The strangest part about those two rains wasn't the rain itself, was it?
Strong winds picking up mutated creatures and dumping them like rainfall wasn't anything shocking. Even before the apocalypse, storms could rip off rooftops and fling debris through the air.
But the weird thing now was that the storm only carried one type of mutated creature.
That was truly strange.
In the thick forests, there were definitely hordes of mutated beasts, but the variety was endless. Even if a storm swept through and tossed them here, there was no reason they'd all be the same kind.
Captain Zhang frowned. "So what're you saying? You think winds that strong, carrying so many creatures, could actually be man-made?"
Lao Gao shot back immediately. "I never said that. I just said it feels strange. If you wanna think that way, I guess you can."
But when they thought about it, hadn't they already caught and dealt with everyone that needed catching back in the underground city? Anyone further away wasn't even in contact with them, so how could they plan something together?
Then again, why would they need contact first?
Some things didn't need planning between people. As long as someone prepared in advance, they could still make it happen.
What Lao Gao couldn't figure out was, what was the point of doing all this?
Captain Zhang wasn't the only one with a headache. Captain Zhou and the others all shared the same doubts. Since they exchanged info freely, everyone could follow the meaning behind Lao Gao's words. But Lao Gao clearly didn't want to dive too deep into this.
"Alright, that's enough. Don't drag me into this. I don't care about that stuff," he said, then paused. His gaze drifted toward Lan Jin in the distance. His voice turned serious. "Captain Zhou, you probably don't really know Sister Lan. That insect rain, all those bugs covering the whole road, that's her biggest weakness. As long as we don't stay away from them, she won't be able to fight at all. So here's my advice, let's get out of here. The farther the better."
Captain Zhang nodded right away. "I agree. We need to leave now. If we run into some other mutated creature we can't handle, it'll be real trouble."
Captain Zhou still couldn't quite understand, but he was a man who listened to reason. So after his people checked on everyone's injuries, he ordered the convoy to move out of the area immediately.
…
The range of the insect rain was massive. Even after they'd been driving fifteen minutes, the wheels were still crushing bug bodies beneath them. The longer it went on, the more Lan Jin's skin crawled. Even with her eyes shut, she could imagine every squashed bug, all her most hated creatures turned into pulp under the tires.
She really didn't want to see it. If she ever did, she knew it'd scar her for life.
Half an hour later, they finally drove clear of the insect rain. When the landscape outside the windows showed no more bugs, Lao Gao finally let out a long breath. "Seriously, if I had to see that a moment longer, I'd have lost it too."
Ling Jiang gave a shiver. "You were still watching? I stopped the second I got in the car. Just seeing those things crawling on the ground once was disgusting enough."
She'd only glanced once before clamping her eyes shut.
Huang Jinghe held out a little better, but even he couldn't look long. After a short while, he'd also shut his eyes, refusing to see the horror outside.
Only Lao Gao and the driver had lasted the whole time. And to be honest, the driver's nerves were impressive. He'd kept his face calm and steady the whole way.
But when everyone turned to glance at him, they saw his face was white as paper.
So much for nerves of steel. He was just forcing it.
Another half-hour passed before a voice crackled over the radio asking for a stop to rest. One by one, all the cars halted.
The moment they did, the drivers threw open their doors, jumped out, and started vomiting uncontrollably. When they were finally done, they glanced at the bug remains stuck to the tires and quickly shouted, "Don't get out yet, stay inside!"
Then they staggered away and started throwing up again.
Nobody was dumb. They all understood exactly what the drivers had seen. Naturally, they obeyed.
Once the drivers finished retching, they grabbed water to wash and disinfect the vehicles.
Water was precious, but thankfully the base had plenty of water-ability users. Even if the drinking supply ran low, there'd be someone who could replenish it, so there was no need to be stingy now.
After the cleanup, they kept driving another half-hour before finally letting everyone out for a rest.
It had been a brutal day. Not just for Lan Jin, but for everyone. They all needed a break. Fires were lit, pots set up, and food prepared.
Nobody had much appetite, but with only two meals a day, skipping wasn't an option.
Right then, Lao Gao walked over to the cooking team. "Hey, maybe skip the green stuff tonight? I mean, I used to like green food, but today's really not the day. Especially anything that looks like beans."
Honestly, the cooks didn't need that spelled out. Just mentioning "green" was enough. They had no intention of serving up anything like that anyway.
But he'd already said too much. His words painted a picture that immediately popped into everyone's heads. The nausea surged back, and several people bolted away from the pots to retch again.
Lao Gao stared in shock. "What? I just said one thing! That's overkill!"
Lan Jin finally couldn't hold back. "Do you even realize what you just said? It's disgusting! Who could take that?"
So it wasn't just her. Everyone hated it.
Yes, it definitely wasn't just her problem.
…
After resting well, the group once again set off toward the new base.
Once back in the car, Lao Gao muttered, "This trip's been way too rough. Think something else is gonna happen after we set out again?"
Lan Jin snapped at him, "If you can't say anything good, shut your mouth! You really wanna see another insect rain?"