Day 132 - 7:22 AM - S. Lewis Road Overpass, Pottstown Expressway, Royersford, Mongory County, Pennsylvania, United States of Arica
Everyone was in the middle of preparing the things they needed to cook and eat breakfast.
After leaving the area around St. Gabriel's Hall, the road was not too hazardous. Although they ca across many comrcial compounds and establishnts because they were traversing the main expressway, the infected population was not that high compared to cities.
If they were to count the number of infected that they ca across since they left the Cannibal Den, it should be more or less around five to six hundred. It was actually quite a lot. But comparing the number of infected they ca across these past days, this number did not even reach a quarter.
The only problems on the road were the pretty heavy traffic that was abandoned. Several accidents on the road caused the blockage of traffic, causing a whole lot of cars on the way. Furthermore, both lanes had the sa state. It was most likely that after the accidents, many people that tried to flee decided to counterflow the incoming traffic.
That, however, made things more complicated as more accidents occurred.
Because of this, Roan was forced to drive the vehicle slowly, while paving way across the heavy traffic. At the sites where the accidents happened, Mark and the others would go out and remove the crashed cars by force.
When the sky lightened up as the sun rose from the horizon, they decided to stop and rest after finding a suitable area. Everyone did not manage to get proper sleep, after all. Thus, they decided to rest while those that were able to would prepare a warm soup for breakfast.
Well, finding a good and safe place to rest still took more than an hour, though.
Hannah took the lead in cooking as usual. It was the only thing she could contribute to the group, after all.
On the other hand, despite the language barrier, Feng Zhiruo volunteered to help in cooking. She was not much of a cook herself, but the speed and accuracy she had while cutting the ingredients would make professional cooks drown in sha.
At first, Feng Zhiruo actually thought that she would be declined of her participation. It was not surprising since she was among the group of people that attacked Mark and i before. However, Mark actually agreed to her surprise. It was not like she was planning anything bad. Still, to be trusted to participate in making food was not sothing to be given to people that could potentially harm the group.
Feng Zhiruo could not tell whether Mark was too trusting, or it was just he knew that she had no ill intentions. However, Mark never looked like the forr type. In fact, he looked like a scary person that would have a hard ti trusting anyone. Thinking about this made her head hurt a bit.
Well, Feng Zhiruo was quite right in that. If Mark was not an Empath of a high level, he would be soone hard to communicate with because of his low trust in humans.
While waiting for breakfast, Arnold and the others took charge as lookouts, allowing Roan and Mark, who had the least resting ti, to relax.
And now, Mark could be seen on the roof of the vehicle lying down with his head on i's lap.
It was a scene that could make many n envy.
Mark and i were of Asian descent. Feng Zhiruo was the sa, being a Chinese.
Nevertheless, even in Arican standards, i beautiful and attractive.
Being a cultivator, Feng Zhiruo was also soone pretty. But compared to i, there was a vast difference.
Furthermore, even if i did not have the body of void, she still had the advantage compared to Feng Zhiruo. It was because she had both Chinese and Filipino blood flowing in her.
It was one of the characteristics that were quite strange with Filipinos. Soone born a half-Filipino and half of another origin would likely end up with an above-average appearance. Although not everyone, it happened in a lot of cases.
While Mark and i spent their ti there, Elise wanted to join. However, she was being stopped by Felicia.
On the other hand, Snow was watching Hannah and Feng Zhiruo cook. Looking at this, it started to beco questionable what was the reason Snow wanted to beco human. It was definitely because of food. Definitely.
While cooking, however, Feng Zhiruo froze. She could not help but look at the surroundings by reflex.
It was because she could feel a certain kind of energy suddenly circulating.
What kind of energy?
Of course, it was the kind of energy that Chinese Cultivators were very familiar with.
Qi, it was the vital force that was inherent in all things, living or not. This was the type of energy that Chinese Cultivators use to strengthen themselves far above human limits.
Without a doubt, Feng Zhiruo would beco surprised to feel natural Qi in the surroundings to suddenly circulate.
Nevertheless, as suddenly it ca, the circulating Qi vanished.
"Hmm... It's not working."
Feng Zhiruo suddenly heard a troubled mutter from behind. She could not help but look and detected the last strands of Qi around soone.
Unexpectedly, Mark was at the center of it all.
Mark was supposed to be resting. But from what it looked like, he was doing sothing else covertly instead.
Feeling the gaze and detecting the surprised emotion she had, Mark glanced at Feng Zhiruo a bit before looking away and continuing his business.
Mark closed his eyes and perford a set of breathing techniques.
Once more, Feng Zhiruo felt the Natural Qi in the surroundings circulating. The Natural Qi was moving towards Mark.
"H-how..."
Feng Zhiruo was shocked. That breathing technique could not be any more familiar to her. It was the basic foundation building breathing technique that their sect practiced. To be exact, it was sothing that was being practiced by the new mbers of their sect to accustom their bodies to the absorption of Natural Qi and build their foundation as cultivators.
But why would Mark know about it? Furthermore, he was actually able to circulate Natural Qi in the surroundings while lying down instead of sitting in a ditational position.
