Chapter 14: Mental Power

Zhou Zhuo Hua couldn’t come up with an answer. She turned back and glanced at Bai Chen Zhu, only to lock eyes with him as he peeked at the two of them.

“Ah, you’re awake?” Zhou Zhuo Hua asked in surprise.

“Awake.” Bai Chen Zhu removed the cloth blocking the light from his face and sat up. The car was passing field after field of farmland.

Dusk had fallen, and the car stopped in a barren area near the highway. Zhou Zhuo Hua went around the corner to relieve herself. The two men waited in place. Jiang Ye smoked, the firelight flickering in the darkness.

Bai Chen Zhu’s gaze lingered on the dirty car shell for a moment before he reached to snatch his cigarette. “Bad for your health.”

“Give me a break. If I don’t smoke now, there might not be any later.” Jiang Ye blocked him with one hand and flicked the ash with the other, utterly unconcerned.

Bai Chen Zhu leaned against the car window and looked toward the pitch-black distance. He asked softly, “I still don’t know where you’re headed.”

Jiang Ye’s movements paused. Then, as if nothing had happened, he took two drags and slowly exhaled a smoke ring. He mumbled, “Where else? Floating Cloud City, the place you want to go.”

“Oh?” Bai Chen Zhu turned his head to stare at him. A hint of amusement flickered in his dark phoenix eyes as he tried to read something from Jiang Ye’s expression.

But Jiang Ye didn’t budge. He didn’t let Bai Chen Zhu spot anything unusual.

After going around in circles, they were still headed there.

“Floating Cloud City, huh.” Bai Chen Zhu leaned in slowly, his brows and eyes lively, the corners of his vermilion lips curving up. His voice twisted and turned with teasing mockery. “Who was it that said ‘We’re not going to Floating Cloud City’ before?”

Jiang Ye looked at him quietly. From such close range, Bai Chen Zhu saw that the defiant face had lost some of its sharpness and actually appeared peaceful for once.

The firelight burned down to his fingertips, scorching the skin. Jiang Ye suddenly snapped back to attention, stamped out the cigarette butt underfoot, stood straight, and walked forward a few steps. He raised his voice enthusiastically. “Sis, you done?”

Bai Chen Zhu chuckled without exposing the man’s attempt to dodge the topic.

Zhou Zhuo Hua walked over, vaguely sensing the strange atmosphere between the two. She nodded. “It’s getting late. Do we keep going or find a place to rest?”

The journey wasn’t that far, but some roads had collapsed midway, forcing them to take detours.

Moreover… Zhou Zhuo Hua looked at the battered off-road vehicle. They had encountered some mutated things on the road. Jiang Ye had plowed right through them without flinching, but Zhou Zhuo Hua still felt lingering fear, her face pale.

Bai Chen Zhu let the other man off the hook. He hooked the corners of his lips and relaxed against the car, arms crossed. “I’m fine either way.”

Zhou Zhuo Hua looked at him and suggested, “Then let’s keep going? But Jiang Ye and I have been taking turns driving all afternoon. We’re tired. How about you take a shift?”

Bai Chen Zhu stood on the ground, surveying the surroundings. At her words, his gaze fell on Zhou Zhuo Hua. He sounded regretful. “I don’t know how to drive.”

Zhou Zhuo Hua choked. She looked at Jiang Ye. Jiang Ye clearly hadn’t expected this. He frowned tightly. “You don’t know how to drive?”

Bai Chen Zhu affirmed it calmly. “We were poor at home. I worked part-time to make ends meet. No extra money to learn.”

The reason was so reasonable that no one could question it.

In truth, he had gotten his license years ago. But after that, he worked in a big city with endless traffic jams and never bought a car, so his skills had rusted away. No different from someone who had never learned.

But saying that would require explaining how many years ago his “early years” were, especially since he was only twenty-one this year. Couldn’t exactly say it was as a minor, right?

The car was parked by the roadside. Not far off was a construction site, with a yellow excavator and a half-dug massive pit right in front of them. The surroundings had been cleared flat, nothing but smooth dirt as far as the eye could see.

Zhou Zhuo Hua smoothed things over. “No problem. We’ll all rest tonight and let the car rest too. The tires are hot. No zombies in sight here, it’s safe. Almost no cover either, so if anything dangerous shows up, we can drive off easily. Perfect spot. Tomorrow, Jiang Ye and I will take turns driving. Good thing Floating Cloud City isn’t far. One more day and we’ll be there.”

There were too many ‘obstacles’ on the road. They swarmed the car like moths to a flame. After just one day, the shell and tires were filthy, dented with countless small pits.

To keep those things from jamming the tires, the three had scavenged materials on the spot and spent a lot of time cleaning. Their clothes were covered in bloodstains.

Jiang Ye was used to it and remained unfazed. Bai Chen Zhu’s face was pale as he mentally convinced himself they were ‘fake.’ Zhou Zhuo Hua had reacted strongly, vomiting several times before getting somewhat accustomed to the limbs and gore. Even now, her face was ashen.

Zhou Zhuo Hua couldn’t help complaining, “Who’s supposed to be the medical student here, anyway.”

Jiang Ye straightened up and stretched lazily. He sniffed the car smell on his clothes, narrowed his eyes toward a certain direction, and pointed at the spot by the excavator, itching to go. “There’s a tin shed over there. Temporary water source maybe?”

Zhou Zhuo Hua and Bai Chen Zhu followed his finger.

In the pitch black, they couldn’t make out the outline of any temporary building, but Jiang Ye’s confident tone made it seem like he really saw it.

