The Departing Bodies

On the afternoon of the fourth day, the gunfire in Yanshan Town ceased and the whole army returned to rest.

The cooking team had already prepared the meals. After everyone had eaten, Xiao Fan reorganized the troops.

First, he organized two full platoons, with thirty men per platoon.

Each platoon included three squads of twenty-four men, and was equipped with a flamethrower soldier as an important part of clearing zombies.

A reconnaissance soldier served as platoon leader, along with a sniper, a medic, totaling twenty-nine men.

They were also equipped with a communications soldier to ensure smooth communication between the platoon and headquarters.

They were outfitted with a 212 Jeep and a large truck as the platoon's vehicles.

With two full platoons, that was sixty men. Many of the soldiers who had originally followed Xiao Fan, like Wang Zhan, Li Long and others, had now been promoted to squad leaders.

Each platoon was also equipped with two military dogs, which didn't count against the roster.

With the two platoons fully equipped, this was Xiao Fan's main force.

In addition, Xiao Fan immediately produced ten engineers with the newly obtained funds. Their task was to stay and study blueprints, help gather materials, and prepare for the construction of the base vehicle.

He also produced two communications soldiers to serve as contacts here. The rest would accompany Xiao Fan when he left.

They included two reconnaissance soldiers, a three-man heavy machine gun squad, two snipers, one rocket launcher soldier, two flamethrower soldiers, twelve 3-star infantrymen, twelve 3-star privates, three medics, three cooking team members, one engineer, one communications soldier, and two dogs.

Xiao Fan's forces now totaled 112 men.

With the roster set, Xiao Fan began preparing the vehicles.

Of course Xiao Fan would be riding in his Dongfeng Warrior Jeep to the trading fair.

The Lynx all-terrain vehicle would also come, great for reconnaissance and raids.

The new armored troop carrier was the backbone, and had to come along.

There was also a dining car to ensure meals on the road.

Finally, a few cargo trucks to transport supplies, with leftover non-essentials loaded up, and mutant beast meat being the bulk.

Over twenty ice boxes were emptied out, lots of mutant beast meat loaded up with ice blocks to prevent spoilage. Everything was ready.

By the time this was finished, another day had passed.

Before leaving, Xiao Fan called Xu Qiang and Shen Guangming over.

"You two platoons cannot deploy together over this period. One must remain in Yanshan Town, not just to protect my family, but also many students and residents here. You cannot neglect them."

"Understood!"

"Your order of tasks in priority is: slowly clear the zombies in Yanshan Town, search surrounding areas for metal, follow the engineers' instructions to prepare for the base vehicle. Don't let me get the funds ready only to find you haven't prepared these basic components."

"Yes, we will complete the tasks!"

"Alright, I'm leaving first."

After giving the orders, Xiao Fan boarded with his men.

Under his father, sister, and many others' gaze, Xiao Fan's convoy left Yanshan Town.

********

After leaving Yanshan Town, Xiao Fan leaned back in the Warrior Jeep, resting with eyes closed.

Beside him wafted a faint fragrance, his companions in the car were reconnaissance soldier Xue Ninger and medic Sun Feifei.

Driving was reconnaissance soldier Shen Ruihui.

The reconnaissance soldiers protected him, the medic ensured his health, so they naturally rode together.

As for the female comrade, looking after her was only proper. Xiao Fan would absolutely not admit to any other motives, absolutely not!

Up ahead clearing the way was the Lynx all-terrain vehicle, the communications soldier also in that car, using the onboard radio to stay in touch with Xiao Fan anytime.

Behind was the armored troop carrier, with sixteen fully armed soldiers providing firepower.

Further back was the dining car, probably preparing ingredients now.

Last were three large trucks.

Not long after leaving Yanshan Town, the convoy passed through a village.

Shen Ruihui driving couldn't help an exclamation.

"What is it?"

"Commander, there are no zombies in this village!"

"Oh! No zombies?" Xiao Fan was alert; this was a bit strange.

"That's right, didn't see a single one."

Shen Ruihui drove a bit more until spotting the Lynx up ahead.

The Warrior stopped here and the communications soldier came to report through the window to Xiao Fan.

"Report Commander, the zombies here have left!"

"Left? Why did they leave?" Xiao Fan found this very odd. The zombies he'd seen just milled around in place, never leaving on their own before.

"Don't know the reason yet, but can confirm that around three or four days ago, the zombies here underwent a collective migration, moving in groups northwest, total over a thousand, just preliminary intel."

Xiao Fan pondered, instinctively feeling this was not a good sign.

The zombies' biggest weakness was lack of intelligence, usually alone. Like that, no matter the numbers, they could be eliminated one-by-one by humans gaining a foothold.

But what if zombies gained intelligence? And coordinated action?

Then humans, at an absolute numbers disadvantage, would have no advantage.

Though bizarre, Xiao Fan had no time to investigate now. He had to get to the trading fair immediately.

"Make note of this, have Yanshan Town raise vigilance. Let's move on first."

"Yes."

The communications soldier boarded and the convoy continued.

Along the way they passed some small villages and towns, occasionally encountering zombies, but the convoy basically didn't stop.

The Lynx had a mounted machine gun. One burst and ordinary zombies were obliterated, unable to impede the convoy.

What could impede it were stalled vehicles blocking the road. When many were present, they had to stop and clear them, seriously impacting progress.

Like this, starting and stopping, they advanced about eighty kilometers. By late afternoon,

the convoy reached a tiny village and Xiao Fan ordered a halt.

"We'll rest here tonight and set off early tomorrow."

The soldiers disembarked to rest. Xiao Fan casually glanced at the map to see how many zombies were in the village.

But before spotting zombies, he saw several dozen green dots in the village.

Survivors!