And then, like before, the Natural Qi vanished. This ti, Mark had a slight frown.
"It's not really working."
Mark sighed.
Now that he had a good ti to feel calm and relax, he had the chance to dig the elder's fragnted mories in his subconscious. He imdiately found this foundation building breathing technique and tried it.
Concentrating his mind and breathing in the air at different intervals through his nose and mouth, Mark could feel another kind of energy thickening in the surroundings.
The next thing that was supposed to happen was to let that energy enter his body, through his ridians, and then, to the so-called, Dantian. He managed to vacuum the energy towards him. However, he could not feel it entering his body at all.
Mark closed his eyes, digging through the elder's mories. He could not find anything wrong with what he was doing. The sitting position was not really required either. And rather, a comfortable position could be used instead. In fact, he succeeded in condensing the Natural Qi. The only thing that was going wrong was when he was trying to absorb it.
"Gege, what are you doing?"
i asked as she noticed the energy that Mark managed to circulate in the surroundings.
"I'm trying a breathing technique used by their sect. Sothing to absorb Natural Qi in the surroundings." Mark pointed his thumb at the dumbfounded Feng Zhiruo. "I can't manage to absorb it for so reason, though."
Mark then raised his head towards i.
"Why don't you try it?"
"Can I?"
i asked.
"Yeah, I'll guide you."
Mark said as he lifted his head from i's lap and sat up.
From there, i closed her eyes and followed Mark's instructions.
And there, the sa phenonon happened as the Natural Qi in the surroundings gathered once more. The condensed Qi then circled and moved like a vortex with i in the center.
Unexpectedly, Mark felt the Natural Qi was actually being absorbed by i, albeit slowly. However, the process seed to be different from what Mark saw from the elder's mories.
"HAH?!!!"
An utterly shocked voice was heard, causing everyone to stare at the source with an incredulous expression. Of course, the shocked cry ca from Feng Zhiruo after seeing i actually succeed. But that was not the most surprising thing for her, however.
[H-how! The Natural Qi is being purified before she absorbed it!]
Feng Zhiruo was too shocked that she spoke the whole sentence in Mandarin.
Of course, no one here could understand Feng Zhiruo. Only i, who could only stop her ditation because of her cry, and Mark, who can only understand so broken parts of her words.
Everyone could only stare at Feng Zhiruo, whose mouth was agape. It would not be long before her saliva flowed out of her mouth. When she realized, she imdiately closed her mouth with an embarrassed blush.
Mark wanted to ask her about this. However, now was not the ti to be imrsed in it. Maybe, after they return ho. Besides, Feng Zhiruo was not soone hard to get along with and would surely entertain their questions. It was even more possible since she seed to have witnessed an unfathomable thing from i.
After that short intermission, they ate breakfast with Feng Zhiruo's face still red in embarrassnt. However, she was glancing at Mark and i the entire ti. It was obvious that she wanted to ask about what happened just now.
Mark ignored her, though, with a mischievous thought. Being ignored like this, her curiosity would thicken as ti passed by. When the topic ca again, she would be blurting out everything that Mark would want to know.
Soon, they continued on their journey. Inside the vehicle, however, Feng Zhiruo's stares from behind were burning holes in Mark and i. The two could only shrug.
They left that overpass after breakfast and made their way through the main expressway. Unexpectedly, unlike the past days, today was rather uneventful. The only ti they stopped was when they ate lunch at the bridge over the Schuylkill River at Pottstown.
It seed that as they made their way farther from Philadelphia, the safer the roads beca. This situation was not really surprising, considering that the next City they would pass by was actually Reading, which was their destination. Along the way, there were only small communities with lesser population, even before the outbreak.
After driving for the whole day, Reading City was not really far anymore. Thus, Mark decided that they would not make another stop and continue to drive after sunset.
It was around five in the afternoon when they reached Stonetown.
It was when...
"WHAT THE HELL IS THAT!"
Roan exclaid, and Marielle was also shocked. Without hesitation, Roan stepped on the breaks. If not for Mark stopping him, he might have reversed the vehicle.
Why?
Well, there was just a dragon flying in the sky towards them.
Everyone inside the vehicle was got the shock of their lives. That wings of a bat, a body of a lizard. It was definitely a dragon of the myths. Although they already had a fair share of seeing unusual creatures, they never expected to see an actual dragon.
Furthermore, it was flying towards their vehicle at extre speed.
"Geez, they can't wait any longer, huh."
That was when they heard Mark mutter as such.
Mark then opened the vehicle and jumped out with i.
But then, before the dragon could reach them, they saw a strange thing sweep towards Mark at a fast speed.
To their shock, they saw a strange shaped sword flying down. Then, it stopped in front of Mark.
With a smile, Mark grabbed the handle of the sword. At this ti, the dragon was already above, hovering in the air. It seed to be finding the right angle to land.
Before it could land, however, they heard a worried cry from above.
Mark slapped his forehead and opened his wings.
It was because three girls just jumped off the dragon.
"Seriously... These girls. Why are they imitating a certain Dagon Girl that jumped of a pervert dragon?"
They heard Mark mutter as such before he flapped his wings to fly up.
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