Chapter 317 Brook Deadland
Wayne piped up, "Captain Wright, why can't we tag along with you?"
Wayne's crew was the toughest bunch eager to follow William this time. William even thought about making Wayne his go-to guy in Accraville City. But Wayne turned it down, saying he and his wife Darcy weren't the scheming types; they were more into action than plotting.
The real reason Wayne didn't mention was that Darcy always found Cloud Peak Manor resort too expensive during peaceful times. With the apocalypse now upon them, staying there felt like fulfilling a long-held desire.
From his couple of weeks getting to know Wayne, William saw he was a stand-up guy. Darcy, though tall and strong, was even tougher than Wayne and had a no-nonsense attitude, which made William trust her easily.
"Nope, you need to handle things here in Accraville City first, then head to Cloud Peak Manor in a couple of weeks," William smiled and declined Wayne, causing Wayne to wonder pitifully if William didn't want him and his men.William said with a grin, turning down Wayne, who looked like a sad puppy wondering if William didn't want him and his crew.
Darcy smacked Wayne on the head, thinking how clueless he was for not getting William's real intentions. "Shut up. Captain Wright's got some lovely ladies with him on this trip. Why would he want you tagging along?"
William sighed, thinking it was no wonder they were a couple.
Wayne, looking like he finally got it, winked at William as if to say, "I get it," but Darcy saw it and smacked him again.
William touched his nose and watched them leave.
"The way back won't be a walk in the park, will it?" Sasha showed up not far behind. Even though she didn't get the Evolution Elixir this time, her gear had gotten a serious upgrade. Besides the Edge of the Moon, she snagged a white-level belt, and the rest of her gear was gray, more than doubling her combat power.
"You don't have to do this. They might be simple, but they're not dumb. They get it." As Sasha watched Darcy, who towered over her husband, drag Wayne away by the ear, she felt a twinge of envy.
The apocalypse had only started four months ago, but it seemed like people had already forgotten about emotions and love, focusing only on evolution and strength.
You could say it showed how adaptable humans were, but on the flip side, wasn't it also a win for the darker side of human nature?
Some folks said that when you couldn't even get food, talking about emotions was silly. But no matter how harsh and dangerous things got, it might change how people lived, but it couldn't change the fact that humans had feelings. That was what set humans apart from those mutated creatures.
There were always some things humans needed to hold on to.
Maybe you couldn't, but if others could, it was something to be envious of.
Wayne and Darcy might have been a joke to many during peacetime, but in the apocalypse, they stuck together, which was enough to make many feel a sense of strength and warmth of humanity.
Maybe this strength and warmth were why humans were called humans.
"I know, they're showing their determination to follow me in their own way," William nodded. "They're good people."
In the apocalypse, calling someone a good person often had a negative connotation, but not this time.
"Need me to gather the others to escort you back?" Sasha asked, then laughed, "I'm not a good person; I need compensation."
William shook his head, "I'm broke; I can't pay you."
"Liar, peeping tom," Sasha said, not buying it.
Someone who could use up all the spins on the Poppy roulette wheel couldn't be broke! This liar!
"You must have a plan; otherwise, you wouldn't have sent Darryl away first. I won't say anything useless. Be careful." Sasha gave William a complicated look, then suddenly hugged him and kissed his cheek.
"Don't get the wrong idea, this is just a deposit. You got a blueprint this time; I want first dibs when the equipment's made." Sasha straightened William's collar, said "Goodbye, peeping tom," and left gracefully with her crew.
William touched the spot where Sasha had kissed him and shook his head with a wry smile. She was just like in the past life, always needing something in return for everything she did.
With a serious look and his gear packed, William set off alone.
Ahead, dangers were gradually rising, waiting for their target to arrive.
Brook River was an inland river that nurtured the tens of thousands of residents of Brook City on its banks. The east bank of Brook River was known as East River District, and the west bank as West River District. After the apocalypse, it turned into a bloody Land of Death.
Unlike Rivercrest Deadland, Brook Deadland was bustling. Humans had occupied most of the area, and its resources and mineral veins became targets for human exploitation.
However, this came at a cost.
Since the 35th day of the apocalypse, when the Honor Legion began attacking Brook Deadland, more than two months had passed. Despite paying a heavy price, a quarter of the area was still occupied by monsters. At a critical juncture, the Vicious Lizard, the most formidable monster in Brook Deadland, evolved to level five and assumed the role of lord of the Land of Death. Together with the remaining monsters, it held its ground in the Land of Death, staring down the Honor Legion from across the valley.
The battle had been ongoing for nearly two weeks, and the valley was littered with severed limbs, both human and monster. The bodies, once fiercely fighting, now lay mixed together, indistinguishable from one another—a bitter irony.
A slender, beautiful woman in pink tight leather armor stood with her arms crossed, watching the fierce battle ahead, her brows tightly furrowed; she said, "Have you found the path to the east? Can we get through the poison gas fields? What about the west? Can we cross the mountain seeping with purple acid? Are the Corrosive Pterosaurs still in the air?"
Her barrage of questions made her subordinates sweat. They hung their heads, as if the arduous battle in the valley was their fault.
She continued, "Do you know how many of our people have died? Today's battle isn't even over, and we've already lost over thirty! These were all trained with significant resources. I've heard that the First Army has already taken their assigned Land of Death, while we have made no progress and are wasting our resources. Do you want us to drop out of the top ten in the next combat assessment?! How am I supposed to explain this to Connor? To the commander?"
When the woman got angry, she was terrifying, and her subordinates were silent with fear.
"Ms. Simmons! Captain King is back!" A voice came from somewhere.
Instantly, Wendy Simmons' eyes lit up as she snorted coldly, "You all are so useless. Alright, stop looking so dejected. I know you've tried your best. Think of another way. Now, come with me to see Connor."
The small leaders of the Honor Legion breathed a sigh of relief, thinking Connor's return was timely.
However, Wendy's good mood was not just because of Connor; Patrick must have returned as well. She was about to see her lover, and she naturally felt happy.
Wendy, looking imposing, led her people out of the camp and saw Connor and hundreds of Honor Legion soldiers, heads bowed and clothes in tatters.
"What happened?" Wendy was stunned, her gaze sweeping over the crowd, her heart sinking.
"Where's Patrick?" She hurriedly walked up to Connor and Bradley, disregarding Connor's leadership status, and loudly questioned.
Connor and Bradley exchanged a glance and slowly stepped aside, revealing the position behind them.
On a stretcher carried by two Honor Legion soldiers, Patrick, unable to suppress his grief upon hearing Wendy's voice, covered his face with his hands, tears streaming through his fingers.
Seeing her husband alive, Wendy's face initially lit up, and she took two steps forward to embrace Patrick. But she quickly stopped, noticing something seemed to be missing under the dirty blanket covering Patrick.
She approached and lifted the blanket, only to be hit by a vile, bloody stench that wafted towards her.
Seeing Patrick's empty lower half, Wendy trembled violently.
Moments later, a heart-wrenching scream echoed over Brook Deadland.
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