Zhou Zhuo Hua said doubtfully, “When did your eyesight get that good? I don’t see anything.”

Jiang Ye tsked lightly and pocketed his hands matter-of-factly. “You’re nearsighted. Of course my vision’s better.”

Zhou Zhuo Hua turned to Bai Chen Zhu, who wasn’t wearing glasses. “Do you see it?”

Bai Chen Zhu shook his head. “No, but I feel like there’s really a building there.”

“Feel? Like? That won’t cut it. It’s so dark. What if we run into danger?” Zhou Zhuo Hua cautioned. “Jiang Ye, hold it in. We’ll find water at dawn. Wash however you want then.”

“Do you know where the next water source is?” Jiang Ye did as he pleased. “No signal now, no electronic maps. We’ve just been following the highway. What’s the chance of a river or lake by the road?”

Zhou Zhuo Hua felt helpless. She pushed up her glasses and said to Bai Chen Zhu, “You stand guard here? I’ll go with Jiang Ye…” Jiang Ye cut her off.

Jiang Ye waved impatiently. “Enough. He can’t drive and he’s still weak. What can he guard? You two stay here. I’ll go alone.”

Without waiting for a response, his long legs strode off into the night.

Zhou Zhuo Hua followed a couple steps before returning to the car.

One was Jiang Ye’s ‘childhood friend,’ the other his ‘friend.’ With the central figure gone, the two had nothing to say to each other.

Zhou Zhuo Hua gave the man by the car a polite smile. Bai Chen Zhu nodded politely in return. Neither spoke.

After a while, Zhou Zhuo Hua took two bottles of water from the car and handed one to Bai Chen Zhu, breaking the awkward silence.

Bai Chen Zhu was thirsty and accepted it, unscrewed the cap, and took a few gulps. He crumpled the bottle and suddenly asked, “Why are you two planning to go to Floating Cloud City?”

From their earlier conversation, it was clear they had decided on the trip before meeting him.

That Jiang Ye guy had lied to him. Thinking of Jiang Ye made Bai Chen Zhu frown. He tilted his head back and downed the rest of the bottle.

Zhou Zhuo Hua glanced at Bai Chen Zhu. “Because my family’s there.”

Bai Chen Zhu was a bit surprised. Countless thoughts flashed through his mind before settling on their friendship.

Zhou Zhuo Hua sighed and climbed onto the car hood, sitting cross-legged. She was bored and didn’t see it as a big secret, so she explained in detail. “My dad was the Jiang family’s private doctor. As a kid, he often took me to their house to play. His parents didn’t look after him much; they were always flying abroad. So I became his playmate.”

“Floating Cloud City is my hometown. I want to get my little sister out while society hasn’t completely fallen apart. Jiang Ye’s parents aren’t in the country. He had nowhere to go, so he said he’d come with me.”

Bai Chen Zhu gripped the empty bottle tightly, crushing it flat. He pondered.

He tilted his head slightly. Under Zhou Zhuo Hua’s waiting gaze, he smiled faintly and said mildly, “In that case, we’re fellow townsfolk. I was planning to head to Floating Cloud City too. Lucky you gave me a ride.”

“Yeah, what a coincidence.” Zhou Zhuo Hua leaned closer, trying to build rapport. “You’re still a student, right?”

Bai Chen Zhu, who had long been a corporate drone, nodded and dredged up the original owner’s info in his mind. “Third year this year. Same as Jiang Ye.”

Zhou Zhuo Hua asked the question every elder loved. “Got a girlfriend yet?”

Bai Chen Zhu’s face went blank for a moment, caught off guard.

“Pfft, hahaha!” Zhou Zhuo Hua saw his helpless expression and laughed without restraint, instantly shattering the distance. It was like she had finally vented the frustration from Bai Chen Zhu earlier suspecting she and Jiang Ye had something going on. She felt utterly refreshed.

Bai Chen Zhu didn’t answer, and Zhou Zhuo Hua didn’t press. She leaned back on her arms atop the hood and looked up at the night sky. No moon, but stars glittered across it. “I wonder how my little sister’s doing.”

Suddenly, Bai Chen Zhu turned his head, his eyes turning cold and sharp. Something lightly bumped ‘him.’

At first, he thought it was an illusion, but the sensation grew stronger. Bai Chen Zhu straightened abruptly and focused, listening intently. Rustling sounds approached from far to near.

His movement made Zhou Zhuo Hua jump down from the hood, on high alert. “What is it?”

The thing seemed to understand words and stopped moving. Bai Chen Zhu sensed for a while before whispering warily, “Something’s coming.”

“No way. It’s all flat ground here. If it was a zombie, we’d see it right away.” Though she said that, Zhou Zhuo Hua quickly grabbed two baseball bats from the car and handed one to Bai Chen Zhu.

“It’s not a zombie.” Bai Chen Zhu closed his eyes briefly. He couldn’t quite describe the feeling. It was similar to his previous ‘out-of-body’ sensation—something had entered his territory and touched his ‘soul.’

No, not right. He only had one soul, and his perception was three-dimensional space. If he had to describe it… Bai Chen Zhu suddenly thought of a term: mental.

Mental power spread out uncontrolled around him like a vast net. Something approached slowly, brushing against his dispersed mental power, alerting him.

As the two searched their surroundings back-to-back, dirt mounds popped up one after another. They burrowed through the soil under the car like lightning and rushed toward the feet of the two by the vehicle.

“Squeak squeak squeak—”