Chapter 18: The Escaping Crowd

Having dealt with two Green Flame Wolves, he was covered in blood and felt quite uncomfortable.

The streets were long deserted, with some clothing stores having their doors open. Brands of clothes that Zhou Liming could only gaze at from afar in the past, without ever being able to touch, were now abandoned by their owners. Their owners had surely fled outside the city by then, leaving the clothes ownerless. Zhou Liming did not hesitate. He rushed into a clothing store, found the restroom, and rinsed the blood off his body with water. He found a set of clothes that fit him. Only after putting them on did he rush out of the store.

The battle between Zhou Liming and the Green Flame Wolves did not take much time. An Xiaowei and the others had not escaped far yet.

Seeing Zhou Liming return safely, everyone was overjoyed to tears. However, seeing the flight of fighter jets in the sky, they did not care about Zhou Liming’s experiences for the moment. Under An Xiaowei’s leadership, they fled toward the city outskirts again.

From the appearance of the Fierce Beasts landing to now, only six hours had passed. For Zhejiang City B, with a population of nearly ten million, only six or seven million were able to escape. For the nearly two million people living in the East District, since they were attacked by the Fierce Beasts at the very beginning, very few were able to get out.

After finally arriving near the Ring Road, he only saw a surging crowd, a vast black mass of people.

The wide Ring Road was completely jammed with cars. The sound of car horns and people cursing mixed together. Between the cars, all the people escaping the city were walking. They paid no attention to the people cursing inside the cars; they only cared about saving their own lives. Fortunately, unlike the city, it was not so crowded here. Many people had fled from fields and hills.

The highway entrance and toll stations were empty. The toll lanes severely restricted the speed at which cars could escape.

But fortunately, once cars got onto the highway, they accelerated and drove very fast. There were no traffic jams. Those who managed to escape using the highway were undoubtedly lucky. Some left via other roads. But more people could only flee in panic on foot. Some constantly slapped the car windows, hoping that someone kind would take them for a ride.

On the chaotic side of the Ring Road, a dozen military trucks were parked there. Soldiers were digging temporary defensive fortifications. In front of the fortifications, soldiers were moving constantly. They gathered some abandoned cars and arranged them on the main roads leading in and out of Zhejiang City B. Stacked like waves, it seemed to be in order to stop the charge of the Fierce Beasts.

A dozen heavy machine guns were not placed in the fortifications. Instead, they were fixed to the rear of the military trucks.

Zhou Liming remembered Tang Yining cursing in a phone call about the army rescuing Zhejiang City B. There was only one company. It must be the company he saw now.

Passing by the defensive fortifications built by this company, Zhou Liming secretly shook his head. People who had never seen Fierce Beasts could never understand their capabilities. They were creatures that humans could not understand at all. Their defense was so strong that it took several missiles to destroy them. How could these submachine guns and heavy machine guns possibly stop them?

A single company, facing the unpredictable Fierce Beast Tide, was just like a pile of sand on a beach. One wave would wash it away without a trace.

Zhou Liming thought his small group was escaping the city quite late. But after climbing over the Ring Road, he still saw people with pale faces continuously running out of the city. The roaring of the Fierce Beasts was heard in the city center. The departure of the Air Force had not stopped their power, so their advance speed was naturally much faster.

The originally tense atmosphere became even more oppressive as the Fierce Beasts advanced further.

Outside the city, the roads branched out in all directions, leading to different cities and towns. Zhou Liming had never left Zhejiang City B in his life, so he naturally did not know which direction to go. On the highway, everywhere there were long lines of evacuating people. They were dense and extended endlessly into the distance, creating a spectacular sight.

In such a scene of mass evacuation involving millions of people, individuals were insignificant. This small team from the Orphanage could only follow the main crowd, evacuating along the highway.

After the panic of just now, the people who had escaped the city were much calmer. They walked silently in the crowd, dragging their children along. A few people who had lost relatives cried out. They took a few steps and looked back at the city skyscrapers, which were gradually moving away. On the highway now, the army of fleeing cars had long vanished. The road was jammed with people on foot.

It was noon, and the sun was somewhat scorching.

Zhou Liming did not feel too bad. But for a little woman like An Xiaowei, her face was red in the sun, and sweat continuously dripped from her forehead. Dean Zhou was also an old lady in her sixties. Under the shock and the escape, her physical strength was already failing. Walking on the highway, with the fiery sun beating down and hot air constantly rising from the road surface, she stumbled as she walked.

If adults were like this, it was even worse for the orphans. The oldest among them were not yet ten years old, and the youngest were only three or four years old. By the time they reached here, they had already exhausted their strength. Every one of them had a pale face with a hint of iron-blue, dry and cracked lips, and felt as if fire was bursting from their mouths.

“Water, water…”

A five- or six-year-old child called out softly. Then his eyes rolled back, and he softly fell down while walking.

Seeing this, Dean Zhou rushed to the child’s side in a few steps. She anxiously shouted, “Little Hua, Little Hua, what is wrong with you?” She reached out and touched Little Hua’s burning forehead. Looking up, she said, “He might have heatstroke due to lack of water.” Her face looked bitter. There were no hospitals or similar facilities here. The appearance of the Fierce Beasts was too sudden. When fleeing the city, they had not carried anything. “Liming, take the children to rest by the side for a while.”

Zhou Liming nodded. Together with An Xiaowei, he brought all the children to the side of the highway. He found a spot under a tree and arranged for the children to rest.

Not only Zhou Liming and his group, but more and more people could not hold on. They rested under the shade of trees by the highway. Only those with energy and endurance continued walking. In this crowd of fugitives, many carried valuable items. But it was hard to find a few people carrying water and food. More people had escaped the city with empty hands.

“Dean, I am so thirsty.”

A child looked pitifully at Dean Zhou. After all, he was still a child and could not endure hunger and thirst like adults.

“Dean, I am thirsty too.”

“Dean, and me, and me…”

“Dean…”

With one person leading, more than ten children started making noise. They surrounded Dean Zhou, who was also very thirsty. They had brought nothing because of the tension when leaving. Where would they get water for the children? But how could she tell them? How could she say there was no water? Dean Zhou sighed. She weakly used a leaf to fan Little Hua, who had fainted. They were, after all, children. How could they understand the current situation?

Zhou Liming licked his lips, stood up, and said, “Dean, I will go look around nearby and bring back some water.”

The sun was still just as scorching. Without water, it was impossible to continue the journey. In the group, he was the only one acting like a man. This task had to be borne by Zhou Liming. Fortunately, they were now a short distance away from the city. He had not heard the gunshots from that company behind them. It seemed the Fierce Beasts had not yet reached the company’s defensive area. Currently, it was still very safe.

The highways on both sides were full of hills and mountains. It was not easy to find a water source.

Many people had the same idea as Zhou Liming. But after crossing one or two hills, looking at the endless mountains, they could only shake their heads and return. The temporary thirst could still be endured by adults. But what about next time? No one knew. They could only take things as they came.

At this moment, it was impossible to rely on others. The only one who could be relied upon was oneself.