After a few days of hands-on training, Xie Lingruo decided they should leave as soon as possible to search for the safe base mentioned in the earlier radio broadcast.
According to the latest broadcast, the country had established a dozen or so major bases nationwide, and the closest one to them was the Ancheng Base. The map showed it was over 200 kilometers away, but the actual road conditions were uncertain, so it was unclear how long the journey would take.
After discussing it, the three of them agreed to depart soon. But before leaving, they prepared a large number of rice balls and flatbread.
These were meant to be eaten during the journey. Although she had plenty of cooked food stored in her space, the smell would be too strong. Rice balls and flatbread, on the other hand, were odorless and wouldn't draw the attention or greedy stares from other survivors.
She remembered how, just a few days ago, the smell of their cooking had drifted next door, and their middle-aged neighbors had the nerve to come over and ask for food. They were promptly and firmly rejected by Xie Father and the others.
They all clearly understood: even if Xie Lingruo had space-based powers and ample supplies, those were not renewable resources. As a businessman, Xie Father would never use his daughter's provisions to play the Good Samaritan.
Seeing how decisively her family rejected others' requests, Xie Lingruo was very satisfied—her family had the right mindset and wouldn't hold her back. After all, in the apocalypse, "saints die first."
Besides, they had basically cleared out the villa neighborhood. There was even a small supermarket within the compound, so the couple could easily scavenge food for themselves. The only reason they came asking was that they were too cowardly to take risks.
As for people like that, Xie Lingruo thought, "Rotten mud can't hold up a wall." There was no need to waste time or energy on them.
Before heading to the base, they needed a vehicle. The unanimous choice was Xie Lingfeng's off-road vehicle, which had a high chassis and could run over zombies without issue. The only downside was its high fuel consumption.
But that wasn't a problem. Xie Lingruo planned to 'zero-dollar shop' (i.e., loot) more off-road vehicles and gasoline along the way. To make room for these future gains, she had specially reserved 3,000 cubic meters of storage space.
When Xie Father and Xie Lingfeng heard that she wanted to stockpile vehicles and fuel, they were completely on board. These would certainly become scarce strategic resources in the future—it was wise to act early.
So while Xie Lingfeng plotted their route to the base, he also marked the two nearest gas stations.
In the end, the three of them decided to set off early the next morning. That night, Xie Lingruo only trained for two hours before resting, unlike before when she would train longer. She was saving her energy for the journey ahead.
Early the next morning, Xie Father asked her to store all useful household items into the space, especially their late mother's belongings and the family photo albums.
By the time they drove off, it was just past 7 a.m. Many people in the villa district saw them leave.
Some thought it was far too dangerous—after all, there were no zombies in the neighborhood yet, and everyone still had food. Why leave and walk into certain death?
But the more clear-sighted among them recognized that this family had been fighting zombies from day one. They realized they should learn from the wise if they wanted to survive in this hellish world. So, they began packing, preparing to leave soon as well.
In the off-road vehicle, Xie Lingfeng drove, Xie Father sat in the passenger seat, and Xie Lingruo sat in the back.
As she observed the surroundings, she suddenly spotted a "familiar face"—someone who had bullied the original host in the previous timeline.
This man had a large black mole on his lip—Xie Lingruo could recognize him even if he turned to ash. He was one of her mortal enemies.
What luck—her revenge came easier than expected. Without hesitation, she used her psychic power to retrieve a glass bottle from her space and hurled it toward the man.
Crash! The sound drew nearby zombies like a magnet. The scumbag was soon swarmed and torn apart by the horde, his cries for mercy echoing in vain.
Xie Lingruo was very pleased. She thought of how, in the original story, she too had knelt and begged for mercy, but these scumbags had shown her no compassion whatsoever.