Apocalypse Star House Hoarding-Chapter 72

Two days later, in the K Peninsula of E Country.
Although it was already April, due to the regional climate and the disruptions caused by the two meteor showers, the K Peninsula was much colder than usual. The three of them wore thermal underwear, cashmere sweaters, cashmere pants, light down jackets, and topped it off with windproof and waterproof jackets and pants. This combination was warmer than wearing a single thick down jacket and allowed for easier movement.
They arrived at T City in the A Peninsula the day before yesterday at noon, and then took a train to a small port town. The area was sparsely populated, and the impact of the meteor showers was not severe, so they were able to purchase train tickets without any issues.
Upon arrival, they headed straight to the travel agency they had booked over the phone to complete the necessary procedures. The agency informed them that they would need to wait for two days, so they found a nearby small hotel to stay in. During the day, they kept themselves busy by listening to various broadcasts, watching news to stay updated on the outside world, and visiting the local seafood market.
The most famous item here was probably the king crab, which was not only cheap but also fresh. Following that were the salmon, particularly the red salmon known for its delicate and fresh taste. Additionally, the fish oil quality here was quite good and reasonably priced.
After some discussion, they decided to exchange some of their money for E Country’s currency and used the rest to buy a case of fish oil, five cases of king crab, and 20 fresh red salmon. To make it easier to use, they asked the seller to process the 20 salmon by removing the guts, packaging the heads and tails separately, and slicing the midsections into portions for four to six people per box.
Since it was almost dark, they didn’t require delivery service. Instead, they bought a pushcart to stack the boxes, and once they reached a secluded area without surveillance, they transferred the boxes and the cart into their storage.
That evening, after returning to the small hotel, they took out two boxes of sliced red salmon and paired it with ribeye steak prepared earlier by Ya Tong in the villa, stir-fried kale, pork bone radish soup, seafood fried rice, three different flavors of cakes, and freshly squeezed watermelon juice. The steak was hot, and the soup, stored in an instant container, was even still quite warm.
They clinked glasses, hoping that the rest of their journey would go smoothly and that they would safely reach their homeland.
Good food has a way of comforting people, making them feel a sense of familiarity and warmth even in a strange place.
Afterward, their visas were approved, and the three of them took a cruise ship, successfully crossing the strait and officially stepping onto the land of the central continent. They were one step closer to their home country.
Over the past few days, they had been listening to broadcasts and watching the news whenever possible. Despite the intervals between the predicted meteor showers, the entire planet remained unstable. The low-latitude ocean regions experienced tsunamis and typhoons, affecting surrounding islands and causing a short-haul flight to crash; some countries located on earthquake belts suffered frequent earthquakes, making post-disaster reconstruction work extremely challenging…
These were the aftermath disasters brought by the two meteor showers.
At the same time, they also learned through the broadcast about the calculation method for the relative safety period mentioned by the pilot. There were more than two months left until the end of this relative safety period. They adjusted their timeline accordingly, setting the relative safety period to fifty days and planning to return to J Country within this timeframe.
Upon arriving at the K Peninsula, they bought several detailed maps and went to a local travel agency to find an experienced guide. The guide was fluent in M Country’s language and spoke a bit of J Country’s language, making communication smooth.
Yu Xi and Ya Tong spread out the maps and shared their previously researched and analyzed route for crossing the no-man’s land, asking if it was feasible. The guide was surprised by their questions and even more surprised by how well-prepared they were. He said that even if he were given a car, he would follow a similar route.
Afterwards, he made a few corrections, indicating places where the known meteor impact had destroyed the roads, and revised the detour route accordingly. He even checked his computer to mark the locations of several small towns that were not shown on the map.
The guide also shared the best route from this small port town to Love Town, the last town for rest before entering the no-man’s land. The railroad was not continuous throughout the K Peninsula; half of the journey would require driving, but there was a train for the other half. If they wanted to catch a ride, they needed to arrive by 8 a.m. It was a freight train with a few carriages where they could drive their SUV onto the train and be transported directly.
This would help them save fuel, time, and allow them to rest and enjoy the scenery along the way. However, they needed to buy tickets for this “hitchhiking train.” The station was small, and the ticket office was visible upon entry.
This information was very good news for them. Although they had sufficient fuel, getting extra rest was always beneficial. Before leaving, the guide reminded them again to stock up on supplies, especially gasoline, in Love Town.
People from E Country naturally had an adventurous spirit and did not think it was too crazy for them to attempt crossing the no-man’s land by car. However, they didn’t believe they could succeed and advised them to buy a signal flare. If they couldn’t make it, they should try to drive to the nearest town on the map and, if necessary, use the flare for help.
Whether someone would come to their rescue would depend on their luck…
Yu Xi: …
Ya Tong: …?
Yu Xi smiled, paid the guide, thanked him, and left.
After leaving the travel agency, Ya Tong suggested they rest for a night before setting out, considering they might not sleep on a comfortable bed for a long time once they started their journey. Although they could manage in the SUV, other aspects of living would have to be simplified.
Thanks to the space they had, they were well-supplied, which was already a great advantage. They shouldn’t be too greedy.
Yu Xi listened to her sisters encouraging and comforting each other and smiled without speaking. She planned to give them a surprise once they officially entered the no-man’s land.
That night, they combined the two beds in the hotel into one big bed, took a comfortable bath, changed into their travel clothes, packed all their belongings into the space, and lay down together. Having experienced the safety of the bunker, they felt uneasy leaving it. Since returning to the surface, they had always slept in their clothes, whether at Feynman’s house or while waiting for visas in the A Peninsula. Sometimes they only took off their jackets, other times they didn’t even do that.
