook his head. "He can’t drink a large amount of water right now. Let’s get him to the infirmary. We’ll start him on a saline and glucose drip."

"Brother Gu Chen, let me try," a soft, gentle female voice called from outside the crowd.

As if by silent agreement, the crowd parted, clearing a path.

A girl in a pure white dress walked toward them with a sweet smile. Her long, soft hair cascaded over her shoulders, and she exuded an almost ethereal aura.

A stir went through the crowd.

Zhang Biyun maintained a faint smile, feeling secretly pleased with herself.

The surrounding crowd was whispering about how beautiful she was, which filled her with a pleasant sense of satisfaction.