Hearing Zhang Yuan's words, Jin Xuyan raised his eyes from the map and looked at the road. After assessing the situation, he said, "Take the left road. We will go through the mountain route."

"Understood."

After receiving the order, Zhang Yuan picked up the radio and relayed the order, "Brothers, take the left road. We will go through the mountain route."

As soon as he finished speaking, the soldiers responded through the radio, "Understood!"

Thirty minutes after leaving the main road, they finally entered the mountain path. Compared to the main road, the road conditions were much worse. However, the number of zombies and abandoned vehicles was significantly lower.

Due to the sound of the vehicle and truck engines, the zombies along the roadside let out guttural roars and staggered toward them. Those trapped inside cars pounded on the windows while roaring excitedly.

Since the zombies' movements were slow, they couldn't catch up with the convoy and eventually wandered aimlessly along the road after losing their targets.

While driving the armored vehicle, Zhang Yuan glanced at the rearview mirror and saw Qin Luzi's hand move. He was relieved to see his comrade finally wake up and said, "Captain, Old Qin has woken up."

Hearing this, Jin Xuyan put down the map in his hand and turned to look. The moment he turned around, he saw his friend staring at the ceiling in a daze. Though his face was still flushed with fever, he was no longer in a comatose state.

"Old Qin, you are finally woken up. Do you feel any discomfort?" he asked.

When Qin Luzi heard his voice, he turned his head and saw his friend's calm expression. It took him a moment to regain his senses before he hoarsely asked, "Captain, I didn't die?"

Jin Xuyan nodded and replied, "With your personality, even the King of Hell wouldn't want to accept you."

Hearing this, Qin Luzi chuckled and said hoarsely, "I think it's you who couldn't bear to part with me."

Smiling at his words, Jin Xuyan said, "There is water and food in your backpack. Replenish your energy and take your fever medicine first. We need you to get better as soon as possible."

"Understood. Thank you, Captain."

Now that his friend had woken up, Jin Xuyan felt as if a heavy stone pressing on his heart had been lifted. He picked up the radio and asked, "Qianfeng, what's everyone's condition?"

Not long after, a crisp male voice came through the radio, "Report, everyone has woken up and is currently eating and resting."

As he expected, the rest of the soldiers were awake and eating. He nodded and replied, "If anyone still has a fever, have them take the fever medicine."

"Understood," Chen Qianfeng replied.

After putting down the radio, Jin Xuyan looked out the window and frowned.

Sitting in the back seat, Qin Luzi pushed himself up and leaned against the chair. He opened his backpack and found it filled with water, food, medicine, and high-protein snacks. He grabbed a bottle of mineral water and finished it in one go.

Once the burning sensation in his throat eased, he took out a pack of compressed biscuits and started eating. For some reason, he felt as if he were starving for days, as his stomach was completely empty.

Even after finishing a pack of compressed biscuits, two sausages, a protein bar, and another bottle of water, he still felt hungry. He wanted to eat more, but thinking about the supplies shortage, he held back and zipped up his backpack.

Noticing this, Jin Xuyan opened the storage compartment beside his seat, took out a loaf of bread, and tossed it to the back seat.

"Finish it," he said.

Catching the bread, Qin Luzi didn't bother pretending to be polite and ate it immediately. Only after finishing the entire loaf did he feel about 70% full.

Watching him devour the food, Zhang Yuan couldn't help but think, 'Since when did Old Qin eat so much?'

When he finally finished eating, Qin Luzi took a moment to check his condition. The wounds on his body were mostly healed, leaving only the deep wound on his calf.

Although the wound was no longer bleeding and new flesh had started to grow, the shape of the injury told him that part of his flesh had been cut off.

Judging by how the wound had been treated, he was certain his Captain had done it. Besides Jin Xuyan, no one else would have dared to cut his flesh and stay by his side when he showed signs of mutation.

Before losing consciousness, he had seen his own flesh rotting. He also felt his muscles and joints slowly stiffen, and his body temperature kept dropping.

During his coma, it felt as if he had been thrown into an ice cellar. The cold and pain that penetrated deep into his bones and nerves were something he would never forget.

He thought he would never wake up again, almost surrendering to the overwhelming cold.

But just before he lost his mind completely, he felt an unknown energy flow into his body, slowly dispelling the cold—leaving only the pain wrecking his whole body.

He didn't know how long he had been unconscious. When he opened his eyes, he saw the familiar ceiling of the armored vehicle.

While lost in thought, he suddenly felt a strange sensation within his body, as if a stream of warm energy was flowing through every vein. Closing his eyes, he focused on the energy. Suddenly, three dots appeared in his mind, each a different color.

Two dots—one blue and one white—were close to each other, while a green dot was positioned behind them. He wasn't sure what the colors represented, but he instinctively knew these three dots were him and his comrades inside this armored vehicle.

Several meters away, scattered red dots moved around slowly. Besides the dots, he also saw images of roads forming in his mind. It was like looking at a map—one he could zoom in and out of at will.

Opening his eyes, he noticed Jin Xuyan watching him. Blinking in confusion, he asked, "What's wrong?"