Chapter 7: Highway Survival 4
Chu Yun quickly walked over.
“Please, have a heart. This is food I found with great difficulty. I beg you, don’t steal it from me. My old lady still needs this food to survive! Besides, you’ve already taken from me once, please leave this batch for me.” The old man cowered and curried favor, pleading desperately with the three men who were aggressively plundering him.
The short man crossed his arms, showing not a shred of guilt or pity. “Cut the crap, old man! We’re taking your supplies to motivate you to work harder. Don’t be ungrateful. Hand it over willingly, or else with that old frame of yours, I’m afraid you won’t be able to take what comes next.”
“Hahaha!” The two lackeys burst into loud laughter at his words.
“No way! If you really want to rob me, this old man will fight you to the death.” The old man desperately shielded the box of small buns in his arms.
The short man nodded to the two lackeys beside him. The lackeys immediately stepped forward from the left and right, cornering the old man, and were just about to lay hands on him.
Suddenly, a young woman’s shout rang out.
“Stop right there!”
With her spiked mace in hand, Chu Yun walked over toward the old man with a completely calm demeanor. Taking advantage of the brief moment the two lackeys were dazed, the old man scurried over to Chu Yun’s side.
“Girl, don’t try to be a hero. They are three grown men, and you’re just a girl—you can’t beat them. Run, quickly!” the old man said anxiously.
Chu Yun offered him a reassuring shake of her head.
She stared at the short man, her expression shifting slightly. The little thief who stole my gas. Now that I’ve run into you today, there’s no way I’m letting you off the hook.
The short man also recognized Chu Yun’s identity from the spiked mace. Having been intimidated by Chu Yun’s aura before, he cowered slightly for a moment. But looking at the two lackeys beside him, his confidence surged again. They had three men; why should they be afraid of failing to beat a single girl?
Before, he had been too far away to get a clear look, but now observing Chu Yun at close range, she was young and beautiful…
Consequently, a wicked thought bloomed in his mind—and it was precisely this filthy thought that would cause him to be beaten miserably in a few moments.
“Hey beautiful, a wise person submits to circumstances. Hand over your weapon and serve us well, and I guarantee you’ll be living large and eating well for the rest of these days.”
“What’s a woman doing fighting and killing anyway? You should be staying at home serving men.”
The two lackeys joined in with crude jeers.
“Boss, this girl is seriously gorgeous!” one of the lackeys with a buzzcut said, leering filthily at Chu Yun.
The short man called Boss sneered, “Don’t worry, as long as you two take her down, you’ll get your share of the rewards.”
“Hehehe.” The lackeys’ crude laughter grew even louder.
Disgusting bastards. Chu Yun despised them utterly in her heart, yet she maintained a completely calm exterior.
“Girl, they mean trouble. I’ll hold them back, you run! I’m just an old man, they won’t do much to me.”
Hearing the vile suggestions of these men, the old man’s face instantly became frantic with panic. It was all his fault; if he hadn’t told Chu Yun to come here, she wouldn’t have encountered these plaguelike bastards.
Chu Yun raised her spiked mace with her right hand, blocking the old man behind her. “Get back. Leave them to me!”
The old man stepped forward to pull at Chu Yun. “Girl, don’t try to be a hero!”
Chu Yun gently brushed the old man’s hand away and stepped forward with her mace.
The short man took a step back and barked, “Refusing a carrot only to get the stick! You two, go… go…”
Before he could finish his sentence, he saw Chu Yun swiftly flash forward. She swung left and right, smashing directly into the two lackeys’ legs. With a loud thud, both of them collapsed to the ground, howling in agony. With a fluid twist of her arms, two crisp crack sounds of bone dislocation echoed, and both their arms were wrenched out of their sockets. Right now, they looked like roast chickens on a grill, their legs and arms pinned at extremely bizarre angles on either side of their bodies.
The entire process took less than five seconds.
The short man watched, completely dumbfounded. He spun around, preparing to bolt outside, but Chu Yun anticipated his intention and leaped past him to bar the path ahead.
“Heroine, Heroine, please spare me! I’ll give you something good in exchange!”
As he spoke, he fumbled around inside his backpack. Suddenly, a silver flash erupted as a sharp dagger thrust straight toward Chu Yun.
In that lightning-fast split second, Chu Yun’s body nimbly shifted, dodging the short man’s dagger. Then, before the short man could even turn around, she delivered a vicious kick squarely to his buttocks.
With a loud thud, the short man was kicked flat onto the ground like a frog, eating a mouthful of dirt.
Chu Yun immediately stepped forward, grinding her foot down hard on the man’s wrist, twisting and rubbing it into the dirt. The dagger slipped from the man’s grasp and was kicked aside by Chu Yun.
This wasn’t enough. As if seeking vengeance, she rained fierce kicks down on the soft flesh of the man’s abdomen—it wasn’t fatal, but it hurt like hell. The man desperately wanted to quit the game immediately to escape the pain, but Chu Yun didn’t give him the chance. She had intentionally disabled his arms beforehand, rendering him completely unable to move a muscle.
For a moment, only the man’s bloodcurdling screams echoed through the room.
