Chapter 31: Journey to Huan'an (1)

Volume 1 “Year of Calamity”

That day, the two Mutants, or rather two kindred spirits, talked for a long time as if they were old friends reunited. Just as Medusa had said, she and An Sheng were of the same kind, sharing too many similarities.

From the moment Medusa laid eyes on An Sheng, a peculiar sentiment began to quietly sprout in her heart—a connection at the genetic level, as if destined by fate. She was certain their destinies would become deeply entangled in the future.

“What a special little fellow. I can hardly resist devouring you,” Medusa scrutinized An Sheng unabashedly, her gaze resembling that of someone eyeing a piece of meat on a cutting board. This sent a chill down An Sheng’s spine, and the calm he had mustered earlier vanished, replaced by a heart pounding in his throat.

Seeing An Sheng’s nervous expression, Medusa let out another charming, coquettish laugh, her voice as melodious as a lark’s song. Unfortunately, he was in no mood to appreciate it. An Sheng thought to himself, women are truly unpredictable—one moment chatting amiably, the next wanting to eat him alive. Where was the logic in that?

“Little one, why not stay by my side?”

Stay by your side to be your reserve snack? No way! Though that’s what he thought, An Sheng didn’t dare say it out loud.

“Queen Sister, you already have so many followers under your command. Surely you don’t need one more like me? How about you just let me go like passing gas?”

An Sheng was no Saint; sometimes, to survive, he could abandon his dignity. In front of this powerful woman, he didn’t even have a chance to escape. Fortunately, she didn’t seem intent on killing him for now, but who could guarantee that wouldn’t change in the future? Making a swift escape was the real priority.

An Sheng had genuinely misunderstood Medusa’s meaning. Her desire to “devour him” wasn’t literal; more plainly, Medusa wanted to mate with An Sheng. Her attraction to him stemmed from both human emotion and animal instinct.

From a human perspective, though she was strong, she was still a woman, and wanting to find a reliable partner was perfectly normal. However, in this post-apocalyptic world, dependable members of the opposite sex were indeed rare.

From an animal standpoint, An Sheng was not only her kind but also a unique existence. Their offspring from mating would likely be even more powerful.

Unfortunately, as an exceptional woman, Medusa couldn’t just throw herself at a man. In this regard, she preferred mutual consent.

“You should think carefully. Being with a Lord means gaining many things.” As Medusa spoke, her beautiful eyes swept over the thousands of Mutated Creatures surrounding them. Though unspoken, the underlying message was clear: See, if you follow me, all these will be your subordinates, and you’ll live a life of luxury from then on.An Sheng certainly understood what Medusa meant, but he truly lacked the courage to be with someone who could crush him effortlessly. This wasn’t about mooching off others—at most, it meant losing his dignity. The other party was a mutated creature that devoured people without leaving a trace. If she were displeased, she might just swallow him as a snack.

“Ahem… Queen Sister, it’s getting late. Perhaps I shouldn’t disturb you any further. What do you think?” An Sheng’s expression at that moment resembled an ancient weapon—”shamelessness”—utterly servile! It made people want to slap him just by looking. But as long as he could leave this place alive, An Sheng didn’t mind lowering his pride. After all, a wretched life was better than an honorable death. Compared to survival, dignity wasn’t all that valuable.

“Your behavior is disgusting. Get lost!”

Seeing An Sheng’s groveling demeanor, Medusa instantly lost interest in him. It was a complete contrast to the earlier image of the Devil King, fearless and resolute in the face of death.

Although Medusa was a Lord Level Mutant, as her human memories gradually returned, she was somewhat influenced by her former human personality. In her human days, Medusa was a strong-willed woman who enjoyed challenges and conquests. But what others didn’t know was that she secretly yearned to be conquered—both in character and “in bed.” An Sheng’s current behavior, however, had nothing to do with dominance.

“You’re really letting me go? No jokes?” An Sheng couldn’t believe his ears and double-checked.

But such timidity only provoked even more disgust from Medusa.

“Disappear from my sight immediately, before I change my mind!”

“Okay!”

Before the sound of his reply faded, An Sheng had already vanished from the spot. His speed was unprecedented, surpassing even his performance during the fierce battle with Pighead Three.

For a full twenty minutes, An Sheng maintained his fastest speed in the Demon State, fleeing at nearly 200 kilometers per hour. Only when he could no longer detect Medusa’s Pheromone did he finally stop to rest. By then, he had already reached the West Suburbs.

Returning to the garage where the Armored Assault Vehicle was parked, An Sheng reverted from his Demon Form. An intense hunger gripped his stomach, causing it to cramp. He rummaged through his backpack, pulled out compressed biscuits, and washed them down with cold water from his military canteen, eating voraciously without a care for appearances.

After devouring three packs of compressed biscuits, An Sheng finally felt some relief in his stomach. Reflecting on everything he had encountered that day felt like a dream! The Purifier’s strength and Medusa’s terror made him acutely aware of the immense crisis. To survive alongside everyone in the Fortress, he needed to grow stronger.

Meanwhile, in the city center, Medusa stood in the presidential suite of the hotel atop the World Trade Center, gazing into the distance with pensive thoughts. For her, this familiar yet alien world was equally bewildering. Where should she go from here?

With his stomach full, An Sheng embarked on the journey home. Fortunately, he encountered no other dangers along the way. Upon returning to the Fortress, he immediately sought out Old Zhang and Nie Chong, recounting everything he had discovered in the city in meticulous detail.”We should keep this matter confidential for now to avoid causing public panic.” Old Zhang, as always, approached the issue from a broader perspective. “But we can’t just sit idle either. We need to find ways to strengthen our fortress’s defensive capabilities.”

Old Zhang was right. Yushan Fortress might appear quite sturdy, but that was only against zombies and ordinary mutated creatures. If faced with powerful beings like the Purifier and Medusa, it would likely prove inadequate. The real challenge, however, lay in how to actually enhance the fortress’s strength.

After pondering for a moment, Nie Chong said earnestly, “My soldiers and I can train our people in firearms usage. The only problem is we didn’t bring much weapons and ammunition when we escaped. It would be better if we could replenish our supplies.”

“The police station in the urban area should have an armory, but that’s Medusa’s territory now. Going there would be suicide. What if we check the distant county towns instead?” Though An Sheng had never been a police officer, he knew about the special police unit within the police department that possessed advanced weaponry – all information he’d gathered from television, though he wasn’t sure about the equipment quality in county-level special police units.

Hearing An Sheng’s suggestion, Old Zhang suddenly slapped his forehead and said, “My hometown Huan’an County has a reserve anti-aircraft artillery regiment about fifty kilometers from our Yushan location. They must have plenty of weapons and equipment there.”