Looking at the artificial lake ahead, Jiang Baimian paused and said to Wang Fugui and the others:

"Since we're acting together, some things need to be clarified beforehand."

"What?" Wang Fugui asked with a hint of wariness.

Grei, Wait, Fals and the others reacted similarly.

Jiang Baimian nodded slightly and said:

"Actions must have a guideline, a goal, a plan, and we need to know what we're doing. We can't just rush in chaotically, as that will only hold each other back.

"Our team has an unchanging guideline for similar explorations, which can be summed up as:

"Don't expect to get fat in one bite."

"What, what fat person?" Grei, wrapped in a leather jacket and shivering slightly, clearly didn't understand this Ashlands "maxim," even though Jiang Baimian had translated it relatively accurately into Red River dialect.

Jiang Baimian thought for a moment:

"In other words, 'Rome wasn't built in a day.'"

Seeing that the three ruin hunters besides Wang Fugui looked enlightened, Jiang Baimian continued:

"We can't expect to find the secrets of this city ruin in one exploration, or to gain wealth that will last us several lifetimes. That's completely unrealistic.

"It might be more feasible to divide the exploration into several parts, gaining a little each time, understanding more about the place, and gradually going deeper, until we achieve our main goals.

"During this process, we can decide at any time whether to abandon subsequent exploration actions."

Although the "Old Task Force's" proposal was a torment for impatient people, Wang Fugui and the others understood that this was the most secure and safe plan currently available after a little thought.

Such a large city ruin wouldn't seem long even if explored for a year, let alone just dividing it into several times.

They needed to know that danger was everywhere, and reckless action would cost them their lives. Even the "First City's" regular army didn't dare to go deep forcefully.

Among them, only Wait muttered softly:

"I just want to get some valuable supplies."

For a city ruin that hadn't been "developed" much, this was a small goal, a task that could be easily completed in one exploration.

Jiang Baimian looked around and gave the plan that the "Old Task Force" had discussed beforehand:

"I suggest that this exploration be limited to a two-kilometer radius from the exit, focusing on collecting supplies and finding clues."

Why two kilometers? Long Yuehong muttered softly in his heart.

He knew the answer, but he felt that those solo hunters should also ask, after all, he had raised such a question during the team discussion and was ridiculed by Shang Jianyao.

Wang Fugui and the others exchanged glances and nodded in succession:

"A safe plan."

Without transportation, two kilometers was close to their physical limit for running away.

After all, they hadn't undergone genetic modification or enhanced their corresponding qualities. They wouldn't just run a five-kilometer cross-country run for no reason. Moreover, running for their lives was very different from a cross-country race.

With the physique of "chosen ones" like Shang Jianyao, going further wouldn't be a problem, but they had to consider Bai Chen.

Seeing that the solo hunters didn't ask why, Long Yuehong was a little frustrated.

Jiang Baimian didn't say any more, and said with a smile:

"Let's start then."

After speaking, she held the "Short Neck" submachine gun and took the lead, walking towards the place where the weeds were leaning towards the artificial lake.

They first explored the park, but found nothing except some things that looked like wolf droppings.

During the process, they were extremely cautious, afraid that Wu Meng, the owner of the "Dao and Electrical Appliance Repair" radio station, would impose a bad influence on them in other ways. Fortunately, no anomalies appeared.

Leaving the park, the two teams went left and right, entering the city streets.

As soon as he turned into this area, piles and piles of white bones suddenly appeared in Long Yuehong's eyes.

Unlike the Marsh No. 1 ruin, the streets here were obviously not cleaned regularly by the Mindless. On both sides were rotten, blackened silt. On the road were cars parked haphazardly, some still collided together, maintaining that state for who knows how many years, as if frozen at the moment the Old World was destroyed.

Interspersed among similar things were countless human skeletons, which were everywhere, either covered by only a few scraps of cloth or completely "naked."

This was the first time Long Yuehong had seen so many bones, giving him the feeling of entering a mass grave.

At this time, the summer sun was scorching, but he felt a bit of coldness.

Wang Fugui and the others were obviously shocked by such a scene, and didn't take a step for a long time.

Shang Jianyao sighed and said:

"The amount of work to bury them all is too great, almost impossible to complete."

Jiang Baimian then said:

"Many areas in those city ruins that have not yet been discovered by humans should have similar situations."

Judging from the fact that there were no explosion marks here, those corpses either died in gun battles or were killed by the Mindless, becoming their food, leaving only white bones.

"The Mindless didn't drag these corpses to their nests and store them, but left them on the street, eating them on the spot every day? Do they like outdoor parties?" Shang Jianyao said that he couldn't understand.

The focus of his attention was always so wrong.

"When humans are first infected with Mindless Disease, they have not yet adapted to their bestial instincts and will always do similar contradictory things." Jiang Baimian replied with her research results, "This area should be the core area of the Mindless Disease outbreak. There were too many of them, and they quickly ate up the remaining humans. Other streets may not be like this."

