Apocalypse: After Being Reborn, I Stocked Up on All Supplies-Chapter 176 - : Survival at Sea: Beware of Song Qian

Chapter 176: Chapter 176: Survival at Sea: Beware of Song Qian

Ye Qing, with the submachine gun strapped to his back and holding a fire axe in his hand, led the way, while Jiang Yan, as usual, followed behind with a backpack.

At first, the path was just wide enough for two adults to pass, rugged and difficult to navigate.

The deeper they went, the more varied the heights of black stalagmites and scattered boulders appeared in their view.

At first glance, they seemed natural, but upon closer inspection, there were still traces of human crafting.

Some steep slopes had even been turned into steps, following the natural terrain.

The stalagmites protruding beside the main path were all polished by frequent touches.

Not only were they smooth, but they also emitted a faint luminance.

With only Ye Qing by her side, Jiang Yan had fewer concerns.

After walking for a bit, she fished out a powerful flashlight from her backpack, which in reality, she retrieved from the Space.

Ye Qing also held a hand-cranked flashlight, though its light was very dim, barely better than nothing.

Quietly, the two proceeded along the main road, one after the other. They hadn’t gone far before they came upon a distinct fork.

One path led upward, the other downward.

Scanning with her flashlight, Jiang Yan paused at the lower path.

Not far away, in a narrow crevice between two natural cliff faces, there was a makeshift bridge of tree branches.

The branches, as thick as wrists and with their smaller limbs trimmed, were haphazardly assembled.

They had originally come in search of wood.

The branches on this bridge, if taken back in their entirety, would suffice to keep them warm for a while.

There were plenty of dead trees and planks floating in the water outside, but they were sodden and clearly unable to burn.

“Down,”

“Mhm,”

In the instant they paused and looked at each other, they reached the same decision without discussion.

Approaching closer, Jiang Yan realized that beneath the closely spaced bridge lay a naturally formed deep chasm.

Judging by the light reflected from her flashlight, there should be water below.

The chasm was deep and progressively narrowing.

If one were to fall, the odds of survival were practically none.

Jiang Yan couldn’t fathom the purpose of building such a bridge here, as the end of the bridge led to a natural fissure no wider than a palm.

That crack spanned the dome above, leading to an unknown destination.

This suddenly made her think of those tomb-robbing novels she had read before.

But that thought was fleeting, and she quickly snapped back to reality.

“Jiang Yan, you stay here, I’ll go up,” said Ye Qing as he passed the submachine gun to her.

He still held a fire axe in his hand—the branches, directly slotted between the two side walls, were not difficult to remove.

But to dismantle them, one had to walk to the end of the bridge and then retreat, taking down the branches one by one.

Casting a glance at the bottomless chasm, Jiang Yan said, “How about I go? I’m lighter, and you can pull me up from above.”

“No worries, I’ll test the load capacity of the branches first,” Ye Qing, aware of her concern, spoke and already rolled up his sleeves, cautiously stepping onto the bridge.

The branches under his feet creaked and sank a little before stabilizing.

Their load-bearing capacity was adequate.

Ye Qing was also tactical in how he stood, spacing his legs as far apart as possible to evenly distribute his weight.

Jiang Yan had no choice but to pull out a rope from her backpack and have him tie it around himself, just in case.

The other end of the rope was secured to a nearby stalagmite.

In less than a minute, Ye Qing made his way to the end of the bridge with agile movements and began to methodically tap the branches “bang bang bang” to dismantle them.

Fragments of stone chipped away by the axe flew in all directions, and faint splashing sounds could be heard.

Ye Qing was efficient in his work; within minutes, he had disassembled a pile of branches.

The entire process was fraught with tension but no mishaps.

Back on solid ground, Ye Qing took a thinner rope from his backpack, and together with Jiang Yan, they tied up the bundle of branches.

“Jiang Yan,” Ye Qing said in a low voice as he used his leg to hold down the branches while securing the rope, “this area is one of the higher terrains around here. Could it be that no one came here to flee the apocalypse?”

Both of them were on high alert, speaking very little during the journey.

“I don’t know. Logically, there should be people.”

Jiang Yan felt puzzled inside.

There was clearly a way to get here.

Inside the mountain, it was relatively warmer in winter and cooler in summer, which was much better than being outside.

It was an ideal refuge from extreme heat and storms.

And judging by how tightly the mountain was sealed, there didn’t seem to be any signs of earthquakes.

Yet, while exploring outside caves and en route, they found no traces of human residence, which was indeed strange.

Moreover, if there were inhabitants, the wood of the bridge, which could be used for fire, would not have been left for them.

A bold speculation popped into Jiang Yan’s mind:

“Could there be a possibility that each area experienced the apocalypse in a slightly different way? This region might have gone through something earlier, hence no people survived…”

According to Song Qian, these mountains hid an ancient village.

The population density there was evidently lower than in the cities.

It was not impossible for everyone to have perished during some disaster or calamity.

“It’s not without possibility,” Ye Qing nodded, his thoughts aligning with hers.

The heat and Blood Mosquitoes were indeed global experiences.

The reason they knew this was that communications were still functioning at the time, allowing everyone access to the latest news.

As for what happened afterward, people only knew what occurred in their vicinity.

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Was the entire world experiencing the same disaster simultaneously?

That was unknown.

Or perhaps the world underwent the same disaster, but secondary disasters varied significantly.

As Song Qian had said, the situation in East Mountain wasn’t just simple heat; there was also severe radiation.

This explanation made sense.

High up on the plateau of East Mountain, the elevation meant that even before the apocalypse, ultraviolet radiation had been significantly higher than in other plains regions.

And now, Anming, being located on a seismic belt, although heavily damaged, was still much better off than where they currently were in Xiangyun.

“If each place experiences different disasters, then after many such events, survivors might naturally gravitate towards certain areas that are most suitable for living, like the great migrations in human history.

Those who first seize advantageous locations will likely become the founders and rulers of the new order,” Ye Qing said as he finished tying the last knot.

Listening to his words, Jiang Yan reflected on the five private bases mentioned by Song Qian, her mind full of thoughts.

Ye Qing, facing her, looked up, his eyes earnest and his voice lowered a notch:

“Jiang Yan, that Song Qian, although he doesn’t seem like a bad guy, he works for Mo Jingsheng from Yaoben Base.

And that base has some connections with Flame Base.

During our upcoming trip to East Mountain, you should still be careful…”