Xu An turned her head to look at Ana beside her, her lips curving. "What a coincidence, me too."
Ana shot Xu An a fierce glare and ran towards Haowule.
Xu An sensed that after absorbing the glowing mushrooms, the spatial tree seemed to be growing again. At the same time, she noticed her eyesight appeared to have become clearer.
Seizing the moment Ana ran off, Xu An stepped forward to check on the injuries of Awu and Lao Liu.
"How are they doing now?"
Haowule, supported by Ana, walked over and asked, looking at the people on the ground.
"They're not dead. They were probably attacked from behind by that monster and are temporarily unconscious."
As soon as she finished speaking, Xu An didn't hesitate. She raised her hand and, without preamble, slapped Awu's face left and right, "Slap, slap, slap."
Within a few minutes, Awu slowly woke up and met Xu An's gaze. It was only when Haowule explained that Awu refrained from attacking Xu An.
Just as Xu An was about to get up to slap the other person, Lao Liu suddenly slowly opened his eyes.
"What... what happened?" Lao Liu surveyed his surroundings before finally fixing his gaze on Haowule and asking.
Xu An snorted coldly and stood up, thinking to herself that this man named Lao Liu was suspicious.
His fainting earlier was likely feigned. If he were merely timid, that would be one thing, but if it was intentional, then this person needed to be guarded against.
Haowule looked at everyone and suggested, "We should leave this place as soon as possible. This monster's corpse is huge, enough for us to eat for a while."
Their group now consisted of five people. Apart from Xu An and Ana, who were completely unharmed, the other three had sustained injuries.
Under these circumstances, it was clearly not suitable to continue trekking.
After speaking, Haowule seemed to recall something and looked apologetically at Xu An. "Do you want to come back with us? We can look for your mother again next time."
Xu An was about to refuse. She calculated the time; if she parted ways with Haowule now and explored the vicinity before returning to the lighthouse, the timing would be just right.
But at that moment, Lao Liu, who had been silent all along, suddenly spoke, "I think we can hold on a little longer. Let's dismember this monster's corpse, and then go try our luck in the gobi ahead. Judging by the weather, it feels like a sandstorm is coming soon. We should find more food this time and take it back, and by the way, help Xu An find her family."
Hearing this, Xu An instinctively wanted to refuse, but to her surprise, even Ana chimed in.
"I think Brother Liu is right. Let's help Xu An find her family. She helped us just now."
Haowule hadn't expected Ana to speak up for Xu An and was immediately persuaded. "Then let's rest a bit and continue towards our original destination!"
Xu An remained silent throughout, simply watching the man named Lao Liu.
She didn't know what schemes this man was hatching. Every time Lao Liu looked at her, Xu An felt extremely uncomfortable, as if she were being targeted.
Before long, Haowule and Awu walked towards the rat-headed monster with ropes and knives.
"Why is there a large hole in the monster's head?"
"I was afraid it wasn't dead, so I stabbed it with a dagger." Xu An's explanation did not arouse any suspicion from the others.
"Oh... I think this head is quite disgusting. Let's not take it. Let's just take the snake bodies."
The others nodded in agreement. Lacking any means of transport, Haowule could only cut the massive snake body into pieces, distribute one piece to each person, and tie them to themselves with ropes.
Haowule did not distribute any to Xu An. It was understandable, as Xu An did not share their food and would certainly not be willing to carry it for them.
After they finished dismembering the snake body together, no one had the appetite to sleep any longer. Taking advantage of the pre-dawn light, they continued forward under Haowule's lead.
During the night, Haowule used the same method to get a small bottle of water for everyone. Although it wasn't much, it was enough to prevent them from dying of thirst.
However, the prolonged insufficient intake of water caused Xu An's lips to form a layer of white mist.
Two hours later, as the sun began to rise, Xu An saw a black dot in the distance.
"Let's hurry up. I can see the gobi! We're almost there. Everyone, hold on a little longer."
Haowule made his final rallying speech and led everyone forward quickly. Even Xu An was infected by the cheerful atmosphere of the others.
However, before Xu An and the others could rejoice, the roar of an automobile was heard from a distance behind them.
Xu An instinctively thought, *Not good! It must be people from the lighthouse.*
Immediately, she turned to look at the four people who had been traveling with her. Although these people, apart from Haowule, all had their own agendas, they had managed to get along passably well during their journey.
If... if news of the lighthouse were to be exposed, she feared she would find herself at odds with Haowule and the others.
Before Xu An could stop him, Haowule let out a loud cheer. He waved his hands towards the approaching vehicle.
"Here! Hello... are you the rescue team? We are here..."
Following Haowule's calls, Xu An looked back at the approaching vehicle and her heart sank.
The constantly approaching vehicle was all too familiar. After a brief thought, she realized it was Qin Chuan's car!
She looked at Haowule's honest and hopeful face and silently retreated behind the crowd. Unlike Haowule's ecstatic joy, the others watched the approaching vehicle with a wait-and-see attitude.
Awu and Ana, in particular, clutched their firearms tightly, their defensive stance self-evident.
As Xu An had expected, as the vehicle stopped in front of them, a hand with well-defined knuckles reached out from the car door, followed by those iconic military boots and long legs.
Qin Chuan pushed open the door and stepped out of the jeep. His tight-fitting camouflage uniform accentuated his perfect physique.
Zhou Zhe followed closely behind Qin Chuan as he got out of the car.
Xu An lowered her head and remained silent, suppressing the urge to turn and leave. All she could do was pray that Qin Chuan would be smart enough not to acknowledge knowing her.
The moment Haowule saw Qin Chuan, his eyes lit up with immense joy, especially when he noticed the epaulets on Qin Chuan's shoulders.
"Comrade! Are you the vanguard of the rescue force?"
"I am Haowule from the border defense detachment. Our battalion, along with survivors, a total of 457 people, are taking shelter in Sand City ten kilometers away..."
Xu An silently speculated on Qin Chuan's response.
"No!"
"No!"
Two voices rang out simultaneously, one from Qin Chuan's mouth, the other from Xu An's heart.
Although she had expected this answer, Xu An couldn't help but look at Haowule's eyes.
The hopeful gaze in them dimmed slightly, but the next moment, it reignited with hope.
"Comrade, you are scouts sent ahead to explore, right? Then when do you plan to commence the rescue?"
"We can be self-sufficient currently... It's fine even if you haven't brought any relief supplies..."
Haowule's tone was excited, and even Ana noticed something was amiss with him, tugging hard at Haowule's sleeve from behind.