Chapter 233 - 215: Singin’ in the Rain

Chapter 233: Chapter 215: Singin’ in the Rain

"There’s a hotel over there!"

Ye Qingniao was exhausted from all the fighting and leveling up. Hearing Lin Fan speak, she quickly pointed diagonally ahead and said,

"Let’s go check it out. There’s bound to be a clean room."

The vehicle crept forward a few hundred more meters before stopping on the right side of the outer ring road.

With a final WHINE, Cheng Qi shut off the power, and the armored car’s engine, which had been roaring the whole way, finally went silent.

The world instantly grew a degree quieter, leaving only the sound of rain drumming on the roof and splashing into the puddles on the ground.

The vibration of the running engine had provided a sense of security. Now that it had suddenly stopped, the silence was jarring. Their legs had long gone numb from the constant rattling, and the sudden stillness made the three of them feel as if they had been cast into a boundless wilderness, far from any trace of humanity. It left them feeling a little on edge.

"Phew..."

Cheng Qi slumped in the driver’s seat and let out a long breath, feeling like his entire skeleton was about to fall apart.

"Come on, let’s get moving..."

Lin Fan extricated his spear from the cage, then stood and leaped nimbly from the roof, landing on the muddy road surface.

He raised his head, shining his high-powered flashlight to illuminate the buildings to their right. A four-story building stood out abruptly among several auto repair shops and logistics storefronts.

Its exterior walls were so grimy their original color was impossible to tell. Most of the windows were shattered, their fragments littering the sidewalk below. Even the sign was snapped in half, leaving only the first word, "Express," barely legible.

It was an express hotel.

The glass front doors were shattered, the pieces strewn across the floor. The pitch-black lobby gaped like an open mouth.

Lin Fan squinted as he scanned the entire area. Only a handful of 300-HP zombies, drawn by the flashlight’s beam, shambled out from shattered doorways. But they seemed disoriented by the sound of the rain, merely looking around in a daze.

"Zombies are far more sensitive to sound than to light."

Holding a piece of leather over her head to shield herself from the rain, Ye Qingniao walked up beside Lin Fan. She saw him sweeping the flashlight beam across the different buildings and explained,

"My sister’s group tested it..."

A moment later, Cheng Qi finished gathering their things. Holding a piece of plastic sheeting he’d found somewhere over his head for cover, he walked over to the other two and said:

"Brother Lin, we weren’t sure if we were taking the armored car in the first place, so besides a full tank of gas, we didn’t store any supplies on it. Everything’s right here..."

As he spoke, he held up a duffel bag, which likely contained dry rations like compressed biscuits and water.

"It’s fine. This place looks untouched. There’s bound to be enough food and water for the three of us..."

Lin Fan hadn’t spotted any elite monsters with four-digit HP. He figured the hotel’s business must have been terrible, since there were barely any zombies around. After speaking, he gave the area one last scan and then led the way toward the express hotel’s entrance.

The moment the three of them stepped into the lobby, a wave of must and rot hit them.

"Ah... at least we’re out of the rain."

"ROAR—"

Cheng Qi hadn’t even finished speaking when, from behind the counter, a zombie in a suit and shirt heard the noise, staggered to its feet, and let out a bellow as it lunged for the nearest living person.

SPLAT!

Without even looking, Lin Fan casually thrust his spear forward. The force behind the blow sent a chunk of the zombie’s skull flying.

[Acquired: Smoked Chicken x1]

[Acquired: Canned Fruit x1]

...

"?"

Lin Fan usually didn’t bother checking the loot from common zombies. It was always the same old stuff, so there was no point in counting every single item. But because the hotel lobby was so desolate, he’d subconsciously glanced at the notifications and spotted something odd.

’Canned fruit?’

’It was as if the thought had popped right out of my head. I vaguely remember complaining about this exact thing...’

"What’s wrong?"

Seeing Lin Fan suddenly freeze, Ye Qingniao asked, confused.

"Nothing."

He snapped out of it and answered nonchalantly. He temporarily pushed his questions aside. ’Whatever. First things first.’

"Check the manager for a key card. We’ll take the top floor."

"You got it!"

Looting corpses was dirty work, clearly beneath the two esteemed Awakened Ones. Cheng Qi, knowing his place, dutifully took a flashlight, crouched down, and began patting down the fresh corpse. He finally fished a key card out of one of its pockets.

"Found it."

He waved the card at the other two.

He looked up to see Lin Fan and Ye Qingniao standing before two vending machines across from the elevators. They looked like a pair of giant rats, muttering to each other with pursed lips.

"I’ve always wanted to do this..."

Lin Fan said, crossing his arms and staring at the vending machine. There was a hint of wistful satisfaction in his voice.

"Tch. That’s what happens when you’ve been oppressed by society for too long..."

The ties on Ye Qingniao’s loose cuffs had all broken. With nothing to replace them, she had simply rolled the sleeves up, revealing a section of her fair but scarred forearm.

She, too, crossed her arms like Lin Fan, speaking in a low, mock-vengeful tone. But her single, bright eye glinted with the same fire.

"Stop trying to act so profound," Lin Fan said, then suddenly turned to the girl beside him with curiosity.

"Don’t you want to? Aren’t you oppressed?"

Ye Qingniao smacked her lips and glanced at the other machine, the one full of snacks.

"Well... one each?"

"Deal. I’ll take the one with the drinks..."

Having exchanged opinions, they also swapped places, as if they’d reached some sacred consensus.

CRASH—!

Two nearly simultaneous crashes shattered the lobby’s silence!

The shaft of Lin Fan’s spear and the hilt of Ye Qingniao’s sword were like two keys, violently smashing the locks of the civilized world.

The tough, tempered glass instantly shattered in the face of such violence, collapsing into a waterfall of countless shards that cascaded onto the carpet.