Chapter 126: Wasteland Chase

Without a word Gecko started the engine.

Like a roaring beast the off-road vehicle charged violently onto the small road to the left, speeding into the distance.

The investigators left behind looked bewildered. They had already conducted an extremely detailed survey of the surrounding area and confirmed those people went south. They hadn’t found any trace on the small road to the left that wound around the abandoned city. They had no idea why the two members of the Special Action Team, whom their superiors had strictly ordered them to cooperate with, were heading that way.

Completely baffled, they couldn’t help but feel…

…a sense of admiration. They exchanged glances and whispered, “This must be what experts are like. You just can’t comprehend their actions.”

…

…

“We should be heading south now.”

Under Gecko’s control the off-road vehicle accelerated wildly, racing along the rugged road.

At every crucial juncture Mom would gently point out the direction.

Lu Xin didn’t overthink it, simply relaying the instructions to Gecko.

This greatly surprised Gecko. He frequently drove one-handed, using the other to unfold the map and study it.

This was Qinggang City’s latest map compiled over recent years detailing the surrounding terrain, traffic conditions and general layout. It marked all known settlements and dangerous areas within a thousand-mile radius. Road conditions were indicated by different colors; impassable, broken or obstructed roads were marked with red lines.

Small crosses indicated areas impassable for vehicles.

Dotted lines represented extremely difficult road conditions that were barely traversable.

A wealth of valuable intelligence was concentrated on this small map but Lu Xin couldn’t understand it.

Fortunately he could rely on Mom’s ability to pinpoint the enemy’s location.

Combining these locations with Gecko’s driving skills and assessment of road conditions allowed them to find the optimal route.

…

…

“These guys can really run…”

After driving in a roaring frenzy for over two hours Gecko muttered while looking at the map.

Lu Xin nodded. They hadn’t wasted any time since leaving the city, pursuing relentlessly. He trusted that Mom’s directions were accurate, which saved them considerable time.

Although road conditions varied from good to bad under Gecko’s driving their speed consistently remained at least a hundred kilometers per hour.

Having driven for over two hours they were now nearly two to three hundred kilometers away from Qinggang City.

Even in a straight line the distance should have exceeded a hundred kilometers.

This indicated that after succeeding in Qinggang the targets had fled immediately without stopping.

Clearly they were extremely cautious.

…

…

“Well this at least proves they aren’t one of the Knight Orders from around here.”

Gecko analyzed aloud, rambling on, “Knight Orders have always existed outside the high walls. But calling them Knight Orders… really they’re just a bunch of bandits with a few beat-up motorcycles and some rusty guns, robbing whoever they can. Their targets are usually small settlements or transport teams moving around. They wouldn’t dare attack Qinggang City directly.”

“Nowadays with Qinggang’s growing influence many Knight Orders are starting to go legit. They’re taking on transport escort missions from the city or wasteland scavenging commissions. Of course they’ll still rob if the opportunity arises, like a side hustle.”

Gecko sounded more certain, “We basically have a handle on the locations and activity ranges of the Knight Orders around Qinggang City. Since the people we’re chasing haven’t stopped at all and are heading straight out it means their base isn’t nearby.”

“I suspect they might have been hired by another high-wall city specifically to cause trouble here in Qinggang City…”

…

Lu Xin nodded slightly.

From what he understood this group of ‘Knight Orders’ was likely led by Qin Ran.

There weren’t many of them only about ‘seven’ but they were powerful, including three Ability Users. They were capable of causing chaos in the city and ambushing his and Chen Jing’s convoy with no less than six multi-barrel converted machine guns.

Their goal must have been to steal that painting.

As for where they came from why they wanted the painting or how long they’d been investigating to find it – all unknown.

But he didn’t need to know.

Investigating these things was Chen Jing’s job. His mission on this trip was simply to bring them back.

…

…

*Whoosh…*

The tall sturdy modified off-road vehicle drove across the boundless wasteland.