Listening to Xue Shiyue and Zhang Qubing discussing this matter, Wang Fugui and the others felt inexplicably absurd.

What does the past of the Mindless have to do with us now?

"Two people in a group, search this place a little, and see if there are any clues." Jiang Baimian instructed Bai Chen and Long Yuehong.

This time, she took Long Yuehong, and Shang Jianyao was paired with Bai Chen, so that neither side had any shortcomings.

Seeing this, Wait and the others also began to look for valuable supplies in this area.

Because they couldn't drive in and out, and had to reserve enough physical strength, they didn't choose large items, but chose things that were easy to carry and more valuable, such as the gold jewelry on those corpses.

After an hour of simple search, the "Old Task Force" failed to find useful clues, and could only initially restore the scene at that time—more than two-thirds of the people on the street suddenly went crazy, attacking normal humans, tearing them apart, and eating them.

During the search, Long Yuehong and Bai Chen did not forget to pick up gold jewelry, technical books and other things.

They never forgot that they were still burdened with huge debts.

Leaving this street, Jiang Baimian's eyes suddenly opened up.

In front of her was a city square, and on the other side of the square was a black building dozens of stories high.

The curtain wall of the building had broken in places, and many places were covered with green plants.

As Jiang Baimian expected, compared with the previous area, the number of corpses here was quite small.

At this moment, Shang Jianyao pointed to the ground in front of the black building and said:

"Their style seems to be a little different."

Bai Chen, Wang Fugui and the others looked over along his finger, and found that there were four or five corpses there.

Unlike the others, they were highly decomposed, but had not yet turned into white bones.

"Did they just die not long ago?" Jiang Baimian said thoughtfully.

"Not long ago" in her context was relative to those white bones.

"Let's go take a look." This time, Wang Fugui actually took the initiative to propose.

Because the space here was open and the surroundings were unobstructed, it seemed that there was no danger. Grei, Wait, and Fals all agreed with his opinion.

The "Old Task Force" was more concerned about this kind of thing, and would not let it go either.

Just approaching the four or five corpses, Wang Fugui's eyelids suddenly jumped, pointing to one of the dead and saying:

"The shirt he's wearing is the kind of cheap shirt produced in the factory area of First City."

It was not too old, and the style also had the characteristics of the current era—it had more hidden pockets, which was convenient for storing things.

Long Yuehong then looked over and saw the appearance of the corpse clearly.

At this sight, he almost fainted.

He then realized that a highly decomposed, miserably dead corpse was much more disgusting than a white skeleton.

An indescribable stench entered his nostrils, almost making him vomit on the spot.

"This shirt doesn't have any mending marks, it should have been bought in the last year or two." Jiang Baimian raised her hand to hold her nose, took a few steps forward, squatted down, and carefully investigated.

As for the current rupture of the shirt, it should have been caused by death.

She immediately made a judgment and said in a deep voice:

"Are these the missing ruin hunters who were taken by the White Wolf to the depths of the cave?"

"It should be." Bai Chen held his breath, expressing his agreement.

Wang Fugui and the others were stunned:

"Weren't the missing ruin hunters either eaten or rescued?"

The rest were killed by the "Old Task Force." Of course, these words could not be said.

Long Yuehong took the opportunity to withdraw his gaze, explaining the discrepancy in numbers to the solo hunters, and telling them the information that a large number of missing people had been taken by the White Wolf to the depths of the cave.

Wait hissed and said:

"They came here, and then, died, not eaten?"

This sounded a bit strange.

"What's the cause of death?" Wang Fugui asked urgently.

Shang Jianyao touched his chin, and before Jiang Baimian could speak, he looked up at the black building on the side:

"Judging from the marks of damage on the corpses, they should have fallen to their deaths after jumping from a certain floor of that building."

Suicide by jumping off a building? Long Yuehong, Bai Chen and others were all shocked.

That group of ruin hunters were taken by the White Wolf to the depths of the cave, entered the No. 13 ruin, but a group of them committed suicide by jumping off a building one after another here?

"My judgment is the same." Jiang Baimian echoed Shang Jianyao's words, with undisguised doubt on her face.

What did these four or five ruin hunters encounter, and what did that White Wolf want to do?

Jiang Baimian paused and then said:

"It can't be ruled out that they were pushed down by someone. We have to do further inspections and survey the scene of the jump."

That possibility is even more terrifying... Who pushed them, and why? Long Yuehong subconsciously wanted to take a breath, but the smell on the scene made him close his mouth.

"Want to go in?" Shang Jianyao pointed to the towering and majestic black building.

Jiang Baimian was silent for several seconds and said:

"Not this time. Remember the principles we set in advance.

"Well, just search around."

The principle was not to go deep rashly, but to lay the foundation for the second exploration.