Chapter 199 - 198: Just 5 Minutes

Chapter 199: Chapter 198: Just 5 Minutes

Lin Fan shoved Wang Zhong into the driver’s seat of the assault vehicle, thoughtfully not buckling his seatbelt.

After one medium dose of "Wild" potion and a crystal, his Life Value not only stabilized at [12] but his maximum Life Value also began to slowly recover. Even his breathing grew stronger.

The vitality of an Awakened One was monstrously high. Lin Fan knew this from personal experience, and from seeing it in Wang Yuanhua.

As long as you had the right potions and some zombie crystals, there was no obstacle you couldn’t overcome. If things were still tough, you just took another one.

In any case, after an afternoon of "work," Lin Fan’s personal reserve of crystals was plentiful again.

Remembering this, Lin Fan quickly turned and went from corpse to corpse, recovering three crystals.

’Can’t let these go to waste.’

"Here, take this. If it gets too hard to bear, eat another one..."

Lin Fan took one of the sticky, freshly harvested crystals and shoved it into Wang Zhong’s breast pocket. He hesitated for a moment before speaking.

"...Don’t pass out."

Lin Fan looked at Wang Zhong’s face, covered in cuts and swelling, with a bloody indentation on his forehead from his night-vision goggles, and couldn’t help but add the reminder.

Wang Zhong sat in the vehicle, staring dazedly at Lin Fan below.

"I really... COUGH COUGH... didn’t expect..."

"Didn’t expect me to come? Who was it that judged I’d take my people and bolt at a time like this? Alright, save your breath..."

As he spoke, Lin Fan grabbed Wang Zhong’s left hand, took hold of two of his already swollen fingers, and with a sharp pull and twist—

Wang Zhong must have tried to reset these two fingers himself earlier, but it hadn’t been a clean job; they still wouldn’t move. To ensure he could still function, Lin Fan had to fix him up before leaving.

"No... UGH!"

With a CRACK, Wang Zhong’s brow furrowed in pain, and he swallowed the words he was about to say.

"Whoever said that, go back and give them a good kick. Tell them I said so..."

Lin Fan wiggled Wang Zhong’s left hand, seeing that the joints of the two fingers were more or less back in place.

This was the good thing about Awakened Ones. While Lin Fan knew nothing about bone-setting or therapeutic massage, he understood the basic principle of joint relocation. Besides, Awakened Ones weren’t at risk of permanent disability, so you could be a little rough with them.

’But I wonder what will happen with Wang Zhong’s severed arm,’ he thought. ’Will he grow a new one?’

Glancing at Wang Zhong’s stump, Lin Fan couldn’t help but curse this whole "Awakening" business. ’It probably changes your genes completely.’

"Move them."

Lin Fan held the repaired hand up in front of Wang Zhong and commanded.

The words had barely left his mouth when the two fingers twitched, bending twice under Wang Zhong’s control.

"Thanks... Colonel Lin, Cyan Bird is just ahead!"

Wang Zhong gripped the steering wheel with his left hand, thanking Lin Fan in a daze. But then, as if remembering something more important, he hastily added his report.

"How far?"

"I don’t know..."

He still seemed dazed, remembering only that he had to save Ye Qingniao. He couldn’t recall her specific location or distance.

Seeing his state, Lin Fan simply moved away. He dashed to the right, kicked off the windowsill of a ground-floor storefront, and in the blink of an eye, launched himself into the air.

Staring at the red "progress bar" in the distance, he silently calculated the time.

’I should be able to make it.’

Since Wang Zhong was here, Ye Qingniao could be at most three or four kilometers ahead. The vanguard of the horde should have just passed her. There was enough time for him to get there and back.

When Lin Fan suddenly vanished, Wang Zhong thought he had already left. He endured the pain, sticking his head out of the vehicle and looking around, unsure of where he should go.

But then Lin Fan dropped from the sky, landing right by the car door. The sudden appearance startled Wang Zhong, who flinched back and slammed his head against the doorframe.

The sharp pain from his fingers being reset combined with the knock to his head completely jolted the groggy Wang Zhong awake.

It felt like a flood of memories had suddenly returned. He quickly shook his head, spat a mouthful of bloody foam out the window, and looked at Lin Fan.

"Colonel Lin, Cyan Bird is about four kilometers ahead. Get in, we’ll go together..."

"Go where? You just drive the car forward and get away from this spot. Wait for me on the side of the road for five minutes. Just five minutes, got it?"

Lin Fan held up a hand, cutting him off and continuing with his own instructions.

Wang Zhong’s position was a bit closer than he’d expected. It would take the horde at full speed about ten minutes to get here, so waiting for five minutes was safe.

He just needed him to drive the car forward first, to get away from the recent explosion site.

"If any other Mutated Zombies show up, or if I’m not back in five minutes, you leave immediately. The road south of the gas station is blocked by rubble, so loop around from the east.

Ye Qingzhou and the others are already getting ready to depart. If you get surrounded by the horde, I won’t be able to save you a second time..."

"But what about you..."

Wang Zhong looked at Lin Fan, seemingly wanting to say more, but was once again cut off.

"If I’m not back in five minutes, it means I’ve already taken Ye Qingniao and gone back by another route..."

Lin Fan knew he wasn’t fully clear-headed yet. The potion and crystal were just working together to keep him conscious, making him stubborn and single-minded. So, Lin Fan had to add another explanation to put his mind at ease.

"Trust me!"

From the next thing Wang Zhong said, Lin Fan knew the man was desperate to get in the car and go help Ye Qingniao. He was just like Colonel Zhou in the armored vehicle—even though the mission was no longer important, they treated it as if it were more important than their own lives.

Emotionally, since he had come to rescue them, he hoped they would all make it back alive. Logically, he had already invested two potions in Wang Zhong; he had to at least make sure the man survived...

"If you waste any more time, we might not make it..."

Seeing him still hesitating, Lin Fan resorted to a threat.

Wang Zhong’s vision finally cleared a little. He looked at Lin Fan’s face and was reminded of his young comrades-in-arms.

He always wanted others to trust him, so naturally, he had to be able to trust others in return.

"Alright! I can see the time here. I’ll wait for you for five minutes. If you’re not back, I’ll leave!

Cyan Bird... I’m leaving her to you!"

He knew his body was at its limit. It was a miracle he could even drive without passing out. Gritting his teeth, he agreed without further argument.

"Good. I’m going then..."

The potion’s effects lasted for ten minutes. The restorative power of a medium-grade potion was quite high; it would be enough to get him back to the gas station before he collapsed. That shouldn’t be a problem.

So, Lin Fan reached out and patted Wang Zhong’s shoulder nearest the window, then decisively turned, leaped onto a rooftop to the southwest, crossed the rubble, and continued running south.

And just as he’d promised Lin Fan, Wang Zhong, relying on his one remaining arm and the stump of the other, drove the vehicle five or six hundred meters forward and parked it steadily on the side of the road.

He turned off the headlights and stared intently at the clock on the dashboard.

Whenever he felt his consciousness start to fade, he would press the stump of his right arm hard against the steering wheel. Blood trickled down the steering column onto his leg, but the electric jolt of agony seared through his mind, keeping him awake...