Once she had beaten him enough, Chu Yun finally caught her breath and put away her spiked mace.
Meanwhile, the old man still hadn’t snapped out of his shock. This truly is a ferocious young girl, but having such incredible martial arts skills to rely on is genuinely enviable.
Chu Yun called out to the dazed old man, and together they plundered a substantial amount of supplies from the three men before forcing them to open their interfaces and leave the game.
After the three men reluctantly dissolved into three plumes of white smoke and vanished, Chu Yun ran outside. She stroked the smooth chassis of the sports car and admired its sleek, aerodynamic body, nodding her head in complete satisfaction. What a gorgeous car. It’s finally mine.
After plundering quite a few items from the sports car’s trunk, she returned indoors, piling the supplies together to split them with the old man.
“I… I didn’t contribute anything. I’ll just take the portion they originally stole from me.” The old man fidgeted, feeling incredibly embarrassed. He had relied entirely on Chu Yun just to save his own life; how could he possibly take the spoils of war she had won?
Chu Yun ignored his protests. She not only returned the portion that had been pillaged from him earlier but also compensated him with two boxed meal food cards. She had noticed that while she was handling the short man, the old man had kept a vigilant eye on the two grounded lackeys to prevent any sneak attacks, and he had been a big help during the body searches too.
Chu Yun had always been stubborn, so seeing that he couldn’t refuse, the old man accepted them. He joyfully carried his supplies over to his thatch bed.
Chu Yun took inventory of the remaining supplies. It appeared the short man had gathered quite a few good things during the “Life and Death Speed” stage by utilizing his supercar. Aside from gold coins and personal-bound items which she couldn’t access, all the other spoils of war were now laid out here.
As she cataloged the loot, aside from the two food cards given to the old man, she had added ten boxed meal combo food cards to her stores. In addition, there was a razor-sharp pocket knife, both of which had been stripped from the short man—no wonder he had the capital to boss around two lackeys. She put away the sharp blade; the edge was exceptionally sharp, and unless absolutely necessary, she didn’t want to draw blood.
For dinner, Chu Yun opened a boxed meal combo card. It was the usual two-meat-one-vegetable set: diced chicken with chilies, braised fish, and lettuce in oyster sauce, with a banana for post-meal fruit. Now that her stock was abundant, she no longer had to think about splitting one meal into two portions.
The temperature at night had been getting colder day by day over the past few days, and she had been awoken by the chill several times.
Day 9 of the game.
The torrential downpour that had lasted for three days finally stopped, but the temperature plummeted sharply, dropping down close to 5°C.
A howling gale roared outside, whistling through the broken doors and windows. The wind carried a trace of winter’s bone-chilling cold, stinging terribly as it whipped against one’s face and body.
Is this… winter arriving?
Yet right now, Chu Yun was only wearing her thin athletic tracksuit. In fact, she estimated everyone else was likely wearing just as little clothing, since it had been over 20°C when they were pulled into the game. After all, no one could have anticipated the game would set this kind of obstacle. She stomped her feet in place, rubbing her hands together and blowing a breath of warm air, but her body only warmed up for a brief moment before freezing over again.
Her physique had always been formidable, but even a body of iron would naturally bow its head before the forces of nature.
According to the game’s patterns, the first day brought scorching high temperatures, followed by continuous heavy rain four days later. Chu Yun guessed that the weather shifted every few days, meaning continuous low temperatures should be next. She also noticed that every time the weather transitioned, the system would establish a corresponding stage obstacle. Having stayed here for two days already, it was time to go out and look for a catalyst.
She surveyed the dilapidated gas station; the doors and windows of every room were broken. If the temperature continued to drop, it would be completely impossible to withstand this bone-chilling cold.
Chu Yun shared her thoughts with the old man, asking if he was willing to leave with her.
“Girl, you go on ahead. This old man will probably leave the game today or tomorrow.”
“My old lady’s health isn’t great. As soon as the weather turns cold, her joints ache. I estimate she’ll be going back today. Thanks to your blessings, I’ve managed to hold out until the ninth day. I’ll be going back to take care of my old lady before long!” the old man said.
Chu Yun didn’t try to persuade him further; everyone had their own ideas, and she expressed understanding and respect.
Afterward, she bid the old man farewell, climbed into the sports car left behind by the short man, and drove onto the highway. A little bit of gas remained in the three-wheeled motorcycle, which she didn’t siphon out, leaving it for the old man to use for half a day. Her current fuel level was abundant, perfectly sufficient to last until the final day.
It had to be said that a sports car’s performance was vastly superior to a battered three-wheeler—the seats were comfortable and the handling was smooth. The car was equipped with air conditioning, so she turned it on every once in a while to ensure the cabin temperature remained stable at around 26°C.
With the interior temperature perfectly comfortable and the car’s CD player playing built-in music, Chu Yun felt like she wasn’t on a survival mission, but rather a road trip.
Regrettably, however, she didn’t encounter any so-called catalysts today.
At night, she reclined the seat flat, lay down on the car seat, and drifted off to sleep, enjoying a peaceful night’s rest.
Day 10 of the game, the temperature continued to drop, now approaching 0°C.