Fortunately, their current clothes were soft, comfortable, and loose-fitting, so they got used to it quickly. Unlike those who had always lived in areas with little disaster impact, they had walked through the valley of death. That path had taken them three hours to traverse.
Surrounded by black ruins and craters left by meteor impacts, with soil like dry sand, everything was lifeless and blackened…
Even now, they occasionally dreamt of that moment, including Yu Xi. In her dreams, she was alone, walking through a wasteland, feeling like the only person left in the world. Humans, animals, plants, all extinct… the whole planet desolate.
They had almost become part of that blackened landscape.
Only living humans have souls; the dead are no different from inanimate objects. This experience made them have a stronger reverence for life and death, making them more vigilant and always ready to escape.
At 4 a.m., they woke up to the alarm, washed up quickly, put on their windproof jackets, hats, scarves, and gloves, retrieved their backpacks from the space, and checked out of the hotel.
This small harbor town wasn’t very large. After getting into the car that the hotel had arranged for them, they reached the outskirts of the town in just over twenty minutes. They walked a short distance, then used the recesses of the mountainside to retrieve their SUV and switched to a fake license plate they had prepared.
This was because, before entering the no-man’s land, they would pass through several small towns and even take a section of a “hitchhiker” train. In truth, the world was in chaos, and the K Peninsula was no exception. After the only airport capable of quickly traversing the no-man’s land was destroyed, most resources were diverted to repair and rebuild it, a task that would not be completed overnight.
Therefore, the K Peninsula’s daily security was quite poor. In towns, it was relatively safe, but once outside in the wild, there was no law enforcement. Their efforts were more about appearance than actual necessity.
Yu Xi drove the first leg. Her body was strong, and she didn’t feel tired even with little sleep. She took out three hot coffees, an egg and bacon sandwich, a cheeseburger, and a croissant hotdog according to their preferences.
At dawn, the temperature outside was minus ten degrees Celsius. They turned on the heater slightly, unzipped their jackets, and enjoyed a simple breakfast and a cup of hot coffee. One person wrapped in a blanket slept in the back seat, while the other in the front passenger seat helped with navigation and keeping an eye on the road.
Three hours later, after taking a slight detour due to meteor damage, the SUV finally arrived at the train station before 8 a.m.
Continuing southwest from here, the land was even more desolate, a vast frozen expanse with only the distant mountain ranges visible beyond the railway tracks.
It’s no wonder people in towns near the K Peninsula’s strait were scrambling to get visas to the A Peninsula. E Country was vast, and this region was always sparsely populated. The few coastal towns were manageable, but the further inland one traveled, the more barren it became.
Yu Xi had Yu Qi and Ya Tong stay in the car while she went to buy the tickets. With them not around, her “translation gum” could work effectively. Otherwise, even if she could understand the other party, she would still speak in her native language.
Since it was a freight train, there were hardly any people at the station, apart from a few lethargic train staff.
This was the starting station of the railway, and the train was already there. Following the steps she had clarified during ticket purchase, she successfully drove the car into the carriage.
These carriages were designed for car transport, with only four metal railings over a meter high and no roof. The back of the carriage could be fully opened, with a transition slope metal plate allowing cars to drive in and then be secured in place.
Upon arrival, the front railings would open, allowing cars to drive off.
While her original world had similar car-carrying train carriages, they were mostly fully enclosed. This open-top type was a first for her.
Once the SUV was secured, Yu Xi, worried about Yu Qi and Ya Tong being cold, took out a portable rechargeable heater for Yu Qi to place in the back seat and handed out three hand warmers.
With the heater on, the car became warm and cozy again.
At 8 a.m., the train departed on time. The next few hours were an intriguing journey for them. This was the far north and far east of the central continent, with nothing but the train on the frozen wasteland.
They remembered being in the densely populated W City just days ago, packing coffee from a bright cafe, frantically shopping in well-stocked supermarkets, and flying over meteor-hit lands in a small plane…
Now, they were in a car on a train, gazing at the vast sky and wilderness.
The world was so vast, yet humans were so small.
“Sis, are we going back to our hometown after returning to J Country?” Yu Xi asked because they were from the south, and returning home meant a long journey even after reaching J Country.
“We don’t have many relatives left back home, and my friends are scattered in different cities. Ask Ya Tong where she wants to go.”
Ya Tong, who was resting with her seat reclined, opened her eyes. “I don’t have any relatives back home either. We can go anywhere; we’ll have to start over wherever we go.”
She was in an even worse situation than Yu Qi. Yu Qi still had a small, shabby house in her hometown—of course, in this era of meteor disasters, that house wouldn’t sell even if it wasn’t destroyed, so it was practically worthless except for being a registered address.
Ya Tong didn’t even have a small house like that. Her residence was registered with relatives, and she had strived to excel in her studies to rise above their disdain, relying on scholarships for education.
She moved to the provincial capital in junior high, where she met Yu Qi. She was a year older than Yu Qi and had gone abroad a year earlier, cutting ties with her hometown long ago.
None of them had expected that after all their efforts and hard work, the apocalypse would render everything meaningless.
While Yu Qi and Ya Tong were determined to return to J Country, honestly, they didn’t know what they would do once there. They hadn’t had the energy to think about their future while constantly escaping death.
The biggest challenge still lay ahead.
A ten-plus-day journey seemed thrilling during planning, but in reality, it would likely be grueling. Sitting in a car for so long was bound to be uncomfortable.
At this moment, neither of them knew that Yu Xi had a small surprise for them.