Its four massive special rubber wheels combined with an absurdly strong steel frame truly made the vehicle resemble a steel behemoth. Whether encountering cracks or ditches it simply crushed them with a *whoosh*.

Packs of wolves roaming the wasteland heard the commotion from afar and began to listen intently.

But as the monster approached they scattered in terror.

White murky puddles hiding unknown dangers were simply charged through by the steel monster.

Huge splashes rose two or three meters high washing over the mud-caked vehicle body.

A humanoid ‘crazed person’ its body already decaying walked mechanically and slowly in the middle of the road. Hearing the engine’s roar it turned woodenly revealing a mad glint in its single remaining murky eye…

…but it had barely turned before the whistling front of the car smashed it into a paste of flesh.

…

…

“Don’t look at me I’m just a sheep, Awooo…”

“The green grass becomes fragrant because of me, Awooo…”

“The sky becomes bluer because of me, Waaah…”

“The white clouds become softer, Awooo-wooo-wooo…”

…

Night gradually fell. The off-road vehicle had been driving for a long time without seeing another soul.

Only the dilapidated remains of villages could be seen near and far overgrown with wildly spreading vines or weeds. Perhaps soon even the last traces of these villages would disappear.

On the weed-covered road only the bright headlights and Gecko’s singing broke the silence.

His singing sounded familiar to Lu Xin; Sister seemed to have loved watching that cartoon before.

Later she stopped watching saying the main character never got to eat the sheep.

But Gecko’s version sounded different from Lu Xin’s memory, a bit wild.

It captured the arrogance of the villains.

The song carried far into the distance occasionally answered by howling beasts from deep within the wasteland.

“Won’t singing like this attract a large group of crazed people?”

Lu Xin asked just before Gecko launched into a crescendo.

“Crazed people?”

Gecko laughed. “This isn’t ten or twenty years ago. There aren’t many crazed people left especially since we’re following routes previously used by transport teams. They’ve long been cleared out. The few scattered ones we’ve encountered on this trip are practically rare animals now. If we actually ran into a whole group that easily we’d be lucky…”

He took a breath and started singing loudly again, “Whatever problems arise…”

Lu Xin had to interrupt him again asking with a smile, “Why do you keep singing?”

Gecko glanced at him. “Because you won’t chat with me. Singing keeps me awake…”

Lu Xin considered that Gecko had been driving for four or five hours and kindly offered, “Want me to take over for a bit?”

“No no…”

Gecko shook his head repeatedly. “I can still manage.”

Lu Xin smiled helplessly. “Are you afraid I don’t know how to drive?”

Gecko looked at him seriously. “No I’m afraid that once I’m no longer useful your family will…”

He made a slicing motion across his own neck.

Lu Xin was taken aback thinking, *This guy makes my family sound so unreasonable…*

Then he saw in the rearview mirror that Mom and Sister who had climbed back into the cabin were both watching Gecko with great interest.

…

…

“If we can’t catch them today let’s first…”

Lu Xin considered the problem deciding to find a place to rest first.

Gecko had been constantly using his ability while driving. Although driving was a superficial use of his ability maintaining that intensity for four or five hours straight must be tiring. He didn’t want Gecko to collapse from exhaustion.

…After all if he collapsed there’d be no one to drive for him.

However just as he was about to suggest this Mom in the back seat suddenly sat up straighter.

She frowned slightly.

Her expression seemed disgusted yet couldn’t hide a hint of excitement deep within.

Sister on the other hand became visibly excited poking her small head near the window sniffing eagerly.

Beneath her dark hair her eyes clearly lit up.

Sensing something Lu Xin slowly rolled down the window and looked outside.

Gecko immediately covered his nose and mouth. “What’s that smell?”

Lu Xin looked out the window without speaking. He too smelled the sharp fresh scent of blood.

An exceptionally thick smell of blood drifted in from outside the window.

…

…

“Found them…”

Mom smiled covering her mouth and nose as she looked out the window.

“Right over there…”