If she didn’t spot a supply pack, she was currently unwilling to even step out of the car. The injuries suffered in the game would translate over to reality; if she caught a cold or suffered frostbite, she would truly be in for a rough time. A single healing bandage cost 5 gold coins, and a single cold pill was also 5 gold coins—and since she had been out of gold coins back then, she hadn’t bought any! Right now, she was only earning 5 gold coins a day, so falling sick would mean the losses far outweighed the gains.
At 8:00 PM, after driving along the highway for an entire day, Chu Yun noticed lights gleaming a kilometer away. This was the first time she had seen artificial lighting since entering the game so many days ago. A place with lights meant people would gather, so Chu Yun drove toward it with a clear objective.
A few minutes later, Chu Yun executed a beautiful drift, whipping up a cloud of flying sand as she stopped precisely in front of the illuminated building.
A crowd had already gathered here. The moment everyone saw a luxurious sports car arrive in such a high-profile manner, glances filled with either greed or envy instantly locked onto Chu Yun’s vehicle.
She didn’t get out immediately, instead peering through the one-way car windows. The first thing that caught her eye was a massive red gate, with a plaque above that read: Highway Service Area.
Presently, around fifteen cars were scattered randomly outside the gate. Some people had stepped down to walk around, while others sat inside their vehicles. Everyone maintained a certain distance from one another, warily observing their surroundings.
Chu Yun noticed that these vehicles were a bizarre assortment: electric scooters, bicycles, ordinary sedans, commercial vans, SUVs, as well as three-wheelers and sports cars like hers.
She even spotted a public bus and a fire engine.
……
Truly, impressive. She was thoroughly impressed!
Chu Yun noted that the person who designed this game was quite the clever devil!
Perhaps seeing that Chu Yun remained seated inside the car without coming out, the crowd assumed the occupant was a pushover who didn’t dare to step down after seeing such a grand display.
Little did they know, after finishing her observation of the scene, Chu Yun was simply eating her dinner inside the car. After all, in her heart, nothing was more important than eating.
Once her stomach was no longer empty, Chu Yun finally stepped out of the car.
Whew, it’s freezing out here. If she hadn’t been sitting in the car all day and wanted to stretch her muscles, she really wouldn’t have wanted to come down.
Inside a battered sedan.
“Bro Yue, that sports car is so sleek. If the two of us could sit inside it, just thinking about it is wonderful.”
“And look over there, it’s just a lone young girl. For her to survive until now means she must have hoarded a ton of supplies. As long as we snatch them away, both the car and the supplies will be ours. Will we still have to worry about failing to survive until the final day?”
Seeing that a young, pretty girl had stepped down from the sports car, the curly-haired beauty Zhang Xiaomei instantly felt a stomach full of sour jealousy. Why did she have to rely on this dead fatty just to survive, while some people had such incredible luck? She didn’t believe Chu Yun possessed the actual strength to survive in this harsh environment. Thus, she egged the fat man on.
Yue Shan hadn’t originally intended to provoke anyone else, but he couldn’t withstand the woman’s manipulation. Eager to save face, he opened the door and walked toward Chu Yun. It’s just a lone young girl; a few threatening words will make her cave.
Seeing Yue Shan act as the guinea pig, the surrounding crowd instantly grew restless. Everyone else was in groups, while she was entirely alone—naturally making her the easiest target to handle.
“You over there, give me the supplies on your person.”
Only when Yue Shan drew near did he realize Chu Yun was very pretty. Beautiful people always evoked pity, so he instantly forgot the woman’s instructions and unconsciously softened his voice.
Another robber. Chu Yun let out a mental scoff. Does your sister look that weak? Standing at 168cm with firmly trained abs and biceps, this guy didn’t just lack discernment, he lacked a brain.
If anyone judged her as weak simply because she was a woman, she would think that person was truly foolish—what era was it to still judge people by their appearance? But she was about to let this crowd know that a woman could be far stronger than a man.
“Something wrong?” Chu Yun replied coldly.
Catching the icy glint in Chu Yun’s eyes, he was momentarily at a loss. Instinct told him this woman was absolutely no pushover.
He wanted to back down a bit, but the woman behind him was still staring at him from the car, and the surrounding crowd was watching too. He couldn’t lose face and let them mock him, so he sucked in a breath and stepped forward.
“Didn’t you hear me? Give me your supplies.”
Chu Yun didn’t waste words with him. She briefly stretched her limbs, and in a sudden flash, lunged forward to seize the fat man’s arm, wrenching it behind his back with a twist. She delivered a sharp kick directly into the back of his knee, forcing the fat man to drop to one knee with a loud howl of pain, entirely stripped of any power to retaliate.
Her movements were so blindingly fast that the entire sequence took a mere two seconds. Before the crowd could even process what happened, the fat man had already collapsed. Following that, a wave of gasps erupted from the surroundings. The gazes the crowd directed at Chu Yun turned entirely cautious, packing away their little schemes; no one dared to harbor designs on her anymore.
Chu Yun was highly satisfied with the current outcome. She always preferred the fastest method to resolve issues; using the fat man as a demonstration could eliminate a lot of unnecessary trouble.
