Traveler of the River of Time and Space-Chapter 294 - 1: Return to the Wasteland

Chapter 294: Chapter 1: Return to the Wasteland
Ssssss.
Some unusually agile, hunched figures rushed out from the ruins, each almost nothing but skin and bones, yet their movements were extremely swift, boldly charging at the group ahead against the hail of fire from the Gatling heavy machine gun.
Corpse Ghosts?
Are the Corpse Ghosts here all this formidable?
Their speed is almost comparable to the Living Corpse Ghosts Su Ziyu had seen before, their Life Force is similarly strong, even when their bodies are riddled with bullet holes, they still possess the ability to move.
At that moment, a Corpse Ghost suddenly leapt from the rooftop, seemingly intending to pounce directly at the bald man wielding the Gatling.
But just then.
Bang!
A muffled gunshot rang out, and that Corpse Ghost exploded into a mess of bloody fragments in mid-air.
Someone?
Those people not far away clearly heard the gunshot, and first glanced warily at Su Ziyu’s side. Upon discovering the shattered Corpse Ghost nearby, they began firing back and ran over.
It’s a sniper!
Bang.
No need to save the last few bullets, you can easily acquire a lot of ammunition here anyway.
Su Ziyu didn’t use any other abilities, mainly to avoid scaring these people, explaining would be very troublesome, so he simply took out his Anti-Material Sniper Rifle, swiftly killed each of the Corpse Ghosts that rushed out one by one.
"HELP!"
A darker-skinned woman shouted loudly while retreating. She seemed to be of Indo-European mixed race, and appeared to have a slight shoulder injury.
The metal storm of the Gatling heavy machine gun stopped.
It looks like they ran out of bullets; this type of firearm consumes bullets very quickly, making it quite thrilling to use.
"Pollution detected!"
In Su Ziyu’s perception appeared a faintly red Spiritual Light target, he immediately turned his gun and aimed at the broken wall of the ruins. A crawling creature, resembling no human at all, with skin mostly peeled away, exposing dark red muscle tissue and unknown membranes, appeared there. The creature moved with astonishing speed, jumping off the wall right when Su Ziyu aimed.
Crisis perception?
This was Su Ziyu’s first encounter with such a creature, it seemed to sense something, quickly landed and dashed back into the ruins, soon apparently entered underground, completely vanishing from Su Ziyu’s perception range.
The Corpse Ghosts that had charged out were quickly dealt with.
The people escaping towards Su Ziyu had men and women of every skin color, many seemed to be of Latin descent, led by an older white man appearing around forty, one eye intact, the other a mechanical eye with claw marks at the corner.
"Thank you, buddy!" The white man reached out to Su Ziyu, saying: "I’m Paul, from the Elk Gathering Place."
A place unheard of.
"Su Ziyu." Su Ziyu extended his hand for a shake and said: "A Wilderness Hunter."
Wilderness Hunter?
This middle-aged man named Paul couldn’t help but size up Su Ziyu, revealing a tough character, his demonstrated Gun Technique undoubtedly marked him as formidable, albeit a bit peculiar that his attire appeared too clean.
Su Ziyu’s black combat suit seemed without any dirt, unlike the typical hunter wandering the Wilderness for years.
"Fatty."
"Come here, help me with this gun." A heavy sound of footsteps approached.
Soon.
A dazzling bald head appeared before Su Ziyu, smiling as he approached, saying: "Chinese? Didn’t expect to meet a fellow countryman here!"
"Are you from the Chinatown Gathering Place?"
"My Dharma name is Jie Se."
"Thanks for your aid just now, benefactor!"
This monk seemed a bit peculiar, speaking of his Dharma name without clasping his hands in prayer but extending one for a handshake, saying: "Great Gun Technique! It’s been a while since I’ve seen such a formidable sniper!"
"Those radiation Corpse Ghosts are unbelievably fast, didn’t expect you to hit headshots every time!"
This self-claimed monk Jie Se wore black gloves, and when Su Ziyu shook his hand, it felt like hardened metal rather than flesh, upon closer inspection, both his hands were mechanical arms, hence effortlessly wielding the Gatling heavy machine gun.
"Bionic arms?" The person named Jie Se seemed rather straightforward, lightly pinching Su Ziyu’s palm, glancing sideways at the Anti-Material Sniper Rifle.
Su Ziyu didn’t answer his question, instead turning to the white man and asking: "Got bullets?"
"I’m almost out."
Having saved them, the white man nodded without hesitation: "Yes. In the car."
"Which caliber do you need?"
Su Ziyu said: "12.7MM."
"Got it." The white man turned, walking towards the SUV: "Follow me."
These people seemed skilled, with almost half bearing traces of mechanical augmentation, yet the team looked quite unusual, including a Crusaders’ black priest wrapping a companion’s injuries, who nodded slightly upon seeing Su Ziyu.
"Why are you here?" Su Ziyu asked casually.
"For supplies, of course." The monk Jie Se, fairly acquainted due to sharing kinship, spoke: "It’s said there’s a batch of military supplies inside."
"We planned to get some."
"Didn’t expect we couldn’t even breach the underground, no wonder those bastards sold this info so cheaply."
The white leader glared back, yet Jie Se seemed unfazed.
This guy seemed nothing like the monks Su Ziyu remembered, carrying the hefty Gatling heavy machine gun past a fat man and said: "Not just us know this info, but who could get in anyway?"
"These radiation Corpse Ghosts are harder to deal with than the outside."
Su Ziyu chuckled, asking: "And what about now? Heading back or continuing?"
"If heading back, take me along."
"I’m out of supplies. Need to find a gathering place to get some."
Paul nodded directly: "We’re heading back now. If you want to go to the gathering place, join us."
"Our gathering place offers all kinds of supplies."
"Plus, grilled venison is the most renowned delicacy nearby."
The group quickly set off.
Their vehicle still had some items, not planning to leave empty-handed, it carried many metal parts scavenged from the ruins. Not far from the SUV was a modified truck, carrying things resembling molds, as Su Ziyu’s side approached, a young man shouted: "Boss!"
"Truck’s tire got stuck. Come help!"
Paul glanced at Jie Se, who directly walked over, lifted the truck considerably with both arms.
The team briefly rested then departed.
Arranged to sit inside the SUV, Su Ziyu entered to find it filled with fumes, two wounded puffing paper-wrapped stuff vigorously, signaling him upon noticing to join in.
"No need." Su Ziyu frowned and turned, leaping onto the truck instead.
Paul signaled with the bald man, then followed up, seating next to Su Ziyu, pulling out a crumpled pack of cigarettes, offering one: "Want one? Rest assured, no additives here!"
Su Ziyu shook his head.
Jie Se was indifferent, lit a cigarette, seemed casual: "Rare to see a Chinese? Where are you from?"
"Polaris." Su Ziyu replied.
The monk frowned, pondering a bit: "Sounds familiar, but can’t recall where."
The vehicle quickly started.
The two conversed sporadically, bonding over shared ethnicity, Su Ziyu subtly probed and gathered the current timeframe.
At this point.
It had been twelve full years since he last left.
.........