Walking along the highway, Su Changxing would rest every so often to maintain his physical strength, preventing his body from reaching its limit.
After walking for more than an hour, he once again discovered abandoned vehicles on the highway. Inside the cars, there was nothing useful except for a signal stick lost in the glove compartment and a pair of leather gloves. The batteries were also dead.
"Could it be the same situation?"
Su Changxing pondered, putting the signal stick into his pocket, as it could be used for lighting at night, was convenient, and easy to carry.
He glanced at the sky to estimate the time, approximately around 11 o’clock. He closed the car door and lay down in the rear seat to rest for a while.
"Sleep for half an hour and then move on," he told himself. Just as he lay down, easing his Spirit slightly, a wave of sleepiness overcame him, and he naturally closed his eyes, falling asleep.
He was too exhausted, his body already nearing its limit.
...
Waking up again with a dry mouth and tongue, Su Changxing’s heart raced, and he jerked up, realizing he had overslept.
He looked at the darkening sky outside the window, having slept for probably four or five hours. Despite sleeping, he didn’t feel better, only overwhelmingly fatigued.
Even compared to ordinary adults, his physique wasn’t necessarily stronger.
Without further delay, he set off once more, moving forward along the highway; there was nothing around but endless white snow.
After sleeping, his energy did improve a bit, although he was hungry, he felt stronger walking than before.
After another hour of walking, he saw a red sedan stalled on the highway next to a corpse on the ground—a young woman with a brown fur collar.
Su Changxing inspected the scene, discovering her skull was shattered, which caused her death.
He didn’t approach closely, merely judging from a distance, and proceeded towards the vehicle hoping to find anything useful, preferably some food or water.
He really didn’t want to eat the uncertainly clean snow from the ground, there was too much risk in that.
This time luck was on his side; he found an entire bottle of mineral water under the rear seat base, and he breathed a sigh of relief, thirst driving him to drink half the bottle in one go.
Water helps to keep the body’s functions maintained to a certain extent.
Approaching nightfall, dusk spilled over the snow, golden and remarkably beautiful.
Then he heard a wolf howl from a distance.
"Wolves?"
Su Changxing paused, hesitating whether to continue forward; he hadn’t expected to encounter wolves before humans. Once targeted by a wolf pack, escape would be impossible.
However, turning back now, there seemed no other option but to keep moving forward along the road.
Continuing several hundred meters, he heard a clearer wolf howl.
Su Changxing sensed danger but didn’t stop, pressing forward warily observing his surroundings.
Luckily, he didn’t hear more howls afterward; the wolves seemed to have distanced themselves.
"Luck seems to be on my side," he chuckled to himself, somewhat relaxing.
Moving forward, he gradually approached the mountain base, estimating that he might encounter other humans or a human settlement in this vicinity.
From the roadside forest came the sound of insects chirping, sporadic and like singing, though not pleasant—like a mute struggling with tunes, lost in their own intoxication.
Still, no sight of people, suggesting the epidemic might have spread to this place too.
A tattered wooden token stood before him, pointing forward, "Lake Town."
There at the crossroads, were four or five crashed vehicles involved in a heavy traffic accident, the bodies decayed, cleared by no one.
Su Changxing sensed something amiss, avoiding seeking supplies there and turned towards Lake Town.
Then a wolf howl sounded from the forest, followed by four or five more; it was a pack of wolves approaching!
Su Changxing quickly paced forward but hadn’t gone far when he glanced back seeing dark shadows darting through the forest, likely wolves.
His heart raced, knowing being targeted by wolves in this situation meant certain death; he could only pray these wolves weren’t interested in him.
But clearly, the wolves were interested; soon one appeared on the road, trailing behind at a distance, its glowing eyes hair-raising.
Keeping a steady stride, Su Changxing walked forward, worried about provoking the wolves with any sudden moves.
Soon another two wolves appeared on the road, again trailing behind, seemingly assessing the danger or savoriness of their prey.
Su Changxing couldn’t think of a way to shake off the wolves; if they attacked, it would be the end.
What would happen if he died in this world?
The thought was intriguing.
"If you want to die, then come at me!" Su Changxing shouted robustly over his shoulder, though his feet didn’t stop, hoping to intimidate the wolves.
The effect was minimal; the wolves continued following slowly, playing with their prey.
He had no idea what these wolves wanted, just kept trailing him, maintaining a distance, unsettling him.
Dusk faded, the sun about to set behind the mountains; Su Changxing glanced back, his eyelid twitching involuntarily.
This world wasn’t as simple or ordinary as it seemed.
He noticed the wolves’ limbs transforming, appearing human-like but covered with fur, their bodies growing, drool trailing along the road, melting snow.
Something’s wrong!
These wolves seemed poised to attack; not earlier but waiting for darkness!
Why would they transform this way? He felt no Extraordinary Power.
In the Darkness, these wolves grew over three meters tall, producing a rattle as if bones rotating, some even standing upright, walking like humans.
Su Changxing noticed the peculiar wolves approaching, his heart sinking. He drew the signal stick from his pocket and ignited it.
Fzzz～
The signal stick flared brightly red; hearing Heavy footsteps from behind, he turned and was shocked to see the closest wolf was oddly normal under the firelight, showing fear at the sight of the signal stick, halting abruptly.
Beasts fearing fire is typical, but these wolves were clearly unusual.
Su Changxing’s heart raced wildly; yet he held his ground, stepping back slowly.
These wolves had two faces, a form in Darkness, another in light, and seemed uneasy with the eerie sound the signal stick emitted.
For now, he was relatively safe, at least until the signal stick extinguished. Smoke rose into the sky; if there were people afar, they could certainly pinpoint his location.
Su Changxing quickened his run forward, knowing Lake Town was ahead, needing to reach safety before the signal stick went out, or face certain death eaten by these strange wolves in Darkness.
As time passed, the signal stick’s luminosity waned; he could faintly see the shadow of a building, uncertain if it would block these eerie wolves, but worth trying.
When the signal stick extinguished, Su Changxing dashed into the building and shut the door hastily.
Crash～
Inside, plunged into complete Darkness, the signal stick fell to the floor, his heartbeat echoing alongside wailing wolves outside.
He waited.
No further surprises unfolded.
The strange wolves didn’t break in but circled the premises, occasionally howling.
Su Changxing let out a deep breath, sitting against the door, trembling uncontrollably—not out of fear or excitement but as his body was close to its limit, involuntarily twitching.
"Running further would surely be my end,"
Catching his breath, he pondered, realizing his extraordinary control over his body, beyond Ordinary People, exploiting its potential approaching its limit, almost like no restraint existed for his body.
This was dangerous, over the limit could lead to organ failure or other issues, meaning even merely running could easily exhaust him to death.